Community Forums

Eratosthenes · 05-20-2018, 10:29 AM

So my wife and I have rented an RV 5 times and really want to buy a motorhome. We have been looking for about 3 years now and pretty much know what we want out of a motorhome floor plan; and we also have our finances straightened out and now we are getting serious about buying. So we go down to PPL in Houston to look at a newish 2015 Coachmen Pursuit that is 29 feet long and although i like the size and floorplan, my wife (does she become a DW before or after we purchase? Is she a DW in a rental? We want to know ...

) does not like the color schemes of the floor, upholstery and countertops ... of course I cannot see this at all (perhaps due to my Y chromosome), but I trust her sense of color. She says it does not feel home and she is not going to spend $60+ on something that is going to make her feel bad whenever she opens her eyes ... fair enough.

So to make a long story short (not) ... We found and old 2006 gasser from Holiday Rambler. Now my wife would probably never stick her nose into an old gasser because it is just that old, but she is from an old RVing family and remembers the Holiday Rambler tradename fondly ... and PPL says that this old gasser is in "Very Good" condition ... and we fall in love with it! We have walked through many, many, many, many RVs over the past 3 years and every RV is a compromise and we cannot have everything we want. This RV has 100% of everything we want, the only thing it does not have is youth! But it looks well maintained and it feels well built (my wife says that it looks as if it was maintained by her father ... high praise indeed). I remember reading from this very forum that Holiday Rambler's built before 2008 were built in HR's golden age and are solid machines. So we got an inspector out there who said the only things wrong with it are minor ... no major leaks (no damage from the minor leaks), the structure and underside is rust free, and the engine looks well maintained and is in good working condition. So we put a contract on it and maybe we will actually be owners before school is out (I am a high school teacher)! If you want to know the details and see pretty pictures, here is the link to PPL's website:

https://www.pplmotorhomes.com/used-r...miral_rv-39219

So what do you guys think??? I know and understand that 12 year old DP's are a good thing, but what about a 12 year old gasser even if it is well maintained and in good running order? I know that keeping any RV in good working order ain't cheap, but if I pay early to keep it maintained properly do you think I have a good deal here? Do you think I will be doing a happy dance

or slapping my head due to my stupidity

???

Thank you for your comments!

WinnieView · 05-20-2018, 10:38 AM

We had an '01 Admiral for 10 years and with proper maintenance it was rock solid!
The Chevy 8.1 with the Allison on the W22 chassis is a winning combination.

bubby124 · 05-20-2018, 10:55 AM

the ford drive train is solid I never had a problem with the engine or transmission. I would not have a problem with a 2006 motor home if you are worried about things breaking you can buy a extended warranty. I would just take the time to make sure everything works properly then go have fun.

l1v3fr33ord1 · 05-20-2018, 11:32 AM

Jon-

Welcome to the HR Admiral family!

There is one serious weakness in Monaco coaches of this period: A tendency of the slide floors to rot, particularly the forward end of the driver-side slide. There is a fix for it, if it's not serious. If it is serious, it can run into a lot more money and effort. See this link for details.

Guardian Plate Info Video

I've made a lot of modifications to our coach- some significant, like rebuilding the sewer drain piping- so if you find you have questions, or things you want to change, please come back and post more threads. You can also use the iRV2 private message system to ask me questions directly.

Eratosthenes · 05-20-2018, 01:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by l1v3fr33ord1

Jon-

Welcome to the HR Admiral family!

There is one serious weakness in Monaco coaches of this period: A tendency of the slide floors to rot, particularly the forward end of the driver-side slide. ...

Mark,

Thank you for your reply and very informative video! Our inspector did not find anything but I don't think he was an expert on Monaco coaches. I will make sure and check for the warning signs next week!

Thanks again!

TinCanTee · 05-20-2018, 01:37 PM

We have a '05 HR Admiral 30PDD and love it. Seems to be a solid coach, good bones and runs well. Every time I get that "bug" to buy a new RV, I remind myself that nothing I could afford is going to have solid wood cabinets, a 10 gal water heater, or aluminum siding. BTW, every thing is original on the coach and we still have the original tv and BOMB and I don't even want to change that out...it gets a great picture with digital/analog converter that I added.

