motorhome owners

[mikentinamidnight]

Tina and I are looking at buying a class a motorhome in the 35ft + range and we haven't a clue what it good or bad.

We have read all the reviews and they are very conflicting so we figured we would ask you folks here as we know many of you own them and are not afraid to voice your opinion honestly.

Any info will be appreciated.

Thanks

Mike and T

[Eck]

My wife and I are looking at them also. We have been looking at the class a diesel pushers, and like you two we have been reading and looking at everything we can find.

 

In my opinion, RV's are like anything else. Motorcycles, cars, trucks, boats, homes, apartments, etc..all depends what the buyer really wants & likes. There are SO many types and styles to choose from..

 

My wife and I just got back from Charleston, SC where we were looking at some and we also stopped in at a local camp ground to see how they look after being all hooked up..

Gained a little knowledge by doing that I must say..stop at a camp site and look around so you know what you will be getting into..like 30 amp or 50 amp costs for hook up, sewage, water electric hook ups and what the rigs look like all set up..accessories like out door carpet if the camp ground is not paved.... you'll get the picture..

 

I probably didn't help, but hey... Good luck.....

[flb_78]

I'd say that unless you plan on using it every weekend, you could rent 1 cheaper for the 2-3 times a year that it would be used by most folks.

[flb_78]

But if I were to buy one, I would buy one built on a truck chassis with the engine in the front. That way if there's a mechanical problem, you could pull into most truck dealerships and have it worked on. Many places will not touch a motorhome built on an RV chassis because of how different they are from a truck chassis.

[CMIKE]

But if I were to buy one, I would buy one built on a truck chassis with the engine in the front. That way if there's a mechanical problem, you could pull into most truck dealerships and have it worked on. Many places will not touch a motorhome built on an RV chassis because of how different they are from a truck chassis.

 

Plus 1 on that.

At work we have a Emergency response unit...Really a big camper but has offices and emergency response equipment in it. It has a Frieghtliner front end....Needed a oil change and a service...so we called all the camper places since we bought it from a camper place... PRices Sky high and some would not even do that... Called the local Frieight liner dealer... I could not beleive the difference in prices.

Another thing to consider with those bus type motorhomes...you will be the first to arrive in a accident

 

I am just a poor boy with a pull behind toy hauler camper that needs a new home.

[mikentinamidnight]

thanks for the info everyone

i am an automotive and diesel mechanic so repairs and service will be done by me so that is not an issue.

we dont care if it is gas or diesel they are both going to get lousy mileage.

we plan on buying it now so it will be paid off by time we retire then we are going to live in it full time. south in winter north in summer.

maybe even be able to trailer the trike to fort collins or some of the other farther meet and eats as we only get a weeks vacation and they are too far to ride to in just a week.

 

Eck; looking at a campground is a good idea only they are all closed up here for the season, so we will look in the spring, we are in no hurry to buy one.

 

thanks again

mike and t

[BEER30]

Becky and I started looking about 2 years ago coming home from the Asheville Rally . It first started by pulling into a RV store just to get out of the heat and a Pee-Stop . But just to amuse the saleman , we looked at the RV . The Leprechaun caught our eye and it was a Class C . But if I were to get a RV , it would be a Class A . Though we were just taking a break and looked at a few RV , the thought stuck into our heads for future prospects . Since then , Becky and I stop at just about every RV store along our path . Been to numerous RV shows as well . Everyone has their sales pitch and to why their brand is the best . Well like some have said , there are so many .

The decision whether you buy used or new . Used my be getting into someones else's headache , or it could be a trade-in or re-po . Many up-grade to a bigger RV as the first was not big enough or have all the extras that they really needed . Used , the prices have already discounted the depreciation . New , the value depreciated as soon as you drive it off the lot . Then you wander , what will it cost me for repairs on a used unit if I were to break down ? There are many RV insurance policies that cover you from bumper to bumper . Question is is how much do you want to pay for such varieties of coverages . New , you have warranties , but some say that your spend much time going back to the dealer to get all the bugs worked out of it , were the used RV have already have ad the bugs fixed . Decisions , decisions .

Every RV has common fixtures that are the same among all RV's . Floorplans vary , so take your pick . What you intend to do with the RV is YOUR preference , so do not expect much help from others as every has different tastes . Becky and I want pass thru storage , diesel pusher , plenty of cabinet space , W/D , residential refer , sat TV , and plenty of bathroom necessities .

