Motor coach with bunks recommendations for family

Thank you all for the info! I did notice that the THOR AcE reviews were not good at all. The last thing I want is for it to be in the shop all the time!

So it seems that the general consensus is that the Winnebagos are the best quality for the money? Any other brands you recommend?

We seen several bunk bed units during our journey to purchase a class A rig over the last couple of years, takes a lot of work and research along with seeing and driving as many rigs as possible. I don't suggest any rigs as that is a choice the buyer needs to make after driving several models to figure which chassis and fuel type will better suit their needs.

We ended up having to go out of state to purchase our current rig late last summer, still it worked out marvelously even though we had to pick up our rig while the pandemic was roaring through our great country. No biggie as we just followed CDC protocols to remain virus free, since TX was open we were able to enjoy some state parks while traveling back home.

We have owned our Winnebago Sightseer 35J (bunkbed model) Class A since fall of 2006 and it's been a great rig for our family and still with our kids having moved out. I see the various years of the 35J listed online at pretty decent prices. We only had a coupe issues; fridge and converter both died under warranty and were replaces/upgraded. One thing I appreciate about the Winnebago line up is the detailed owners manual and the fact you can still download manuals as well as plumbing & electrical diagrams.

DrewE wrote:
You may have better luck finding bunks or a similar arrangement if you look for a class C rather than a class A. Very generally speaking, class A's are frequently designed for a (retired?) couple, while class C's more frequently for a family. That is of course a generalization and not always true, but the trend is there; and it is more pronounced for diesel pusher class A's.

This is not true. Perhaps 15 years ago that might have been the case, but not now. There is an entire segment of entry and mid level Class A's for families and each brand usually has a few bunk models some with bath and a half designs.

To the OP, being a former ACE owner I wouldn't look there. They are great little entry level MH's but if you are looking for quality, you probably want to start further up the food chain. $90k is a healthy budget and I am sure you can find something like a Winnie a few years old in that price range. That said, if you are just looking for a weekender you can save a lot of cash on a used ACE. but if you are going to spend any sort of time in it and want quality I would look elsewhere.

Many manufacturers of gas class A motorhomes have offered models with bunk floorplans over the past 10-15 years. Take a look at the Winnebago Vista 35B. It’s nice in that it has a bath and a half. Your daughters are getting to an age where you will appreciate that. There are usually used ones available well within your price range.

I had a Thor ACE 29.3 for a season and a half. Traded as we found out it did not have enough storage for extended trips.

Heres my thoughts, yes the ACE is rated as a starter MH. With that being said all of the components i.e. frig, stove, plumbing are the same in it as in all other MH. Its the workman ship that leave alot to be desired.

These are my neg. comments about the ACE. The black tank was only 29gal and the bath sink drained into it. This caused the tank to need emptying very often. It also was plumbed that a 90 angle was at the bottom of toilet so everything had to turn right away. This caused a poop mountain at the base of the toilet.

I always had a problem with the water supply getting to the bath side of the camper. My kitchen was on the long slide as was the water inlet. For some reason the water line to the bath would kink, never did solve the problem.

Dollars for dollars the ACE was a good unit, drove nice enough power to deal with mountains. Things I would look at, storage inside cause not much outside. The large room slide can become problems make sure it works and learn about how to work it. Its important to keep the motors insink.

Good Luck safe travels

You may have better luck finding bunks or a similar arrangement if you look for a class C rather than a class A. Very generally speaking, class A's are frequently designed for a (retired?) couple, while class C's more frequently for a family. That is of course a generalization and not always true, but the trend is there; and it is more pronounced for diesel pusher class A's.

The ACE is not a high-end motorhome by any stretch, but if you get a used one (so any initial manufacturing defects/warranty work has been taken care of) that's been well-cared for and is in good condition, it ought to be reasonably reliable and sound, at least not really worse than any comparable model--nor likely to be much better, for that matter.

The Ford 6.8 V10 engine is a very reliable engine, and runs smoothly. It tends to be high-revving as truck engines go, and probably seems a bit more so than it is since it has two more cylinders than most, but if you let it go it produces sufficient power and will do acceptably well keeping up with traffic on the highways. It does tend to be a bit on the thirsty side. For a gas powered class A motorhome, you don't have a whole lot of engine or chassis options, to put it mildly.

If you do get bunk beds, make sure they are long enough for however tall your daughters are likely to be in a couple years. Many RV bunk beds are pretty short.