Thor ACE ahead of the competition

On the entry level track, have you guys seen the new Winnebago Brave retro unit being built. It's on the cover October issue of Motorhome magazine. It's basic, I like the retro look. Probably will be a good seller.

MM.

Effy.....I may have worded it poorly and was a little harsh, but the OP is trying to tell others what a great product it is to justify his possible purchase of it. Many are just trying to tell him to not get so emotionally attached and to look under the shiny gadgets for the true quality.

I worked hard for over forty years, sometimes working two or three jobs. I live in a modest home and spent/saved my money wisely. I've always tried to buy the best quality product I could in the price range I could afford. I previously had a 2005 Monaco Diplomat that I think was better built than my new Dutch Star, but when I went shopping, I again looked for the best product within my budget. In all honesty, Tiffin, Newmar, Entegra, and the American coach products seemed all about the same/highest quality at my price point. The Dutch Star won out because the dealer is down the street from my house and I wanted a tag axle in a 40" foot coach.

My opinion of who builds quality coaches, seems to be on par with the rest of the country, since the Newmars, Tiffins and Entegras are selling like crazy, because of their quality not their price point.

Effy,

Well said sir, agree with you 100%.

DSDP Don wrote:
Just about every base level TT on the market offers an outside kitchen.....I don't see how that makes Thor innovative, they're just trying to hook people on gadgets so they don't look at the crummy construction.

I know this isn't what you wanted to hear, but don't expect to try and sell savvy RVer's on some junk motor home so you can justify your want for one! We all have opinions and many are often wrong, but when it comes to Thor, they're mass producing low quality products.

Never saw such a condescending post. What a jerk!. I take personal offense to calling my MH "junk". We love our ACE and wouldn't consider it junk at all. It's an entry level MH and no worse than any of the other offerings I've seen from any manufacturer. Including Newmar. I walked through quite a few Bay Stars and Canyon stars and frankly the famed build quality escaped me. Wall joints pulling away, same plastic faux metal faucets that were so wobbly it would fall off looking at it, bubbles in the flooring, blinds pulled away, mis aligned bin doors, and I am not sure what sort of Amish are building the cabinets but all I saw was lauan veneered cabinet walls and cheap glides. I pulled on a window shade and it fell off!. So don't play holier than thou, your brand makes junk if anyone else does. Many of us buy what we can afford and are still just as happy with it. I have had zero major issues with either ACE I have owned, Thor has some of the best customer service I have ever dealt with, they are a company that gets copied quite a lot, and for the money I think the ACE has it all over the competition. It's entry level but it's certainly not junk. Haters gonna hate but people who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones.

Everyone is always ready to bash Thor, But I would challenge you to walk in several brands of entry level MH's without knowing which one you were in and tell me the brand. You can't. I did this at the last Hershey show with a couple who was shopping and who knows MH's and they couldn't tell one brand from another based on build quality. Everyone always brags about how their brand is better and it isn't. I can pick apart any single one and there is plenty of issues to go around if you look on other forums. Invite me into your unit and I will quickly dispel your perceived better build quality. Lemmings.

vjstangelo wrote:
(snip, snip) I expect that any RV I purchase will have warranty issues with fit and finish.

It's certainly possible. One would think that high-end motorhomes would have a better build quality, but there are horror stories about build quality even for $400,000 "luxury" units. To me, many of the luxury units are loaded up with stupid add-ons (like marble flooring and chandeliers) designed more to appeal to status-conscious blockheads than to add any functional value. Oh well... Degustibus non est disputandum

vjstangelo wrote:
(snip, snip) I'll put it to the readers: any of the motor homes in the price range of the ACE have an outside kitchen?

As you noted, the ACE 29.3 has an optional outside kitchen. But at the FMCA show in Perry a few months ago, we spent a fair amount of time looking at new units and I don't recall many in the smaller size range with outside kitchens. I'd think that's mostly to maintain the limited amount of storage space in smaller units. Or maybe not. Many (most?) of even smaller units do seem to offer optional outside entertainment centers, which also cut into the available storage space. You'll find out this week in Hershey, but I'd think carefully about the outside kitchen issue. Everything in a motorhome is a trade-off. It's easy enough to set up a Coleman grill and you'll need to decide whether you'd rather have the storage or the feature.

Let us know what you decide...

DSDP Don wrote:
Just about every base level TT on the market offers an outside kitchen.....I don't see how that makes Thor innovative, they're just trying to hook people on gadgets so they don't look at the crummy construction.

I know this isn't what you wanted to hear, but don't expect to try and sell savvy RVer's on some junk motor home so you can justify your want for one! We all have opinions and many are often wrong, but when it comes to Thor, they're mass producing low quality products.

I couldn't have said it better............

Just about every base level TT on the market offers an outside kitchen.....I don't see how that makes Thor innovative, they're just trying to hook people on gadgets so they don't look at the crummy construction.

I know this isn't what you wanted to hear, but don't expect to try and sell savvy RVer's on some junk motor home so you can justify your want for one! We all have opinions and many are often wrong, but when it comes to Thor, they're mass producing low quality products.

I'll try again to not have this denigrate into a Thor bashing thread, there are already enough of them on the web. There are also Keystone, K-Z, Winnebago, Lance, Jayco, Forest River, bashing threads on the web. I expect that any RV I purchase will have warranty issues with fit and finish.

True I don't own an ACE, nor do I own a motor home. We currently own a K-Z double bunk TT that has served us well, but as empty nesters, we are ready to take the plunge to a new RV. My reason for starting this thread was to garner a conversation with others that own an ACE, or any of the "clones" such as the FR3 that would want to chime in, on the innovations we see on these motor homes.

We are heading to Hershey next week, and went last year, and had a blast looking at the motor homes. We will do the same this year and want to spend time looking at the ACE, Sun seeker (class C), Winnie Vista, FR3, and any others that strike our fancy.

Being one who likes to sit outside, I would really like to get an outside kitchen, but these don't seem too popular in motor homes. I was blown away when I saw the ACE 29.3 with an outside kitchen and I thought that innovative. Hence my quote on Thor being innovative with the ACE.

I'll put it to the readers: any of the motor homes in the price range of the ACE have an outside kitchen?

Don't let the Thorophobes get you down. The absolutely worst build quality story I've ever read pertained to a luxury Winnebago. See Chuck Woodbury's story here. Now back to the topic...

I agree that Thor has innovative ideas way ahead of the competition. For example, Thor just came out with a "Rapid Camp" system, allowing the operator to deploy certain systems (like the stabilizers, slideouts, etc.) from outside the coach. See here. Seems like a nice convenience.

Had more than one Thor products. Given not the ACE. However with all the problems we had with ours I would never consider a Thor product. If you can afford it, similar competitors models would be a option worth considering.