Foretravel Owners' Forum

Foretravel Motorhome Forums => Foretravel Discussions => Topic started by: rpettway on October 14, 2013, 11:26:19 am

Title: Does Anyone Recognize This MH?
Post by: rpettway on October 14, 2013, 11:26:19 am
I found this MH last night doing a search.  I was hoping someone may know something about it. 
Title: Re: Does Anyone Recognize This MH?
Post by: Dave Cobb on October 14, 2013, 12:50:03 pm
Remember reading about the double SS bumpers were maybe only one year.  Beam tells the tale of Foretravel and which year it would be.  Like the graphics, and color.
Title: Re: Does Anyone Recognize This MH?
Post by: rpettway on October 14, 2013, 01:05:53 pm
It's an 89 U300.  yes, I love the looks of the double bumpers on these.  This one looks very clean on the outside. Needs lots of updating inside.  I was just curious if anyone on here was familiar with this particular coach.  I think this guy just bought it and is trying to do a quick turn around on it.  It would be nice to know who the previous owners were. 
Title: Re: Does Anyone Recognize This MH?
Post by: twobus on October 14, 2013, 01:06:46 pm
If it's true that they only did the double bumpers for one year (and I've heard the same thing), then that's an '89, like ours. That is not the stock paint job though. Purty.
Title: Re: Does Anyone Recognize This MH?
Post by: Dave Cobb on October 14, 2013, 01:10:05 pm
Rory,

Is there a number on the top of the coach, that would be a club member #, and someone with their membership book might help you.
Title: Re: Does Anyone Recognize This MH?
Post by: rpettway on October 14, 2013, 01:31:16 pm
No, there are not any numbers on it.  I looked for that.  I do have a vin, but I doubt that would help.
Title: Re: Does Anyone Recognize This MH?
Post by: Pierce & Gaylie Stewart on October 14, 2013, 02:20:10 pm
When we were shopping, I was sure we looked at a 1989 U280 with the double bumpers in Carson City, NV.

Pierce
Title: Re: Does Anyone Recognize This MH?
Post by: Green99 on October 14, 2013, 03:15:50 pm
Unless they sanded and buffed where the numbers were, I would say if you look from various angles at the drs. side front corner you will see the shadow of the numbers. 
Title: Re: Does Anyone Recognize This MH?
Post by: Jeff and Victoria Moses on October 14, 2013, 06:27:11 pm
I have a 1990 with the double bumper.
Title: Re: Does Anyone Recognize This MH?
Post by: Jeff and Victoria Moses on October 14, 2013, 06:55:14 pm
I found this site with 30 Foretravels forsale. You might check it out  Foretravel - Class A Diesel - RVFrenzy.com (http://www.rvfrenzy.com/Class-A-Diesel/Foretravel.html)    I was shocked they had so many.
Title: Re: Does Anyone Recognize This MH?
Post by: Michelle on October 14, 2013, 07:10:59 pm
I found this site with 30 Foretravels forsale. You might check it out  Foretravel - Class A Diesel - RVFrenzy.com (http://www.rvfrenzy.com/Class-A-Diesel/Foretravel.html)    I was shocked they had so many.

Looks just an ad trolling website that tries to jump in as middleman and make a fast buck off a legitimate classified (and hoping to find a desperate and unsuspecting owner).  There are sites like that several out there.  Buyer, and especially seller, beware. 
Title: Re: Does Anyone Recognize This MH?
Post by: rpettway on October 14, 2013, 07:40:58 pm
Yes, I have seen lots of those already.  This one is actually legitimate.  I spoke with the owner today.  His Dad bought it about 2 years ago to use and has never really used it.  I was just thinking as much as people on here have traveled and communicated with other owners that someone might have known the previous owner or some history about this particular GV. I love this body style and the paint looks nice.  The interior is very dated, which I am OK with, because I can redo the inside.  My biggest concern is that it is mechanically sound.  Sorry for rambling.
Title: Re: Does Anyone Recognize This MH?
Post by: Jimmy Freytag on October 14, 2013, 07:49:41 pm
you know that's not a wide body.
Title: Re: Does Anyone Recognize This MH?
Post by: Dave Cobb on October 14, 2013, 08:04:38 pm
Good catch on "not wide body".  The tell is the width of the space between the grills.  8' wide is like shown, and the wide body has the same grills, but with almost a 6" fiberglass body between the grills.

