I Hesitate to Ask this Question...

Topic: I Hesitate to Ask this Question... (Read 2704 times) previous topic - next topic

Re: I Hesitate to Ask this Question...

Reply #25 – January 27, 2017, 04:55:36 pm

I have owned a motor home since I was 21, I am now 65, except for 1 year when I got a hair and sold my 26 GMC and could not find a motor home I liked. I had never owned one over 5 years except for the 1997 U295 36', which I have owned for the last 17 years. This one is my 3rd Foretravel.

I think the one thing I would have liked different is the M11 motor. I have a 30' boat with 1600 HP, so I just like to have plenty of HP for when I may need it.

Re: I Hesitate to Ask this Question...

Reply #26 – January 27, 2017, 04:58:02 pm

I was told that he was a preacher that went around to various correctional facilities in the rv and almost never shut the geny off.

Our coach is 1995, so 22 years and 40,000 hours works out to 5 hours per day. Don't remember what vintage his coach was but certainly doable?

Re: I Hesitate to Ask this Question...

Reply #27 – January 27, 2017, 10:39:14 pm

We have a 2000 non slide 36 295 with the C 350 but banks stinger which I figure is now equal to an M11 400 but better mileage. No problem towing and going up hill grades is deffinitly not an issue. Happy with all the changes we have done and now a real nice coach that we take anywhere. We do not stay in RV parks as to us that is 1/2 of you day finding one and hooking up then having a neighbour that either plays music or BBQ is smoking you out. Like the quiet life so have solar to live on.
All works great for us.
DWMYH
JohnH

Re: I Hesitate to Ask this Question...

Reply #28 – January 28, 2017, 12:53:36 am

Good question for discussion: Our coach has phone jacks everywhere and I cannot jack Jack into any one of them.

Like so many items in life, (glove boxes, buggy whips, external hard drives) things change. Quickly.

As far as wish list, put us in for an Aqua Hot and you can have our Primus. Deal?

Re: I Hesitate to Ask this Question...

Reply #29 – January 28, 2017, 08:21:03 am

I had a 1997 40 ft 295 and now have a 1999 42 ft U320 and would find it very hard to go back to not having Aquahot, I do not miss hearing the furnace noise, The fans on the heat exchangers are very quite, Also I have the rare side kitchen which is very nice for extra space, It is my understanding they only made like 12 with this floor plan, I will be selling mine shortly and going to a Born Free and will really miss Aquahot.

Re: I Hesitate to Ask this Question...

Reply #30 – January 28, 2017, 09:18:16 am

Our safe is floor mounted and right in the way of any work on the isolator. All I can figure the safe is worth is knowing which ashes were the important papers out of the mess following a fire and subsequent attempt to "save" the coach.

Re: I Hesitate to Ask this Question...

Reply #31 – January 28, 2017, 09:38:39 am

I' m with Larry. We use our safe to haul Wisconsin air to Texas and Texas air to Wisconsin. Have never put anything else in the safe in five years.
I would prefer our coach didn't have any carpeting. Seems strange that an RV intended to go to a multitude of places with different surfaces we walk on that end up being traipsed into our coach has carpet. Always cleaning the carpet or removing shoes.
Coach designs don't have carpet in the kitchen area but do have carpet from the front door to the kitchen area. Deductive reasoning says: "DUH??" what are the designers thinking. Leave all the dragged in dirt in the living room carpet so the kitchen flooring stays clean?

Re: I Hesitate to Ask this Question...

Reply #32 – January 28, 2017, 10:01:46 am

I KNEW that a MAN must have designed the interior of our '02 U320 coach with the walk-thru bath when I considered the massive, mirrored sliding closet doors. In WHAT WORLD is it a good idea to have a giant mirror opposite the commode in which you must view yourself first thing in the morning??? (Or, at ANY hour of the day??) They rattled, they broke the closure latches, they made noise, and they just showed too, too much information. Securing them gradually involved drilling holes for pins ... dowels ... tension rods ... none were effective. Happily, my husband is a man who knows when to just say,"Yes, Dear." and the Remodel shop at FOT made me some lovely louvered doors as a replacement. Life was good and peace reigned once more.

Re: I Hesitate to Ask this Question...

Reply #33 – January 28, 2017, 10:39:26 am

I would prefer our coach didn't have any carpeting. (Nighthawk)

Remove it and put in floor of your choice

JohnH

Re: I Hesitate to Ask this Question...

