etcetera

That is the one I referred to in my post above 3 hours earlier.. 

It's the 6.0L diesel that has me concerned now.

Now you are getting me concerned. Re: PSD engines. Issues with 6.0L. 6.4L seems to be more reliable with 6.7L even more reliable. I wonder if I should get a gas 7.5L or V10 or whatever is the latest-greatest.

6.8L gasoline V10 seems like a better option - for me. 

Does this one look more promising?

https://www.rvtrader.com/listing/2006-Dynamax-Isata-IF310-5016639324

18 hours ago, Kirk W said:

From the Thor website:

From Freedom Motorhomes:

 

 

This doesn't tell me anything I don't already know, the 99% figure was just a guesstimate. 

I don't care for the Sprinter  chassis either. Due to design and I think it's overpriced.

I think a Class C based on a F450 or F550 would be ideal. 

But at one point in Class C history the powers-that-be decided to base them on a E450 and E350. Probably because you have less of a snout on the front end, so you can have a longer structure built on it without increasing the overall vehicle length.  That makes sense in the city and zero sense for an RV in the middle of nowhere.

Full size transits don't have a doghouse which makes servicing them a nightmare.

The downsides are many. E-series is considerably more difficult to maintain, even with doghouse, access isn't easy. Definitely not like just popping a hood. Some mechanics charge an extra 30% on top of their rates to work on E-series, some are a horror to work on. To  do injectors in a 6.0 or 7.3 van you need to drop the engine 8" just to get them out. No thank you. 
With a F-series front end, or the Dodge equivalent, there would be more room in the cab, less noise (and heat), and far easier to access the engine.

Remember in Nomadland, her van broke down and they could not fix it without an exorbitant repair fee... A vehicle that's not DIY-capable kind of goes against the whole lifestyle vibe, which is freedom and independence and self-reliance and sometimes you have to deal with a repair in the middle of nowhere, OR call for (very expensive) help and get towed. I can't fix a F350 with a shoestring and chewing gum either but a lot more likely to given the right parts, I know how to do a water pump on a 7.5L Ford for example. With an E-series, I would just open the hood and stare at it, then call a tow truck.  Which is nice if you have the financial means and cell phone reception and can afford the downtime - and what if you don't.

I get it, accessing the rest of the vehicle is easier with an E-series front, versus a more constrained F-series but even that problem has been solved with a hybrid front, looks like an F-series but has access like an E-series. For example look at Isata.

That model uses a 6.7L Powerstroke, not 6.0.

what I mean by resale value - Assuming I get and if for some reason I decide to sell a few years later, I won't be able to due to that significant modification. That explains why they can't sell it even with a discount.

It kind of looked Okay at first but I am going to pursue something else due to the above, and their interesting reputation.

Interesting. Thanks for your feedback and the reality check.

If you drive by them, could you please stop by and take a look at that Dynamax Isata they have? Don't go out of your way but just out of curiosity.  Kind of a reality check.

Or do you think it's not even worth messing with them at all?

I don't think it has any resale value due to the heavy modification done to it. Re: slide removal

I think I am going to back out of the deal (there is no deal, just negotiation at this point).

Their yelp reviews are awful, so is BBB:

https://www.yelp.com/biz/optimum-rv-ocala?osq=Optimum RV&start=10

The unit I was thinking about was this. From the distance, it looks Okay (but who knows what condition it's in).

The major "issue" with it is that the rear slide has been removed and heavily modified to be a toy hauler. So I don't know. The price is pretty low for a 2007 Isata, under 50K.  It's the distance and the abysmal reviews that scary me. I think I will keep looking.

https://www.optimumrv.com/product/used-2007-dynamax-isata-f-550-series-1387241-17

It is indeed an F-series, I hate the econoline design. Makes zero sense to me.  Harder to service, plus as noted above, more noise. And 99% of what's available C-class wise is E-based.

Working on the financial aspect at this point.  Don't even know what rate they will offer.

I get the point about desert, there is something magical about waking up and being able to see in any direction, with 360 degree view.

A lot of people have gone to a desert for spiritual enlightenment, there is something mystical about it.

On 8/14/2021 at 1:48 PM, sandsys said:

How much of that did you have in your RV life? Except for Fern and David, these were real people living their real lives.

Linda

Lots. I embraced the 'lifestyle' for several years.

Then quit. Embraced the 'norm'.  Got married and was forcefully divorced, which resulted in a brutal 8-year long custody fight.

Which I ultimately won.

Now didn't like what I got with normalcy 'status quo' and am in the process of coming back.

It took a long time. I try not to have regrets. I don't know where the other road would have taken me. Maybe nowhere.  Now reflecting and looking back, I was really happy being relatively poor, but young and free.

