Brand new RV owner!

[EricHarmon]

At the Knoxville RV show today, I purchased my very first RV: A DRV Mobile Suites 36 RSSB3. The dealer has graciously agreed to keep the unit on his lot until I take possession of my tow vehicle, which will be mid-April.

My wife and I are so stoked about this!

[Notanlines]

Congrat's, Eric. What are you planning for a TV?

[EricHarmon]

Originally Posted by Notanlines

Congrat's, Eric. What are you planning for a TV?

I'm such a noob. I was trying to figure out why you were asking about my television!! Planning to order the Ford F350 Diesel Dually 4.1 axle ratio, 14000 gross weight. It's rated for 30,000 pounds, and the RV has a gvwr of about 19,000.

[Notanlines]

Eric, all these terms will come to you. You’ve got a first class rig. Any of the big three dually’s and Anything made by DRV you can’t go wrong. I would urge you to pay very, very close attention during your PDI and make sure your DW (dear wife) is there also! Most RVers are a team in setting up and packing up and she’ll need to understand the operations also.
We’re excited for you!

[EricHarmon]

Originally Posted by Notanlines

Eric, all these terms will come to you. You’ve got a first class rig. Any of the big three dually’s and Anything made by DRV you can’t go wrong. I would urge you to pay very, very close attention during your PDI and make sure your DW (dear wife) is there also! Most RVers are a team in setting up and packing up and she’ll need to understand the operations also.
We’re excited for you!

Thank you! I wouldn't dream of going without her. The dealer insists we spend a couple nights on their property to test it out after the walkthrough, so they can make any initial fixes. They're also going to give both of us driving instruction. This is a Christian dealer who was recommended by some people at our church and so far, we've been more than happy. We're spending those couple nights in the RV in about two weeks, then They're going to store the RV for us until our TV comes in, and then they suggested we spend a couple more nights on their lot at that time, just in case we have more questions and so on.

[OCB]

Originally Posted by EricHarmon

At the Knoxville RV show today,

Are you still in Knoxville? if so try to get a weight of your new RV before leaving the area. What is most important is the pin weight. I think you will be OK with your shorter 36 RSSB3 but for my 2016 MS 38PS3 (Actually almost 41 feet long) PIN weight is 25% of the loaded 20,000 weight.



Yes take your time inspecting your unit. When we picked up our RV early Dec 2015, we did the the two nights on the lot and two nights at a RV park. It was the next 1,000 miles that we found other things. Problems which you don't normally look for like the black waste pipe under the Kitchen Sink not be glued at all joints. Or where abundance of staples were used that surface as walk about in your bare feet.

Yes, We like the owners and staff at RV's for Less and would buy there again but to many hidden things. Look for the big things like do the slides work smoothly and seals (do the seals block the daylight)?

Clay

[EricHarmon]

Originally Posted by OCB

Are you still in Knoxville? if so try to get a weight of your new RV before leaving the area. What is most important is the pin weight. I think you will be OK with your shorter 36 RSSB3 but for my 2016 MS 38PS3 (Actually almost 41 feet long) PIN weight is 25% of the loaded 20,000 weight.



Yes take your time inspecting your unit. When we picked up our RV early Dec 2015, we did the the two nights on the lot and two nights at a RV park. It was the next 1,000 miles that we found other things. Problems which you don't normally look for like the black waste pipe under the Kitchen Sink not be glued at all joints. Or where abundance of staples were used that surface as walk about in your bare feet.

Yes, We like the owners and staff at RV's for Less and would buy there again but to many hidden things. Look for the big things like do the slides work smoothly and seals (do the seals block the daylight)?

Clay

I will go double-check the pin weight on the physical unit in a couple hours!

[Cummins12V98]

You WILL most likely be over your trucks GVWR, that freaks some out but that is only there for licensing/insurance purposes.

I highly advise looking closely at Ford and RAM before buying. I Tow HEAVY at 33k plus if I double tow at 35k.. True Medium Duty Cummins runs cool as does the True medium duty AISIN trans in extreme heat and 6+% mountain passes. Our DRV weighs 23k!

An option RAM only has that is simply great is the factory Rear Air Ride. Truck sets nearly level in the alt ride mode. Truck sets exactly the same with or without a load. I have FULL RAWR with a 5,750# pin that your RV will not even come close to. Don't waste your time with your RV's potential weight as both trucks till do just fine with weight concerns.

Price them out with similar options you will get FAR more truck with the RAM.

Go over with a fine toothed come on your RV and demand EVERY problem get's fixed BEFORE taking possession.

[Cummins12V98]

"This is a Christian dealer who was recommended by some people at our church and so far, we've been more than happy."

I assume you are talking about Rolling Retreats??? If NOT I highly you really pay close attention to getting everything fixed.

[EricHarmon]

Originally Posted by Cummins12V98

You WILL most likely be over your trucks GVWR, that freaks some out but that is only there for licensing/insurance purposes.

