Entegra Brand Comparison

[Cruzer]

I've had numerous requests from fellow RVers for my opinion on various coach brands. To answer these requests without having to retype everything every time I've put together a 3 brand comparison of Tiffin Motorhomes, American Coach, and Entegra. I've limited it to these three brands because I am most familiar with them. It's strictly my opinion but it has been wildly accepted on the TiffinRVnetwork forum so I figured I'd share it here for anyone interested in Entegra. I've uploaded it to my website and you can access it at http://www.rvcruzer.com/3brands.pdf . Hopefully you will find it of value.

[tnrzryd]

Thanks, Mark! As always you did an excellent job! Now we just need to get you an Entegra. I hear German shepherds prefer them.

[The Driver]

Wow, what a great stack of info! Thanks for sharing such a thorough, detailed, and understandable document....it's certainly a keeper!

[nathans]

Mark, As always a great article but have to disagree on one comet you have made about the Aspire comparing more favorably to the Phaeton. We hav e owned a Phaeton prev. and it is like comparing apples to oranges. The Phaeton does not have a 450 Cummins engine, a Spartan chassis, aqua hot, keyless entry, and on and on standard. The Bus DOES NOT compare to to the Anthem. We looked at the Bus, Phaeton, Aspire, and Anthem side by side in the Crown Club at Lazydays and should be comparing the Aspire to the Bus not the Phaeton. Check the specs and I think you will agree. In fact we prefer the Aspire over the Bus! Just our opinion. Otherwise great article, well thought out.

[rvguy02]

With many new products and features coming in the forseeable future from Entegra, they definitely "get it". I am always impressed by how much they study the industry and their own coaches to "build a better mousetrap". This will be fun in the coming years as these three manufacturers vie for people's business. I predict Entegra will be at the top of the heap when all is said and done. In many ways they're already there.

[Cruzer]

Originally Posted by nathans

Mark, As always a great article but have to disagree on one comet you have made about the Aspire comparing more favorably to the Phaeton. We hav e owned a Phaeton prev. and it is like comparing apples to oranges. The Phaeton does not have a 450 Cummins engine, a Spartan chassis, aqua hot, keyless entry, and on and on standard. The Bus DOES NOT compare to to the Anthem. We looked at the Bus, Phaeton, Aspire, and Anthem side by side in the Crown Club at Lazydays and should be comparing the Aspire to the Bus not the Phaeton. Check the specs and I think you will agree. In fact we prefer the Aspire over the Bus! Just our opinion. Otherwise great article, well thought out.

The Aspire was their Phaeton target. But, it grew and expanded with side radiators, 450 ISL, etc to the point where it is an upscale version of the Phaeton albeit at a higher price. But they are trying to appel to potential Phaeton buyers who want to upscale a bit.

[JohnT]

Mark,
Another great write up.
Simple question. How does Entegra's exterior wall "bonding" process differ from the others? You mentioned it was installed after the wall frame was hung.
Thanks

[Cruzer]

It's called a hung sidewall process, which is identical to Newmar. The fiberglass slab is hung on the wall after the rest of the wall is erected.

[MSMatt]

Mark,

Thanks for the write up, nice way to contrast the various brands. One comment, you note that foam insulation is installed in the walls and ceiling, but when I toured the factory, they were using traditional residential fiberglass bat insulation. They may have changed their material since your last visit.

Thanks.

[slabman]

Great job, Cruz....I think you nailed it. I suppose it doesn't matter much now, but one thing I think I would differ on is the old Travel Supreme's approach to building coaches. I DO NOT think they were high-priced at all! In fact, that was the reason I went with them. They seemed to pile so many extra higher-end items in their coaches which made them a great buy, even with sticker prices not at all as high as Fleetwood, for instance. But in some instances, being a small company without a large budget for engineering new ideas, they would rely on what others were doing and simply copy those approaches. In most cases that sufficed, but where new concepts were brought in, a lack of proper engineering and testing resulted in issues and warranty claims. The ongoing windshield issues might be the most blatent indictment of these shortcomings.

But as you say...there is no one mfr. who has a lock on doing everything correctly so that no issues occur. TS built a great product and their 2 yr. warranty, coupled with limited production volume and an extra generous attitude towards satisfying the customer eventually led to their undoing. Thank God the Bontragers came along at the right time!

[anotherone]

Originally Posted by Cruzer

I've had numerous requests from fellow RVers for my opinion on various coach brands. To answer these requests without having to retype everything every time I've put together a 3 brand comparison of Tiffin Motorhomes, American Coach, and Entegra. I've limited it to these three brands because I am most familiar with them. It's strictly my opinion but it has been wildly accepted on the TiffinRVnetwork forum so I figured I'd share it here for anyone interested in Entegra. I've uploaded it to my website and you can access it at http://www.rvcruzer.com/3brands.pdf . Hopefully you will find it of value.

Mark great research ; thanks. Can you tell me if the entegra info applies to the 2010 aspire or all of them?

[Cruzer]

The 2010 Aspire is somewhat common to the 2013s. Specifications vary but the company hasn't changed nor has their basic design and quality level so they are buil just as well and backed the same. I didn't get into specific model details because that was not the intent of the article.

[anotherone]

thanks for the quick reply ; as in most cases dollars are the driving force. In this case construction could be a very persuasive factor. There is alot of chatter these days on the internet about the heat and coach owners trying to cope with it. Suddenly insulation is a major factor even adding a third ac.
I was hell bent on finding an 07 bus but there might be a 2010 entegra in my future. Thanks again!

[slabman]

FWIW, my '07 Alante with 3 A/C's NEVER is a concern with the Texas heat. We can usually run on only 2 units unless someone here gets a hot flash! And I do have the closed cell thermal insulation option which I understand is standard in the new Entegras.