Why did you pick Newmar over Tiffin?

[newmarpusher]

Originally Posted by az99

So you think a dealer traded in a used any kind of MH for more then someone paid for it and then resells it for no profit?

Interesting story. I traded my 2010 Winnebago DP in for the 2015 Ventana. We were given 28% less than we had paid for it 5 years earlier, which I felt was fair considering we got about 28% off MSRP for the Ventana.

The second owner found my info in the extensive documentation I included with the Winnebago. We got to talking and he bought our old coach for 20% less than the dealer paid us for it. And they put new tires on it. So go figure.


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[gtsum2]

Originally Posted by newmarpusher

Interesting story. I traded my 2010 Winnebago DP in for the 2015 Ventana. We were given 28% less than we had paid for it 5 years earlier, which I felt was fair considering we got about 28% off MSRP for the Ventana.

The second owner found my info in the extensive documentation I included with the Winnebago. We got to talking and he bought our old coach for 20% less than the dealer paid us for it. And they put new tires on it. So go figure.


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I might be missing something, but t sure sounds like you made out pretty good on both ends? I had heard about 6% depreciation/year and u were a bit better than that. Not sure how they made money on selling yours for 20% less than they gave u on trade?

[newmarpusher]

Originally Posted by gtsum2

I might be missing something, but t sure sounds like you made out pretty good on both ends? I had heard about 6% depreciation/year and u were a bit better than that. Not sure how they made money on selling yours for 20% less than they gave u on trade?

They couldn't have made any money on the sale of my old one. Surprised the heck out of me too. The new owner was wondering if he got a good deal. I said, you sure did, I wouldn't have sold you the MH for that price!

My point of posting this was that as a consumer, you can't make any assumptions about new v. Used vs, dealer vs private sale vs. trade in. There are so many factors and motivations involved. The dealer could be looking for really clean used MHs to drive traffic or future sales. They may be willing to take a hit on a trade to move new units. Or maybe they just looked at the wrong chart and screwed up, who knows.

I only buy new and I only trade in. So I only know how to do that effectively.


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[timjet]

Perhaps this should be started as another thread, but of those who looked at the Monaco coach's how in your opinion did they compare to Newmar and why?

[jmon129]

Originally Posted by timjet

Perhaps this should be started as another thread, but of those who looked at the Monaco coach's how in your opinion did they compare to Newmar and why?

IMHO, Today's Monaco is a Fleetwood problem.

[Mainuh]

Originally Posted by lanerd

You know since you posted this question in the Newmar forum, you gotta expect biased answers....but of course you knew that in the beginning and probably already had your mind pretty much made up and was just looking for confirmation.

To be fair, you might want to post this same question in the Tiffin forum and reverse the names in the question.

<snip>

So, check with Tiffin owners before you really make up your mind.

Good luck

Ron

If the OP posted here asking why Newmar over Tiffin he must be considering both. Forums are riddled with some very opinionated folks. Many are sure their solution is the only possible choice. In a Newmar owners forum, you're certainly going to get Newmar bias. What the OP should pay more attention to is the unsolicited traffic on both forums about owners talking about issues and how they resolved them. Other than the importance of a livable floorplan, warranty/repair issues and how easy it is to get them resolved is probably the most important consideration.

We set out almost exclusively looking at Tiffin. I was sure we'd be buying a used bus. But while going to a dealer in Moncton NB to look at 3 other coaches, we found a 41' Mountain Aire in mint condition that was more than we thought we could afford, but our dollar was worth $1.41 at the time in Canada. The dealer was outstanding and after learning more about Newmar, we ended up with the 4121 MADP. Early in ownership yet, but no regrets so far.

If you can afford a new rig and don't mind the big depreciation hits in the first few years, you can get what you want from either and it puts a different set of considerations into play. But when looking at used, you have to look long and hard sometimes to find what you want. Floorplan is still king and should be a major consideration. But do your homework and go with what you feel comfortable with. There are so many considerations for any purchase and no cookie cutter recommendation is going to cover all. We do love our Mountain Aire, but We'd still look at a Tiffin if we were to look in the future. We'd only be looking at used as we wouldn't buy new. I have several friends who own Tiffin and love them and are as fiercely loyal to the brand as the Newmar owners are here.

Good luck with the decision and pay more attention to the unsolicited comments in the forums than the solicited ones like this.

[TMan59]

Haven't found a Tiffin with the size or amount of Windows we have on the Newmar.
We like to see out.

[tjZ06]

FWIW I thought pretty seriously about a Tiffin Allegro Bus 37AP. At the time I was trying to stay sub-40' so that I could tow a decent trailer and stay under CA's 65' length limit. But I wanted at least an ISL. There is a pretty limited set of coaches out there under 40' with the ISL.

We went and looked at a few 37APs, and we did find them rather nice. However, the little details of fit and finish seemed to be lacking for the sort of $ we were looking at.

Also, in the 37' floorplan we just weren't happy with the space, especially the bedroom. For the sort of investment a coach at this level represents, and knowing we spend ~90 days a year in our coach a cramped bedroom just didn't make sense.

Well, that moved us up into looking at 40' coaches. I figured that when we move from our current 28' enclosed trailer to a stacker we'll still be able to make 65' with a 40' coach, and we can still fit in all of the smaller parts we currently frequent without the trailer.

Somehow when I was shopping the 36-38' range I hadn't really looked into Newmar enough. I guess everything on the lots I went to were generally 43-45' Newmars and I just thought of them as out of reach both in size and budget.

But when we considered the 40' all of the sudden the Newmar Dutch Star jumped to the front of the list since it has the tag axle in a 40' coach and a factory 15k lbs hitch. If I do move to a stacker the tag and appropriate hitch are very key to me.

