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02-16-2016, 07:56 PM
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#1
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Member
Join Date: Jan 2016
Location: 2022 F450, 2023 Riverstone 42FSKG
Posts: 63
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Which brand would you not buy?
Upon doing research upon research, I would like try another direction. Which brand of fiver toy hauler should I stay away from?
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02-16-2016, 08:25 PM
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#2
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Senior Member
Newmar Owners Club
Join Date: Jun 2015
Location: Cajun Country, Louisiana
Posts: 250
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Anything made by Thor
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02-16-2016, 11:19 PM
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#3
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Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2013
Posts: 552
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Do your research. Lots of crap being made and sold out there. Good luck 😜👍🏻
1996 Country Coach Intrigue 😜
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02-16-2016, 11:36 PM
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#4
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Senior Member
Join Date: May 2014
Posts: 3,059
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Do your research and then go out and look at them, as many as you can. You will see the quality issues people talk about, and when you look at the lower end price brands vs the higher price brands you will definitely see the difference. The bottom line is quality is in the mind of the beholder, what may or may not be important to you may be to someone else. And remember you get what you pay for, so buy what you really want. At the starting price point spending a little extra may be well worth the cost.
__________________
Mike & Charlotte
2014 Newmar Canyon Star 3610
Orange County, California
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02-16-2016, 11:54 PM
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#5
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Senior Member
Winnebago Owners Club
Join Date: Mar 2014
Posts: 14,890
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We have a KZ Sportster 41 toyhauler and were very happy when we were using it. We recently upgraded to a coach and are in the process of selling the 5er.
__________________
Gordon and Janet
Tour 42QD/InTech Stacker
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02-16-2016, 11:57 PM
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#6
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Moderator Emeritus
Damon Owners Club Workhorse Chassis Owner
Join Date: Mar 2012
Location: Lone Star State
Posts: 19,203
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MrBelvedere
Anything made by Thor
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Please explain...the Thor group of brands includes many fine RV's from AirStream, to DRV Luxury Suites, to The Coleman pop-top (yes, named after the famed lantern maker).
Operating Entities - Thor Industries, Inc.
Key Stone, Heartland and K-Z make highly regarded Toy Haulers.
I agree with the poster above that says each of us must decide. The really cheap units will be obvious.
Best luck to the OP
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02-17-2016, 08:38 AM
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#7
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Senior Member
Ford Super Duty Owner
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: Austin, TX
Posts: 1,886
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MrBelvedere
Anything made by Thor
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So you just ruled out 75% of the RV market. Including the Airstream brand, not that they make a toy hauler.
Thor has various levels of service across their sub-brands.
The bottom line is this:
There really isn't much construction difference between manufacturers. They all use the same frames, add to that frame wood or aluminum construction. Add a wood or aluminum roof trusses. They get skinned differently - fiberglass or aluminum. They are ALL assembled by human beings where the speed of manufacture directly impacts the bottom line.
They vary in interior trim out. A few (not many) vary in suspension systems. They vary in complexity of options. They may vary in terms of quality of insulation, amount of insulation, and windows. But they are largely the same sort of basic construction techniques.
Most sales people point to the level of trim/options as "quality". It is not quality. More options mean more systems.
Not all will provide end owner support other than the dealer.
Generally, the less expensive brands (IMHO) tend to be less good about warranty and support. That's what I've observed. That doesn't mean they are bad products.. In fact, you may be better off buying a less expensive Thor product over a Jayco of the same feature set, if you don't have many issues.
Most manufactures tend to provide suspect tires, especially on heavier rigs...
They all seem to have issues out of the factory. I don't see any brand exclusions to this.
If you're buying used, most of this stuff is warranty - which only matters for the first 1-3 years. If you're buying used, things may be different - I'd pay much more attention to how well the RV was cared for than who made it....
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02-17-2016, 08:51 AM
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#8
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Senior Member
Newmar Owners Club
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: Spicewood Texas (West of Austin)
Posts: 4,514
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Quality cost money. You get what you pay for. The thing that irked me the most with my previous toy hauler was the chaotic mess behind the basement wall. It did it's job, and we enjoyed it a lot, but that was always in the back of my mind.
