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Wildcat RV

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So I finally sold my travel trailer last night. Now I'm asking your help once again. The wife and I have pretty much settled on the Wildcat 30 LOFT. It will be new unless something serious happens between now and then.

Our plan is to put around $10K down and go no longer than 7 years on the loan.

My question is, does anyone have any experience with this coach? I would like to hear all opinions, pro's, con's, etc... Thank you all.

Mark.
 
Wildcat

I just traded my Wildcat 28' RK for a new Cardinal 34 QRL. In the 4 years I had the Wildcat I never had any problems. Forest River makes a good product. We went to the Cardinal because we liked the floor plan and it is a higher end 5th wheel. There are many good RV's out there. I suggest you attend a RV show. They have two in my area every year. That way you can compare the many different models and floor plans and collect brochures to take home and study to narrow down a selection. Good luck.









2005 CTD, QC,SB,4X4,6sp, Volant, Isspro, air bags, Pacbrake, Eagle Wheels

2009 Cardinal 34QRL 5th Wheel
 
Hi Mark- I bought my '06 Wildcat in '05, and it's been a good unit. It has had a few problems, but they all seem to be in the first year or so. One thing the dealer may not tell you is that Forest River offers a one year extended warranty for $100 at the time of purchase. Make sure you buy it, because that extra year of full warranty will most likely come in handy. We really like ours. Have fun! Bruce
 
We looked real hard at them and it ended up our second choice. Lot's of nice features, good looking entry level coach. Do a google search, wildcat owners forum, wildcat online, stuff like that, there are several forums to hear the good and the bad. I read them for awhile, good and bad stories. Most of the complaints seemed to be minor, and usually about build quality. The west coast factory is near Portland and most of the comments about factory support were positive.



Sam
 
Thanks Bruce and Sam. We have been to many RV shows and looked at tons of different models and floor plans. The wife and I really like the Wildcat and that particular floorplan with the price we can get it for. Their is a Sprinter by Keystone that has a very similar floorplan we like but is priced too far above where we want to be. We are waiting until the first part of next year to purchase anything so hopefully the dealers will be really receptive and willing to deal by then.

Sam,

Why did you choose the Jazz over the Wildcat if I may ask?
 
I hate to be the one to through in a monkey wrench to all the good news you have received about Wildcat, but they are made by Forest River, which has never been known for quality. I have the RV Consumer Group Guide, which rates all 5th wheels and TT as well as all RV's. The bad news is that this particular 5er you are interested in is only rated 2 1/2 stars out of a possible 5 stars. You can purchase the guide for about $150 or ask any RV dealer for the ratings. The experience I have had was that some dealers will not share this information with you because their units are not rated well. If that's the case go to a well rated RV Dealer, like Hitchhiker or Excel and ask for a Wildcat rating. They'll tell you because it's no loss to them.



I know I'll get some hate response for this, but that's the way it is. If you want quality, look beyond Forest River. If you're just going to use it on weekends and short trips, then maybe Forest River is for you.



One more thing. Stay away from ST tires. Get LT tires, even if it's for short weekends trips.
 
Thanks Grizzly, but we can only afford 2 1/2 stars. I understand exactly what you're saying and I always try to spend money for the best quality I can. In this case, I would need to win the lotto to afford your suggested units.
 
Thanks Grizzly, but we can only afford 2 1/2 stars. I understand exactly what you're saying and I always try to spend money for the best quality I can. In this case, I would need to win the lotto to afford your suggested units.







For less then the cost of a Wildcat you can get a 4 star rated Nash or Arctic Fox by Northwood Mfg, which are made in Northeastern Oregon. Check them out.



northwoodmfg.com
 
With the down turn in the economy I would look at buying a slightly used one. We bought a 2006 Summit Ridge made by Amer-Camp in the fall of 07 for around $ 20K. This unit had all of the up grades you could want. My DW and I have had this unit out for two long trips this year and we have had no issues with the unit at all. The best part is you do not loose the first year depreciation.

Just my $0. 02
 
Thanks Bruce and Sam. We have been to many RV shows and looked at tons of different models and floor plans. The wife and I really like the Wildcat and that particular floorplan with the price we can get it for. Their is a Sprinter by Keystone that has a very similar floorplan we like but is priced too far above where we want to be. We are waiting until the first part of next year to purchase anything so hopefully the dealers will be really receptive and willing to deal by then.

Sam,

Why did you choose the Jazz over the Wildcat if I may ask?

Just saw your question, gone for a day.