On 8/14/2021 at 8:59 PM, fpmtngal said:

I guess everyone sees different things in the movie based on their life-experiences.  I agree that the flow of the movie was slow, but would disagree with you that there was no decision-making or character development.  Maybe it wasn’t character development in the normal use of the word, but there was definite character change to me.

Compare the first scene of Fern holding her late husband’s jacket to her chest for a moment, then putting it in a box and closing the door of her full storage unit.  One of the last scenes in the movie is of her smiling to her friend and saying that she doesn’t need any of the stuff in his pickup truck.  The first scene is a woman grieving, the later scene is a woman who has walked through the grief process and is no longer holding onto the past.  Definitely a change in character.

Fern makes a number of decisions about what type of life she wants - first her sister and then Dave offer her a more traditional, stable life.  She appears to be tempted by Dave’s offer, comparing what she has as a single woman on her own (sleeping in her van that night) with the life Dave is offering her.  She drives away - decision made.

Sorry you find the Arizona desert depressing - I love it and find it far less depressing than snow covered roofs and roads.  I seem to have transitioned from a mountain-girl to a desert rat over the past 2 years.

Everyone is different and this is a movie that each of us will see different things in.  I saw the movie as being about grief, letting go of the past and moving on to a different life.  The movie is dark, moody and slow, and many will see it as depressing.  I look at the plot and the scenes I relate to on a very personal level and don’t see it as depressing as most people seem to.  

Well, you make a good point

I did not say it was an Econoline chassis, you made an assumption.

I don't want to share until I actually buy it.  Knock-knock on wood.

As explained, I am doing the financial thing now. If that goes through, I will have to make a relatively long trip.

Before the trip will have to edjumacate myself on PSD and how to change the spark plus in it (joke).

I went for a long time trying to decide if I should get a 2500 Suburban and a TT. Ended up discarding that idea. Too much trouble. I did that before and never entirely liked it. Fine if you set it up and move twice a year, not very fun to hook it up once a week and towing is not fun either. 

Was occasionally thinking about class A as more cost-effective and sometimes about class B as the ultimate "Stealthy camping" type vehicle. In the end, decided that I wanted a Class C.

/sigh

I decided to focus on this 30' class C that's a Powerstroke. I am a bit worried as I never had a PSD before, I now nothing about them. 

Assuming my loan application goes through, and by talking to the dealership it appears it should, based on my credit score and a good down  payment.  Looks like I will be financing about 35K and thinking about either 24 to 36 month, not sure what the interest would be. Monthly payments look encouraging. 

If everything goes to the plan, and you know how life is. If you want to make God laugh, tell him your plans.

On 8/2/2021 at 2:26 PM, NDBirdman said:

Finally got to watch the movie.  All I can say is it is very depressing. 

 

 

It is. It's kind of one dimensional. Yet it kind of semi-accurately portrays the "lifestyle". 

All these classes, where they show how to plug a tire, etc. I've never seen that. I full timed  for just 2 short years. Basically a nano-second, I get that. But I saw enough camaraderie between various campers. Also saw some theft. You see everything. Real life is a lot more multidimensional than what the movie described.

Full timers are highly individualistic, each case is unique and their lives don't really intersect very much, based on what I've seen.  They come from different social classes with very different backgrounds and mostly keep to themselves. They do form cliques, or "gangs" and you do not associate outside of your circle. 

Dare I say real life at times was a lot less depressing than the the movie portrayed.

It was all shot out west somewhere (didn't catch where, was it Nevada or such) and that terrain by definition is depressing, IMO, and at the same time captivatingly beautiful.  You go to some place like Missouri and it's not a total desert wasteland.

Oh, the musical composition was stunning. Very apropos.  One of the better ones I've seen in years. 

The main thing I did not like, it lacked any finality to it, or any flow, nothing really happens the entire movie, no character development or any decision-making or anything at all.
Just podunk, windy wasteland, Amazon factories and broken down vans.

It made life even more depressing than it sometimes  is.

what was that C-class in the film? (I had to resize it for forum to process it thus resolution is grainy)

at 23:47

So I watched it.

Interesting. Not a bad flick but not a normal movie scenario with plot, development and a resolution and action in between.

It had almost no plot. No character development.  Instead of a flowing scenario, it was more of a static snapshot of a woman (and many others) stuck in some life situation. 

This doesn't make it a bad flick, just different.

At times it was very depressing, like getting trapped in that Amazon factory and other semi min wage jobs.

It kept me engaged the whole time.

I thought I could relate to a lot of it.

On 7/1/2021 at 2:27 PM, Nwcid said:

There are the same number of steps between both options.  You reference a toad so you would still have to "mess with connecting it".  As to leveling I do the same thing as a MH and hit auto level (I know some do not come with this but most that would compare with a MH do).  If you are hooking you still need P/W/S and both attach the same way. 

