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Old 01-22-2019, 06:22 PM   #1
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Boston RV show turned out to be a bust

Newbie here,,,, been retired for 4 years now and have been researching DPs for 3 of those years. Had to wait for the DW to retire which happens in 4 months or so - That being said, I figured the time has come to try and get her to get onboard with this decision. (She is only about 40% interested in this purchase) Decided to take her to the Boston RV show and then out to a fancy dinner afterwards. As luck would have it they had both of the DP’s that I have narrowed my choice down too. A 2019 Dutch Star 4018 and the 2019 Tiffin Pheaton 40IH. I could not believe that the 2 coach’s where only feet away and that she would be able to go from one to the other in mere seconds. I figured that this was going to be a slam dunk.....I was wrong.
After spending some time in each coach, I was totally disappointed and disgusted! Now I am no carpenter, or tile layer or upholster,,, but I do not quality when I see it. I counted no less then 12 major defects in both of these coaches. For fear of any legal liability, I wont state which coach had what wrong with it but will mention some of the negative items that even my wife identified.
One shower head had completely pulled away from the wall severely damaging the Corian shower walls. Major repair required! One coach’s cabinets had major flaws. These where maple glazed type cabinets, however it looked like they ran out out maple and decided to make a door with pine and maple. One side was black the other was brown and this was in at least 3 or 4 cabinet doors. Many doors would not even open. Washer, Dryer barn door fell off the track when a customer tried to open it. Tile floor - big disappointment here as well, many of the grount lines in one particular coach didn’t even line up. One coach’s passenger seat would not rotate - completely stuck! The pull out counter top in the kitchen was screwed close so you couldn’t pull it out! On one of the coaches only half of the LED lights were functioning. I could probably list several more obvious defects, but what’s the sense. Needles to say, my DW told me “who in there right mind would spend a quarter of a million bucks plus on something that was already falling apart and was brand new! So my question is, who is buying these things with this many defects. At a show no less. You would think that the manufacturer or no less the dealer would want these high end coach’s to look perfect.
Well in closing,,, needless to say the DW went 100% cold turkey and wants no part of any Class A DP in the future. Sorry for the long post, but I cant believe that I spent 3 years looking at these, flying to major dealers, attended shows in 3 states, put a half mill cash in the bank and it all totally went out the window in 2 hours at a show - all because the manufacturer/dealers have traded quality for greed.
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Old 01-22-2019, 06:54 PM   #2
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Sorry to hear this. Yes quality has slipped in all manufacturers. I am surprised that the dealers let these coaches be shown before they were in top condition.

I know we love our Tiffin and had it ordered and built to our specs. We also use d dealer that spent a couple of days going over the coach to make sure all was "right" and repaired what wasn't. They then spent 2+ days going over everything with us again fixing anything that was not 100%.

Then the world of RVs is not for everyone.
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Old 01-22-2019, 06:58 PM   #3
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I feel for you....wife and I went to the RV show, saw the brand rig I was considering - dealer providing the brand obviously didn't go through it and assure the visible issues were taken care of: loose cabinet trim, broken closet door, etc. I'm sure some of it may have been the folks looking through the RV and poking through the various cabinets and compartments.

The dealership we bought ours from eventually had the coach we wanted, in excellent condition (new), but still there were some issues - which they fixed on the spot, before we signed the papers.

Many, MANY folks recommend getting a slightly used 2 or 3 year old coach - the original owners have usually had the pain and frustration of getting the flaws fixed. Perhaps a lightly used coach might be a better choice (find a reputable dealer - for new OR used).

My wife was not interested, but we did go poke around a bit to humor me. When we went to the dealer where we purchased our first RV, I asked to look at the rigs in our length range and we walked into one and she suddenly told the sales person: "this layout makes sense". went through it inside and out and then told the sales guy: "we're interested". I was floored.