Reply #34 – January 28, 2017, 11:13:05 am

The PO ripped our carpet out & installed a heavy-duty linoleum floor, including the bathroom. Still have the carpet in the stern, but big deal, sure makes cleaning easy! We've got rubber bottomed throw rugs in the high traffic areas, I like it.

Re: I Hesitate to Ask this Question...

Reply #35 – January 28, 2017, 11:26:56 am

We have a 1997 40' U320. We are fulltimers. I know you are interested in a 36', and I'm not sure if you will be going fulltime. Those differences aside, this is what I love about our U320, that may or may not be standard in a U270/U295.

Screen door (depending on the vintage)
Bose Surround Sound
Leather couch
Windowsills
Swivel dining room chairs
Dishwasher (installed June 2016)
Stack washer and dryer (installed June 2016)
Safe (ours gets utilized)
AquaHot
Bus style bay doors
Joey bed
Water & Power reels
Retarder
Cummins M11
Diesel Generator
Ducted Air (depending on vintage)
Double pane windows (depending on vintage)

We did extensive research. We knew we wanted most of the above items, so a U320 was the only option for us. We were going fulltime, so a 40' coach was the only option for us. The 1997 coaches were the perfect price point where we wouldn't have to take on any dept. Lined up all the ducks and waited patiently to pounce when the perfect one came along. Bought the coach in April 2013, and have zero regrets. This is the perfect coach for us. Every "perk" of our U320 gets utilized on a daily basis, and we can't imagine having any other coach.

There are other reasons we love our coach that are not model specific - length, floorplan, no slide - 2 of those are different than what you want, and the other is a matter of coach vintage.

We got everything we were looking for. Happy searching! Happy researching! The coach search is roller coaster of a ride, with definite ups and downs, but once you get your very own coach, the real fun begins!

Re: I Hesitate to Ask this Question...

Reply #36 – January 28, 2017, 01:14:21 pm

We have a 2000 36' u320 with m11 engine and mid entry, which I understand is very rare.
1- Mid entry: You lose some basement pass through, but have direct access to kitchen which is good for camping and loading/unloading both into kitchen and bedrooms.
2- 36': I have three sheds on my property and have found that if I build another, I could easily fill it with stuff I don't need. We have found that the combination of the single pass through and smaller exterior compartments have accommodated everything we had on the Safari. There have been campsites that would not have handled the longer coaches. A campground may have pull throughs and spaces for 40'ers, but they may not have many and they can fill up fast. Maneuverability is a given.
3- Slide: We purposely sought out a non slide in our previous coach (34' Safari), due to the reported issues of maintenance, weight. loss of storage and leaking. It worked great until we did a 3 month trip across the country. We started to feel like we were living in a tube. We love the single slide. We did not want a bedroom slide, since you lose the cross ventilation, view, and access to engine compartment.
4- Aqua Hot: We love it for the reasons previously mentioned, but make sure you have it thoroughly checked out prior to buying. A seemingly small problem could be very expensive. A propane heater was louder and I was always concerned about running out of fuel - another thing we always had to top off at fill ups. Waiting at a fuel dock for an attendant was a pain.
5-Diesel generator: We have had a Kubota tractor for years and it has been very reliable, especially in starting after months of storage. They are easier to work on in my opinion and much more accessible than the propane generator we had in the Safari.
You are on the right track in choosing a Foretravel - that is a great start. You will also find that this group is a tremendously valuable resource. Good Luck

Re: I Hesitate to Ask this Question...

Reply #37 – January 28, 2017, 01:17:19 pm

Mirrored closet doors in bathroom:
Carol S and I have had this discussion before and I love her hilarious discussion about them. I love the mirrored closet doors and the view they provide, except be aware when bedroom blinds are up, the commode is visible from outside. To lock the rear closet door for travel, I use a 3/4 by 3/4 piece of wood cut to the correct length - door has never moved.

Propane Genset:
I still plan to replace my diesel 10K genset with a "real" 5K propane genset. Diesel gensets stink (like Aquahot) when running, propane does not. I use my genset about 20 hours per year, with half of those hours just for exercise to keep it healthy. A "real" propane genset cannot use gasoline because the compression ratio is too high for gasoline. A gasoline genset running propane is very inefficient, so uses twice as many gallons of fuel as a diesel genset.