I was with my uncle in 1994 as he was buying a new diesel coach in CO.  I remember him having to sign a disclosure statement put on the desk by the dealer.  He was saying he knew that he would need at that time, wide load permits in some number of states to transit legally.  The laws were changed in the following years as we know.
Title: Re: Does Anyone Recognize This MH?
Post by: Tim Fiedler on October 14, 2013, 08:32:45 pm
Lots of times these sites have expired listings that are not deleted after sale
Title: Re: Does Anyone Recognize This MH?
Post by: rpettway on October 14, 2013, 10:04:05 pm
Jimmy,
 I did. I think they started making those in 92, right?  What are the advantages/disadvantages of a wide body?

Thanks
Title: Re: Does Anyone Recognize This MH?
Post by: Dave Cobb on October 14, 2013, 11:22:28 pm
Not sure any thing bad.  You get 6" in the center of the kitchen, walk thru bath, and living area.  With the island queen bed, you get 3" more on each side, to help not bumping into the overhead side storage cabinets.
Title: Re: Does Anyone Recognize This MH?
Post by: JohnFitz on October 14, 2013, 11:43:49 pm
Jimmy,
 I did. I think they started making those in 92, right?  What are the advantages/disadvantages of a wide body?

Thanks
No real disadvantage to a wide body.  Six inches isn't much on the outside but it's quite noticeable on the inside.  The legalities of wide bodies were discussed 15-25 years ago but they are well accepted without question now.  I don't know if the laws were ever changed but there's one heck of a precedence.
The double bumper was started with the first U300/U280's in 1987/88, continued until 1990,  went to a plastic bumper in 1991, then in 1992(with intro to wide body) was integrated into front and rear fiberglass caps. 
Title: Re: Does Anyone Recognize This MH?
Post by: wa_desert_rat on October 15, 2013, 01:53:39 am
The obvious disadvantage to a wide body is the width of the coach versus the width of the road and the traffic coming the other way. We have a narrow bodied coach partly because we wanted to travel down in Baja and our previous experiences on those roads with the trucks and buses using up more than their share of the road made us think that the six inches could be significant. We've been on roads here in WA that were pretty skinny, too.

I know that the width is important to some buyers but for us the extra width was a drawback. It all depends on what you want out of your life with that RV.

Craig
Title: Re: Does Anyone Recognize This MH?
Post by: fkjohns6083 on October 16, 2013, 09:45:41 pm
Guess I'm confused by the "double bumper" thing.  Our 91GV ORED has what looks like a double bumper but it is a single steel unit with a black plastic strip around the middle of it.  Is this a double bumper or just a look alike?  It is a very stable unit and looks like it would hold it's own against a 60mph hit on a moose or other big critter.  Thanks and have a great day  ----  Fritz
Title: Re: Does Anyone Recognize This MH?
Post by: red tractor on October 16, 2013, 09:52:02 pm
The double bumpers were on the ured coaches
Title: Re: Does Anyone Recognize This MH?
Post by: Brad & Christine Slaughter on October 16, 2013, 10:04:54 pm
Guess I'm confused by the "double bumper" thing.  Our 91GV ORED has what looks like a double bumper but it is a single steel unit with a black plastic strip around the middle of it.  Is this a double bumper or just a look alike?  It is a very stable unit and looks like it would hold it's own against a 60mph hit on a moose or other big critter.  Thanks and have a great day  ----  Fritz
The Double-bumpers are just that...with a black strip in the middle of EACH massive stainless steel bumper.  My 1990 U280 had them.  I think by 1993, they went to a white, larger single bumper.  May have even been earlier, as i was looking at 1990-1992s when I bought my first FT...and I think the one wide-body I saw had that white bumper..but I cannot recall the year.  I assumed the double bumper's extra inches also accounted for the larger basement doors too...on the U280s and U300s...but were not present on the U225s.
 
