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  1. #1
    Setting Up Camp kingbird's Avatar
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    Question for 17MKE Owners

    We are currently looking at either getting an Imagine 17MKE or a Winnebago 2108DS. Both are somewhat comparable and I would rather have the GD but there are two things that bother me: one is the GD has what appears to be a hard plastic cardboard type front cap while the Micro Minnie has a full fiberglass cap. Second is the bed and how it relates to the slide-in; the bed on the Winnebago can be folded down with the slide IN but I'm not sure about the Imagine. My question: will the Murphy bed fold down with the slide IN on the 17MKE? The reason I ask is because if we were to boon-dock for the night, we would have to extend the slide to lower the bed. And to extend the slide would mean making sure the rig is level which would be very unhandy in most boon-docking situations. If the bed can be lowered with the slide in, that's great. If not that's a big mistake by GD, IMHO.

    Thanks.
    Last edited by kingbird; 01-17-2021 at 05:19 PM.
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  2. #2
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    Quote Originally Posted by kingbird View Post
    We are currently looking at either getting an Imagine 17MKE or a Winnebago 2108DS. Both are somewhat comparable and I would rather have the GD but there are two things that bother me: one is the GD has what appears to be a hard plastic cardboard type front cap while the Micro Minnie has a full fiberglass cap. Second is the bed and how it relates to the slide-in; the bed on the Winnebago can be folded down with the slide IN but I'm not sure about the Imagine. My question: will the Murphy bed fold down with the slide IN on the 17MKE? The reason I ask is because if we were to boon-dock for the night, we would have to extend the slide to lower the bed. And to extend the slide would mean making sure the rig is level which would be very unhandy in most boon-docking situations. If the bed can be lowered with the slide in, that's great. If not that's a big mistake by GD, IMHO.

    Thanks.
    The bed in our 17MKE with the dinette will not lower completely with the slide in. Not sure if it's the same with the recliners. You could maybe run the slide out just far enough for the bed to come down.

  3. #3
    Setting Up Camp kingbird's Avatar
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    I really hate to hear that. Thanks for your reply.
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  4. #4
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    Quote Originally Posted by kingbird View Post
    I really hate to hear that. Thanks for your reply.
    The 17MKE originally had a fixed bed, so it was fully functional slide in (we have one). The bed was oriented east/west (or port/starboard) versus the north/south Murphy it has now. Port side was the head of the bed, with a drawer at the foot. I guess it wasn’t popular this way.

    I can’t speak to the Murphy for sure, but since it’s the same trailer we have with a different bed. I would be surprised if the Murphy operates slide in. The bed would have to be up against the cabinets, and even then I doubt it.
    2022 Transcend Xplor 240ML
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  5. #5
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    Just to possession of our 17MKE and no the murphy bed cannot be lowered into place with the slide closed. It is the recliner version not the dinette. About 18" of the sofa that is in front of the bed is blocked by the slide when it is closed too.

  6. #6
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    We're picking up our 17MKE in two days, and last weekend we had a day of buyer's remorse for that reason. We also looked at the Winnebago with the murphy but preferred the trim and finish on the 17MKE (the counters on the 2108DS seemed really low). If GD made the Transcend Xplor 200MK's floorplan in the Imagine XLS finish, that would have been perfect. If we find ourselves in need of sleeping with the slide-out in for a night, we'll see if there's room for a cot or a Thermarest on the floor for my husband and I'll sleep on the recliners. Other than that one issue, we're super excited about the 17MKE!

  7. #7
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    I have a 2019 17MKE with a fixed bed that runs across the trailer sideways. This works great and the slide can be in or out and the bed is still usable. I think 2019 was the last year that made it with this configuration

    I am a single man and it’s easy to get in and out of. It may be challenging for a couple since one side of the bed is against the front wall. They may have to crawl over one another to get in and out.

  8. #8
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    The designers could have shifted things just a little bit to make it work, but the slide has to be out for the bed to come down. We did the Walmart, Cracker Barrel, and Cabelas parking lot routine on the travel nights of our trip out west last fall. We waited until late to open the slide to sleep and left early the next morning...no problem.

  9. #9
    Setting Up Camp kingbird's Avatar
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    yeah, i think is just a very poor design on the part of Grand Design. it just doesn't make any sense to me why they did it this way. they should have made the couch (and slide) smaller or made the entire rig 6-8" longer to accommodate the bed being out with the slide in.

    thanks for your input.
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  10. #10
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    Quote Originally Posted by KrisBrad View Post
    We're picking up our 17MKE in two days, and last weekend we had a day of buyer's remorse for that reason. We also looked at the Winnebago with the murphy but preferred the trim and finish on the 17MKE (the counters on the 2108DS seemed really low). If GD made the Transcend Xplor 200MK's floorplan in the Imagine XLS finish, that would have been perfect. If we find ourselves in need of sleeping with the slide-out in for a night, we'll see if there's room for a cot or a Thermarest on the floor for my husband and I'll sleep on the recliners. Other than that one issue, we're super excited about the 17MKE!
    We just pulled the trigger on a 17MKE purchase with the theater seating and had that same concern until we realized that those recliners go back far enough to make them viable for a reasonable nights sleep (at least for us). I find myself napping enough in recliners these days that I guess I can sleep in one for a night in a pinch. Otherwise it sounds like we went through the exact same though process in comparing to the Micro Minnies and determining that the GD was just a more thoughful/nicer layout.
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