Slide Toppers

[dalehandsome]

Hi everyone,
We are in the process of purchasing our first 5th wheel and we are looking at the 36 TKSB3. There are so many options and decisions to be made and reading through all the posts is a bit overwhelming to someone who knows nothing. We have several questions; however, the foremost at this time is Slide Toppers. Are they an advantage or disadvantage? Please give us your thoughts.
Thanks: Dale and Marian Hansen

[jdwilson3]

You will get mixed answers on this one!

I have had them on 3 RVs...why you ask...parked in the woods in fall, leaves dropping on top of the slide out...before you pull the slide in, you have to clean the leaves off. Slide topper..leaves fall off as slide goes in. Same thing with rain and snow.

Sun shining like crazy...heating up the roof of the slide...topper keeps the sun off and cooler.

Wind blowing...slide toppers, if not adjusted tight enough, flapping in the wind.

[rdunk]

I agree with each of the points JDWilson made concerninm the slide toppers. In addition to those points, I would add that they also keep most of the rain from hitting the top of the slides directly. It is just my opinion that in the hard and very hard rains, the slide topper awnings probably help to prevent what "might" otherwise could be "LEAKS" at the seals on top of the slides.

Yes, just a little more cost in the total package, but, if I were buying again, I definitely would get the slide topper awnings again. And for sure yes, with the slide toppers, you do know when the wind is blowing!!! lol

Now, what are your "other questions"!!!????

[dalehandsome]

Thanks for the responses. Just a little background before we get on with other questions. We have wintered in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, where we have a condo on the beach, for the past eight years. We have been spending the summers in the States staying with one of our children, which is becoming a little awkward for everyone. The MS will be our summer home and we hope to do a lot of touring during our time in the States. Now to the questions!
1. What is the best State (tax wise) to register the MS in?
2. Can anyone recommend a really good finance company?
3. Who has the best insurance and can anyone give us an idea on what the rates would be on around $75,000,00?
4. What companies have the best roadside assistance?
5. Can you recommend some good travel, or camping clubs?
6. What do you think of the wind sensors on the awning?
7. Does anyone have the new cherry interior offered this year on the MS?

That should probably be enough for now. If anyone is coming to Puerto Vallarta sometime in the next 6 months please let us know. We would love to spend some time with you and bend your ear a bit. We even know of a few good restaurants. We also have a car, an extra bedroom and live close to the airport and many activities. Our e-mail is dalehandsome@yahoo.com and our U.S. phone number that reaches us in Mexico is 801-783-4230.
Take Care: Dale and Marian

[Diesel-Gypsy]

I can offer my opinion for #6 if you like.
When properly adjusted they are a good thing.
I was having trouble with the unit at first, then a technician at the Perry GoodSam Rally fixed it.
Now we are not so worried if a wind comes up, and we are either not there, or not quick enough to close it manually when the wind picks up.
In our experiance they're worth the money.

Rick

[Motor31]

1. Montana no sales tax and they have a permanent tag. No renewals needed. We use an LLC so we can stay residents of AZ. (health ins reasons) and the RV stuff is a resident of Montana.

2. No help there sorry

3. Contact Farm and City Insurance Services www.rvadvantage.com 800-331-1520 They are a broker and can check with multiple insurance companies. Trese Hallet is the RV expert, easy to talk to, very knowledgeable and has saved us a ton of money. Rates vary on where you live or base the rig no matter what company you have.

4. We have Good Sam. No idea how it works yet as we haven't had a reason to use it yet. (crossing fingers)

5. We belong to Escapees (15% discount) Passport America (up to 50% off) Good Sam will get you 10% at some places too. Forget the big cost membership travel clubs like Thousand trails.

6. We have the wind sensor. It worked for 3 months. Now we have it disabled and just use the electric awning when we are home to monitor it. I would not buy it if I could get the electric awning without it. At least I can shut it off. It rolled the awning up when the temp got high or in the least wind. Adjusting it was no help and going to get it looked at repeatedly was not worth it.

7. Nope we like the lighter colors as that keeps the interior brighter rather than cave like.

[Carny Bill]

I can voice an opion concerning the auto awning.

For an 2004 and 2006 I would not pay the extra cost of the auto awning, 2009 I broke down an did get it. I love the ease of use, however the auto part of it can not be trusted. I just consider it a electric awning and use it as such. I will order one again the next time I upgrade....Bill

[rdunk]

I will chime in on the auto awning. As has already been said --- don't rely on the auto close to save your awning from the wind!!!!!!!!! The wind sensor MAY be ok for gradual increasing winds, but it can't withstand a quick strong wind surge. This summer, we left on a perfectly clear day for a couple of hours. Before we got back, a summer storm blew up here in Texas, and a wind surge ruined our auto awning. It did manage to roll up the awning at about 6 feet off of the ground, but tore it completely out of the upper track, and bent the mounting arms.

The point - never go away with the auto awning out, and just know it is never out of danger, if it is out!!!!!!!!!!!

That same storm blew an 18 wheeler over on the Interstate, a few miles from where we were.

[Gemstone]

You will find far more domicile/registration/tax information on the Escapees (http://www.escapees.com/ResidenceDomicile.asp) forum.

We chose South Dakota for various reasons, using Alternative Resources (http://www.alternativeresources.net/) as our mail service provider (they do much more than just forward mail however), they in turn recommended this independant insurance broker (http://www.doughertyassoc.net/), who happens to be very familiar with the RV lifestyle.
We made one overnight trip to Sioux Falls, set up our account at Alternative Resources, who facilitated registering our vehicles, we also registered to vote there, became official SD residents, we re-insured our vehicles next door at the broker's office, and walked next door an traded in our Indiana drivers license for a South Dakota license. The entire transaction was amazingly smooth and quick.

The Escapees organization in Livingston, TX also provides a similar service. Both SD and TX are free of state tax.

A thorough search on the Escapees site will turn up answers to some of your other questions.


Good luck
Gemstone

[golf_bears]

South Dakota does not have an income tax but it does have a sales tax. You will need to pay 3% sales tax to register vehicles and RV if you can not prove that you paid at least that much sales tax in another state.