New Here - ACE 30.2 pre-purchase

[Ohiomike]

Originally Posted by knucklehead

I did no know you needed bunk beds. Didn't see that anywhere in the post but I think the Windsport and the Hurricane both have a bunk bed model or two. I liked the ACE for several reasons but I'm 6'6" and I could not see out the windshield worth a hoot. LOVE MY WINDSPORT THO'.... Bob Trice

No worries that height would definitely be an issue. I’m 5’7 so I was wondering how’s the windshield a problem haha. I’ve driven mine a lot and no issues in fact looked the same as others. A foot taller makes sense to those issues.

[knucklehead]

Originally Posted by Ohiomike

No worries that height would definitely be an issue. I’m 5’7 so I was wondering how’s the windshield a problem haha. I’ve driven mine a lot and no issues in fact looked the same as others. A foot taller makes sense to those issues.

I love the floorplan of the ACE and there's also much nicer dinette seats with the wrap around at the wall I loved. The two part bath/shower AND the curved shower curtain is also great. I had one put in my Windsport. Immitation is the best form of flattery right? Mine suits my wife and I to a tee. Not so big it gets awful mileage and not so small you feel cramped. Like Goldie Locks, JUST RIGHT!!! Bob Trice

[ACEinCF]

Originally Posted by Ferf

We have a 2018 Thor ACE 30.2 and travel with kids 4 and 6 and our golden doodle. Here are few things we have seen over the last 2 years and 15k miles.

1. Our dining table broke free from the wall multiple times, a side effect of using car seats for the kids and them using the table many hours while driving
2. I have had a clogged toilet probably every third trip out (kids have a hard time understanding the toilet works differently). I carry a clean-out tool with me now too
3. The area under the sofa is wasted space and covered by a removable panel. We fit 3 big rubbermade totes under there and store all food in them. they are held in with a piece of 1x2 screwed to the ground on the front side
4. Our RV has 2 places where screws are popping through the linoleum, one under the driver and one in front of the bunks. I had to cut through the floor and glue/screw them back in
5. The outlets below the TV in the master worked but the USB ports did not
6. We had speakers installed that had screw holes poked in them
7. The bottom bunk sleeps hot (furnace ducts under the bunk)
8. There is no easy cupholder for your copilot, so be prepared to install one
9. You should DEFINITELY do the CHF (cheap handling fix). It is a free game changer for the handling of the RV with wind and passing vehicles
10. You should verify with a level that your auto-leveling system is configured at the dealer if you don't want to figure it out on your own.
11. The grill on ours (and many others like ours) squeals at 50-70mph. The dealer can replace the grill with a different one to make it go away. We wrapped ours in window screen and it stopped. Made vehicle impossible to drive between 50-70mph without getting a headache
12. Temperature changes can cause a lot of moisture buildup on the front window and will drip a good amount on the dash (to the point of pooling).
13. You will always forget common things like gas tank size, black tank size, grey tank size, tire pressure, etc. Make a laminated sheet for reference
14. The wet bay is not heated, so if you are a winter camper, search the forums for tips. Some people put light bulbs in there and use heated hoses so the water pump doesnt freeze, for example
15. Dealer had to replace our stereo in the first year, just stopped working
16. Hot/cold lines were reversed in the kitchen on delivery

There were a few dealer/model issues in there, but generally, we are still in love with ours. For what I consider an entry level class A, it is awesome. There are a lot of cheap parts, but it get us comfortably between point a and point b, and we enjoy the rest of the time outside.

Good luck!

Very helpful - thanks. Our walk through prior to purchase is tomorrow morning. Then we can schedule the extensive training. I hope to catch any "gotchas" tomorrow pre-purchase so we can get it fixed and hold them to it. Never thought about the water lines being cross - how the heck does that happen in the factory? LOL; rhetorical question, I can only imagine who puts these together.

[ACEinCF]

Originally Posted by knucklehead

I love the floorplan of the ACE and there's also much nicer dinette seats with the wrap around at the wall I loved. The two part bath/shower AND the curved shower curtain is also great. I had one put in my Windsport. Immitation is the best form of flattery right? Mine suits my wife and I to a tee. Not so big it gets awful mileage and not so small you feel cramped. Like Goldie Locks, JUST RIGHT!!! Bob Trice

Ohiomike is right, we have two young kids and wanted a bunkhouse for them so that limited us. We also have a 33' driveway with a public sidewalk in the front of our house. I wanted something <33 so the 30.2 fits our needs. A little overhang is OK but I didn't want to obstruct walkers/joggers. We won't keep it long in our driveway each time but definitely an overnight or two as we pack up and get ready to hit the road.

