Anyone make a mistake buying first MH ?

[Dollar98]

Just curious.. No matter how much research you do , it seems there is no substitute for owning and using a MH.. Anyone buy one and then realize you made a mistake on the first one.. If so, how did you rectify it. I haven't felt this way yet and hope I don't.. With all that is involved, I could see it happening.. I believe the best advice I got was to buy an older one and then see what you really want by trial and error..

[ttll41]

Hello everyone! I Just joined you all in the RV World Last night when we where giving a 1972 Dodge Avco all I know about it is it needs some work But is running. The wife and I are looking for some info on this RV. I do know the engine is a 413 Dodge.Please Help us!

[stephen_haley]

if you guys are running 65 and 70, you'd be surprised how fast the mpg goes up by dropping down to 55. yeah i know "gee that is slow", but if you are sef contained and don't have the hotel, motel, bathroom and eats problem i kinda figure at 55 i can get 10 or more in almost any rig. what say you?

i rented a 33 footer with a 360 dodge (don't quote me on the 360 but i do believe it was) and i got 12 mpg from red river new mexico to dallas texas running 55 all the way. 648 miles. filled up in red river at the shell station and drove into irving texas with out a stop except to eat and poop. still had most of a quarter of a tank left. did this in the early fall.
it was a 5 year old MH and this was back in 2002.
stephen

[LACO-1]

Turtlehouse,

Some of the auto stations are pretty tight to get in and out of. There is one nearby, that is a straight shot in, and has a wide turnout leaving that is no problem. Tree branches around town is another problem. Code says the cities have to maintain 14 feet above street surfaces, but its not happening here. Once on the road, truck stops will be my first choice for access. How do you like your 05 Bus? What kind of mileage are you getting. I have chalked up a couple of 9 +, which for a new coach seems difficult to believe.

[stephen_haley]

yeah i hope to use truck stops exclusively. no city streets for me. got a dingy for that.

what year was your fleetwood pace arrow! sounds like a nightmare come true!

anyone else have a leaky raft problem with fleetwood products?

stephen

[PHE]

"Anyone make a mistake buying first MH ?"

Sure - It was a Fleetwood Pace Arrow

It leaked everywhere, the roof leaked, the sidewalls leaked. the windows leaked, the windshield leaked. If it had been a boat we would have sunk and drowned. But not being a boat it just dry-rotted in the walls, the floor, the roof, etc.

PHE

[Turtlehouse]

LACO-1, i hope you are going to truck stops forfuel and not auto places. ihave found getting aroubd truck stops easy. this is especially true around the new ones.

[stephen_haley]

the tiffen allegro is a nice lookin rig. they have a really fine one at PPL but it has twin beds, i need a queen so i can put my tempur pedic set up in it.
low mileage / 32 footer. otherwise it's a reall good looking rig.
stephen

[jandcr]

We did a lot of looking and research within our budget (but not to extremes). We are very happy with our first MH. WE did go to an RV show about 5 months later, looked around (for 4 hours!!) and came away still happy that we purchased the exact right coach for us. (Tiffin Allegro 32BA). Guess we were very lucky and appreciate that.

[stephen_haley]

What would you have saved if your first purchase was the right one instead of your 3rd one, if i can ask?

Thats what my uncle keeps saying, the DP's are on heavy duty freightliner style chassis and won't shake rattle and roll like some of the basic MH's have been said to do.
I'm trying hard to stick with my goal, a good, used, moderate mileage, 40', mid 90's DP for $60k to $70k drive out. inspected checked out and guaranteed to be road ready. (in writing!lol)
stephen

[Camelot_Mike]

I made a mistake twice, both of the other motorhomes were beautiful and flawless, they just didn't have the chassis I wanted in the first place.
I knew what I wanted and I kept pretending that it didn't matter to me.
I know myself better than that [I know my wife knows me better than that too]

[stephen_haley]

I will go see their stock after the new year has hit and i agree with your statement of having a DP with average rather than low mileage on it. Sitting around just let them go bad in my opinion. They have some great gas units but i am planning on keeping it for 5 to 7 years if my health remains strong so i'm still pretty much stuck on a DP. Never know though, i might find a 2002 or so with very low miles that would make sense. I'll be certain to look into the GVW and the GCVW (if that's what's it's called with a tow vehicle).
sincerely,
stephen

[wolfe10]

PPL IS one of the largest consignment lots in the U.S. They have been around for a long time and also do a large in-person and mail order RV parts business

As you would expect, they have a complete range of priced units and units in a complete range of conditions. It is indeed a good place for you to start looking, as it is not too far from where you live and you can see a wide variety of coach brands, ages and sizes all in one place. They also do a pretty good job of updating their website: http://www.pplmotorhomes.com/

It is hard to make HP recommendations, as it is really HP/gross weight that really matters. Most (including me) feel 1 HP/10 pounds of gross weight (coach plus toad) is adequate. So for my 22,000 pound coach with 2,500 pound toad my Cat 250 HP is more than adequate. If this were a coach and toad grossing 37,000 pounds, a 350 HP would not do as well.

And you will be able to find some nice gas AND some nice DP's in the $70k price range. Certainly with older coaches, how they were maintained is critical. On diesels, do not be very concerned about miles. I would rather see a 12 year old DP with 140,000 miles on it than 14,000. The drivetrains were just not meant to sit idle for months at a time.

[stephen_haley]

Thanks for the input. I can't afford a heafty 6 figure MH/Coach. I'm limited to @ $70k no matter whether it's a DP or a Gas.
Most of the ones with the space i need are 37 to 40 foot so i am staying there.
i am dragging a truck behind me so i don't think i have to worry too much about getting around after setting up camp. i believe i need the DP to be able to pull a PU around the country without wearing out a Gas engine or losing power and speed in the mountain areas. 325+ HP cat is what i am looking for.
these ar just so FKN big! sheeeeeeeeeeeesh.
i stand outside one of them and it looks like house!
anyway, i'm learning more each day and able to connect what i have done in the renting and using arena to the buy side of the process.
i am looking at several at a place called PPL in houston texas.
anyone have good or bad feedback on this group.
they say they are the USA's largest consignment dealer.

thanx'
stephen

[dlloyd]

If you have room to park it whever you anchor, start out with a 40 footer. They are not too big to take most any place you want to go and are not difficult to drive. Used may be OK if you can find out enough about it to be sure you aren't getting someone else's unresolved problems Happy trails.

[stephen_haley]

Ok i found out what went wrong here. Within 15 to 20 minutes before the email you replied to hit my inbox, i had just posted a reply to a thread that was not keen on DP's and was attempting to explain how the gas engines were competing equally with the DP's. This is what i thought i was replying to. My mistake.
It was a reply to another thread.

This email you are replying to is indeed a very old one. I had many misgivings regarding DP's and Gas rigs and took the time to talk to my uncle, the one that arranged RV's for my familys use over the past 15 or so years and did the same for my parents for nearly 25 years. he put me straight on the DP's and fully explained the vast difference between Foretravels and typical RV's with gas or diesel powerplants.

Foretravel is more of a coach build compared to the basic gas RV. It's heads and shoulders above the crowd and nears equality to some coach lines.

now i know where my head is.
stephen