Rug flooring:
I agree that rug in the living room is foolish and plan to install vinyl flooring. However, I will replace the rug in the bedroom with rug.

Safe:
I use the safe all the time and would not want to be without it.

Re: I Hesitate to Ask this Question...

Reply #38 – January 28, 2017, 01:36:05 pm

Quote from: P. Wyatt Sabourin – January 28, 2017, 01:17:19 pm

Propane Genset: I still plan to replace my diesel 10K genset with a "real" 5K propane genset. Diesel gensets stink (like Aquahot) when running, propane does not. Safe:I use the safe all the time and would not want to be without it.

Yes, both are stinky. We have a Onan 6500 "Marquis" which is beyond quiet and smells not. We liked the idea of a floor safe, but the PO had lost the combination! Finally found it a couple of years later.

Re: I Hesitate to Ask this Question...

Reply #39 – January 28, 2017, 02:13:43 pm

Good info here. My basics were to have the dinette under the main awning. Looking out at our campsight.

As the early slides did not want to flex the plumbing lines the dinette was moved into the slide room.

Propane furnaces have noticeably larger temp swings as the design requires the fan to come on first for safety and when the unit shuts off the fan continues on until the furnaces box trump drops. 5-7 degree swings. Aqua hot is around 2 degrees.

Less noise and the aquahot does not dry out the air.

The ducted air allows the opposite end a/c unit to quietly feed the other end. The rear air unit was moved from over the bed into the bath area to reduce the noise in the bedroom.

Beaver did this in 1989 Foretravel in 1997.

We are really radical and lucky as we were offered a mid door u320.

My non full time coach would be a 36' u320 mid door. If you see one buy it as mid doors were a tiny percentage of builds.

DW is a photo gal and the front door parts would be in her way.

The 40' requires more thought about where you are driving into as the large turning circle restricts things considerably.

The advantage to us is the faded non painted white exterior. Hard to damage it with branches and such scraping it and the gel coat white has much less solar heating and requires much less a/c use.

All the painted coaches around us in campgrounds have their airs on at temps we just open a few windows for.

Different idea. An rv. A motorhome not a home motor.

Versus do you plan to camp from power pole to power pole or drycamp?

The non slide, non tag 40' has the most storage inside and out of any coach made up to and including 45's.

Re: I Hesitate to Ask this Question...

Reply #40 – January 28, 2017, 02:16:08 pm

Quote from: mike leary – January 28, 2017, 01:36:05 pm

We liked the idea of a floor safe, but the PO had lost the combination! Finally found it a couple of years later.

For others with this issue:

Foretravel has records of the safe combinations, and with proof of ownership is happy to provide the combinations. to owners.

Re: I Hesitate to Ask this Question...

Reply #41 – January 28, 2017, 02:22:45 pm

Send yourself an email with the combination. You can't lose it then (if you already have it). If not, Brett's suggestion is good. His also works with lost radio codes too (if you disconnect the battery).

Pierce

Re: I Hesitate to Ask this Question...

Reply #42 – January 28, 2017, 02:35:15 pm

Randy, Karen,

Bargain for this much info? Should give you enough to chew on for a few months. It's a pretty standard response - everyone here is unbelievably helpful!

Hope to welcome you officially to the club by the end of the year!

James

Re: I Hesitate to Ask this Question...

Reply #43 – January 28, 2017, 04:51:22 pm

1997 36' U320. Favorites: The screen door, Aqua Hot, M11 engine, larger black water tank, and best of all, the dual -pane windows. The coach stays nicely warm or cool, depending on the season. It also stays very quiet inside --even with too-noisy neighbors. Our '36' has worked well for us, even though we are full-time with no slide. Tip: websites for national/state/COE parks often stipulate 35' max when making reservations for sites. Our coach "shrinks" to 35' at those times with no issues.

Re: I Hesitate to Ask this Question...

Reply #44 – January 28, 2017, 09:00:45 pm

1) I have zero issues with my propane furnace - I would probably prefer an Aqua-hot due to the 148 or 198 gallons of available fuel
2) Propane gen fumes will kill you just as fast as diesel but you just can't smell it. I happen to like the smell of spent diesel (and fresh dirt)
3) 8.3 is enough M-11 is much better
4) Dual pane windows - absolutely
5) "Bus style" bay doors are very nice especially if you have a sore back like me
6) Hose reels are nice but not a deal breaker - they can be added later
7) My 270 has everything we need and then some. The other stuff is just fun to have. 😎

Re: I Hesitate to Ask this Question...

