LOOKING AT FIFTH WHEELS - Montana Owners Club

Montana_3086 · 02-06-2005, 06:23 PM

LOOKING AT BUYING A MONTANA FIFTH WHEEL 318BH IS THE QUALITY GOOD?MY LAST TRAVEL TRAILER HAD LITTLE THINGS ALWAYS GOING WRONG WITH IT,IS THERE ANY THING I SHOULD LOOK OUT FOR?

stiles watson · 02-06-2005, 06:47 PM

If you buy anything of any brand that is made by men, you will have something go wrong with it. That is true of my car, my truck, my stick house, the computers I have owned and the fifth wheel I own now. However, on par, I believe the Keystone Montanas and Mountaineers are as well built and supported by the manufacturer as I can expect. No one can promise perfection, but they do try to make correction. With a good dealer, I think the Montanas are about the best bang-for-the-buck.

If you remain on the MOC for any length of time and read the postings, you will hear us complain about this or that. You will also hear a lot of support and synergistic problem solving. I have had many questions answered here that I didn't even know to ask. I have been able to avoid problems where I was oblivious. Most manufactures donot have a forum like this, so you are on your own. These people who post here quickly become a helpful family. Whatever you deside, have a great adventure.

dbrill · 02-06-2005, 11:40 PM

We have had our 318 BHS for 2 years now (seems longer) and have had very minor problems.

1) Someone forgot to put the closet bar in bunkroom wardrobe, we caught it at our walkthrough, the dealer had Keystone drop ship the parts to me and I put it in (easier than going back to the dealer for something so simple).
2) The TV antenna was not sealed properly and we had a small drip when the antenna was up while it rained. We called our dealer when we got home and they had us bring it in as soon as we could and they re-sealed it.
3) They don't unravel the sterio antenna wires when they install the sterio but that only takes a few minutes to do yourself.
4) My water pump was right up against the wall so it made a horrible racket when it ran (vibrated the wall). Again I took a couple of minutes and just moved it about an inch so it wasn't right on the wall. The pump is still noisy but the it does't sound like it's tearing the camper apart anymore.

If you are thinking about the sleeper sofa... DON'T. Get the jackknife sofa. When you pull the sleeper out it goes all the way to the wall and if someone want's out of the bunkroom they have to go over the end of the sleeper sofa. That and putting a fantastic fan in the bunk room (which I didn't) are the only things I would have done differently.

Would I buy another Mountaineer or Montana? Absolutely.

Glenn and Lorraine · 02-07-2005, 12:57 AM

IS THE QUALITY GOOD?......For the buck I don't think you will find any better. As stiles watson pointed out anything made by man has a very good chance of having problems.
We have been fulltiming in our Montana since October of 2003 and have had only one problem and that is a sticking shower door. Others will tell you of no problems while others have had numerous.
They all have their share of problems but the biggest difference that I can see between the Montana/Mountaineer and most every other brand is this forum. I have yet to find a forum with the vast END USER knowledge about any product that you will find here. This forum is NOT controlled by Keystone or Montana and the folks on here tell it like it is. They won't pull any punches if there is something that they don't like and without fear of being deleted if they are too harsh about the products.

My current Montana is my first Montana but it will not be my last Montana.

RC and Samantha · 02-07-2005, 05:54 AM

We think the quality is really good. Like the others have mentioned there are sometimes problems. As far as bang for the buck I don't think you can beat them. The model you're looking at is beautiful. If we had children traveling with us, it's the one we'd pick for sure.

Patty

sreigle · 02-07-2005, 06:31 AM

I agree with the others. I do think you CAN buy better quality but it will cost you $80k and up. Within the general price range of the Montanas I've not yet found any better bang for the buck. Montana has been the biggest seller in North America for the last four years straight. I have to think there's a reason for that. Any mfr could be tops for one year, maybe two, but to remain on top for that long I would think says a lot.

As others said, it's mechanical and there will be problems. Just bouncing it down the road will see to that. But, like others, our problems have been pretty minor. We've put about 25k on this one, maybe more by now, and have been fulltiming in it for almost two years. We continue to be happy with it.

This is our second Montana. If we someday decide to trade, Montana will be tops on our list.

There are several good brands out there and any of those are good choices. We just think Montana is the best of the lot, but that's just based on our experience.

Good luck. Be sure to let us know your decision, whether you go with Montana or something else. Please feel free to ask any questions you have. There are NO dumb questions in this forum. If there were, I'd be the king of dumb.

Montana_2779 · 02-07-2005, 07:18 AM

We've found that the best part of buying our (Montana) Mountaineer was getting to join the MOC!

We were dead set on buying an Open Road (good bang for the buck). We looked at dozens of units before finding our Mountaineer by accident. We NEVER thought we'd get a better deal than the Open Road. Glad to say that the Mountaineer won, hands down. We are finding the same small "problems" that we've seen on every other RV we've looked at (needs a little caulk here, a cabinet door adjustment there). Quality appears to be every bit as good as units $10K or $20k more.

NJ Hillbilly · 02-07-2005, 10:04 AM

dbrill, I installed a Maxx-Air powered roof vent cover that works just as well as a Fantasic Fan. All it needs is a power source. I stole power at a light switch.

John

dbrill · 02-07-2005, 10:54 PM

NJ Hillbilly, I have been looking into the new Maxx Air MaxxFan ( http://www.maxxair.com/products/MaxxFan.aspx ) where the output points back down at the trailer so I don't have to worry about a cover or the kids not closing it in the rain. But 6 inches of snow just melted off the roof so I am not doing anything until spring. For the price they quoted me when I ordered it the Fantastic fan factory installed would have been the smartest move at that time, I just did not think about that little room getting so hot in the spring and fall when we don't always use the AC.

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