Dynamax Trilogy - RV-Dreams Community Forum

Racerguy · RV-Dreams Family Member

RE: Dynamax Trilogy

ronjoyce · RV-Dreams Community Member

We are in Branson, MO. Just ran into our first Trilogy at a campground. The owners have had the unit since March 2012. Over all they are very happy with their unit. But, as I have seen on other blogs, they have had issues with the lack of insulation in their unit. The area in the front of the unit became very hot in the heat of the summer. The owner removed some panels and foud a very large area with NO insulation. The company did not respond to his complaint so he filled it himself. This is a problem this company is not addressing for some reason. And it tells me they are ignoring it. Questions of their 'R' rating goes unanswered. We may decide to stick with Cedar Creeks as we know how they are built and that branch of Forest River does respond to these issues. Just though I would pass this along. Along with normal camper issues the pwners are happy with the unit.

Jo And Craig · RV-Dreams Family Member

Excellent information and VERY good to know. Thanks for sharing this with us. If their insulation shucks, it would be a cryin' sin and shame because this unit really is awesome. However, I never want to fight the stay cool... or warm for that matter. Let's hope they do something about it over time. Keep in mind, however, that Forest River has not owned Dynamax that long so I'm hoping they will work out the kinks... and certainly before WE are ready to buy!

Lucky Mike · RV-Dreams Family Member

Thank you Terry & Jo!!!!!!

-- Edited by Lucky Mike on Saturday 27th of October 2012 08:13:53 PM

Terry and Jo · RV-Dreams Family Member

This thread has kind of gone dormant, but I finally got by a dealer today and looked at the Dynamax Trilogy. I meant to go to the Oklahoma City RV Show a couple of weeks ago to see one, but other things got in the way. Since I had been asked my opinion of the RV and really couldn't give an informed opinion, I felt that those that had asked questions deserved some long delayed answers.

However, you will still need to wait just a bit. I took some pictures with my cell phone and looked it over pretty well on the outside and Jo looked it over on the inside. Thus, we have some comments to make about both inside and out from the perspectives of both wife and husband. Because of that, I will likely write a lot of comments along with about 12 or 14 pictures, so instead of doing a really long post here, I'll try to write a blog post this evening and then come back here and post a link to it.

Please be patient.

Terry

Terry and Jo · RV-Dreams Family Member

As promised above, I have written a blog post entry about the Dynamax Trilogy fifth wheels that I saw today. The dealership in Oklahoma City had one of each model, those being the Trilogy 3850 D3 and the Trilogy 3800 D3. I tried to be as objective as I could and simply pointed out things that concerned me.

Keep in mind, this is one man's observations. Well, Jo also weighed in with comments about what she noticed with the interior of the coaches. I tried to remember what she said, and I will apologize in advance should I have forgotten something that she commented about.

So, without further ado, here is the link to my blog.

Personal Observations on Dynamax Trilogy Fifth Wheel

Terry

trimixdiving · RV-Dreams Community Member

Looking forward to your " experienced " evaluation Terry and Jo. I started this thread because we looked at this unit in January and really liked it but it was new to the market and my wife and I are wanabe full timers. I have to say, I am disapointed with the lack of response from Dynamax about the insulation in the Trilogy. Because we like the unit and it has many nice features for the price, we are going to take a tour of the Dynamax facility in a few months. If I don't get some answers at that time, we will cross it of our short list.

MarkS · RV-Dreams Family Member

Terry, Thanks for that blog. Reviews by an experienced full-timer are incredibly valuable to newby researchers who know what they like but maybe not why they like it. It also helps to open our eyes to items we may not even think about. I was looking at a Trilogy a few weeks ago. This was the first time I had been able to spend some time in a coach with no salesman so I had an opportunity to imagine living in the coach. I was impressed with some things that I saw. However, some of the daily living things started to reveal themselves. For example, as I looked at the counter space I asked myself, where would I put the coffee pot so it would be out of the way but always at the ready? If DW was making bread, where would she kneed it? When I looked at the pantry I noticed a large unused space between the front of the closet and the swing out shelves. That space begged to be used but, anything you put there would have to be moved before you swung out the shelves. Why weren't the shelves moved forward and the back wall used too? I noticed that some of the coach controls were in a shallow cabinet to the left of the stairs leading to the bedroom. Inside the front door was another shallow cabinet with one switch in it. It was like an after thought. In a 2000 square foot house, no big deal but, in a 400 square foot bungalow I need all the space to be well thought out. I need storage more than I need food. (You know what I mean). I began to visualize living in the space and it gave me new eyes to do my research with. I have no idea about repetitive tasks outside and hope that the designers of these coaches know why they don't mount the sewage hose storage area on the roof because until I have to dump the black tank in blowing snow in Wyoming I won't have an opinion. But you can rest assured that the first time I come in out of the cold, up to my elbows in poop, and don't have a hot cup of coffee sitting on my counter, that the designers of that coach will drop off my BFF list forever!

