Community Forums

OV Southwind · 07-13-2015, 03:01 PM

I've put about 3,000 miles on my 2015 Southwind class A with the V10, about half of it towing an FJ Cruiser on a dolly. That puts me right about max towing. I've had no issues, and only notice the truck back there on the downhill. Like the OP said, the tow/haul feature on the Ford really helps on the downhill. You hardly have to brake at all. I've pulled up several Sierra passes with and without the FJ and it really made little difference with regard to speed.

beenthere · 07-13-2015, 03:23 PM

ha. all so much good advice...what my wife and I did was get a 40', '97 London Aire for 30g..only one slide but plenty of room with grand kids.. the DP is so nice to drive AND THE 8.3 LTR diesel has all the power needed..we had an older 34' gas Swinger with hard fiberglass sides. And dodge drive train and we went all over Canada ect.. but driving the DP is no comparison.. now of course ours does not look like the 300 thou DP's with no imperfections..ours has the spider cracking in the fiberglass ect but the systems[all much bigger than gas rigs} all work perfect and nice diesel 7.5 gen set and nice cherry interior. We to looked at gasser's at the 60 g price used..and even 25 g but liked the ride and interior of the DP even thou the gassers were newer and such..

BeachDude · 07-13-2015, 03:43 PM

The F150, and anything that it can reliably tow over the Rockies is probably too small to comfortably fulltime in.

There are some very good small TTs, and they will hold up to years of use, the only problem really is that they are small. Look at an Airstream message board to get a good idea of fulltime living in a smallish TT.

Yes, a DP is the way to go if you have the financial resources. It's definitely more quiet up front while on the road! And because they are typically built on a heavier chassis, the ride is smoother.

A late model V10 Ford Chassis gasser will easily climb mountains while pulling a toad. It is going to be noisy because the engine is right underneath your right foot! With regular maintenance, you can easily expect 250k all the way up to 400k miles on the original engine.

What is hardly ever mentioned about DP's and their "potential" million mile drivetrain is what it realistically costs to maintain it. A DP has regularly scheduled maintenance that is significantly more costly than a gasser. Oil changes,(gallons not quarts), diesel filters, scheduled turbocharger replacement, leaking head gasket replacement, air system maintenance, air brake system maintenance, and usually larger tires, (than a gasser), to replace.

For the same miles ultimately traveled, all of that DP related maintenance costs just about three to five times more than a gasser's maintenance. Those additional costs would eventually easily pay for a new, (not rebuilt), replacement V10 and tranny at about 250k-400k miles if you actually kept the motorhome long enough, and still cost much less than all that DP maintenance and scheduled replacement parts. All that said, you would be more comfortable traveling down the road in the DP!

Waiter21 · 07-13-2015, 03:47 PM

Not a problem through the Rockies.. I have about $16k tied up in MH, TOAD, upgrades, etc. We put a little under 10k miles on it this year.

..

frankdamp · 07-13-2015, 04:23 PM

Our 32' Class A, a 2002 build with V-10, had no problem climbing Washington Pass over the North Cascades. It climbs to 5200 ft and the east side grade is pretty much the same all the way up.

A steady 40 mph in 3rd gear, no high engine temps, it wasn't a problem. BTW, no toad. Yes it was a bit noisy!

rjsupersonic · 07-13-2015, 04:52 PM

Our 2007 Sea Breeze with the V-10 has no power issues we tow a Malibu and recently went over Monarch pass in Colorado I was around 40mph 3800 RPM at the slowest point. I really like the V-10 and do the oil change myself for about 40 dollars. Another advantage is ground clearance we are able to boondock with no worry about ground clearance. I am a firm believer in not maxing out towing capacity our Malibu is just under 3,000 Lbs. If you get a 2005 V-10 or newer it will have a Torqueshift transmission which really saves the brakes on descents.

mhbell · 07-13-2015, 05:21 PM

In almost 50 years of RVing I have pretty much had all kinds of RV's, TT, Fr's, DP's, Class A and B's and have always went back to a class A gasser. last year I took a 15K loss on a 2012 Denali TT and Diesel PU to pull it with. Got a older class A Gasser which I just traded in for a 2006 Hurricane, with Ford F-53 chassis, and a Triton V-10 engine. 3000 Watt inverter with 6 ea Deep Cycle batteries. Boon Docking Here I come. Living in Utah we have lots of mountains here and in the surrounding states. Never had a problem and we tow a jeep liberty.

