I made a mistake

[Sawbonz]

I knew I shouldn't have done it! I went to the Tampa RV Supershow. There I ran into a really nice salesman from Millennium, where we will visit in a couple weeks to view the factory.

I still haven't driven one yet, but assuming they are as nice as my Monaco Dynasty, I would like to be well informed as to what a Prevost is worth. Seriously, i doubt I will buy a new one at $1.8M, but maybe they have a couple year old used model sitting around...

How does one get pricing? How do MSRP and real world prices compare?

If we were to buy a used one from elsewhere, how do these converters tend to react to requests to do upgrades?

Thanks all!

[ajducote]

Sawbonz,

Welcome to the group. I will give a few short answers to your questions. All the experts will chime in later.

"but assuming they are as nice as my Monaco Dynasty"
Without a doubt any Prevost conversion will be "nicer" then a Dynasty. I traded my Dynasty for a 1999 Royale 6 years ago and never looked back.

"I would like to be well informed as to what a Prevost is worth"
Very SHORT Answer, what you will pay and what the seller will let it go for. I will add some links at the bottom of this email that will take you to some of our sponsor sites that will at least give you an idea of the asking prices. Be Warned, do NOT drive a Prevost if you really do not want to spend money on one. Once you drive one, you will be hooked!

"how do these converters tend to react to requests to do upgrades?"
Very well, a big part of their business is doing upgrades.

Links to look at that should keep you busy until everyone else chimes in.

http://www.luxurycoachbrokers.com/

http://www.californiacoachcompany.co...tory_avail.asp

http://www.prevost-stuff.com/coaches/used_coaches.htm

http://www.millenniumluxurycoachesblog.com/inventory/

All our sponsors are on this page:

http://forum.prevostownersgroup.com/

I still haven't driven one yet, but assuming they are as nice as my Monaco Dynasty, I would like to be well informed as to what a Prevost is worth. Seriously, i doubt I will buy a new one at $1.8M, but maybe they have a couple year old used model sitting around...

How does one get pricing? How do MSRP and real world prices compare?

If we were to buy a used one from elsewhere, how do these converters tend to react to requests to do upgrades?

Thanks all!

[Jon Wehrenberg]

First of all Sawbonz, welcome to the asylum. If you have read the posts here you will quickly recognize that this forum is populated with experts who will answer all of your questions. It is unlikely however the answers will be correct, but you will have fun.

We are concerned about you however, when you mention that you assume a Prevost conversion is as nice as your Monaco Dynasty. That indicates you are either pulling our chain or have never driven a Prevost.

At one time pricing actually made sense. Then the economy went to Hell and with distress sales, repo's, and lack of financing the buyers who could buy a Prevost conversion were in control and the prices turned out to be all over the map. A lot of the pricing was so low it defied description.

Today it is my belief pricing is stabilizing, and as a buyer you just have to establish what you are prepared to spend and then try to find the coach within that price range that best suits you. As you establish your budget you have to decide not only what you are going to spend to acquire the coach, but if you are going to set aside money to do any redecorating or for updating the mechanicals. If you intend to buy a coach with thoughts of updating it, it might be best to consider if you are going to do the work or hire it, and if you hire it make sure you have budgeted sufficiently for that.

In Brooksville one of our members has not only a nice coach, but a lot of knowledge about coaches and you may wish to consider contacting him. He will post here and introduce himself.

I would strongly urge you to use our sponsors in your quest. I am not trying to push them on you, but suggesting that because of the knowledge and experience they have and the help they can give you in your efforts to find a coach. Florida has a lot of our sponsors, but you may wish your search to be nationwide.

As to converters doing upgrades, they all will do them. In almost every case any converter will work on any other converter's product.

I can offer some free advice however. (Worth every cent you pay for it.) As a new Prevost owner get the best coach you can for the money you budget, and focus on the mechanicals. If the decor or colors are not quite what you want but acceptable to you, live with the coach and its decor until you have some experience under your belt. By having a coach in great mechanical condition you will avoid the "deer in the headlights" syndrome a lot of new owners experience when they realize there are issues that they must address, especially if they turn up when they are on the road. Far too often we read posts from new owners who put colors and decor ahead of mechanical condition and they realize their dream is quickly turning into a nightmare. Our coaches are strong, reliable, well built machines, but like anything mechanical they need to be serviced and maintained or they become just as troubling as any other vehicle. Don't start out with a mechanical wreck.

As you become comfortable with the coach and this lifestyle owning a Prevost provides, then you can decide how and when and for how much you will redo the colors, decor, furniture, etc. Or as a newbie you can spend an enormous amount of money up front and realize later there are a lot of ways to accomplish your goals often very inexpensively.

[Sawbonz]

"but assuming they are as nice as my Monaco Dynasty"
Without a doubt any Prevost conversion will be "nicer" then a Dynasty. I traded my Dynasty for a 1999 Royale 6 years ago and never looked back.

"I would like to be well informed as to what a Prevost is worth"
Very SHORT Answer, what you will pay and what the seller will let it go for. I will add some links at the bottom of this email that will take you to some of our sponsor sites that will at least give you an idea of the asking prices. Be Warned, do NOT drive a Prevost if you really do not want to spend money on one. Once you drive one, you will be hooked!

