Testing Out the Winnebago Driver Confidence Package

Testing Out the Winnebago Driver Confidence Package
Learn how these features make Class A RV driving safer and more comfortable.

By: Kenny & Sabrina Phillips

We have driven our Winnebago all over the U.S. and in parts of Canada and Mexico. Our Winnebago Vista LX 27N is a Class A gas motorhome, and we are often asked while at gas stations: “is that large RV hard to drive?” For me, it is not difficult to drive at all and we even tow a car behind the RV, but I can see how our RV would look intimidating to most people. After all, you do need to climb a few steps to get up inside to the driver’s seat, it is as wide as a tractor trailer, and since it is a high-profile vehicle the wind will try to push you side to side. 

We have done a few things to increase the comfort and handling of our RV over the years (like add Sumo Springs, Koni Shocks, and a Safe T Plus bar), but Winnebago is taking this a step further to increase the overall confidence of new RV drivers as well as us seasoned ones with the Winnebago Driver Confidence Package.

What is the Winnebago Driver Confidence Package?

This package is a collection of features that work together to put you at ease behind the wheel of Winnebago’s Class A gas motorhomes (Winnebago Vista, Winnebago Sunstar, and Winnebago Adventurer). With all the features active, not only will you feel more confident behind the wheel, but you will be more comfortable as well.

These features include Intelligent Adaptive Cruise Control, Distance Alert plus Distance Indication, Pre Collison-Assist with Active Braking Support, a Lane Keeping System, Electronic Stability Control, Traction Control, Hill Start Assist, Auto High Beams, and Manual Shift Mode with Transmission Range Indicator. (For reference, my 2016 Winnebago Vista does not have any of these features so this is a big upgrade.)

Preparing for the Test Drive & Setting Preferences

While in Forest City last year, I was invited to take one of these new Class A Winnebago RVs out for a test drive and share my feedback with the Winnebago team. The day began with me heading over to the Winnebago facility and meeting up with John Millis, the Product Manager for all Winnebago Class A RVs. 

John went over the new package which is controlled by the keypad on the steering wheel. I was pleased to see that not only could you turn some systems on and off, but that you could adjust the sensitivity for some of them as well. I liked the amount of control over these features to make them more or less sensitive since everyone has their own preferences. 

After John finished showing me the features, it was time to take the RV out for a test drive. Our test vehicle was a 2023 Winnebago Adventurer 36Z. It also had Sumo Springs and a Safe T Plus bar which can now be added from Winnebago when you order your coach. (Note: We were in a 30th Anniversary Winnebago Adventurer which has the Safe T Plus bar and Sumo Springs standard.)

During the test drive, Winnebago product manager Mark Lafferty drove a Winnebago Solis Class B van in front of us to trigger some of the systems in the Winnebago Adventurer. So, with Walkie Talkies in hand to communicate with Mark, we were off! 

Highlights of the Winnebago Driver Confidence Package

To test the Intelligent Adaptive Cruise Control, Mark would slow down then the Winnebago Adventurer would recognize the speed change and match his speed. Then, when Mark sped up it would again match his speed until we reached the set speed of 60 mph. The system worked very well, and I felt just this one addition alone would really make the overall driving experience more pleasant and relaxing as now all I was doing was steering. 

If you are not a fan of Adaptive Cruise Control and like a little more of your own input, you can turn it off and leave Distance Alert on. This will allow you to set a safe distance from a vehicle in front of you. If that preset distance is reduced, your Winnebago will alert you that you are gaining on a vehicle too quickly to make a safe stop.

In order to try out the Pre-Collision Assist with Active Braking support, we had Mark slow down to five miles per hour and the Winnebago Adventurer quickly realized this, pre-charged the brakes and started applying them. This gave me plenty of time to step in and stop the RV before getting too close to the Solis. Winnebago either had a lot of faith in me or the new system!

Note: The active braking feature will not bring the RV to a complete stop on its own, you do still need to step on the brake. The system is designed to alert you and start braking, giving you time to react and stop the vehicle completely. 

Another feature that I thought was nice was the Hill Start Assist. I flat-tow my car and you don’t want to roll backwards when doing so since it can bind up the tow bar. Having a feature that helps avoid this potential issue is ideal!

I found the Manual Shifting and Transmission Range Indicator to be a nice feature as well. As Sabrina and I do our fair share of mountain driving while traveling through states like Colorado, Utah, and New Mexico, I would be able to put the RV in a lower gear right before hitting an incline instead of waiting for the automatic transmission to figure out that it needs to downshift while already into the climb. 

I think this will greatly improve driving in higher-altitude locations. I did test out this gear selection feature on my test drive, but keep in mind we were in Iowa where there are no significant grade changes to fully get a feel for how the manual shift would work on a hill climb. But it did work great on flattish ground and would shift smoothly as I manually shifted up or down through the gears. 

During the test drive, we were able to take some sharp turns and I felt as if the vehicle cornered nicely. This could be because of the Electronic Stability Control which monitors the speed of each wheel and can adjust these speeds to make up for under-steering or over-steering, making every swooping curve as smooth as the last. 

One of the systems that I would probably find myself turning off is the Lane Assist, but, to be fair, I turn this feature off when I rent cars also. Like I said earlier, that is the nice thing about this package: you can turn off what you don’t want to use! I adjusted the sensitivity of the lane assist to low and I still felt it alerted me of lane departing a bit too early or often for my preference. However, it may help offer peace of mind to other Class A RV drivers. 

If this feature senses you going out of your lane lines too often, it also displays a coffee cup suggesting it’s time to take a break from driving. Taking breaks regularly is recommended for safe RV driving, so having this reminder could be a helpful feature for many RVers.

There were two features that I did not get the chance to test, one was Auto High Beam Headlamps. But I have driven a few cars that have this feature and I certainly like it. With this system on, you can turn your high beams on and, if other vehicle headlights or taillights are detected, your Winnebago will automatically switch to normal headlights. Then, once that vehicle passes or turns away, it will automatically turn the high beams back on. This ensures you always have the best view at night without disturbing other drivers on the road. 

The other feature we could not test was the Traction Control. By now, almost everyone has probably driven a vehicle with traction control as it has become a standard feature in passenger cars since 2012. Traction control is going to apply braking to drive wheels when it detects excessive tire spin when driving in situations such as rain, snow, or wet leaves. 

My Final Thoughts on the Driver Confidence Package 

I very much enjoyed the driving experience of the new Class A gas Winnebago with these standard features. With all the Driver Confidence Package features working together, I felt very comfortable behind the wheel and, because I could select the sensitivity or even turn some of the features off, I never felt as if the system was intrusive. I still felt that I had control over the vehicle and not the other way around. The only downside to me testing these features is now I miss having them every time I drive my 2016 Winnebago Vista. 

What do you think of these features? Have you used any similar features in your car, truck, or SUV? I am excited that Winnebago is including these features standard in all Class A gas motorhomes!

Take care, safe travels, and please leave a comment below.