[Mbar17]

Hi all!  I am new to the forum even though I joined a while ago as I’ve only made one post and and have been lurking and learning since.  Here’s my dilemma.  I am just about ready to purchase my first coach, it will be a used coach. I have narrowed my choices down and although never thought I would find a Newell that I can afford or want, I have.  My first possibility is a 1990 Newell with low miles, under 70kmiles.  It’s 42 ft long and was stored indoors until last year.

The other choice is a 1999 foretravel u320.  42 ft with a tag axle.  Inside has been renovated with new floors, rug, and furniture.  Also has new parts like new a/c units up top and new airbags all around.  Has about 150k miles, outside shows wear comensurate with miles and with being in the weather but seems to be in good shape and maintained.

I know there are many variables but I would appreciate opinions on which would be a better coach (I realize they may be biased).  

Thanks

Morgan Baron

[folivier]

Well, I have owned a 1993 39' Newell, 1998 45' 2 slide Newell, and currently have a 1999 36' U320 Foretravel.
My impressions are that the 1998 Newell was much better build quality than my 1999 Foretravel. I would say the 1993 Newell was similar in build quality to my FT. So I'll hazard a guess and say the 1990 Newell should be similar to the 1999 FT. But the FT will have a Cummins 450HP M11 engine vs. the 8V92 Detroit 2 stroke in the Newell. The FT will have Aquahot heat, the Newell probably will have propane furnaces + electric heating, may have the older Dometic basement airs. Probably both will have a Dometic refrigerator. Foretravel also has excellent support from the factory in Nacogdoches, TX plus more experienced service centers in Nacog. such as MOT, and a few others. Most of these guys worked at the factory. Newell has excellent support at the factory in Miami, OK.
The Newell and FT will have similar items like faucets, furniture, similar air suspension, etc.
While I really like the FT I was fortunate to have found one with very good maintenance. Mine has full body paint. Most FT's don't and the decals can show lots of fading, peeling and dull finishes on the gelcoat. The condition and maintenance would be my main consideration if both coaches work for you. Either one will have ongoing expenses but you want to find one that doesn't need maintenance to be caught up on. One major issue with FT's are the rear bulkheads. If rusted badly they are repairable but $2-5k for repairs.
I was looking for a 36' coach and unfortunately Newell doesn't have any that size in the 1990's up.
Any other questions just ask. BTW I do miss my Newell! but satisfied with the FT.

[jcus]

Agree with Forest, is a hard decision. Went from 40 ft Foretravels [295 and 320] with 6 speed allisons, to 95 Newell with series 60 and a 4 speed allison. Loved the Newell, very high quality, best ride of any coach I have driven, but kids moved to Seattle, and a non IFS, non turning tag, 45 ft coach is not Seattle friendly. An older coach, even the newer Foretravel, will require some mechanical ability unless you have deep pockets. 15 years ago, when, I got out of bus conversions, did not even know what a Newell was, if I had, it would have been my first choice.

[encantotom]

i have had a 90 newell that was 38' and now my 2002 45' newell and i also have a 99 newell that is 41 foot.

and been in alot of foretravels, including rudys, and the coach forest currently has.

i like the foretravels alot as well. i am over 6 foot 2 and the ceiling in my 90 newell was barely above my head. in my 02 i have over a foot over my head inside. the foretravels i have been in have a fairly low ceiling as well.

my 90 was a great coach. you do have to know how to drive a dd 8v92 more than you would the cummins.

i wouldnt be concerned about miles on either of the coaches you are considering. but any coach that is 20-30 years old is going to be a hands on fix it kinda deal. meaning it will eat you alive money wise if you have to pay someone to do everything. these things do require work and tlc.

the better coach is the one you feel the most comfortable with. the feel inside of the 99 foretravel and the newell are quite different.

remember too the condition of the tires and batteries as those can set you back quite a chunk of change just to get started.

you will not find us telling you to only consider newells. the gurus like all coaches and will support and help you in whatever choice you make. the foreforum is an incredible resource and has a large active membership who help folks out like we do here.

tom

[Mbar17]

Thanks for the responses so far. How the coaches have been maintained is a top concern for me as I do not have deep pockets. I will try to find one that is good to go as it sits but do expect to have to do some catch up maintenance. Rust is a concern for me on the foretravel as it is from Florida and seems like it has been in the weather for some time. I will go to see both coaches in the next couple of weeks to see them and have inspections done on each.

I was really curious of people’s opinions on which coach would be a better choice because of things like the difference in transmission and heating systems etc. I am also concerned about getting the Newell because of the engine. I am on the east coast and although I know both companies have great service and support from the factory, it would be unlikely for me to get to either Texas or Oklahoma. The Cummins i know has service available all over, the Detroit diesel I am not so sure about. I also know that the Newell will not get as good mileage as the foretravel but not sure how significant a difference that will be over the time of ownership, especially since I think I can get the Newell cheaper.

