The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

[Thinkingboutdoi]

Hi,

Wife and I have decided that it's time for a change. About to buy a motorhome and I'm looking at a 2005 Fleetwood Bounder. It has the Cat.engine and has 14,000 miles. I'm thinking it should be good to get our feet wet, but need to ask for help. On a scale of 1 - 10 where would Fleetwood rate as a builder of these homes ? Don't really know much about all the manufactures, although I know Prevost is way out of my budget. So that's out. Thank's for any input.

Joe

[w4phj]

Only serious problem on my 2005 Bounder 37U is that the fuel gauge stopped working. I changed the old CRT TV's to smart LED's and am now in the process of switching the old incandescent bulbs to LED's.

Never had a roof leak...........

Current mileage is 26,XXX.

[wcooksey]

Wife and I bought a 1998 Bounder (gas burner) a little over a year ago. It only had 19,000 miles on it. We paid cash (less than $20,000) for it. I had same concerns about it. However, we've already put over 8,000 miles on it and are completely satisfied. Planning to put another 9,000 on it this year. Of course we have had a few issues, but any motorhome can have some issues, even just off the showroom floor. My attitude was that even if I spent several thousand dollars each year for the next few years on repairs, I was still ahead compared to purchasing a brand new motorhome and making big monthly payments. One thing to think about is the tires. Regardless if it has set up for ten years or has been on the road the entire time, there is a time limit to the life of the tires. Depends upon who you talk to as to what the time limit is. So, have someone check the tires. From what I have found from research, GENERALLY the time limit get the tires before the mileage gets them (anywhere from 6 yrs to 12 yrs).

[time_to_go_now]

What I beat myself up over is "what is the best coach for $xx,xxx?"

There are some really good deals on some very well built coaches out there today. I would not hesitate to buy a great coach that is a few years old.

I'm sorry. But, just because the Bounder is so popular (and it is, in both gas and diesel) does not make it a good or quality coach. It just means it fits into a popular price point.

Maybe it is a lot of coach for $30,000, or whatever the price. But, for $50,000 or $70,000 or $90,000, there are many other much better options.

[WILDEBILL308]

Bumpyroad wrote:

WILDEBILL308 wrote:

Bumpyroad wrote:

J-Rooster wrote:
I bought a Fleetwood RV new in 1999 and it was hands down the worst coach that I ever owned! I will give Fleetwood credit they happily fixed everything with an apology! All kinds of things were going wrong with that coach and it was never ending and, I finally traded it in due to I didn't trust it going down the road anymore. This experience soured me on Fleetwood!

and this is why in those "should I buy new or used" threads why I say that I don't want to buy somebody else's problems.
bumpy

So what coach are you driving? Why isn't it in your profile or signature?
Bill

I have previously discussed my latest RV, an Ascend TT. I'm not sure that has anything to do with buying new or used however.
bumpy

I think it goes to creditability if you don't have a RV listed in your profile or signature.

[RayChez]

You can get a bad coach with any brand or model. But at the same time there are some real good buys out there, you just have to have some mechanical knowledge when purchasing a used vehicle. Low mileage does raise an eye brow as to why the low mileage. Caterpillar engines and the Allison transmission are almost bullet proof and even if it sets for long periods at a time, they will fire right up. They are heavy duty engines. But like somebody else mentioned that maybe this coach was being lived in all those years. Which means there are other things that will wear out in the house part.

Check the tires, toppers, leveling systems, and test drive it. Bounders are a good entry level motor home. I see more Bounders on the road then any other brand. Maybe it is because they do not cost much, but you still see some old Bounders, still rolling on the highways. Very few complaints from owners.

[VinCee]

Low miles may also indicate the rig used stationary as a cottage. Very common. Not a lot of miles on the running gear but a ton of wear and tear on the "house" part of the coach. Give equal time to carefully go over that part of the motor home too. Maintenance records on service of the engine etc. will also tell a story of its use and care of upkeep.

[Bumpyroad]

WILDEBILL308 wrote:

Bumpyroad wrote:

J-Rooster wrote:
I bought a Fleetwood RV new in 1999 and it was hands down the worst coach that I ever owned! I will give Fleetwood credit they happily fixed everything with an apology! All kinds of things were going wrong with that coach and it was never ending and, I finally traded it in due to I didn't trust it going down the road anymore. This experience soured me on Fleetwood!

and this is why in those "should I buy new or used" threads why I say that I don't want to buy somebody else's problems.
bumpy

So what coach are you driving? Why isn't it in your profile or signature?
Bill

I have previously discussed my latest RV, an Ascend TT. I'm not sure that has anything to do with buying new or used however.
bumpy

[WILDEBILL308]

Bumpyroad wrote:

J-Rooster wrote:
I bought a Fleetwood RV new in 1999 and it was hands down the worst coach that I ever owned! I will give Fleetwood credit they happily fixed everything with an apology! All kinds of things were going wrong with that coach and it was never ending and, I finally traded it in due to I didn't trust it going down the road anymore. This experience soured me on Fleetwood!

and this is why in those "should I buy new or used" threads why I say that I don't want to buy somebody else's problems.
bumpy

So what coach are you driving? Why isn't it in your profile or signature?
Bill

[moisheh]

IN 2005 the Bounder was probably the best entry level unit on the market. Fully equipped and a good price point. Freightliner chassis and has the Allison 3000 ! Nice layouts. Power Gear slides and jacks. Not the puny Lippert junk. 10,000 hitch. Lots of GVW. Unlike some other mfrs. not a lot of ugly glitz. Great tech support. We just sold our 05 and it was a great unit.

Moisheh

[Bumpyroad]

J-Rooster wrote:
I bought a Fleetwood RV new in 1999 and it was hands down the worst coach that I ever owned! I will give Fleetwood credit they happily fixed everything with an apology! All kinds of things were going wrong with that coach and it was never ending and, I finally traded it in due to I didn't trust it going down the road anymore. This experience soured me on Fleetwood!

and this is why in those "should I buy new or used" threads why I say that I don't want to buy somebody else's problems.
bumpy

[J-Rooster]

I bought a Fleetwood RV new in 1999 and it was hands down the worst coach that I ever owned! I will give Fleetwood credit they happily fixed everything with an apology! All kinds of things were going wrong with that coach and it was never ending and, I finally traded it in due to I didn't trust it going down the road anymore. This experience soured me on Fleetwood!

[xctraveler]

We had an '04 Southwind, brother to the Bounder. Drove it 105,000 miles over 8 years of extended time use - 3 to 11 months at a time. It served us well and we only had one failure that I can attribute to the WorkHorse Chassis not Fleetwood. Most of my expenditures were normal maintenance and wear and tear from extensive use. Traded for my present coach only because I was concerned about putting a lot of money into refurbing a tired used interior on gas chassis with that many miles on it.

We loved it and it was as well built as anything could have been in that price range. Do watch out for older low mileage units, they tend to have not been continuously maintained the engine oil needs to be changed by the calendar whether it is driven or not, etc.

[msmith1199]

There is an ad and the number doesn't get you to the owner, but somebody who has to get a message to the owner? Sounds fishy to me. Lots of fraud and scams going on in the online RV sales. Be careful.

[Thinkingboutdoi]

Like to thank everyone for their comments. Is it common in the RV circle to not have phone calls returned ? Found that Bounder on a National RV site called and the person I spoke to said he would forward my info and phone # to the owner. It's been 2 days. Oh well, seems like plenty of fish in the sea.