Help deciding on 22ft Born Free - from Chinook Concourse

[dowellcj]

It sounds like your wife does well in a regular Motorhome except for the parking issues, but, if not, Born Free makes a line of "mobility" vehicles which can be tailored to specific needs. A used one of these would be hard to find, I imagine..

[thestoloffs]

It sounds like your wife does well in a regular Motorhome except for the parking issues, but, if not, Born Free makes a line of "mobility" vehicles which can be tailored to specific needs. A used one of these would be hard to find, I imagine..

Yes, since there are only 3 or 4 made (and we have one of them). The only used one was sold by Ed last year.

Unfortunately, to accommodate the wheelchair lift and to provide enough room to turn a chair / scooter around in, they're all over 23' long (AFAIK). Ours is 26.5' (Floorplan 3 on the BF site).

But, if you need the facilities, they're the best in the market for mobility RV's, especially if you don't want to tow an accessible vehicle.

PM us if you want to discuss it further, or call John Eastman or Dennis Day at the factory. They're the Mobility RV specialists from the commercial side of the house, and are great at consulting on mobility issues.

[stevek]

This is probably an old advertisement? But here is a used one.

http://www.utraderv.com/UT2590AD_2006-b ... ass-c.html

[John S.]

I have owned a 22 foot before this 24 foot I have now. I have fit both into the same handicapped spots where one will fit the other will and some neither will fit. I have had 2 of tese small coaches and have found that there is nowhere I want to go that my 22 BFT would go that my 24 RB would not and I doubt I could get my 22 footer in the places the 24 would not fit. I drive it into Washington dc and into BYC even. I have put lots of miles on the BF going into cities as that is the reason I got one or I would take my Bus. I have well over 400k miles in Motorhomes of various lengths and have always found a place to park no matter the vehicle. Oh yes I have a mobility scooter and handicapped permit.

So I would get the one that fits you best. I think the idea of towing a small trailer is the best idea though as you already have a unit and it would be the cheapest way.

[wanderso]

What is great is that I will be able to see some in person in Eugene Oregon starting next week.


George M Sutton RV is a family owned dealership with a reputation for excellent customer care and service. We're glad to have them be our exclusive sales location in the Northwest.

Starting next Tuesday, April 28th, you will be able to stop in at George M Sutton RV and see new Born Frees! And if you stop by 28th or 29th, you can even say "hi" to our very own Ed and Scott as they help introduce the Northwest to Born Free at our newest dealership.

For more info on George M Sutton RV, click here to check out their website.

[bcope01]

Link to George M. Sutton RV: http://www.suttonrv.com

Bill

[stevek]

Yet another dealer.
This time in Oregon.
On the plus side, not to far from me miles wise.
I keep thinking about upgrading to a larger unit, and this would allow me to check out the newer models.

On the negative side, it ads to my confusion of pricing and is Born Free really Factory Direct?
Wonder what kind of mark up and how much such dealers are making dollar wise when they sell a Born Free? 10-20k?. Heck if I know.

Do the dealers have one price and direct from the factory have another price?
It would be worth for me to drive to the factory if I could save a few bucks.
But what do I know?
Guess I should call.

[randallrae]

As production increases production costs normally decrease per unit , which in theory would allow them to switch from Factory direct to a dealer network without increasing the base price .

[Dallas Baillio]

Personally i think it will destroy the faith I have in the brand if there is only a dealer network without the ability to purchase from the factory. Let's hope that is not in the cards with the new ownership. What would be unique and satisfying would be for BF owners and factory employees to own the business. Current owners and employees providing the capital, sharing the profits and giving priority to providing a quality product with outstanding customer service. Likely no way this would work, but I can dream.

[Mike Jean Bandfield]

10 years ago when we bought ours we started with the factory - they stuck to near list price. At the time there was a BF dealer in OR who gave us a better price. Then we went to the Costco RV program who sent us to a dealer (slimy) in Tempe where we got a very, very good price. From there we dealt directly with the factory (avoiding the slimy dealer) on all options and option pricing, picked up the unit at the factory and paid the dealer in Tempe the price as-built. Crazy

Mike

[wanderso]

I had a chance to view the 2015 born free today at the dealer in Oregon. I missed Ed from the factory by a day; just couldn't get down there earlier due to several factors. The freedom (23' 9") was the smallest of the 2 that they had in stock. Our Chinook is 21' 6" including the spare tire mount. (This is confirming that I do indeed need to keep under 22 feet for parking reasons as we are already at the max when we park - day trips are still a priority and made abundantly clear with my wife's recent hospitalization. (Jewell or other 22's fit the bill). The little extra room of the 23' 9" freedom sure was nice though!

It's impressive to view the good use of space and I like the elevated roof near the cabover area.

The freedom was the 2 sofa layout model with an entertainment center instead of an overhead bunk (we would for sure have the overhead bunk). Build quality and materials are very good and much on the quality level of our Chinook. Once one experiences it and a fiberglass shell, tough to consider lessor options (pressboard, luan+filon) if longevity / gentle wearing is a concern.

Of interest in the 2 sofa model is that I wondered what table options folks use? What year did born free add roll bars? What have your cold weather experiences been like? What MPG are folks getting? I'm expecting that 10 MPG is typical.

One admits that it is tough to ponder a brand new RV with the aging but venerable E Series with the V10 (which I also have). With the Transit now selling in large numbers and 25-30% better MPG, it will be curious to see what Born Free uses as their chassis for the smaller models in the future. (Transit is a bit narrower track and lower weight rating). Thus - if used won't meet the length spec, does one purchase something new on a platform that has been good for decades (E series) but is long in the tooth or wait a bit longer until more manufacturers take the plunge on the new transit (already a common platform in Europe) and benefit from saving $ at the pump and likely important in the future for resale. I expect that quality manufacturers like born free will have to shed weight as part of the transition.

[wanderso]

I didn't talk price on the Born Free but expect they are on the $100k range. That indeed places a large price delta between current owned for the benefit of a bunk. (Other amenities also come along the way such as a standard shower rather than wet bath but that isn't a biggie for us)

I'm happy with everything about our Chinook except for missing the cabover bunk in a short length. With our kids continuing to grow, that plays into the picture.

[stevek]

This is the shortest Class C, I know of with an overhead bed.
They sell used ones, returned from their rental fleet.
So I am assuming lots of miles + ware and tare.
Not sure about new prices?
Sure is a cute little guy.
http://www.cruiseamerica.com/buy/modelD ... odelNo=19G

I am assuming the 19G stands for 19 feet.
Not sure what the true bumper to bumper length would be?
I saw one of these parked in downtown SF in a regular parking spot.

Here is a video..
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P8aFHZ_bRJ4
Note... no dual wheels on back.

[wanderso]

Thanks Steve. I've seen those as well. The only gotcha is that they have a dinette instead of a couch. They are made by Thor for rental fleets and sleep 3.

For a young couple with no kids and using the cabover bunk, they look to be fun and mobile.

[stevek]

Take the dinette out and put in a "jack knife" couch.
Should be easy to do, assume there is room.
Thats what my BF has and is where I sleep. Some people do not like these style of couches, but its OK for me and I sleep good. My wife sleeps in the OH.