04-06 Mountain Aire

[Brad Burgess]

Hello All

We are looking for our first gas class A after four DPs. I have looked at several of the above noted coaches. Never having had a gas, or Newmar, coach are there any specific items I should be aware of when evaluating these units?

Thanks for your help.

Brad Burgess

[edgray]

Originally Posted by Brad Burgess

Hello All

We are looking for our first gas class A after four DPs. I have looked at several of the above noted coaches. Never having had a gas, or Newmar, coach are there any specific items I should be aware of when evaluating these units?

Thanks for your help.

Brad Burgess

Brad:
As a former owner of a KSCA, and a self-proclaimed "expert" on Workhorse chassis, I hope this will help:

The MACA is the best coach ever built on a gasser. They are also among the heaviest. Some offer only minimal CCC. Also, I'm sure you already know you will not get the air suspension ride to which you're accustomed.

For those built using Workhorse chassis instead of Ford, the older models were built on the Workhorse W22 chassis because it was the best available at the time. Some of the 2005 and (I think) all of the 2006 coaches were built on the W24 Workhorse chassis and this would be more desirable, IMO. The W22's were ALL recalled to have defective Bosch brake calipers replaced, and you'll want to verify that has been completed before buying one. The W24 is not only a higher GVWR and GCVWR, it also has a stronger tranny and much bigger Arvin-Meritor brakes (better). The one caveat about the early W24's is to watch out for a yellow-knob on the dash which indicates the chassis has the J72 AAPB, which "can" become problematic.

If you have any specific questions, fire away.
Ed

[tyka]

We have a 2004 MA W22 chassis, Allison transmission. We bought it two years ago and have put close to 10,000 miles, often in the PA Blue Mountains. We love it and find it takes on the mountains very well. The transmission is very smooth and rarely drops down on cruise control. I agree with Ed about getting a W24 if you have a choice. Although we load ours up a lot for our five month trips and last year we we surprised we were 800 lbs under when we went through the CAT Scales. Still, it looks like the W24 would be a better buy. I'm not sure if the camera is in the dash in the MA 2005, we hate having the camera next to the sun visor. That's my only complaint

Good luck with your decision. Feel fre to ask if you have any questions about the 2004 MACA 3778. Paul

["007"]

Welcome to the forum & irv2 Brad.
The w-24 would be my choice even owning the W-22 which is good for its weight class, the MA's are heavier.
Here is a 04 and here is the 06 Brochures for comparisons.
Here is the 04 Owners Guide and here is the 06 Owner Guide.
As you can see the 06 has the W-24 much better chassis and no brake recall.
Good luck in your hunt any other questions just ask.

[Gary G.]

I have the 04 mountain aire and love it. I have been so impressed with the power and the driveability of it. I have been on the road from Boise, ID to Boonville, MO (tonight) and have averaged from 6-9 mpg depending upon when I check it. I have never been disappointed with the power and I have to always set the cruise control or I find myself going 70+ pmh constantly. I bought mine a year ago and it had the brake recalls already done. I have about 64K on mine now and really enjoy the coach. I am not pulling a tow but it is loaded pretty heavy because we are going full time for 4 months while we live in Virgina until the first of the year.

I have just had the AC compressor replaced and the clearance lights because they were crumbling to pieces. I also had the water pump replaced but I guess most of this is routine for a rig almost 10 years old. It was taken care of very well and no one that sees the outside or inside can believe it's a 10 year old coach. I'd be happy to answer any questions you might have. Newmar is a top notch coach.

[Floridakamper]

You've gotten some good advice above from folks that know what they're talking about. Edgray gave a particularly good explanation. We have the W24 and it has been a great ride although not problem free.

[Brad Burgess]

A quick "thank you" to everyone who took the time to respond. Looks like we will for sure try and do the deal on a W24 chassis unit - soooo much to learn going to gas!

Thanks again,

Brad Burgess