shaneotr

I should have listened to you all. We traded the 2004 Brave for a 2015 Suncruiser. Everything is different, nothing seems to work right...it's bigger, I love the counter space but the storage is much less, and we are so frustrated with how to get all the "bling" to work. I think it will be a great coach for us if we don't both have heart attacks getting it repaired, replaced, restored, and figure out how to use everything. Our Brave never even made it to be displayed on the lot. They sold it hours after we drove away with this huge paperweight!

We are looking for a used 36'-38' class A coach to replace our 2004 Winnebago Brave that is wonderful but has 83,000 miles on it and we are wanting to explore the northwest and northeast and would like a more updated engine and newer stuff. We are so spoiled with our Winnebago's fiberglass roof that doesn't need treating when we clean it. So far we've had very good luck with Winnebago. We've come across a very nice 2015 Bounder and a 2015 Challenger and they both have TPO roofs, something I am not familiar with at all. Not to mention the unbelievably hard time we're having finding any coach that has the basement and interior storage, and galley that our 2004 has. Sometimes I wonder if the designers and manufacturers ever use a RV to know what's actually needed in them! Thanks for your responses. Guess it's all a crap shoot in the end.

We're hunting for an upgrade from our 2004 Winnebago Brave. Not only are we having trouble finding a newer used coach with as much storage and room as ours does, I worry about treating and durability of a TPO roof on some we've considered as we are used to fiberglass roof. Any thoughts?

Thanks! We will keep looking and test driving. That 2009 Meridian sure did surprise me with all the rattles and inside noise. I can get the same thing out of our gasser!! Happy Traveling!

I thought I wanted a DP as we are looking to upgrade from our 2004 Winnebago brave. We are very spoiled with lots of kitchen counter space and storage and a huge wardrobe area in our 36' gas RV. We have driven 2 Dps (one had over 100000 miles and was junk however) and they were so noisey inside. Yes, it drove very well and rode great, but on a rougher road it sounded like the entire interior was coming apart and it was empty!! Our loaded coach doesn't sound any worse than the 2009 Journey sounded empty. Is this normal? We ran, not walked, away from that deal and with the extra cost of a DP are back to looking for a gasser for the upgrade. We want to travel to the north east and north west...mountains mountains mountains...my husband has never driven in mountainous terrain, I have. I don't welcome the idea in a 36-37' gas motorhome. It's not the slow going upgrade...it's the too fast downgrades that really worry me. I've seen way too many faded braking results while driving a big rig. I thought diesel pushers were quiet?

Will do, thanks manholt!

I really wish it were that easy. The by pass valve was the very first thing I checked as ....I had no water from the hot water spigots! So yes the by pass valve was on...the spouse swears he didn't touch it...must have been gremlins....but I switched it on, and that's when I discovered that the water wouldn't heat up. Once I knew I had water in the tank, I started the hot water heater. It fired right up but 15 minutes later when I checked it..the heater wasn't heating and the water was still cold. Not warm, not tepid...cool...so I turned on the electric heater, as I was already at the campground, waited 10-15 minutes and still cold water. So I turned the gas heater on again and heard it fire right up...waited a minute or so and went outside and felt the heat coming from the vent, heard the burner working, still cold water!!!! I am now clueless as to what to check next. RICHARD5933, I had no idea that the outside showers would effect the performance of the main heater as we rarely use those outside faucets. However, since gremlins turned on the by pass valve, perhaps those pesky gremlins turned on the outside faucets as well. it's late tonight so in the morning, I will definitely check those faucets. Our hot water heater has never given us a speck of trouble and worked very well at the FMCA rally in Ga. as well as the last trip to northern Indiana. Honestly, the non working water took me completely by surprise. Hubby just cleaned out the tank sediment last fall but who knows if he got it all. We aren't experts in this field. Thank you for the suggestions. Will check the outside faucets and after that, I am suspecting the thermostat which will probably mean a trip to ye ole repair shoppe. If you think if anything else please let me know! Thanks again!

I really wish it were that easy. The by pass valve was the very first thing I checked as ....I had no water from the hot water spigots! So yes the by pass valve was on...the spouse swears he didn't touch it...must have been gremlins....but I switched it on, and that's when I discovered that the water wouldn't heat up. Once I knew I had water in the tank, I started the hot water heater. It fired right up but 15 minutes later when I checked it..the heater wasn't heating and the water was still cold. Not warm, not tepid...cool...so I turned on the electric heater, as I was already at the campground, waited 10-15 minutes and still cold water. So I turned the gas heater on again and heard it fire right up...waited a minute or so and went outside and felt the heat coming from the vent, heard the burner working, still cold water!!!! I am now clueless as to what to check next.

My gas hot water heater in our 2004 Winnebago Brave will ignite..and burn...for at least 5 minutes I can feel the heat coming from the outside vent...but the water never gets even warm. I've tried the electric and still no warm or hot water. What do I check first? I've cleaned the burner tube and surrounding areas of all debris

To jleamont and dstrahm Thank you so much for the information and the links!!! I have searched for that exact information for almost 2 years as we are looking for a newer RV to replace our Winnebago Brave. She's been a wonderful coach for us with the M36 Workhorse chassis and a GCWR of 26000 and we wanted no less in a newer coach. Of course we are waging the old battle of diesel verses gas and weight ratings have a lot to do with that comparison. Since we are not full timers but do put on about 10,000 miles a year and flat tow, the information you have provided is essential to me. Why the ratings stickers in the newer model coaches no longer include a GCWR (or GCVWR Gross Combination Vehicle Weight Rating) is beyond me! Salesmen are a hoot! Except for the one that sold my sister in-law a way too heavy travel trailer for her Buick to pull. Thank you thank you again!! Why I didn't think of posting sooner I don't know but this forum is a wonderful wealth of information. Have safe and memorable travels.

Hi, I definitely have a dilemma. I am trying to find out what the Gross Combination Weight Rating is for a class A Triton V10 motor 24K chassis weight. Yes I know what the GVWR's are and I know what or where to find the tow ratings. However, the newer coaches no longer have a GCVWR on the stickers that show the GVWR and empty weights and all the other weights for that coach. We flat tow and yes, I know that the Triton V10 with the 24K chassis will tow our 3300 lb Malibu, but what exactly is the manufacturer's combination weight ratings on those type coaches. Why are they no longer listed on the sticker weight ratings? And if you want a real chuckle for the day, ask that question to a salesperson!!! The answers you get from the sales staff or a manufacturers representative is to say the least....amazingly comical! I even went to an Ohio State Police Post and asked them where to find the GCVWR and their answer was, "don't worry about it, we won't pull you over and weigh you"! Well, needless to say, that didn't help much. I am debating the age old question of gas verses diesel and since we are not full timers, gas makes the budget look a whole lot better. However, I do not want to be replacing brakes in the RV or putting undo strain on the drive train in the mountains. At this point, all I want is a real answer. How do I find or calculate the GROSS COMBINATION VEHICLE WEIGHT RATING for a class A gas motor home when that information is not on the information sticker in an individual coach? I do not feel comfortable towing any vehicle behind a unit without that information. By the way, yes, we do have an SMI auxilliary braking system for our vehicle. Does anyone have a straight answer?