Community Forums

Brazel's RV Performance · 01-10-2011, 03:54 PM

Just an insight from a place that sees a lot of warranty work on WH chassis...we very rarely see any issues on the UFO except for the fan clutch issue which has since been resolved. If I was in the market for a MH, a UFO equipped coach would be at or near the top of my list that's for sure!!!

DriVer · 01-10-2011, 06:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JonBrazel

... a UFO equipped coach would be at or near the top of my list that's for sure!!!

Jon, Me and you both! The UFO is a nice machine.

Topflite51 · 01-10-2011, 10:57 PM

The UFO is a very nice chassis but the problem is that it is orphaned. As with everything else how long will Navistar continue producing replacement chassis parts for the few that were made. Navistar track record for doing such things as that is poor at best. Production was extremely limited and only for 3 years. There is not much of an incentitive for them to do so. The one I drove was gas and handled exceptionally well. Will it be brought back for diesels, kind of doubt it but one never knows. But then again if the Class A market continues to survive anything can happen. I won't hold my breath, but then if it did come back I wouldn't be disappointed either.

Unfortunately, the only game in town for new gas chassis is Ford, and this is coming from an F53 owner. No competition generally means no innovation, and that is just about the worst thing that can happen to a struggling industry.

BigGeorge · 01-11-2011, 07:42 AM

We've got a 2007 Forest River Georgetown with 12,000 miles on it. The Lippert levelling system hydraulic pump failed at purchase and was warranty replaced. That's it. Yes, we have few miles since our use is mostly local dog shows but our miles may even be harder on the rig with short trips and lots of setup and teardown. We love the quiet in the front when driving. Ride is pretty good and I haven't done the Koni shocks yet.

Orphan, schmorphin. Everything gets orphaned eventually. My parents are gone but I'm not obsolete. The Chevy Tahoe used the 8.1 liter engine so there will be plenty of parts around for that. The rest of the chassis has enough volume truck market parts that they will be available too.

Drive the unit, compare against another viable alternative so you don't fall in love during the bargaining process at purchase. Push hard on the price and enjoy the UFO if that's the one you buy. They all have problems.

Thanks very much to the guys who run and contribute to this site, we all benefit with the shared knowledge to better maintain and have fun with our rigs.

Be safe.

George

gbs2320 · 01-11-2011, 08:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Topflite51

The UFO is a very nice chassis but the problem is that it is orphaned. As with everything else how long will Navistar continue producing replacement chassis parts for the few that were made. Navistar track record for doing such things as that is poor at best. Production was extremely limited and only for 3 years. There is not much of an incentitive for them to do so. The one I drove was gas and handled exceptionally well. Will it be brought back for diesels, kind of doubt it but one never knows. But then again if the Class A market continues to survive anything can happen. I won't hold my breath, but then if it did come back I wouldn't be disappointed either.

Unfortunately, the only game in town for new gas chassis is Ford, and this is coming from an F53 owner. No competition generally means no innovation, and that is just about the worst thing that can happen to a struggling industry.

It will never really be an orphan. WH does not produce parts (maybe some minor exceptions), it assembles parts made by others and used on a lot of other vehicles. The engine is GM, the front suspension is Hendrickson and used on a lot of trucks, the tranny is an Allison, the brakes are wabco/meritor and used on a lot of trucks etc. etc. So the sky is not falling! The UFO chassis is great and may even have a better resale value compared to other chassis because of its limited availability! Ford (although it makes some nice chassiss) does not have a rear engine gas chassis nor a motor as good (IMHO) nor a combo with the Allison transmission. Greg

Topflite51 · 01-11-2011, 09:54 AM

Not knocking the UFO in any way, if I were to find the right coach on one I would buy it. Because parts are made by others, will only delay the effects of being orphaned, but it will happen. Manufacturers including aftermarket ones will reduce supplies and increase prices. Eventually they will discontinue the parts all together. Having been in the repair business, I have seen this happen time after time. This problem will be further magnified by the relatively few UFO chassis built. Chassis are not all about engines, transmissions, brakes and suspensions. I don't know how many parts are specific to a UFO chassis and it really does not matter, the fact that there are is enough.

This is not just a WH problem, I have on my F53 a power steering pump that is not made any more and it is not rebuildable, fortunately for me I have all ready replaced it. The belt that fits it properly is NOT available any more, I can ONLY buy 'best fit'. Nothing like slow speed noise when turning into a site. Fortunately it is making less noise as it slowly wears in.

Of course there is not a new Ford rear gas chassis available, but then again there is not a new Workhorse UFO chassis available either. My post on this subject has nothing to do with Ford versus Workhorse, for those that think it does, you have a problem.

mfire1339 · 01-11-2011, 10:26 PM

Aren't we talking about an one of fan clutch and water pump?

Mike

DriVer · 01-12-2011, 06:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mfire1339

Aren't we talking about an one of fan clutch and water pump?

Mike, Sorry, I'm lost here. Can you quote what it is you are addressing or extend your remarks. Thx.

two2go · 01-12-2011, 09:52 AM

Tiffin makes a rear-engine Navistar diesel coach, I believe. Is that a modified UFO?

DriVer · 01-12-2011, 09:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by two2go

Tiffin makes a rear-engine Navistar diesel coach, I believe. Is that a modified UFO?

No it isn't. Here's a piece I wrote about the 2011 Tiffin Breeze.

The 2011 Tiffin Allegro Breeze

two2go · 01-13-2011, 09:43 PM

Thanks DriVer. The Tiffin info was interesting. I find it amazing that one company like Tiffin finds the resources to develop a custom chassis while Workhorse in particular seems to be treading water. I don't have any sales figure facts, and the loss of the gas V8 engine source was certainly not their fault. I always found the W/H line interesting, but not much market penetration outside the W-series that I can ascertain. I thought the UFO was most interesting. If we can keep RV-ing longer, there will likely be a replacement coach in our future. A gasser UFO would have been a strong candidate for us, but that does not look promising say 5 years from now. If someone finds a nice UFO now, good for them.
ps. The Allegro Breeze as shown doesn't appeal to me. Not because of the chassis, but the interior is overstyled beyond useful function, IMO.