Forum Discussion

RAINEYTXX's avatar
RAINEYTXX
Explorer
Mar 27, 2019

Class A-what year is it?

So, as most of you probably know, a typical class A has a VIN or chassis number and the house portion of the motor home has a serial number assigned to it by your manufacturer.

What determines the year of a motorhome? Chassis or serial number. So, in this example your coach is a Forest River Georgetown and has a 2012 Ford VIN but was built say in late 2013 by Forest River. So, is your coach a 2012 (VIN) OR A 2013 (house portion) and who decides? If you purchased it as 2013 is it a 2013 or 2012 as indicated by the 10th digit of the Zaza VIN? What would you personally do if you bought it as a 2013 but either your bank or insurance company says it is 2012?

Thoughts?
Class A
  • Airdaile's avatar
    Airdaile
    Explorer
    Mar 27, 2019
    Whatever it said on the Certificate of Origin issue by the manufacturer. That would be what the first owner used when they registered it.
  • Bruce_Brown's avatar
    Bruce_Brown
    Moderator
    Mar 27, 2019
    ^^^ I wouldn't say most, I'd say some. Heck my parents had a '05 built on an '06 chassis.

    To answer the OPs question, it is based on the MH year. The chassis is considered an incomplete vehicle, and as such cannot be registered until the MH manufacturer completes it.

    It is good to know the chassis year when buying any needed chassis parts, as things can change from year to year.
  • garyemunson's avatar
    garyemunson
    Explorer II
    Mar 27, 2019
    Pretty much all Class As run on a chassis a model year older. Coach builder year is what counts. The chassis warranty does not start until you buy the RV.
  • Sea_Six's avatar
    Sea_Six
    Explorer
    Mar 27, 2019
    I'd say since the state DMV would refer to it as a 2012 model, that would be the answer.

    That's just my opinion though.

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