rockwood8289ws

[nghelwer]

Thinking about buying a 2014 Rockwood 8289ws fifth wheel.

Curious about those of you that have one, how do you like it and how well made are they made?

[tomjsas]

Love mine! They are pretty well made, however, remember they are light weight units and therefore expect some of the things that go with that such as a little bounce in the floor and adequate but not huge tank capacities. Love the openess the opposing slides provide. The island is great as it free up lots of counter space. Looks like they have changed the floor plan a little from my 2014. The bathroom is reconfigured and may have an entry from the bedroom, mine doesn't. And the hallway to the bedroom is straight now where mine is angled due to pantry by front door and the cupboard in the hallway. Love the fireplace we got in our and the dual a/c. We got the diamond package as well.

[nghelwer]

Tom, thanks for your input.

We also liked the openness of the slides, however after reading some of the inputs on this forum I have a little concern about the sturdiness of the construction of this ultra lite.

We are coming from an older mountaineer and were looking for something a little lighter.

[tomjsas]

Well I think they are pretty well put together. It definitely won't be like your mountaineer. i look at some of the mountainerrs at the rv show prior to the 8289 and loved them. very nicely put together but for the weight, price and features we couldn't find one that beat the rockwood. this is our third rockwood and really like the brand and our dealer. but best to look through one at the dealer and spend some time in it.

[WFD]

nghelwer...we have an 8289 on order with expected delivery in March...toyed around with the idea for close to a year. Looked at them, and looked at them again, and then some more. Looked at others, but always came back to the 8289. Whenever we came across people camped in them, would talk to them. Everyone seemed very happy. We were sold on the floorplan, and felt comfortable with the build quality.
Comes down to your tow vehicle as well. For us, we wanted to stay within the capacities of our truck, and also keeping in mind how we use it. I dont think the fact that its ultra light means its cheaply made and flimsy. That has been discussed from one end to the other on this forum and others. In comparing to many other brands of trailers, we feel pretty good about it. Hope I can give you the same report after owning it and using it for a while, after talking to current owners, I feel confident.

Rick

[jeepman71]

The floor plan is great for a smallish 5er. The customer service at Rockwood/Flagstaff has been great as well.

[sonic2]

We have the 2014 8289WS floor plan that Tom spoke about. We do not travel out of state and travel only 100 miles to our destination (flat land) and camp 5 weeks a year. That is why we choose the Ultra Lite; if we traveled out of state and lived in it more, we would buy a Cedar Creek or Silverback and I would upgrade to a F250/F350. We have a 2013 F150, 5.0 w/3.73 and Timbrens and SuperSprings installed and use a Anderson Ultimate 5th Wheel Connection w/B&W Turnoverball Gooseneck Hitch to pull the RV. It pulls great!

We like everything about the floor plan; the corner TV was a big consideration. We spoke to many people over the years about turning their head to watch TV; we don't with this floor plan. The bedroom is not large to roam around, but we only sleep and store clothes in there. The RV came with load range "C" tires; I had the dealer put on Goodyear Marathon load range "D" before I bought it. We purchased the white style 30 amp with 1 AC; we placed black 3 Maxx Air covers on the roof to repel the heat in the summer with Camco 45192 Sunshield RV Vent Insulator. With the refrigerator in the slide I placed 2 fans on the top of to draw air aide in the cooling. Refrigerator Ventilation for Slide Units

Other items discussed on forums and how to fix:
1) radio reception
2) recall on the power awning motors
3) recall on front door lock
4) vents on steps break

[WFD]

sonic2....the max aire's you installed...were they the standard Max Aire or the Max Aire11's? Once we receive our 8289, I also want to install the Max Aire covers over the vents.

Rick

[Radio]

Originally Posted by nghelwer

however after reading some of the inputs on this forum I have a little concern about the sturdiness of the construction of this ultra lite.

Sturdiness, or rather lack thereof, is not going to be an issue.

Purchased ours in July 2008, other than the furnace has never worked quite right (because I am too lazy to deal with it) we are delighted with what we got for what we paid.

