Anyone familiar with the '98 U270 34' at MOT stock number C1649?
Lots of coach for that kind of money. The 34' gets into remote places well.
Bob
Are you saying it's a good deal? Confused by the first statement.
Looks like a nice floorplan. 1998 Foretravel U270 Floorplans (http://www.beamalarm.com/foretravel-links/models/1998_foretravel_u270_floorplans.html)
As far as the "good deal" aspect, MOT has a good reputation here, so it is a matter of if the price and what you get for it works for you. Looks like it has a decent mileage (used, but not overused), and it has all the good Foretravel stuff (retarder, air-suspension, real wood, etc.) You can never rely on NADA for prices on Foretravels as they seem to be very low on some and very high on others. 1998 was certainly not a bad year for FT.
ProsReally sweet floor plan
washer dryer - not a given in a U-270 At MOT, good people to do business with
Cons
1998 was mechanical not ISC (not a big deal) "90,000 estimated miles" Hmm broken speedometer? Are service records available? "C" in number means a consignment coach headlights, tvs and graphics are original. Headlights 3K, TV's 1K, can you live with graphics, since the cure for that may be not worth the investment on this class of coach if insulated (dual pane windows) check for "snakes" of course tires, batteries, bulkheads and refrigerator need to be checked
MOT will treat you right.
Thanks all for your responses. I still have much to learn.
We all started somewhere. Starting with a FT is the right place.
of old posts re pros and cons of various years and configurations. Use the search function and read up on PDI, slides vs no slides, bus style vs unihome and a bunch of other stuff.
FT's are great, but this Forum makes the experience very fun and convenient.
Start with a budget for the purchase, buy something with 80-85% of that budget, and save the rest for "stuff" in the first couple of years.
PM me or Dave Head, I am sure that Dave or I will be happy to answer any questions you may have.
There are many, many folks here ready and able to help you understand these great coaches. Here is the best starting point for any questions, thanks to Barry. Foretravel Motorhome technical help and information links (http://www.beamalarm.com/foretravel-links/foretravel-technical-help.html)
i'm also looking at C1639 the 36' one. They seem pretty close feature wise.
1998 and 1999 U-270 36' are HUGE values at these prices - how fast will they depreciate from these price points? Not very- 36 is also a nice floor plan, you would like the extra 2' I think. No W/D, dear wife would want one in my case, again no headlight upgrade and older graphics, but a couple of nice options in the price range. Budget $5K for fixes, interesting Hydrohot upgrade.
If u-line works, it can make a lot of ice......in a short period of time
"u-line" in the ice maker correct? According to PDI mine does not work. We just got back from our first trip 700 mil, 3 night (surfside beach, TX) It was great :-) I had no time left to deal with the Ice maker before we left ... I have to look in to it soon.
parts are available, not to hard as a DIY fix, yes u-line is icemaker - usually mold release heater goes bad, lots of info if you search the forum
Maybe Lots of good use left in that coach, its a retail price. Condition, condition, condition, miles and model year determine the value of most anything used.
Bob
I would ave to say my 99 U270 was my first and favorite coach. It was 34 foot and and huge storage.
Good Morning:
My wife and I picked up our 36' U270 in Jan of this year from MOT. I can't say enough about MOT. The entire staff are just fantastic. All willing to go the extra mile to help.
Now as to size. I looking at both on their website I (knowing we have a 36') would go for the 36 as opposed to the 34 for several reasons: more space, $5000 less, milage more accurate, upgrades like Aquahot, tile in kitchen and bath, almost half the hours on the gen. and upgraded outside rearview mirrors. Both are consignment sales.
You will still be in that unwriten law of size to be able to get into a lot of the national campgrounds/parks. Our previous coach was a 34' SOB, the extra 2' made a huge difference.
Good luck.
Norm
Is David Robinson still there? I first met him on the telephone when he was still a factory rep. He came very close to selling me a unit, but I opted to buy from a private party instead. I got to meet him and his wife on our first visit to Nacogdoches, and stopped in to see them on a couple of other occasions. They are fantastic people!!!!!
He is the owner
Yes, I am aware that he and his wife started the company, but I did not know if he was still there or not. Thank you for the good news!
James
I do not think the 36ft coach has Auqua Hot, if you look closely at the photos, it shows on the driver side a gas furnace and on the passenger side a gas water heater.
Not an AquaHot, but a retrofitted HydroHot (you can see it in one photo, HH is much smaller than AH). Would be curious how the retrofit was integrated into the coach heat/hot water system, if it has the electric element/engine loop, etc. The heater vents still look like the LP furnace style so you'd have to look and see how the HH fluid loops and fans were done.
Just checked the 34' and 36 are no longer on the website, only 36' FT now is the one with the updated head lights and all decals removed. $51k
Sorry Michelle,I only looked at the outside of the coach,I would like to know how the upgrade was done and by who.
Sawdust316,
They may have been changing the page, but the two rigs in question are back on the website, along with a couple of GV's ;D ;D , if anyone is interested.
Larry
We bought our '01 U270 in December 2002 from FT. It now has over 180k miles on it. We love the coach and its size as we are able to get into areas where the larger ones don't fit. I believe ours was the only 34' built with Aqua-Hot (Hydro-Hot at the time). We love this system when it is working however it has by far been the biggest expense we have had on the coach. We finally had to replace with a brand new unit last year (big bucks).
