Coachmen Freedom Express 246RKS

NYCAP wrote:
I spent 30 years as a yacht captain,and I spent all that time wondering what would break or go wrong next. Didn't matter if the owner spent 30K or 3 million. From what I've read it's obvious why they call RVs "Land Yachts". One thing I learned is to never buy new. The first owner gets the new boat bugs and pays to straighten them out, plus he pays the broker's profit.

So now I've retired, and know better than to buy a boat, but I've still got the travel itch. I figure that with RVs at least I don't have to worry about rough seas, breaking lose of a mooring or sinking. Also I like that the name doesn't stand for (B)reak (O)ut (A)nother (T)housand. Or am I wrong about that?

I'm searching for my first RV. I figure to come in fairly cheap to limit my downside while I learn what the life is about. This is pretty broad, but I'd appreciate any advice or wisdom anyone cares to pass on. Having acted as a buyer's rep on several boat deal I tend to not be impressed by the glitz easily, and look for the rust instead. So I intend to check it out like a surveyor to the best of my ability, and then have a professional check it out also.

I'm about to check out a Coachmen Leprechaun 317KS (a class C), about 12 years old, with the V-10. On another blog I read a lot of people dissing Coachmen, but then on checked out Winnebago and a few other makes, and found people dissing them as well (for many of the same problems). From that I gather that RVS like boats break and leak, and people tend to write stuff more when they have problems than when they're happy. Coachmen has been around since 1964. So they can't be too horrible. Plus my friend owns a smaller one and is happy. So I'm wondering if anyone has experience with this model? How's it's power? Can it pull a small trailer with a motorcycle uphill (like upstate NY)? Any systemic problems?

Thanks in advance for any advice and sharing any knowledge your experience has gained you.

P.S. I take it Good Sam's is a good organization to join?

Easy answers first GS gets nice discounts at decent to very good parks,it also assures you of mail.
I haven't been able to ween from the cruiser addiction so we have that as well as the camper. My wife and I regularly revisit the question of TV + camper vs class a+toad. To date we continue to favor TV+ to keep some simplicity in our lives.
Count up tires, engines, batteries, heads, etc. And the maintenance comissioning/decommissioning I figure that since the tv is my DD we will trailer. BTW our trailer was old when we bought it for some of the reason's you cited, our cruiser is also older, a 1968 35 CC Commander.
Good luck Tim