We had always thought the convection oven part of the microwave in RVs was pretty much useless until we bought our 2016 Newmar Essex, which had a GE Profile Advantium installed as a special option. It’s an option we specified when ordering our 2020 New Aire. But lo and behold, the 2019 London Aire had the lame Whirlpool Newmar uses on all coaches. So what’s the big deal you’re thinking, a microwave is a microwave. Try this: make two pizzas from scratch and cook them at 400F in both the Whirlpool and GE Profile Advantium convection ovens and 1) time how long both ovens take to achieve 400F and 2) report back on the quality of the pizza. Here’s the answers: 1) the Whirlpool never hits 400F (give it an hour and see for yourself), the GE takes <10 minutes and 2) the crust from the GE is crisp and the Whirlpool crust is soggy and limp.
We were disappointed that the London Aire came with the Whirlpool microwave/convection oven
The other problem with the Whirlpool is that the glass carousel used for the microwave will not stay seated while driving down the road. The flimsy plastic wheel it sits on is not attached. The glass carousel bumps around and begins to get hairline cracking if it is not wrapped in a towel or some other method of safe storage for driving days. The GE Profile Advantium sits much more firmly in place and does not bounce around while driving.
We replaced the Whirlpool with this GE Advantium microwave/convection oven
We once asked Newmar how much it costs to upgrade the existing Whirpool microwave in our 2019 New Aire to the GE. They said, with a straight face (via email), $2400. You can order the GE Profile Advantium for about $1100 online. Can the installation really cost $1300? In short, no. It took Karla and I, who have never replaced an over the counter microwave before, about 2 hours. Someone who does it all the time could probably be done in 45 minutes. Nice way to price gouge Newmar.
There are great writeups on the RV forums about installing the GE. I followed them with no problems. It’s a little shocking to drill screws right through the top of the metal microwave, but this is what Newmar did with the Whirlpool and it’s what you have to do with the GE. Just use a good cordless drill, use sheet metal screws, don’t drill a pilot hole and push hard. We’ve driven 2000 miles since the install and the new microwave/convection hasn’t fallen out!