As I said I am in the northeast (New York) and expect to be living in the coach for a little while and I will not be plugged in. So how the heat and furnaces work is important to me also. Generally I think that as long as the condition of the coach is good and it has been maintained, either coach would work for me, just trying the one that would work best, depreciate the least in the next 5-10 years and hopefully be the easiest to live with.

Thanks for the reply’s and the info on the bulkheads, I will deffinately take a look when I go see them. Other than that I look forward to more responses and opinions.

Morgan

[folivier]

Let me know if you're looking for someone to inspect the Foretravel. I can highly recommend someone out of southeast Texas. Not sure if he's as familiar with Newells.
The Detroit 8v92 is an excellent engine but like Tom said does take some understanding on how to drive and maintain it. It will probably have the Allison H740 4 speed transmission, a very robust gearbox. Expect the fuel mileage for the Newell to be around 6mpg, for the FT around 8mpg. For dry camping either one will probably be similar in battery usage if they both have the Dometic or Norcold fridges. One advantage if the Newell has basement air conditioners is much more real estate on the roof for solar.
Have fun!

[Mbar17]

The Newell I am looking at is in Kentucky and foretravel is in Florida on the Atlantic side and if anyone has recommendations for coach inspections in each location I would be appreciative. I am fairly short so ceiling height should t be a problem for me. As far as mileage, those are the numbers I was expecting for each. Tires and batteries on each are supposed to be fairly new, at least the batteries. Tires are good on the foretravel for another couple of years but will need to be replaced soon, on the Newell I am told they are good but can’t seem to get a date from the lady who is selling it. Will definitely be part of the equation when I make a decision. The interior of the Newell is of course pink/peach color as they were in that time period and I do believe I prefer the foretravel interior slightly but could live with the Newell, it is reminiscent of south beach Miami Florida from the 1980’s-1990’s.

As far as the furnaces are concerned, I am assuming that the aqua hot would be better than the propane furnaces. I do have a question regarding heating I. The winter (or a/c in the summer) and having pets. Can you leave your dog in the coach alone in either situation (summer a/c or winter heat) with the ability for the heat or a/c to kick on automatically so it would be safe to leave a pet in the coach alone for hours at a time? That is something I haven’t been able to figure out. I have seen generators that kick on automatically when the batteries get lower but nothing about setting tempature and holding automatically.

Morgan

[pairodice]

We leave our mutts in the coach all the time - not sure they know how to get out... We are cognizant of the temps during the day to prepare for which the A/C or heat should be on. Our Newell will hold the temp for quite a while and I don’t remember our FTs being extremely cold or hot. For instance today we are starting off about 45deg but will go up into the 60s here in Phoenix. Since we ran the heat last night the coach is comfy for the mutts this morning and the heat was not running (set to about 65) but since we will be gone for a while I switched the A/C on to about 78 in case it gets too hot. They seem to be comfy at that temp as they are small and like it warm anyways.
We loved all of our FTs and we love our Newell as well. It took us a while to get used to all the laminate inside the Newell after having Walnut, Maple, etc in all our FTs but now my wife would not go back because the laminate is so easy to keep clean.
On the 8v92 make sure the coolant hoses have been changed recently as they are a big issue - if they break on you on the road you will lose your engine...

[Mbar17]

Thanks for the heads up on the coolant hoses. As for the pets in the coach, I am assuming that you are hooked up to power, I would not be hooked up to a power source. Thanks for all the insight and help. Anything else that I should look for on the Newell considering it is a 1990?

---

I should have been more clear. Considering it is a 1990 and has the 8V92, is there anything to look for on those engines or on anything else that might be particular to that time frame Newell? As far as general things to look for in an old coach I have been doing my homework so I wasn’t really asking about that (although any helpful info is appreciated)

Thanks Guru’s

[pairodice]

You might check the coach for an auto-start switch box for the Generator - we had a coach with one and it worked very well. If the batteries ran down to a certain percentage drained the generator would kick in.
You might also consider a 1990 up Bluebird Wanderlodge - they are all steel (whereas the Newells are all stainless/aluminum) and are very heavy but great coaches with wonderful build quality. If you can find a 1995-up in your price range then you would get the S60 engine which is much cleaner than the 8v92 (although I loved my 8v92). If you are a fixer-upper and love gadgets/electrical things then the BB’s are fun. It is hard for me to say which is my favorite - best memories were in the FT 2000 42’er because we traveled/lived so much in it. I really loved the BB but love the Newell equally as well. It’s like anything, the more time you spend in it (and $) the more you grow attached to it. I once had a girl tell me ‘if you stand near a telephone pole long enough you will fall in love with it’ - not really sure what that says about me since we broke up! Lol