For 6 years we have been dealing with MOT for maintenance, upgrades and repairs. We like 'em (and they love our dog). Both of us have been satisfied with the work they have done on our coach. They let us stay in the coach in the bay while they are working on it; they keep us posted and allow us to watch what they are doing.
Having said all that, the older the coach, the more repairs you can expect (duh). We sometimes discuss replacing the motorhome but have found nothing we like as much.
Diann
No matter where you have your coach serviced, repaired, and updated, try to STAY WITH THE COACH while the work is being done. Do not hover and watch every move, but use the opportunity to learn all you can from the experts working on it.
Our first service experience with the "new to us" 1997 U295 was about three years ago. The experience was not good. There were some mistakes made and some charges made for work that was not done. We left the coach at a reputable facility for three weeks. They had some temporary internal problems at the shop and did not work on the coach in a timely fashion. We showed up to get the coach and they rushed to complete the work. We left the same day and did not take proper time to verify the results of the work. Had we been present during the service period, or even stayed a couple of days to check out the results of the work, I expect our experience would have been much better.
I just checked and don't see them or the GV's.
I was looking for the GV's, too. The new web site loads a WHOLE lot faster than the old one, though.
kbOzke and Slick,
I found these by opening the home page, clicking on pre-owned inventory tab, at the bottom of the page click on "Foretravel Motorhomes" under the inventory pages. By scrolling down, they list over 150 Foretravels for sale. Not sure if they are all current and available but by the web site presentation, I would be inclined to think they are. I'm sure most are consignment and not on site without prior schedule for viewing. I may be missing something (not unusual) :-X .
May swing by MOT at the end of the month on the way to Houston, haven't decided yet. Definitely some nice units to look at in all sizes and flavors.
Larry
Thanks! I didn't realize they had so many in stock. That just changed everything and makes the decision to visit them that much easier. After I keep researching what should fit my needs best of course.
:o Looks like a bug on their site - more than 90% of those are old listings. Must be still working the kinks out of the new site design.
Look at the top and select Foretravel as the brand - 12 in inventory.
(neither MOT nor FOT are big enough to have 150 total coaches in stock).
ETA Aerial view of MOT from Google Maps attached.
When we visited Nac a year or so ago MOT was talking about an expansion, but I didn't think they were going to be bigger than PPL! The dozen Foretravels sounds much more believable. I couldn't get more than those 12 to come up, and the home page seemed to be a bit garbled in one spot. Guess they are still working on it. Still, it is a much faster loading site, and looks like it will be much more useful.
MOT is beta testing a new web
Sorry for the confusion. I new from my visit last year that their lot wasn't big enough for all that inventory. Didn't know if they were listing for other owners who would bring in the rig for viewing if needed. If everyone keeps pitching if to MOT though they might get big enough :P .
Before I make the trip, I will call and positively identify what is and isn't available for view. Sorry again, folks.
Larry
Just got back on line. Fair Point stinks.
I looked at those 150 listings. Our FT is in that list, so I would say Michelle is correct. And no that lot is not big enough to handle 150 FT plus the SOB's
Norm
Sure liked that '03 Grand Villa!!! Hasn't it been up for sale a few times in the last couple of years?
Richard B
Mike,
This is their "live" site that you get from Your Luxury Pre-Owned Motorhome Dealer for Foretravel , Newell , Country coach (http://www.motorhomesoftexas.com) . I'm not accessing a beta test site - not a beta tester (but the public site definitely has changed from the last version of their site).
Michelle
I talked to them this winter on their new site. I had a good conversation with them over it and it will be better then what they had.
It's still nice to look back at even their sold inventory. I spotted a GV295 that I never knew they had ever made - interesting.
Thanks for showing us where is it is Larry!
We here at MOT are excited that our new site is finally up and running even with the few glitches which we are working on correcting. The site was developed in-house and has undergone many changes since it's inception last year. We always welcome comments and suggestions for ways to make the site more user friendly and informative so please feel free to post your comments at info@motorhomesoftexas.com
Slick,
I'll repeat one piece of excellent advice that I've seen here often: first, do your homework and decide for sure exactly what model (or models) will work for you...then, be READY to jump on it and pull the trigger if a good one pops up for sale! My wife and I have been searching for a "pre-owned" Foretravel since the first of the year, and they can be hard to find (depending on how picky you are). We missed (possibly) getting a good one this past weekend, because we could not get to the dealer in time to check it out. The dealer was 750 miles from our location, and by the time we got ready to make the trek, the coach was sold. :-[
You won't find a better, more friendly bunch of folks than the people on this forum. They will do everything they can to help you out and educate you. Once you buy a coach, they will hold your hand through the steep initial learning curve period, and bail you out if you get in trouble.
Good luck with your search (We just hope you are not looking for the exact same coach we are - we don't need any more competition!!!)
Not sure if all ur searchers are aware of this search: Foretravel RVs & Motorhomes for Sale | Used Motorhomes & RVs on Oodle (http://rvs.oodle.com/foretravel/for-sale/)
Brad, thanks for putting up the link. I have it bookmarked for faster delivery now. ^.^d
Larry