B+ motorhomes

[Daniel_C_]

I just bought a Trail Lite B+ 211s with 8.1 Chevy
engine. This is my fifth motorhome (others range
from an old 20' Vagabond, and three Winnegagos, from 19 to 32'. This vehicle is fantastic. I am
using it as a mobile office (and sneaking in a fun
journey from time to time). It gets about 9.5mpg
and I believe I could pull a bus behind it if I wanted! I paid low $40's which is about what I had expected to pay for a five or six year old Chinook with a nicer interior, but fewer features
(slide). I am delighted thus far.

[burlmart]

Tony

Do all slide equipped rigs have leveling jacks? I never thought about that. We often park and remain very unlevel, and I wonder if we could do so if we had a slide.

[TonyTiger]

TrueLarry
Sorry I just got caught up reading the list. I've been reading the C list mostly.
The FW Siesta has been a great buy. The double slides give a lot of size and the option to open both or one. You must level up the motorhome before using the slides. Speaking of leveling my TL 235 had a leak at the slide out when parked off level. This eventually damaged the carpeting and subflooring before I figured out the leak. The problem was with the slide side "higher" the water flowed down to the passenger side dinette, forward box seat. I wasted a lot of time looking on the passenger roof, etc.
The Siesta model I have is the 24BB. I don't think it is made anymore. I have the Ford 450 Super Duty chassis. We like the Chevy floor space better but this 26 foot model didn't come with Chevy as an option. The Ford has plenty of torque we tow a 2007 Honda CR-V about 3400 pounds and don't notice it.

You made the right choice passing on that unit. If the dealer has no pride in the repair to sell the unit how will they treat you after the sale.

I think the Lexington has a model much like our Four Winds Siesta. Also Dutchmen I think.

[RV_er1]

Cheese1, I live in a CO-op Apt. in Flushing Queens close to Main street, and park the RV 3 blocks away in the driveway of a single family home. I pay $100.00 a month for parking the RV or my Honda Silver Wing Scooter. When I use the bike during the work week, the RV stays indoors at my place of employment, then I take the RV home for the weekend. In winter the bike gets stored for the winter at work, and the RV gets driven daily. This summer my 13 year old daughter and I traveled to Dutchess County every Friday in August and parked the RV at my brother's house for the weekend with electric and cable hookup and spent time with his family. My wife and I took a short trip to Niagara Falls NY in May, We left on a Friday morning and were back home Sat. night (stayed at a KOA) In June we did a trip to Maine for 3 days,(stayed at a KOA) and in July we went to williamsburg Va. for 4 days.(private RV park) I really enjoy driving my RV, it's just the right size for me to drive daily, and have all the comforts of home.

[ron_dittmer]

Larry, I sent you an email. Feel free to email or call me.

[TrueLarry]

Well, life has a way of handing you surprises. As I had previously writtin I was set on a Lexington 255 and found what I thought was a good used 2008 GTS. However, when we first looked at it, the rear slide was undergoing some reconstruction. So the dealer told us they would get it all fixed up and would call us to inspect it before we made a final commitment. So we went down at the appointed time and when we walked up to the unit saw some issues right away. The more we looked the more we found. Here is a list:

1. Filthy interior - "don't worry we'll get it steam cleaned before you pick it up".
2. The bottom trim panel on the back slide was bent and not sealed properly - "don't worry, that's just an adjustment".
3. The bottom gasket of the rear slide was not seated properly and was partially sticking out when the slide was closed - "oh, we'll take care of that".
4. The bottom gasket of the front slide was half off the track - the sales rep pulled it the rest of the way off and threw it inside for the mechanic to replace.
5. The bezel around the microwave was still missing - in a box laying on top - it had evidently fallen off when the microwave became dislodged from its mounts at some point - I guess this part just came in and they didn't have time to get it installed.
6. The pantry door had a 3/4" gap at the bottom and didn't latch - "I'm not sure what that is, we'll have to take a look at it." (I'm no RV mechanic but it's pretty easy to see the door was warped).
7. The pantry rack didn't latch properly so the salesman jammed it in and then it was stuck and wouldn't come back out - "oh, that must be an adjustment that needs to be made."
8. The new ceiling in the back slide had not been sealed around the edges - "ok, I'll report that."

In short, the unit was a mess so we told them to keep it and we are back in the hunt for another RV. I did express to the salesman that I wasn't impressed with their service department and if this is the way they completed a repair on a unit they wanted to sell, I didn't have a lot of confidence as to what would they do on one they were just fixing for a customer.

Long story shorter - we are going to the RV show in Syracuse in three weeks to see what we can find. Right now we are leaning toward a Winnebago View or a Fleetwood Pulse. Anybody know anything about them we should watch out for? We still want a B+ and we don't want anything over 27 feet.