Remember, this is a camper, not a dwelling. If you're going to live in it full time you'll want something else. But I could go 90 days at a time in mine, if I had the time and money.

And as always, only ask advise from people who look like they are having fun. (Radio's 2nd rule of RVIng)

[sonic2]

Maxxair (00-933069) Black Vent Cover, the Maxxair Original Vent Cover; Camco Vent cover and Camco window cover (Measures 16.25 inch x 25.25 inch and fold for easy storage).

In the summer the sun beats down on the roof and through the windows, the window cover slides between the window and the shade in the bedroom and living room. The shade stores easy under the bed, under the sofa or in the bedroom night stand by the widow (your choice).

[MarcusN]

We picked up our 2013 in May and camped 35 nights this year & 5000 miles. Only issue was we had to get a specific wedge for the B&W hitch that we have and had to apply grease on the pin box where it rotates as it started creaking & groaning, but that has solved that issue.
Love ours, note that the 2014's made a running change to the floor plan and the pantry just inside the door and the one up the steps is now gone with straight steps up right inside the door and a revised bathroom layout. We really would miss all that extra storage so may not have bought this floor plan without it.

[sonic2]

We agree with MarcusN about the new floor plan. I believe this was a poor choice by Rockwood to make this change. We have the older floor plan.

[tomjsas]

Originally Posted by sonic2

We agree with MarcusN about the new floor plan. I believe this was a poor choice by Rockwood to make this change. We have the older floor plan.

I too don't know if the new plan is as nice. One thing I really liked was the kink in the hallway so you didn't look right into the bedroom!

Tom - 2014 8289ws, 2011 Chevy 2500HD

[sonic2]

[QUOTE=tomjsas;524261]I too don't know if the new plan is as nice. One thing I really liked was the kink in the hallway so you didn't look right into the bedroom!

Yes! Also, there is no need for 2 doors to the bathroom. The DW does not like this and it's a waste of space. This change may have resulted in the removal of the extra storage.

[jeepman71]

The nice thing with the two doors is access to the bedroom when the slide is closed. Otherwise I think losing the little pantry in the hall is a mistake.

[WFD]

We started looking at the 8289 when they all had the pantry, and fell in love with the floorplan and the trailer, the more we looked the more we came right back to the 8289. When we decided we were going to pull the trigger and buy it, the new version was rolling onto the dealer lots. By this time, we had found a dealer we were quite happy with, their price was very good, and we went to see some that had the redesign. We decided we could live with the change, saw some positives to it as well as the negatives...its on order now. We decided the pantry wasn't a deal breaker, the re-organized island is a big plus and my wife is very confident there is ample enough storage to meet our needs...overall we think its still a great floorplan.

Rick

[RhoZeta]

Originally Posted by sonic2

We agree with MarcusN about the new floor plan. I believe this was a poor choice by Rockwood to make this change. We have the older floor plan.

When we were looking at these the dealer had the new floor plan in stock, Wife did not like at all, no storage/pantry at all, and that odd little angled area to the right of counter, with no cabinet or anything, was just weird, wife said NO before we could even see the whole thing... LOL

[Hawksclaw]

I have one I bought in Oct 2013, Mine is a 2014 model. So far we have only had it out twice but have enjoyed it. I am supposed to take it in for a 90 day checkup but the only thing I had go wrong so far was when I got home from the 1st trip, the fan blades were laying on the table and the acorn nut was on the floor. The blades were ok. I reinstalled and put some blue Loctite on the threads before installing the nut and tightening it. Getting ready to take it out for the 3rd time this weekend.

[nghelwer]

After looking at the unit at the dealer we were not pleased that they took out the pantry/linen closet.

We now are purchasing a 2014 Crossroads crusier cf31rl.

Thanks for all your input it was very appreciated and helpful.

Happy Trails to all.

[cadman99]

We recently purchased a 2008 8285WS - It seems fairly well done - tows well.

You might read several recent posts of mine about weight, axles and tires for these models. Mine has underrated tires and axles for the gross weight.