Quote:
Originally Posted by mackspot1
If airplanes were built like motorhomes those of us who flew would no longer be on this side of the earth. It is shocking to see how many constant problem issues we have with our coaches. It does not matter who the manufacturer is, we all have issues. It is almost as if we all have become numb and just expect them. With legitimate quality construction, care for customers, pride of company and quality control there truly would be improvement. We love traveling and being in our coach but really is there not a company out there who does it right? We are Winnebago Product Class A owners and are going on 76 issues on a new off the lot coach. Please do not ask me to list them. It would take an hour or more to write them up and explain the problems.
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Interesting post, read through all the responses before deciding to throw my own two bits in too!
I've only owned four RV's - two tent trailers (and very pleased to have THAT phase of my life out of the way!) and two travel trailers. The first was a 2006 Fleetwood Pioneer 18K. It was one of the least expensive on the market, and clearly an entry level trailer, but we never had any problems to speak of, other than a quirky fridge. After the kids had grown up, we traded it last year for a Black Rock 19B. We chose carefully, and with a view to long term trouble free ownership. For not much difference in new price to the previous trailer, the build quality is enormously superior - once you know what you're looking at. How trouble free it will be has still to be proven, but if design and materials are anything to go by, it should be good.
We chose not to get a model with a slide, as we wanted to avoid that as a potential source of problem for failure and leakage. We did decide to get a power awning and power tongue, because both have a backup in case of failure, and we really like the convenience. A trade off, but a safe one, for us. And this seems to be the nub of things. A Fifth Wheel could be expected to have more issues than a TT, and a motorhome more again, because of increasing complexity. And as they age, we can expect the problems to increase. I once owned a 1990 Caddillac Fleetwood, which I purchased used in 2000. It was a gorgeous car, but it cost me a small fortune to keep on the road! The previous owners were, shall we say, thrifty when it came to maintenance.
It's indeed irritating to buy some expensive, and still have a list of deficiencies to work through. But from what I can see, Winnebago generally make a good product, and if you patiently work through the issues, you'll probably end up being a happy camper. Long term, maintenance is the key. If there's one thing I have learned from this forum, if you look after your RV, it will look after for you.....
Good luck,
Nick B