Forum Discussion

AllenTC2's avatar
AllenTC2
Explorer
May 20, 2017

What constitutes an "entry level" Class A?

So I've been researching, reading about, and even seeing first-hand various Class A RVs.

I was told to specifically check out Newmar, Tiffin, and Winnebago as they were better quality than the Thor models that got me thinking about RVing in the first place. But I came across a post regarding Newmar's Bay Star Sport that surprised me. It was an older post, can't recall if it was on here or iRV2, but the poster opined that all "entry-level" Class As had the same "cheap" materials.

That kind of surprised me. The Tiffin I was on was a 31' Allegro, which is one of their smallest current models. It seemed anything but "cheap." Even the much less expensive Winnebago Vista seemed to be made of nice stuff.

So what constitutes an "entry-level" Class A? Price? Size?
  • Entry level is a misnomer just as you have discovered. There are many RV's and there are many different price levels for these RV's. If you can afford a $100,000 RV but nothing more than any RV priced in that range would be "your" entry level RV. I bought a Thor (when Thor was Thor) back in 1994 (a 95 model). If I had waited another year I would have gotten an even better product but I don't believe I could have afforded it and would have had go buy a gasser instead of the much better (in my opinion) diesel I had chosen.
    Back then, the Thor I bought was excellent, served me well and I traded for a used Prevost a few years later. It was a great coach but it was a bit under powered. It only weighed around 19,000 pounds and driving on very windy days was not an option. I tried it once, survived about 3 hours and called it a day.
    You just have to buy the RV you want and you can afford. There are no wrong answers here UNLESS you buy an RV you really didn't want but you bought it based upon price.
  • What I understand as an entry level coach is the least expensive coach being offered by a large rv maker. It ussually has the least bells and whistles. The higher the quality of workmanship and options the higher the price, thus the entry level tag.
  • To me entry-level would be some the you could afford to get rid of if you didn't like the lifestyle. After having the "entry-level the you trade to get every thing you want in an RV
  • Higher price, in general, will most likely mean a little better quality. But you really can't count fully on that. Higher price can also get you more bells and whistles, but not necessarily mean better build quality than a lower priced unit. It would really take a person very knowledgeable in RV materials and construction techniques to really make that evaluation. And even then, that is only looking on the surface. What is hidden is only known to the manufacturer.
  • Allen, thats no different than the old Ford vs Chevy arguments. And if you watch for a while you will see that there are a handful of folks on here that will flat out tell you that what they personally own is the only way to go.
    None of them are going to be without their drawback, all will have many things in common, Fit, and finish are the things which will have the most variance.
    As has ben said by a couple of others, find what feels right to you, take your time and then make the decision, not for them, make it for you.
  • Price. But don't let "labels" cheat you out of an RV you really like. If you like it, that's all that matters. It's not about trying to impress anyone. Actually, in the end ... NO ONE CARES! So get what works for you, what makes you happy, what "floats YOUR boat", and let the rest of the world fly by. If you are trying to live up to someone else's expectations, you'll never be happy. Be happy with yourself, your choices, and "labels" don't make one hill of beans difference.

    In my opinion, the only RV MH that stands out as a "premium", top of the line, you can't get any better... RV is a Provost. Everything else ... in my opinion, is in the same bucket. (but that's just my opinion).
  • Is this an issue? Buy the A that meets your budget and expectations.