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Tom222 · 07-16-2012, 02:26 PM

Have noticed lately as I look for my perfect RV a lot of front end diesels that are lower price than rear end diesel, could someone tell me the difference if any?
Tom

Mr_D · 07-16-2012, 02:34 PM

Limited underbody storage.
No or very little little passthrough storage.
Both due to the driveline passing through the chassis center.
More engine noise up front.
No air suspension.
No air brakes.
Less carrying capacity.

**TonyDi** · 07-16-2012, 02:38 PM

You can keep front end diesels. They are right under you when driving, therefore more noise and the heat coming up from the floor can be a pain. Also when the engine is in the front that means the gennie will be in the back, That puts it right under your bed if your trying to sleep. That's not a problem if you're hooked up to power but if you are dry camping and need the gennie for AC good luck trying to sleep. That the main reason there is a price difference.

Tom222 · 07-16-2012, 02:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TonyDi

You can keep front end diesels. They are right under you when driving, therefore more noise and the heat coming up from the floor can be a pain. Also when the engine is in the front that means the gennie will be in the back, That puts it right under your bed if your trying to sleep. That's not a problem if you're hooked up to power but if you are dry camping and need the gennie for AC good luck trying to sleep. That the main reason there is a price difference.

Thanks, that's said it all for me....
Tom

IMDSailor · 07-16-2012, 04:11 PM

As a happy owner of a FRED, here is my point of view.
-Very little pass through storage, yup, well sort of. At the back of my rig is a massive storage area which can be accessed from the Left, Right, or rear. There is one pass through up forward, not very deep but then I haven't found anything that I need to store there, but it would hold about 200 fishing rods. But alas I don't fish.
-Noisier than a DP... probably, but once the engine warms up, its quite quiet. The DW and I can talk in a normal tone to each other.
-Doesn't have Air Suspension, nope but she drives like a dream anyway.
-Doesn't have Air Breaks, I've not yet felt the need for them or the extra certification required to have them. My rig stops right where I want it to.
-Generator under the bed, nope, mines port side mid ships, still a ways to go to my bedroom.
-Less carrying Cap, perhaps, but I carry everything I need and still have room leftover, including one storage compartment dedicated to two pairs of rubber boots, not really sure how that came to be.
-Haven't noticed excessive heat from the floor.
Did I pay less for my FRED, you betcha.
Am I getting awesome Diesel mileage, yup 13.5 MPG(US).
All of the above is JMHO.
But it's all about your requirements and what you want. This rig fits mine.

B Bob · 07-16-2012, 08:14 PM

Tom222 - There is no perfect RV. You would need about 5 to cover all bases. We did drive a couple FRED motor homes when we were looking. They were smaller and very easy to drive around crowded streets. That is not the case with our behemoth. But I am used to driving our big coach now so not an issue. I do really like driving with the motor 40' back of me. That makes it a very very quiet ride. Our previous motor home was a front main drive motor and it was quite noisy.

AGP · 07-19-2012, 05:18 AM

Noisy.

rg neumann · 07-19-2012, 05:45 AM

We have a 2011 Monaco Vesta 32 ft.(FRED) Plenty of storage in rear. Has 4 air bag suspension, air brakes and with Max Force engine we get 13 mpg. Generator in front away from sleeping area. Every rv has its + & - but the newer FRED'S are much quieter than in the past.

paz · 07-19-2012, 08:59 AM

A front engine diesel is essentially the same as a gas chassis except with a diesel engine in place of the gasoline engine.

On the other hand, a rear engine diesel usually has improvements like air bag suspension and a significantly higher weight rating. The higher weight rating allows larger motorhomes with more slides and more amenities like ceramic tile floors, residential refrigerators, more house batteries, bigger generators, bigger holding tanks, etc.

On top of all that, a rear engine does not have a drive shaft and exhaust pipes running from the front to the back. That enables huge basement storage areas as others have mentioned.

edgray · 07-19-2012, 09:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by paz

A front engine diesel is essentially the same as a gas chassis except with a diesel engine in place of the gasoline engine..........

That is certainly true of the early FREDs from FCCC, and the WxxD chassis from WCC, but I've recently learned that FCCC is producing a FRED for Fleetwood (and I assume others can buy it) that has air suspension & air brakes. Likewise, Monaco RV has been producing the Vesta and Trip coaches with front diesel and air suspension and brakes for several years now.

FWIW, I acknowledge that air suspension is a smoother ride than springs

, but I don't believe there is any remarkable difference between air-assisted brakes and hydralic-assisted brakes. When they were promoting the R26 UFO chassis, WCC claimed their hydralic-assisted Arvin-Meritor brakes stopped a coach faster than a similarily loaded coach with air-assisted brakes. It is true that air brakes will auto-apply whenever there is a loss of air pressure, and hydralic won't do that, but that's why they include an electric motor-driven pump to provide assist pressure in case of engine failure. Ed

AGP · 07-20-2012, 07:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rg neumann

We have a 2011 Monaco Vesta 32 ft.(FRED) Plenty of storage in rear. Has 4 air bag suspension, air brakes and with Max Force engine we get 13 mpg. Generator in front away from sleeping area. Every rv has its + & - but the newer FRED'S are much quieter than in the past.

I took a 2011 Vesta out for a test drive loved the style and layout. Didn't like noise level, no engine brake , and no power. DW thought microwave was to high and not enough room in bedroom to walk around.

loiblm · 07-23-2012, 11:01 AM

I agree with IMDSailor - - I have a 2011 FRED. It is quiet, no more heat in the coach than normal, and I have room to store everything that I want or need. My coach is a Freightliner chassis/drivetrain, so the floor is flat between the driver/passenger seat. I like it.

Gary RVRoamer · 07-23-2012, 12:41 PM

The Fleetwood Bounder Classic Diesel is built on a Freightliner MC (front engine) chassis configured with air suspension and air brakes.

Cruzer · 07-24-2012, 03:05 PM

The Freightliner MC chassis (aka - FRED) was very popular if Tiffin's Allegro and Allegro Bay a few years back. In no way should it be compared to a diesel pusher. They are light years apart (in price, too). That would be like comparing your basic diesel pusher to a Marathon Coach or Newell.

But, they are basically a front engined gasser motorhome with hydraulic brakes, leaf springs, and straight frame rails. Except, they have a diesel engine. The benefits of the diesel are better torque and pulling power at lower RPMs, better fuel economy, plus the strength and longevity of a diesel engine. I've found that the FREDs were louder than gassers at idle, especially when standing outside the coach. But, once you were cruising at speed they weren't noisier at all due to the low placement of the engine within the frame rails. When an upgrade was encountered the FRED didn'thave to rev up as high as a gasser so it was actually quieter.

Because the rest of the chassis was similar to a gasser there was only a slight upcharge for this engine. That all started to change in the 2008 model year when the new diesel emissions gear required ULSD fuel, a Diesel Particulate Filter (DPF) and about 10 grand worth of additional cost. That moved the price point very close to an entry level pusher like the Allegro RED and basically killed the market for them. They were still a nice setup but quite an upcharge over a comparable gasser. Tiffin dropped the FRED soon after due to lagging sales.