As the male figure , the mechanical , TV , BEER cooler , BBQ grill , and all the out side fixtures is what I concentrate on . I'm leaning the the SPARTAN chassis as for the number of air bags , steering , drive train , under coach storage , other factors over all the other chassis available . I will settle for the Freight Liner as a second choice . Becky on the other hand needs the womans touch more so toward the interior . She like the bath and 1/2 , therefore it limits us to lean toward the tag axle without giving up the living room space .

We are still looking to the day that we finally decided to break the bank . We are leaning to buying new , but also open to buy used if need be . Our taste is more toward luxury over the toy hauler . They make trailers to pull the bike in or even an additional Smart Car for rainy days . Talking to numerous RVist at RV shows , many already have 50 amp service on their RV or a computer inside the RV to limit 30 amp conversion . It also depend whether you boon dock , shore power , or generator . There are numerous resources one can research to plan ahead of campsite ahead . Also checkout the Bureau of Land Management , lots of free campsites off the beaten path . Planning is the key to detour any complications of finding a place to pull over and being denied due to your size and power needs .

As Becky and I have explored numerous brand and models , the Tiffin Phaeton 42QBH or the 40 QTH MH is the one which now give the WOW factor . We feel that for the price , we are getting more for the buck and it meets the majority of what we are looking for . I have also received a multitude of positive feed-back as to the positive attitude of how the manufacturer stands behind their products . I personally met Bob Tiffin , owner of Tiffin MH and he offered to give me his personal home phone number if I needed to call him . Their plant is in Red Bay , Al , so it is only a lttle over an hour for you ECK ! And they have plant tours during the weekdays to either go see them or yuor own MH being built . Any custom work that you may want , you can arange the workers to do after hours . Like I said Becky and I are leaning towards the Phaeton and I frequent this forum to learn more about this RV .

Till the day that we buy , Becky and I will still continue toresearch as many RV as we can . We only want to buy once if all possible to get the right one the first time .

 

BEER30

[Nemo]

Buying a Motorhome is one of the better decisions that we've ever made. Like they say, there are many different brands, models, and equipment to choose from. The trend now is going to shorter units because of the fuel mileage, but it depends upon how you plan to use it. Short ones are OK if you use them only for week ends or short visits, but if you plan on extended stays at a certain location or travel a lot, the longer units ride better, control easier and provide more room to move around inside. Our unit is 37' long with a Ford gas engine, which has more than enough power unless you spend a lot of time in the mountains, in which case I'd recommend a diecel. We spend the winters in Texas in the Mission, McAllen area and we chose to have a washer dryer set up, which calls for the longer length. A motorhome is definitely a Money Pit, because you will always be adding things so that living away from home can be as enjoyable or more than living at home. There's no comparison of spending the nights in your own bed and surroundings to that of a motel, where who knows what that bed, pillow, carpet and surroundings went through many times. We have a dual section air matress, which is unbelievably comfortable. Plus motels clean up that room , usually within 20 minutes. A 50 Amp service is a Must. So is: awnings on all the windows, a back up camera, 2 air conditioners are much better than 1, and a ladder up the back to get onto the roof. Also plan on the expense of towing equipment to tow a car - you'll need that! I tow a Honda CRV, a fine car, light weight and can be towed with the automatic transmissiion, with no problem (some cars can't). So, I say, make a choice and just go for it! You'll feel like the "King of the Road" wheeling the unit down the road, believe me. Good Luck to you! Nemo.

[RustyRecycledToy]

Myself, I've had pull behind campers, and every class of MH. A,B, & C. There was something about each one of them that I didn't like. Most of the MHs I had had the same problems. Underpowered and poor fuel mileage. About 6 years ago I started looking into converted busses. Not school busses, old retired greyhounds and Trailways busses. Machines built to haul weight and run down the highways for endless miles. They're not made of sticks and staples, get better fuel mileage, and actually have enough power to pull their own weight.

I've seen already converted busses ready for use anywhere from $6000-$50000.

 

When I bit the bullet last year and bought a bus I opted for an empty shell. Picked it up for $3000 with less than 80K on a reman Detroit 8v71. Picked up a 'deer hunters special' for $900. Got all the appliances,roof airs,holding tanks,heater,etc. out of it. made my cash back by selling what was left.All of that goes into the bus. Best part is, the wife got to design the floorplan the way she wanted. She chose the flooring,window coverings,cabinets,etc. Basically it's like building a house. The interior is (going to be when it's finished) exactly what makes her happy, and everything else about it already is what makes me happy. It tools down the road without breaking a sweat.

