No Longer a Monty Owner - Montana Owners Club

lightningjack11 · 07-05-2009, 01:58 PM

In a way it is a sad time. I really wanted to get a 2010 3400 but as we are getting older Betty is having a harder time with trailer camping. Of course we will RV until we're gone.

So we traded Monty in on a used MH. It is in remarkable condition to be so old and surprisingly economical. A cummings printout shows it got 10.6 avg mpg over the first 30000. This I have to see for myself.

Just want to tell all my friends here that this forum over the years has been a very enjoyable experience. I will check it from time to time.

I am posting a link to pixs of our MH so if you see me on the road blink your lights.

http://picasaweb.google.com/greystro...82028225464290

But I am keeping my truck and hitch!!!! Just in case.

Jolu · 07-05-2009, 02:06 PM

Very nice MH Tom and Betty. Enjoy your new rig. That's a good plan, keeping the hitch and truck. Who knows you might get another Monty to go along with the MH. Just kidding you.

tbhd · 07-05-2009, 02:20 PM

May you have many safe and enjoyable miles in your new motor home. It's beautiful.

Bill-N-Donna · 07-05-2009, 02:37 PM

There is a time in our lives when things must change. You made a decision best for you and I wish you the very best in your new rig. BTW it’s very nice and I hope you get many years of service from it.

lightningjack11 · 07-05-2009, 03:00 PM

Thanks for the replys. Have to try to get Bettys car fixed up for towing next week. I am not going to like towing a car. Have to get the MH weighed so I can set air pressures.

This is an expensive transition.

But if we have to quit RVing then we always have a guest house available for visitors or what the heck give the vistors the house and Betty and I can sleep in the guest house.

Also after having de-lamination problems with the Monty I would not own another RV without a cover. So I hope to have the carport set up soon.

HughM · 07-05-2009, 04:12 PM

Tom, You won't believe this but I had the exact same M/H inside and out and sold it in 2002. I had the Cummins ISB engine with 275 hp. One time driving at 62-64 mph I got 12.75 mpg. hand calculated. That m/h always got good gas mileage for me.
I hope you have as good service as I did. Change that fuel filter once a year or 15,000 miles.
Hugh

stiles watson · 07-05-2009, 04:45 PM

Good luck on your new pursuits.

Art-n-Marge · 07-05-2009, 05:00 PM

A new chapter in your book. Stay in touch. Here's to your new adventures in your new MH. Cheers!

lightningjack11 · 07-05-2009, 05:11 PM

Thanks Stiles

Hugh,

Good news for me I guess. that 10.6 was the avg for 30000 miles so maybe I can get it up to 12. One MH owner was telling me he got 12 and I kind of chuckled. I guess people will laugh at me now.

This MH engine is easier to work on than my Ford diesel. Just about everthing is accessable so I have no excuse for not keeping fluids change. Right now I am in the book ordering stage. Have some time since the dealer completed service to it.

This rig seems ideal for us. We did not want a 40 footer and the smaller ones are hard to find.

We were caught with the Monty in the OK/kansas blizzard this year. This probably did Betty in for trailers.

Betty likes one floor for everthing.

Really a great time to buy a MH.

lightningjack11 · 07-05-2009, 05:12 PM

Thanks Art and Margie

HamRad · 07-05-2009, 06:51 PM

Tom and Betty,

Good luck. The unit looks great. I hope it works as well as it looks. Please do hang around and let us know how things go. And you still need to check in just to keep tabs on the various members of this motley group!

Dennis and Mary Kay

Trailer Trash 2 · 07-05-2009, 07:56 PM

Tom & Betty from the looks of your new home it's beautiful, very bright interrior which is one of the biggest problems with any RV, they just seem to need more reflective light.
it looks very big inside too. I'm glad that you'll be stopping by everynow and then to say, Hi! have many safe and enjoyable mils and years in your new home.
TT2

ols1932 · 07-06-2009, 01:32 AM

Looks to me like you've got a real "find" there. We have thought about doing the same thing you have done but we can't seem to swing the "moola" to make the change. So instead, we had those Bigfoot Hydraulic Levelers installed which allows us to "think" we have a motor home when we set up and tear down.

Best of luck with your new home.

