Looking at Tiffin Allegro Bus/ Phaetons - RV-Dreams Community Forum

Powerstroke2000 · RV-Dreams Community Member

Looking at Tiffin Allegro Bus/ Phaetons

Terry and Jo · RV-Dreams Family Member

I may not be much help because we did our research on RV's back between 2008 and 2010. When we looked at the Tiffin products, I seem to remember that to change the fuel filters on the Phaetons required going in through the floor of the bedroom to get to them. I also seem to remember that the Allegro buses had more accessible ones from the outside.

Terry

Neil and Connie · RV-Dreams Family Member

Don't know much about class As as we're 5ver folks…so can't really advise there…but we do know several folks with Tiffin products and all have been reasonably satisfied.

Since you like to drive your 4-wheeler…you might consider pulling a trailer for it and driving the toad separately…Connie liked her 'me alone' time when we had a car. I died last spring and we haven't replaced it…using our RAM 5500HD for both towing and daily driving. Cost-wise the reduced fuel mileage is compensated for by no insurance on a 2nd vehicle and no driving 2 vehicles on travel days. Convenience wise I like having her in the truck with me and while driving the big truck around daily is more effort than a small car would be it's really not that hard and parking has been generally available albeit maybe we have to park a little farther from the door of whatever.

Honeydeaux · RV-Dreams Family Member

You may want to check out the Entegra class A's built by Jayco.
We love our Entegra Anthem.

NorCal Dan · RV-Dreams Family Member

As far as maintenance, yes you can do it yourself.

I would think a keen eye and good nose should help determine if there has been a water leak. Check around anything mounted on the roof like air conditioners, antenna's, marker lights, etc. for signs of leaking. Pay close attention to where walls meet the floor. If the unit has a basement be sure to take a look for water damage in there as well. Pull drawers and look behind them. Same with closets. Slideouts are another area that need to be looked at carefully for water damage or leaks.

There is no set formula that I know of for pricing.

Hdrider · RV-Dreams Family Member

We have had 2 Tiffin's, a 40' 2007 Phaeton that had a 350 Cat and now a 2014 Tiffin Phaeton 42LH with a 450 Cummins. The newer Phaetons starting in 2015 have the smart wheel like the buses and the cab forward design if that's what you were referring to.
I think the years 2007 to 2010 (maybe newer) had the "BIG 3" issues you should check for. Possible cracked roof rails, the wet bay floor and the drivers side front slide. The wet bay and drivers side slide had poor material used that had a tendency to get soft when wet. Tiffin was replacing (maybe they still are) at no cost so maybe make sure that was done or the coach you look at has no issues.
Water can run anywhere as you know so you should keep a keen eye open everywhere you look. If you see a floorplan you like that has a recliner be sure to move the recliner and walk on that section of floor. We ran across an issue in one design and after finding the same soft feel in a few coaches with the same issue Tiffin stopped the line and actually started beefing up that floor (it was in the 42LH floorplan).
Be sure to look at storage and the way you would use it, not apples to apples between different lines or even coaches within a line. Sometimes all the fancy jigs and zags of cabinets look nice but take away from usable space by making cabinets shallow. And make sure you like the countertop space and where they put plug-ins.
The list goes on forever but you know that LOL!!
Happy shopping

Gpndavid · RV-Dreams Family Member

We bought a 2007 Allegro Bus from Jeff Woodard at Woodard RV. They advertise on RVT.com with listings in Madison, AL. Jeff specializes in the Phaeton and Bus. He takes each to Red Bay and makes sure all recalls are done, has popular upgrades installed and guarantees everything works.
Dollar for dollar we could have bought a 3 year newer Phaeton for what we paid for the Bus. Both are good coaches. I like the fact the Bus has independent front suspension, a side radiator and doesn't require DEF. Jeff also had a new AquaHot system installed before we bought it. This had a few bugs to work out, but the company covered it and now it works great.

-- Edited by Gpndavid on Monday 5th of December 2016 08:28:56 PM

kb0zke · RV-Dreams Family Member

Welcome, Powerstroke2000. Decisions, decisions, decisions! Everything seems to be a compromise. You are starting out in the right was by asking questions. Let me suggest a few more for you and your wife to consider.

Are you going to be fulltimers, long-timers, vacationers, weekenders, or what? In other words, how much time will you spend on the road and how much time back at your sticks and bricks? How long will you stay parked at one place? General advice is to get a motor home if you will be driving it at least 50-60 miles at a time at least once a month. Towables are generally recommended if you are going to stay parked longer. That isn't to say you can't stay parked for a couple of months once in a while, but you get the idea. Motorhomes often have quite a few steps to climb when going from outside to inside. Fifth wheels may have even more. Any mobility issues?

Does your four wheeler fit in the bed of your pickup? If so, is your truck towable? Check www.remcoindustries.com/Towing/Store.php to find out. If four wheeler fits on the truck and the truck is towable you are set. Just get the necessary towing equipment (tow bar, baseplate, braking system) and you are set. If not, you MIGHT be able to get a trailer that will take both the truck and the four wheeler.

If you go the trailer route be sure to keep overall length in mind. Do a search for combined length limits and you will be surprised. Some States are as low as 45 feet (New Hampshire), while most are 65' or more. Those limits are NOT based on where your are licensed, but where you actually are. We have a 40' MH and a Jeep, so we're just under 60' overall length. If we were to go to one of those States that has a maximum combined length of less than 60' we'd have to unhook and drive separately to stay legal.

BTW, we've talked about driving separately and don't like the idea. We get fuel at the end of each travel day and sometimes we'll unhook then and drive into the campground separately, but we're always in communication with each other. No way we'd drive all day that way. You may well feel differently, but that's something the two of you need to discuss.