 

Not sayin that the stick and staple MHs aren't nice, but I wanted something a little different with something more substantial between me and the outside world than a sheet of fiberglass and some fancy paint.

 

As the busnuts say...

 

"Do it your way"

[BEER30]

What you were ost likely referring to is the MCI chassis . They are made more for commercial use such as the Bus line service . Build like a tank in some aspects . What limits it has for some is the ability for slide-outs , however there are companies that provide that service to fabricate them . I have seen some that start out cheap . but suddenly run into the 800K or higher after all said and done . But still economical for the bare basic RV'r .

 

BEER30

[Thom]

Guess what i do for a living ? yep ! i sell and service MHs been doing it for about 27 years , most of th MH factorys have gone broke in the last year or have cut way back Monaco and Fleetwood are so small and have very few employees that it takes 6 weeks to get parts , it took 3 1/2 mos to get 1 compartment door from Monaco . Gulfstream and Winybago fall apart while setting on the lot and it is very hard to get warranty work done ! i am not going to tell with brand i sell because i hate to sell MHs to friends .

to give you a little info on used MHs , the milage is about 3000 mikes a year , any mh over 30,000 miles is shot , och ! if they have been sitting for a year or more it will take a lot of money to get them right .

if i was buying a MH now and wanted to spend anything over 60,000 i would buy a used Holiday ramber made before 1999 and have it completely rebuilt from the ground up . if i bought a new one or almost new it would be one of Bobby's , he makes a good camper , he also will rebuild one for you , you can buy a old one and take it to Redbay and Bob will rebuild it like new . I don't sell any of his campers and have never sold any but i have worked on a lot of them over the years and have allways liked them so in the end Beer good :thumbsup:choice but if you buy a used one check the bathroom floor real close 1st ! around the toilet , and make sure the wood is good under the tile from the front steps all the way through the MH , not a eazy or cheap fix !

my feeling on anything made by Fleetwood is PLEASE buy them !!! because they are junk and i make lots of money working on them ! had to work on 2 of them today instead of riding but i got in a 120 miles in this afternoon so the day is not shot , if anybody want any info just give me a shout be happy to help

[Gary N.]

I bought an '05 Winnebago in '06. It's a 39' Class A on a Workhorse chassis with the 8.1 Chev engine. It had 8000 miles on it and was 8 months old. I truly believe the first guy just got tired of trying to get all the bugs out and traded it off. It took me another year to finally get everything fixed and I had to do most of it myself to get it to my satisfaction. I bought an extended warranty and glad I did as the Motosat satellite dish control box went out after the original warranty was up and that cost $1500. Just about paid for the extended warranty right there. I finally found a dealer in Florida who fixed an on going problem I had with the service engine light coming on.

Several people told me and I believe it. The guy who buys any RV is the final inspector because they sure don't inspect them in the factory.

Here are a couple of web sites I really found helpful. Lots of good advice and if have a question someone will know the answer. Kind of just like venturerider.org.

 

http://www.irv2.com/

 

http://www.rv.net/forum/

Edited October 20, 2009 by Gary N.

[raceman62race]

We don't own a motorhome but we do own a 5th wheel and I would like to say a word or 2 about the dealer we bought it from......Lazydays RV in Tampa Flordia. http://www.lazydays.com/ They REALLY impressed me! Here is how our experience went:

We struck a deal over the internet. They sent a DVD to the house of a walk around of the coach. I had to give a $600.00 refundable deposit for them to hold it. Refundable meaning I had to show up at Lazydays and if I found anything wrong or I didn't like the coach, I could get my money back. They had the coach set up in what they called delivery alley and they invited us to stay in the coach over night to make sure there wasn't anything wrong and also make sure I knew how to operate everything. The next morning the salesman was knocking on the door asking how the night went. We found a couple of very small things wrong that we told him about and within the hour they were taking the coach to repair the items. They had us stay another night to be sure the repairs were satisfactory and they were. They own a campground across the street from the dealership and we had full access to the pool and other things in the campground. They also gave us a pass for 3 nights per year stay at the campground to use anytime we wanted to. they also fed us breakfast and lunch the entire time we were there.

So if you can find a coach you like, I highly recommend Lazydays in Tampa Fl

[timgray]

thanks for the info everyone

i am an automotive and diesel mechanic so repairs and service will be done by me so that is not an issue.

we dont care if it is gas or diesel they are both going to get lousy mileage.

we plan on buying it now so it will be paid off by time we retire then we are going to live in it full time. south in winter north in summer.

maybe even be able to trailer the trike to fort collins or some of the other farther meet and eats as we only get a weeks vacation and they are too far to ride to in just a week.

