Which one ? Tiffin, Newmar, Prevost, Monaco?

^^^ Correct. As noted in my above post (although it was under the picture and easily missed), the checking was a supplier issue and not just a Fleetwood/American issue.

Darker colors seemed to be plagued with it far more than lighter colors.

RayChez, the hairline cracks were a widespread problem in the early 2000's. We had them on our 2000 American Tradition. The cracks had nothing to do with whether the walls were laminated/glued or not. It was explained to me that the cracks were due to a defect in the actual material of the fiberglass sidewall. And yes, the only real cure was/is to replace the walls - VERY expensive! The only good news was that it was not a structural problem, but it sure did detract from the visual appeal of the motorhome!!!!

Ed Headington

I certainly don't want to convey that Prevost coaches are perfect,
they are not.
They are built to be very robust coaches carrying
passengers multi-millions of miles across this country
as passenger buses. Any coach can be crushed by an accident.

Prevost coaches are built to withstand a variable of scenario's.

The conversions have many upscale features that set them
apart from the average upscale coach. They can drive
you nuts too. Electronics are electronics. Most
of the time they perform as designed and sometimes
they need tweaking. Every amenity
comes with a price and the ability to make
you want to pull your hair out! LOL!

Every year they are improved mechanically
on the chassis side and new gadgets on the house side.

Generally, the new coach engines are more fuel efficient than their
predecessors with the new emissions and new designs.
I always find it amusing when people say
'don't buy after a certain year'.....
that has been going on since the
introduction of the catalytic converters and EGR's or from other improvements.

Some people don't want to accept new technology, which is OK, they will have to buy older units. :)

Safe travels to all.

MM.

There is This one .


High miles, high time gen-set. no slides.

The bus shown appears to be an older MCI and not a Prevost or Wanderlodge. No matter, the comparison between a fiberglass shell bolted to a Freightliner or Spartan chassis and a motorized vehicle designed to transport 40+ passengers is completely valid. The exact same accident shown, had it been a regular RV, would have included the caption that everyone on-board died and it would be difficult to which end of the RV was the front.

Picture to show what we are talking about
Rollover of DOT rated coach (looks like MCI)



Rollover of average RV


Fender bender (OK it was more than that) between average ClassA and DOT-rated SUV

2gypsies wrote:
I just did a quick 'Google' and here's what can happen to a commerical bus. The steel didn't help this rollover. Luckily only three employees were onboard but one was killed and another seriously injured. It could have been much worse if the bus was filled.

Bus Rollover

I didn't say they were perfect - just a LOT better than a fiberglass-sided motorhome. IMO, a fiberglass motorhome would've more than likely looked like a pile of matchsticks in a wreck like that.

I also don't know what (if any) testing a Prevost or Newell does. I know that Wanderlodge did a lot of testing due to their being part of Bluebird and the school bus testing they had to do as part of the regulations.

There are certainly some instances where nothing will save you.

Monaco side walls might not be glued, not sure what Ocean Mist was leading to, but in 2003 I was at an RPI camp ground in Unidilla Georgia and there was this beautiful Monaco Dynasty parked right next to my coach. We started a nice friendly conversation about his coach and I told him how nice it looked. He told me it looks nice from a distance, but look. He pointed to me some fine hair line cracks all over the side walls. He told me he was headed to Wildwood Florida to get the walls changed out because of the cracks on the Fiberglass. He told me that Monaco bought the fiberglass from Dupont and that they were getting the fiberglass walls removed at a big shop Monaco had just opened in Wildwood, Florida. That was also the time when Monaco had bought Safari and had major recalls on all their coaches. The thing is that I saw the exact same thing on a Country Coach that was for sale at the FMCA rally in Idio. It had the same hairline cracks all over the side walls. I did not ask if it was also the Dupont junk they were selling to a lot of these RV builders, but it was there. So I am not sure which is worse. Taking a chance on a side wall that is glued or getting a hung style side wall that has defective hairline cracks.

DOT = Department of Transportation
Those are the people who operate truck scales and watch for safety on our roads.
I have seen too many motorhomes after accident where roof was less than 3 feet above ground.
It is true that RV accidents don't happen very often, but sure survivability in the vehicle should be consider.
Would you buy newer car with no air bags and no ABS just becouse it has upgraded stereo and WIFI?
Valid point is how the DOT classified coach will reclassify after cutting slide in it.

Ocean Mist wrote:

Tom/Barb wrote:

We bought a 2000 with 8670 miles showing in 2009, Yes we had a wake up period, new tires, belts hoses ect. but we got a great deal.

May I ask which MH you purchased...? Sounds nice

We shopped for about 2 years prior to buying, every RV lot, Craig's list, and E-bay comparing types and makes. We discovered ours at a park and sell lot. Looked at it, fell in love, with the Newmar 4081, it drives like any buss, our's has a banks programer, intake and exhaust system. On the freeway, set at 60-65 on economy and allow the computer to drive it. it will deliver 10 MPG. it had sat in storage for 9 years due to health problems of the prior owner.
first thing we did was check tire codes for time dates, and changed all 6 to Michelin XAs, changed the oil and fuel filters, gave it a grease job, tested all systems and found the water filter was broken as in freeze up, the hose reel was the same way. changed them out, shocked the water system, flushed it out, filled the propane, check for leaks, non found. vacuumed the carpets, cleaned all the cupboards, stocked the needed supplies and when camping. with a 15 year old coach, we expect to repair and or replace things that break. It's a big machine, things happen.