Hi All,
Today, I went to my local dealer who finally got in a few Vegas's for me to check out in person for the first time...yay! I accidentally connected with a wonderful sales guy very much because he used to be the service department manager so is very knowledgeable where many sales people know less then I do after doing my research, and he is low key and will not be pressuring me to do anything before I'm ready. He was attentive and got it about the things that were important to me right away = rare. I'm thrilled that he is likely to be a key person in my eventual purchase and, perhaps, I wouldn't have to be traveling all over the country to get what I want.
I appreciate that he pointed me to other A classes for comparison that are also 27' or under. Most notable was the Winnebago Sunstar 26HE. For what looks like similar price? a much more solid coach and this might the case with all of the A's based on a different chassis, heavier for sure, with many amenities that I will have to purchase separately with Thor, already included. He pointed out shorter turning radius as a plus. I don't know exactly what accounts for the weight differences but for sure better insulation (which might be helpful in very cold climates and with muffling the generator sound), higher quality interior elements, more underneath storage, and the extras, like auto leveling included. With that said, however, a serious lack of counter-top area, especially no storage for kitchen things in this model, it's super dark inside having to do with windows and placement issues are all problems for me.
As I stepped outside of it and saw a Vegas alongside another A class, I could suddenly see how much narrower it was and shorter (as in height) and I really like that smaller footprint; I like it a lot. So, I think I'm going to be willing to pay more (assuming I'm correct about comparing price and not sure I am) for, in some senses, getting less in order to have what suits me best and go with the Axis/Vegas: the original plan.
With that said, can I get a little help listing all of the things I will have to buy immediately to make this work and roughly the cost:
1. How to level my new coach? I want to have the option to be off the beaten path so will be necessary. Blocks? Automatic systems? Jacks? (What is easiest? What is cost efficient?)
2. I will need things to stabilize the ride. Steering stabilizer? Safe T Plus? How much and is this the kind of thing I can negotiate for dealership to throw in installed? Maybe if one can't do too much to negotiate price one can make up for it by asking for stuff like this and to install it?
3. I hope to avoid the expense of paying for RV storage so that leaves my driveway (yet another compelling reason to go with the Axis/Vegas = size of thing in my driveway and how much my neighbors will hate me
. I can have an aluminum type cover built or buy one of those cloth ones? Anyone have experience/suggestions here with these? Installing a fabric one must be a pain I imagine and will require me to be on the roof?
4. Extended warranty: Generally speaking buying warranties on many different kinds of items is not efficient. I have a feeling though that buying an extended warranty on this will matter, especially in light of reading about the many experiences of you all who have suffered with breakdowns and repairs. Any thoughts on this and/or your experience with getting extended warranty or not?
5. Roadside assistance: Is sometimes included in more complete extended warranties?
6. Extra long hoses for connecting to water and shoreline for power as I plan to not always back into spaces so the front of the coach has the more scenic view and this will have me on the opposite side of the hookups. Any thoughts about pros/cons of this?
7 Anything I missed?
thanks in advance for your consideration and responses
Thor Forums