Once I started checking them out in person I was very impressed with the fit and finish. IMHO it surpassed Tiffin's Allegro Bus. Also, even though the MSRPs were very similar (with the Tiffin being ~10k higher) the actual price I would pay for a Dutch Star is about $50k less.

When you add in Comfort Drive and a few of the other unique things Newmar brings it was just the best coach for us. We're going with a 4018. I hope I don't regret not going with the bigger 4369 since we really like the large master bathroom in that floorplan, and 3' reaaallly isn't THAT much. But I think we're going to be happier at 40' and doing a 20' stacker (so 24' true, total length) and being legal at just under 65' (with the 4018's true length of 40'9") and fitting in all the parks we love (some have 40' limits... we'll have to fib a bit to come in even w/ the 4018).

-TJ

[tjZ06]

Originally Posted by tjZ06

FWIW I thought pretty seriously about a Tiffin Allegro Bus 37AP. At the time I was trying to stay sub-40' so that I could tow a decent trailer and stay under CA's 65' length limit. But I wanted at least an ISL. There is a pretty limited set of coaches out there under 40' with the ISL.

We went and looked at a few 37APs, and we did find them rather nice. However, the little details of fit and finish seemed to be lacking for the sort of $ we were looking at.

Also, in the 37' floorplan we just weren't happy with the space, especially the bedroom. For the sort of investment a coach at this level represents, and knowing we spend ~90 days a year in our coach a cramped bedroom just didn't make sense.

Well, that moved us up into looking at 40' coaches. I figured that when we move from our current 28' enclosed trailer to a stacker we'll still be able to make 65' with a 40' coach, and we can still fit in all of the smaller parts we currently frequent without the trailer.

Somehow when I was shopping the 36-38' range I hadn't really looked into Newmar enough. I guess everything on the lots I went to were generally 43-45' Newmars and I just thought of them as out of reach both in size and budget.

But when we considered the 40' all of the sudden the Newmar Dutch Star jumped to the front of the list since it has the tag axle in a 40' coach and a factory 15k lbs hitch. If I do move to a stacker the tag and appropriate hitch are very key to me.

Once I started checking them out in person I was very impressed with the fit and finish. IMHO it surpassed Tiffin's Allegro Bus. Also, even though the MSRPs were very similar (with the Tiffin being ~10k higher) the actual price I would pay for a Dutch Star is about $50k less.

When you add in Comfort Drive and a few of the other unique things Newmar brings it was just the best coach for us. We're going with a 4018. I hope I don't regret not going with the bigger 4369 since we really like the large master bathroom in that floorplan, and 3' reaaallly isn't THAT much. But I think we're going to be happier at 40' and doing a 20' stacker (so 24' true, total length) and being legal at just under 65' (with the 4018's true length of 40'9") and fitting in all the parks we love (some have 40' limits... we'll have to fib a bit to come in even w/ the 4018).

-TJ

I forgot to add: NO CARPET. No carpet, no carpet, no carpet!

[gosman]

Originally Posted by newmarpusher

THE main reason we didn't go with a Tiffin was floorplan. After years of looking, we never found a Tiffin floorplan to our liking. The Main tv is always at a right angle from the primary living room seating.

I do like their cabinetry.

Newmar's willingness to customize various options like recliners vs couches, etc is a huge plus over Tiffin. There is no substitute for Comfort Drive. We also wanted a TAG on a 40'.


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You must not have seen the new Tiffin floor plans!

[gosman]

Originally Posted by az99

Good Luck with that. I have found asking prices on used to be crazy high. Right now on RV trader there are several DS that are priced higher than what a new one of equal MSRP can be bought for. The NADA prices on used are total jokes. They list original MSRP and then retail prices much higher than what original costs were.
In some cases private sellers still owe $ on them so they are asking too much so they can pay them off.
Used dealers are even worse. Especially if they are not Newmar dealers.

Yes- new diesel pushers have a gone way up in retail pricing over the last 3 years. Yes on RV Trader, people are asking the same price they paid for theirs 3 years ago. They refuse to give you the retail pricing of the year they bought! If they did, you can take 25% off of that price and see easily what they paid for the unit! People are so greedy.

[timjet]

Originally Posted by gosman

People are so greedy.

That's the name of the game when you'll selling. Only a buyer can let a seller get greedy. The seller sets the asking price, but the buyers set the selling price.

[timjet]

Originally Posted by tjZ06

But when we considered the 40' all of the sudden the Newmar Dutch Star jumped to the front of the list since it has the tag axle in a 40' coach and a factory 15k lbs hitch. If I do move to a stacker the tag and appropriate hitch are very key to me.
-TJ

A 38 to 40' Dutch Star is also my first choice, but I'm looking at a '06 to '08 in the $100,000 range. There are not many in that price range, but I'm patient and not quite ready to buy yet anyway. I'm also considering the Tiffin Bus and Monaco Diplomat or Knight, but my preference is a DS.

Concerning pricing, I believe I can get what I want if I'm patient enough. Looking at RVTrader gets a little depressing as far as prices go, but remember those are asking prices, not what the buyer actually pays.

[cliffj]

FWIW....I have owned 3 Tiffin, last one an Allegro Bus. I had a Monaco Diplomat until 2 years ago and then owned a Dynamax Dynaquest super C. I thought the Monaco was "better" than the Tiffin products and I have become a Newmar fan with our new to us 2014 DS. Been to the Tiffin factory for a fix and met Bob and feel guilty moving on but feel the Newmar is just a step above relative to build and ride quality.