Community Forums

jcussen · 08-06-2019, 05:12 PM

Once you get to 3 or 4 slides on a 40 ft coach, think there will be some compromises to be made with no tag because you are limited to 44000 lbs with proper fore and aft weight distribution. Lighter woods and materials on interior construction, including no tile floors and solid countertops, smaller fresh, sewage, and fuel tanks, etc., and of course much less carrying capacity. On my year 2 slide coach, rear axle was 20000 lbs max and front 15000 lbs max. My weight with just full fuel and water is 36000 lbs, so obviously need a tag.

Crasher · 08-06-2019, 05:37 PM

My last 40' with four slides and a tile floor had a 22,000# rear and a 14,600# steer axle. Loaded, I was the max on the steer and just under 22K on the rear. When I towed an 8,000# trailer with its 10,000# hitch it was close to 23,000# on the drive with its 900# tongue weight. The newer 40' coaches with the 24,000# rear axle and 16,000# steer axle would handle it fine with good load distribution. However, a tag adds stability and a much greater range of loading options. I no longer am concerned with what goes where, as it doesn't matter.

dougfr · 08-06-2019, 05:55 PM

Having had a 39' no tag, 42' tag Winnebago Tour and now a 45' London Aire I noticed the tag really helps in wind and contributes to a smoother ride. The comfort steer is truly amazing. I am less fatigued after 7 hours behind the wheel than when I drove 4 hours in the Tour. Every Newmar owner I know swears by it.

96 Wideglide · 08-06-2019, 07:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gary RVRoamer

I never felt any discomfort or handling shortcomings with our 40 ft DP (no tag). No lack of CCC either. I think it's more a matter of how well the chassis is matched to the coach rather than tag or no tag. And yes, I've owned a tag axle coach in the past.

Did you have a mid '90's to early '2000's gas MH, with a fixed tag axle, that could take 2000 to 2500lbs off the rear axle?
If so, there's no comparison to a DP, with a 10- 15,000lb tag axle!
I've owned both

!

Sky_Boss · 08-06-2019, 07:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gary RVRoamer

One of either side, right?

I guess it is merely semantics. LOL

Dutch Star Don · 08-07-2019, 04:57 AM

A lot of responses from people WITHOUT tags telling you that you don't need one????

I owned a 2005 Monaco Diplomat 38' without a tag. The coach drove well after I added sway bars and shocks. I also added the TruCenter to the Diplomat. The TruCenter allows you to adjust for wind push and road crown, making the drive easier.

I later purchased a 2014 40' Dutch Star with a tag axle and Comfort Drive. Yes, you lose a bay worth of storage with a tag axle on any coach, but I also have 9000 pounds of cargo capacity. I always wanted a tag axle coach, but wanted to stay at 40' in California for licensing reasons. The tag axle rides better, handles better and pretty much eliminates wind push. A friend just bought a 2019 40' Allegro Bus, non tag coach. The Allegro Bus is what we would have bought if we didn't buy the Dutch Star. I was surprised at his coach weights. His has a 150 gallon fuel and water tank. If both are full, he has about 2300 pounds of CCC. I think he'll be pretty close to maxed out when loaded. These high end 40' coaches with tile floors, countertops and solid wood cabinets are pushing the limits of even the 24K rear axles.

My 2014 and 2019 Dutch Star both have Comfort Drive. It's offered by Newell and Newmar (patent protected). I see one poster says he saw no difference when he drove a coach ONCE....he has mentioned this several times over the last couple of years. The reality......you don't see the benefit of Comfort Drive until the end of a travel day. Then you realize that after driving all day, you're not exhausted from constant steering of the coach, even if your coach handles well.

Filthy-Beast · 08-07-2019, 06:35 AM

We are looking at Tiffin or Newmar; of course, they make it hard to compare on paper. Newmar lists dry weight and CCC but not cargo square footage and Tiffin list storage space but not weights.

Thanks for all the real-world feedback. It's good to know that those who have had both, notice a difference. I've had my share of white knuckle drives pulling a 31ft TT behind a F250 even with a WD anti-sway hitch I'm spent after 4 hours. The marketing of Comfort Drive attracted me to Newmar.

The basic floor plans are close enough and won't swing us one way or the other. That part of the plan is now locked, get a Newmar even if we have to go a few years older to stay in budget.

Thanks again for sharing your experience!

