97 Southwind 35s or 99 Georgie Boy Pursuit 3512?

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bob-n

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Feb 26, 2008
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Location
SE WI
Hi... I'm going to move up from a pop-up camper to a used gas A, skipping the whole travel trailer, Class C route.
I've looked over these two units fairly well and both seem solid (and priced fairly)
These seem like a lot more than I need for the wife, 5 yr old and I, but I don't want to trip over each other in a 27 footer.

Can any anybody shed some light / opinions on either? Are they quality coaches? Headaches?
I was looking at newer, but didn't like the quality of some of the lower priced stuff out there.

The southwind is a chevy chassis, 60K miles, air assist, tag axle, single slide.
The Georgie Boy is a Ford, under 30K miles, V10, single slide.

Any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks in advance,
Bob
 
We had a 96 Southwind and liked it a lot, but of these two I would choose the Georgie Boy. Not because it is a better built coach, but because it is two years newer in an era when there were fairly dramatic improvements in RV chassis. I think the 99 Ford with the V10 is a much better underpinning than the 97 Chevrolet chassis. Chevy had not been keeping their RV chassis up to the latest technologies in that era and sold their RV chassis business to Workhorse Custom chassis in 1999.  Workhorse kept the old Chevy chassis going for a few years with some modifications but designed and built a replacement from the ground and later abandoned the old Chevy. 

The lower mileage on the GB is a factor also.

Check the pricing at www.nadaguides.com - add nothing for options and try to pay near the Low Retail price figure.
 
The one glaring difference (for me) was the track width on the two different chassis. The old chevy chassis is very narrow, where the ford has a much wider, more stable stance. Is the tag axle on the chevy/southwind going to add much stability or is it going to be wallowing all over the road like you're sitting on a beachball? I haven't driven either yet but I have appointments at both dealers for saturday (stinks that they're an hour apart)

Is either one more prone to leaks or anything along that line? I think both are too old to worry about heated basements, etc.
 
Bob, you are very astute and correct to notice potential stability of the wider stance of the newer unit.  The wider chassis generally has the larger wheels (19.5" v/s 16") also.  I have a '97 Bounder on the older Ford chassis and would dearly love to have the wider stance and larger wheels of the newer chassis. 

However, if your budget or decision process leads you to choose the older unit, do not discount the added stability afforded in the tag axle.  I drove a 35' w/o tag, and my 34.5' w/tag, before purchase and found a world of difference in handling.  I will qualify my comments by saying that both units were approximately 6 years old at the time with equal milage.  Condition/prior usage may have played a part.  I'll never know. 

All things considered, I've got an RV that suits my purpose and meets my needs.  Good luck in your future purchase.
lou
 
I'm kind of sitting here scratching my head. I *think* the Southwind had 19.5's on it also, although it looks like a lowrider. I know all 8 were brand spanking new. This is tough. Each has advantages:

Southwind / Chevy:
Better looking, more spacious
New tires
Common, proven owner repairable 454
Better appliances
Arched roof
Tag axle
TONS on basement storage
Dash storage / table
More galley counterspace
Big feet on landing gear

Georgie Boy / Ford
Better dealer repair availability
Better chassis
80" queen bed (I'm 6' tall)
Booth type dinette
20K less miles
Asking price is $6K less

Looks like it's going to come down to driving them and seeing how it goes
 
Bob, not sure why you make the statment(s)

Chevy 454 - proven owner repairable
Ford 460 - better dealer repairability


I made my choice on just the oposite.......  lou

The only down side I see on your choices is.... Georgie Boy....

I'd still go with the Ford, lower price, newer unit....  (I think... ??? ???)
 
