Community Forums

dezolen · 10-26-2015, 07:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jfran304

Look at the Tiffin Allegro Open Road 36 LA. It has everything but the king bed.

Jon

Overall a much better coach. If extra beds are needed they can now be ordered with bunk above cockpit and get the booth dinette. No need to change units once the kids stop coming.
Gotta have 2 baths and W/D with kids. Also has 10 gallon WH as opposed to 6 gallon. No slides in way of patio. Easy access to largest outside storage capacity, less intrusion of slides to interior when travelling, 20' awning.

bigben · 10-27-2015, 11:30 AM

Cannot disagree - the Tiffin coaches are very well made. I wanted as much room in the basement as possible and the extra grey water. When we change coaches in a few years we will probable go with one of their 4 slide DP models

Decavegas · 03-29-2016, 11:55 AM

I know that the Bounders come with a 5,000 hitch capacity. Thor Challengers come standard with an 8,000 capacity. Looked at the Bounders and found the quality to be exceptional for what I need except for this one thing. If I need to pull my boat, which I will, or a car trailer, the Bounder is out. Not sure why Fleetwood wouldn't make this change. If there's any more insight on this, please advise.

georgew48 · 03-29-2016, 12:32 PM

You might want to look at the Georgetown 364 also. It has great bunks and two full baths not just a bath and a half. Two showers would be gteat with kids.

JCGibson · 03-29-2016, 01:22 PM

Even though the Challenger would come with an 8K hitch, the GVWR is 22K and GCWR is only 26K. With the large water/waste tanks and basement storage it would be very easy to go over capacity. No way you would be able to actually pull 8K. Would be lucky to actually tow 5K with the low GCWR. In comparison our Tiffin 36LA came with the 24K GVWR chassis and 30K GCWR. Huge difference.

georgew48 · 03-29-2016, 04:41 PM

My Georgetown XL weighs almost 20K empty. It has a 24k chassis and a 30K GCVWR. I would think you would never be close to being able to use the full capacity of an 8k hitch on the Challenger with a 22k chassis and. 26K GCVWR.

KC · 03-29-2016, 09:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hydrocarbon

Hello everyone.

My wife and I are looking at class A motorhomes with bunk beds. We're interested in the 2016 Fleetwood Bounder 36H LX and the 2016 Thor Challenger 37TB.

When I "build" either unit on the manufactures websites I get an MSRP of $161K for the Bounder and $182K for the Challenger. I've been researching both makes, and found that most folks find Thor's quality and customer service lacking compared to Fleetwood's.

I'm curious about the price difference. Why is the Thor $20k more then the Fleetwood? We live in an area in which we would have to travel at least 8 hours one way to look at both manufactures. We are leaning towards the Bounder because of a few features we like better and the lower MSRP, but we don't want to make a $100K+ mistake.

So which one would you choose?

Thanks Everyone!

How much weight are you planning to tow?

KC

Skripo · 03-30-2016, 06:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by georgew48

You might want to look at the Georgetown 364 also. It has great bunks and two full baths not just a bath and a half. Two showers would be gteat with kids.

I second that notion. For about 100k you get a hell of deal and equipment. There's a reason it is the best selling bunk model in North America.

Unfortunately the chorus of Georgetown haters are sure to drown us out.

I looked at all of them and I can assure you they are all crap. The one thing that can't be debated is value. Look at the 364TS and look at what you get for the price.

If you are truly not about the perceived status of the brand, you will walk away with a 364.

Skripo · 03-30-2016, 06:57 PM

I realize I may have come off a little strong. No offence intended, we are all campers after all!

mojoracing · 03-30-2016, 10:17 PM

I dont think anyone would take offense to that. I went into it, looking for the most well built coach with attention to detail regardless of brand. When I purchased mine, I was in the automotive business and had a couple years of the rv business under my belt in the past. I now am back in the rv business and sell fleetwood, thor and Tiffin. Considering that Tiffin is not really in the price range of the other two,(about 10-15k more) I would still stand by my decision to purchase the Fleetwood. I look at them and evaluate them every day as well as deal with the factories, and am glad I bought the Fleetwood. If you want to step up the extra money, the Tiffin is a better coach.

Skripo · 03-31-2016, 05:09 AM

Mojoracing,

The thing is, a brand is only as good as it's last product. Take a look at the Georgetown 364TS, don't dismiss it based on what you think you know or experienced in the past.

It's a new ball game every time a new model is released, and the 364TS is taking the RV world by storm. When was the last time you saw MHSRV have 8 of anything in stock?