I highly advise looking closely at Ford and RAM before buying. I Tow HEAVY at 33k plus if I double tow at 35k.. True Medium Duty Cummins runs cool as does the True medium duty AISIN trans in extreme heat and 6+% mountain passes. Our DRV weighs 23k!

An option RAM only has that is simply great is the factory Rear Air Ride. Truck sets nearly level in the alt ride mode. Truck sets exactly the same with or without a load. I have FULL RAWR with a 5,750# pin that your RV will not even come close to. Don't waste your time with your RV's potential weight as both trucks till do just fine with weight concerns.

Price them out with similar options you will get FAR more truck with the RAM.

Go over with a fine toothed come on your RV and demand EVERY problem get's fixed BEFORE taking possession.

If I go with the RAM, I'll definitely get the air ride. That's one of the big draws for me in favor of the RAM. That and the Cummins. And the fact that the price is lower than the Ford. Honestly, just about the only thing I don't like about the RAM is that the interior experience isn't as nice as the Ford. No panoramic sunroof, the leather isn't as nice as it is on the Ford, it's lacking some technology such as BLIS, and so on. But, the reliability/performance/safety of the truck outweighs creature comfort. I'm going to contact another RAM dealer tomorrow that came highly recommended to me, and I'm going to research both RAM and Ford online and test drive both again.

I seem to be vacillating like crazy, but right now I'm leaning towards the RAM again. It's frustrating pulling the plus on an ~$80k purchase when I don't have any prior experience with trucks!

We're going to be extremely picky when we go to get our RV. We're spending a night or two at the dealer's lot at that point, so that will give us additional time to try to go over everything. I'm sure I'll miss *something*, especially as it's our first RV, but I think I'll at least be confident that all the major stuff is ok. I'll even run the AC even though it's cold outside.

[Cummins12V98]

"just about the only thing I don't like about the RAM is that the interior experience isn't as nice as the Ford. No panoramic sunroof, the leather isn't as nice as it is on the Ford,"

No Panoramic sunroof I will agree on that point. As far as leather have you looked at the LongHorn/Limited leather? KingRanch friends could not believe the quality of my leather.
RAM's interior design and quality IMHO is better and professional reviews say so.

Don't forget the AISIN trans as it is a TRUE MD trans. At a Chrysler RAM Rally when asked about the AISIN the Head West Coast Warranty Rep Stan Gozzi said "they don't break".

You can get a FULLY loaded RAM LongHorn or Limited for under 80K for sure. Money is not the reason to buy but it is a nice bonus.

Simply pop the hood of both trucks that alone should make you think.

I advise giving Dennis Dillon and Dave Smith a call, they should blow the others out of the water.

PM me if you want, I have owned RAM/Cummins trucks since 2001 with a combined 600k on the clocks.

Ford trucks are nice as are GM's but simply look at the guys that are independent RV/HotShotters. They choose RAM by far it's not even close.

[Notanlines]

There is a reason that Ford sells the large numbers that they do at a cost of 8K to 10K higher at the top end. Dodge isn't even in the running. Nice truck? Most certainly. Great engine? The Cummins, yes. But let's not get too carried away.

[Cummins12V98]

UH not Dodge since 2013 models came out, Officially RAM now. Not getting too carried away, what's that supposed to mean?

Like I said simply look at what the guys use for their livelihood.

[porkchop]

If you want an unbiased opinion call Woodhouse Motors in Blair, Nebraska. They sell all 3 plus several foreign brands. The sales people will tell you that they sell ford for quality, gm for looks and ram for price. Same reason the "pros" buy them. Price.

Buy whatever catches your eye Good luck on your choice.


Bill

[Cummins12V98]

Pro's buy RAM for the fact they hold up better in a commercial setting. Plain and simple economics. The Vast majority of Fords towing RV's for hire in Indiana are powered by 7.3's.

GM looks? Well I think everyone can agree you can thank Dodge/RAM for the revolution in looks and towing performance of all three.

[Notanlines]

"Well I think everyone can agree you can thank Dodge/RAM for the revolution in looks and towing performance of all three"
If there is a more inane statement on this forum then I missed it.

[Cummins12V98]

Originally Posted by Notanlines

"Well I think everyone can agree you can thank Dodge/RAM for the revolution in looks and towing performance of all three"
If there is a more inane statement on this forum then I missed it.

Look at the 94 RAM introduction, YES a "Reveloution" in the pickup market. NOT just my opinion.

But hey instead of providing any useful info let's call names!

Ford had to use this 450 to compete with RAM's 3500 DRW since the 350 DRW could not come close to RAM's SAE numbers until they stepped up after around 17 years on the same platform and modernized their truck like RAM and GM.

[wingnut60]

C'mon, Ron, when Ram/Dodge/Fiat ever outsells Ford, then you can crow about it...

[Cummins12V98]

Originally Posted by wingnut60

C'mon, Ron, when Ram/Dodge/Fiat ever outsells Ford, then you can crow about it...

Do I really need to compare McDonalds to Wendy's sales?????

[porkchop]

What you really need to do is learn the difference between opinion and fact.

Bill