RV review: The Coachmen Prism 24FS Class C is mostly nice

Today’s RV review is of the Coachmen Prism 24FS Class C motorhome. I had a chance to walk through this Class C RV at an RV show, and all was well until… well, read on. 

The Coachmen Prism 24FS is a smaller Class C motorhome based on the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter cutaway chassis, and that means it’s motivated by Mercedes-Benz’s 2.0-liter four-cylinder diesel engine. The first time I saw that they had moved to this from the previous 3.0-liter V6, I was quite surprised. 

But it seems that the company has done its homework, and owners are reporting that this little four-banger diesel is doing a fine enough job of scooting these motorhomes along. Part of that is through the magic of twin turbos, and another factor is Mercedes-Benz’s nine-speed automatic. 

Good job, Coachmen, on the options

Know that RV companies are able to equip these chassis with a variety of options, including various safety and convenience features. At their base, they’re intended for delivery trucks, but you can add features that make them comparable to fancy cars, including things like lane assist, adaptive cruise control, and other features. All of those were present, so good job to Coachmen for checking the boxes on the option list of things that matter. 

Also, I typically recommend starting at the road and working your way up when RV shopping. One of the things I urge prospective buyers to do is look at the cargo-carrying capability of any Class C you’re considering. It’s amazing to me how closely some of these campers come to the maximum load capacity of the chassis. 

In the case of the one I saw, there was about 1,200 pounds of cargo carrying capability remaining on the build, but add a spouse and a good amount of clothing and beer, and you can exceed that with a surprisingly minimal amount of effort. So be aware. 

Outside of the Coachmen Prism 24FS

Something that absolutely caught my eye on the outside of this rig was the solid green paint. No swishy swirls, no carnival float nonsense graphics. Just tasteful application of Pete the Dalmatian. It was so refreshingly tasteful to me. Thank you, Coachmen. 

The slide mechanism on this encompasses most of the road side of the rig and utilizes the Lippert Slim Rack slide system. We’ve likely all heard complaints about the Schwintek mechanism, and this is something new that Lippert touts as being more robust and reliable.

Coachmen Prism 24FS - 2026

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Living in the Coachmen Prism

The model I saw featured a four-place dinette that’s in the same slide room as the 60” x 74” bed at the back of the rig. If you’re not into the dinette, you could swap in theater seats here instead, with the obvious penalty of having fewer places to place guests’ backsides. 

The kitchen in here features an induction cooktop and a convection air fryer microwave, so all meal prep is electric. Unfortunately, I didn’t see any drawers in the kitchen, though there are cabinets for storage. Plus, there’s a pantry on the road side that divides the dinette from the bedroom area. 

There’s also an over-cab bunk room that I know many travelers use for storage rather than sleeping. 

I know a lot of you will appreciate that the controls for everything are simple buttons and switches rather than one of those Firefly systems. I have seen more RVers fight with those Firefly systems when, honestly, you can just flip a darned switch to turn on a light already. 

What I would change

Acute readers might notice that I didn’t comment about the bathroom, and that was simply because I could not get through the door. I know most RV designers are skinny young guys who’ve never been camping. But, seriously, you need to have my Santa Claus-looking self give your designs a test. 

The bed was so close to the door in the bathroom that I couldn’t get the door open enough to get through the darned thing. I mean, seriously. I know y’all have heard of sliding doors at Coachmen, so we who displace a lot of water in the pool can get in there.

Also, I think it’s weird that the kitchen features all-electric cooking in the form of an induction cooktop and convection air frying microwave, but there’s still propane aboard. There are diesel heaters, so you could use a single fuel source aboard this rig so you don’t have to go have the propane tank filled and fill the fuel tank with diesel. 

That way, you could also use the diesel for a generator. Or, better yet, eliminate the genny altogether and put a second high-performance alternator on here, and use a good set of lithium batteries and an inverter and solar. 

PEX clamps on flexible lines—no

Lastly, PEX clamps on flexible lines. This is a very common plumbing practice in the RV industry and is almost a guaranteed leak over time as the flex line expands and contracts and flexes. This would never be used in residential construction because of the likelihood of failure, but it’s common in some RVs, and I saw it here. In Grand Design’s new Lineage Class C, a direct competitor, they’re using all Shark Bite plumbing fittings, which carry a 25-year guarantee. 

Overall, I like this rig a lot, and the driving experience afforded by the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter that’s well equipped, as this one is, will be a positive one. This is a relatively compact rig at just about 25 feet long and might work well for a couple on the go who might have the occasional smaller guest who occupies the over-cab bunk. Watch your cargo weights, but I think the outside of this rig is quite striking. 

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