New to RV-Dreams.com and looking for advice on fifth wheel RV purchase. - RV-Dreams Community Forum

Joe Fresno · RV-Dreams Community Member

New to RV-Dreams.com and looking for advice on fifth wheel RV purchase.

CJSX2fromCT · RV-Dreams Family Member

As I always say to people " When you walk into the "right one" you will know your home." I wasn't even to the top step of ours and said to myself This thing is sold. We got rid of all the RV furniture and replaced it with what we had in the house, the sofa fit right through the window in the LVRM. The Redwood might be your choose today and a month from now you might be looking at something completely different. Take your time a get out there and look. Safe travels ahead.

The Bear II · RV-Dreams Family Member

I agree with CJSX2 above.

Every RV we have purchased (7) has been without research or suggestions from others. It was the one we liked best when we were out shopping. To this day our 22 year old 5th wheel has a floorplan which we like better than anything we've looked at over the years when we thought we needed a new RV.

Since you've never owned an RV before and I'm assuming never RV'd before you might want to consider a used RV or rent an RV for the first trip. It seems many newbies one or both partners find that they don't really care for RV travel. RV's have high depreciation in the first few years so it could be a big loss if you decided RVing not right for you. Just a thought based on posts to RV forums over the years.

-- Edited by The Bear II on Thursday 25th of August 2016 10:11:48 AM

Joe Fresno · RV-Dreams Community Member

Good suggestion to rent before buying. What are some good fifth wheel manufacturers? How used should we go before depreciation slows?

The Bear II · RV-Dreams Family Member

In my opinion based on the RVs we have bought plus reading posts on this forum along with several other RV forums...there is not a good answer regarding good manufacturers. Here's a couple of reasons:
When a manufacturer gets a reputation as a good manufacturer then dealers and private parties begin ordering lots of units. The manufacturer begins to have trouble keeping up with demand so they push the works, add shifts and quality sometimes suffers. So a good manufacturer today might not be so good tomorrow depending on demand.

In today's economy manufacturers are having to close their doors not due to low sales but often due to money trouble. They have trouble getting needed financing or the financiers they use fail due to poor investment strategies. So you end up with an RV that no longer is supported by the manufacturer and as it gets older service and parts get tougher to find.

Here's an example with the manufacturer of our 5th wheel. Our 5th wheel was one of the first to have a super slide and a 2nd slide in the bedroom. At the time most 5th wheels only had a couch sized slideout in the living room. This made the manufacturer very popular so they began to get behind on orders. They added a 2nd and then a third shift to keep up with demand. Consequently the units manufactured at the time were being delivered with numerous quality control issues. Ours had a list of over 10 items that needed to be fixed when we picked up. We ended up going in for service 5 times before everything seemed right.

This was in the late 90's around 2008s the manufacturer along with others began having financial problems. Ours closed the doors with no warning to customers or employees. They were taken over by the financial institution.

So again choose the one that fits your needs and enjoy. If you buy new you may experience problems with quality but the warranty will cover getting the items fixed in most cases.

With a slightly used unit you'll have a better chance of not having the initial problems. Plus you won't take the big depreciation hit.

Dreamsopen · RV-Dreams Family Member

I too agree with CJSX2 above.

Just take your time and from experience look at some used units, it could save you a ton of money and still get everything you are looking for.

jayc · RV-Dreams Family Member

You can gain a lot of insight about a manufacturer by looking at their owners forum, keepng in mind that for every complaint there are many satisfied owners out there. A trailer built with full timing in mind, even though you don't plan to do so, will be better built.

Rob_Fla · RV-Dreams Family Member

I agree with comments of the others, I have been fulltiming in my Redwood for 2 years now.
Has it been problem free, no, but Redwood has stepped up and taken care of any issue I have had.
I just got back from the Redwood Rally in Shipshewana Indiana, we had about 100 Redwood 5th Wheels in attendance, a great time was had by all.

My Redwood has held up well to my fulltime use and frequent moves year round. ( I move about every two weeks year round)
This is not my first RV, we have had 4 Travel Trailers and 2 5th Wheels prior to our Redwood.
When my wife and I walked into our Redwood it just felt like home and still does today.
Unfortunately I lost my wife of almost 40 years to cancer earlier this year so I am traveling alone with our puppy dog in my Redwood and still enjoying living on the road and seeing the USA.

Joe Fresno · RV-Dreams Community Member

Owner's Forum reviews, great suggest. Sorry for your loss Robert keep on going though, it sounds like your Redwood is a quality fifth wheel. Thanks for the feedback fellow rv community we look forward to joining you in 2017.

Howard · Host

Welcome Joe,

Many people ask us, after 11 years of full-timing, "What fifth wheel would you purchase today?" We tried to answer that question with a Journal entry back in April - What Fifth Wheel Would We Buy Today? - that you may find helpful. Or maybe not. :)

RonC · RV-Dreams Family Member

I think there is a lot of sage advice offered here. One bit of advice that I got was "once you get the structure right (frame, walls, floor, roof, etc.) then all the rest is gingerbread." So as long as the unit you're looking at meets your standards with regard to structure, then pick the one that you like. Things like color, curtains, floorplan, appliances, etc. ... none are "structure" related but those are the things that drive our buying decisions. Just get a good foundation and then you can't go wrong.