SmokyPond · 05-20-2018, 08:06 PM

That is a good looking coach! However if you decide to pull the trigger on it, you'll need to seriously consider the Guardian Plate system. From one of the pics on the PPL site I can see the delamination beginning to occur on the slideout edge shown. See areas highlighted in the picture:

It's not bad, but it should receive attention before it gets worse. See pictures of my slideout, as well as my Guardian Plate installation from this link: Talin Guardian Plates

From the time that I first noticed it, it took just 6 months to become what you see in my pictures.

If your handy with simple tools like a drill, caulk gun and a rivet gun, it's not hard to DIY.

Eratosthenes · 05-20-2018, 08:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SmokyPond

That is a good looking coach! However if you decide to pull the trigger on it, you'll need to seriously consider the Guardian Plate system. From one of the pics on the PPL site I can see the delamination beginning to occur on the slideout edge shown. See areas highlighted in the picture:

It's not bad, but it should receive attention before it gets worse. See pictures of my slideout, as well as my Guardian Plate installation from this link: Talin Guardian Plates

From the time that I first noticed it, it took just 6 months to become what you see in my pictures.

If your handy with simple tools like a drill, caulk gun and a rivet gun, it's not hard to DIY.

Matt,

Thank you for your comments! After seeing the video Mark posted above I am a believer in the Guardian Plates and will definately get the if I get the unit.

Spend a little money now ... save a lot of $$$ later.

Thanks again!

Eratosthenes · 05-25-2018, 07:30 PM

We had a lot of rain in Houston these past couple of days ... so we went down to PPL to take a look at the Admiral to check for fresh leaks in areas that our inspector had pointed out, and to check on the slide floors as many of you have pointed out.

As soon as the slides were out I was able to find one side where the floor was begining to rot. Other than that there seems to be very little wrong with this coach ... my wife say it is starting to feel like home to her.

Massanutten · 05-31-2018, 07:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Eratosthenes

So my wife and I have rented an RV 5 times and really want to buy a motorhome. We have been looking for about 3 years now and pretty much know what we want out of a motorhome floor plan; and we also have our finances straightened out and now we are getting serious about buying. So we go down to PPL in Houston to look at a newish 2015 Coachmen Pursuit that is 29 feet long and although i like the size and floorplan, my wife (does she become a DW before or after we purchase? Is she a DW in a rental? We want to know ...

) does not like the color schemes of the floor, upholstery and countertops ... of course I cannot see this at all (perhaps due to my Y chromosome), but I trust her sense of color. She says it does not feel home and she is not going to spend $60+ on something that is going to make her feel bad whenever she opens her eyes ... fair enough.

So to make a long story short (not) ... We found and old 2006 gasser from Holiday Rambler. Now my wife would probably never stick her nose into an old gasser because it is just that old, but she is from an old RVing family and remembers the Holiday Rambler tradename fondly ... and PPL says that this old gasser is in "Very Good" condition ... and we fall in love with it! We have walked through many, many, many, many RVs over the past 3 years and every RV is a compromise and we cannot have everything we want. This RV has 100% of everything we want, the only thing it does not have is youth! But it looks well maintained and it feels well built (my wife says that it looks as if it was maintained by her father ... high praise indeed). I remember reading from this very forum that Holiday Rambler's built before 2008 were built in HR's golden age and are solid machines. So we got an inspector out there who said the only things wrong with it are minor ... no major leaks (no damage from the minor leaks), the structure and underside is rust free, and the engine looks well maintained and is in good working condition. So we put a contract on it and maybe we will actually be owners before school is out (I am a high school teacher)! If you want to know the details and see pretty pictures, here is the link to PPL's website:

https://www.pplmotorhomes.com/used-r...miral_rv-39219

So what do you guys think??? I know and understand that 12 year old DP's are a good thing, but what about a 12 year old gasser even if it is well maintained and in good running order? I know that keeping any RV in good working order ain't cheap, but if I pay early to keep it maintained properly do you think I have a good deal here? Do you think I will be doing a happy dance

or slapping my head due to my stupidity

???

