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Old 02-21-2017, 09:02 PM   #1
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Question Help? 2013 Entegra Aspire or 2011 Monaco Diplomat?

Hi Folks, My wife and I are looking at 2 different coaches priced almost the same 1st one = 2011 Monaco Dip. 43pdq bath & a half with 32,000 miles and a 425 Cummins. 2nd coach = 2013 Entegra Aspire 42 deq with 19,000 miles & 450 Cummins. Both sales people are telling me that their coach is a much better coach than the others is.

I really need some unbiased opinions? I'm going to post this in the Monaco forum as well.

Thank you in advance for any input you can provide us!
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Old 02-21-2017, 09:49 PM   #2
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Not sure I qualify as unbiased but here goes. Two years is a huge difference at that age both from a resale point and in technology included in the build. That being said, there can be an even greater difference in individual coaches of those ages. Tires, if original are nearing end of life on one and have some time on the other, a considerable cost. All parts have two more years of age and over 50% more miles. Does one have show more evidence of use and being lived in? Monaco at that age will book for less because of those and other factors. For me, there should be a big price difference for them to be equal values. All JMHO
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Old 02-21-2017, 10:56 PM   #3
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I purchased new, a 2003 Monaco Camelot and owned the coach 10 years..the Monaco was an excellent coach... My next coach(currently own) and purchased new a 2013 Entegra Aspire, DEQ..IMO, no comparison in the two coaches, the Entegra being the superior coach.. As you know, the Camelot is the model above the Diplomat.. The Diplomat has a 425 Cummins rear mounted radiator, compared to the 450 Cummins side mounted radiator..the overall construction and drivability is superior in the Entegra.. You would be hard pressed to beat the customer service @ Entegra.. IMO.. I'm not knocking Monaco, but it's not the company it was prior to 2007..feel free to PM me & we can further discuss.. I wish you the best
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Old 02-22-2017, 12:56 AM   #4
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Both companies have gone through upheavals but I have been looking at both theses brands quite awhile now and have come to some conclusions

The Monaco brand that once was near the top of the heap has slipped somewhat over the years. There are a great deal of them for sale. RV owners are often very protective of their brands and are loathe to give them up. That there are so many available is not necessarily a good thing. By comparison, check the number of Entegra's or their predecessors Travel Supreme's available. They don't come up nearly as often and don't last long when they do. What's more,in talking to many owners of both brands and reading a ton, it is much harder to find dissatisfied owners for the latter. Now that Entegra is owned by Thor, I don't know if that is going to change. Monaco is now owned by Fleetwood. Neither of those brands excite me much.

Generally speaking, my sense is that Entegra has a better pedigree. It is a distant decedent of Country Coach a high end brand. Travel Supreme was an offshoot of them and they were largely trying to compete for that segment which seems to have carried through to Entegra.

Assuming both coaches have been similarly cared for and have equally favoured floorplans, I would probably look firstly at a 2 year younger Entegra. Put my energies their looking for reasons to rule it out. Only after that would I look to the Monaco. If for no other reason that finding another of those won't be that challenging if the present one doesn't last
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Old 02-22-2017, 04:07 AM   #5
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Two years newer, 1/2 the mileage, the insulation on the Entegra is the best on the market. However you and the DW have to like the floor plan.
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Old 02-22-2017, 06:25 AM   #6
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hands down no question buy the entegra,,,, thats no joke... I owned a monaco dynasty thats 4 steps higher than the model your looking at.. dynasty was built well with quality but
no comparison to entegras quietness-- insulation factor.. and last but not least road master chassison the dynasty road like a chuck wagon...
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Old 02-22-2017, 06:33 AM   #7
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Do both have a floorplan you like?
If so and all other things as they are, 2 years newer with almost half the mileage. I think you know your answer.
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Old 02-22-2017, 07:32 AM   #8
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A 2011 Monaco would have been built during the couple of years that Navistar owned the brand name. It's not a Monaco from the original company (which went bankrupt in 2009 and sold off the assets) nor one from the current owner of the brand, REV (Fleetwood).
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Old 02-22-2017, 04:34 PM   #9
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Not unbiased, but I had actually put a deposit down on a Monaco before we ended up with our Aspire. I feel like I dodged a bullet there. Along with my preference for Entegra, the age and mileage make it a slam dunk in M(not so)HO.
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Old 02-23-2017, 09:11 AM   #10
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Isn't the 2011 Dip running a MaxxForce engine?
I thought that Monaco was a Navistar. 2009-10 Monaco RV went out of business.

I would take the 2013 Aspire all day long.

