Where to start?

[jfran304]

One other thing you can do is visit the factories where they are made and take a tour.

Tiffin has free tours daily.

Jon

[Pammyjams]

Hello!


Our situation is different, but I want to add my 2 cents... We are not retired. Longest trip for us is usually a week or so.

We had a small 18' travel trailer and loved that little thing, but was a pain to level and we could not tow boat or dirt bikes and taking two trucks was silly. And it was small!! Decided after a year it was time to get a MH. Boyfriend had a class c previously and knew we wanted a class a. Started shopping used. We found an amazing deal on a 2000 Monaco Diplomat, 38' diesel pusher. Way more MH than we needed. But we kept hearing, go big for your first one and you won't regret it... It was perfect!

That MH was so nice. It had everything you could ever want or need. W/D, just about every upgrade possible. Not a camping rig, more of a full timing coach. Super nice ride, deluxe for sure. However, it did turn out to be just too much MH for us!

I never got the feel for driving it. Made the BF crazy to just let me practice driving on empty streets in industrial center. Always worried when we drove through cities, and BF isn't usually like that. Could not get into many beach locations because of length. They just did not allow it.

Was it nice? Absolutely!! Towed anything up some long, difficult grades without a worry. We loved it, but it was just too much MH for us. We found ourselves avoiding trips because we didn't want to "deal with it". We sold it and we're in the process of down sizing now. We are looking at a new gasser class a in the 30' range (again we only go out a week at a time). New because we've found that even used with the fit and finish we want is only a little less expensive used, and we want our own "bugs" too. I've driven the 30' with a cast on my arm and it is much more comfortable than the 38'! Could be in my head, but it was just easier for me losing that 8+ feet.

IMHO, I could see us retiring and getting another DP, but more in the 33' to 36' range. I really think that would be enough room for us to take nice long trips. Never full timing, just not for us. I've looked inside the Tiffin Red. Beautiful!! Not what we are looking for right now, but I had to see it. That's what I imagine us retiring in.

I guess I'm just saying, don't let yourself be fooled that more is better. Just because it might still be in your budget and you want to get it right the first time, does not mean that a bigger coach is right for you. You've already stated you wanted to be in a certain length... I'd say stick with that!! Shop, shop, shop! Look at new and used. Read everything you can. Even watch videos on you tube. Lots of information available!! I love the idea of taking tours. When you look at something take notes. You'll see so many, they start to blend together.

Good luck!

[beepaj]

We're in the same boat er, RV situation also. We lucked into a deal on a '99 National Tropi-Cal 34 footer that was more than what we originally were looking for. But we're glad we did!
We're first timers at 67 & 68 and are looking forward to some fun on the road!
Good luck!

[EngrBob]

Just a suggestion. When we were thinking of buying we really had many of the same questions that you have. We decided to rent a motorhome for a long weekend just to see if we liked traveling that way. As it turned out, we learned so much on that trip that we were able to come up with a list of must haves, what to avoid, and convinced us that dragging a car around was, for us, an absolute necessity. We had rented a 32' gasser and it felt too small for extended vacations (two week or more). The noise in front was relatively loud and our trip was primarily on flat land where we were not pulling many hills which suggested to us that a diesel with the engine in the rear was a better choice. Likewise the interior fit and finish on the rental unit, although a mid-level gasser, was a bit cheap. We ended up buying a 4-year old 36' Monaco Diplomat 10 years ago. We still have it, and it continues to serve us well. One of these days I might retire, but until then we will continue to use it too little, but whenever we can. Even with your experience, renting for a week may clarify some issues for you.

[ChileRick]

We are very comfortable in 30 ft and we use ours a lot. (When it's not in the shop, our frustrations are well documented in this forum) longest trips have been limited to about a month or so. Anyway, we have never been sorry we opted to go smaller, even when we have the grand kids with us.

We do sometimes lament our decision to buy new, however, It has not been a good experience. Although, we are not sure we would ever by used, to you point, they are our bugs, all 65 of them. Our advice:

First find the MH you feel at home in, then research here, with folks that own those. When you are set on a particular MH, find a dealer that has the respect and recommendations of customers that use their service department. A good service department to address those "bugs" that crop up. This can make or break your ownership experience.

Good luck in your search.

[WannaBFlTmer]

Have you checked out the Entegra line? Bontrager family (Jayco), new beautiful class A. Pricey-

[UFO Pilot]

Some folks on here have obviously never heard of the Workhorse UFO Chassis. I am not a diesel person so for me the rear engine gasser was the answer. No noise in the front and it drives and rides great. The UFO was only produced in 2007 and 2008 so there are not a lot of them out there. I haven't heard of an unhappy owner yet as to the chassis. Our Winnebago has been great but I understand there are some quality issues going on now.

Find a floor plan your wife loves and then drive it to see how it handles.

[B52Guy]

Face it...every owner here went through what you are doing. Take a big breath, and enjoy the ride!!

I knew I wanted a Class A...check. I wanted a DP (why, cause it is the coolest!)...and DPs come with full-time accutraments...(they are designed for full-timing...why else would you spend so much on them?). You pay more, but you get much more. Mostly you get a machine designed to do at LEAST what you need it to do...not a marginal product that is "good enough".

We set a budget (it was low (too low I thought to really get what I wanted)), but I searched and searched, and Ebay proved to be our source.

