Journey with Confidence RV GPS App RV Trip Planner RV LIFE Campground Reviews RV Maintenance Take a Speed Test Free 7 Day Trial ×
RV Trip Planning Discussions

Go Back   iRV2 Forums > THE OWNER'S CORNER FORUMS > Thor Industries Owner's Forum > Keystone
Click Here to Login
Join iRV2 Today

Mission Statement: Supporting thoughtful exchange of knowledge, values and experience among RV enthusiasts.
Reply
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread Display Modes
 
Old 04-19-2011, 10:50 AM   #1
Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2011
Posts: 97
Cougar 321 RES

Can anyone tell me any info you've heard regarding this new floor plan
(321 RES) for Cougar travel trailers? We're thinking of buying one but have never had a Cougar before. Any info would be helpful. Thank you.
iluvcamping is offline   Reply With Quote
Join the #1 RV Forum Today - It's Totally Free!

iRV2.com RV Community - Are you about to start a new improvement on your RV or need some help with some maintenance? Do you need advice on what products to buy? Or maybe you can give others some advice? No matter where you fit in you'll find that iRV2 is a great community to join. Best of all it's totally FREE!

You are currently viewing our boards as a guest so you have limited access to our community. Please take the time to register and you will gain a lot of great new features including; the ability to participate in discussions, network with other RV owners, see fewer ads, upload photographs, create an RV blog, send private messages and so much, much more!

Old 05-01-2011, 11:33 PM   #2
Senior Member
 
SlyFox's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2010
Location: Slocan Park
Posts: 242
Uh, pretty sure you are referring to the 327RES. We currently have a 278RKS and have been very happy with it so far. The 327RES will have a bigger floorplan and more storage capacity. If we upgrade to a larger unit in the future it will be another Cougar and quite possibly the 327RES or the 326MKS.
__________________
2017 Ram 3500 Dually & 2012 Arctic Fox 29-5K Silver Fox Edition 5th wheel
Paul & Sheryl
SlyFox is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-24-2011, 01:24 PM   #3
Registered User
 
Forest River Owners Club
Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: Western, MA
Posts: 619
No, the OP was referring to the 321RES just like they said. We just bought ours. What would you like to know about it? We are extremely happy with ours and love the floorplan. Anything you want to know, just ask us...
taken is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-25-2011, 08:19 AM   #4
Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2011
Posts: 97
Thanks, TAKEN! Ours is on order and hope to get it the first part of June. We ordered it with the 2 recliners.
What kind of hitch set-up do you use? Is yours pulling ok? We're always a little concerned when a new floor plan comes out to know if the 'glitches' have been worked out.
We have a 2010 F-150 crew reg. bed 5.4 V8-3.73.
Have you noticed any problems with construction that we should look for? Probably the only thing we noticed was the lack of outside storage even though there is the narrow one all across the front which makes it difficult for getting things from the middle of it. They should have put 2 storage drawers on wheels so it could be pulled out.
Thanks for any info you can give.....we're really excited about getting our 321RES trailer.
iluvcamping is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-25-2011, 09:02 AM   #5
Registered User
 
Forest River Owners Club
Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: Western, MA
Posts: 619
Quote:
Originally Posted by iluvcamping View Post
Thanks, TAKEN! Ours is on order and hope to get it the first part of June. We ordered it with the 2 recliners.
What kind of hitch set-up do you use? Is yours pulling ok? We're always a little concerned when a new floor plan comes out to know if the 'glitches' have been worked out.
We have a 2010 F-150 crew reg. bed 5.4 V8-3.73.
Have you noticed any problems with construction that we should look for? Probably the only thing we noticed was the lack of outside storage even though there is the narrow one all across the front which makes it difficult for getting things from the middle of it. They should have put 2 storage drawers on wheels so it could be pulled out.
Thanks for any info you can give.....we're really excited about getting our 321RES trailer.
Glad to help. We got the one with two couches. We too preferred the recliners but wanted to have max sleeping space if we had guests or ever get around to having children. We haven't gone on a long run yet as our first trip is this coming Monday. Heading out while everyone else is heading home. Will know more about trailerability etc. after that. Construction seems good from what we've seen so far. It was lacking a few things we wanted which I have added over the past few weeks. I added an outside low pressure quick connect for our low pressure grill. I also swapped out the front and rear roof vents for Fantastic Fans and added vent covers to all three roof vents. I used the smoke colored ones from Camco which look black to match the trailer and ac from the outside, but are like tinted windows from the inside and still let in some light. Another thing we did was swap out the fifty cent speakers from all 6 interior locations. The stereo/DVD player was fine, but the speakers were the absolute worst quality I've seen. I just went with some Clarion 2-ways from Amazon.com. $32 a set delivered and sound fantastic! As far as hitching we went with an Equalizer E4 setup. I am going to install it this weekend. On our last trailer, an Arctic Fox 30U, we had the Reese Straight Line Dual Cam setup. It was a PITA to setup but once it was, it worked flawlessly. That is until one of the cams snapped. Reese help me up for six months before a replacement was sent and that's after a lot of calls begging. A six month back order? Really? So, I switched brands with this trailer. Support after the sale is extremely important to me. Again, since we haven't towed with the new Equalizer yet, I can't review it. I will have a good idea next Monday evening though! As for storage, I am with you on wanting more. That front area is cavernous though and although it's tough to get to the middle items, I just put things I rarely need there. I also utilized the cabinet that is facing the entrance door in the kitchen as a utility cabinet putting some things that I used to keep in outside storage there. Got everything where I want it at this point. We thought about adding the pull out drawers, but after looking at a friends trailer that has them, we decided we would be loosing too much space using them. Anyways, I guess I rambled enough. Anything else, feel free to ask. It's fun talking about a purchase you are so pleased with!!!
taken is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-25-2011, 09:25 PM   #6
Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2011
Posts: 97
You have some great ideas! I'll probably go with the Huskey Centerline hitch for this one. Please let us know how your trip goes.
iluvcamping is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-28-2011, 11:57 AM   #7
Registered User
 