Inthe70s · 07-14-2015, 07:36 AM

I have lived in Colorado for most of my life and grew up around RV's of all types, including class A motorhomes, trailers, truck campers, etc. A good running gasser will be fine in Colorado BUT you need to understand that the mountain passes in Colorado are 10K+ in elevation. Some responses on this forum referred to mountains of 5K elevation.....not really considered a mountain in Colorado. If you are going to travel up I-70 through the Eisenhower tunnel or Vail pass or Berthoud pass (13K) you can do it BUT you will be in the far right lane and need to have patience and not try to win any races. As a kid, we used to take our late 70's and early 80's motorhomes or trucks with heavy trailers (carburetor back then) up and down the Rockies and no problems. Today's gassers with fuel injection and much higher performing engines are fine. If you are short on patience, then you might want to invest in a DP but even those aren't going to win any races going up Vail pass.....you might arrive at your destination 15 minutes earlier vs. the gasser. Good luck with your research and decision!

lcseds · 07-14-2015, 08:30 AM

Thanks for all the replies! I don't mind the speed going up hills, I just don't want the vehicle straining. Initially our plans are 3-5 years (yeah I know, may turn into 10-20:-)). Sounds like a gasser will be fine. We want nearly new or new, with about $25K down and finance between $75-100K. The lower the better. We were considering the Winnebago Vista LX series or the Fleetwood Bounder series for a class A.

Again, thanks everyone for taking the time to leave me your opinions.

TonyMac · 07-14-2015, 10:42 AM

We rented motorhomes -- lots of them. We rented a 8.1 workhorse and it was pretty good, rented a ford v10 and it was horrible. The 4 speed tranny was up and downshifting all freaking day. I bet it has blown up by now. We rented a DP and of course loved it. THen we got lucky. How?? We were prepared, well funded and well studied. We timed it right and we pounced. Bought a 06 DP with 15K in Oct2014. Repo, going into its second winter in repo status, neglected but not abused. They asked 90, we offered 52, they took it 3 days later, did not even counter.

So, you need to rent a few with different floorplans, class A and C, and mainly with different powertrains. Rent a DP with air ride. See what you like and what you can live with. To me that Ford V10 -- oh heck NO! And study, study, study. You're doing it now, so good start. And get your money piled up and ready to pounce, 'cause someone else it trying to buy your dream. Best of luck.

rodz · 07-14-2015, 11:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TonyMac

We rented motorhomes -- lots of them. We rented a 8.1 workhorse and it was pretty good, rented a ford v10 and it was horrible. The 4 speed tranny was up and downshifting all freaking day. I bet it has blown up by now. We rented a DP and of course loved it. THen we got lucky. How?? We were prepared, well funded and well studied. We timed it right and we pounced. Bought a 06 DP with 15K in Oct2014. Repo, going into its second winter in repo status, neglected but not abused. They asked 90, we offered 52, they took it 3 days later, did not even counter.

So, you need to rent a few with different floorplans, class A and C, and mainly with different powertrains. Rent a DP with air ride. See what you like and what you can live with. To me that Ford V10 -- oh heck NO! And study, study, study. You're doing it now, so good start. And get your money piled up and ready to pounce, 'cause someone else it trying to buy your dream. Best of luck.

Ford increased the HP several years ago and added a 5 speed trans. No issues on hills.

sirpurrcival · 07-14-2015, 12:23 PM

By the time you get there, most of the gassers you will be interested in will be from around today's new coaches. The V-10 of today is much more powerful than the earliest ones. The first ones were about 275 HP and the new ones are around 350 I believe. That would sure make a difference for my vehicle which is a bit underpowered for it's size. I don't think I would consider towing up mountains in it. However, it does gamely climb and although it won't break any land speed records, I have confidence in it.

frankdamp · 07-14-2015, 12:41 PM

Inthe70s:

Compared to the eastern "mountains" (Appalachians, etc), which don't even have a snowline, our NW ones do, but Washington Pass is the highest road crossing in the WA Cascades. Since we've given up the RV life, we probably won't get to try any of your 10K passes in the Rockies.

mrt_1111 · 07-14-2015, 12:42 PM

Yesterday I drove up and down a 11000+ pass (Monarch pass) in colorado pulling my toad. Its not the going up, it the coming down that the problem. A car in front of me when 20 mph the whole way, brakes got hot, had to stop and and let them cool off. Also my brakebuddy decided to stop working. I highly recommend a toad braking system.