What are the higher end RV brands?

[des1954]

OK, now we're back in my price range, too! Good to know that Keystone looks like a good brand. I like a lot of their floor plans. And we keep drooling over the winnebago Class C's.

My DH was in RV sales for a time. For TT's he favors Keystone & Gulf Stream. For MH, it's Winnie all the way. In the MH category, we've had a Cobra Class C (in the 70's - long out of business), and the following Class A's: a Southwind, a Dutch Star, a Travel Supreme (45' bus w/4 slides -gorgeous, but lots of problems with slides & other stuff) , and 2 Winnies & 1 Itasca. In the TT line, we had an Apache pop, a Starcraft pop, and a Coachman TT. Our favorites were all the Winnebago's. They are not the fanciest, but IMHO, you get the most bang for the buck. Winnebago customer service is glad to give you phone help long after the warranty expires. Our first Winnie was a 28' 1992 Brave w/no slides. We bought used (6 years old) and it had 68K miles on it. It needed minor work, and every time we called Winnebago service, they were always helpful & talked DH through some issues. We also bought the Dutch Star used (a 2002 in 2002 - and that should have set up some flags). Dutch Star (Newmar) customer service was useless. Even though it was still under warranty, they would not offer any help over the phone. Once when leaving the Fort, our jacks would not store. DH finally had to drain the hydraulic fluid to get them to store. We found out later from a mechanic that there was an over-ride switch they could have told DH about, but neglected to do so. The problem was with the switch in the cab and not with the jacks themselves. We also had serious issues with the A/C in the Dutch that turned out to be a design problem. After fighting with Newmar and sending a letter to Trailer Life, Newmar repaired the problem for free - which they should have - because it was still in warranty. We've had great service from Winnebago.

 

[WDWFWfan]

Keep in mind that expensive doesn't always equal quality either between brands or construction philosophy. For example, the latest trend of the last few years has been to produce light weight RVs that can be towed with a greater variety of vehicles. This produces a more expensive trailer, but not necessarily a higher quality trailer. Personally I try to avoid light weight RVs; light weight equals laminated construction, lighter frames, etc. Don't get me wrong light weight is nice to tow, but let a little water get inside the laminated structure and you have a serious problem (my father's tt was recently totaled due to a small leak in the roof).

Personally, I would opt for the slightly heavier "stick-built" (non laminated/non fiberglass sidewall) RV, save a little money and have a better quality unit. As others have said, Jayco produces a good unit (my family use to sell them), but if I were looking today, I would look really hard at SunnyBrook. Check them out on the RV forums...they consistently get good reviews.

 

[dtum]

My DH was in RV sales for a time. For TT's he favors Keystone & Gulf Stream. For MH, it's Winnie all the way. In the MH category, we've had a Cobra Class C (in the 70's - long out of business), and the following Class A's: a Southwind, a Dutch Star, a Travel Supreme (45' bus w/4 slides -gorgeous, but lots of problems with slides & other stuff) , and 2 Winnies & 1 Itasca. In the TT line, we had an Apache pop, a Starcraft pop, and a Coachman TT. Our favorites were all the Winnebago's. They are not the fanciest, but IMHO, you get the most bang for the buck. Winnebago customer service is glad to give you phone help long after the warranty expires. Our first Winnie was a 28' 1992 Brave w/no slides. We bought used (6 years old) and it had 68K miles on it. It needed minor work, and every time we called Winnebago service, they were always helpful & talked DH through some issues. We also bought the Dutch Star used (a 2002 in 2002 - and that should have set up some flags). Dutch Star (Newmar) customer service was useless. Even though it was still under warranty, they would not offer any help over the phone. Once when leaving the Fort, our jacks would not store. DH finally had to drain the hydraulic fluid to get them to store. We found out later from a mechanic that there was an over-ride switch they could have told DH about, but neglected to do so. The problem was with the switch in the cab and not with the jacks themselves. We also had serious issues with the A/C in the Dutch that turned out to be a design problem. After fighting with Newmar and sending a letter to Trailer Life, Newmar repaired the problem for free - which they should have - because it was still in warranty. We've had great service from Winnebago.

Good heavens! I feel out of the loop only having had three...Palomino popup that our kids actually grew up in (DD was six when we got it and we had it until she got married and moved out), Thor Aerolite (poor quality -one of those "lite" ones PP mentioned-you get what you pay for, but at the time we didn't know that)-leaked really bad and insurance company totaled it, and our baby Ti-that will be our last as DH gets ready to retire.

Friends have a Newmar and it was nothing but constant fighting with their customer service. They bought a campground and it just sits now for their family to use when they visit.

Debbie-Do you trade every couple years or are you over 100 years old?!

 

[we3peas]

We've only owned 2 a Forest River Salem 5th wheel and our Itasca Sunova 35J.

We would never buy FR ever again-a completely 4th rate company. We were newbies and didn't know anything. They have THE worst customer service and our 5th was in the shop after every camping trip and we camp once a month! The product is crap and I tell everyone I know that, hopefully it is eating away at their bottom line.

Now our Itasca has been great only 2 very minor problems at delivery and nothing since then. We've had it 3 years and just made a 8,000 mile journey in it. Absolutely NO Problems! We still camp every month and have had a great time in it.

My in laws have a Tiffen and while I believe and support the brand and they have had excellent customer service and back up from the owner himself- they have had several issues with their unit. Some very major and expensive to repair.

You just need to do your homework and be aware of the company's image and support of their customers. Go camping and ask people what they like/dislike about their units and any problems they may have. If you read our blog:www.curbcrusher.com we outlined how we bought our RV and the fact we went with a certain company and not on a dealership because of our problems with Forest River.

 

[redandblue]

We have a Keystone Outback. It is a 28ft with a side slide out and back slide out for our bed. We also have a quad bunk house. I am not a fan of our bed slide out. I was preggo last year and hated it I was constantly climbing over DH to use the bathroom at night. It was clausterphobic as it says queen bed but it really isn't a queen. I don't like how our tv hook up is. It is a very small area that is right next to our sink, we don't feel comfortable leaving a tv sitting on a counter with our 2 year old running around.

We want to upgrade to a 5th wheel now that we bought a diesel truck. We have a few friends that have the Laredo and they are very happy with them (the are also made by keystone)

I like the Keystone brand but am just not a fan of the outback with the slide out queen bed, I grew up with a pop up and thought it would be the same and it isn't.

 

[ftwildernessguy]

The Outback now has a king slide which has taken care of the problems of crawling over your partner. You now sleep parallel to the trailer rather than perpendicular. Also, our Outback TV is a flatscreen mounted on the wall, not on a counter next to the sink. Also keep in mind that "queen" and "king" in RV beds is not the same as the bed at home - it is much smaller.

 

[YodaGirl]

While we're discussing the good, the bad, and the ugly of campers...

What are ya'll's thoughts on a Coachmen?

Specifically this one:

http://www.americanrvcenter.com/rv/coachmen/traveltrailer/500/Coachmen_Freedom_Express_LTZ_232_RBS

They have it listed wrong. From what I've gathered from Coachmen's site, it's actually a Freedom Express LTZ 245 RKS.

 

[taborekle]

You should do you're research on www.rv.net and then check out their forums.