Tiffin motorhomes

Not sure if they is the right forum, but looking at Class C motorhomes to tow my car to the track. Looking at the shorter versions 23-25'. Came across the Tiffin brand name. Never really heard of them, but they seem to be really nice for the money. Does anyone have an experience with this brand of motorhome? The version I'm looking at is a Ford chassis with the V10.

I had an Allegro bay by Tiffin. Served me well. It too was a Ford Chassis. It had a common exhaust manifold leak on one side when i bought it. Had the dealer agree to fix it as part of the deal when i bought It. Think they are made in Alabama
I had a reputable outfit strengthen the rear frame on it before I started using it to tow. Some units may not need anything done.

Never had one of those, but almost bought one, ended up with a Fleetwood Terra 26ft...Works well for towing....

I tow with a 31’ Thor Four Winds. Not a Tiffin, but I think when it comes to towing With a C class, you’re talking about the chassis and drivetrain, which are all the same. Mine is an older one (99) with the gen1 V10. I’ve actually Been suprised at how well It tows. Only issue I’ve had is having to replace the plugs which was not for the faint of heart. A 24’ with a triton v10 would most likely be a very capable tow rig. I say that understanding that they’re not in the league as a d-pusher. But for what they are, and what you pay for a C class, there’s a lot of value there. If it runs well and the rest of the package is up to your standards, I wouldn’t hesitate.

A friend of mine towed a 32' enclosed with a Hemi Challenger, two juniors, and a golf cart behind a 460 powered 28 ft. C-Class.

Chassis is the same on almost all class c motorhomes but the coach is were the difference is. When I bought a Thor I wound up with a 2 page list of things that needed fixed under warranty. While I was going through the list with the service manager I asked what I should buy for my next motorhome to avoid all these quality issues? He said if you ever get to go through one of the rv factories you would see what the problem is. I asked who has the least issues. He said buy a Tiffin. They by far need less warranty work to get them right. Also he said in general class c's are worse than class a's. I don't think he was trying to sell me a more expensive rv but he might have been. I think I would look at one real close before I spent my money.

If oyu buy a class C on a Ford chassis as previously mentioned have the chassis looked at and likely reinforced before doing alot of towing with it. They generally not set up to tow 8000+ plus. The Super C's are hot an miss there. Tiffin is a good name in the RV world my opinion buy used as they crash in value pretty quickly.

I have an '06 Class A GulfStream with the V10 and like it a lot. The '05 and down V10's had all kinds of engine issues (spark plug threads being the big one) and apparently the transmission can give some grief too. The '06 and newer have a 5 speed automatic and I really like mine. First gear is deep and gets you out of the hole, overdrive has enough rpm if you want to go fast or cruise at 55mph to get respectable fuel mileage. At 50 to 55mph I get around 13 to 14 mpg with mine, any faster and it drops to 10mpg or less.

There is a hp difference between Class C and A, the C's are 310 and the A's are 362 and 457 torque. The torque is okay, really leaves you wanting to twin-turbo it, but it moves down the road on the flats good enough. The V10 likes to rev and makes great power when you put the boot to it.

Check your tow ratings, the frame on mine (F53 Chassis) is massive and I put the big Dana 150 in it so I could put 22.5 wheels on it and still is only rated to tow 5500 pounds. I tow an open-car hauler with an E-Body on it and that is the limit. The frame and diff can easily tow more, but I doubt the engine and transmission would last long if you went over the 5500.

Tiffin is a high-end machine in the Class A's, I can't comment on the C's other than to say I would never own one after having an A.

Tiffin's are pretty much the best in quality and build from what I have seen and read, neighbors that have them, ect. We have been keeping an eye out for a 36-40 Tiffin pusher to tow our enclosed 24' for about 8 months and the good ones go within a few days. You might open your search to a short Class A. We had a 1996 30' Coachman (poor quality IMHO) with the F53 Ford chassis and 460 and it did great towing 8k lbs. The older class A's with NO slides generally have quite a bit more tow capacity since no added slide weight. Good luck with your search.

