Community Forums

billmarquett · 03-11-2010, 10:45 PM

Let's see if I can start this out different than every other advice thread

Our family consists of five members, two adults, two kids (6 and 2) and an english bulldog. This seems to be the year to make changes to our vacationing style - we're tired of driving a minivan with two kids in it across the country and decided there had to be a better way. Enter the motorhome! After having spent a lot of time looking at C's we've more or less eliminated them all - can't find a floorplan that we like (doesn't feel big enough, has stove next to couch - yuck! - or WAAYYYYY out of our price range) and have moved on to A's. Now we're facing too many decisions - I really like the bunk models, a washer/drier is mandatory for my wife (understood about size issues). New is out of our price range, I did find a reasonably priced 2008 Georgetown 350 with bunks (around 70k), but am concerned about quality. For that price I can easily find 10 year old Newmar Mountain Aires and Dutch Stars, or if I drop to 40k or so, I can get some other 10 year old gas vehicles and have money to upgrade or replace items we don't like. We'd rather buy older quality than a shiny pile of crap (no offense to Georgetown owners...there's a reason I'm asking!) and expect to own whatever we purchase for many many years (possibly until it falls apart).

We need someone to slap some sense into us

If this was your purchase, what would you do and why? Or even, what did you do and would you do it again? It seems that every time I open the browser and look for RV's, I find another option - in otherwords, I guess, we haven't fallen in love with anything, but we do have one possibly solid option with 2000 Gulfstream that has the TV across from the couch and washer/drier hookup (this would be the save money on the purchase and renovate option). Can anyone answer why it's almost impossible to find a floorplan where the TV is across from the couch?

--Bill

PS. Gas...diesel, it doesn't really matter to me, I'm mainly looking at DP's when it comes to the Newmars for purely guy reasons.

"007" · 03-11-2010, 11:35 PM

Welcome Bill to irv2.
Noticed you maybe interested in a Newmar coach. In the Newmar Forum there are stickies with links to dealers and used coachs. Some used coach's are reasonable.
The stickies are at the top of forum page.
I have owned gas coach's and have traveled with over 50 foster kids in 35 years and for room pulled a sleeper popup that would sleep 5 or 6 dependant on size.
It gave them there own space and the MH had plenty of room for cloths storage.
Using a MH was the only way we could travel back and forth to FL. and across this U.S.A.
In the new rig forum there are some PDI lists to know what to look for when buying a coach.
In the Quick Tips & Mod link below has link to use MH also.
Good luck in your hunt take your time and do post for anymore questions plenty of us here to help.

tedward1555 · 03-12-2010, 06:24 AM

Hi Bill;
I'll leave it to more experienced members to address all the other questions you raise, but I would like to talk about the washer/dryer issue. I would be willing to bet that with a young family you will be staying mostly at RV parks instead of out in the wild. If that is the case, please tell your wife that virtually every one of them have great washer/dryer facilities. In fact it could be her very own "quiet time" to get away for a while with a book/magazine to go 100 yards and do the laundry in big nice commercial machines. I might not be in the majority but I'll bet your wife will feel like I do that the RV washer/dryer combo is just a waste of time and space, not to mention money. You can only wash small loads (one pair jeans, two t shirts, one wash cloth) is pretty much one load. And no matter what you do the clothes come out wrinkled to heck. Do yourselves a favor, and take that option off your wish list and just bring along a bunch of rolls of quarters.... trust me
GOOD LUCK sounds like fun for the family.
Ed

Hitchhiker · 03-12-2010, 06:41 AM

As you peruse your various options you may want to pop into our various chassis forums to see which ones are having issues. I suggest paying particularly close attention to the Workhorse forum and review some of the conversations there about their brakes.

I'm not insinuating anything you read here should be a deal breaker or deal maker but you should at least be informed about the various issues some of these chassis are having and be privy to the frustrations some owners experience with their rigs. Whatever you choose, we welcome you to the iRV2 forums and wish you many enjoyable miles in the selected rig.

billmarquett · 03-12-2010, 08:04 AM

We do understand the size issues - the primary desire from my wife is to keep underwear clean. Neither of us expect to be able to use it as our sole source of clean clothes (or linens), but clean shirts and underwear go a LONG way towards feeling clean. And 2 year olds go through (small) clothes quite quick. We spent Christmas at a cabin in Disney's Ft Wilderness Campground and found after the second day that we (*cough* I - so yes, there certainly is a _personal_ desire here) made a LOT of trips to the laundry to clean the little ones clothes.

Thanks for the input. I'll post this over in the Gulfstream forum too in it's own thread, but as long as this is being read and replied to, any quality comments/concerns with 2000 era Gulfstream coaches?

--Bill

pameridan04 · 03-12-2010, 08:10 AM

Hi Bill:

Here is my two cents. I have looked at over 100 A Class motothomes. Brand new and used, many different brands from Allegro, Newmar, Georgetown, Winnies, Itasca, and more and more and more. It took me 2.5 years to finally decide what I want.

I want a motor home for my wife, daughter & son in law, and two grand kids, so I am close to your family specs.

In the end it came down to Winnebagos. They still have all the parts you ever will need on line and in stock. They are a solid company in todays economy. They seem to me to be the best quality coach for THE MONEY in the market.

You can buy a USED Winnie or Itasca, DP..03, 04, ....36ft to 39FT, two slides in the $70 to $85K range.

