Considering 2006 Itasca Suncruiser...

Hello all, I'm glad to see this site as I am in the midst of trying to see if I can upgrade from my 2001 Southwind 35R. We have had no problems with our current coach, but we could use a little more elbow room and with this being a buyer's market I started to look around.

I would like to present my current options to see what the group thinks...thanks in advance, I hope you don't mind these sorts of posts.

#1) Itasca Suncruiser 37B it has the Workhorse Chassis and Allison 2100MH transmission. It is a 2006 with 18700 miles and a "marked down" price of 100k. This unit has the extra room in the bedroom that we are looking (we have dogs that sleep in crates at night) and the feel of the interior trim seemed very nice. I liked the double pane windows, no oven, four door fridge, control panel. The only thing that seemed odd to me was the waste station interface, the sewer cap pipe points "out" and I could imagine a rude surprise if one had a leaky valve when removing the sewer cap prior to sewer hose installation!

The unit also seem ungodly tall, perhaps due to the 22.5" tires. I wonder about gas mileage with the base weight of 20300 pounds unloaded (my Southwind is 16200 pounds unloaded an we've averaged 8mpg while trying to drive just over 60mph).

#2) Allegro 35QBA, this is the bunk bed model, the Ford gas unit is new with a "marked down" price of 93k, they also have a FRED version, also a 2008 with a "marked down" price of 108k. Should I be concerned with the power of the FORD? (I seem to have the impression that the Workhorse/Allsion set up has more power (and hill climbing skills) when compared to the FORD V10.)

The trim package on the Allegro (open road) seemed a bit cheap, even compared to the Southwind, and it only has single pane windows.

#3) Monaco Monarch 35SFD, this is also a 2008 and the guys are still working on their "best price" to me. For a new unit, it has 5000 miles on it. I wonder if that means anything, i.e. lots of people have driven it but no buyers....this unit is out of town and I've yet to inspect it. They need to come down quite a bit from their advertised MSRP but "call for price" ads.

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I was surprised by one of the other threads that gave me the impression that the Suncruiser would not necessarily feel like an upgrade compared to my current Southwind.

Tiffin and Monaco get very high marks for their customer service, but clearly the Allegro is the entry level, just for grins I went into an Allegro Bay and the difference in trim package was obvious.

Any thoughts??? Thanks...

Ray

Ray - I'm sorry but I can't speak to the differences among those models.  I think you have narrowed your list to three really good manufacturers, and you have a tough choice ahead of you. Any of the three would be good I believe from a customer care perspective.  I can say that Winnebago will stand behind their product and they are financially healthy (but Monaco and Tiffen might be as well - don't know.)

When we were shopping for our coach, Tiffen, Newmar and Winnebago were on our short list because all offered independent front suspension in a pusher chassis.  What won me over for Winnebago was the design and engineering of the unit as a system - everything looked like it was designed to dovetail perfectly into the unit's overall design. Some manufacturer's electrical and plumbing appeared to be an afterthought installed wherever possible (not speaking about any particular manufacturer here!)

You are a lucky buyer indeed!  You are in the driver's seat as far as making a deal and do NOT hesitate in going for 30% off from a fairly new unit to 35%-40% off of a 'hangar queen.'

John,

Thanks for opening a new thread, I realized after I posted that perhaps I did so in a not so ideal spot...

What is the relationship between Itasca and Winnebago? I know that they are both Winnebago Industries products, but is one considered a higher quality or trim package than the other? Sort of like Toyota and Lexas?

I really liked the Itasca that I looked at today, it had a lot of the features that I wanted and some that I would not have expected but was pleased to see (the 600W inverter for example). The unit can be found at the Camping World in Albuquerque at the following link:

here

Due to my financing, the used vehicles are actually harder for me to buy since I can only get a 12 year loan, the rate is excellent 6.99%, but my wife does not want a giant monthly payment.

Thanks again,

Ray

Winnebago and Itasca models are sister products from the same assembly lines, with only slight differences. It is not unusual for the base Itasca to be slightly higher trim level (and price) than the equivalent Winnebago model, but the differences are minor and often irrelevant after factory options are installed. 

The Ford V10 and Workhorse(GM) 8.1L V8 are essentially identical in power, but the Workhorse has the 6 speed Allison transmission which I think is slightly better than the five speed Ford tranny. Overall, its a toss-up on the chassis, Ford vs Workhorse.

Dual pane windows are usually a factory option on models where dual pane is not standard. Ditto for many other features, such as inverters, LCD tvs, satellite dish/dome, etc.

The Monarch is probably the nicest trimmed and featured coach of the three you mentioned, but once again installed options can make a substantial difference.

You would find the FRED chassis to be more powerful  (much more torque) and more economical in terms of fuel consumption than any of the gas chassis models. Most FRED-based motorhomes deliver 10+ mpg but the diesel is more expensive than gas, offsetting the gain somewhat.

The Suncruiser is larger than the others and has three sides, so it sounds more like what you are looking for in a new coach, i.e. more room. That extra size will cost some in fuel, though.  I see it has only 30A shore power, which means you are limited on air conditioning unless you run the generator. A coach this size and trim level should have 50A shore power, in my opinion. By the way, the $99k price is no bargain. I would offer less in this market. NADA low retail is about $97k on a 37B and that is the most I would expect to pay.

Take a look at a newer Pace Arrow or Southwind - there should be plenty of them around too.

I think this thread got "stuck" at the top of the Motorhome forum by error.  "Sticking" a topic is usually reserved for topics of long-lasting general interest...

I think I have unstuck the topic.  Thanks, Frank.

Kodiak,

This post was in the Winnebago area originally, maybe it got moved by mistake as you mentioned.

