For the last 3 years, we have traveled with my '92 D250 towing a '93 Jayco 35' TT and usually log between 5K and 10K miles a year traveling to places like NY, DC, MN, CO, and NM.

Now my wife is talking about looking for a newer rig. Because she deals with a lot of pain when sitting in one place for a long time, we usually have keep our travel days a lot shorter than what I'd prefer so I'm thinking about looking into a motorhome where she could move around a bit when she needed to; hopefully extending the length of our travel day some but I hate the thought of giving up the reliability of my mechanically injected CTD which brings me (finally) to the point of this post.

Does anyone have suggestions as to what to look for or watch out for in a diesel powered motorhome? I'd prefer to stay with an I6 mechanically injected diesel such as the C-series Cummins but am open to other ideas as well.

 

I know this isn't much help, but there is a guy on 1stgen.org who has a Non I/C VE 6bt in his motorhome. Might want to check it out.

 

I'm not really an expert but I don't think most motorhomes came with diesels, other than the real big pushers. If I were you I'd get a cheap Class A and swap a Cummins in. I found this link a long time ago, where a guy converted his Travco:

http://rides.webshots.com/album/232660691ZBdqUT

There's a detailed log he kept of the swap somewhere which I'm sure you can find with some searching if you're interested.

 

Diesel motorhomes (except the big bus types) are not common. But, they're not impossible. I'v seen quite a few Ford van chassis with diesels, and a couple of Chevy's. Dodge is pretty rare, mostly because Dodge doesn't make a full sized van anymore.

I did see a class C built on a Dodge p/u chassis; it had a diesel and 4 wheel drive. But I'v only seen one over the years. That leads me to believe it was custom built.

Winnebago makes a few with a small diesel. I'd be cautious about the specs, though. Some of those diesels appear kind of small/underpowered to my amature eye. Same thing with those made out of the Dodge Sprinter van; it uses a Mercedes 3.0 that only makes 280 ft/lbs. I would think a vehicle that heavy would need more torque. But I'v not driven one; it could be the perfect choice for you.

They're out there, you just have to find them.

 

I'm guessing that I'll need to look at a Class A motorhome to get the diesel that I'm looking for. My understanding is that the '97 and earlier 8.3L Cummins was mechanically injected just like the 5.9L.

 

There are actually quite a few older Class A's out there with 12 valve Cummins' in them with an Allison tranny behind them.

Here is a crude example on a quick search on rvtrader. http://www.rvtraderonline.com/find/l...ASTAR-95383142

Here is a better one but it might be an 8.3 not sure. http://www.rvtraderonline.com/find/l...UNDER-92319807

Here is a 12 valve 5.9 190 HP with the Allsion. http://www.rvtraderonline.com/find/l...under-95090980

 

12v,how big a unit are you looking at,how much do you want to spend,what kind of amenities?Look at my sig.I choose this brand because(a)although most r/v's have the same basic stuff inside them,these are glued and screwed,not staple gunned,(b)extremely stiff chassis,so if you want to put tile flooring down it will not lift or chip,(c)mechanically relatively simple. Spartan chassis,allison trans.,12v mechanical engine.Am I in the process of making it more to my taste,yes,gotta have some kind of hobby to keep out of trouble.So,very straight forward simple unit for me,no slides or plastic skin.I tend toward Barth,Hawkins or Foretravel.

 

I think the previous poster sort of hit the nail on the head. What size do you want? How much do you want to spend? There are lots of Class A diesel motorhomes starting at 24' up with slides without having to go to 40 to 45 feet. The new Class B units using the Mercedes chassis with their 5 cyl diesel is a sweet unit, gets about 14 - 15 mpg, but smaller. A lot depends on how much time you will spend in it, how long it will sit unused, etc. The motorhome is a whole bunch more maintenance and does not like to sit unused.

Be sure you understand it can be very difficult doing much moving around in a unit while it is still moving. However, it can be quite nice to be able to lie down on the couch or bed while traveling if you are having back problems or similar problems.

Bob

 

If you want a Class A, buy an expensive one. Close to $300,000 at the minimum should get you a high quality, "Cheap" motorhome. Anything less is just garbage. IROCPRACTICE is pretty close to the mark with his response.
Class A = lots of money.
Class C= Less money than Class A and less hassles.
If you don't mind being a little cramped, then I would suggest a Class C like the Gulf Stream Vista Cruiser.
Don't buy a Class A monster unless you are extremely wealthy or travel full time.

 

Ammendment:
Any Class A motorhome less than $300,000 is not "garbage" in everybodies point of view...but there lies the rub. You get what you pay for.

 

Thanks for the input and the PMs guys.

Jason, I understand what you're saying but I think that $300K is a bit out of my price range. Definitely have to stay in the 5-figure range in my case.

I'm thinking that a slightly older, higher quality unit will be a better deal in the long run than a newer, lower quality unit of equal price, true?

As much of a do-it-yourselfer as I am, I really don't need another hobby so I need one that's usable as bought although I don't mind making upgrades as we go along.

Having only walked into 4 or 5 Class As in my life, desired size is yet to be determined; however, we currently have a 35' TT and when we use it, we live in it for 2-6 weeks at a time and use it as a mobile apartment which makes me think that a Sprinter-based MH may not be big enough. I'd guess that we'd need a 30-35'er at a minimum although slides may affect that length as well. Also, a cab-over bed is not a good option for us ruling out many/most Class Cs.

One of my criteria is that IF we got something with slides, the slides must not interfere with the use of the unit while retracted since our goal is to be able to extend our travel days and utilize the unit while driving down the road and I don't want to be the guy that I saw driving down the interstate with the slide sticking out. I know that that will eliminate some slide units but I suspect that some may still qualify. How much do slides add to the maintenance costs? I'd suspect quite a bit since a solid wall has less moving parts.

Mechanically, I'd prefer to find one with a mechanically injected diesel and my feeling is that simpler is better when it comes to maintenance and repairs.

Keep the suggestions and questions coming and thanks.

 

I would also look into used motorcoach's or toterhomes.

I had a friend just buy a 35 foot motorcoach with 30 foot enclosed trailer based off a freightliner with 500HP used with 600K for 70K. That is a great deal the truck runs good.

Yes it takes some maintenance on little issues, but you can find a similar truck for probably 50-60K without the trailer

thanks,

Jay

 

Class A motor homes are going to cost more. They are bigger, they do double duty as a home and a house and require a lot of maintenance. The more expensive you can go, the better build quality you are going to get. Aluminum subframes, instead of wood. Screws, bolts AND glue instead of JUST glue. Higher quality appliances and stringent quality control programs ensure less problems down the road. If you are limited with your money, then I would suggest staying with a trailer. If you are adamant about a Class A and you like to do upgrades yourself, then find you a high quality, expensive motorhome that has been damaged by fire or water. Buy it cheap and renovate it. Keep this in mind: Diesel pushers are better than gassers. But even the lowest end diesel pusher could be worse than the highest end gasser. Another thing you might want to keep in mind is that your tools will not work for a "big truck" style motor home. Even changing the tire is near impossible without the right kind of equipment. It might be nice to own a Class A with a lot of space, but for peace of mind, you might be better to sacrifice space for smaller, higher quality class C. Slides aren't a hassle, they just take up space while moving down the road.

 

If you want to look at a clever class A but smaller, look at the TREK. You can get a 26'er that has the living area of about a 35'er. Very neat ideas in space saving, less weight, less hassles and you can get a smaller diesel in it that pushes it just fine. Well worth looking at. And if you are only spending 6 weeks at a time in it, I think you would find it quite comfortable. And that wheelbase will allow you into a bunch of parks that you cannot get in now and take a lot of corners unheard of with your present rig. I have heard some really good comments about them and I could not believe the space in it. Huge bath across the whole rear of the coach along with the wardrobe. Pretty neat.

Bob

 

Who makes the Trek? Bob.