 

Eck; looking at a campground is a good idea only they are all closed up here for the season, so we will look in the spring, we are in no hurry to buy one.

 

thanks again

mike and t

 

Do you really have to have a Class A motorhome? a truck+5th wheel is far cheaper so you can buy more for the money, and you will have zero service issues. a 40 foot 5th wheel with a 14 foot garage for your motorcycle that is far more luxurious than a motorhome can be had for less than $48,000 right now as dealers are hard up and selling at cost. I looked at one that even had a fiberglass underpan that was insulated and heated for year round use in northern climates that was far nicer than my own home. that was dirt cheap. couple that with ford and GM pretty much giving away trucks and you have a better combo. Plus you dont have to drag another car around with you AND can have your motorcycle wherever you go as well.

[MiCarl]

Having owned both a used and new travel trailer I've learned a couple things:

 

1 - The floors typically start to fail UNDER cabinets and seats. We purchased a 15 year old trailer that looked like new and had been parked over a year. I walked the entire floor and could feel no softness. After taking it home it was visibly collapsing around the frame in two weeks. Fortunately I was able to repair it myself or we'd have been hurt big time.

 

2 - Try everything including sitting on the commode and getting into the shower. Our current trailer has exactly 6' shower height. At 6' it's annoying, if I was any taller I'd be in trouble.

 

3 - Think about your future needs. We got a trailer configured for the children to be able to go with us right before they reached the age of not needing parents. We'd be better served with more living space and less sleeping space.

 

I've got to believe there are lots of people that recently bought motorhomes that cannot currently afford payments. I'd think there would be some real steals on the used and repo markets.

[mikentinamidnight]

Thanks everyone for all the help.

There is so much research to do on these things and so far only the ones on bus chassis' seen to have good reviews as far as longevity and quality of build.

 

Timgray; We thought of that route and it is alot cheaper but T has hip problems and with a class a she can get up and move around a bit.

 

We will keep digging and with help from the fine folks on this site eventually we will figure out what we are doing.

 

Thanks again everyone.

 

Mike and T

[RustyRecycledToy]

What you were ost likely referring to is the MCI chassis . They are made more for commercial use such as the Bus line service . Build like a tank in some aspects . What limits it has for some is the ability for slide-outs , however there are companies that provide that service to fabricate them . I have seen some that start out cheap . but suddenly run into the 800K or higher after all said and done . But still economical for the bare basic RV'r .

 

BEER30

 

 

No, what I am referring to is MCI,Eagle,Prevost,Flxible,and GMCs. Mine is a 1965 GM PD4106. I think the word SOLID describes it well. Mostly aluminum, BIG v-8 diesel,lots of storage in the 'basement'. More than ample living space upstairs. Air brakes,air suspension,power steering, etc.

 

Not to mention the classic styling. Running down the road it doesn't look like a 'sticks & staples' MH. It stands out. Seems like everywhere I have taken it so far people have gone out of their way to ask me questions about it. They remember riding one like it when they were younger. Converting a bus into a MH isn't for the faint of heart though. A large percentage of the people who start a conversion never finish it. They get the mindset that they will take it out 'when it's finished'. (They are never truly finished) It sits in their yard and eventually gets sold for less than what they have in it just to get it out of the yard. I take mine out for a drive at least once a month. Just remind myself why I am putting myself through this. I'll load up the family in the "tin tent" and drive a hundred miles or so for lunch, then take the long route back home. It's fun.

 

When I worked at a Freightliner dealership bodyshop I had the mispleasure of repairing some of those fiberglass behemoths. No thank you. Not much there offering any protection from anything. tree limbs,parking posts,fence posts. All do expensive damage. The first time I wrestled my bus into the drive I hit a fencepost midway down the side of the bus. The fencepost was laid out flat, the bus got scuffed. That post would have done very real damage to fiberglass.

 

Just my way of doing things though. Bussin it isn't for everyone. I'll admit, buying an already finished production MH or already converted bus would have been easier, but to me not near as much fun.

 

Just my way of doin it.

Edited October 20, 2009 by RustyRecycledToy

[Guest tx2sturgis]

I want to chime in and say that once you get your motorhome or trailer, you might want to look into adding solar panels and a catalytic RV heater.

 

I know, you have a generator, and you have an RV furnace. I'm talking about adding to the usefulness of the unit, when boondocking, and especially when boondocking in cool or cold temps.

 

I added these items to my RV many years ago...and it makes a big difference in generator usage and propane consumed.