Ivylog · 08-07-2019, 07:03 AM

For FT you need 5000 lbs of CCC.
Newer coaches may have a 24K rear axle helping CCC...instead of 20K.
Once you’ve had a tag you will not go back to one without.
A TrueCenter is a poor mans Comfort Drive.

I still do multiple 750+ mile days because of the excellent handling RR10S chassis...solid front axle (15 fewer moving parts than IFS) and tag.
Only did 1300 miles last week...850 + 450 so I’d get into a CG at a decent hour at end of second day.

Crasher · 08-07-2019, 07:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dutch Star Don

I see one poster says he saw no difference when he drove a coach ONCE....he has mentioned this several times over the last couple of years. The reality......you don't see the benefit of Comfort Drive until the end of a travel day. Then you realize that after driving all day, you're not exhausted from constant steering of the coach, even if your coach handles well.

To some extent, I agree with you about being tired at the end of the day. I was that way with a previous coach on a freightliner chassis. The True Center helped it some. My current coach, however, is on a PowerGlide chassis and requires very little effort to control, even on a windy day. I suspect the tag helps to stabilize it too. I noticed that in gusty winds with the velocity changing or when getting behind a wind break, both the Newmar and Newell required a steering correction just like my Bus. After 500 mile days, I don't feel any different than I did at noon. I have no doubt that the CD is a benefit to those who have them. I can see where it could be helpful in a "constant" 30 mph crosswind. That I will concede to you. Anything less than 20-25 has not been a problem with our current coach.

Edit: To be fair, I have only driven the CD equipped coaches a few hundred miles on relatively level roads in light to moderate winds. I might come to different conclusions in more adverse road and wind conditions.

docj · 08-07-2019, 08:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gary RVRoamer

I never felt any discomfort or handling shortcomings with our 40 ft DP (no tag). No lack of CCC either. I think it's more a matter of how well the chassis is matched to the coach rather than tag or no tag. And yes, I've owned a tag axle coach in the past.

X2!! I've been saying the same thing for years. Our 40' MH drives beautifully even in winds up to ~40 mph. I can't understand what I'd gain from either Comfort Drive or a tag since I don't have anything to complain about at present. It's difficult to improve things if there isn't a problem to correct.

Joel (AKA docj)

docj · 08-07-2019, 08:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ivylog

For FT you need 5000 lbs of CCC.

With all due respect, we didn't have anywhere near that much "stuff" when we began full-timing 9 years ago and we carry a lot less now. Furthermore, once we established a "homebase" in TX we offloaded quite a few things to leave there since they weren't essential when we were traveling.

Filthy-Beast · 08-07-2019, 11:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by docj

X2!! I've been saying the same thing for years. Our 40' MH drives beautifully even in winds up to ~40 mph. I can't understand what I'd gain from either Comfort Drive or a tag since I don't have anything to complain about at present. It's difficult to improve things if there isn't a problem to correct.

Joel (AKA docj)

True, however there is also you "don't know what you are missing"

I never understood the need for adaptive cruise control. My latest company car has it. Wow it makes a big difference. I love it. Do I need it no, does it make a 6 hour drive easier, without a doubt.

Gary RVRoamer · 08-07-2019, 02:17 PM

I've not had the pleasure so cannot say yea or nay. It's a passive steerable tag, which itself is hardly unique, plus some other vaguely described enhancements. Whether it's a whole step above any other nice-handling coach or simply some frosting on an already tasty cake, I can only guess. Some of the rave comments I've seen come from people moving up to a quality DP from a low end gas or even diesel model, so they likely would be impressed whether the coach had Comfort Drive or not.

Dutch Star Don · 08-07-2019, 03:15 PM

Just to clarify, Comfort Drive has absolutely nothing to do with the tag axle. Comfort Drive is a TRW steering product that senses wind push and road crown every few seconds. As you drive down the road and the wind starts to push on the coach the CD adjusts the steering and eliminates the need for counter steering. It also does the same for road crown. At the end of the day, you find that you were not adjusting for wind push or road crown all day. There are days when we stop for fuel, step outside, and didn't realize how hard the wind was blowing.

By the way, the passive steering tag is also a nice feature. On the 40' Newmar, it has one of the tightest turning radiuses in the business. Because of the tag, the drive tires are pushed forward making for the tighter turning, long with the steerable tag, yet the tag leaves the coach with a long enough wheel base to be comfortable.