Racerguy · RV-Dreams Family Member

Sarg....I'm baffled as to why you would want to store the sewer hose on the roof or am I misunderstanding what you said.:)

Terry and Jo · RV-Dreams Family Member

Tim,

Go back and look at the forum post just before your last posting. That is where the link is to the review that I wrote.

Mark,

I'm somewhat with George (Racerguy) on this one. Some folks that I know have taken 8' lengths of 6" PVC and found a way to fasten them under the belly of the fifth wheel, and that is where they store their sewer hoses so they are not in the basement. I need to do the same, but since we live full time still in Oklahoma City, we don't move enough for the current system to be unhandy.

Terry

Racerguy · RV-Dreams Family Member

My Cedar Creek had a factory installed sewer hose compartment built into the lower skirting right by the hookup.It held 30 feet of sewer hose plus all other sewer fittings.

Terry and Jo · RV-Dreams Family Member

I've now got a few more comments about our visit to the RV dealership yesterday. While this first one does not relate "directly" to the Trilogy fifth wheels, Jo noticed that the dealership had no service department where they could work on the RV's. When we were inside the office area to pick up a brochure, I also noticed that there was no parts department onsite either.

Why I bring that up is a question as to why a manufacturer would allow their product to be sold and serviced by a dealership that had no onsite service department? Do they rely on a mobile tech? How soon could a mobile tech arrive is something needed to be done quickly? It is almost like the question as to why they don't put ladders on the Trilogy.

Speaking of the ladder, Mary Sunshine had mentioned that the factory had told her that "they" didn't want the liability of someone falling from the roof. I assume that one is still going to need to perform periodic preventative maintenance on the air conditioners. If so, and if one doesn't do that oneself, would that then mean that the liability would fall on the owner of the coach if a service tech falls off of the roof? Well, that would likely be the case anyway, even if one had a ladder. Someone else will have to answer that legal question as I'm not an attorney.

We also opened the front compartment of the Trilogy and found the 1000 watt inverter. I was shocked as to how small that inverter was in size. However, to be fair, our coach has a 3000 watt inverter that is capable of powering more things than just the refrigerator. Out inverter is probably about 4 times the size of the 1000 watt one that we saw in that compartment. Sorry, but I didn't think to take a picture of the inverter. Now, if the only thing that it is powering is the refrigerator, the 1000 watt may very well be big enough. However, as food for thought, if one had to have an electrical device for breathing and the power went off, would that be something of concern?

Mark made a good observation in his post above in that the pantry does leave one with either wasted space or the need to remove things in order to swivel the cabinet to reach something in the back. Jo (my wife) also mentioned that the pantry shelves didn't seem to have a way of really keeping the taller products on the shelves.

Terry

Jo And Craig · RV-Dreams Family Member

Terry, thank you and Jo so very much for taking the time to check out the Trilogy. We appreciate your thoroughness and making the trip to help so many of us out. What concerns me most (now that you've brought it up) is the built-in LP tank. The thought of gas/fume build-up in the underbelly is really something to think about. AND, while you have brought this point up, I suppose that much LP could be a very dangerous proposition! I thought the overall storage was quite ample as I get concerned that it doesn't take much before one is overweight. Jo's point about the washer/dryer in the closet taking up space is well taken, although that is the largest closet I have seen, thus far. We still have time to continue our research and your generosity is greatly appreciated. Thanks for helping us all out!

So, I suppose that the top rated coaches out there (in your humble opinion) is the New Horizon and then the DRV? My only concern is the cost and weight. Being first timers, I can't see going so far over the top pricewise, and I am "Ms. Nasty Nice". I would really prefer a new, clean coach as I do foresee us fulltiming at least 4-5 years, minimum.

P.S. Will keep you and Jo in my prayers!

MarkS · RV-Dreams Family Member

I thought the sewer hose on the roof was obvious enough but I guess not. It was actually as ridiculous an example as I could come up with at the time but the fact that some took it literally actually makes designers of coaches suspect. Really suspect! Now I will have to be more alert to extraordinarily stupid ideas as I research. Unless you guys tell me you were only kidding! You were only kidding, weren't you? The only thing more ridiculous is the thought that I could ever afford a New Horizons!

Terry and Jo · RV-Dreams Family Member

Mary Sunshine wrote:
Terry, thank you and Jo so very much for taking the time to check out the Trilogy. We appreciate your thoroughness and making the trip to help so many of us out. What concerns me most (now that you've brought it up) is the built-in LP tank. The thought of gas/fume build-up in the underbelly is really something to think about. AND, while you have brought this point up, I suppose that much LP could be a very dangerous proposition! I thought the overall storage was quite ample as I get concerned that it doesn't take much before one is overweight. Jo's point about the washer/dryer in the closet taking up space is well taken, although that is the largest closet I have seen, thus far. We still have time to continue our research and your generosity is greatly appreciated. Thanks for helping us all out!
So, I suppose that the top rated coaches out there (in your humble opinion) is the New Horizon and then the DRV? My only concern is the cost and weight. Being first timers, I can't see going so far over the top pricewise, and I am "Ms. Nasty Nice". I would really prefer a new, clean coach as I do foresee us fulltiming at least 4-5 years, minimum.
P.S. Will keep you and Jo in my prayers!