Hydrocarbon:

Quote:

Originally Posted by hydrocarbon

Thanks for the information!
...I also like that they have molded fiberglass roofs and are built on a 24k chassis instead of a 22k. However they both lack a 1/2 bath, king bed, washer/dryer, and residential fridge. Those items are very important to us--> (DW)..

Just for comparison, the Georgetown 364 TS:

- 22K chasis with 22.5" wheels

- Triple slide, two of them huge (reply should qualify as a quad)

- TWO FULL bathrooms with dedicated heaters and pumps allow simultaneous use

- Moulded fibreglass roof

- Available full body paint

- French door residential fridge with ice

- Stainless high end propane range with sealed burners

- Solid surface counters

- Available Washer dryer combo unit

- King bed

- Way better TV placement in front (usable when slides are in) and master bedroom

- Way nicer bunks with dedicated entertainment centres

- NO carpet

etc, etc.

I realize it does not have a couple of your wish list items such as cord reels but those can be added. I almost fell into the trap of paying 20K more for upgrades worth 4K at best. This is where manufacturers get you, they bundle a few premium items yet charge exponentially more than they are worth, which your case, seems to be easy add ons.

It is also extremely well balanced. I weighed mine dry but with a full tank of gas from the dealer:

Front Left: 3,373 LBS
Front Right: 3,395 LBS
Rear Left: 5,974 LBS
Rear Right: 6,151 LBS
Total 18,894 LBS

I would also not get hung up on shopping the wheel base, many people say it is the best driving gas coach they ever had. When you consider the price of about $101K (not sure how much full body paint is) you owe it to yourself (and your wallet) to take a look and a test drive.

At least take a look at the video:

Georgetown 364TS

Happy trails!

Skripo · 03-31-2016, 06:02 AM

Very important point:

Whichever way you go it is CRITICAL that you get a 6 speed transmission, it makes a HUGE difference in power and drivability. Some early 2016s on the dealer lot still have the old 5 speeds.

By the way, don't get led down the garden path by a salesperson, or some internet posters that say it has less horsepower.

It is the identical engine to the 2015 F53 with slightly more torque. The lower horsepower spec. comes from the fact that the measurements were taken at much lower RPM.

Ultimately the proof is in the pudding. Every single poster upgraded from a 2015 F53 or older to the new 6 speed absolutely raves about it.

PbdBlue · 03-31-2016, 11:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Skripo

Very important point:

Whichever way you go it is CRITICAL that you get a 6 speed transmission, it makes a HUGE difference in power and drivability. Some early 2016s on the dealer lot still have the old 5 speeds.

By the way, don't get led down the garden path by a salesperson, or some internet posters that say it has less horsepower.

It is the identical engine to the 2015 F53 with slightly more torque. The lower horsepower spec. comes from the fact that the measurements were taken at much lower RPM.

Ultimately the proof is in the pudding. Every single poster upgraded from a 2015 F53 or older to the new 6 speed absolutely raves about it.

You may want to hold out for a 2017 chassis. Some of the 2016 f53's have a serious tow/haul downshift issue. It isn't clear at this point how many units are affected but hopefully Ford gets it straightened out on the 2017.

hydrocarbon · 04-04-2016, 07:34 PM

Thanks for the suggestions! We appreciate the information and advice. The first gas class a bunk house we looked at was a Georgetown 364ts. There was only one on the lot and it might have been used, but I can't remember for sure. We felt that the 364ts had a cheap feel to it. Maybe it was just us but the way everything felt from the baggage doors to the water faucets felt cheaper than we'd hoped. However the fiberglass roof, and SS sealed burner cooktop are nice touches.

A few months ago my we were in Orlando visiting family and I was able to look at a Challenger 37tb. I thought that it was a slight improvement over the Georgetown but it was hard to compare since we'd looked at the 364ts almost 6 months before.. One thing we did notice was the sound and movement of the slide outs.. wow they sounded like a gearbox with rocks in it. Not Good.

Earlier this last winter we went to Salt Lake to look at a Bounder 36H and it was the best in quality as far as we could tell. We asked if we could switch the couch and table around and install a sliding mount on the TV, and the dealer said "Hey we'll spend as much of your money as it takes to make you happy"...or something like that, but thats basically what I remember..lol.

When we were looking at the Bounder we noticed the OBCC was less than 2000lbs. I figure with all of our gear and a 24' enclosed trailer we'd be overweight by quite a bit. I called Fleetwood customer service and politely asked "(Mod Edit) were you thinking putting this on a 22k chassis?". I was told that there are plans to use a 24/26k chassis for 2017. I am anxiously awaiting the release of the 2017 Bounder specs..