Good luck
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Old 02-23-2017, 01:23 PM   #11
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I think that you are getting some good advice.... every comment so far has been raising an important issue. I would add some questions and issues. Is the Dip a tag axle? Most of them were not. IMHO, if it is not a tag and the Aspire is, that is a very important issue in "driveability and stability". I wont own anything that is not a tag axle coach. Also, 2009 is right in the middle of Monaco's bankruptcy. I owned a 2001 tag axle Dynasty and loved the coach. However, Monaco owners were pulling out their hair at the build quality of Monaco coaches during and after the bankruptcy. I can't remember the exact dates, but was this a Navistar built coach? Navistar introduced a new motor which was not well received at the time. Lots of troubles and unhappiness reported on the new engine (MaxxForce?) by owners. And as a Monaco owner at the time, the general opinion was that the "last good year" of Monaco build was 2007 and many owners were happy to buy one made prior to 2007 but reluctant to buy in the transition years.

I cannot give you an opinion on this issue as it is a personal decision that you and you better-half have to make.... Mileage is an issue, Age is an issue, and build date and Engine are big issues. Since I sold my Monaco and felt that Monaco's re-introduction of the 2015 Dynasty was such a disastrous roll out and the model lasted one year and the Monaco brand was in such a state of confusion being bought and sold by 2 different companies, I just thought the Anthem was a better choice. However, you are doing the right thing and getting opinion and doing due diligence..... factor in all of us pretty much decided to buy an Entegra and weigh the Monaco group's feedback. I got rid of my Dynasty not at all for any problems or unhappiness with it.... It was a very nice and reliable coach. I just wanted to upgrade and at that point in time, the Entegra was a clear winner. Good luck!

Gary
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Old 02-23-2017, 06:21 PM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by rvbusguy View Post
Isn't the 2011 Dip running a MaxxForce engine?
I thought that Monaco was a Navistar. 2009-10 Monaco RV went out of business.

I would take the 2013 Aspire all day long.

Good luck
The 2011 still came with the Cummins ISL 425hp pre 2010 emission engine, which is a plus in this case. The 2012 Monaco Knight/Diplomats came with the Maxxforce 10 engine which for the most part has been pretty much trouble free for most of the owners.

They are both used coaches and doing a thorough inspection and due diligence on both may give you your answer.

We recently saw a 2013 used Cornerstone that was ridden hard and put away wet, i wouldn;t have given them 1/2 of the asking price for that one. (Have seen some really good used ones too)

Just trying to show that care and maintenance can over ride the brand.
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Old 02-23-2017, 06:36 PM   #13
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Quote:
Originally Posted by sirpurrcival View Post
Both companies have gone through upheavals but I have been looking at both theses brands quite awhile now and have come to some conclusions

The Monaco brand that once was near the top of the heap has slipped somewhat over the years. There are a great deal of them for sale. RV owners are often very protective of their brands and are loathe to give them up. That there are so many available is not necessarily a good thing. By comparison, check the number of Entegra's or their predecessors Travel Supreme's available. They don't come up nearly as often and don't last long when they do. What's more,in talking to many owners of both brands and reading a ton, it is much harder to find dissatisfied owners for the latter. Now that Entegra is owned by Thor, I don't know if that is going to change. Monaco is now owned by Fleetwood. Neither of those brands excite me much.

Generally speaking, my sense is that Entegra has a better pedigree. It is a distant decedent of Country Coach a high end brand. Travel Supreme was an offshoot of them and they were largely trying to compete for that segment which seems to have carried through to Entegra.

Assuming both coaches have been similarly cared for and have equally favoured floorplans, I would probably look firstly at a 2 year younger Entegra. Put my energies their looking for reasons to rule it out. Only after that would I look to the Monaco. If for no other reason that finding another of those won't be that challenging if the present one doesn't last
Hate to tell you this but CC had nothing to do with Travel Supreme. In fact TS was more of an "offshoot" of Newmar. Several of TS's starting executives were Newmar people first as were some of the production workers.
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Old 02-23-2017, 09:02 PM   #14
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I am not certain but the 2011 Diplomat is equivalent to 2011 HR Endeavor, which was the Navistar transition year. It had a 425 ISL with no DEF. looked good but as they say, beauty is more than skin deep. After owing the Endeavor a little while I began noticing all sorts of things Navistar did on the cheap. Tires were smaller than 2010 and 2012 models, and shocks were Monroe and were shot in 6,000 miles. Insulation was skimped. Final was a trio to Arizona in late June. Three A/C's would not cook it and I had to use a large fan to stand the heat. Had constant leaks, problems with the slides. It got terrible mileage. Water heater quit working. After returning from that trip, I traded for an Entegra. Problem solved. My recommendation from owning both is go with the Entegra! [emoji82]
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