Go to some more shows and a few dealers. Just poke around. You never know....
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Old 01-22-2019, 06:59 PM   #4
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Freddyp View Post
all because the manufacturer/dealers have traded quality for greed.
PM Sent
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Old 01-22-2019, 07:30 PM   #5
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Go for a slightly used one with good service records and a good feeling about who you are purchasing from. Let the original owner take all of the frustration of getting it right and taking those first couple of years depreciation.
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Old 01-22-2019, 08:48 PM   #6
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My wife and I have been to several shows. We were both disappointed at all of them.
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Old 01-22-2019, 10:02 PM   #7
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I totally agree with Golfman8 in that you should find a slightly used coach so that you can save a lot of cash and let the original owner get the small things fixed before you buy it! I’m on my 3rd and final used DP and it’s the only way to go for me and my wife. BTW, my wife wanted no parts of an RV when we first started out looking and now she is hooked. Lots of great used coaches on the market and several tools to scan for them. With the money you will save you can purchase a warranty if that gives you comfort in buying used.
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Old 01-23-2019, 04:55 AM   #8
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Yes - I fully agree with buying used and given the choice if I could find a clean 2 year old coach I would certainly consider it over a new coach. Problem that I have been seeing is two fold;
1) plenty of DS 4018’s on the used market but very few Tiffin 40ih’s and 2) the asking price for most of these used 2015’s and up are as much as new. I have already gotten verbal pricing from a couple of dealers that are willing to work at 23 to 25% off MSRP up here in the Northeast and as much as 30% off down South on new coach’s . That being said when I see 2016 or so used, online, for either of these 2 models they always exceed the new price. I have not been able to find any documentation that outlines what a reasonable used pricing calculation should be on a coach. If I use the 30% off new then an additional 5% per year after that,,,does that make sense?
Then of course I would have to convince the wife that this lifestyle is something she would enjoy. That might be tougher than buying one.
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Old 01-23-2019, 05:53 AM   #9
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Have you thought about renting a nice unit and taking your wife out to see if she enjoys the lifestyle? Without her buy in, I doubt if it will matter which unit you have in making her happy. I can’t imagine making this kind of investment without her being on board with the purchase decision. You may end up trying to sell a very little used unit in a year or two. I hope this isn’t the case.[emoji3]
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Old 01-23-2019, 06:06 AM   #10
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For what it is worth, even if you find a coach that is perfect (read unicorn), you will be lucky each day it stays that way. I have had everything working on my coach a few times. Doesn’t stay that way. I like to say the problem with mine is the ignition switch. Seems every time I put the key in the ignition and turn it, something on the coach somewhere will break so it must be the ignition switch![emoji23]. Gratefully the issues are often minor and something I fix on my own. I’ve learned a lot about our coach. It’s part of the lifestyle for me. Find a nice clean used coach, get a nice tool set and become a fan of google and YouTube. Then go have fun!
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Old 01-23-2019, 07:44 AM   #11
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For what it is worth, even if you find a coach that is perfect (read unicorn), you will be lucky each day it stays that way. I have had everything working on my coach a few times. Doesn’t stay that way. I like to say the problem with mine is the ignition switch. Seems every time I put the key in the ignition and turn it, something on the coach somewhere will break so it must be the ignition switch![emoji23]. Gratefully the issues are often minor and something I fix on my own. I’ve learned a lot about our coach. It’s part of the lifestyle for me. Find a nice clean used coach, get a nice tool set and become a fan of google and YouTube. Then go have fun!
X2. Well said.
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Old 01-23-2019, 08:05 AM   #12
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Try Renegade RV

If you're looking in the $200K plus range and want a new coach, you might take a look at a RenegadeRV Super C. Beautiful coaches and would love to have one but out of my price range even used. The DW and I looked at them at the Florida Supershow in Tampa a couple of years ago and by far they had the highest quality build of any of the production coaches. Dovetail joints on the drawers and fit and finish was excellent. If I ever won the lottery, I'd probably go for a Showhauler custom coach but again not in my price range. I'd suggest going to a big show, maybe in Hershey or some other very large show that would have these coaches and check them out. Good luck. My DW was also uncertain about the RV life but was sold on our first trip before we had even left the state! Keep trying! You might also look at an older higher end class A such as Newmar, Foretravel, Country Coach or Newell. There are probably others as well. Most of these are very well cared for and in great condition. Mine is 22 years old and other than things that are just worn out or bad due to age, we haven't had a lot of problems with it yet.
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Old 01-23-2019, 09:06 AM   #13
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Here's the rest of the story. The last three coaches, 03 Phaeton, '11 Phaeton & '13 Allegro Bus, were purchased new from the same dealer. We had very few problems with either one. Our 2013 43' Bus is the best one. I can count on one hand the number of things the dealer had to repair in the first year. In the four years following, I had to replace a couple of shades, a cooktop, CO2 detector, repair a slide out awning, one water pump, refasten the engine compartment insulation, and probably a couple other minor things. Normal maintenance has been annual oil & filter changes, lube, one air cleaner filter, and this year new tires. We just add fuel and go. This is the first coach that we ordered exactly what we wanted and it has turned out to be the best one. 55,000 trouble free miles and counting. If you order a quality coach from a great dealer that knows how to service your needs, you will be another happy camper.
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Old 01-23-2019, 10:25 AM   #14
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My wife and I walked the Tacoma RV show last weekend. We went through all the Class A coaches and a few Class C. The place was packed with people and we were only there for about 2 hours total (the show had 10x the trailers and 5th wheels to motorhomes)

We found that for the most part, the RV's were all in 'show condition' and the sales people were pleasant and not pushy. We didn't find but one that we liked the layout more than the used one we purchased 2 years ago. Even the Tiffin's and such didn't meet our wants or needs better than the one we have at this time.

Having bought (and sold) 2 large boats and now on our second RV. We have seen a lot of crap on the used market that we passed up. Shopping for an RV is like dating. It takes time to find one you want to live with. Keep looking until your wife finds one she wants.

I am like a lot of others here, we prefer to let someone else get a new one and take the deprecation and fix all the issues these rigs can have when new. Look at something that is a few years old, but still in great condition. You will save 10's of thousands of dollars off of new and the bulk of the small issues will have been taken care of by the first owner. Boats and RV's are the same with this.

I suggest not looking at RV shows if you are serious at buying. The RV shows let you walk through a lot of rigs and see what kind of layout you like, but a good RV dealer will do even better once you find a sales rep you can work with.
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