Ventana vs Phaeton

[jgperegrine]

Hello, I am considering purchasing a Newmar Ventana 3709 or a Tiffin Phaeton 37BH. They both have very similar floor plans and features. To me the biggest difference is that the Newmar has comfort drive and the Phaeton has more power. Has anyone out there have experience with both the Ventana's and Phaeton's?

Thanks

 

[SargeW]

I have owned a Phaeton and now have an Allegro Bus. If the Phaeton comes on a Powerglide chassis it will have Independent Front Suspension (IFS) which is a joy to drive. My  buddy has a Ventanna which is also very nice. I looked at Newmar's when I was shopping for a new RV and looked at Dutch Star and the Bus. One feature that was a deal breaker for me was all the Newmar's have "frameless" windows that only push out at the bottom to open. The Tiffin's still use there version of a frameless window which still slide open and allow much more free flow air. 

The extra power is always nice too, especially if you are pulling a toad in the west.

 

[Larry N.]

My 2016 Ventana 3709 is a joy to drive, and has been a very nice rig with little in the way of teething problems. The Comfort Drive system does, indeed, take some of the work out of fighting crosswinds, and allows me to arrive at the destination not as tired as I used to be in the bigger, heavier, 45 ft. Beaver I used to have. I'd steer clear of the Ventana LE, primarily because of its weight limitations, but you'll certainly want to check out the available options in any case -- mine has the Oasis (their version of Aqua Hot) which I love. I'm usually getting between 8 and 9 mpg on the highway, running about 65 mph, depending on winds and hills. The 360 HP engine is more than adequate, giving slightly better uphill performance with my Jeep toad than I got on my 525 HP Beaver. Of course the Ventana maxes out at 36,000 lbs while the Beaver maxed at 50,000.

 

[Ro and Joe]

The Newmar will be better insulated vs the Tiffin.  Newmar also uses hung wall/aluminum studs in the walls that are bolted vs screwed down.  I believe the Ventana has a solid front axle.  I did lots of research, reading and shows focusing on the A Bus, Anthem and Dutch Star.  We chose the DS. 

 

[irishtom29]

We looked at both. The Phaeton has the nicer cabinetry, more real wood, and sturdier drawers. In the Ventana we looked at the cabinets along the top of the driver?s side slide had a large beam running through them, cutting drastically the space available in the cabinets.