Moving from LTV to Coach House....Help

renotse

New member
I heard a rumour that Coach House is exiting the Sprinter market. I was told by Coach House Rep that this is untrue..... I edited my Post accordingly

We recently sold our 2013 Leisure Unity TB.

I am very interested in Coach House for one main reason. They are the only manufacturer that has a twin bed model with a booth dinette in a slide out. All other mfgs on Sprinter chassis claim they cannot make this combo work within Mercedes length and weight limits. Coach house has 2 floor plans with booth dinette and twin beds but no one else even has one. What gives? . I did notice that at 25' 9" they are a few inches longer than most. Since the wheelbase is fixed that has to all be behind the rear wheels.




In our travels, we loved the LTV Unity TB because its twin beds provided a permanent place to sleep. However, we missed a permanent place to sit, eat and converse face to face without blocking the main passageway with a table. A booth dinette will fix this shortcoming.


I am very reserved about paying the Coach House premium because I'm not sure the retained value is going to match LTV. We retained 80% resale value after almost 5 years on the Unity twin bed.

I would gladly buy another LTV Unity if they offered this combo.


Questions for owners and previous owners of Coach House Sprinter models,

1) what has been your service experience on the coach side?

2) if you sold one, what was the retained value as a percentage of the price paid

3) do you think putting a slide in the fiberglass mono-hull design defeats the purpose?

4) is the limited outside storage a big problem. (our Unity had 62 cu ft and some pass through)
 
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chromisdesigns

New member
We love ours and plan to keep it until it rots. We have the dinette and rear twin floor plan with a slide. Slide. adds a lot of elbow room when camping byt cuts into your cargo capacity a lot. The layout works just fine with slide retracted and we often use it that way when just stopping for a quick meal on the road. Their sales and service people are top notch --great folks. Their coaches do seem to hold value based on used ones I have seen advertised.

I don't think the slide weakens the shell they build in additional reinforcements for coaches with slides.

Far as I know they will keep building sprinter based coaches as long as Mercedes does.

In my opinion there is plenty of storage in and out
 
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HarryN

Well-known member
I don't own one, but am studying their offerings.

I actually have been more focused on the E450 based Platinum for the extra weight capacity vs the sprinter version.

I suspect that they are able to offer some features that others have challenges with because on some models, that one piece shell is reinforced with carbon fiber instead of a steel or Al framework. It is easy to underestimate the stiffness gains from a monocoque type approach vs an assembly.

They also are big believers in hydraulic slides which has some potential advantages, particularly in reliability.

I like the space that is gained by a slide, but I am also thinking that a non - slide RV will have better hot / cold weather resistance than one with a slide, no matter who makes it.
 

gal218

New member
We bought a new Platinum II 241XL Recliner/ Twin last fall. The more we use it and the more we compare with other coaches we see, the more we appreciate the design and features that make it a unique coach. Many top of the line diesel pushers lack some of these features...such as frameless windows, hydraulic slide, solid wood cabinet doors with quality latches, etc.

We have had no problems and any questions we've had have been quickly answered.

All that being said, we are looking (reluctantly) at possibly upgrading to a larger coach for the type of travel we want to do. Our coach only has 2800 miles. ?
 

renotse

New member
We bought a new Platinum II 241XL Recliner/ Twin last fall. The more we use it and the more we compare with other coaches we see, the more we appreciate the design and features that make it a unique coach. Many top of the line diesel pushers lack some of these features...such as frameless windows, hydraulic slide, solid wood cabinet doors with quality latches, etc.

��
Having owned a Leisure Unity for 5 years I find all the same above quality components and amenities as in Coach House 241XL (with exception of HWH Slides) . LTV truly builds an exceptional coach, they just do not build the floor plan I want. But when you consider the price, it is flat out amazing the quality and features LTV include as standard in the Unity and Serrenity .
Our experience with LTV was flawless for 5 years. The coach side was never touched by a technician in 32k miles. I negotiated 20% off list and then retained 80% of my investment upon resale. I only hope Coach House can match up to that.

On the other-hand the Mercedes Chassis was in the shop for Warranty work 3 times. One for SRS failure and twice for ABS (wheel speed sensor failure). But this was not a real big deal with the nationwide Freightliner / Sprinter alliance service was relatively painless.

"Buy at the Coach House factory and save!

Coach House motorhomes are sold only direct from the factory in Venice, Fla., or at selected RV shows. No middleman "


I find the Coach House buying experience to be very difficult. Their Sales people feel a bit like stock brokers . Especially if you are a stickler for details. For instance, what the heck is a $399 dealer fee on a Coach that is sold only factory direct. Plus they want to charge $800 for walkthrough and delivery. Other Factory Direct sellers do not charge these fees.

My thoughts so far as I slug through the negotiation process: I’m not sure they really provide value for the 35% premium they charge and they squeal like a pig when you ask for more than their customary 5% off list. Citing “we’re factory direct. We don’t have the mark-up that dealers have”

Duh! ...... They also don’t have the overhead that the whole dealership middle man model imposes.

Sum Up: I get that they are marketing as a premium product to the Luxury market but sleight of hand and gamesmanship does not sit well with savvy buyers.
 
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