Newbies - Narrowing down our bus search

[luvrbus]

There are a couple of Newell sites you can join and ask away or call Newell in Miami Ok they are good about giving information on older Newells.You are dealing with a bus board  there are only a couple of Newell owners here fwiw   

[Escape Velocity]

ah...  thanks for the heads up.  I didn't realize the exact difference for Newells.  I'll take a peak at some of their forums.

We still believe a bus is our best choice, but are open to options.  The biggest difference we've seen is just the feel of an old bus verses a traditional motorhome...  I don't know exactly what it is, but the motorhomes just feel so ...flimsy?  I guess that's the best term.  At least that's been our observations with the under $100,000 new type units.  Even in the used market we haven't been that impressed with the build quality until you get to the *really* expensive brands.  The whole experience makes me think of the three little pigs and the house built of sticks that the wolf blew down verses bricks (older buses).  

And for John, safety in crashes and the weight capacity of a bus verses a motorhome have been the biggest factors.

Plus old buses are just cool.  


Edit: Grammar!

[luvrbus]

Newell has always been able to compete with buses they are built from the ground up with a frame so could Vogue with their V5000 it was built from the ground up but it's a 45ft.I would love to have a Vogue V6000

[Scott & Heather]

Interesting situation I was in today. A friend of mine was parked in his 40ft S&S next to mine and I noticed how much it was vibrating and how loud it was inside at idle. Just a complete different feel than our bus.


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[Escape Velocity]

Interesting situation I was in today. A friend of mine was parked in his 40ft S&S next to mine and I noticed how much it was vibrating and how loud it was inside at idle. Just a complete different feel than our bus.

Have you ever driven a S&S?  The first time I did, I actually was thinking it was going to shake apart...  haha  It's like driving a big U-Haul.   I've ridden in Prevost and Van Hool buses several times as well as a couple of older Blue Birds.  The difference is night and day.  I haven't been in a moving GMC to judge, though the engine was running and sounded great.    I love the sound of the old Detroit Diesels.  We once took a 34' rental down to the Keys.  If we went over 50 MPH, the person trying to nap on the back bed was catching 1-2 feet of air on bumps!  The bad roads would really get the whole thing oscillating or on a funky harmonic of the shocks and it was like riding in cocktail shaker.  We've had all sizes, but the 24' Sprinter chassis was our favorite.  It was much, much better than the longer truck built S&S, but even we couldn't squeeze into 24' fulltime!

Deb

[kyle4501]

You can get a whole lot of motorhome for under $100,000 with an older Newell.

Luvrbus is correct, Newells are built with a truss frame & the skin is riveted on. The interior walls in mine are ~1/2" plywood. It is very solid & quiet riding down the road. At almost 30 years old, the cabinetry is still solid & tight.
The only problem with any of my cabinetry is confined to the rear wall wardrobe at the head of the bed - the 2 foot square mirrored doors were too heavy & the hinges broke &/ or broke the bit of wood they were attached to. Any other issues were resolved by adjusting a few of the hinges.

Mine is 6'6" to the ceiling with 2 basement A/Cs & 2 roof top.

As for raising the roof, I'd think a Newell would lend itself well to that. However, before I would do a roof raise, I'd put ducted roof airs on with a insulated duct mounted outside on the roof to eliminate head knockers inside.

[Scott & Heather]

Deb I've never actually ridden in one nor driven one. This was my first time going inside one that was even idling. Wasn't impressed much. Nice coach but didn't feel nearly as solid as our MCI 9. Kyle said his Newell was 6'6" interior height. Is that enough for you guys or would you still need a roof raise?


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[Barn Owl]

Good advice here. Fuel mileage might be a factor if you are driving several hundred miles every day, but I don't know of any full-timer that does. Even if you are traveling all of the time an automatic is worth it. I can appreciate wanting to stay in places that have length limits. That is one of the reasons I have a 4106. I have had my bus length questioned only one time at the Grand Canyon where there was a 30' limit. They asked us how long my bus was and my wife responded before I could with "I don't know the length". That was a truthful answer because my wife has no idea how long the bus is. Before I could even process what was going on the Park Ranger dropped the issue and let us stay. I think most State and National parks have limits on how long you can stay, so are you as a full timer really going to be packing up and moving every fews days? Most likely not. If I was a FT'er my needs would be different and I would agree with all of the others here, look for a good 40'. Every decision will be some sort of compromise, I would not compromise on comfort. That means Automatic, high roof, 40', large storage bays. Good luck with your search.

[Escape Velocity]

Kyle said his Newell was 6'6" interior height. Is that enough for you guys or would you still need a roof raise?

That would be an awesome interior height!  John would be willing to do anything 6'4" or better.  I told him he can cook in slippers if he has to! 

Good advice here. ...  Every decision will be some sort of compromise, I would not compromise on comfort.

That's where the height issue comes in - comfort.  As for length...  I've been a die hard MINI fan for 14 years and we've enjoyed downsizing and learning to travel smaller.  It's actually made travel a lot more enjoyable.  So we're continuing to pare down with the expectation that having less stuff will help us live a bigger life.  I could care less about having 15 pairs of shoes (all three of us are that way), though I must admit I'm fond of my various cooking tools, appliances, and gadgets. 

Deb

[kyle4501]

That would be an awesome interior height! 

Deb

It is indeed. 

[luvrbus]

You guys are trying to compare race horses to mules on some of the RV's sure the entry level 40 ft Rv's are junk but you get into the higher end like Newell,Country Coach,Beaver,Foretravel and Vogue there is no comparison as to the entry level but they are not cheap Newell is approaching 2 mil and Foretravel are in the 1.5 mil range new   

[jackhanow]

If given a choice I would rather drive my A model than my 5. Even in a cross wind it drives nice. It's harder to drive my 5 manual transmission because it's so quiet up front it's hard to hear what's happening and I have to shift it by the speedometer. The tall 1 gear doesn't help either in tight areas. The 2 stroke sound is great but I think I would rather have a 4 stroke. Mostly for the repair ability. If your younger like I am, I believe it'll be just as cool to have a 50 year old bus then, as it is having one now.

[kyle4501]

Newell only makes around 30 to 40 coaches per year - 90 percent of those are custom built to the buyer's specifications. Most come with all of the original paperwork. The guy that bought mine new had the dash lowered 1-1/2". I think I would prefer it higher, However I do like ALL of the other choices they made.

I would suggest that you make the effort to go see some of the older high end coaches - you may be surprised at what you will find. I looked at 3 Newells, drove the 3rd one home. They were all nice. They were all different. They all had aged very well.

Mine has the side bath, center hall with a wardrobe closet opposite the bath. Every one that has seen ours comments about how spacious & roomy the bath is.

I would caution about too many overhead cabinets, there aren't any in my salon and it feels bigger than some with slides.

Don't underestimate the benefits of the side entry - really changes the personality of the floor plan.

Get out and drive some & let us know what your thoughts are!

Good Luck!