Opinions on new 34 - 36' 5th wheel

[TowPro]

Unless you have an awfully large family or are going to park it and livee in it I would not consider anything longer than 31" to pull down the highway. I have a 31' and have had a 28', two 30"s and another 31'. Can't understand why the industry is going to such big/long units. Might as well hook onto a mobile home. Well you ask for opinions. bg

I agree about keeping is shorter. That's one of the reasons I bought a Titanium My pin to bumper is 31', but my living space is 36'

 

[Foil Freak 1211]

I have a Gulf Stream Sea Hawk that I am happy with. They changed the name, are now called Prarie Schooner. A buddy of mine has a 34' that he likes as well. When I bought mine, I looked at Carriage, Alpha, and the Montana. The Sea Hawk was the best value I found.

 

[DonTX]

TowPro that is an interesting trailer, never saw one of them before. I have thought that the lack of streamling was deplorable on 5th wheels, and have toyed with some ideas of making my own, but lack a wind tunnel that big.

Has that company ever had any testing done to prove their design? Do you notice the fuel savings they claim?

 

[smd]

One more thing...



In our Everest hunting, we've come across the Montana which is also made by Keystone.



Anyone own one... know someone that does? Good unit or bad ?









I have the 2955 Montana, awesome unit, family of four plus 1 golden and 2 bassetts - room for all. :-laf

 

[SHobbs]

Almost 4 years in my Cardinal and could not be happier. In this amount of time it has been to shop only twice and both times were minor. Look for a coach that offers the liveable space and storage you you need. Also if you are going to be doing extended stays then a high "R" factor in the walls, floor and roof are important. Also I found out it's a good idea to have a 2nd a/c if the coach is 28ft or longer. I was told by a tech at Camping World that the a/c units are designed only to cool around 20* below outside ambient temp. Thats why I added a 2nd one after a 104* day and all I could do is cool the coach down to 84*.



Also a bedroom slide is a great to have if there are more than one person in the 5er, alot more room to move around, 50amp power, black water flush and enclosed underbelly are nice things to have. I also have a water filtration system built in that filters all water entering the coach which is nice. Something to think about on the 2nd a/c and even slide out covers. If you get the coach pre wired and framed for a 2nd/ ac installing one or even slideout covers is cheaper out of pocket than adding them to the final cost and financing of the 5er or anything else you might want to add later.

 

[DonTX]

We looked at two Cardinals we thought we wanted, but the dealer was over book price so we did not get them, but they were nice. I can agree on most all of that, except the AC requirements. My Avion is pretty well insulated, and does have the underbelly covered, but one AC cools the 35 footer quite well with both slides extended, that is what it was sold new with. It has been sitting here in the direct sun of S Texas for the several months since I bought it, no shade whatever, and I have been putzing around in it daily. It will cool it to whatever temp I set the thermostat, definitely far below 20 degrees below ambient. Maybe the Camping World Salesman was just doing his job. Maybe my AC is better than most (just an ordinary old Coleman though, original and it is an old 97 model). And maybe the old Avion is well insulated. I just sold a 31 foot HiLo, only one AC on it, no problems there either.

 

[nunya]

custom ordered our Keystone Montana 3400RL, picked it up in April and have spent 25 nights in it and love it! NO problems of any sort at all, towed it home from Utah and have had it to the mountains and the lake and have gotten alot of positive comments on it! and it does have dual AC units installed . If ya need more info just ask, I`m sure you would be real pleased.

 

[Bob Cochran]

Have a 2002 Keystone Everest 35' with triple slides. Have had problems but not with the manufacturer rather things like heater and refrig, etc. that you some blame the manufacturer for but should not. I took it back once to the dealer with some minor problems. Of all the 5er's we look at the wife liked the floor plan on this one the best(model 323P). I would buy another one no problem with that but you will find some who won't too.

 

[CROW]

d. miner- Check your PM's.

 

[TowPro]

About the Titanium. I towed a 30' Terry, they type that looked like a bill board in the front. In fact towing it up to the dealer to trade it in, I was getting 12mpg, all flat roads, around 100 miles following a river. On the way home towing the Titanium my MPG went up 1. 5. While its not a lot, it does indicate less air resistance. Its most noticable at highway speeds, it just seems to take less effort once your moving.

the air flow around the nose has lifted a wood block or 2 out of the bed at highway speeds (running the stock tailgate).

Titanium is a true 4 seasons rig that many people full time in. There not as cheep as some, but there are many more expensive. I have had 0 problems with it. This is the first RV we have had that we both agree that if something happened to it, or we decided to change sizes we would still by from the same manufacture.

titanium dealers are not all over the place, Glendale works with you if you need something repaired on the road. Call them and they will let some other dealer fix it if needed.

Edit: If you have any questions or want more information, try the Titanium Owners Homepage

 

[DonTX]

That all sounds about reasonable. I have several friends who have noticed easier pulling and mpg gains by switching brands. Mine has a nose as you can see from the photos that not only is high because of the walk around bedroom, but is shaped like large barn door. I have considered one of the truck cab top deflectors, but I have never found anyone with one that thought it done any good for them. We shall soon see what mine does in regards to pulling economy.