Forest River Owners Club
Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: Western, MA
Posts: 619
Just a small update for you. Set up our Equalizer E4 hitch today. Went very smoothly. While I was at it, I put my Sherline Tongue Weight Scale under it. Without any clothes or anything on the front end, she's weighing in at a stout 1300# on the tongue. Your F150 is going to be at it's limits. I would recommend at least upgrading your receiver as even my F250's stock hitch was only rated to 12.5k. Your F150 will be less. Just a thought. Don't want to see you braking anything on the road!
taken is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-29-2011, 05:02 PM   #8
Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2011
Posts: 97
Thanks, Taken!
I just checked the brochure on the 321res and they have that the hitch is at 945#. You'd think that someone at the factory would be a little more accurate! Are you saying that the receiver on your F250 is only rated to have a hitch weight of 12.5k? I just checked under ours and...you're right...my receiver says 1,150#. Are you looking to get a different receiver?
We have to wonder about Keystone putting the hitch weight at 945# and you say it's actually at around 1300#! That's a difference of 355#. Guess that's one more thing to check on. I've pulled at least 6 travel trailers and 3-4 pop ups before that and I've never seen such mis-information. I had a 2004 F250 diesel pulling a 36' 2010 Open Range Journeyer with a Reese dual cam that was suppose to put a stop to swaying....but it didn't. It took us over an embankment....thankfully, no one was hurt but it totaled out truck and trailer. No wind, no weather, no speed, no traffic involved. But we found out that Trailer Life said the Journeyer had an inside weight distribution problem. Now you know why we want to get "hitched" up right. I hope we didn't make a mistake in getting this Cougar because we were just going by what Ford said we could pull and got the best trailer towing package they have ...and what Keystone said the Cougar weights are. We'll get it figured out though....thanks for your help. Let me know how your first trip out in it goes.
iluvcamping is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-29-2011, 06:21 PM   #9
Registered User
 
Forest River Owners Club
Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: Western, MA
Posts: 619
The hitch weight listed by Cougar is a dry weight. That's before you fill the two propane tanks, put two batteries up front, and fill the only outside storage compartment (the one up front!) to the hilt. Dry weights are often deceiving. Out last trailer, an Arctic Fox 30U, was dry at 1100 lbs and weighed in at over 1400. It's pretty easy to add 300-400 lbs to the tongue. We had already upgraded our hitch due to the weight of our Arctic Fox. We have a Reese Titan which is rated at 1800 lbs tongue weight, but they don't make one for a 150. You may kill some tongue weight by not filling your front exterior compartment with all your tools etc. Also, the water tank on the 321RES is all the way in the back of the trailer. If you filled it, it holds 47 gallons which is close to 400 lbs. That would offset your tongue somewhat. Bottom line though, your going to be at your 150's limit. Published (dry) weights are always super low from any manufacturer. Just like GVWR on a tow vehicle is always misleading as they consider 1/4 tank of gas, no cargo, and a 150 lb driver. Who tows like that!? However, I wouldn't get overly worried about it yet. I routinely go over our trucks limit when my wife and I take out atv's with us camping up in ME. We put the two machines in the bed of the truck on a rack and then there's the trailer's tongue weight. We are close to 11k when our truck is GVWR at 9400 lbs. We use air bags to keep things level and firm. Never have an issue. IMHO I would consider a higher end WD/Anti-sway system though. I got the Reese Dual Cam to work with much tweeking, but the Equalizer was MUCH easier to set up. I've read good things over and over about it, so we will see. It was cheap enough too. I got it from RV Wholesalers for about $450 shipped. Here's a link: Equal-i-zer Hitch 1200/12000lbs Trailer Weight - RVWholesalers.com RV Parts
Ah well, I'm sure it will work out for you. Your truck may just be working a little harder than you expected. To be honest, mine will too. One of the selling points of this trailer over our last was less weight to tow. I'm thinking it won't be as much less than we thought.......
taken is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-01-2011, 10:52 AM   #10
Member
 
Join Date: Jun 2011
Posts: 41
We have this camper and love it!!!!

