Chinook Glacier - Are They A Maintenance Problem?

[MTBob]

As long time Truck Camper owners, we are now considering upgrading to a Class C RV. It seems one of the better built B+/C class RV's is the Chinook Glacier. However,apparently this company stopped production in 2005. So, the "newest" is 12 years old. The Chinook Glacier appears to be loaded with all kinds of "nifty" features (read, hydraulic / electric / electronic systems) that add to the comfort and utility of the RV.
The current used 2004-2005 Glaciers are selling roughly in the $40-55,000 range, a high price for a class C that old.
If all the features of the camper work OK and require little maintenance, then perhaps this model camper is worth the price.
I'd like to know what you'all think about this camper and whether this vintage of camper is relatively maintenance free. Specifically, what component of the RV fails and can replacement parts be found?
Bob

[Chum_lee]

Chinook Glacier - Are They A Maintenance Problem?

Nothing is a maintenance problem as long as you are willing to do the maintenance in a timely manner. Everything wears out or breaks given enough time. RV's are no different than anything else.

Chum lee

[ron_dittmer]

MTBob wrote:
The Phoenix Cruiser appears attractive, though without a slide out, it's not much bigger than our Truck Camper (I think). It's certainly more attractive and has better creature comforts than our Truck Camper.
Thanks for all the information.
Bob

Yes, our 2007 Phoenix Cruiser 2350 with no slide out is bigger than a truck camper though the double bed on the main floor will be smaller. To be honest with you, 97% of Phoenix Cruisers have a slide out. I own the exception to the rule, special ordering ours to avoid a slide out. I instead put that money into the full body paint job.

There are many different lengths and floor plans. You can get as many as 3 slide outs, but the short models are limited to one slide out. When we ordered ours back in 2007, the slide out was not as nice because the fridge stayed put. Starting around 2010, the fridge was placed inside the slide out which opens up the interior much better.

[MTBob]

Sorry for the delay in replying to this email thread that I started, we've been "off grid" for a while in UT and WY.
Your information has been really helpful and I now more fully understand the history and pricing of this RV.
So, the question for me is whether I want to purchase what appears to be an aging quality product that will likely require maintenance, or opt for something a bit newer of similar quality.
The Phoenix Cruiser appears attractive, though without a slide out, it's not much bigger than our Truck Camper (I think). It's certainly more attractive and has better creature comforts than our Truck Camper.
Thanks for all the information.
Bob

[LOG]

In 2005 the Chinook Glacier had three coach batteries and a 50 watt solar panel. How many other class B or class C motorhomes in 2005 even offered three coach batteries or a solar panel as options? Those features and other high end options help explain why the Chinook Glaciers have a high selling price for a 2005 class C motorhome.

[bob_nestor]

LOG wrote:

pnichols wrote:
The Chinook motorhome we owned only had room for one 12V battery, so it was mostly a CG Hookups Queen.

Most Chinook motorhomes came with a Solar Panel and a Generator which would make them a good candidate for camping without hookups.

The solar panel was pretty pathetic and not very much help for dry camping. As I recall it was less than 100w.

[pnichols]

LOG wrote:
Most Chinook motorhomes came with a Solar Panel and a Generator which would make them a good candidate for camping without hookups.

Not ours. It was a 1969 model!

[LOG]

pnichols wrote:
The Chinook motorhome we owned only had room for one 12V battery, so it was mostly a CG Hookups Queen.

Most Chinook motorhomes came with a Solar Panel and a Generator which would make them a good candidate for camping without hookups.

[pnichols]

Also, there is no need to get hung up on Group 27 size 12V batteries.

We have a couple of 115 amp hour Group 31 12V deep cycle batteries in our Itasca Class C and they fit right in the stock battery compartment under the step, with room to spare ... for a total of 230 12V deep cycle amp hours of capacity. There is even one Group 31 12V deep cycle battery manufacturer that offers a 125 amp hour version ... a couple of which would provide 250 amp hours of 12V deep cycle capacity.

Wiring a couple of 12V batteries together in a balanced manner so they both charge and discharge at the same internal current flow rates is easy. However, wiring three 12V batteries together in a balanced manner is more complex, but quite doable if one wants to make the effort. I'd like to see how Chinook hooked up three from the factory! The Chinook motorhome we owned only had room for one 12V battery, so it was mostly a CG Hookups Queen.