 

[SHobbs]

Don,



I have Dometic's Duotherm a/c, I have been told that they are not as good as Coleman but not sure on that.

 

[rweis]

I have done a fair amount of reading on wind deflectors. GENERALLY



They might contribute a little to mpg (. 1 - . 5) maybe, but for us in florida the key is they can keep the LOVE BUGS off the front. They probably will never recover their orgional cost in mpg, but are worth their weight in gold for the bug problem.



Bob Weis

 

[DonTX]

Gosh, I had never even thought about them for that purpose, thanks.

I have done a fair amount of reading on wind deflectors. GENERALLY



They might contribute a little to mpg (. 1 - . 5) maybe, but for us in florida the key is they can keep the LOVE BUGS off the front. They probably will never recover their orgional cost in mpg, but are worth their weight in gold for the bug problem.



Bob Weis

 

[d.miner]

Well okay... thank you all !



Let's recap:



Alfa - Good but some cooling issues.



Carriage - Said to be good unit.



Everest/Montana - some good, some bad.



Hitchhiker - Compliments from everybody.



Jayco Designer - One response and it was a positive one.



And a lot of other good info in between.



Is that it... ? Any other experiences, anything else to share ?



Thanks, Dan

 

[Jim Potteiger]

d. miner, I notice your truck is a single rear wheel. You may have too much pin weight with a 35 ft. trailer. I have owned to Hitchhikers. The one I currently have is a 35ft. four slide Champange (sp) edition HH. My trailer has a gross weight of 16400 lbs. Be careful of Gross Completed weight. This is the truck weight plus the trailer. I have been very pleased with the HH. The factory people are very good to work with. I will buy another HH.

 

[Kvic]

We have a Carriage "Carri-lite" 34' triple slide. Love it and after two years only minor issues, but that is just part of the game.

 

[rubberneck]

My in-laws have a 35 ft 2001 alfa, and it is the biggest piece of garbage i have ever seen. The AC is far less than marginal, and as previously mentioned, they also use a window mounted unit to keep the thing cool. Nothing like having a walmart window unit in your 50+ K trailer The dealer said it was working to spec and was no help. Within first 2 years had 3 separate leaks in the roof, the wiring is absolutely atrocious. I would run not walk away from anything made by alfa. Not wanting to hurt any feelings, just stating first had experience. I have an Alpenlite and absolutely love it. Very Very minimal problems in the 5 years I have had it. Biggest being operator error when i left the awning out and left for the day. Wind kicked up and you can imagine the mess i came back to. Only issues we did have were a leaking toilet (fixed by me by tightening the clamp around the base) and a pop out that kept blowing breakers. Found a scuffed wire and insulated it. Thats it.

 

[tgrfan2]

Well okay... thank you all !



Let's recap:



Alfa - Good but some cooling issues.



Carriage - Said to be good unit.



Everest/Montana - some good, some bad.



Hitchhiker - Compliments from everybody.



Jayco Designer - One response and it was a positive one.



And a lot of other good info in between.



Is that it... ? Any other experiences, anything else to share ?



Thanks, Dan

Well we shopped with another couple for about six months. They ordered a 2003 Big Sky 3575. We had decided on the Big Sky 3670 until we saw the Everest. The generator bay was big enough for my Honda to fit and that sold me!

Both of us have been very happy with everything except the AlKo axles. I understand Montana is offering the Big Sky again.

We did compare lengths and weight. There just wasn't that much difference in wgt and length then between 32s that were 34+ and 35-36s which were 37-38 feet long. There was a difference in floor plan and storage though.

The empty pin wgt on both were around 2100# and so with our generators and tailgating "stuff" like 25" TVs in the bay, canopies, and adult beverages they run 2700# on the pin.

He pulls with a D3500 SRW which might be a bit of overkill! My 363 tows much better than my 31'TT did even with 4K+ more weight and my mileage is about the same though I usually tow it a bit faster. More aerodynamic I guess.

I think all of your choices are good and a bad dealer can ruin any of them!

 

[cpl0199]

I just bought an 07 Montana 3400 RL 37'. We have used the new unit two times so far and love it. It has tons of room for the wife and I, plus our two kids and at times her parents. It has two A/C's, which I believe are an assest. I did quite a lot of research before buying and I looked at many units. I almost purchased the Jayco Designer, but the wife like the Montana much better. It is rated the #1 seller among 5er's. The quality of construction so far is excellent. There is plenty of storage. I love the under belly storage. Right now if I had to go out and buy another unit I would buy Montana. I installed the Superglide hitch 16K and the Air ride king pin, these two items have made my driving much easier and smoother. I bought my unit from a dealer in Frederick Maryland, they treated me like I was gold. They are great and their service is excellent. If I can answer any other questions please let me know. OH, forgot to mention that I also looked the Presidental and must say the Montana seems to be better built.