[Ohiomike]

Originally Posted by ACEinCF

Ohiomike is right, we have two young kids and wanted a bunkhouse for them so that limited us. We also have a 33' driveway with a public sidewalk in the front of our house. I wanted something <33 so the 30.2 fits our needs. A little overhang is OK but I didn't want to obstruct walkers/joggers. We won't keep it long in our driveway each time but definitely an overnight or two as we pack up and get ready to hit the road.

You will love the length. The Hurricane and other bunks are 3 foot longer. This ace has been great fitting into tight campsites etc. We were able to get last minute spots due to the size any longer and we wouldn’t fit.

I’m assuming being a 2018 it’s a used coach. The bugs should be worked out by now. There is a bag that the coach comes with and has manuals. My coach previous owners had the service records included in that bag. We noticed some issues that were fixed on service log. I would check there.

I would not spend on any warranty. The warranty will not cover manufacturers defects or workmanship issues. We tried a claim under warranty and it was denied. The previous owner had a transferable warranty so it made sense for us to keep it. I believe transfer fee was $75. It really is a good coach. Again you will make repairs over time. I replaced toilet and water pump last year. That’s with any RV. The use and family enjoyment has been priceless.

Good luck on purchase. This model isn’t very complicated so don’t feel overwhelmed if you forget anything. Water and sewer is common sense. Interior controls are easy to learn.

After purchase you can also log into Thors website and be there is a owners login you can set up with vin number. That will also have all manuals available online.

Good luck.

[knucklehead]

Originally Posted by ACEinCF

Very helpful - thanks. Our walk through prior to purchase is tomorrow morning. Then we can schedule the extensive training. I hope to catch any "gotchas" tomorrow pre-purchase so we can get it fixed and hold them to it. Never thought about the water lines being cross - how the heck does that happen in the factory? LOL; rhetorical question, I can only imagine who puts these together.

I feel your grief man! Our first Thor was a 2017 Axis 25.2 & it had maybe 5 or 6 issue's but it was too small so we got a 2018 Windsport 29m. Loved everything about it but had numerous problems and between Gander RV in Statesville, NC who is great BTW and Tom at Thor we are now perfect. Won't last long because there is always something that will fail or wear out but they slap them together quick and don't use the greatest materials so that's why they are affordable. The other things like the fridge, AC, Heater, levelers, stove, water pumps ect. are out sourced and subject to that mfg'er. Even a Tiffin or a Provost will have some issue's so unless you got a million in the bank burning a hole in your pocket find a good RV repair man and learn all you can about your coach and fix it yourself like me. It's kinda fun doing that cause you know it's done right and I enjoy putting some extra work into anything I do!! Bob Trice

[Ferf]

Originally Posted by Ohiomike

Do you mind sharing a pic of the adjustment that you made to use under couch for storage?

I have my ACE out for an alignment, but found this crappy photo on my phone.

Basically:
1. remove the front panel. its held in with like 4 screws, and is only a lightweight piece of plywood
2. screwed in a 5' x 1" x 2" into the angle brackets previously used for that front panel
3. slid in 3 big totes, and good to go

The 1x2 simply stops the totes from sliding out while driving. The totes are roughly this size, and 3 fit perfectly. Will try to measure again and take better photos when I get it back.

[Ohiomike]

Originally Posted by Ferf

I have my ACE out for an alignment, but found this crappy photo on my phone.

Basically:
1. remove the front panel. its held in with like 4 screws, and is only a lightweight piece of plywood
2. screwed in a 5' x 1" x 2" into the angle brackets previously used for that front panel
3. slid in 3 big totes, and good to go

The 1x2 simply stops the totes from sliding out while driving. The totes are roughly this size, and 3 fit perfectly. Will try to measure again and take better photos when I get it back.

Nice the front piece underneath the dining bench came off opening the entire thing. We’ve used that for storage. Much better than lifting up the seat cushion and accessing it that way.

I’ll be taking the front of our couch off.

[Ferf]

Originally Posted by Ohiomike

Nice the front piece underneath the dining bench came off opening the entire thing. We’ve used that for storage. Much better than lifting up the seat cushion and accessing it that way.

I’ll be taking the front of our couch off.

The biggest benefit is we can load up those totes with food and supplies and just slide them in. Makes getting out of the house so much faster.