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Old 02-25-2015, 04:11 PM   #1
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Looking to move up to a Class A

Hi,

Brand new here. My wife and I are looking to move up to a class A.

A little about us:
We have camped in one form or another for 25 years. In 2008 we moved up to a fifth wheel and now are looking towards retirement and a class A.

We make several 2 and three day trips throughout the year and usually 2 to 3 weeks on the road for vacation. Our goal is 3 month trips when retired.

One of our favorite class A's so far is the Georgetown 378 ts. It is on the top of our list and I would like to solicit feedback on both Forest River class A,s as well as the specific model.

I hear good things about this rig so far and am attempting to fully research before we buy. How is the noise and power?

Thanks in advance for the feedback

Steve
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Old 02-25-2015, 05:13 PM   #2
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Hi! We have a 2014 Gtown 360 XL and absolutely love it. It's our 3rd MH, having a 5er, TT and pop up before that. I was happy to get the tile floor and get away from carpet. Love the residential fridge and my bath and a half, wow, I can't say enough. There are a few things we have changed to make it better for us. Our floor plan is a front living area and there was no electrical outlets around the couch. My DH fixed that. Also he removed the wire basket pantry and built and installed drawers that pull out. Those are two of the changes we have made. The change I would like to have made is because I am vertically challenged. The fan in the master bath comes on automatically when the top is opened, only thing I can't reach it without a step ladder so I would love a switch on the wall to handle that process. No remote - too easy to misplace. Bad things? The foundation under the hot water heater was flimsy at best- DH had to re-enforce the beam underneath because while traveling and water in tank caused the side to bulge out. He re-enforced and everything ok. Also, watch the exhaust - it sticks out (at least on our coach) further than what we considered normal and was snatched off. But for the most part we are extremely happy with our coach. Whatever you get will not be perfect until you put your own touches on it. Happy camping!
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Old 02-25-2015, 05:15 PM   #3
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One more thing. FR will pay to have your front end aligned if you ask them to do so prior to the work being done. Your unit might not need it, but I have known so many who have.
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Old 02-25-2015, 06:41 PM   #4
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Hi Steve,
I have a 2012 Georgetown XL 378TS which is the one you also like.
Your initial travel expectations and retirement time was very similar to our.
As you can see in my signature below we are now over 35,000 miles and love the 378 which fits our needs, Gas is the only way to go for being on the road 3 months. The Ford engine chassis and drivetrain is great.
Now the Forest River box you must consider will have problems and you need to make sure you have a dealer that sells the rig is reliable and can handle all warranty quickly. The floor plan in the 378 is amazing as well as the ceiling height. The true paint job outside is great. You need to go up onto the roof before buying and check for any stress or bubbles under the fiberglass sheet. This has happened to many and myself included. So far no further issues so far but I had FR note it under my VIN # as an issue in the future.

Check the hydraulic lines, pump, Leveler jacks for any red hydraulic leaks or bubbles on the lines. This also need to be taken care of immediately.

Frontend Alignment
Get email approval from Forest River first to get frontend checked and aligned ASAP from FORD commercial truck dealer. This need to be done within 90 days of you driving off the lot.

Some of the things I did to my rig.
1. Installed Washer/Dryer combo. Dealer did this to get the sale for $750 which is half the cost of the washer dryer and installed it for free. Wife will love you for it.

2. I removed the bedroom glass door as it got in the way on long trips as well as it must be closed to use the sink.

3. Convection ovens has been a big problem on breaking. I have the true gas stove top and oven.

4. Residential refrigerator is great. Make sure dealer shows you how to turn invertor on as this only runs off the coach batteries then converted to 120 volts AC.

5. Check the rubber seal around the front windshield that it is flush and no gaps or protrusions. Should be smooth and flat all the way around.

6. Pulling a small car behind is no big deal. I have a FIAT that weighs only 2365 lbs and easy to hookup and disconnect.

That's it for now and I'm sure others will add other things.

Have fun and enjoy it is the only way to go.
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Old 02-25-2015, 08:00 PM   #5
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It is hard to beat Georgetown with respect to their standard features and price. You get a lot of bang for your buck. There are other brands that have better quality but the price will be higher. All brands can have minor issues that are easily fixed. Georgetown tends to have a few more issues than they should. Roof leaks are too common. Handling problems vary by model. Floor tile, hydraulics and entry step problems are fairly common. I like my 2012 360 but I am somewhat disappointed with overall quality. The Ford V10 drive train is very dependable. My drivers seat is already showing cracks in the "leather" after only 16000 miles. Look closely at the interior cabinet construction, etc and compare with a Winnebago or Itasca. My floor creaks as I walk on it. Do not consider an RV of any kind to be an "investment" like a house. The depreciation is pretty drastic over the first 3 or 4 years. Wholesale value for mine is about 60% of my actual new purchase price (not list) in three years. Based on a recent quote it would cost me about $50k to trade up to a 2015 360 or 378.
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Old 02-25-2015, 09:04 PM   #6
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Thanks for the great replies so far. I agree there will be minor issues. Keystone has many of the same issues on their products and you know little things may happen.

Iggy, I read your post to the wife and she reminded me the washer/dryer would be great for me as she is on vacation (lol). What are you referring to with the convection microwave? We would use this alot, so concerned about this issue.

Keep the feed back coming...This is great info

Steve
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Old 02-25-2015, 10:55 PM   #7
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The Georgetown is a very good value for all its features. Our Georgetown is subject to accelerated use testing, as we live in it full time and travel throughout the USA.

The Ford chassis works very well. We used to tow a Toyota Yaris which weighed about 2200 pounds, and did not find any decrease in motorhome performance when towing. We now tow a 4000 pound Jeep Wrangler, and do see a slight decrease in performance when going uphill, but it is not significant. The Ford chassis is rated to tow 5000 pounds. The only chassis issue we have had was an air conditioner compressor leak, which was cover by Ford's 3 year warranty.

The appliances used for the Georgetown are the same ones found in other more expensive motorhomes, and despite our fulltime use, have had no issues. The vinyl upholstery used on the furniture has deteriorated, and could have been better quality. The cabinets used in the kitchen, bathroom and bedroom are a mix of real wood and wood with a plastic veneer finish, but I suppose that is part of the difference between a $100K motorhome and a $200 motorhome.

We replaced the original bedroom mattress with a much better memory foam mattress, but that may be more of a person choice. I have also replaced all the carpet with vinyl flooring. Carpet looks great when new, but if you are out visiting National Parks and forests, it won't stay new looking for very long!

In the past 3+ years of fulltime use I have replaced a broken toilet, the kitchen faucet, the bedroom LCD TV and one of the roof air conditioners. I should mention that I purchased our Georgetown when it was 1 1/2 years old, so it had some previous usage. I also replaced the two front tires at 30K miles, but they may have lasted longer had I known to get the alignment checked when I purchased the Georgetown. Last summer we had a roof leak during a very rainy day in Oregon. The leak was where the front fiberglass cap meets the roof. A small area of factory installed Dicor sealant had dried out and detached from the fiberglass roof surface. It was easy to fix and the damage was minimal. This is a common failure with many models of RVs. It is important with any RV to inspect the roof seams and openings.

We have been very pleased with our Georgetown. When we go to RV shows we still have not found a motorhome we like better, aside from the $4 million Prevost bus conversions.
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Old 02-26-2015, 02:44 PM   #8
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Class A SportsCoach CC

We purchased a new 2013 Coachmen SportsCoach Cross Country 405FK from General RV in Canton Ohio. It's 41'7" and we love it. We had the initial problems of a new coach but once they were all taken care of it's great for the price point. It has a 300 HP Cummings Diesel and we tow a 2014 VW Passat. On average I'm getting 11.5 MPG towing. Plenty of room when we take one of our children with their family on vacation.
My opinion is no matter what you purchase new you are going to have those initial unexpected problems that need attention. Reading posts from other RV owners who have spent a great deal more money then I have all had issues. As long as you go into a class A knowing you will have issues that need to be addressed you'll never regret your decision. As for gas vs diesel, I prefer the diesel, no engine noise and plenty of power for towing. Again it's a personal choice.
Anyway good luck with your decision on your purchase, I'm sure you'll be very happy in your own class A.
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Old 02-26-2015, 02:56 PM   #9
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We purchased a new 2015 351DS last year and love it! We did replace the mattress (the one it came with was horrible) and made some minor adjustments (extra shelves in some of the cabinets) and had a problem with the leveling system (the entire motor shorted out and they didn't work) but other than that our issues have been minor. We have a few things to still do (add some speakers to the cab area) and I'd like to replace the home theater sound system with the new one they are using, but I don't have any complaints!

We are happy with the gasser, if we were full timing I'd probably consider a diesel, but for our needs the one we have is perfect.