I just did... 04 Itasca Meridian 36ft. DP, two slides, with 21 K miles. The sacrafice is TV up front, not over couch. No bunk beds but sleeps six. And since it is my FIRST A Class I am not out 6 figures if it doesn't work out. Interior is like new, exterior has a small scratch, but I can take care of a few small things. I really wanted a DP, and am very glad I did go that route.

Slap.... Slap... buy used quality, still in business, support like here and dealers if necessary, reputation for standing behind their customers, and will be here in the future.

Just MHO.... for what's it worth.

Jim P.

caninecop · 03-12-2010, 09:07 AM

Bill we did this last year, we looked for about a year before we found what we wanted. I wanted a diesel, the better half wanted at least three slides. I looked at numerous RV boards to get a feel for what brand would fit into our criteria. I also was looking at the reputation of the brand as well as how they were doing during the down turn with the economy. I felt that Tiffin fit our requirement better than any other manufacture. We found what we felt was a good starter RV for us, a 2003 Allegro Bus. The bus had more then what we were looking for in a RV. I have found that most RV boards the members will go out of their way to help newbie’s. I hope you find the RV that meets all your needs.

becks · 03-12-2010, 09:17 AM

I think most will agree, if you look at Tiffin, Winnebago, and Newmar you should be able to find a quality built coach at your price point. Good luck shopping.

Always-RVing · 03-12-2010, 09:21 AM

I kept hearing rule #1: Get the newest, biggest, baddest thing you can afford

Motohomes deteriorate the same rate as any other road vehicle only in different ways.

mythplaced · 03-12-2010, 09:26 AM

LIke others I spent 1.5 years in the search....

From all the posts on all the boards I read, I learned these things:
New MH

Require much "shakedown" repair as QC isn't all that great unless you are buying a Prevost or similar $1M coach;
Depreciate faster than you can pay them off (negative equity unless you pay cash)
Dealers (while nice folks) are in business to make money, and it is difficult to play the negotiation game to get a good deal.
Do a 2-day PDI and use EVERY system!

Used MH

Lived in FT is not necessarily bad, as all the "bugs" are taken care of,
Spent most of its life "parked" could spell trouble as the systems don't get exersized regularly,
Mileage means nothing, maintenance does, get records!
Don't be afraid of Orphans, you can save lots O' $$ and parts are available..(helps to have good MH and service insurance)
Anything older than 5 years old will most likely require tires and batteries ($4-5K)
Depreciation is at a minimum on a 3-5 year old coach
Do a 2-day PDI and use EVERY system!

You can find a GREAT class A DP coach for 60-90K

Personally I can not justify $200K difference in cost just to say my coach is "new", but I am frugal that way...I would rather spend the $200K on "going places & doing things"..

cb5300 · 03-12-2010, 11:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tedward1555

Hi Bill;
I'll leave it to more experienced members to address all the other questions you raise, but I would like to talk about the washer/dryer issue. I would be willing to bet that with a young family you will be staying mostly at RV parks instead of out in the wild. If that is the case, please tell your wife that virtually every one of them have great washer/dryer facilities. In fact it could be her very own "quiet time" to get away for a while with a book/magazine to go 100 yards and do the laundry in big nice commercial machines. I might not be in the majority but I'll bet your wife will feel like I do that the RV washer/dryer combo is just a waste of time and space, not to mention money. You can only wash small loads (one pair jeans, two t shirts, one wash cloth) is pretty much one load. And no matter what you do the clothes come out wrinkled to heck. Do yourselves a favor, and take that option off your wish list and just bring along a bunch of rolls of quarters.... trust me
GOOD LUCK sounds like fun for the family.
Ed

I'm going to disagree here...I've had 2 motor homes (DP) and both have had the stacked washer and dryers. My "Boss" wouldn't be with out them. She doesn't really like going to laundry mats and she takes the opportunity to clean the coach while the clothes are washing...Of course she also made sure that the current coach had a dish washer also.

tedward1555 · 03-13-2010, 08:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cb5300

I'm going to disagree here...I've had 2 motor homes (DP) and both have had the stacked washer and dryers. My "Boss" wouldn't be with out them. She doesn't really like going to laundry mats and she takes the opportunity to clean the coach while the clothes are washing...Of course she also made sure that the current coach had a dish washer also.

You're right about that. I was thinking of the washer/dryer combo unit. If I had the opportunity to get the stacked units, I'm sure I would jump at it. In fact I tried to replace the combo with stacked but didn't have the room cuz the water heater is right below the SPlendide now. So I stand corrected Bill Marquette... I hope you do find a rig with the stacked units.
Ed

woody! · 03-20-2010, 11:02 AM

Dont buy a 10 year old motor home.In 10 years it will be 20 years old.

billmarquett · 03-30-2010, 08:21 AM

Thanks to all that replied. Sorry for replying to an older post, but wanted to leave my thanks and give an update. We went back through our list of requirements and matched it up against our expected usage of the coach. This ended up eliminating the washer and dryer as our longest trips will likely be a week or two in duration (and we can easily pack enough clothes for that!) since I will still be working for many years and the kids are/will be in school for many years to come. This decision brought the bunks back up to the top and we happened to stumble on a used 2008 Tiffin Allegro 35QBA at a good (for it) price. While above what we were wanting to pay, we realized that regardless we were going to be out all our savings on any vehicle and it was better to go quality and higher monthly payments (which we can afford) than settling on something that in our minds would be 'lesser' and wanting an upgrade sooner (I'm hoping this will meet our demands until the kids aren't willing to go with us any more - then we can upgrade to something that doesn't have to take them into account). So again, thanks to all - our first big trip is tomorrow with a quick burn-in at the local state park (literally a driveway away) tonight.

--Bill