__________________
Scotty and Kristen, Airedales Dagny and Wyatt
2007 Newmar Mountain Aire 4528, 450 HP ISM, Allison 4000, 8 Lifeline AGM's
2019 F250 King Ranch 4x4 Powerstroke - SOLD
2022 F350 DRW King Ranch 4 x 4
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02-17-2016, 09:10 AM
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#9
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Senior Member
Join Date: Jun 2013
Posts: 423
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MrBelvedere
Anything made by Thor
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agree
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02-17-2016, 09:15 AM
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#10
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Senior Member
Join Date: Jun 2013
Posts: 423
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Scarab0088
Please explain...the Thor group of brands includes many fine RV's from AirStream, to DRV Luxury Suites, to The Coleman pop-top (yes, named after the famed lantern maker).
Operating Entities - Thor Industries, Inc.
Key Stone, Heartland and K-Z make highly regarded Toy Haulers.
I agree with the poster above that says each of us must decide. The really cheap units will be obvious.
Best luck to the OP
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Yes, Airstream is crap. I don't want to have to go the local Airstream dealer and take pictures of poor workmanship on EVERY one on their lot. We gave up on our last visit. We walked from one to another next to it of the same model and walls were crooked, outlets were blocked, cabinets were not aligned, etc.
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02-17-2016, 02:37 PM
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#11
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Senior Member
Join Date: Mar 2009
Posts: 1,597
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Quote:
Originally Posted by peterson
agree
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So you are stating a DRV Fullhouse is crap. Thor owns DRV.
__________________
2003 Teton Grand Freedom. 2006 Freightliner Century 120 with Detroit 14L and Ultrashift.2016 Smartcar carry on deck. Full time going from job to job. Building and maintaining plants across the USA. Sold 2006 Mobile Suites 32TK3
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02-18-2016, 06:34 AM
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#12
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Senior Member
Mid Atlantic Campers
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: Solomons Island MD
Posts: 250
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I've been looking at new toy haulers for some time. This would be our 3rd. First was a Keystone, our current rig is a Glendale Titanium.
After my first experience with Keystone I would have to think long and hard about purchasing another Keystone. Not a pleasant experience.
Our Titanium has been a great rig, it just needs some updating. The only reason we have been looking is for some of the more modern convinces and a different layout.
In all the research of many toy haulers, in what I would consider a mid priced rig I like the Venom. The 3911 has a great floor plan for us but I have lots of reservations about the purchase of a first year product run.
I've spent some time looking at DRV and not convinced they are worthy of the price point. I do like August RV and have had some great conversations with them. Forks RV is tops on my list but the current business climate is telling me NO.
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02-18-2016, 06:37 AM
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#13
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Member
Join Date: Jan 2016
Location: 2022 F450, 2023 Riverstone 42FSKG
Posts: 63
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Thanks for the input.
I believe that it seems it has come down to DRV, New Horizon, Heartland, Key Stone. I havent really spent time looking at K-Z or Jayco, but I will give them some more time. It does seem most everyone has the same concern with most of them as far as axles and tires go. I would like to have a 12'-13' garage and a TV in the living room that is not at a 90 degree angle from the seating. I would also like to have 40' plus.
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02-18-2016, 11:03 AM
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#14
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Senior Member
Ford Super Duty Owner
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: Austin, TX
Posts: 1,886
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I also own a Keystone (Carbon) and it's been a reasonably solid RV, short of needing the TPO roof material replaced (it wasn't installed correctly).
I will say that Keystone does not provide direct customer support in most cases. You will not (effectively) be able to get any repairs on the road from another Keystone dealer without likely waiting months. You'll be very dependent on the dealer after the sale.
Their warranties exclude interesting things like "cosmetic" - meaning they can replace your roof, have it look like crap (affecting resale), but you're stuck with the way it looks as long as the roof is functional. My roof turned out OK, but I've seen some horrible results from dealer repairs that Keystone refused to address.
Before you buy, read how they respond to consumers on the BBB. I don't really concern myself with the volume of complaints (they sell a LOT of RVs), but you can get a feeling of how they treat customers.
I will also say that I think their RVs are good value for what you get.
Jayco has better support.. Heck, I'd venture to say that MOST manufacturers are going to give you better end user support.
I like the Momentum series - they are very concerned with their reputation. If I was going to buy another one, that's where I'd be shopping. I think Jayco is fine too.. DRV (which is thor) has lots of features and improvements over other brands.
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