Garren
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Old 02-26-2015, 05:55 PM   #10
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Can't relate to new Georgetowns but out 2000 Georgetown 325s is great for our use here in Montana. Bretz RV in Billings is our dealer and they have been good to work with.
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Old 02-26-2015, 06:24 PM   #11
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We have a 2014 Georgetown 378XL . We had good experiences and just a few glitches. Great floor plan.
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Old 02-26-2015, 06:34 PM   #12
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I have the 337 Georgetown XL, love it specially that it has a king size bed. I drive and handle it by myself, the RV is mostly for taking the dogs to shows on weekends. But I am looking forward to getting a bigger, diesel one, we have been looking at the Charleston.
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Old 02-26-2015, 08:11 PM   #13
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We purchased our 2012 378 new in May of 12 and we are full timing and love the floor plan and the Ford chassis. We have had a few issues but have been taken care of by the dealer. The dealer can make or break your experience so make sure they are reliable. If you plan on full timing a washer/dryer combo was not for us since we needed the closet space. We did have one in our 5th wheel and it was nice, but you will loose a closet. We tow a Chevy Cruze and have never felt under powered. Have done the CHF (cheap handling fix) and did help with the sway of the MH. I have not had the front end alignment ours tracks great and we are not showing any tire wear. As most have said we all have had some issues but all MH have them. FR has been great to work with and would purchase another product from them.
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Old 02-27-2015, 11:24 AM   #14
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Can't beat Georgetown's "bang for a buck". A lot of standard features that are expensive options on other rigs. We bought our 2011 used exactly to the day a year later in 2012 with 4000 miles on it. Original owners did not have a single repair item taken care of during the year it spent in Florida before trading it in back in Buffalo, NY area. So we had issues with the hydraulic lines needing to be replaced, a slide rattle caused by $2.95 bushings, small and brief leak, front cap passenger side, and crappy Lippert electric steps. Dealer took care of everything for me except the steps. I purchased replacement Kwikee steps from Forest River for $400 which I thought was fair seeing the rig was three years old by then (2014). The one problem that remains and is on my spring prep list this year is the hot water tank needing to be better secured as one of the other posters mentioned her husband took care of. Go for the 378 and welcome to the forum.
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Old 02-28-2015, 01:17 PM   #15
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Georgetown roof leaks, they removed the whole top of the coach an replaced it, Year an a half later mold in front coming through antenna, Call them emailed Kevin no response it's only a year warranty sorry for your luck, I like the coach but won't buy another one
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Old 02-28-2015, 02:36 PM   #16
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We bought a new 337XL in 2012. Fortuneatly it has never been in a shop. We now have 24k on it. I have fixed minor issues like loose screws,step bolts,etc, but no real problems.We love it. I see some people who complain about quality issues, but I have gone on the Tiffin site and see the same type of complaints. If you are going to own a house that is rolling down the road, small issues are going to arise. If you cannot fix small issues yourself you are going to be going to the shop a lot. We went to the factory to watch the Georgetown being built, and it is easy to see how small issues happen and can be missed during final inspection. At the dealer, use everything. Appliances, hydraulics, electronics, etc. That way you will not get home and find some things not working and have to take it back.
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Old 02-28-2015, 06:14 PM   #17
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We did the same as the OP did. Had a fifth wheel for 7 years and thought that was only way to go. Wife talked me into buying a MH. (Of course a MH is cheaper than a divorce) haha. Settled on a new 2013 Georgetown 378 XL. Haven't given it a second thought. Tile floors, residential refridge, vented combo washer dryer are a must for us. We tow a Honda CR-V and no issues with power, you just need not be in a hurry. Got it at a great price. Even though we didn't buy it locally our local dealer has been great. His said his motto is "we service all customers as if they bought it from us". So make sure you have a local dealer that will treats you good is a must. Our local dealer is Southern RV Supercenter, Tyler Texas.
You will enjoy a MH.


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Old 03-02-2015, 09:46 AM   #18
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I own a 2013 GT 360XL. Replaced the steps because bracket was cracked, replaced rear AC unit, didn't know about front wheel alignment so I had to replace front tires and get alignment, one year after I bought it. Bedroom sliding door rattled too much so I took that off, during the winter remember to take off your water filter and empty the water out and don't purchase a satellite that you can use while on the move, it's not worth the price. Good luck.

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Old 03-02-2015, 10:20 PM   #19
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Like Cavvyrider, we bought a used 325S. It was a 2002 model year. We enjoyed it for the four years we owned it, but the RV lifestyle had become to expensive to handle. We sold it in December.

I had reason to get into some repairs (water in the dining room slide overhead) and was disappointed in the standard of construction that my work revealed. It looked as though a lot of things were "designed on the fly" by the shop floor people. Wiring was sloppy and inconsistent. The overhead cabinets in the dinette were held in place by screws into a 1/8" thjick plywood skin glued to the styrofoam ceiling installation. Despite their being two square steel beams in the ceiling, the cabinets were not attached to either of them.

Overall, I'm less than impressed by the quality of engineering design and construction that was evident in our '02 model. Maybe it has improved over 13 years, but then again, maybe economic pressures have made the "cowboy builders" more prevalent.

I'm not sure I'd go FR if we ever got back into RVing, which is very unlikely at our age. I guess "caveat emptor" is the appropriate phrase and looking under the skin is a definite plus. We bought used and didn't have much knowledge of the various FR brands. We were basically looking at features and condition.

Overall, our experience as FR owners was acceptable, but not spectacular. No major problems that were FR's fault. We had to replace the slide topper awnings because they had rotted out (about $800) and the OEM Dometic fridge died and had to be replaced ($1800).

As RV's go, the Georgetowns are about middle of the road, but a bit closer to Chevette than Cadillac.
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Old 03-03-2015, 06:01 PM   #20
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My guess is some of the issues that F and E speaks of we're the exact reason that version of Georgetown is no longer in business. They sold to Forest River in or around 2008-2009, I think. Today they still have issues as we all know every RV mfg. has. I'm hoping I'll have as enjoyable of season 2015 as my third full season in my GT as I have the last two.
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