New Alliance 310RL just brought it home

[Dlleno]

Hi all

I guess I should apologize for radio silence after participating in some questions about this mfg ,but I'm at the point now that I can answer some questions -- I just took delivery of Alliance coach #3,125 -- a 310RL.

Is there perhaps an owners lounge of some sort for Alliance owners?

our choice was based on a few critical requirements that we had to realize at the same time, and after all of those were met, DW just liked the Paradigm and in comparison to other coaches in the same price point ,this one hits a few points of interest for me as well. there are other points we liked but these are the more important must-haves we carved out

sub 35 feet RL floorplan
101" wide body
tall Living room slide
sub 16,000 lbs GVW
large rectangular shower with fold-up seat (I'm 6'4 250 lbs)
east-west bedroom (slide) with 72x80 king bed that I can make without dangling from the ceiling
three slides. hydraulics for the big ones
evidence of customer support (they are new but so far so good)
local reputable dealer (big one for me. we live 10 min away)
large absorption fridge and modern cooktop. (18 cu ft is big enough!)
a dining table that can be used if you are older than 9 yrs old
L-shaped rear living couch/theater seating
modern utilities such as the Nautilus P1
Large tanks (310 has 98+53+53)
rear hitch for bike racks
Some reasonable suspension and pinbox upgrades from the standard (there is a MorRyde CRE3000 and a RotoFlex Pinbox)
no heating ducts in the living area that face "up" (to collect dirt)

this last one is a bit controversial I guess. I get there can be a preference for "fully ducted" ACs -- the Paradigm mounts three ACs in the ceiling with minimal ducting. You could consider this as a cost savings, and I can be accused of not really knowing what a fully-ducted AC system is like(we are not full timers) -- but with all those disclaimers I like the three ACs and here's why

two ACs run on 30A. I've tested this at home with my 30A RV outlet. Haven't tried at a campground yet
low fan mode easily allows conversation. noise just isn't a problem
the bedroom AC is ducted into the bathroom as well as the bedroom itself
cold air naturally falls from the ceiling instead of going through ducts

thats all I can think of at the moment, but I'm happy to answer more specific questions. oh -- the thing tows really well! (Ram 3500)

[Tex50]

Congradulation on the new rig. Post some photos if you get a chance.
My wife and I were in Indiana last summer and had the oppertunity to take a tour of the Alliance factory. There were several things that i liked, starting with the fact that they seem to have a heavier frame.
Hope you have many happy days of camping!

[Jerry Burks]

Congratulations!

We bought the same trailer in February and so far, we are really happy. Did a quick 2-week, 2000 mile trip a few weeks ago and did not have a major issue. Actually a nice place to live in. A few things were sorted out by the dealer before the trip, mainly the LCI leveler not working properly (replaced the control and sensor boards).

Now, after the trip we need to go back since the recliners started wandering. We did drive the I70 east from Vail which is more than bumpy but maybe they were not fastened properly.

The only other issue (feature?) is that the main TV, microwave, range and fridge on the kitchen slide are only connected to shore power or generator, not the inverter. I want the dealer to correct that as well.

I did install a huge 2-sided slide drawer in the storage compartment to get to stuff easier.
Next improvements are:
- racks for 2 folding e-bikes in said drawer
- one 200W solar panel added to the one that came with the trailer
- a bigger 200 or 300 Ah lithium battery (came with two 65Ah flooded lead ones)
- modify the LCI Solid Step stairs with easy-to-adjust floor legs
- maybe kick out the dining chairs and get dinette benches
- opaque film for the entrance door window
- magnetic catch for the entrance door to hold open when windy

[r3842id]

Congratulations!

We toured the factory last week and have been a part of the Facebook group for the past month monitoring overall customer satisfaction as we shopped for a new unit. I will say from what I have seen their support is incredible. The co-owner / VP of service Bill Martin is heavily involved in those groups and responds to both customer inquires as well as support issues. He freely gives out his cell phone number when issues arise. Very interesting cohesive group - sure they have their typical manufacturing or QC issues but they stand firmly behind their product.

Also as an interesting point is their transparency. In the past month we have toured five plants and all have asked that we do not take pictures or video and two even asked that we do not share we were even at the plant.

Alliance asked us to take pictures and video and post anywhere we choose. They said they are an "open book" and want everybody to see their process.

Good choice on the 310 - best floorpan and size in my opinion.

[Dlleno]

Here's a couple of photos. I have a pullrite in the short bed. Definately agree on the transparency I've been in regular contact with curtis carlson and have the exact same experience...total transparency and commitment to the customers experience.

I'm thinking of a portable solar solution to get me by until I can do panels on the roof myself . Any suggestions? I have the base model prepped for solar with #10 wire

[Dlleno]

Our first upgrade was the bed! The supplied matress is a std issue staging aid just like every other rv so we had no expectations of using it.

Almost got a memory foam bed in a box but at the 11th hour I realized it would be heavy and hard as a rock when cold. Then I realized our dealer (Bish rv) probably knew what they were doing in their choice of Denver Matress rv collection so we got one from them. super happy with it

[r3842id]

Originally Posted by Dlleno

Here's a couple of photos.

Love the pics, the cones and all of the tire marks (although likely not from you - look like burn outs). Smart! First thing we did with our class A and our 5er was hit the church parking lot and some open space. Will be doing the same again shortly to freshen up.