Thank you, Andre.

By "nice" I meant as nice to drive. My Dynasty is a tag and actually fun to drive. The biggest loss I see from moving up is losing my VORAD system....it's incredible!

I have looked through many of those sites, and thank you. While I know it is worth what someone is willing to pay, I know that somehow, somewhere, there has to be a reasonable starting point. The biggest issue I see is _massive_ depreciation in the first few years. I've seen as much as 50% in 3 years.

[Sawbonz]

Thanks for the welcome, Jon. Every asylum can use another inmate!

I have NOT driven a Prevost yet, but did mention that in my OP. We were at the show, and they weren't about to let anyone drive anything there.

Prepared to spend. Yes, that is the question. I can certainly spend more than I am willing to, but want to keep it reasonable. Mid 6-figures would be reasonable to me. Now what I want to figure out is what I can get for that, should my test drive at the converter go well and I don't decide to splurge and buy new. Are there rules of thumb on years, models, converters?

I am absolutely interested in getting the best mechanically sound coach possible. Not looking at paint reminds me of house shopping with my wife. Many times I gave her that advice! Assuming I got a coach 5-6 years old, the main upgrading I would be interested in is a basement bedroom. We discussed this with the salesman at the show and found it a very interesting proposition. We have two kids who will be willing to fight over it.

The last line of your post is what I am most afraid of, which is why I am here! Thanks for the response so far. I look forward to the next.

[ajducote]

Karl (Sawbonz),

If you have the time to do it, we are having a mini-rally on 4,5 and 6 Feb at Pt. St. Lucie Outdoor resorts. You could get a lot of questions answered there. And we would love giving you advice on spending your money.

See this thread for information on the mini-rally.

http://forum.prevostownersgroup.com/...ida-Mini-Rally

[Sawbonz]

That sounds like fun, but we have a volleyball tournament that weekend.

[Jon Wehrenberg]

Thanks for the welcome, Jon. Every asylum can use another inmate!

I have NOT driven a Prevost yet, but did mention that in my OP. We were at the show, and they weren't about to let anyone drive anything there.

Prepared to spend. Yes, that is the question. I can certainly spend more than I am willing to, but want to keep it reasonable. Mid 6-figures would be reasonable to me. Now what I want to figure out is what I can get for that, should my test drive at the converter go well and I don't decide to splurge and buy new. Are there rules of thumb on years, models, converters?

I am absolutely interested in getting the best mechanically sound coach possible. Not looking at paint reminds me of house shopping with my wife. Many times I gave her that advice! Assuming I got a coach 5-6 years old, the main upgrading I would be interested in is a basement bedroom. We discussed this with the salesman at the show and found it a very interesting proposition. We have two kids who will be willing to fight over it.

The last line of your post is what I am most afraid of, which is why I am here! Thanks for the response so far. I look forward to the next.

For mid 6 figures you are going to get a lot of coach and a fairly new one. A quick trip through the various sites listing Prevost coaches for sale will show you that.

So that being said, you now have a lot of work ahead of you. You and your family have to decide on the things that are important to you. First you have to define how the coach will be used. Will you spend a lot of time on the road, or parked? Will you be hooked up to shore power and other utilities or will you dry camp? Where will you be traveling? How many will be on board?

Then you have to decide what features work best for your use of the coach. Private toilet or open plan? Separate sleeping areas, both with access to the toilet or no? Slides? Over the road AC? Etc. Read all the posts on this site to get a sense of the importance of the various ways converters design a coach. Listen to the salesmen, but keep in mind every single one will sell you what is on their lot. You have to sort out the fact from fiction.

If I were to give you any advice it would be to rethink the basement bedroom. Any converter can create one, but to start with give some thought to how much space you give up for storage of stuff. The importance of that relates back to how you use your coach. I don't know of a single owner that has ever said they have too much bay space. I would look for the more conventional (but rare) bunk coach that can be converted back to closets or a space for a washer and dryer when you no longer have the need.

From a purely mechanical perspective a basement bedroom presents some serious design issues, not the least of which is access from the house made more complicated by considerations such as other mechanicals interfering with the access hatch location. That might make a non slide coach a more serious candidate due to the slide having the need to occupy bay ceiling space for mechanicals. Further, it might make some conversions more practical due to the need for heat and air.

[jack14r]

I think that there are some important chassis features that you should consider,the 2004 shells have 365 tires on the steering and tag axles,the steering axle is rated at 18,000 Lbs instead of 17,200 lbs. also the gross is 54,500 verses 51,500 lbs.It is also important to know how to read the year code in the serial number,(any salesman can show you where it is) count 8 digits from the end of the serial and that is the year of the shell.If that number is a 4 then the shell was manufactured as a 2004 and the conversion should be a 2005,do not let a salesman sell you a coach that is more than 1 year different from the shell unless it is priced accordingly.Also Prevost has constantly updated their slides and the 2004 shells have the next to last update,the 2007 have the "no pin slides"and are still the latest series.

[garyde]

So much to learn and so little time! The one thing I can suggest is to hang around a while ask questions and do your research. There are many choices of convertors and many very good used coaches out there. So, take your time and enjoy the journey.