troyarussell@att.net

Wow - I guess we dodged a bullet in our experience with Discount Van and RV (Discount RV Furniture.com). I was so put off by their seat builders attitude (Ivas) over the phone and in emails that we did not even get to the point of ordering furniture from them. I had a bad feeling that if during a sale they treated their customers so poorly that it could only get worse once they had my money. We are still searching for a good source for our RV furniture as we begin to remodel; seems they are all either too far away for us 9-5 workin folks or are internet sales only - shoot Troy R.

Wow - I had not even considered that loans may not be the term lengths they used to be. Thanks for the heads up, I'll check into that. Troy R

Thanks for the input Tom. You touch on a couple very good points. Financially, it is probably not smart - use vs cost just does not makes sense. It will be just a 'want to do this' as far as the monetary portion goes. What is primarily concerning us for this change is what you also touched on: "The aggravation factor related to repair work may be lower on a newer motor home - or it may not - depending on how well the previous owner took care of the motor home. Even a brand new motor home has its repair list within a few trips. If you've got something good, stick with it." As I research I am finding that as motorhomes have become more complicated so have the associated issues i.e. slide motors, slide seals, air bag issues, trailing arm and frame problems, heater problems, de-lamination etc. Our rig, like any RV has ongoing minor maintenance to be worked through but it seems simplistic compared to these newer rigs. Ours is looking much less complex and of course we are dealing with the known vs the unknown which is always more comfortable. So to make a change, it probably is more philosophical than factual, and to try and understand who was building the most trouble free of these complicated rigs during the '05 to '08 period is probably our first step. We may hear from folks that the old '95 is built like a tank and they wish they had never changed, or they bought an '06 XX and never looked back. I do appreciate folks chiming in, as a business analyst by trade it is tough for me to make these types of non-fact based decisions without some kind of supporting data - hahaha - my poor wife. Troy R.

Hi all, Looking for opinions (non held against you) to help us make a decision. We own a 1995 Safari Sahara 3530 with about 40k miles on it. We have owned this rig for about 10 years now and still really like it but it is aging so we are thinking of making a change. Our budget will not afford a new motorhome so we are looking for something about 5 years old, same 35 foot size (+- a foot) and would like to stay under $100k. We have a 4200# toad so diesel chassis is probably the only option. We do not travel full time, so this is a couple weekends a month and a couple (or a few) extended trips a year So what are your thoughts? - What 2005 - 2008 is comparable to our Safari quality and structure build - Is it worth upgrading or keep what we have, do some interior updates, continue mechanical maintenance and plan for mechanical upgrades as parts wear - If you owned a Safari and made a change, what's your hindsight Troy R. Concord, CA 1995 Sahara 3530 2003 Ford Sport Trac Toad