[Jerry Burks]

Originally Posted by Dlleno

... I have the base model prepped for solar with #10 wire

I guess we were kind of lucky. We also bought the base model but when we got it (after transport from another dealer facility) we found one 200W panel on the roof with charge controller and 2000W inverter. Probably a mistake and the sales person did not know but we did not complain. I did however replace the simple PWM charge controller with a more efficient MPPT controller.

I would not want to go without solar. Otherwise, the battery drains within a few days just with the parasitic loads and disconnecting the battery every time when storing sucks. There is a "main battery switch" but even when turned off there are still some parasitic loads, I guess by regulation.

For the last trip we had the system de-winterized but last night had a cold snap down to 14 deg. I did not want to winterize again and just kept the heater on at 45 degrees. The battery held up for the heater fan and was down to 25% this morning but recharged with the solar panel during the day.

BTW, we also got ours from Bish's RV (in Cheyenne, WY).

I found the mattress kind of hard first but after a few days I got used to it and actually like it now. We are not going to change it.

[southernlady]

Congratulations on your Alliance. We want one so bad but our preferred floor plan just barely went into production this quarter.

[5er2life]

Alliance RV owners page on Facebook is one group that I'm aware of. Congratulations on your good lookin rig [emoji106] Lots of help from folks who own them and build them. Enjoy your adventures [emoji846]

[Dlleno]

Originally Posted by r3842id

Love the pics, the cones and all of the tire marks (although likely not from you - look like burn outs). Smart! First thing we did with our class A and our 5er was hit the church parking lot and some open space. Will be doing the same again shortly to freshen up.

exactly; thanks! Glad I'm not the only one who values practice. yea the tire marks aren't mine. This is an abandoned mall parking lot with plenty of play room, about 10 min drive from my house. nice bonus. I had it all scoped out weeks before taking delivery. I had six traffic cones in my TV on delivery day, and drove straight to the parking lot before going home. I had no interest in becoming a spectacle for the neighborhood while attempting to back into my RV pad! :-) My gate is 12 ft wide but I had to bias to one side so I could extend the slides without hitting the house! 4 inches to spare :-)

[Dlleno]

Originally Posted by Jerry Burks

I guess we were kind of lucky. We also bought the base model but when we got it (after transport from another dealer facility) we found one 200W panel on the roof with charge controller and 2000W inverter. Probably a mistake and the sales person did not know but we did not complain. I did however replace the simple PWM charge controller with a more efficient MPPT controller.

ahh, the light dawns. I didn't look closely at the factory (go-power) solar package and wondered about the controller. #10 wire on a 12v PWM system is limited, due to voltage drop, so I'm glad I didn't purchase the factory option.

I would not want to go without solar. Otherwise, the battery drains within a few days just with the parasitic loads and disconnecting the battery every time when storing sucks. There is a "main battery switch" but even when turned off there are still some parasitic loads, I guess by regulation.

I hear that. I did upgrade the std issue batteries to a pair of 6V group 45 golf batteries, and I intend to study the parasitic loads with a real battery meter from the likes of Victron. But yea I'm quickly learning that even electric-only sites are in such high demand you can't get in, unless you book 6 months in advance. So the dry camping plans (and solar research) may have to accelerate!

or go cheap and get a Honda EU3000is generator.. i just don't like carrying yet another fuel source and of course the weight... but it gets you 3000 watts for 2 g's.

I'm liking Bish as a dealer as well. seem pretty laid back and honest no-pressure sales tactics. in our early shopping days we would walk passed the counter and out into the yard just to walk through coaches. one sales person riding a golf card asked if we had any questions, which I thought was appropriate ,but no one followed us into any coaches and no one required that a sales person be present while we were in a coach. So I quickly developed trust. Even the extended warranty upsell step was very laid back -- and they let me review the details via email so I didn't have to digest a mountain of paper at signing time.

[Dlleno]

Originally Posted by Jerry Burks

Congratulations!

...
Now, after the trip we need to go back since the recliners started wandering. We did drive the I70 east from Vail which is more than bumpy but maybe they were not fastened properly.

good tip - I'll have to check that out. we had all the minor stuff to be expected, and Bish rather went the extra mile for us, imho -- squeaky step was resolved by adding some additional bracing in there.


I did install a huge 2-sided slide drawer in the storage compartment to get to stuff easier.
Next improvements are:
- racks for 2 folding e-bikes in said drawer
- one 200W solar panel added to the one that came with the trailer
- a bigger 200 or 300 Ah lithium battery (came with two 65Ah flooded lead ones)
- modify the LCI Solid Step stairs with easy-to-adjust floor legs
- maybe kick out the dining chairs and get dinette benches
- opaque film for the entrance door window
- magnetic catch for the entrance door to hold open when windy[/QUOTE]

thats a great list! are you keeping the locks? I'm told there are only 100 unique keys in the world, for the front door :-)

[Jerry Burks]

Originally Posted by Dlleno

........are you keeping the locks? I'm told there are only 100 unique keys in the world, for the front door :-)

Good question and I have not thought about it. But it did worry me that the dealer did not care to get the keys from us for service ("no problem, we have a master key"). Makes you wonder who else has a master key.

What would be the alternative? I guess I would have to change the storage locks as well to make sense?