Love our Born Free, but.......

[wjhgolf]

Has anyone owned a Tiffin Allegro? We are considering a new Tiffin Allegro 31SA model, which only was introduced in March 2013. The floor plan suits us to a "T" and while we love our BF, we need something larger for future, longer trips.....want to spend more time "out" and have "enough" room inside, to just move around and in inclement weather. Any thoughts?

[wjhgolf]

Thanks for your feedback, Sam, I have heard many replies from you previously and I understand your RV experience. We have looked at several Class A brands - never looked at any Class C's prior to buying our BF - good thing it is the best Class C, as we prefer top quality. We have spoken with several knowledgeable people who have noted shortcomings in quality and features - mostly quality - in brands such as Winnebago compared to Tiffin, Newmar, etc. I have not checked out Foretravel, but I'm not sure that they build one short enough (32 - 33 ft max) with the right floor plan. Two key features of the Tiffin Allegro 31SA - the TV is across from the sofa (key item not found in most RV's) and all Tiffins have a full-size, 60 x 80 queen bed, not an RV queen of 60 x 75......lots of small, but important features. And, the quality is there throughout at a decent price. Since they are sold by many reputable dealers - unlike BF's for example (many dealers haven't heard of BF's, so they are not familiar) - I am not concerned with service. And, Red Bay is only 50 miles farther from us than Humboldt should we ever need to go to the factory. We don't live as close as you do to a factory.

[jobrien]

I had an Allegro before I bought my BF. I believe it was a model 32H from 2003. I bought it new, and had a few minor issues which the dealer in NJ took care of.

We also went to the factory one year, just to see what it was like, and had some warranty work done. Minor things that I don't recall, but the experience was good.

We were coming home from Yellowstone in 2006 when we had an issue with the transmission and then the fuel pump. It was on a Workhorse chassis, so nothing that was Tiffin's fault. It was repaired both times in Billings, MT. But during that trip, we found out we did not need 2 slides, and in a Yellowstone campground we couldn't put the slides out because the site was too narrow. Most of our vacations were spent "driving and touring" not parked in one place for a period of time.

I had looked at BF's before that, so when we returned home I contacted the factory and spoke to Ed. Everything after that just fell in place.

I still belong to the Tiffin owners forum, and there are many happy owners on there, just as there are many happy BF owners on here. If I was going back to a class A, I would consider another Tiffin product.

John

[GMBARON]

We are proud owners of our third Born Free, a 2011 RSB. We live and travel every day in our Born Free for four months each year. We use our RV for our job which makes it very important to have a very reliable unit.

After traveling and living in our first two Born Free's for five years, we decided that we needed more room so we purchased a 2011 Tiffin Allegro Breeze, it was a 28 ft model with one slide. We used the Breeze for 1 1/2 years and experienced many issues and some major ones like a bad front axle and a faulty air compressor that is used for the air brakes, we were actually towed three times. We feel very lucky that we were able to sell the Breeze and purchase a pre-owned 2011 BF.

It is our opinion that the BF product is a far superior quality unit then the Tiffin we had. After the negative experience we had with the Tiffin, we would not purchase another one. Our future RV will probably be a BF with a slide.

Good luck with your decision.

[Nancy]

We looked into that model also but the wheelbase ratio wasn't good (under 50%) so we moved on. Safety is everything to us and that wasn't going to fly.

[al1florida]

I have been thinking about moving to a Class A Winnebago Vista or Itasca Sunstar in the 26 foot length for more room and a real bed. We are spending 5 to 8 months a year in our 2005 BF, 26' rear side bed and it is pretty small. We don't tow a car so we want something as short as possible. Don't know if we will make the change, but both of these Class A's have lots more room in the 26' than the BF.

