Community Forums

gesteff · 11-05-2018, 09:17 PM

A huge question,,,,what are the thoughts out there on the Class A gas or Class A diesel pusher, what are the big differences and why.

GEM1N1 · 11-05-2018, 09:29 PM

If you have the means go diesel out of the gate and don’t look back. You’ll get a lot of responses on here but I’ve had a gas and now buying a DP.

RIDE
POWER
HANDLING IN CROSSWINDS
HANDLING WHILE BEING PASSED BY SEMIS
GOING FASTER THAN 35 UP LARGE HILLS
INTERIOR NOISE
OVERALL DOES EVERYTHING BETTER

Can you make due with a gasser? Sure. You can also tow 12,000 pounds with a half ton gas truck buy a diesel 1 ton does the job a whole lot easier.

I’ll pop the popcorn now and wait for others to way in.

nothermark · 11-05-2018, 09:47 PM

This might be the most discussed issue here. Do a search and put yourself to sleep reading the long threads. There is a cadre of diesel advocates who swear by them. There are also a lot of us who don't see a need to pay the extra $100,000 for more potential expensive stuff that breaks or wears out with the associated repair costs.

A lot of what to get also depends on what you want to do with the MH. Either unit will get you from A to B and let you park in reasonable comfort. If you are going to drive 5 days a week then the longer engine life, air ride, and possible higher power to weight ratio may be worth it to you. If you are doing the annual migration then park or occasional trip then you spend a lot of money compared to a higher end gas unit mostly for bragging rights. If you are towing heavy loads or want 40 ft or more you also need the heavier diesel chassis and drive train. Otherwise consider how much you want to spend and what level of comfort you are content with. A lot of us are quite content with our gas units. As I said, some others won't settle for less than a DP.

Isaac-1 · 11-05-2018, 11:52 PM

Simply put, gas is ok up to about 32 ft in length, diesel is the only choice over about 36 ft, in between and it just depends on what you want, and what you want to do.

Rkesselus · 11-06-2018, 02:30 AM

Just to offer my two bits from a not so deep pocket guy. We have gone from a tent to a homemade gaser to a vintage DP and everything in between since 1962. I would never go back. That said if you are not a DIY guy you most likely need some form of deep pockets. I might add those who can afford a newer Big DP most likely don't need to worry much.
Just like GEM1N1 posted:
RIDE
POWER
HANDLING IN CROSSWINDS
HANDLING WHILE BEING PASSED BY SEMIS
GOING FASTER THAN 35 UP LARGE HILLS
INTERIOR NOISE
OVERALL DOES EVERYTHING BETTER

Sweetbriar · 11-06-2018, 04:17 AM

It must be Tuesday.

Waiter21 · 11-06-2018, 06:39 AM

We went through this evaluation process a couple years ago.

It came down to four items for us:

1) Build quality - We wanted a high quality coach. We were happy to discover we could get this in gas or diesel.

2) Ride quality - How much does ride quality cost - Night and day difference between diesel and gas. But we spend most of our time living in the couch, not driving it, so the significant expense difference translates to either a newer model or lower priced gas.

3) Length - The magic number seems to be around 35 - 37 ft. If you get shorter, gas dominates the market, if you get longer, diesel dominates the market. We were looking at 35 ft, so we were looking at both diesel and gas.

4) Maintenance cost - Significant difference. I'm very familiar with the Ford F53, so we preferred this gas chassis.

I did a short article on this, you can see it at:

Gas vs Diesel – 1999 Southwind 35S

..

Unplanned Tourist · 11-06-2018, 06:48 AM

$$$$$$. Cost and side or front entry door were the big ones for us. Not FT, never will be. Just recreation campers.

Like our side entry door and the driver's door comes in real handy also.

Happy Glamping.

Unplanned Tourist · 11-06-2018, 06:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sweetbriar

It must be Tuesday.

Soppy · 11-06-2018, 07:17 AM

Diesel for sure . You get a much better chassis and ride. You can get by with gas for a small coach less than 32ft.

PlanBee · 11-06-2018, 07:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sweetbriar

It must be Tuesday.

Election Tuesday none the less....

Waywards · 11-06-2018, 07:40 AM

G-iesel! Yeah, that would solve the problem

blueridge-fl · 11-06-2018, 07:43 AM

One thing to remember with gassers is the the newer ones (2016 on) are much improved power train wise over the older ones. They are also usually have things like better sound insulation around the dog house. We went through the same process as waiter21 and because of our budget, it came down to a choice between a newer gasser vs. a 10 year old diesel. While DPs are generally superior to gassers, they do cost big $$ to repair. So getting into a 10 year old RV with potential for some high dollar repairs didn't seem like a better choice than just getting a newer gasser. I know I could have mitigated this issue somewhat by getting an upfront inspection, but there are no guarantees that something won't be missed. Would I like to have a DP? You bet! But did it make sense for us? Not really. If I should happen to win the lottery, I will update this post. :-)