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Looking for Class A - Newbie Needs Help

saenzm
Explorer
Explorer
Team,
Looking for a little wisdom and guidance here. I am leaning towards buying a used class A. I am new to the Class A scene and don;t know much about them. Hoping I could get some nuggets from you guys.

From some research I have done, looks like Diesel Pusher is the way to go. Is that the consensus?

What else should I consider when going used besides the obvious = records? Any brands I should stay away from?

I am considering selling my house and buying an RV site and living in it. Goal is to simplify my life. So do I need to consider the age and length (park mandates)?

Thanks!
-Mark
24 REPLIES 24

frankdamp
Explorer
Explorer
My only input is get a rig long enough to have a separate bedroom. We started out with a weird Class C, but sold it within the first season. We did much more research and decided on a Class A that was 32' long and had a permanent bedroom in back, with its own slide-out.

One major advantage was that the sale was local (30 miles from home) and it was being sold by the original owners since they weren't able to use it any more because of medical problems. At 8 years old it had 12,000 miles on the clock and 44 hours on the generator.

We found one major problem after our first trip - the topper over the bedroom slide leaked. Not a difficult fix, and no major damage. I only had to replace the cabinets over the bed.

After 4 years and about 8,000 miles, we concluded that, although 8 mpg was pretty good for a rig its size, we couldn't afford the gas prices. They were around $4.50/gallon at the time and we were digging into our IRA funds to pay for it. We sold it at a significantly lower price than we expected, but "que sera sera".

The rig was an '02 Georgetown 325S, bought in 2010 and sold in 2014. Though it wasn't a top-of-the-line unit in terms of engineering design and build quality, it served us well for 4 years. Towards the end, the generator refused to start and its electronic control card had to be replaced. Nothing else failed,

DW and I and our two Labradors enjoyed having the use of it and were sorry to have to give it up.
Frank Damp, DW - Eileen, pet - female Labrador (10 yrs old), location Anacortes, WA, retired RVers (since Dec 2014)

Skid_Row_Joe
Explorer
Explorer
saenzm wrote:
Team,
Looking for a little wisdom and guidance here. I am leaning towards buying a used class A. I am new to the Class A scene and don;t know much about them. Hoping I could get some nuggets from you guys.

From some research I have done, looks like Diesel Pusher is the way to go. Is that the consensus?

What else should I consider when going used besides the obvious = records? Any brands I should stay away from?

I am considering selling my house and buying an RV site and living in it. Goal is to simplify my life. So do I need to consider the age and length (park mandates)?

Thanks!
-Mark
You've got a lot of homework ahead of you. Good luck.

Blutoyz
Explorer
Explorer
I find my 20 year old 34' quite enjoyable to drive. Some things need attention and you should anticipate hills to minimize the downshift but otherwise it was quiet at 55-65mph.

I would drive a couple to see what you like before you decide gas is a bad thing
She may be old but she is paid for (the rig that is)

StuckinTracy
Explorer
Explorer
My wife and I lived in our 5th wheel when we first moved here in 2012. We were in it from middle of Oct. to the middle of Feb. I learned a LOT about living in the snow (my first experience) and how to handle things. Several have mentioned if you are not going to be moving a lot, then a trailer might be a better option. It can be done if you are prepared. We had a heated water hose which kept the fresh water supply available, but the dump valves kept freezing up. Most the locals told us it was a much colder than normal winter. We had 37 days straight of not getting above freezing. I had to go refill the propane tanks about every 3 days. Good luck on what ever you decide.
10 Rally's and counting...

Mike (me-pilot)
Gail ("I'M THE BOSS"-navigator)

Stuck in a tent but looking

Good Sam Life members
FMCA 370826

saenzm
Explorer
Explorer
Mile High, yep. I could see that.

Mile_High
Explorer
Explorer
If you already own a home in Denver, you are ahead of the game. Most people moving here can't even find one. Living in an RV in the winter ski parks over the winter is pretty much just crazy.

I just listened to a discussion on the radio last week about recession refugees that took the RV lifestyle as a means of survival hoping to get back in the game when the economy improved, only to find out it much more difficult than anticipated and many are just trapped.
2013 Winnebago Itasca Meridian 42E
2013 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Sahara Towed

saenzm
Explorer
Explorer
yeah, with all the good advice I am starting to rethink my plan. Glad I asked though. The advice and ideas are just what I hoped for.

Isaac-1
Explorer
Explorer
In my opinion the thing class A's are great at is mobility, pull into a spot, push a button and they are level, push a button and the slides go out, maybe hook up power, and you are set for a about a week, dump the tanks, refill the water and move on to the next spot. If you are not going to travel far, and are not going to move around often, perhaps a class A is not the best choice for you.

msturtz
Explorer
Explorer
We had two towable units then two motorhomes one has and now a DP. I would never go back to a towable nor a gas motorhome. What you get with a DP is a quiet comfortable ride.
FMCA member

Lwiddis
Explorer II
Explorer II
“ I am new to the Class A scene...”

And apparently the RV scene too. Rent all the different RV types before you buy but if you aren’t going to drive it much think TT and 5er.
Winnebago 2101DS TT & 2022 Chevy Silverado 1500 LTZ Z71, WindyNation 300 watt solar-Lossigy 200 AH Lithium battery. Prefer boondocking, USFS, COE, BLM, NPS, TVA, state camps. Bicyclist. 14 yr. Army -11B40 then 11A - (MOS 1542 & 1560) IOBC & IOAC grad

Artum_Snowbird
Explorer
Explorer
Sometimes it's fun to do what others do and make a success at it. Certainly moving into a winter climate can be done, but spend the time to learn what others have done to succeed first. Getting into a motorhome with hopes to save money and survive the first year in a winter environment isn't easy. Lot's to learn about shielding the inside from the outside, but it's all here if you use the search engines and learn.

Start gently, find the weak links, fix them first.. keep testing the limit and don't try to jump to far until you are sure you can survive. The failure to do it right in an RV is really expensive to fix.
Mike
2012 Winnebago Impulse Silver 26QP
2005 16.6 Double Eagle
2018 Jeep Wrangler JK
previously Snowbird Campers,
Triple E Motorhome and Fifth Wheel

Ductape
Explorer
Explorer
Colorado winters in a MH, better do some more research. None are insulated as well as a house.
49 States, 6 Provinces, 2 Territories...

Bumpyroad
Explorer
Explorer
saenzm wrote:


I am considering selling my house and buying an RV site and living in it. Goal is to simplify my life. So do I need to consider the age and length (park mandates)?

Thanks!
-Mark


seems like a lot of folks missed this part.
bumpy

Tinstar
Explorer
Explorer
Mr.Mark wrote:
Mark,

If you do go over to Houston, look at Motorhome of Texas in Nacogdoches. They usually have very clean newer units. We consigned our Monaco Dynasty there back in Aug. '14.

They keep all of their units plugged in and also keep the slides in until someone is looking at it.

Your budget is going to determine diesel or gas depending on the year range that you are looking for.

Good luck.
MM.

PS. I also agree that a trailer/5th wheel would be the way to go if you are going to be stationary.


I bought my Monaco Windsor at Motorhomes of Texas. Very nice experience. No pressure and good negotiations. I've got the name of a nice guy there if you want it. Sometimes they have a variety of coaches and prices but their inventory is high end coaches much of the time.

PPL is a good site for variety in inventory and good prices.

Motorhomes of Texas
PPL Motorhomes
:CNever pass up a chance to go somewhere:C