Community Forums

jth camper · 03-03-2019, 06:01 PM

Looking for some info regarding the Entegra Aspire.

I currently have a Fleetwood Discovery, I bought new in 2010, now I'm looking at the Entegra Aspire.

My concern is going from the vacuum bonded insulated walls to the hung walls using basic household insulation.
Has anyone made this change and was it worth the price difference?

Only a few coach manufacturers use hung walls most use vacuum bonded insulated walls which, in your opinion, is better?

Thanks in advance.

oneknight · 03-03-2019, 07:32 PM

We have a '17 Aspire, and previously had a Monaco. Both hung wall construction.
Both extremely tight and well insulated.

You didn't mention what year Aspire you'd be shopping for?
Unlike many other manufacturers, Entegra has been and still is continually improving and adding features year by year.
Aspire lost the propane tank I think in '16.
in '17, all Entegra's went to L16 AGM batteries, located rear and midship. This was a huge reduction in front end weight and balance.
'17 aspire's got independent front suspension and disk brakes.
in '19 Aspire got a baby version of vegatouch.
2020 fuel tank is 150 gl from 100.

Butte64 · 03-03-2019, 08:03 PM

Hung walls provide better insulation that provides better climate control and it is much quieter.

redbaron73 · 03-03-2019, 08:09 PM

Agree, hung walls are far superior to the vacuum bonded walls. Quieter and better insulated.

I had a 2008 Fleetwood discovery and went to a newmar dutchstar that uses the same hung wall design and insulation as the aspire. Definitely worth the upgrade. There is no downside.

photraveller · 03-03-2019, 08:24 PM

We used to have a 2000 Discovery and the amount of insulation and tightness of the Aspire is night and day different from our old Discovery.

I'm writing this from the coach sitting in Memphis at 31F with 20mph winds outside. The coach is very comfortable.

While our Discovery furnaces could keep it warm in similar conditions, it always felt drafty while the wind blew at these temperatures. Plus the basement is much better insulated. My basement is current sitting at almost 50F.

Finally, We used to hate leaving our clothes in the rear closets in our 37G because of the lack of insulation in the rear cap. We don't have the same moisture issue in the rear closet in the Aspire. The front cap insulation is just as great. Two big areas that the Discovery was weak.

Whether it's the insulation or the superior placement of the heater vents, we don't have a cold area up front between the front seats like we always got with the Discovery.

Finally, I love the diesel furnace and floor heat over the Propane furnaces we had in the Discovery. Floor heat does take a while to warm up, but for 2/3rds of the coach I can walk around in my bare feet on the tile and it feels warm. I just wish the last section of tile at the end of the bed would be as warm as the rest of the floor. It has warm areas just not completely warm like the rest of the coach.

BTW, I almost had withdraw symptoms from getting rid our of Discovery. It was our first coach and we loved it. We also loved the support and people from DOAI. However the group of people on here are great! This forum easily replaces the technical support I used to get from DOAI. Plus the Entegra CS is so easy to get help from as well.

Finally, we looked briefly at new Discoveries due to DOAI. However we felt like we got so much more coach for the modest price difference between new Discoveries and Aspires.

Be glad to answer any other questions that you might have.

Steve

Matt D · 03-03-2019, 11:29 PM

Jim that is a pretty good summary with only a few tweaks.. 2017 was a watershed year for the Aspire, gaining Diesel fired Aquahot, and in the process losing the LP tank, it also gained the IFS.

The 2018 Aspire gained the 150G fuel tank.

We came from a vacubonded Tiffin Phaeton and have really enjoyed our Aspire. In so many little ways it is different, leading to a wholly different (and better) experience living in the coach.

Now that we have the “new coach” wrinkles worked out, this coach simply works. Last year we suffered the catastrophic failure of a drawer slide. Otherwise the coach was perfect.

This coach beats our Phaeton hands down. I won’t comment on the Fleetwood offerings, other that to say that we felt a Tiffin was a better value than a Fleetwood.

In our opinion, the Aspire is the perfect blend of amenities, and avoiding unnecessary technical complications.

-Matt

KennyGolub · 03-04-2019, 04:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by oneknight

in '19 Aspire got a baby version of vegatouch.
2020 fuel tank is 150 gl from 100.

What is the baby version of Vega Touch?

I know what the VegaTouch is, but I can't find anything similar to it in our '19.

Thanks

.

hdgoldie · 03-04-2019, 08:04 PM

We don't have it either. Since I see it listed on the 2020 Aspires, I'm guessing they started adding it to the later 19's.

V3600 · 03-04-2019, 08:27 PM

Entegra's in general are confusing to me. Why are the rear slide controls in the 1/2 bath medicine cabinet? Why the key fob? Why, when the air is low, do you have to press a switch under the dash to start the engine? Questionable engineering if you ask me. But it has a fancy paint job.

Butte64 · 03-04-2019, 08:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by V3600

Entegra's in general are confusing to me. Why are the rear slide controls in the 1/2 bath medicine cabinet? Why the key fob? Why, when the air is low, do you have to press a switch under the dash to start the engine? Questionable engineering if you ask me. But it has a fancy paint job.

Slide controls in cabinet with a lot of wiring and other controls makes sense. Also keeps them out of easy reach from little sticky fingers that like to explore.
Re key fob, are you referring to keyless start? Gotta have a fob for that just like my Jeep.
Low air switch under dash I don’t know and don’t think my 2018 has that.

Victory Blue · 03-04-2019, 09:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by V3600

Entegra's in general are confusing to me. Why are the rear slide controls in the 1/2 bath medicine cabinet? Why the key fob? Why, when the air is low, do you have to press a switch under the dash to start the engine? Questionable engineering if you ask me. But it has a fancy paint job.

More like questionable knowledge; have you actually ever been in an Entegra?

1. My slide controls are not in the 1/2 bath. In fact, when I want, I can stand outside anywhere around my coach and open and close the slides from my iPad.
2. What key fob - the one for locking/unlocking the entry door and all basement doors?
3. I turn a key to start the engine whether the air is low or not; newer coaches have keyless start. No switch to press under the dash.

The only accurate statement is about the paint job.

GoneWithTheWind · 03-04-2019, 09:52 PM

V3600: ABOUT Information, just to let you know

City
noneedtoknow
State or Province
BB
Country
123
RV Manufacturer
mysecret
RV Model
abc
RV Year
0000
RV Length
1245
Location (City, State):
Tucson

brobox · 03-05-2019, 04:16 AM

Looks like he has a lot of knowledge to share

jth camper. in your search to upgrade, it is really worth the investment to fly into Indiana to tour Entegra and any other manufactures on your short list. Most of the manufactures, except Tiffin, are close by. The education in construction quality and techniques is money well spent. You have received some excellent answers to your question, seeing it up close brings it all together.

jth camper · 03-05-2019, 04:32 AM

Thank you for all the responses.
I'm looking at the 2020 Aspire's. Unfortunately the wife is stuck on the our current coach. It has been a great coach except in extreme temps. Anything above 90 degrees its difficult to keep cool and anything below 40 degress the heater just runs and runs. As the coach has gotten older the wind just blows right thru it.

Now to just convince the wife it's time to move up.

P.S. need a coach with bunks or I would be looking at the CS.