Part of the reason was the abysmal dealerships and their personel that we encountered. We were looking at the 28rksb, liked the floorplan, and most importantly, the wife liked the interior colors they offered. But, not a single dealer(within a resonable drive) had one we could actually look at and touch.
We walked into many other different floorplans just to look at different interior colors, fabrics, etc. and that was fine. The salesman we encountered were all a bunch of fast buck freddies, kept trying to sell us what they had and not what we wanted. The big issue was the condition of the units on the lots that we walked in, which were all build quality issues. I don't like to talk in absolutes but, with out exception, every unit we went in(two to three dozen) was trashed. Doors/drawers were crooked/wouldn't close, loose handles/hinges, loose/crooked moldings, loose carpet, etc. I even found one coach that had two load range "D" tires and two "E" tires. :eek: Of course, the saleman's response was always buy it, we will fix it later. :rolleyes: Also, reading the Wildcat owners forums, getting a well built unit was a roll of the dice.

We got tired of looking and took a few weeks off, and actually found the Jazz 2870uk at a local dealer. Same exact floorplan and a few more standard features than the Wildcat. When we started the looking process(colors, etc. ) it was exactly the opposite of the Wildcats. The units on the lot were much nicer, fit and finish work was quite good. Plus, they had the model we were after, and got to see all the different interior colors(four) and cabinet colors(two) with the floorplan we wanted. One thing was that the Wildcat is built in Oregon, if the coach I bought needed to go back to the factory for a big issue, being in So Cal, that would be a major pain. The Thor Jazz factory is 30 miles from my house. We had bought a Prowler in 1992 and a Keysone Sprinter in 2000. Both of those were good units, but we bought off the lot and worked well for us but each one had a thing or two we didn't like/want, nothing major. When the Sprinter got totaled in a accident, we decided to order the next one to get exactly what we wanted. We ordered the Jazz, added a couple options, and actually had the factory delete a couple of things we didn't want, and in a short time(5 weeks) had our perfect coach.

The dealer we used, well, that's another story, they weren't the best.

In closing(whew!) I am not saying that all Wildcats are junk and the Jazz in the best unit made, but after doing all the homework and what I saw, I made the best choice.

FYI, price wise, I hit several dealers with a offer at 35% off list, neither would bite, made the deal at 28-29% off list, cash no trade in.

Sam
 
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Wildcat

I have a 26' FBS TT and just love it. Int. finish is nice, and it just has some handy features I like. The best is the where the trash can is, a lift out piece of the kitchen counter and you can access it from an outside compartment door. Also love the outside speakers, black tank flusher and surround sound .
 
I just can not stress enough that if you are going to make a large investment by purchasing a new or used RV, arm yourself with the tools you need to make an intelligent decision. Buy the RV Consumer Group. It's loaded with information on every unit made in the last 7 years +/-. Plus it contains two paperback book on how to negotiate the deal.



I have no affiliation with RV Consumer Group, nor do I get any kickback from them, nor do they even know I'm saying any of this. I just believe in their product because it was a great tool when my wife and I were trying to decide on a 5er.
 
Buy used!

Given the price of fuel and the economy in general, now is an excellent time to buy a TT or 5er. I just bought an 8 month old 5er locally and got an excellent deal. It was used very little, and the floor plan is just what we wanted. If you don't mind not having brand new, it is definitely a buyer's market. Not to mention we bought it about 1/3 under book.
 
Thank you Sam. That's what I wanted to hear. We have looked at several different Wildcat's and found that they were all sound and clean. Could be a dealer issue. We have also looked at the Jazz and like them too. It's the Wildcat floorplan that we really like the best.

Thank you Grizzly. I appreciate it. If I could find a 30' Arctic Fox brand new for $25K I would take it in a second I just don't see that happening. I can get a new Wildcat for that price or close to it with a few options we want. If you know of a dealer that can/will do that let me know!

kschitoskey; A used one here in this area with what we want is too close to the price of new to not get a new one with the warranty.
 
Thank you Grizzly. I appreciate it. If I could find a 30' Arctic Fox brand new for $25K I would take it in a second I just don't see that happening. I can get a new Wildcat for that price or close to it with a few options we want. If you know of a dealer that can/will do that let me know!







Then look at a Nash. They have the same quality and are 4 star rated, just not as plush as an AF. They are also much cheaper. Do a search for a Northwood Mfg dealer.



Call Sprad's RV, in Reno, NV, phone # 928-758-8800. They sell Nash and AF.
 
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So I finally sold my travel trailer last night. Now I'm asking your help once again. The wife and I have pretty much settled on the Wildcat 30 LOFT. It will be new unless something serious happens between now and then.



Our plan is to put around $10K down and go no longer than 7 years on the loan.



My question is, does anyone have any experience with this coach? I would like to hear all opinions, pro's, con's, etc... Thank you all.



Mark.



Have you checked out the prices at rvwholesalers.com? They have quite a few Wildcats in stock.
 
Have you checked out the prices at rvwholesalers.com? They have quite a few Wildcats in stock.



They do have smokin' prices but ... I was looking at the 2008 models, The 2009 models might be different. RVW sells units built in Indiana, the east coast models. The west coast models are built in Oregon and had different standard equipment. The major item was east coast builds got 15"tires and wheels. Standard equip west coast had 16" tires and wheels, slide out skylights and a couple of other items the east coast builds don't have.



Sam
 
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