Purchasing a used Tiffin--torn between 2 models!

[Magua]

Hi all!

I'm hoping for some advice on which Allegro 35QBA model you seasoned Class A-ers think would fit our needs most.

I think it would be helpful for you to know how we plan on using it. For the first year +/- we'd be weekend campers close to home with maybe a week-long trip thrown in for a family vacation. In about a year, we plan on selling our home and going on the road with our kiddos full time. We'd like to commit to a one year "tour du USA" experience, but if we love it we'll stay out longer. Once we settle back down and buy another home, we'll likely sell it and go back to something small.

So, with that kind of usage in mind, here are our two options...

1. 2008 Tiffin Allegro 35 QBA - on Ford Chassis with 6.8L, V-10 Triton Engine. 19,000-ish miles. All new tires (19s--less than 500 miles on them). 7000kw genny. Addabrake system included. Heat pump.

2. 2008 Tiffin Allegro Open Road 35QBA, 43,900 miles, Freightliner front engine diesel chassis, Cummins 300HP. Original tires still--takes 22s. 6000kw gen. No heat pump.

Obviously the Ford V10 vs. FRED is the BIG difference. Having new tires on the gasser are awfully nice. Don't know much about the Addabrake. We do intend on towing our C-Max 4-down. The gasser is about $61,000 and we think the FRED will be around $63,000. Not a HUGE difference, but this is a BIG deal for us financially (tho we'd pay off the RV loan with the sale of our house).

Any and all thoughts welcome!!!

[Magua]

Oh boy…drove the FRED. Hubby drove his dad's Ford V10 the day before. He could REALLY tell the difference and preferred the FRED. He also said it handled MUCH tighter and didn't have the same loose-feeling undulations the Georgetown Ford V10 had. Is that a product of a Tiffin vs. Forest River or a Ford V10 vs. a FRED or both?? Either way, we do like the FRED.

BUT!

This owner trashed it. My hubs and I are meticulous and pretty anal about the condition of our vehicles, home, etc. This Tiffin was NOT loved. I would have been embarrassed showing it to potential buyers! Sooooo…this is NOT the one, but we're thinking the FRED is the way to go. Hubs said it wasn't any louder than the new Ford V10 he drove the day before.

[Magua]

Gjac wrote:

DownTheAvenue wrote:

Gjac wrote:
The second thing that I would look at assuming you will be teaching while your husband is driving is do I have enough room to work with all the 4 slides in( a full wall slide maybe better.

I can't believe I am actually reading this and it was posted as a serious thought!

Some MH's layouts are tight with all the slides in.

I'm thinking drive time will just be reading time…but who knows till we get to that point…will most definitely be a work in progress subject to change at any second! 🙂

[Gjac]

DownTheAvenue wrote:

Gjac wrote:
The second thing that I would look at assuming you will be teaching while your husband is driving is do I have enough room to work with all the 4 slides in( a full wall slide maybe better.

I can't believe I am actually reading this and it was posted as a serious thought!

Some MH's layouts are tight with all the slides in.

[DownTheAvenue]

Gjac wrote:
The second thing that I would look at assuming you will be teaching while your husband is driving is do I have enough room to work with all the 4 slides in( a full wall slide maybe better.

I can't believe I am actually reading this and it was posted as a serious thought!

[The_Texan]

Another person that has no knowledge what HP and torque represent on a vehicle. I'll take the FRED every day over the Ford V-10, anywhere, flats or mountains.

[Gjac]

If you plan to home school and stay at SP's NP's etc. many do not have full hookups. You only have 53 gals of FW, that will go very quickly with 2 adults and 2 small children. I would look for one with 80-100 gals FW. The second thing that I would look at assuming you will be teaching while your husband is driving is do I have enough room to work with all the 4 slides in( a full wall slide maybe better. The eng should be secondary in you thinking both will get you to where you want to go. The Fred is heavier with less HP so I would test both from 40 - 60 mph and see which is quicker with less eng noise. The faster one on the flat will pull the hills better. My guess is that the Fred will be nosier at idle, quieter at WOT climbing a hill because of lower rpm that the Ford. Only you can decide on the power and noise level is acceptable to you. You can live with that for a year but the water and layout may be harder to live with.

[Dale_Traveling]

Triker33 wrote:
Clickable PDF for the 2008 35QBA with bunk beds

My mistake. I was looking at the Allegro Bay line only. Good luck with the test drive.

[Z71_4x4]

Find the biggest hill you can and bring the V10 into all it's glory!

Seriously, the V10 is great but a little more noisy on the steep hills. All in all not bad and we deal with the few moments of noise. I also "chipped" my V10 and have a little extra power and much better shifting.

Have fun!

[Magua]

Z71 4x4 wrote:
One more thought...

You can test drive a V10 almost anywhere. Find one for sale close by, offer the person $20-$30 for fuel and drive it before you drive the FRED. If you like the V10 better then you can make the trip to NY and look at that unit.

(Open palm smack to forehead!) My in-laws down the road have a Georgetown with the Ford V10!!! We could drive theirs for the feel!

[okgc]

FRED wins out over Ford almost every time.

[Z71_4x4]

One more thought...

You can test drive a V10 almost anywhere. Find one for sale close by, offer the person $20-$30 for fuel and drive it before you drive the FRED. If you like the V10 better then you can make the trip to NY and look at that unit.

Just a thought.

Good luck!

Edit: On the 2008 models, Ford has 19.5" tires and the FRED has 22.5" tires. That's a huge plus for the FRED to me.

[Z71_4x4]

I like the low end torque of a diesel and if it comes with exhaust brake that's even better.

While I'm happy with my Ford, if they still had the FRED when I bought mine I would have gone that route.

If you're buying from a dealership see if you can get them to cough up new tires... or meet you half way on them. Don't know if you don't try.

You'll like the floor plan either way. A little tight when closed up but you get a dance floor when open. We usually take out the extra chair and put the dog bowls there. Works for us. :B

[Magua]

^^ Thx Triker. And thank you for the calculations too...me + math = self-destruction.

[Triker33]

Clickable PDF for the 2008 35QBA with bunk beds