I had a F350 TV plus an Airsream it was a PITA to hitch it when I wanted to go somewhere. It wasn't that often.

A MH is simpler. There is nothing to connect assuming there is no toad. Not everyone has or needs one. You can for example carry a bike or a moped or something.  I think if I had a MH, I probably would not bother with a toad.

For a while my DD was an old F350 with a 460 motor that got 11MPG no matter what you did with it.  I did the math and it was actually cheaper using just it without having to get a second vehicle. I forgot what the break even point was.

Of course you can get a second vehicle or a toad if it's more convenient, not everything in life is about the bottom $. An F350 or a MH is not a great DD.

I was never happy with the Airstream. Didn't feel right and towing was not a joyful experience. More sway than I wanted. And I had a rig that was more than sufficient for the 32'. Heavy duty 1 ton axles F350 with the 7.5L. 

Want to try something else this time, a compact Fifth possibly. Compact meaning under 30'. Not one of those huge 38' units. What entices me about the Fifths is:

The variety is endless, so is the price range. More usable living space than in Class C.  Much more storage.

The LEGO-bility of it. You can match the tow vehicle to the Fifth. If you don't like the TV, you can sell it, get another one, or keep the TV and upgrade the Fifth.  It's nice. With class A, B and C you are stuck with the whole unit. TT are modular also in  that sense but I doubt I want to get a TT again.  Not enough storage, towing is inferior to FV.

IMO and IME

I seriously considered one of these Stealth camping arrangements, making a class C look like a not-a-full-timing vehicle, of course I am aware class B is the ultimate for that purpose. However that would work just in my current position, if I moved I think the point might become moot.  I think realistically anything that doesn't look like a class B delivery vehicle is not stealthy enough and since I don't want class B I might as well give up on that idea.

The downside to Fifth is the eternal where are you going to park it?

The upside to the Fifth is once you park it, unhook and now you have a heavy duty 1 ton vehicle to run errands with, get to work in, etc.

The upside to class C it's way more compact, no hooking / unhooking nonsense. And you don't have to full time park it, you can kind of, sort of quasy-stealth it, if you paint it right, it would not be *that* unusual and certainly not attract as much attention as a Fifth.

The downside to Class C, you cannot actually park it and have to take the entire rig with you everywhere, to work, errands, everywhere. 

There are situations where class C would be more practical like now, and then there are situations where a Fifth would be more practical. I am trying to think long-term.

With the Fifth, I could even tow multiple trailers. Have a major Fifth for full timing and then a super compact one for the weekend activity type. Maybe some 19' TT, that's cheap but does the job. Or not, as maintaining many is a pain.

Remember the scene where he got picked up by the RV hippy couple? They had an RV, looked like something older from the 70's, but not sure.

I always wondered why he didn't get one with all these funds from his parents instead of donating it to charity (and then working at that farm to get enough funds to go to Alaska)

https://www.enotes.com/homework-help/who-are-jan-and-bob-in-into-the-wild-312980

I spent weeks looking for the right C class and couldn't find anything I want, meaning F550 based, like Dynamic Isata F-series. My budget is 40K, maybe 60K if I can get some financing.  Lots of C class at that price point but I liked none of them as 99% of them have van front.

Back to the drawing board. Exploring class A and exactly just how hard it is to maintain in an emergency, models like Itasca Sunrise M-30W.  Supposedly removing the doghouse exposes the entire top of the engine. I don't know. It is in my price range if from 2004-2008 or so.

Then I am tempted to do what I once did. Get an Airstream and just tow it. One of these wide bodies, 34' tri-axle. 

OTOH, cool as they are, Airstreams sorely lack storage space. IMO.  Not great for full-timing. 

So then maybe the solution for me is a Fifth. Easier to tow, I get to pick exactly the heavy duty/super duty TV I want. Not an inexpensive option either. Something in the relatively compact size. 

I am specifically interested in this class A model. Supposedly removing the doghouse exposes the entire top of the engine. I have never owned a class A so have a hard time visualizing this.  youtube searches went nowhere.

2004 Itasca Sunrise M-30W

How hard is it to do any maintenance on Class A, both pushers and the engine is in the front configurations?

which RV was used in the movie Into the Wild? By the hippie couple.

I want to find the IF-255 model. I wonder how many were made. Likely nowhere as many as by other brands.

Found the 30' model in Montana, and it got sold. Wasn't what I wanted anyway, 30' and 2 slides.

IF-255 is only 26'.

It looks like a design thing. Here is a 2009 from another angle:

https://www.smartrvguide.com/L51138142