Reply #45 – January 28, 2017, 10:34:55 pm

Quote from: John S – January 27, 2017, 02:57:25 pm

I have had both a 270 34 foot and two 320s one 34 and the other 42.

They made a u320 in 34'?

As for options. If you RV in warmer weather, I think the aquahot is more of a pain and costs more in the big scheme. It's silly to run the big boiler to make hot water in the summer when the super simple propane water heater uses no power (this is mostly for boondocking). For colder weather, like below freezing, the aquahot may be nice. But for boondocking, my Buddy HEater keeps the whole place warm and uses zero electricity.

Aquahot is better for driving down the road to use engine heat to keep the RV warm....though one can easily install an extra heat exchanger or two that runs off engine coolant.

I like the lighter oak cabinets better...makes the RV feel more spacious and happy inside (my fiend has the dark walnut).

I like ducted A/C...I almost never run both A/C units at once.

Layout on the 34' vs 36' some say 34' is better laid out upstairs and more usable. The 36' bathroom sink is kind of silly. The private toilet on 36' is huge waste of space (but I also travel alone, mostly).

Re: I Hesitate to Ask this Question...

Reply #46 – January 29, 2017, 04:43:16 am

One more thing about the (lighter) oak cabinets, have had people come in and say the coach looks larger than theirs, which had slides...so the lighter cabinets (and lighter color fabrics & sofas) seem to add space, especially with all the windows open.

Re: I Hesitate to Ask this Question...

Reply #47 – January 29, 2017, 08:05:22 am

After our first year 13,000 miles in our 270 our impressions on this first coach are as follows:

1. We wanted honey oak or the apparently rare maple for a light interior. Never found maple or 295 with oak.
2. There are a number of more discreet differences. The water heater is two way not three. Hot rod fixes this.
3. Our coach had the upgrade to a smart wheel which I enjoy as well as an air chuck but I prefer my compressor
4. I like our propane appliances. Our Norcold was commissioned when we bought the coach but considering residential
5. We extended the vents to just before seats and they now carry air forward and we have eliminated the dash air. So I like the 97.
6. I definitely did not want a slide.
7. I do wish we had the bus style doors!
8. I did not want utility reels for a number of reasons but have become more wishy washy on this.
9. While our power is sufficient even in the mountains, I would not mind the larger engine but as a VW van guy that's more a curiosity.

Now with that said, it was exactly what we were looking for in our purchase. I wanted good bones and few if any upgrades. I wanted bare bones that we could then do our way without paying for things we would then redo. We purchased the coach for under 30k but have put that much into it getting it to what we wanted. Just as an aside, we went to Hershey before buying the FT to make a decision on purchasing a new Tiffin DP. I was not impressed with what I saw there and what the true costs of ownership would be. Occasionally I get a little ribbing of what we have put into the coach and I get it. However, my expenditures are still less than the depreciation in the first 15 months alone of that Tiffin. And we are really, really enjoying this coach.

One other quick note...this is a very useful thread for other prospective buyers. If it were renamed, it would be easier for others to search.

Re: I Hesitate to Ask this Question...

Reply #48 – January 29, 2017, 08:50:03 am

Our 2001 U320 has Cherry wood inside and a pleasant easy to clean vinyl wall covering on the upper walls. Our coach also has what seems to be a fairly rare color choice with a more SW look. Reatta Red it was called. Maroons, tans, golds. It matches our area rugs well and our now 38 year old dishes. A nice wood choice between the darker Walnut and the lighter Oak. I am a woodworker and this wood really appealed to me.

Re: I Hesitate to Ask this Question...

Reply #49 – January 29, 2017, 09:05:09 am

Quote from: Miz Dani – January 29, 2017, 04:43:16 am

One more thing about the (lighter) oak cabinets, have had people come in and say the coach looks larger than theirs, which had slides...so the lighter cabinets (and lighter color fabrics & sofas) seem to add space, especially with all the windows open.

I agree Dani...... it makes the area "seem" roomier and lighter colors need less lighting. However we prefer the "warm' feeling of our darker walnut cabinets and decor. We get a lot of compliments on the look and quality of the cabinetry.

Most of our "camping" is in National Forest Campgrounds or State Parks and dry camping is the norm. Our 36' will fit in most campgrounds and with the 270lb propane tank and Dometic refrigerator, it suits us well.

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