2017 Thor Freedom Elite 29FE / need opinions

kerrlakeRoo wrote:
Owens mom several telltale signs,
1. Search new units of a manufacturer on RV trader, when all the cheapies are from the same line thats a pretty good indicator.
2. When the the manufacturers website hides a product line its a good indicator. ie
Go to Thormotorcoach.com and the Freedom Elites dont show up, search for freedom elites and they come up as a separate website.
Winnebago does the same with their 5th wheels. www.winnebagoind.com
Voyager units must be searched separately.

Thank you. Guess we will also cross Thor off of our list.

I’d love to know what you purchased, if anything. We were looking at the Freedom Elite, but no more now that we have read the comments.

We test drove a brand new Thor FE at Camping World in Burlington, WA.

The RV had so many rattles and bangs while rolling down I-5 it was deafening.

The 15 year old Winnie we bought is almost dead quite.

The FE sounded like it would rattle apart in no time. Thor sells a bunch of Rv's and folks love em. Personally, Thor is on our "do not buy" list.

So since we have decided to pass on the Freedom Elite (thanks for all the input), we are now in search of a late model,reliable, under 30', class C or class A MH. My "must haves" are a right/blind side camera, an all in one bathroom, and windows in the bedroom that can be opened even with slide in. One thing I don't want is a TV on the outside of the RV. Some of the RVs we have looked at have had THREE televisions!!!!! It's just my husband and I, so 1 tv will be sufficient. :) RV shopping will be fun!!!

I have a freedom elite fe 2017 I purchase from camping world, I would suggest you stay away from purchasing it from camping world, they have no after the sale service. so for my freedom elite I have had some electrical issue such as the the radio and the backup camera does not work while I am driving the unit, my camper has been at camping world now for 2 weeks and they have not touch it yet. my battery drain while it plug up , so I may have a inverter or converter problem, I have been on two short trips and I have had no major issue with the chassis overall I wish I had got a class a, but I am stuck with this class c , I plan to travel across the usa, if you have any question you can pm me if you wish

We bought a 2017 (New) Minnie Winnie last Fall and are very happy. Yes, we worked out a few bugs. Very happy, nothing like brand new...this will be our retirement home for 15-20 years. Used:Been there done that. Winnebago isn't perfect but quality is very good and they have good service.

Owens mom several telltale signs,
1. Search new units of a manufacturer on RV trader, when all the cheapies are from the same line thats a pretty good indicator.
2. When the the manufacturers website hides a product line its a good indicator. ie
Go to Thormotorcoach.com and the Freedom Elites dont show up, search for freedom elites and they come up as a separate website.
Winnebago does the same with their 5th wheels. www.winnebagoind.com
Voyager units must be searched separately.

garysol, I have the same thought as you. I have to trade in my 1997 Coachman and get financing for a new one as well. Older RVs are hard to sell or trade in on a used RV. Good luck to you :)

Thanks all for the input. Much appreciated!!!!! I was online until 3 am checking for reviews on the Thor freedom elite, and for the most part, they are not good. CW service dept also has extremely poor reviews. I had the "WTH was I thinking" thought at about 5 am.... We have bad experiences at the CW service dept where we were looking the at the RV. NOT going there. Loved the unit , but we will keep looking...LOL!

kerrlakeRoo wrote:
Sandy, since you have had a couple of motorhomes for years, you already know that the drivetrains are basically the same, ford provides most and does so for all the major players. Thor is one of the biggest specifically RV manufacturers and uses all the same appliances and fixtures as the others. Thor does appear to have a poor reputation (at least in here) for shoddy workmanship. furthermore the unit you are looking at I believe is their lowest grade unit, meaning they cut every corner they could. CW you can read up on (here at least) and see that support from them is sporadic at best. Constant stories on here of owners buying a unit, to have it stuck in CW purgatory for months awaiting service or corrections of factory flaws.
My best suggestion would be to go to a Mom and Pop dealer, you can deal direct with the owner, by selecting carefully which one, you can get upfront pricing, not be told $66k only to have $8k added in fees after they get you to think you have a deal.
And lastly, try to purchase a step up, with any brand, you are usually best off to get a mid to upper level unit rather than their price promo.

Not the OP, but I was wondering how you find out the grades of their motorhomes. I see a lot of brand new Thor's for cheap, so my thought is, they must not be great. I am looking at a used 2017 THOR FOUR WINDS 30C and wondered about it's quality. They want $54,900 for it, which seems high for a used, when I could buy a Thor Class C brand new, for the same price. The one I am looking at already has 30k miles and 500 hrs on generator. Thank you