I do appreciate the inputs from Gary and John and hopefully others will contribute as well. It is hard for a relative newby like myself to sort through all the options - i.e. gas versus diesel pusher versus FRED and so on.

I have another question, the monaco dealer will call tomorrow with their price, but that unit has one of the new slides that runs almost the entire driver side length, has there been any problems with the reliability of such a large slide?

Gary noted that the Itasca did have 30A power, I was very surprised by that as well when I looked at it, I sort of figured that 2006 units would all have 50A power.

Once again thanks to all....

Ray

I think that 30 amps is a typo. That unit has the basement air conditioning system and I think all of the basement air models are 50 amp.

However if it was a 30 amp with two ACs they could both be run at the same time.
Winnebago has an energy management system that will prevent both ACs from starting at the exact same instant but will allow them to both run at the same time. It will delay one or the other until the initial current surge has dropped and then allow the other to start.

KodiakRV said:

I think this thread got "stuck" at the top of the Motorhome forum by error.  "Sticking" a topic is usually reserved for topics of long-lasting general interest...

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Oops - apparently my bad  :-[  I did manage to split the thread off successfully, though - I'm learning.... (Tom - put the stick away - I'll do better<g>)

What is the relationship between Itasca and Winnebago? I know that they are both Winnebago Industries products, but is one considered a higher quality or trim package than the other? Sort of like Toyota and Lexas?

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Ray - yes sorta-kinda.  Winnebago created the Itasca line years ago to circumvent a contract to exclusively use Dodge chassis on all Winnebago motorhomes.  Bingo - Itasca is born.  Differences between Winnebago and Itasca will depend on the year and the model.  When the Horizon/Vectra was introduced in 2004, Winnie produced a three page document detailing the differences - the Horizon came standard with many things that were options on the Vectra.  The Horizon had hidden cabinet hinges which weren't even available on the Vectra at that time.

As time goes by, all models get up-scaled to compete with the competition, so you need to sit down with the brochures and compare item-by-item.  AFAIK, there is little if any difference in fabric quality, cabinetry quality, etc.  Gary is correct - Winnebago and Itasca all roll down the same three assembly lines in "Big Bertha."  It all boils down to what you like best - either one is a good choice!

I looked closer at the sticker and it has an option that adds the Inverter (which I did notice) and the 50A shore power.

My problem was that I stopped by the store yesterday a bit unprepared and the salesman told me it was 30A power, the power cord was fat and had four prongs, clearly 50A power. But I lack a bit of self assurance and I let the salesman introduce a seed of doubt.

Thanks, I just wanted to set the record straight, it sure is a beautiful unit. I'll get serious when the Monaco place calls back, that will be tomorrow (12/21/08).

Ray

Winnebago created the Itasca line years ago to circumvent a contract to exclusively use Dodge chassis on all Winnebago motorhomes.

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I learn something new here every day, thanks John.

rayincorrales said:

I looked closer at the sticker and it has an option that adds the Inverter (which I did notice) and the 50A shore power.

My problem was that I stopped by the store yesterday a bit unprepared and the salesman told me it was 30A power, the power cord was fat and had four prongs, clearly 50A power. But I lack a bit of self assurance and I let the salesman introduce a seed of doubt.
Ray

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You learned something else. Never, ever take for gospel anything a salesman says.

In your initial post you mentioned one of the other threads that made you think you wouldn't be upgrading from your Southwind, I am thinking that this may have been one of my earlier posts about my 2007 Suncruiser 38J. Well, I did have some issues but I will say that Winnebago Industries and my dealership (Alpin Haus) stepped up and took care of everything to my satisfaction. They are very nice coaches and we have received many compliments on ours, I have had to give tours to many interested people in campgrounds and at the race track.

As far as the coach seeming to be very tall, part of that is the extra tall ceiling inside which is able to be done because of the basement air as opposed to roof mounted units, in other words, no roof air so they can bump up the interior height.

Mark

I don't think a Suncruiser is inherently an upgrade from a Southwind, but the switch from an 01 to an 06 should make quite a difference. RVs moved rapidly upscale in both features and trim in that time period and the newer one should be quite a bit nicer in all around.

Not much action today, the Monaco dealer had a "call for price" and when I did the other day I was told that he'd have to consult the manager and call me back.

Today he called and said that they would want $131k for the unit with a MSRP of $141k. I told them that was way too high and no where close to where I thought it should be. I explained that I've seen other Monarch 35SFDs on line for $98.75k. In addition I mentioned that their unit had 4700 miles on it and that almost seems like a used unit to me (this was not received very well).

So they asked me to make them an offer so that they could present it to their manager. I told them that I'd get back to them early this week.

Strategy for now is to let both the local dealer and the Tucson dealer know that I'm looking at multiple units and that I'll be making offers once the wife and I decide which unit to pursue first.

Options include (in no particular order):

1. 2008 Allegro 35QBA gas
2. 2008 Allegro 35QBA diesel
3. 2006 Itasca Suncruiser 37B (gas)
4. 2008 Monaco Monarch 35SFD

Thanks to all....

Ray

Ray,

Not sticking up for the dealer, but 4700 miles on a new coach MAY not be excessive.

All motor homes (as far as I know) are driven from the factory to the dealer. If that motor home was originally sold to a dealer somewhere else and that dealer went out of business so then the motor home was driven to the dealer where you saw it, it could easily have 4700 miles on it.

Alaskansnowbirds said:

Not sticking up for the dealer, but 4700 miles on a new coach MAY not be excessive.

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Ours had 1800 miles on it which is the distance from Forest City, IA to Tampa, FL (Lazydays.)  Don made a case for an entirely believable situation.

As long as the unit has never been titled and it doesn't look like it has had 4700 miles of use, I wouldn't be the least concerned about the mileage.