Thank you for your comments!

I have a 2004 with 48,000 miles It's been well maintained and everything works. I never regretted the purchase. It has all the bells and whistles that I need. They are well built

Eratosthenes · 06-02-2018, 04:48 PM

We closed on the Admiral today! The DW is very pleased with it as we drove it home from PPL. We are going to pack her up for a shackdown cruise to a nearby RV park.

Thank you for your advice!

SmokyPond · 06-02-2018, 05:04 PM

That's great news! Let us know how the maiden voyage goes!

Happy travels!

Eratosthenes · 08-06-2018, 03:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SmokyPond

That's great news! Let us know how the maiden voyage goes!

Happy travels!

Shakedown Cruise - Early June

So we drive the Admiral to a nearby RV park about 3 miles from our house. Stay there for 3 nights figuring out how the systems work and what little things are wrong with it. We make a list and figure out what needs to get fixed before our first big trip. All the stuff that needs fixing is pretty minor. My wife is convinced we made the right decision.

We then take the Admiral down to RV Masters here in Houston, TX to get the fluids changed, and minor repairs fixed. RV Masters recommends we change the tires due to tire rot and now we are ready for our maiden voyage!

Eratosthenes · 08-06-2018, 04:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SmokyPond

That's great news! Let us know how the maiden voyage goes!

Happy travels!

The Maiden Voyage - Mid June

Our first real trip in the Admiral was to my father's house in North Carolina, about 3,000 miles round trip. My father has installed 30 amp service on his driveway so we should be able to run 1 AC in the summer which should keep our bedroom cool enough ... this plan works out well enough, but there are other problems ...

On our first night I am working on the sewer system and the after market master tank valve (https://www.amazon.com/Valterra-T58-...3Z2Q4JT90R8T97) FALLS OFF. To make matters worse, the black tanks valve is stuck in the open position and will not close. You know what happens next ... We (Steve at RV Masters and I) think that the previous owner had a problem with the black tank valve and slapped this new master tank value on here as a solution. Problem is that it was not installed properly and would pop off if you turned it the wrong way. Yuck! My legs were splattered with the brown stuff. I did not even want to take a shower inside the RV. Fortunately the campground showers were only one site away from ours ...
The second major problem happened on Fathers Day ... a Sunday. I had left the gas cap off at the truck stop and a couple of miles down I-85 in South Carolina I lost all power to the engine, but the engine was still running, but running really rough. A mobile tech tries to run the code on the engine but can't get the code off of the engine. So we get towed and the tow truck driver backs us into my father's driveway ... at least we made it to his house on Father's Day! Another mobile RV tech shows up on Tuesday, easily gets the code and diagnosis the problem as the throttle actuator ... an easy fix. Turns out that leaving the gas cap off happened at the same time as the throttle actuator gave up the ghost. The mobile RV tech said that the actuator usually dies if the RV is left in storage for too long. Morale of the story is to make sure you use your RV, give it some exercise ... I detailed this episode in the Ford Chassis forum here: http://www.irv2.com/forums/f23/gas-cap-fix-396816.html

Those were the only two major problems that we had with the RV on this trip. Most of the minor problems that we had can be chalked up to operator error and therefore a learning lesson. The RV powered over the Appalachian Mountains on I-40 easily and we ended up getting a gas mileage of about 8 miles per gallon. The most important thing is my wife loves the RV and we both had a great time visiting family in it.

We are now finishing up a third trip in the Admiral (from Houston to various mountainous parts of New Mexico), but the worst thing that has happened is that the indicator light for the hot water heater went out ... ohh and the hose connecting the shower head and to the shower cracked. We had a great time with only these very minor problems in our 12 year old RV.

Long story short we love our Holiday Rambler!