[cheeze1]

WHOA BABY!!
RVer, you are from Flushing? Much of my family is from there as well as Corona, Bayside and Hollis. WHERE are you parking the rv?
I empathize with the pounding those streets are giving you.
Living in Northwestern NJ, we don't have those problems.
From much of what I have read over the years, Bilstiens are the 'default' replacement shock, and most reports are positive.

[RV_er1]

Thank you all for all the info on solar and batteries.
Here's another question, how can I get a better smoother ride?
I live in NYC and drive my RV daily, and the RV is taking a pounding on these NY streets. Should I upgrade shocks, leafsprings or add air bags?

[Gene_in_NE]

RV er wrote:
Has anyone installed solar panels on their B+ Trail Lite?...Would like to get the most watts I can get, given the small area on the roof of the Augusta Sport...

Well Thanks to markopolo, you have an answer. In case you decide to do likewise, here is a sketch I rec'd on the framing of the roof for a model 211 - it may help to determine where to mount and how to fasten.

[markopolo]

You might be able to put two 75 watt panels on your roof and still have room to safely move around up there for maintenance and cleaning.

I put two 40 watt panels on my Trail-lite 213 B+. This will give you an idea of how much (or little 🙂 ) space was used:

[Gene_in_NE]

RV er - I know what you mean about the small area on the roof - you have the same size unit as I have. I have read some conflicting comments on the size of inverter necessary to run microwaves. The part about watching TV using an inverter should not be a problem. The first steps I would take would be to have a sturdy shelf built for 2 coach batteries, install a couple 6 volt golf cart batteries, and install the easy fill tubing. These batteries by themselves should operate your TV for quite some time. As to the microwave, the generator (if you have one) should be exercised anyway. Fire it up and use your microwave those 10-15 minutes a day. 🙂

[RV_er1]

Has anyone installed solar panels on their B+ Trail Lite? I have a 2007 Augusta Sport and would like to add solar panels and an inverter. Would like to get the most watts I can get, given the small area on the roof of the Augusta Sport. Want to be able to watch tv and maybe power the microwave.

[TrueLarry]

Thanks for the feedback on the maintenance policy. Did I mention that the daughter of the sales rep I'm dealing with works for the same company I do and I see her every day? I think that may be part of the reason I feel pretty comfortable with this deal. I have also met several other people at the dealership and everybody is very courteous and no pressure whatsoever to buy. We've been back so many times they know us by now. They have also left us alone to wander through the units and spend time in them so we have been able to visualize ourselves using them without any pressure of somebody breathing down our neck. Those are huge plusses for me.

[burlmart]

Larry, glad you found what you like. Have read favorable posts on the Lexingtons. I agree with Gene's ideas on the warranty. As I mentioned, we have not had to bring ours back to the dealer after over 3 years.

Thinking like you, in our case, we ordered our unit sight unseen from a local dealer we had confidence in. We had looked at all sorts of RVs for years, and no matter how often we showed-up at Blanchard's RV, the sales folks were informative, courteous, and offered no pressure to buy. They have a good service reputation, which was a great concern when we were looking.

[Gene_in_NE]

TrueLarry - You are headed down the right track, the dealer is likely the most important person in the purchase of a RV. It is that salesman/owner that wants your repeat business. I have also found this to be true with Insurance; it is the agent and not the brand name.

As to the extended warranty, I personally would pass on that price. Some people, however, like the security feeling. The majority of your house appliances have already survived the "infant mortality" stage. Likely the most expensive component is the generator followed by the refrigerator, and then the rest (microwave, furnace, water heater, converter/charger, awning, air conditioner, TV, slide mechanism etc.)are in the $500 range or less. It seems to be a little high in price to bet that you will have an expensive component fail between 30 days and 1 year. It probably will not fail during the winter months while in storage. If you suspect a water leak, then have it positive air pressure tested before you take it off the lot. Fixing water leak damage can get expensive.

[TrueLarry]

I just wanted to publicly thank those who have responded to my queries about quality, issues, camper size, etc. I have finally come to the realization that the availability of a reliable dealer is quite important and accordingly have plunked down a deposit on a slightly used Lexington 255 GTS that is at a dealer about 15 minutes away. The dealer sells new Lexington, Four Winds and Jayco units but this one comes the closest to our wish list for size and features. I am seriously thinking about getting the extended warranty. I'm told by the dealer that there is only a 30 day warranty on the camper (remainder of factory warranty on the Ford chassis). Any thoughts on this that anybody wants to contribute would be greatly appreciated. They want about $1900 for a one year extended warranty and I'm concerned I won't find out everything it might need in the first 30 days.