[Sparty 66]

Just a few questions as a new prospective DP owner.  In considering a late 90's thru early 2000's model could anyone give their opinion on the following:
1.  Are the slides a maintenance issue to be concerned about and is a Newell with no slides going to be signicantly less trouble maintaining with regard to problems with the weather (leaks and debris, etc.)
2.  Is the resale market for a no slide coach considerably less than one with at least 2 slides.
3.  Are the infrastructure components (generator, aqua hot system, leveling system, suspension, drive train & transmission etc.) vunerable for replacement in this vintage of coach (1995 - 2005).  

Thanks for your suggestions,
Ken

[Fulltiming]

My prospective (others may chime in with different opinions.

1) Yes slides are a maintenance issue on any coach. The extra maintenance is the price of having the extra interior room when you are parked. Certainly there are additional potentials for leaks with slide and a quick review of this site will show several users replacing their slide seals recently.
2) Most people expect a coach to have slides these days. Newell has been installing slides since 1997 (not counting the 1 installed on a 1996 model) and virtually no non-slide Newells exist after 1998. #507 was the only 1999 without a slide and the only one after that I am aware of was VIP coach #1297 built in 2010. So non-slide Newells are typically pre-1999.
3) From 1995-2004 almost all Newells will have a Detroit Diesel S60. That is a wonderful engine but you will find examples of coaches with just about any engine you can think of that have had to have them rebuilt. Starting in 2005, some Newells were equipped with Cat engines. The transmissions your time period are almost all the Allison HD 6 speed World Transmissions. Again you can find exceptions but if properly maintained, these transmissions are long lived and durable. Generators can typically run for 10,000 hours or more. They can be damaged by not running them very often or not doing the recommended maintenance. Most Newells in that age range have generators with lot's of hours let on them. Leveling systems may be ready for new airbags and the ride height control valves do have to be replaced occasionally.

In general, if the coach has been maintained, most of the items you listed should be in reasonably good shape. Refrigerators will go out, TVs will need to be upgraded on many coaches in that era since many of them are small by today's standards.

On the other hand, these units are 15-25 years old so condition is always the guiding factor and stuff will happen. Always assume that some things will need work on a 15-25 year old coach and budget for it so you won't be surprised.

[pairodice]

1. Yes, the HWH systems used on that vintage (we have a 1998 2-slide) are a maintenance issue as ALL slides on ALL coaches are. We have a love/hate relationship with our slides - we hate that they leak when it rains unless we tilt the coach (luckily it’s easy to tilt). We LOVE the extra space and functionality of the slide rooms - the BIGGEST thing going for Newells is their support department is first rate and can answer or figure out just about anything on your coach.
2) the resale market is definitely better for a slide coach than a non-slide unless you buy the non-slide very cheap and know that all maintenance has been done.
3) any coach this age will need maintenance and there are always things that go wrong when you have 45,000 lbs rattling down the freeway. These are all basic maintenance systems that all high-end coaches will have. You should plan on $10-15k for unplanned problems with your coach when you first buy it.
If you don’t like doing maintenance or cannot do the maintenance then you will have to pay someone to do it for you - this will be an expensive proposition. This would be the same with ANY coach of this age but at least Newells have great build quality.
This group is a great resource and we can probably help you through any issues you have.
Happy Hunting!

[Richard]

1.  Are the slides a maintenance issue to be concerned about and is a Newell with no slides going to be signicantly less trouble maintaining with regard to problems with the weather (leaks and debris, etc.) Yes is the short answer. Is it big deal, no. Replacing the slide seal is the biggest expense
2.  Is the resale market for a no slide coach considerably less than one with at least 2 slides. Depends on your definition of considerably. For example mid 90s no slide coaches with Series 60 engines seem to have stabilized in the 70 range, while two slide of the late nineties seemed to have stalled at just north of a 100k.
3.  Are the infrastructure components (generator, aqua hot system, leveling system, suspension, drive train & transmission etc.) vunerable for replacement in this vintage of coach (1995 - 2005).  Age is not too much of a factor on generator, AquaHot, leveling system, transmission, or engine. More use is better. Air bags and other rubber hoses and belts will need replacement if not done so already. Also, the radiator may or may not need to be replaced at that age. Take oil/fluid samples of engine and tranny before buying.

[Sparty 66]

Thanks for all of your valuable suggestions. Actually no surprises there. Could I ask the same question in a different way. Would it be safe to say that the cost to maintain a 10 year old Newell coach would be greater than a 10 year old Newmar or Tiffin diesel pusher because the systems on the Newell are more complicated than the Newmar or Tiffin? I realize that the comparison is kind of like comparing an apple and an orange however the purchase cost differential for a Newell is about 2x the other two diesel pushers.

Again thanks in advance.

[encantotom]

i will give my two cents worth. almost any 10 year old coach you buy there will be a period of time where you are fixing and servicing things to get it the way you want. or adding. if you do most things yourself, that is your biggest savings. there are likely more air systems on the newell and that takes some consistent work. if you pay someone to work on everything, then the newell will be less familiar to most rv techs.

newell uses extremely high end gear. so some things may be more expensive to replace.

since every coach has been treated differently, i think you could spend alot of money on any 10 year coach, but at least on the newell once you get things up to speed, they are going to last longer.

tom

[Richard]

In my opinion, the cost of maintaining a Newell compared to a similar aged other middle of the road brand will be higher. How much higher, I cannot quantify that. Tom is spot on, there are more systems, more redundancy, and much higher end componentry used on the Newell.

One example would be the water pump. The middle of the road may have two 12V water pumps. The Newell will have one Headhunter and one 12V pump. The Headhunter is around a 1000 bucks to replace, the 12V pump is just a little more than 100.