Is cost of FRED worth it?

[ghostrider]

Was pricing out a new Winnie Adventurer today and thinking about going with the FRED option until I looked at the cost. MSRP addition for the FRED was $25,760. Yes, I know it is supposed to get better mileage than a gas engine version and last longer. We will probably not put more than 50,000 miles on the unit and will probably upgrade in no more than 7 years.

I can buy a lot of gas for the difference in price but would like to hear from those who have faced this decision before placing my order.

Thanks!

[pyoots]

Had a fella with a FRED next to me in Asheville RV Campground and he swore by it. Not only is he getting better mileage but the power is significant. Question is- Is it worth the $. Only you know how deep your pockets are and how much you want to spend. I would drive both and compare. JMHO.

Phil

[Dmiles]

OK, I'l be the first to ask what I'm sure a lot of folks are thinking...what is FRED?

[Larryb]

FRont Engine Diesel

[brucemcdou]

Originally Posted by ghostrider

Was pricing out a new Winnie Adventurer today and thinking about going with the FRED option until I looked at the cost. MSRP addition for the FRED was $25,760.
Thanks!

Hi, Ghostrider - I'll be interested in the responses to this as well. I am happy to see Winnebago offering FRED as an option but don't understand the price difference either. I believe that Tiffin has offered FRED as an option under their Allegro model for two years and the price difference is more like $8-10k. As you note you can buy a lot of gas with the difference but there are also power advantages. Can you tell whether Winnebago is adding other features along with just the engine: upgraded transmission, higher GVWR, cupholders, anything else that would make it worth the extra cost?

[ghostrider]

Originally Posted by brucemcdou

...I believe that Tiffin has offered FRED as an option under their Allegro model for two years and the price difference is more like $8-10k.... Can you tell whether Winnebago is adding other features along with just the engine: upgraded transmission, higher GVWR, cupholders, anything else that would make it worth the extra cost?

We are looking at a particular floorplan that we want that first came out in the Adventurer series in '09 - the 35Z w/ bunkbed option. Will be pulling an '03 Jeep Wrangler, as we are now with our 29' class C.

Was already looking at this unit with the 24,000# gvwr upgrade in the 362 hp V10 which is a $6,251 increase over the base F53 chassis. The FRED option gives you a 27,000# gvwr but the GCWR remains the same for both chassis at 30,000#. The other thing is it looks like an optional generator is required with the FRED and it runs $4,774 MSRP. I am sure that there are some other things that would help make up this increase but don't find what this is either on the Winnie website or the retail price sheet that I have.

It looks to me like I could get a Journey DP for about what this FRED would cost. We will probably be looking at a DP in the future (5-7 yrs) and I think that the offerings from the RV industry will change by then.

[Keith K]

Personally, while I believe the FRED has it's advantages, the $8-10K difference is more reasonable. I had a Tiffin Workhorse 24 loaded to the max and it performed fine although the mileage averaged just a bit better than 7MPG. For the difference they want now, I'd consider a diesel pusher instead. Just remember that the diesel, FRED or pusher, is more expensive to maintain.

[RoadRohrers]

Just happened to be through Red Bay, AL the other day and picked up 2010 price sheets. On the 2010 Allegro Bay 35TSB (closest floorplan to 35z) the price difference between the Ford 26K chassis (only gas chassis offered) and the FRED is $15,050 more. Not sure how a Adventurer with MSRP of 153K to 175K (adding FRED) is almost the same as Journey with a MSRP of 218 - 228K.

[Rich_in_Tampa]

I sure tried to research this issue before settling on my Itaska SunCruiser (gas, Triton). My personal conclusion was that the most compelling Diesel advantages just weren't that important to us: we're OK taking the steepest mountain grades at 50 MPH if necessary once in a while (though so far, nothing in the Appalachians has slowed me down lower than about 65 fully loaded). The ability to put much more than 100K miles on the rig is not likely to ever come up (we'll trade or sell long before that), and the fuel prices are too unpredictable to factor in. Mileage would be better on a Diesel. We won't be towing anything the Triton can't handle.

I'd have paid an additional $10,000 or so for the Diesel but the difference was much more than that. So, in the end, the Diesel couldn't trump the price difference.

Assess your special needs closely (weight, towing, huge mileage needs, maybe engine reliability) agains what the extra cost would otherwise buy for you.

[ghostrider]

I'm the OP on this topic and we made the decision to go with the Triton package in the Adventurer 35Z. Went with the upgraded chassis which took it from 22,000 gvwr to 24,000 gvwr with 22.5" wheels. I am familiar with this engine and have a local Ford dealer who will do the work.

We will be pulling a 2003 Jeep Wrangler which is not too heavy. We pulled this behind our 29' class C for 3 1/2 years and hardly knew it was there. I am sure that the WorkHorse chassis would do just as well, and that the FRED would do a good job also. I just could not justify the cost increase for something we will probably not put over 50,000 miles on. I don't know why Winnebago has such a premium on this package as compared to other brands, maybe because it is the first year in the Adventurer series, who knows.

Austin

[Rich_in_Tampa]

Originally Posted by ghostrider

I'm the OP on this topic and we made the decision to go with the Triton package in the Adventurer 35Z.... I don't know why Winnebago has such a premium on this package as compared to other brands, maybe because it is the first year in the Adventurer series, who knows.

Congratulations, Austin. I hope you enjoy your rig as much as we have.

Winnebago and its "trim lines" are confusing. As a marketing and franchise issue, the Itasca seems to be a fancy Winnebago line for line, but you can easily option your way up from the Winnie to be the equivalent of the Itasca - just have to see which way is cheaper for the items you want. We went with the Suncruiser for that reason.

Nice choice.

[ghostrider]

Rich-in-Tampa

Just went and looked at the floorplan on your unit, I really like it, know you are enjoying it also.

Itasca did not have the bunkbed option in the Suncruiser and that is one of the reasons we went with the Winnebago Adventurer 35Z. This floorplan is not for everyone, but it suits our needs at this time and gives us some options on inside storage when we don't use the bunks.

Thanks again for the response.

Austin

[Ustamiata]

Just my $.02 - - when we were shopping for our Adventurer, we tested an Allegro FRED. I started the engine, and thought it very noisy. The salesman said let it run for a few minutes, it will quiet down. We talked for 20 more minutes, and it never got any quieter. That was the last FRED we considered. I'd like my 35A to slow to 50 in the mountains -- we are in Colorado a lot, and 30 is waaaay more common!

[codgerbill]

Just a thought.....
Wouldnt it be less expense to get the ford V-10 and add a banks power pack? I dunno if it would increase the MPG but I understand it does give an increase in torque. Or does the Banks Power pack apply only to the older V-10's?

[John Mo]

I wouldn't pay $25k for the diesel. A friend with a DP observed that you don't get the other benefits common to diesel chassis with a FRED. Without something more compelling than a little better fuel economy, $25k is way overpriced.

[Flyer]

One fact that is often not mentioned is that you will get back a good percentage of what you spent on FRED when selling. The actual out of pocket cost is much less than your original outlay.