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RHAPSODY 900-ECSTASY ON WHEELS
Thursday, March 13, 2008
A new kind of music will greet visitors to the 13th Annual Atlantic City RV & Camping Show, March 14 - 16, 2008, Atlantic City Convention Center, Atlantic City, NJ.
That state of elated bliss is Country Coach’s new Rhapsody 900 luxury Class A motorhome---unlike anything the RV market has yet seen.
Priced at $1.3 million, with a power plant that can burn rubber yet so luxurious it features two bathrooms, four flat-screen televisions and two home-theater systems, the 53,000-pound Rhapsody is called by the manufacturer, "The world's finest motor coach."
Admittedly a motorhome for people who live a life without compromise, the Rhapsody 900 has begun to sell. In fact, the first unit was sold in April 2007 by Cartec Motor Coach, of Bordentown, NJ
Cartec sales manager, Robert Kelliher, said he doesn't think he'll have any trouble moving more. “Most prospective customers have already spent $700,000 or $800,000 for a high-end coach, so getting over the $1 million mark is not a huge jump,” he said. "An extra thousand dollars a month to them, for a unique top, top, top of the line RV, is not a big deal,” added Kelliher. “A lot of our customers are big time toy buyers.”
The stunning beauty of the Rhapsody 900 begins with styling from automotive design, and its body lines carry for the 45-foot length of the vehicle.
Inside the coach, amenities of a luxury home are everywhere. A key piece was installation of a Crestron system, which allows the Rhapsody owner to control audio-visual systems and other electronics, heating and air-conditioning, shades and lighting from a hand-held touch screen.
Cartec’s Kelliher explained that instead of the standard wood cabinets with raised panels, sleek, European-style cabinets with automotive-like paint are used. “Four slide-out rooms expand the interior space when the Rhapsody is at rest,” he added.
More elegance is found in the master suite with a full bath in the back of the coach and a guest bath in the main compartment.
But innovation doesn’t stop there. The Rhapsody runs on the biggest, most powerful diesel engine in the automotive world---a Caterpillar C-15 that generates 625 horsepower and a whopping 2,050 foot-pounds of torque.
“However, a new transmission was also needed,” said Kelliher. “So Country Coach struck a deal with Caterpillar to jointly develop a similarly powerful eight-speed automatic transmission with a lighter cast aluminum housing.”
The result: a power train that can spin the tires on a 53,000-pound coach, that powers up hills with no hesitation, and that exceeded 100 mph on a test track.
Also, like many big RVs, the Rhapsody has two rear axles. But on this rig the forward most rear axle is the drive axle, where power is delivered to the wheels. The rear axle is a steerable axle.
“That means at slower speeds, when the driver turns the steering wheel, the wheels on the rear axle turn with the front wheels, enabling sharp turns in tight urban environments, and a 36 1/2 -foot turning radius,” said Kelliher. “As the coach speeds up, the rear axle provides less steering.”
Promising to deliver a new musical refrain, the Rhapsody 900 awaits RVers at the 13th Annual Atlantic City RV & Camping Show, March 14 - 16, 2008, Atlantic City Convention Center, Atlantic City, NJ
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