We also own this camper and we love it!!! Went with 2 recliner chairs that you will absolutely think are great. We took possession of it about 3 weeks and have already been camping in it 2 times. We love the floorplan and honestly have plenty of storage. Let me know if you have any questions at all. I will be more than happy to answer. Expect hitch questions... My BFF takes care of all of that! LOL
ScoobySue is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-01-2011, 11:26 AM   #11
Registered User
 
Forest River Owners Club
Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: Western, MA
Posts: 619
Update mid trip for you. Have found that what Cougar uses is lower end than our AF, but acceptable for the most part. IE: one position switch on the lights so you can't just turn on one bulb when running on batteries, fridge is a cheaper model with a plastic switch rather than a led digital readout, manual propane changeover rather than automatic, and low end power tongue jack that is VERY slow and seems to not be working 100 percent. Also, some fit and finish issues. The bathroom door won't close right. Also, keep an eye on the tv wires when raising and lowering the flat screne. No matter how i route them, they seem to get caught when the set is going up or down. The biggest complaint we have so far is the mattress. After sleeping in it for two nights it already has big dents in it where my wife and I sleep. I doubt the dealer will help on this one so I imagine we may have to buy an upgrade. Now for the good. Love the floor plan. Am actually glad we went for the two couches. We bought two ottomans and can sit so many different ways or we
can both lay down on a couch. Another thing we found is that this trailer has a higher draw converter. Our 2400 Yamaha generator has trouble with the ac if the converter is running a high draw to charge the batteries. As for towing, it towed straight as an arrow with the Equalizer E4. Am VERY pleased in that department. Will let you know if we find anything else of interest....
taken is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-02-2011, 02:43 PM   #12
Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2011
Posts: 97
Thanks Scooby Sue! Glad you like the your 321RES! What hitch did you go with? We hope to get ours within the next 2 weeks. We have a vacation scheduled for around June 18th. We at least have the serial number on it now so maybe that's a good sign it's being made. We'll see.

And thanks TAKEN for the update on your trip. Would you believe I emailed a guy whose name and address was provided on Keystonerv.com about the tongue weight discrepancy and what you said your actual tongue weight was and.....I haven't heard back from him...surprise..surprise! Also, in the 2011 brochure we have it says the tongue weight is 945# but if you go to the website for the 321RES floor plan they've lowered it to 900# for 2012. Just waiting for an explanation on that one.
Thanks for all the 'heads-up' on what you have found. Can your bathroom door be fixed?
I know that in any new rv you're going to find some things that just aren't quite right....sort of like a new house.
Keep us posted if you find anything else.
iluvcamping is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-02-2011, 04:28 PM   #13
Registered User
 
Forest River Owners Club
Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: Western, MA
Posts: 619
Yes, the door can be fixed. One thing I forgot to tell you. Have your dealer check all electrical connections before you take delivery. We had bad connections on all three slides which we found on our pdi. Slides wouldn't come in. Cheapo loose crimp connectors were to blame. Then this morning our furnace wouldn't fire. Pulled all the connections and reseated them and she was good. Hopefully these are just new bugs and they will work themselves out. As for your hitch weight, I'm telling you what they will say. The posted weight is the dry weight not a curb weight. No propane, batteries, or gear in the front storage area. Also no clothes in the front closet or drawers. It adds up pretty quick! Also, never listen to the dealer. They will always tell you your truck is fine no matter what the truck or what the trailer. An over anxious dealer we almost bought ours from insisted I only need 10k bars. He also told me if I had traded my AF to him he would have no issue selling it to a half ton owner. Now that trailer weighed over 1400 on the ball! He went on to say a swt of air bags will make any half ton tow heavy... What about the axles, brakes, hitch rating! I guess in his mind, if it's level, it's good to go... LOL.....
taken is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-05-2011, 07:50 PM   #14
Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2011
Posts: 97
SCOOBYSUE......Just curious as to what vehicle you tow with? We're still waiting for our Cougar.
iluvcamping is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Tags
heartland, kz-rv



Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off


Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
Cougar FW rim size Groveite Keystone 14 01-29-2011 05:25 PM
window replacement - Keystone Cougar Groveite RV Systems & Appliances 6 09-20-2010 08:13 PM
Contemplating Cougar 326MKS 5er byrdr1 5th Wheel Discussion 2 09-06-2010 01:29 PM
Cougar fifth wheel MSRP? rvrat 5th Wheel Discussion 13 08-08-2010 11:07 PM
110v Res. Fridg--Generator usage Waterdog4315 Alpine Coach Owner's Forum 7 03-03-2010 02:56 PM

» Featured Campgrounds

Reviews provided by


All times are GMT -6. The time now is 05:06 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.8 Beta 1
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.