Wife loves a Leprechaun by Coachman

[GoldwingCapeCod]

We will boh be retired by 1/1/2014. We live on Cape Cod Ma.
We would like to cross country and over the next 8-10 years do the NP, BLM, FS camp grounds.

We have Ben "shopping" for about a year now and my wife fell in love with the Coachman Leprechaun 319DSF. I think the F is Fireplace. I like 'island bed' floor plan and outdoor kitchen. I have not driven any class c yet.

I have searched the web and many rv forums but I find very little information on the Leprechauns.

Any thought about construction, reliability, fit and finish, storage, etc.

Mike s
P.s. I love this forum

[mlts22]

I'm strongly against TPO/EPDM. Fiberglass for the roof and cabover is a must because without it, water will get blown into the seams and start damaging/rotting the motorhome quickly. A rubber roof just has too many seams at places where water can pool and puddle, and if the Dicor or caulk cracks, it has an entrance in, while a fiberglass roof tends to be shaped around the top corners, so the seals are less crucial to preventing water damage.

[Dusty_R]

I'd take the fiberglass any day of the week.

Dusty

[Dieter_Heinzer]

Opinions wanted: if the only difference between two new motor homes were a TPO (rubber) roof vs. a fiberglass roof, which one would be the wiser choice? I assume that the fiberglass one would be the "winner".......

[mwebber78]

The Sunseeker/Forester have had a good run with the fiberglass roof. The Forester is a Sunseeker with standard options except in the Forester you get a soft touch ceiling and partial paint not offered on the Sunseeker. RVDirect and Terrytown RV both carry the Sunseeker and Forester and build to order with really great prices. Rvwholesslers.com has also started carrying the Forester. Best of luck!

[GoldwingCapeCod]

Wow, I love this forum. Thanks for all the good advise. I will turn my attention to the Forester and the other mentioned . I like the fiberglass roof and the above cab piece.

Are there issues with fiberglass roof? I have read a lot about "rubber" roof and sealing the above cab piece etc.

Mike s

[MikeRP]

Similarly we have the Sunseeker 3010ds. We considered the Coachman also. The one thing we weren't sure about was the tv popping out of the kitchen area. We wondered whether it might leak if a drink or something was spilled also we often have that area covered up with bread, baskets holding my wallet etc. the tv location on the Forester and Sunseeker seems more appropriate.

Just an FYI. It will be a good Coach.

[mwebber78]

The Coachmen is nice, now part of Forest River. Forest River also makes the Forester which is a peer to the Leprechaun. The Forester uses composite walls including fully laminated slides. The roof is a single sheet of fiberglass versus a rubber or poly-based roof on other brands. In addition, a one piece front cap eliminates the multiple seams on some Class C's. Forester has standard fiberglass wheel flares with side step and a partial paint package with full paint optional.

Just a suggestion since they are usually cross shopped against each other.

[Jim_Shoe]

My folks toured the country for several years in a Coachmen Leprechaun back in the 70's. Every state but Alaska. They never had a problem, mechanical or otherwise. Coachmen has been around for a long time, so they must be doing something right.

[fordman17]

We have a 2003 31 ft. KS-317 we bought used in 2011 with the V10 and E450SD and have no problems.We got it to take our dogs to dog shows around the country and it drives great .

[WoodGlue]

The Leprechaun is using Azdel in its sidewalls, which;

1) Isn't cheap for Coachman to use.
2) Shows good construction practices

What is Azdel

WoodGlue

[Turner__P]

We have a 2008 32 footer. We are very pleased with everything. This is our second class c and this one fits our needs and likes better.

[j-d]

Be sure to look at specs on any of them. You want a good Net Carrying Capacity, and a decently long wheelbase. I'd guess that a "31-footer" (usually longer or shorter than 31) should be around 220-inch wheelbase. If not, the rear axle will be overloaded and not enough weight on the front for good highway tracking. Slides add weight, so if there's a slide room behind the axle, then I'd suggest paying special attention to the WB.

[NWnative]

We love ours! We also really liked the layout and have found it to be rather spacious and easy to get around. The outdoor kitchen was a nice bonus and we find ourselves using it more than the indoor kitchen. Good luck with your search.

[PapPappy]

We almost bought one, but then got the deal on our Winnie. We liked the lay-out, though it's similar to what we have in our Winnie too.

Keep in mind, there seems to be about a half dozen different floor plans out there, so you don't have to limit yourself to the Leprechaun, if it's the floor plan that has DW happy. We went to an RV show, and found a floorplan we liked, and then started looking for that. Our (at the time) 5 year old Winnie had the same floor plan as the brand new one....and as mentioned, we saw the same lay-out in various brands too.

I guess in a nutshell, you won't go wrong with it, and you will have some wonderful adventures.
Good luck:)