Buying a used Class A

[jacwjames]

To be honest I probably wouldn't buy a new coach then 2006-7 due to the change in EPA requirements on the engines.

There are some very nice coaches in the Pre 2007 range. During this period Monaco was in it's prime, making a very high quality coach. I would not hesitate to buy a coach from this era. I have seen several Dynasties and Signatures at very attractive prices with relatively lower miles. You would not be disappointed.

[JFC]

Great news about retirement. When I retired it took all of about a day to adjust to the good life.

We bought our first used coach after we retired and traded up twice. We found that bigger was better at least for us. We went from a 33 gas to a 34 DP and finally to our current 40 DP. The difference in the R4R and the R8R chassis was noticeable. I would have no problem buying a well cared for used DP. We bought our 2007 Scepter in 2007, used. The previous owners had put 2500 miles on it in three months and traded for a 42 foot coach, so we got a great deal. The coach is now 8 years old with 60,000 miles, and while we've had the usual expenses of maintaining the beast, tires, annual services and such, Monaco did an outstanding job on this unit. We've made some modifications such as a residential refrigerator and pure sine wave inverter, but those costs aren't even in the same ballpark as replacing the coach. We've also replaced carpeting, and shades, but those were by choice. We've discussed it and can't find any reason we would consider replacing the coach. I would advise finding a used DP that has a floor plan you like and go for it. You dollars will go so much further if you don't have the need for new, and there are a lot of great deals out there. Monaco is very helpful even with a used coach. I e-mailed their technical services through their web site and they mailed me a CD with all the wiring diagrams for the coach and I requested a copy of the build sheet which they e-mailed back to me. It contains a list of a lot of the components used to build the coach including the manufacturer and serial numbers. I'm not sure if that was because the coach was still under warranty when I bought the coach or not, but my requests for the information was well after the warranty and even after the sale of Monaco. Have fun with the search and enjoy the new RV.

[garciawr]

Originally Posted by flynnwalter

Tillerman
Times 2 what DtBt wrote about looking for a used higher end Monaco. Without some type of exhaust/engine brake I would not want to tow. Any driving down a mountain would surely tax the hydraulic service brakes. We had a '95 Endeavor without air brakes or exhaust brake and it was unpleasant to handle long downgrades. Suggest you concentrate on the 8 bag chassis if interested in Monaco. We have the dread RR4R and needed to replace the trailing arms, get a ride enhancement kit and go up 2 tire sizes to get our Cayman to where it should have been when MCC rolled it out their doors. That said, I still like the Monacos. Good luck!

Frank,

I own a 2008 Cayman installed Source Engineering trailing arms and ride enhancement kit. I'm still trying to improve the ride as I live in California where the roads are rough. I'm interested in knowing what tires you put on your Cayman and how good is the ride compared to what it used to be.
I appreciate your input!

[garciawr]

Originally Posted by flynnwalter

Tillerman
Times 2 what DtBt wrote about looking for a used higher end Monaco. Without some type of exhaust/engine brake I would not want to tow. Any driving down a mountain would surely tax the hydraulic service brakes. We had a '95 Endeavor without air brakes or exhaust brake and it was unpleasant to handle long downgrades. Suggest you concentrate on the 8 bag chassis if interested in Monaco. We have the dread RR4R and needed to replace the trailing arms, get a ride enhancement kit and go up 2 tire sizes to get our Cayman to where it should have been when MCC rolled it out their doors. That said, I still like the Monacos. Good luck!

Frank,

I'd like to know what tires you put on your coach to improve the ride. I had the trailing arms installed and the ride enhancement kit installed.

Thanks