Diesel Engines/Chassis - Preferences and Why?

tropical36 wrote:
Thing is and with what I'm saying, once you go that first step, you won't have to worry about the rest of it, for engine size, a top notch chassis, tranny size for towing what have you, top quality interior and exterior...etc...etc...
I mean it should be pretty obvious that it doesn't cost $200K, just to mount a radiator on the side of an engine and maybe with a two speed fluid drive, even.

I'm still going to disagree with you. The side radiator is not the barometer for the best build, and by using such a narrow focus, you eliminate many nice motor homes.

For instance, the Winnebago Grand Tour is now a freightliner side radiator, but the year before they were a freightliner rear radiator. Between the two, they are identical builds and quality. By what you are saying, the 2018 side radiator Tour is a green light, but walk away from the 2017 Tour because it is a rear radiator - even though they are identical coaches separated by a year. Even my own model was a side radiator as recent as 2008, and now it is a side radiator again as the newly introduced Horizon 42. Did that change everything about how they were built just because they had a side radiator, no. In fact, there are probably many features on mine such as tile floor and residential fridge, that the 2008 side radiator Meridian didn't have.

Side radiators are nice as they may be easier to service the engine belts and it does eliminate the oil collection from the slobber tube flying back off the engine, but it definitely shouldn't be the first thing to look at.