Title: Re: Does Anyone Recognize This MH?
Post by: wa_desert_rat on October 17, 2013, 01:08:50 am
I love the stainless steel bumper on our U225 and the double bumper looks even better. Makes the RV look like an Amtrak engine coming down the street. I now have bumper envy!

The GVs are certainly recognizable coming towards you... Fritz and Kathy came by last month and I waited on the main drag to make sure they got the right turn. I spotted them as soon as they turned off the freeway. There is just no missing that look!

The bumpers are just the icing on the cake. :D

Craig
Title: Re: Does Anyone Recognize This MH?
Post by: Kent Speers on October 17, 2013, 09:21:47 am
We love our 1993, U300. To my surprise I also love the 6V92 Detroit. We are at 160,000 plus miles and so far virtually no drive train problems.

Since we are full timers, the wide body is very important to us. No slides and no AquaHot mean fewer problems and lower operating costs. There is no other coach I would rather have regardless of price.
Title: Re: Does Anyone Recognize This MH?
Post by: Johnstons on October 17, 2013, 10:19:51 am
Not to mention the great sound of the Detroit.
Title: Re: Does Anyone Recognize This MH?
Post by: Pierce & Gaylie Stewart on October 17, 2013, 11:30:39 am
Craig,

Got to agree with you. When we were looking, the first one we saw was a 89' U280/CAT with the double stainless bumpers. It was parked in a driveway with a bit of an incline so when you walked up, it absolutely towered over you. Did indeed look like a huge Deco locomotive. Could have been used in "The Hunger Games" to control the masses.

Kent,

The 93' U300 are really the "cat's meow", aren't they? Who can resist opening the driver's window in a tunnel or next to a wall and listening to the symphony.

Secret/hidden space in a GV: I have been running wires for a stereo installation and found a couple of good spots that even thieves would never see. The easy one is under the pull out sofa just in front (toward the driver) of the drawer. Just lift the sofa to pull it out and you can reach it. The other is a good sized area in front of the safe. Pull out and remove the center drawer between the two front seats and you can easily see it. Could even have a false wall put in there and you would need an X-ray machine to see it.

Pierce

Title: Re: Does Anyone Recognize This MH?
Post by: fkjohns6083 on October 19, 2013, 09:38:57 pm
In our 91 GV, I like the spot above and to the right of the microwave just beyond where the plug in is for the microwave.  It is also accessible from the cabinet above the sink.  I found a bottle of cooking sherry in there when I replaced the microwave.  Have a great day  ----  Fritz
Title: Re: Does Anyone Recognize This MH?
Post by: wa_desert_rat on October 19, 2013, 09:41:23 pm
In our 91 GV, I like the spot above and to the right of the microwave just beyond where the plug in is for the microwave.  It is also accessible from the cabinet above the sink.  I found a bottle of cooking sherry in there when I replaced the microwave.  Have a great day  ----  Fritz

LOL... I found some very nice plastic drinking glasses in a cupboard in about the same spot when we took over our coach. We still use them. :)

Craig
Title: Re: Does Anyone Recognize This MH?
Post by: ScubaGuy on October 30, 2013, 09:47:15 pm
I think this guy just bought it and is trying to do a quick turn around on it.  It would be nice to know who the previous owners were.

That's one very nice looking Foretravel...I love double bumpers.  Sorry I don't know anything about it...but if the guy selling it is in the Austin/S.A. area and his name is Brandon...I would be very very careful.  PM me if that's the case.
Title: Re: Does Anyone Recognize This MH?
Post by: rpettway on October 30, 2013, 09:56:46 pm
No, this one is actually in Florida.  Unfortunately, it has some water damage.  When I return from Af, I may get down there to check it out.  I love the look of it too.