What are the top 5 brands for 5W?

Best is a relative term, weight, length, price, color can determine what is best for the INDIVIDUAL. Let us also not forget things like style of camping, short trips, long trips, on the move on more stationery, 4 season usage in the south, north, east or west, full timing or vacationing, family size and age.

The absolute best?? A Forest River Cardinal. Why? Cause that's what we could afford right now. Unless you have a truckload of money, "the best" is irrelevant. You will end up with the "best" you can afford.

All RV'ers on this forum have invested money from a few thousand to many thousands and obviously we chose the ones we wanted or could afford at the time. There will always be new models and new companies coming along for the remainder of our adventures in rving. No one person should disparage anyone's choice of RV. Encourage and congratulate those that have joined our ranks or expect to in the future. Learn as we go along, change out to whatever type RV we think suits our needs and continue to use this forum as an information gathering place, not a place to be spiteful. Nuf said on my part! Happy RVing!

Acei wrote:

jwduke wrote:

rmalik1 wrote:
New Horizon
Spacecraft
Continental Coach
Excel
DRV
Lifestyle Luxury

These are probable the the top of the line, and these companies are still in business.

There other 5'vers for less money that may fit your needs? And there are orphan 5'vers that are also nice units.

It is all about your wants and needs and final how much money your can pay!

NuWa (Hitchhiker) is & isn't out of business... They go by Kansas RV Center they list brand new 2013 Hitchhikers on their website. Plus their new 5th wheels do not use a Lippert frame. It is manufactured by Young's Welding, a local Chanute, KS welding company.

But are they taking any new orders though? I would have been interested in their models if this was the case.

Don't believe NuWa is building anymore. Late last year, Mike Mitchell (CEO) posted a message on the NuWa owners' forum that the company would stop taking orders in late Sept. '12 and would likely cease production after completing all orders in the first quarter of 2013. He stated NuWa would continue to operate a service facility in Chanute to service both NuWa and other brands of towable RVs. Kansas RV Center is an outgrowth of the business plan NuWa embarked on in late 2009 when they first contemplated ceasing production. They initially sold only Crossroads and Starcraft products because they learned owners of them frequently moved up to a NuWa product. As you can see on the Kansas RV website, they are now selling several different brands new and used, and the remaining NuWa inventory. So far as I know, there has been no change in their plans to end production.

jwduke wrote:

rmalik1 wrote:
New Horizon
Spacecraft
Continental Coach
Excel
DRV
Lifestyle Luxury

These are probable the the top of the line, and these companies are still in business.

There other 5'vers for less money that may fit your needs? And there are orphan 5'vers that are also nice units.

It is all about your wants and needs and final how much money your can pay!

NuWa (Hitchhiker) is & isn't out of business... They go by Kansas RV Center they list brand new 2013 Hitchhikers on their website. Plus their new 5th wheels do not use a Lippert frame. It is manufactured by Young's Welding, a local Chanute, KS welding company.

I think that they are more out of business than in business, but with what they have left the OP could find a good deal. And by the way my post does mention orphan's which IMO NuWa is.

jwduke wrote:

rmalik1 wrote:
New Horizon
Spacecraft
Continental Coach
Excel
DRV
Lifestyle Luxury

These are probable the the top of the line, and these companies are still in business.

There other 5'vers for less money that may fit your needs? And there are orphan 5'vers that are also nice units.

It is all about your wants and needs and final how much money your can pay!

NuWa (Hitchhiker) is & isn't out of business... They go by Kansas RV Center they list brand new 2013 Hitchhikers on their website. Plus their new 5th wheels do not use a Lippert frame. It is manufactured by Young's Welding, a local Chanute, KS welding company.

But are they taking any new orders though? I would have been interested in their models if this was the case.

punjab66 wrote:
We are looking to switch from a TT to a 5W. Can someone list the top 5 brands for quality and dependability. Thanks

No, but I'll keep the popcorn coming. This ought to be good for several pages.........:B

rmalik1 wrote:
New Horizon
Spacecraft
Continental Coach
Excel
DRV
Lifestyle Luxury

These are probable the the top of the line, and these companies are still in business.

There other 5'vers for less money that may fit your needs? And there are orphan 5'vers that are also nice units.

It is all about your wants and needs and final how much money your can pay!

NuWa (Hitchhiker) is & isn't out of business... They go by Kansas RV Center they list brand new 2013 Hitchhikers on their website. Plus their new 5th wheels do not use a Lippert frame. It is manufactured by Young's Welding, a local Chanute, KS welding company.

Uncle Grumpy wrote:
the best advice I can advise is to find a well cared for top of the line products already mentioned. We bought a 97 Excel 28 ft legacy last year for $6500. It's weight is 8000 lb dry. Four season, all oak interior, every thing made in house including the frame. Not a staple or particle board on board. I spent nine months searching craig's list and paid cash 300 miles from home. After nearly 2 years we have spent only $300 on repairs and traveled from TX to WY. Buying new of anything is not very smart. Nor is financing something that depreciates so rapidly as RV's.

Not very smart buying an Excel if you didn't want staples. Have you seen how Excel attaches the studs to the plates? They use STAPLES! Four or five staples at the top and bottom of every stud.

Calling people stupid for buying new (or is there another meaning for "not very smart") is a rather narrow minded opinion. There are very good reasons for buying new. I'm sure you could think of one or two if you really put your mind to it.

Gib3633 wrote:
As mentioned earlier most people are proud of what they have and mention it. I too have a Montana and will NEVER have another Montana or any other trailer that can not be specked out with IS suspension and Disc brakes. Most customers get too excited about the interiors and forget to look underneath to see what is carrying it around. If you know what you are looking at that gets right scarry. They lighten the suspension to carry more weight for example hydraulic leveling system.
New Horizon has it all strong frame, IS suspension , Disc brakes, hydraulic leveling, 17.5 tires and on and on. For that you need a very heavy wallet and a very heavy truck.
I now like my Montana now that it has the IS suspension, Disc brakes, G614 Goodyears and 2nd AC. $8,000.00 later in upgrades.
I hope this helps your decision.

Don't necessarily need to buy one that options IS and disc brakes...bought what we wanted and worked it into the deal. Dealer picked it up and delivered it to Mor Ryde...it was exactly the way we wanted it upon delivery.