[William Higbie]

The rear bed on our 26 rsb is strictly made for midgets or people under 5' 6". As we have gotten older comfortable sleeping arrangements are becoming more important. Sleeping in the area over the cab is no longer a option I would contemplate although it was fine a few years ago. We are contemplating a class A of approximately. 30 ft. With multiple slides. We want to spend more time in the southern USA during the winter months and our born free does not hack it due to sleeping arrangements. Even born free is beginning to recognize the importance of slides.. I hear lots of arguments against slides however if you go to any rv shows or a camping world almost all of the motor homes that are class c have slides or multiple slides.

[shezonit]

I am getting an impression that may or may not be accurate: is it couples that are not satisfied with the size of a BF 26 and feel they want to go to a Class A? It seems singles are very happy with the BF 26 and even 24 size. I have yet to spend the whole winter in mine, but it is so much more spacious than the Class B I had.
Do couples trip over each other in a BF? Of course, there are some couples who travel in a Class B and claim they are happy with it. I don't know how...

[Nancy]

I am getting an impression that may or may not be accurate. Is it couples that are not satisfied with the size of a BF 26 and feel they want to go to a Class A? It seems singles are very happy with the BF 26 and even 24 size. I have yet to spend the whole winter in mine, but it is so much more spacious than the Class B I had.
Do couples trip over each other in a BF? Of course, there are some couples who travel in a Class B and claim they are happy with it. I don't know how...

Yes and 2 labs and one lab is a tripod so I can't make him get out of the way by getting on the sofa.

[shezonit]

I also have 2 dogs, but they are the portable size- about 6-7 lbs. They don't get in the way at all. When I tell them "Go lie down" they will get on their beds, which are on passenger seat and forward chair.
I had a tripod cat long ago.

[delrob]

Some of us, at our advanced age, also get tired of climbing over the significant other in the "bed for midgets" to go to the potty during the night. Also when my significant other is in the kitchen trying to put a meal together, beware trying to walk by her to go to the potty or retrieve something from the back of the coach! Great to travel around in or go on vacations in, but definitely not for spending extended periods of time together in! Better a trade than a divorce!

[ed]

Keep in mind folks we also offer a 31' Born Free with a living room slide & a rear walk around bed. This is built on a F series 550 chassis & can have the 6.7 liter diesel engine. It is 102" wide & has an interior ceiling height of 84" so it does have the "roomy" feeling of a smaller Class A. Just thought I would pass that on. Thank you.

[John S.]

I would get a bigger born free or a foretravel. I have over 300K miles in Foretravels and have owned three of them. I also own a Born Free and have had two of those. I think they are constructed to similar standards. If you look at winnie or tiffin you will find wrap and glue and staples of mass produced coaches. They are not terrible but they are not up to the caliber of BF or FT. But they do sell a lot and are no longer doing warranty service at Red Bay and want you to go to dealers. No appointments but first come first served so you may sit for a couple weeks till you get in.

[al1florida]

I would get a bigger born free or a foretravel. I have over 300K miles in Foretravels and have owned three of them. I also own a Born Free and have had two of those. I think they are constructed to similar standards. If you look at winnie or tiffin you will find wrap and glue and staples of mass produced coaches. They are not terrible but they are not up to the caliber of BF or FT. But they do sell a lot and are no longer doing warranty service at Red Bay and want you to go to dealers. No appointments but first come first served so you may sit for a couple weeks till you get in.

If you have a coach which is two years old or newer, they will take appointments, except for the very busy months of April & October. These are probably the months when people from up north and going to or from the south (snowbirds). Below is an excerpt from a letter from Bob Tiffin, the founder of the company:

Beginning January 1, 2013, the Service Center will only make appointments for motorhomes which are two years old or newer, based on the original date of purchase. We will not make any appointments for the months of April or October. Otherwise, we will work on all units as they arrive at the campground on a first come–first served basis.

[al1florida]

Tiffin and Born Free are the only two manufacturers, that I am aware of, which provide factory repair service.

With other manufacturers, you need to go to some RV repair and usually sales facility. Many times what you wind up with is some inexperienced person repairing your rig. Also some places have so much business, they won't work on your rig unless you bought it there, even warranty work.