Monaco Knight - Opinions??

[10forty2]

2006 Monaco Knight

A friend's RV up for sale. As I look around at various offers in my quest to upgrade to a DP, it appears to be a great RV. Any opinions on this one?

[10forty2]

Thanks everyone for the opinions! I had not noticed the potential delam in the photos, but will look at it closely if we go forward in considering the purchase. I also believe that the owner stated it was a Cat engine with 60K miles. Not sure if I recall that accurately, but feel certain that someone on here would know which engines were used on that model coach. The last time I saw it in person last year, it was VERY clean inside and out.....especially considering that they have 2 kids. I plan to look at it in more detail, and will decide if it's in my budget.

[mike_brez]

YC 1 wrote:
I would not be a DEF engine and not likely a DPF engine either. Probably a cummins 400 ISL with a 3000 Allison tranny. Great combo.

As with any RV there are tons of mods if you like to do those things as a hobby.

Check the date codes on the tires as always.

I believe a 330hp 960 torque Allison 3000

[westernrvparkow]

I would be most concerned about making an $80,000 purchase from a friend. Will you be still be friends if it breaks down 3 days after purchase? Monaco made good products, however the Knight is pretty far down their Pusher line. Personally, for your price point at that age I would be looking for something with a 400HP Cummins.
BTW, Monaco's biggest financial problem was they were heavily invested in real estate ventures developing high end RV resorts when the financial crash made all real estate developments drop substantially in value while at the same time made financing such developments almost impossible. The carcass that was Monaco has been traded around several times since then.

[Tom_Barb]

mike brez wrote:

Tom/Barb wrote:

Branson N Tucson wrote:
Looking at the picture,just above the lower door what are the two bubble on the side?

I think most of what we are seeing in the pictures is an optical illusion.
the rear bumper, maybe has some clear coat missing,,,, easy fix.

I see nothing to panic over, some elbow grease and polish/wax will do wonders.

I don't know that looks like a problem to me and will need some miracle polish/wax to fix.
Also looks like a rear radiator if so that would not work for me. Also for me I can't stand when they put some trim around the slide to make contact to the side wall when closed.
Looks like sh!t and cheap.
Even my 21 year old coach doesn't have that. JMHO

Th Knight was an entry level coach. Was yours?

[YC_1]

I would not be a DEF engine and not likely a DPF engine either. Probably a cummins 400 ISL with a 3000 Allison tranny. Great combo.

As with any RV there are tons of mods if you like to do those things as a hobby.

Check the date codes on the tires as always.

[mike_brez]

Tom/Barb wrote:

Branson N Tucson wrote:
Looking at the picture,just above the lower door what are the two bubble on the side?

I think most of what we are seeing in the pictures is an optical illusion.
the rear bumper, maybe has some clear coat missing,,,, easy fix.

I see nothing to panic over, some elbow grease and polish/wax will do wonders.

I don't know that looks like a problem to me and will need some miracle polish/wax to fix.
Also looks like a rear radiator if so that would not work for me. Also for me I can't stand when they put some trim around the slide to make contact to the side wall when closed.
Looks like sh!t and cheap.
Even my 21 year old coach doesn't have that. JMHO

[lfcjasp]

What a beautiful coach! Love that it has COUNTER SPACE in the kitchen...why is that so rare in motorhomes anyway???? And it looks to be in immaculate condition...now if the chassis, engine, axles, etc. are in as good shape...Sweet!

[Tom_Barb]

Branson N Tucson wrote:
Looking at the picture,just above the lower door what are the two bubble on the side?

I think most of what we are seeing in the pictures is an optical illusion.
the rear bumper, maybe has some clear coat missing,,,, easy fix.

I see nothing to panic over, some elbow grease and polish/wax will do wonders.

[Branson_N_Tucso]

Looking at the picture,just above the lower door what are the two bubble on the side?

[Tom_Barb]

way2roll wrote:
Going on memory here so I may not be spot on but wasn't one of the reasons they went out of business is because they used an independent chassis and engines that were not smog compliant? I think the mainstream chassis and engine manufacturers went with the DEF approach and Monaco went with their own design? Maybe I am thinking of something else. I know Navistar bought them to salvage them from bankruptcy.

That said, I think they built a very nice coach and this one seems to be very clean and well maintained.

They went out of business because they were over leveraged by buying too many other RV companies, when the session started and sales dropped drastically. They were bought by Navi-Star international and shut down.

The reason I would hesitate would be because of no coach parts from a supporting company.

[Tom_Barb]

Knowing the coach, and how it was cared for is a big deal. when we bought we were looking at 2 Monaco's, very well built coaches. Price is about average.
If the floor plan is to your liking buy it.

[DownTheAvenue]

mike brez wrote:
Not sure if it's just the photo but I would check out this area. Looks a little funky to me.

I thought the same thing! Looks like a case of serious delamination.

[mike_brez]

Not sure if it's just the photo but I would check out this area. Looks a little funky to me.

[way2roll]

Going on memory here so I may not be spot on but wasn't one of the reasons they went out of business is because they used an independent chassis and engines that were not smog compliant? I think the mainstream chassis and engine manufacturers went with the DEF approach and Monaco went with their own design? Maybe I am thinking of something else. I know Navistar bought them to salvage them from bankruptcy.

That said, I think they built a very nice coach and this one seems to be very clean and well maintained.