Orv & Marge

lightningjack11 · 07-06-2009, 01:36 AM

Hamrad,

Thanks, oh I am not going anywhere and I will keep tabs with you. I have the same hope about it working well. You never know with a used model. I found quite a few used gassers that I was tempted on. For example, Lazy days has several 2004-2006 Coachmans that were priced maybe 10 to 20k above mine but it would cost twice as much to operate and not have a smooth ride. Not near the quality as this one. All of these coachs have less than 10000 but some were already seeing the results of the weather with water intrusion on the slides. So who knows about how it would work. Even new Montys have a lot of problems sometimes.

lightningjack11 · 07-06-2009, 02:22 AM

TT2,

Yes I like a bright interior with high quality work on the inside.

Orv,

Yes those leveling jacks make a big difference. All I do is drive it in and dump the bags and level it. Very easy. I think this will be our last camper.

Be careful if you look for an MH. So many companies have bit the dust. There are a lot of new 2008 HRs out there at bargin prices. They advertise them as new with factory warranty. Navstar has stated they will not honor warrantys unless they have a Navstar Vin number. But they will support the brand for service. So here is a few things I learned.

For gassers.
Any Ford garage can work on a Ford chassis
The Workhorse chassis must be worked on by a workhorse dealer

Workhorse is the prefered chassis because of the Allison and smaller hump between drivers.

For DP

Any Freightliner dealer can work on their chassis
Navstar will still work on the Roadmaster chassis

Future...FRED..Front end diesels with improved economy

ken · 07-06-2009, 03:50 AM

Tom we did the same thing, but kept the truck. We miss the two Montanas we had but as we get older, we felt that the motor home wouldbe less work setting it up.

Quote:

quote:Originally posted by lightningjack11

TT2,

Yes I like a bright interior with high quality work on the inside.

Orv,

Yes those leveling jacks make a big difference. All I do is drive it in and dump the bags and level it. Very easy. I think this will be our last camper.

Be careful if you look for an MH. So many companies have bit the dust. There are a lot of new 2008 HRs out there at bargin prices. They advertise them as new with factory warranty. Navstar has stated they will not honor warrantys unless they have a Navstar Vin number. But they will support the brand for service. So here is a few things I learned.

For gassers.
Any Ford garage can work on a Ford chassis
The Workhorse chassis must be worked on by a workhorse dealer

Workhorse is the prefered chassis because of the Allison and smaller hump between drivers.

For DP

Any Freightliner dealer can work on their chassis
Navstar will still work on the Roadmaster chassis

Future...FRED..Front end diesels with improved economy

lightningjack11 · 07-06-2009, 05:14 AM

Ken

Thats it in nutshell. I think older people like Montorhomes better. But no King Size Bed. No 32 inch TV. Can't have everything.

Order my hitch today so I will be using Roadmaster Falcon II to pull Betty's 2001 RX300. She will like having her car on the road.

indy roadrunner · 07-06-2009, 01:04 PM

Tom we had a Class A Gasser with engine up front. Could not talk without shouting to DW in Co-pilot seat because of the noise. I would have loved to have a Diesel Pusher after that but we went the Montana after that for the room. My experience in towing a Honda behind the Fleetwood I had was that I would not have known it was back there except for the rear camera. You do have to remember to not get in a position to have to back very far. Almost impossible with a "toad". Hooking up - use the pilot method and faithfully use a check list. Too many things can go wrong with a toad if everything is not in order.
Good luck with the HR - that is a good brand of class A.

sreigle · 07-06-2009, 01:42 PM

Tom and Betty, congratulations on the MH. I know you will enjoy it as you have enjoyed your Montana. And if you take as good care of it as you did your Montana and truck, it will serve you well for many years to come. Please do check in when you can. And stay in touch. You know my email address. Hopefully we'll get down there to see you one of these days and you'll get back up here when we're here. I haven't checked the pictures yet but am going there now. Safe and enjoyable travels.

lightningjack11 · 07-06-2009, 01:45 PM

Thanks for the advice indy. As i read the RV net so many people that buy gassers trade for a DP. Quiet beyond belief and a super smooth ride. It has a 50 degree or more turning radius thanks to Freightliner. My first solo was after closing the deal. It was pouring down and I could barely see but I backed in my drive on the first try. Monty is hard to get in because of the neighbors mailbox. So without a toad backup is 10 times easier.

But know what you mean about backups. We stop sometimes at truckstops and just back in to park. Gonna miss that.

Gonna miss the 3400 that I never had but I think we will enjoy it. We have had pickup campers, trailers, 5th wheels and now an old Motorhome.

You may also like: