Shopping for first Class A Motorhome - Advice

[Iceclimber]

Originally Posted by pasdad1

I agree. The fisher & paykel “drawer” dishwasher is one of the best I have ever owned. Washes in 35 minutes and uses less water than washing/rinsing by hand. And it’s so quiet we barely hear it.

How fast can I get one lol

[dsrtrider300]

Everyone has made some good points. I also say stick with Newmar Tiffin or Entegra. They all make some nice . floorplans. Im a big fan of Side Radiator independent front suspension models. Newmar Tiffin and Entegra have models with these features. Entegra Aspire 38M is a nice Coach and 18 or newer has the 3 features standard Also The Dutch Star The Allegro Bus has these features also. Plenty of these coaches in your price range with decent miles . I think for 250 K you could get a nice coach. Just my 2 cents

[jaydee325]

Someone mentioned to look at the motorhome with the slides in. I'll add to that, to move about the cabin and evaluate whether access to the bed, bathroom, galley and fridge will meet your needs with the slides in.

Also, the next time you go look at motorhomes, take an experienced owner with you. Ask questions as to their positive and negative views of any coaches you look at. Here is a quick example of the value in this. When we were looking for our first motorhome, I took my mom with us. She was a seasoned RVer. First motorhome we showed her that we were interested in she paused just inside the unit and looked around. Then she says, this motorhome does not have any storage! I looked around again and she was right. The motorhome had very little storage, certainly not enough for a family of 5!

[MattATX]

I think at least one person mentioned not buying anything built during the pandemic. I've heard that from our family who has RVs too. Is that true? Should we avoid anything made in 2020 or 2021 completely or do we just have to look for certain things? What types of issues do RVs have from these years?

[purrin along]

If it hasn't been mentioned, find a dealer you can trust after the sale for maintenance and repairs. I am still in search of one myself.

[RVStitchy]

I read that all the time and have never heard anyone quote any statistics on quality or warranty comparing different build years. We bought our first Class A right when the pandemic started and then upgraded to our current 2022 Dutch Star that was built during the pandemic. Both had minor quality issues with the later one being slightly better.
I bought a 2022 GMC Sierra built during the pandemic, a new gas pool heater, a refrigerator - all built during the pandemic.
I can only speculate that there was a rush of new first-time RV buyers during the pandemic that were not familiar with the amount of debugging required on new RVs. They thought they were driving a new car off the lot which you would expect to be flawless for the first few years. This created an increase in owner complaints on these type of forums. But that is also anecdotal speculation and I do not have any statical proof.

Reminds me of my Grandfather always saying "never buy a new car that was built on a Friday."

[Iceclimber]

I am going to post a couple videos that you may find useful. This guy is a treasure imho. The vids can be a little long but it's winter lol.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a_ppjNs9YvE

Inspecting an Entegra 2019


Finding a good used coach. I think these coaches are older than you want but I learned a lot and also was happy at the end because I own an Oregon built coach in the sweet years.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bWewncMWfyU

[Shadow5501]

Originally Posted by MattATX

I think at least one person mentioned not buying anything built during the pandemic. I've heard that from our family who has RVs too. Is that true? Should we avoid anything made in 2020 or 2021 completely or do we just have to look for certain things? What types of issues do RVs have from these years?

I can offer my experience. I ordered a Tiffin Open Road in October 2020 and took delivery in February 2021. It’s build quality has been pretty much what I expected based on talking with and reading previous owners’ experiences dating back 10 years or more before the pandemic. All major systems have functioned fine since new, we have not missed or cancelled any travel due to coach problems. After the first 100ish nights of use we put it in the dealer with a punchlist of 20ish items. Most were minor cosmetic or annoyance issues (floor tiles marred during construction, clacking blend door on dash hvac unit) with a few functional items (rear view camera display fuzzy). The dealer addressed all of them, albeit slowly.

[MikenDebbie]

MattATX said "I also used to drive big rigs in the Marine Corps so I'm familiar with driving vehicles around that size. I used to drive an armored 7-ton truck towing a cannon or ammo trailer. I don't remember exactly, but I think that was over 40,000 lbs and well over 40 ft in length."

I appreciate your service! and best of luck with your search. These threads are the best IMO...each post is a teaching/learning moment!

[ckgoldy]

Agree that you’ve been given lots of good advice. For us, floor plan was paramount. We wanted to face the TV when sitting. We wanted a single bowl kitchen sink, residential refrigerator, two air conditioners, over cab drop down bunk, outdoor tv, and wide slide outs. We looked at floor plans and really liked the Entegra Emblem series. Then we discovered that Jayco owned them and had a near identical Prestige Precept line. The floor plan models are identical. Entregra sales rep told us the only difference was in some of the aesthetics on the front cap. We remarkably found an exact floor plan not too far away that we bought 3 years old.

We had a Winnebago prior, but it was a Vista and had only one 18” super slide. Always felt too narrow. The Winnebago also has roof characteristics that I wouldn’t recommend. Oh and they do this horrible design on the front engine hood cover that will have you replacing $100 brackets that vibrate off until you figure out that you need to wire them to something that won’t fall off. Yeah we traded that one in.

I prefer gas over diesel for probably the usual reasons that people like me do, but as others mentioned, it can be very hard to find Ford dealers that will do chassis work. But if you’re fairly handy, you can handle most things yourself.

Diesels can pull more weight, but my two door Jeep is well under even a gasser limit.

To me it boils down to floor plan and quality of the finishes. The higher end models of probably most brands are more likely to have better finishes like solid countertops, metal faucets, flex steel furniture, etc.

Good luck! And from one Marine vet to another, semper fi!

[Roneverdij]

You’re so smart to ask this question at a users forum! If I’d done this I would have saved myself a ton of money and aggravation . We’re on our fourth Rv , number thre was a dream , Winnebago Tour 42qd , amazing build and floor plan , bought it 3 years old and had it for 6 years with minimal problems . Just now traded to a three year old 2020 Newmar London air . A definite step up and the nicest coach I’ve ever driven . Price was about half of a new one and the kinks were out . My direct advice would be stay away from Thor and its brands . Looks nice but not the best build . Go for diesel pusher right away , Newmar Ventana , maybe even a Dutch Star at 4 years old low miles would be amazing and I think in the price range . Base your decision on how you are going to use it . A few weekends a year would be a very different coach than a 6 month coach. The more time you plan to stay in it the better a coach I would buy. Newmar would be on the top of the list . Tiffin would be a few years ago but I hear some bad stories from dealers about the build and service now that Thor bought the brand ! Whatever you get , you’ll have A ton of fun

[Jaxon]

Originally Posted by NCC-1701A

A lot of good advice already.

My tip...FIRST understand the quality, reliability, and customer service history of the manufacturers. All class A's are not built the same way, insulated the same way, or put on the same chassis or chassis features. I just mention this since you mentioned Thor and Newmar which I almost hate to put into the same sentence.


If you go used, you might want to add Foretravel to your list, albeit they would probably be a little older than 2-3 years to get to the $300k range. Motorhomes of Texas' web site might help you get a feel.

Good luck in your search and personally verify via a reliable source anything a salesperson tells you. I have found many sales reps know next to nothing about what they are selling when it comes to motorhomes.

.
Strongly second Foretravel and MotorHomes of Texas (https://www.motorhomesoftexas.com/us...oretravel&pg=1). Foretravels are built in Nacogdoches, TX and are outstanding RV's... We've had a Country Coach and two Foretravels before downsizing to a Lazy Daze more boondocking opportunities in the wilds of New Mexico and Arizona....

I noticed ATX in your name which I assume is Austin, just a beautiful 4 hour drive from Austin. Check 'em out.
.

[PaceArrow06]

I agree with renting a couple time 1st!
We've had 5th wheels, travel, Gas, Diesel.
I moved from a 40' Diesel Monaco, to a 36' Gas PaceArrow:
REASONS:
new regs on diesel & higher fuel costs
expensive to service

restricted w/ 40' in many parks

the diesel was OK, but I'm just wanting a nice Freightliner chassis with the roar of the engine!
GOOD LUCK in YOUR SEARCH!

[Dirthoe]

Good afternoon I just wanted to say I went from a 38 ft palazzo to a newmar Ventana 4369 with a tag axle way easier to drive turns way better way more stable !!! I am building a cabin and will no longer be needing my motor home it’s a beautiful 2019 that has been garaged from the day I purchased it when not in use has 10k on it never cooked in never smoked in like new don’t really want to sell it but going to need to soon ? I absolutely love this coach