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Old 02-13-2016, 03:07 PM   #1
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Brand: Still Looking
State: North Carolina
Posts: 1
THOR #3650
Would appreciate comments on 2016 Challenger

I'm new to the Motorhome/RV world and have been looking at six coaches listed below. They all have bath and a half.

Forest River Georgetown XL 360DS
Newmar Canyon Star 3710
Newmar Canyon Star 3953
Thor Challenger 37LX
Thor Miramar 34.1
Tiffin Allegro 36LA

My wife and I keep coming back to the Challenger 37LX. Any information you could give us about the "LX" or Challenger in general would be very helpful.

Its a funny thing, the first brochure I ever saw as a 2015 Thor Tuscany and I thought it was about the most beautiful thing I ever saw. So maybe its understandable when I first saw the Challenger brochure I thought the same thing!

Thanks for any help

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Old 02-13-2016, 03:31 PM   #2
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Brand: Entegra
Model: Accolade 37TS
State: South Dakota
Posts: 8,726
THOR #1469
We bought our 2015 Challenger 37ND last February and the only problem we have is not having the time to take it out enough. We took four trips last year averaging 1 or 2 weeks and 800 to 1,000 miles per trip. We had a slide problem on the shakedown cruise where a wire came loose from the slide motor due to a bulb seal missing. Thor reimbursed me for a mobile tech and sent me the missing bulb seal for replacement.

My coach is currently in the shop for its first and only warranty visit and the items are all relatively minor. In fact if I didn't need a generator and chassis service and state safety inspection I may have just bit the bullet and repaired the items myself. Right now the dealer is waiting on the parts for the step recall.

For me, Thor Customer service has been outstanding which is something that was non existent with my Forest River.

The coach handles very well and we enjoy the space inside as well as the outdoor kitchen and entertainment area. We are already planning a four day trip in March and another 2 week long trip in April.

Overall we are very pleased with the Challenger.


FWIW, here is the link to the thread I posted on our trip to Charleston, SC.


http://www.thorforums.com/forums/f17...lete-2838.html


If you go to the camping pics thread you can view some pics of Challengers setup for camping.
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Old 02-13-2016, 03:59 PM   #3
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Brand: Thor Motor Coach
Model: Challenger 37KT
State: Michigan
Posts: 282
THOR #2628
we bought a 15.5 37KT and love it, great floor plan. We have had a few issues but we love our RV!!

KC
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Old 02-13-2016, 07:01 PM   #4
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Brand: Thor Motor Coach
Model: Challenger 37TB
State: Kentucky
Posts: 1,032
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I gave some input on this subject over at IRV2. Before I post it here - some takes on the manufacturer you listed.

1. Forest River - had a Georgetown 351 and never could speak to a human at warranty service.
2. Thor - warranty service is excellent.
3. Newmar - heard nothing but good things about there service. No personal experience.
4. Tiffin - same as Newmar.

Recognize that in the first year you own a coach - you spend time shaking out the problems.

Now my post relative to the Challenger.

We have a 2015 Challenger 37TB and love it. Some features that often aren't highlighted and they really should be:

1. 172 square foot of storage in the "basement". Once you start using it - you'll wonder how you ever got along without it.

2. On board water storage. 100 gal fresh, 40/40 grey, 40/40 black. We dry camp for 2 or 3 months a year in Key West. We have a washer-dryer onboard and run a load every other day. DW takes a good hot shower everyday, we eat in a great deal (means considerable dish washing) and freely use water in general. We go 5 days between dumping and refreshing fresh water. Without all of this storage, we'd have to make concession on water usage. (Note: we only keep that much water on board when we're dry camping - no sense in hauling all the water with full hookups)

3. 252" wheel base with 22.5' wheels. When we are on 4 lane roads the sweet spot for running with cruise control on is 67 mph. Side winds have little or no effect with this combo.

4. Large number of circuits that can be powered by the 2000 watt inverter. When you're dry camping powering TVs, a satellite dish and receivers, and whatever else you want is a great feature. . Quiet time where we stay in Key West is 11 PM to 7 AM. If we want to watch the 11 PM news its a just routine for us. Run CPAP all night long without any issues. (Note: we upgraded to 4 house batteries)

You can look inside your coach and see most of the rest but these 4 above are features you just don't see. For us, not having them now is simply not an option. You will look long and hard in the gasser market and you will not find these 4. Some coaches do exist in DPs but very few in lower $ end range.

Hope this helps. Would we buy the Challenger again - YEP!!!
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Old 02-13-2016, 08:28 PM   #5
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Brand: Thor Motor Coach
Model: Challenger
State: Florida
Posts: 33
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As BigBen, I also posted on IRV2 regarding the Challenger.

We looked at all the coaches that you listed:
I didn't care for the Georgetown interior, just my opinion.

The Newmar Canyon Stars are very nice, but the bathroom was small and I'm not a big person. Also, there weren't a lot of cabinet storage in the interior. Not as much exterior storage as the Challenger, only one small pass through compartment.

A friend has a Tiffin DP that is very nice. We looked at the gas Tiffin Red. It was nice but still not as spacious as the Challenger and had a queen bed.

We have a 2016 Challenger LX. We love the bath and 1/2, both baths are roomy with plenty of storage in each. The king bed and residential refrigerator are a big plus. The cabinetry is beautiful with a lot of storage. The full wall slide make it very spacious inside without taking away from the outside patio area. We are outside a lot and love having the extra room. Most of the exterior compartments are pass throughs.
Thor Customer and Warranty service has been fantastic!
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Old 02-14-2016, 01:41 AM   #6
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Brand: Thor Motor Coach
Model: Challenger 37TB
State: Kentucky
Posts: 1,032
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Nice looking coach Pat and Dale
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