Montana 3610RL vs. Big Horn 3160 Elite

alboy wrote:
IF Bighorn cares about there customers so much ,Why dont they put on Quality tires for their CUSTOMERS TO START WITH?? Just asking.

It's not just Heartland but many RV manufacturers who put on Towmaxx. If they were that bad, they would be recalled. Anyone having premature tire failure on these should be reporting them to establish data for tracking, but there isn't any so there's no fact.

B.O. Plenty wrote:

Seattle Lion wrote:

cgaskins wrote:
Thanks everyone for the input. We are now seriously considering the Heartland Big Country (sister to the Big Horn) model 3450TS. Going to look at some tomorrow morning. Two RV technicians that I really trust gave me some negative feedback on the Cardinals and are steering me to wards the Montanas and Big Horn/Big Country brands. I like what I can see of the Big Country so far (on the web). Can't wait to check one out in person tomorrow.

One thing to consider. Bighorns and Landmark (top of Heartland lines) are made in a separate plant that only produces 10 units a week. All of the others, including Big Country (also a Heartland luxury brand), are made in the other plant. This may or may not matter, but I figured that all other things being equal, I like the idea of just the two top of the line models in their own plant.

I went through the factory in 2011. At that time Landmark, Big Horn and Big Country all came off the same assemble line. I believe it is still this way today. They share many of the same components. Last I heard they have also dropped the TowMax tires and are now coming through with Sailun G rated tires. If you want Goodyear G614 tires, they are available from the factory as an option. A quick call to Heartland customer service could confirm this.

B.O.

That's true...they are just made on different days but all in the same plant.

I think Bfast54 is probably correct. Towmax tires are OEM on many brands. All you have to do is a search of rv.net using 'TowMax' as the search term and you'll be reading for hours. It's not a very pretty story.

Glad to see Heartland has dropped them - finally. Maybe it'll start a trend ?

Tim

Seattle Lion wrote:

cgaskins wrote:
Thanks everyone for the input. We are now seriously considering the Heartland Big Country (sister to the Big Horn) model 3450TS. Going to look at some tomorrow morning. Two RV technicians that I really trust gave me some negative feedback on the Cardinals and are steering me to wards the Montanas and Big Horn/Big Country brands. I like what I can see of the Big Country so far (on the web). Can't wait to check one out in person tomorrow.

One thing to consider. Bighorns and Landmark (top of Heartland lines) are made in a separate plant that only produces 10 units a week. All of the others, including Big Country (also a Heartland luxury brand), are made in the other plant. This may or may not matter, but I figured that all other things being equal, I like the idea of just the two top of the line models in their own plant.

I went through the factory in 2011. At that time Landmark, Big Horn and Big Country all came off the same assembly line. I believe it is still this way today. They share many of the same components. Last I heard they have also dropped the TowMax tires and are now coming through with Sailun G rated tires. If you want Goodyear G614 tires, they are available from the factory as an option. A quick call to Heartland customer service could confirm this.

B.O.

Probably because no one does at that price point..... Just saying:W

IF Bighorn cares about there customers so much ,Why dont they put on Quality tires for their CUSTOMERS TO START WITH?? Just asking.

Our OEM Towmax tires lasted 4 years (average for tires) and many cross country trips. Don't let the Towmax tires scare you.

Seattle Lion - I have a 2014 Bighorn 3010RE. GVW is 14,000 pounds. The OEM Towmax tires lasted exactly 1 year and about 6-7000 miles before they started blowing. When the first one blew I immediately replaced all 4 with Maxxis 8008s. I had wanted to get to the end of 2014 before replacing them, but, guess what, that didn't happen. I run 55-58 and always kept them inflated to 80 psi.

I suggest that it might be a good idea to bite the bullet and go ahead and replace them now while it's convenient, cheaper, and safer, instead of having a blowout while running down a 2 lane highway in the middle of Wyoming like I did. They might be worth a few bucks in trade while new or maybe put them on Craig's List. My rationale was that once the first one blew, the others would not be too far behind.

Tim.

cgaskins wrote:
Thanks everyone for the input. We are now seriously considering the Heartland Big Country (sister to the Big Horn) model 3450TS. Going to look at some tomorrow morning. Two RV technicians that I really trust gave me some negative feedback on the Cardinals and are steering me to wards the Montanas and Big Horn/Big Country brands. I like what I can see of the Big Country so far (on the web). Can't wait to check one out in person tomorrow.

One thing to consider. Bighorns and Landmark (top of Heartland lines) are made in a separate plant that only produces 10 units a week. All of the others, including Big Country (also a Heartland luxury brand), are made in the other plant. This may or may not matter, but I figured that all other things being equal, I like the idea of just the two top of the line models in their own plant.

I have the Bighorn 3160EL. It's 36ft long. Even though the Heartland website and literature says that the trailer has 6,000 lb axles, it comes with 7,000 lb axles. Loaded, ours weighs 13,500 lbs. We got it in March. It has its share of new camper issues, but they are mostly cosmetic and will be fixed next week by our dealer. We couldn't be happier. The mattress is a bit soft for us, but it is low on our priority list. Ours came with "E" tires (Towmax) rated at 3,700 lbs. I think the new ones are coming with "G" rated tires (3,500 lbs). The Towmax have a bad reputation. Because they use Kevlar cord, they have a much higher weight rating than other E's. We plan on replacing them with Goodyear 614's or 114's next year.

The best thing about Bighorn is Heartland customer service. The company really cares for its customers. They go way out of their way to keep us happy. The Heartland owners forum is read by company execs as well as customer service. They are amazing. I posted that I had a problem with the microwave/convection oven (the convection part didn't get hot enough). Within a couple of hours of my posting, Heartland called and told me that they are having the manufacturer ship me a replacement. This is pretty typical of them.

All things being equal, Heartland will win for me.