Mine Fleetwood Terra is for sale currently...

Have grown up working on RV's, Tiffin's are nice, but the reality is they're all pretty much built in the same factory. You want to see crap? Look at something that was just dropped off from the factory before a dealer gets it. Much worse than any car. People bitching about FEMA trailers got to see them factory direct. Make sure you check all the seams, especially at the walls and floors. High leak points are around roof vents and windows. A lot of black streaks are a sign of a RV that wasn't covered or stored properly and may start to have issues with its roof. They all get streaks, but a lot of streaks that are burned in is a bad sign. Like everyone said earlier, make sure your chassis is rated for towing a trailer. Most are just rated for pulling a car or a small cargo trailer, not a car trailer. What I've been looking at recently is a 5th wheel or gooseneck with a living quarters, not a toy hauler. I plan on using it for other things than racing.

Mine was all re-enforced from the hitch to the axle....Ton of welding done on the back of it, plus, its air bagged front and rear. Tows very well.

I have been seeing nice older (1995-2005), low mileage (often far less than 50,000), class A diesel pusher motor homes for low prices ($20,000+).

What systems are suspect when a coach gets this old?

Thanks!

I have a 38 foot Holiday Rambler, Cat Diesel pusher, living area slide out. I tow a 32 foot trailer with a dragster and a Road Runner in it with no problems. I might consider selling the RV.

I have to agree with Tabletop390's assessment on new RV's.

Some Friends that my Parents used to RV with have been burnt twice on two brand-new Class A's: one had warranty issue after warranty issue and it never got fixed right. They literally missed a season of using it. The dealer was 3 hours away and they put all the miles on it back and forth for warranty. They figured the only way out was to trade it (was a Workhorse, i.e. Blunder Motors chassis) for another new one, a Cummins pusher. Their drivetrain problems went away but had coach issues and wound up selling it after a couple of years.

They are now on their 3rd new Class A with a V10 and they finally got a good one.

If you read the RV forums, it is rather amusing to see the numerous problems and complaints about the workhorse chassis, especially because they are mostly die-hard gm owners. It finally got so bad that they simply don't make them anymore. My Dad had the workhorse 8.1 and it was a dog. The Newmar coach that was on it was something else though!

Definitely buy a used one: let someone else with more money and time on their hands sort out the bugs so you get a good unit. I put about 3 years of researching and looking at RV's until I focused on the exact one I wanted. I waited another couple of years for the price to come down and wound up with an awesome, trouble-free machine at 1/3rd the price of a new one. It only had 9,000 miles on it.

As for the diesel question: GET A CUMMINS. Cats are a 50-50 shot whether you'll get a good one or not. My Cousin has a Cat that's been good, but he says the fuel mileage is absolutely awful. There's another engine a Maxxforce or some such thing, it's apparently a variation of a Cat, and you want to stay away from them too, even if it's a good deal.

Regards diesel or gas coach..... Gas
You will be unlikely to ever put enough miles on it to pay for the extra you paid up front for the diesel. And if things go wrong, more money.
The market is filled with 10-15 year old coaches with 40-60 thousand miles on them. People use them 20-30 days a year( in many cases) and they otherwise sit and take up space. And of course, they sit when you take them somewhere
I bought my 94 Tiffin Allegro Bay with 27,000 miles on it in 2005 ish. Had it 5 odd years before a divorce changed my situation and it needed to go
Payed 25k for it, everything worked, and did when it went by by. Nice coach
Can get a lot of bang for the buck in the 15-30 k range if you look, especially gas.
That all said.... i learned my lesson... a motor home, cost of buying it, maintaining it, once parked you need something else generally for store runs, out to dinner, etc.....plus storing the thing......... pays for a ton of 100 dollar a night hotel rooms.... a ton.
I like getting in my truck and getting out and about after racing and hanging out, heading to hotel, etc.