Alpine coach dimensions

[tiredvet]

Hello to all.Great forum here,with a lot of helpful folks. I am in search of a coach to fit my needs. I have narrowed my search to two or maybe three different brands. I love the affordable quality of an Alpine coach. One of my many concerns is buying a coach that will fit in my shop building. My shop is 30x50 with a 12' door. Coach length can be 34' to 38' but I can't go any taller than 12 foot. I have read that Alpine coaches range from 11.9 to 11.11 in height . My main questions are. How much added height to the coach does a Kingdome satellite system add and could it be removed and covered. Also do these coaches have an air dump switch to lower suspension so that I could possibly get the coach in my 12' door. I am looking for a used coach and there are a few of them that have a satellite systems mounted. One other question I have is I see some nice 98-02 coaches for sale. I also have herd that 03 and 04 are the most desirable. Not looking to cause a firestorm here, I'm just looking for help and to learn from those of you here on this forum. Sorry about the long winded post. Jim

[Birddog Pilot]

Tiredvet,

I had the same concerns with height for getting our Alpine into one of my aircraft hangars which has mostly a 12’ high opening; it varies just a bit because not all the flashing is even. In any case the opening is a maximum of 12’ high, but goes as low as 11’11”. I have to parallel park the 36’ 2006 into a 39’ wide space, and really have had no problems. I don’t have a Kingdome, but do have the Winegard Trav’ler dish without the cover and it too is not a problem. I believe there are Kingdomes that are both high and low profile. I don’t know the height of the taller unit, but it might be a bit of a problem.

My method of parking involves placing the Alpine at about a 30 degree angle to the opening, then backing up just short of the rear air conditioner, which should pass beneath the opening. I dump the air with the HWH button and slowly continue backing until both air conditioner units have passed. Even without dumping any air from the suspension, the a/c’s will clear with about one inch clearance. I found out early on that you can’t just open the air dump valve in the right rear bin by the air chuck to release all the air. If all air is depleted from the system the parking brake will set and you aren’t going anywhere.

If you have a good honest 12’ height, you should have no problem if the Kingdome isn’t the deciding factor. In other words, if the dome is at or lower than the air conditioners.

[takepride]

Jim:

Welcome to our forum. I have a 2003 40' triple slide and LOVE IT! Ours has the taller dome satellite (Wineguard Movin' View) and it is taller than the air conditioners. Our AC units are the low profile type.

I've been meaning (for years) to measure the actual height, but still haven't. I'm told that the dome is 5" taller than the AC shroud. Looks about right.

TBS, Kingdomes do come in shorter profiles and the folding dishes are shorter than the AC units. Even my giant MotoSat collapsed lower than the AC units.

Based on the going prices for Alpines, I wouldn't hesitate to buy one and then change out the dome if it's too tall.

Good luck!

[Jim A]

Jim,

Welcome to the forum.

I bought a Kingdome to put on my '04 coach in '04 or early '05. At that time the standard Kingdome was 15" high measured from the roof, and I bought their low profile model, which was 12" high. I would be surprised to see them be much lower than that now, but then again, I haven't looked either. I dumped mine and bought a Winegard Trav'ler. When stowed for travel it is 9.62" high according to the manual.

You could remove the plastic dome, but the dish itself would probably still be pretty high. The Kingdome 9702-LP model I used had four feet that were mounded to the roof of the coach, and the dome was bolted to those feet. It isn't really designed to be removed, but if you used wing nuts instead of the hex nuts, you could probably remove the whole unit relatively quickly. The feet were sealed, so you would not need to worry about covering anything while removed. There was one 9 pin connector (not the same as on earlier models) plus the coax electrical connection.

Even without a satellite dish, the air conditioners add almost as much height as the satellite dish.

There is a thread on here somewhere about lowering the coach for parking purposes. Normally the bags will be filled when you start the engine, but some worked around it.

Hope you join us as an Alpine owner.

[Dave and Jaime]

Your probably going to be close at 12 feet with Kingdome removed/missing. My 05 is about 12 feet 6 inches with the kingdome. I have had it at repair shops with what are stated to be a 12 foot high door opening and they have had to remove the kingdome cover, but things were fine once they did.

Your antennas will hit the door but they are flexible. Over time, however, I think it might damage those, too.

[rmmpe]

Can't say about the newer Alpines but I could lower our '99 4-inches or so by releasing the air from the suspension and holding the release while moving the Alpine SLOWLY over a smooth surface.

