Quote:
Originally Posted by tscarps
We're looking at going from a 2017 40D to the 44B. Glad to hear your experience so far has been good. Keep us posted on how it drives when/if we can all get back on the road
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So far I've driven it about 150 miles. There are many things that make this a nicer coach. Not sure about yours but our 2017 was built in May of 2016 and one of the very first built. It took 2 years and a trip to the factory to get all the leaks stopped. The biggest difference for us is the V-Ride in the rear and the 44's have independent front suspension. The pitch and roll that you would experience in a 2017 is almost gone. Also you get bigger, softer tires going from the 275/70 to the 275/80.
The dash squeaking in our 2017 used to drive me nuts and being engineer I had planned a fix by drilling through the dash and bolting it firmly together. That is exactly what they did on the 2020 and the mouse in the dash is gone.
I liked Truma and ours worked well but the Aquahot is really nice, although I've only used it briefly. Firefly comes standard with and App to control it. The shower has real glass and real tile floors and walls. The tile on the floor, throughout the coach, is a much better quality with the 2017 sharp edges gone. Three pass thru bays instead of 2 is also nice. I think they all come with the Technology Package which included about 2.5 times the wattage of the 2017. Did I mention that the furniture is actually usable. A lot more usable storage in the bedroom. More on storage later.
What I don't like: We had to get the drop-down loft to get an available coach. It is useless in its current state. That big box has about a 3/4 inch pad for a mattress. The half-bath is smaller although I got told I'm not allowed to use it because I'm too messy. The storage in the kitchen seems less usable than our 40E but the jury is still out on that one. There doesn't appear to be any direct control over the air in the chassis. Leveling is all one button. It lets the air out and then levels. Your front wheels have to be perfectly straight before leveling or you'll crush your fenders when it deflates. The MobileEye system isn't part of Freightliner so it is a stand alone unit with its own display. It doesn't display in the dash. Cost! If your coach is in reasonable shape you can swag about $170k plus your coach at LeMesa/WalmartRV. Of course depending on state taxes and registration will vary. I think that figure had our taxes and title in it.
Ok so what do I miss? We had the 2017 40E that had a huge pantry and the jury is still out on the storage in general. There is a lot of it but we have to get used to it. The bed is remote only which is a little freaky.
What have I had to fix? The fender skirt around the rear wheels, drive side, came loose. The bed didn't travel far enough up the wall so the slide would keep breaking the foot board of the bed off. Compared to the 2017 this section is pretty short.
I'm glad we had the opportunity to get this and can't wait to actully get out and enjoy it and the low cost diesel. If you do go look at one and they tell you it is all electric, ask them why you still have to put diesel in it.
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