[LOG]

I have not heard of anyone having trouble with the three 12 volt batteries in a Glacier. A standard 12 volt group 27 deep cycle battery would have 100 amp hour at the 20 hour rate. A standard (if there is such a thing) 6 volt deep cycle golf cart battery would have 225 amp hours. There are deep cycle 6 volt batteries that have considerably more amp hours than 225, but they would be very large and heavy. Some AGM 12 volt deep cycle batteries have slighty less than 100 amp hours. As a general rule, three group 27 12 volt batteries wired in parallel would have considerably more amp hours than two 6 volt golf cart deep cycle batteries wired as one 12 volt battery. However, as stated, there are exceptions to this statement. For a long service life, it is desirable to have a smart three stage battery charger that is temperature compensated.

[ron_dittmer]

LOG wrote:
Motor Home Specialist is advertising the 2018 Dynamax Isata for sale. The 2005 Chinook Glacier had three coach batteries in a basement compartment on a slide out tray and a 2,000 watt whole house inverter/charger.

Oh, I see. You are right. The Isata is back. At a glance it appears the compact B+ version is limited to the Sprinter chassis. The Ford based units are large conventional Class Cs.

3 batteries in a Glacier? Wow! It sounds like Chinook was trying hard to offer more than the others. They must be 12Vs in parallel to work. My personal experience is that a pair of 12Vs in parallel doesn't compare to the performance of a pair of 6Vs in series. If I had room for 3, I'd install 2-6Vs and have a blank space. I wouldn't know how the performance would compare to 3-12Vs, but I really like how the 6Vs are working for us. The drain is so very well balanced, and so the charge is too.

My experience with two different pairs of 12Vs wired up properly with balance in-mind, one battery would drain quickly while the other didn't contribute much. Over-all power reserves always suffered. Charging was always a boil-over mess with one battery being over-charged from that imbalance, and a full charge could never be achieved after year #2. I wonder what happens when having a 3rd 12V added.

[LOG]

Motor Home Specialist is advertising the 2018 Dynamax Isata for sale. The 2005 Chinook Glacier had three coach batteries in a basement compartment on a slide out tray and a 2,000 watt whole house inverter/charger.

[bob_nestor]

I owned two Chinook Concourse RVs. They were good units, well built. I sold my last one when the company went out of business and it had passed the 5 year age though. Figured the resale value would decline pretty rapidly after that, so I'm surprised to see used Clacier's selling in the range shown. As I recall the original MSRP on them was around $150K.

[ron_dittmer]

If the Chinook Glacier was just what I was looking for, I wouldn't worry a stitch about the systems you are concerned about because nearly all such things are 3rd party items of which are readily available, or they are generic items like power distribution panels, faucets, etc.

Now spending that kind of money on a 2005 Chinook Glacier, the used market will tell you if the price is in-line. The Chinook was known to be a quality built product, much like a hand full of other scaled-down B+ manufactures of the era like Coach House, Born Free, Phoenix Cruiser, and Isata. Coach House and Phoenix Cruiser are still in business today. Isata was a product of Dynamax but the company exchanged hands during the recession and dropped the Isata line-up.

Phoenix has been around since 1998, quite a long time for a single owner. The original private owner Kermit Fisher sold the company this summer to a pair of private owners who are in the trenches (not hands-free investors) determined to carry on the tradition of a quality product, care of recent and old-time customers, and with the utmost care for their employees. Unlike the industry in general, the employees at Phoenix have been there for many years, very little employee turn-over which is reflected in the product. The previous owner Kermit is even staying on-board as an employee to engineer another platform, I assume the Ford Transit.

If you decide to consider a Phoenix Cruiser, I advise to limit yourself to one that is not older than a 2007 to be assured in getting two house batteries in a special compartment for two, and whole house inverter. The entry door is top notch, the Sanicon waste management system is great, and the non-intrusive locked & sealed spare tire compartment is the best I ever seen. I speak from personal experience with our 2007 2350 model HERE. The company offers so many floorplans, slide outs, and lengths, you have quite the choice for housing. We intentionally had ours made for us 10.5 years ago without a slide out. It's a great unit. We love our PC. Our plan is to own it for over 35 years until we are too old & dangerous to drive.

[Teacher_s_Pet]

Plus the trade name has been acquired and is "returning" to production by an independent manufacturer in Elkhart IN. Same quality coach, who knows?