If you have to do this to get yours into the garage, place a tag over the ignition so you don't forget to do the same thing when moving the Alpine out of the garage.

The button is on the HWH controller.

[tiredvet]

Quote:

Originally Posted by rmmpe Can't say about the newer Alpines but I could lower our '99 4-inches or so by releasing the air from the suspension and holding the release while moving the Alpine SLOWLY over a smooth surface. If you have to do this to get yours into the garage, place a tag over the ignition so you don't forget to do the same thing when moving the Alpine out of the garage. The button is on the HWH controller.

rmmpe, has your 99 been a good coach for you? What if any problems have come up with your RV? I have decided to look for a coach under 40' and I will just have to deal with a satellite issue if it becomes an issue.The prices on these rigs seem to be all over the map. I have learned that you usually get what you pay for and I'm sure that I'll end up kissing a few toads trying to find a princes. I hope to find a rig that someone has cared for as much as I would.

[daveshan]

tiredvet,
I've got Bob's old '99 now. I'm in love!! I bought it 2100 miles away from someone who picked it up from the dealer Bob traded it in when he bought his new rig. I've got to say these Alpines are wonderful road machines, very easy to drive with an excellent ride and handling.

I'm sure he will get back to you and please feel free to PM me if you have any questions for a new owner.

[rmmpe]

TireVet,

The Alpine (72127) was a very good Coach for us. I did a few things that made it better for me but nothing was really required (I did have to replace a battery because when I charged it over the winter I didn't pay enough attention to the water level).

Another member of this forum is the new owner of it and he may be able to tell you more about how it is now.

[rmmpe]

I see Dave responded.
I did forget to mention I replaced the OEM shocks with new Koni FSDz (probably something you'll have to address too if you get an older Alpine).

Merry Christmas to all and to all a goodnight.

[JLMunsil]

My 02 Alpine was 10'-10" to the top of the roof. 11'-9" to top of air conditioners. (the low profile a/c units are 11"). It would go thru my 11'-11" door opening just fine. My 08 Alpine (before they raised the roof) is 2" taller because of bigger tires and suspension change around 05 or 06. It also has a low profile King Dome which is 12". This makes it 11'-0" to the roof 11'-11" to the top of the a/c and 12'-0" to the top of the King Dome. Dumping the air out of the air bags lowers the coach about 4" so it goes thru the door ok. If you have the 15" King Doom on an older coach you would be 12'-1" before dumping air bags and 11'-10" after. Put a low profile doom on it and dump the air and it will fit.

[tiredvet]

Thank you all for the info.I will now keep an open mind and eye out for the early year coaches as well. MERRY CHRISTMAS to you ALL. And if you don't mind me saying, may GOD BLESS YOU ALL and keep you safe...........Jim

[rdownward]

Hi TiredVet. Don't want to beat a dead horse, but will add my 2 cents worth about used Alpine coaches. I purchased an '03 this past July from a dealer in Florida. Thought it was in great shape when I took delivery, but turns out that the previous owner apparently never did ANYTHING in the way of maintenance. I have had to either repair or replace nearly every functioning item on the coach. Fortunately, I am relatively knowledgeable and handy when it comes to making the needed repairs - but even so, it cost more than a pittance to do it all. Having said that, even with all the problems and the disappointment of not buying what I thought I was buying, I am absolutely convinced that our Alpine Coach is one of the best units and values on the road today. Sure, there are issues, but with the help of all of the other Alpine owners on this forum, there seems to be nothing that they haven't encountered and found solutions to. So, I would heartily recommend that you strongly consider an Alpine Coach for your future RV needs. Enjoy whatever you end up buying and be sure to stay tuned to this forum for some great information.

[tiredvet]

rdownward, I appreciate your 2 cents and any other amount of change you wish to add. I went to a rv stealership in Spokane Wa. To look at a 2004 Journey they have for sale. To make a long story short, they were worse than a used car sales person. I offered them 7000 over NADA for the coach and NO more. They kept me in a small office room for nearly 2 hours. They attacked me with 3 different salesman trying to make me feel that I was insulting them with my offer. I finally asked the last guy to tell his boss to please let me know if we were both wasting each others time and after sitting there for another 20 minuets I just got up and left. Normally this would not bother me but I called them prior to making the 110 mile trip and said to them over the phone the maximum amount I would offer. So I am leaning towards private party in my search for our coach. Thanks again. An Alpine Coach is on my short list for sure.........Jim