Jo,

Thanks for your thoughts and prayers for Jo and I. You have no idea how much we appreciate you and so many others. For the most part, with almost 44 years of marriage, we have been blessed with great health, but more importantly, we've been blessed with so many friends, both online ones and face-to face.

As you know, the New Horizon will be the most expensive fifth wheel brand out there. While Space Craft is another option that is custom built, one doesn't have to go that far into debt. My advice is to keep looking, with the thought in mind to find a manufacturer that is willing to alter and modify a "standard" floor plan and make it more personal for the buyer. In that regard, DRV does have a good reputation as to making changes and working with the buyers after the sale.

I invite you to check out Suites Owners International Travel Club (SOITC) and its forums. Whether you sign up or not, you can read the comments of other owners and get an idea of how much DRV supports its customers. (For your information, on that forum, our username is millerjnt.) You will also find a number of DRV owners that have owned more than one over the years. There is even one that has bought 6 I think, but they trade about every two years.

Don't be afraid of buying a used DRV. There are some very good ones out there that are being sold by the owners. Another source is Rolling Retreats in Elk City, OK. That is a mom and pop business where they got their start by buying used DRV's at auction after they had been repossessed, fixing up anything that didn't operate correctly, and cleaning them from stem to stern. To be honest, we have been friends with Alicia and Slade since about 2009 (I think) when we were looking. Since then, they have become a full-fledged dealership for DRV and are gaining quite a good reputation. They have sold units to folks from New York, Iowa, Colorado, Houston, Arizona and who knows where else. They offer a good price and excellent service.

If you read the following blog entry, you will see that I wrote of our very first instance of being a customer of Alicia and Slade. In the post, I described them replacing our original dining table and chairs with a new style. Slade spent 5 hours working on that installation to make absolutely sure that everything was done exactly right. Because the cabinet part sits against the wall, he had to cut out about a 6' or 7' length of floor molding. Then, he took the time to cut that molding so that he would have pieces to put back inside the storage areas of the cabinet so that if one opens the door to look in the storage space, one sees a very well finished wall section.

Rolling Retreats Vacation....What?

Now, if you go to looking at DRV units, keep in mind one thing....the price you may see on a website may very well not be the price you actually pay. I've heard of owners buying through their dealers saving 10's of thousands of dollars. While I don't want to advertise prices here, Jo and I even got a very healthy reduced price. NEVER PAY TOO MUCH ATTENTION TO MSRP! Alicia and Slade seldom put a price on their website for the new units except to list MSRP. I think they don't advertise prices because they may be giving better prices than what some other DRV dealers are doing. If you are interested, give them a call. Right at the moment, they have a 2010 similar to ours.

But whatever you do, don't give up looking unless you decide to give up the dream.

Terry

Terry and Jo · RV-Dreams Family Member

MarkS wrote:
I thought the sewer hose on the roof was obvious enough but I guess not. It was actually as ridiculous an example as I could come up with at the time but the fact that some took it literally actually makes designers of coaches suspect. Really suspect! Now I will have to be more alert to extraordinarily stupid ideas as I research. Unless you guys tell me you were only kidding! You were only kidding, weren't you? The only thing more ridiculous is the thought that I could ever afford a New Horizons!

Mark,

OK. I'll have to freely admit to having "forum reader's" disease. That is a case that when one reads a post and misses as much as ONE word, that it throws the whole message off track. It did with me, and I'm one of the moderators. I'm supposed to do better than that.

As a moderator, I hereby officially absolve you of ANY wrongdoing in that post, and officially place a dunce cap upon my own head.

Terry

Lucky Mike · RV-Dreams Family Member

Nice hat you have there Terry..................................LOL

Racerguy · RV-Dreams Family Member

I guess we all miss one once in a while.

MarkS · RV-Dreams Family Member

I get the hat next!

Jack Mayer · RV-Dreams Family Member

Like Terry said, I would be looking for a used higher-line unit. I consider a DRV to be in that category. You will do far better with a used well constructed unit with higher-line appliances and amenities than with a new unit that is not as well built or has RV junk appliances. While you may not be in the price range of a New Horizons, Spacecraft, or Forks coach, getting a used DRV should give you a good product at a reasonable price.

I also recommend Rolling Retreats if you are looking for a DRV.

Camr · RV-Dreams Community Member

I recall reading that Dynamax is no longer manufacturing 5th wheels. We looked very seriously at the Trilogies, but could not keep track of all the changes that were being made to the line. First batch had curved "bus like" sidewalls, frame mounted propane tanks, and fibreglass roofs. Then those items disappeared. They didn't seem to have a clear long range plan of what they were building.
The fact that they are no longer in production will, no doubt, affect parts availability.