The Georgie Boy / Ford is a V10. I know absolutely nothing of this except a friend of mine had it in a pickup (a 98 or 99??) and it was slow and a gas hog (my opinion) More Ford dealers service the medium duty chassis / MH chassis than Chevy dealers (by percentage)

I used to work at a Chevy dealer through the 80's. If I pop the 454 I can order one anywhere... Chevy performance, summit, etc.  Not so with the V10 (although both coaches come with a warranty)
 
Touche, bob.  My engine is the older Ford 460 which I feel the same familiarity with that you do the 454.
I'll not try to influence your decision any further.  Good luck and happy motoring with your choice.  lou
 
Wasn't trying to sound short if I came across that way, I'm sorry.

Keep feeding info, I'm the uneducated one here and any knowledge, etc is very appreciated. I just tossed out what I felt, and honestly if it was a 460 Ford, I'd feel better since I'm familiar with that one also (sometimes older is better for people like me  ;D)
 
Bob, no offense taken.  I just didn't want to exert undue influence where I didn't have anything constructive to offer. 
I'm happy with my old Ford Bounder, but fully understand the advantages of newer technology and engineering advances.

I was, and am, sincere in my best wishes for a successful and satisfactory purchase of your RV.  I know you are anxious over this, but it's probably not worth losing sleep over.  lou
 
I suspect most of us have been there... obsessing....

Some of us even rushed into a decision prematurely.  As they say, experience is that thing you gain right after you most need it.  ;D

Good luck with your decision!

jim
 
baadpuppy said:
As they say, experience is that thing you gain right after you most need it.  ;D
Click to expand...

Thanks Jim... I think that would look good on my business cards somedays
 
Bob, do some serious research of prices... i.e. NADA, Kelly Blue Book, etc....

Ask folks here on the forum.........

IMHO no one ever got a real deal from Camping world....
 
I've already bumped them down quite a bit on the Southwind (from what is on their site), but it really needs to go down further so I agree 100%
Ol' George is also a bit overpriced. There is considerable work to do on both, financial wise that is.
 
I'm chuckling as I'm writing this as I've been in your shoes before.

Hang tough, those are not the only two RVs that would make your family happy campers.  lou
 
So, is that laughing with me or laughing at me  ;D

What makes this so difficult is finding specs on old motorhomes. Georgie Boy old specs are easy to find. Vintage Fleetwood are a bit more difficult... impossible is a good word
 
Bob, not laughing at you.  Just finding the situation familiar and amusing in retrospect.

Info on older fleetwood products might be difficult to come by without actually owning one, but with a VIN number and a FIN number you can obtain actual wiring/plumbing/HVAC diagrams for your coach from the Fleetwood web site.  I've done it.

Good night and good luck.  lou
 
Hey bob, why are you limiting your buying choices to only two motorhomes (both at dealerships)?  The used RV market is HUGE right now, and buying from a dealer is no safer than buying from a private owner.  Often you can get MORE problems from rig at a dealer, because they know nothing about the RV's history and usually throw away maintenance records that previous owner's leave behind.  A well-maintained rig from a previous owner can get you the best bargain of all... that was my experience, and many others as well.  Just don't limit yourself too much, right at the beginning of your purchase "journey".

In any event, you'll love whatever Class A you end up finding.  I jumped straight from NO camping experience to a 35-foot Class A and have never looked back.  ;)
 
Oh I haven't looked only at these two or only at dealers. I've narrowed it down to these two at the moment, just so happens they're at dealers and they seem motivated to sell (notice no snow on the ground in the pictures). There is a lot of junk out there and some owners up here didn't winterize when putting them up for sale last fall, so I eliminate them until it gets warm enough to go through them properly. For example, I found a 99 Bounder for $19K with LOW miles, but not winterized at all. Tanks all iced. If neither one makes me 100% happy on the drive tomorrow, then I continue. The Georgie Boy is actually consigned to the dealer, so all the records are there. The southwind: the dealer (CW) says they have "some" records for it.

I think I should buy in Texas, then make a vacation out of getting back to WI. I'm way overdue.

edit: Wow... my typing skills are horrible this morning
 
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