One piece of advice that was repeated over and over (to me) was make sure you pick the right floor plan. If you don't you will be trading soon. The problem is you really don't know what floor plan is right for you until you get one that isn't! We got lucky. We wish we had a slideout in the bedroom (for a little more room to walk around the bed) and it would be nice to have the entry door at the front instead of smack in the middle (the door means I can't have a recliner there that I want). My DW has suggested we upgrade to get these items...let's see...spend a year's salary to get a little more elbow room???I think not!!!

I did buy quality...it was older to fit into my budget, but I can honestly say my 97 Holiday Rambler is well built and came with everything (including the washer/dryer and kitchen sink :=) . Looking back I'm glad I bought big enough....full-timing is challenging enough in such tight spaces - our 38' is barely enough. (newer models certainly have "smarter" floor plans, so maybe a newer 36' provides the same functionality as our 38...but how to know unless you live in it?). I kiss "Betha" everyday to thank her for having such good bones (of course the satellite dish, flat screens, 2 ACs and 50 amp system sure make it nice to survive the "hard times" on the full-time road).

You mentioned you wanted new versus used. I understand the desire for new...but many here have suggested you consider used - I do too. You will get more coach for the same amount of money, and if you buy from an individual, they will be passing their child to you, and will most likely share every bit of knowledge they learned about their child....

Let someone else take the depreciation hit and work out all the bugs. You buy the best you can afford and hit the road! Trust us when we say you really won't worry about how big it is after a few days.

Just remember, once you pull the trigger and write the check, the hunt is over...and hunting is fun, so don't be in too big of a hurry.

[WannaBFlTmer]

Originally Posted by UFO Pilot

Some folks on here have obviously never heard of the Workhorse UFO Chassis. I am not a diesel person so for me the rear engine gasser was the answer. No noise in the front and it drives and rides great. The UFO was only produced in 2007 and 2008 so there are not a lot of them out there. I haven't heard of an unhappy owner yet as to the chassis. Our Winnebago has been great but I understand there are some quality issues going on now.

Find a floor plan your wife loves and then drive it to see how it handles.

I love that design! Glad to hear it's good! We were thinking of upgrading to that in a few.

[whiterhino]

We have a 2012 tiffin allegro 34 tga gasser. It's our 2nd class a & our 3rd mh. Although a dp is great we couldn't afford the upgrade while still getting the quality of the rest of the coach we wanted. We don't have engine noise issues unless on inclines. If you are not going to tow the gasser does decent. But you notice it on mountain roads. I am always towing & an 8% grade will have you down to 25-30 mph.
I agree about the genny being nice up front. We don't sleep real well when it's running. My next one will be a dp with a big motor but I really can't complain about what I have.
Back to size. 34' is fine for a few weeks. The major thing lacking for 2 is a washer & dryer. Make sure you get as large of a fridge as possible.
Last thing, I had some warranty issues. When I finally got fed up with the dealer & contacted tiffin direct, an hour after I emailed my letter bob tiffin was on the phone to me to make it right.... & he did!

[whiterhino]

One other thing. I've bought 2 used mh's. never again for me. With age comes general wear & tear and things simply wear out. Plastics get more brittle with time & living in the north, corrosion is an issue. Then a year after we bought our used itasca sunrise both front side windows lost their seal & fogged up. $3000 for each window was a steep trade off when saying the original owner took the hit. In the last 2 years I had my sunrise I dropped $8k on repairs. I decided new and warranty was for me.

[Rusty1233]

Ok, here is my HO...We currently own a new 2014 Holiday Rambler Vacationer 32wbd. It is a gasser on a 18K chassis. We searched high and low for the all the required items for us. In doing so found that you will never find the PERFECT coach. "Too expensive or wrong floorplan etc." What we did learn is this....

Enjoy your search it can be fun, but be careful of snake oil salesmen. They can turn a fun time into a not so enjoyable time. I found that buying a M H is very very much different than buying a car. Biggest reason is that M H salesmen know that it is a luxury item that you have been dreaming of for so long that you will overlook signifigant points just to own that Dream Machine. I did not go through them but have seen and read good things about Motorhome Speacialists in Texas. They seem to have the best prices in the Nation. I would think that somehow you could work the travel out with them. Just a thought.

Gasser vs DP well jury is still out. I will say this, the New Triton V10 has 362 hp more than most DP and a very respectable 457 ft pds of torque. If I loose it on a grade I can and have got it back. Not so for a DP. Also when traveling we rarely travel more than 4 to 5 hours at a time. So most of your search I believe, should be based on floorplan and manufacture reputation. We all know you get what you pay for then it depreciates and you are upside down no matter what you buy.

As far as size goes, 34 - 40 foot will all drive comperable. Once you put a few miles on it you will be at home and at ease with it. Just a note. I am a right leg amputee and use my left foot for the gas and brake in everything I drive. At first, it was a little intimidating with the Class A. I just put my right (prosthetic) leg out on the dog house (motor cover) and off we go. It took all of about 5mi.....confidence is key. You can do it. Everyone else does, Right?

Happy Hunting

[akeyzoo]

Rusty,

The jury isn't still out on diesel vs gas, diesel IS superior for moving mass. Torque is what moves a motorhome. Your v10 may have similar HP numbers but I have almost 3x the torque. It's not even a fair comparison. :-)

I will assert that if you purchase a gas class a motorhome that you did so as a compromise. Perhaps the right compromise for the individual and particular situation, but a compromise nonetheless.

Chris

[UFO Pilot]

If I never considered diesel, how did I compromise?