If you were to buy (or have bought) a Navion or View, which year would you (did you) get and why? And is there any year you would not buy...and if so...why?
PS: Some day soon, I'll be a giver instead of a taker here!
Why Full-Timing? Because at my age, I have maybe 40 more chances to see flowers bloom. CrusinSusan's Blog!! 2006 Winnebago View 23J
We can only speak for the 2007 vs 2008. We bought our 08 Navion 24J in November of 07. At that time the local dealers didn't have any 07's on the lot. We looked at the differences between the 07 and 08. Biggest one was the 07 had 5 cylinder diesel and the 08 had 6 cylinder. After we left dealer we had discussions about waiting to see if a good used 07 would come in. One big drawback on waiting was we wanted the couch instead of the dinette and storage over the cab. This wasn't a "standard configuration" so we decided to order an 08 from the factory the way we wanted it. Three weeks after we put in our order an 07 24J with couch, but bed over cab, was traded in at the dealer. He offered to let us back out of the deal and take the used unit but after we looked at it we decided to stick with the 08. The extra power of the 6 cylinder and storage over the cab made the difference to us. We do a lot of mountain driving (6 cylinder) and neither of us want to climb in/out of the bed over the cab.
Ours is just one opinion. I'm sure you will get a lot more help in the next few days.
If you need an RV and are ever in Albuquerque, NM check out Chisolm RV. They are really a great small, customer oriented dealership.
We also have the '08 24J. We recently took a 1,500 mile trip down to MS, AL, LA and back. I was very impressed with how the little V-6 handled hills. I imagine the I-5 does almost as well, but I was glad to have that little extra power in reserve. I understand that the I-5 usually gets 2-3 mpg better mileage, though.
I know of no model year that I'd want to avoid.
So let's get to the bottom line here. Let's say there were three mostly identical rigs sitting in a line - an '06, '07, and '08. All were priced decently. I think we'd still go for the '08 just to get the V-6. (I-5 owners might chose their rig all over again.)
As with any rig, it's all about priorities and compromises. Our priorities were quality, amenities, and ease of driving. Fuel mileage wasn't that much of a consideration.
* This post was
edited 07/03/08 04:06am by davemittan *
I will be checking this out at the end of the month when it arrives at my local dealership...Year: 2009
Manufacturer: Itasca
Model: Navion IQ 24DL by Winnebago Ind.
I like the swivel front seats, bed, couch and dinette.
22mpg
I will let you know now it goes.
Well . . . we have an '07 23H. We stumbled across it at a show and fell in love. I had to convince my wife who will contemplate buying a new blouse for 2 days before making a decision NOT to buy it that day until we looked around. We had been looking at TTs and that is where all my research was.
I quickly learned that ordering would get us a 2008 for more money and more HP but less MPG. We decided to move on it. It is just the two of us and the 2007 has plenty of CCC and I didn't want bigger size or less mpg.
Regarding what I would/wouldn't buy were I looking used, I'd be very careful on the '06s. Obviously there are plenty of folks who have them without problems but that seems where most of the growing pains were especially with the over-cab leak and things of that nature. I wouldn't hesitate to buy an '06 from the original owner directly so you'd know what they did and didn't do.
In addition to the larger engine, diesel generator and higher CCC, model year 2008 units can be ordered with full paint jobs. This was a huge factor steering our purchase. Full paint is significantly easier to keep clean and looking new in contrast to traditional gelcoat finishes. As the years start to take their toll, all that paint will really shine (pun intended). Oh, and my wife thinks it looks better too!
My decision was easy. I bought my View in July 05 and the 06 was the only year available! After 32,000 miles I have no regrets. I did have the over-cab rust problem, which was taken care of under recall, and I avoided the dreaded LHM (limp home mode) with an aluminum turbo resonator eliminator. What to get really depends on your needs - how many people, how much stuff, floor plan, towing or not, etc. The 06 gets better fuel mileage than the others, but the newer ones are a foot longer, mostly in the cab, and they have more head space above the cab-over bed. The newer models have more cargo capacity, so if that's an issue for you, you may want an 08 or 09. The 09's can tow 5,000 lbs, earlier ones tow 3500. The 06 has a gravity water fill (in addition to the one you connect a hose to), the newer ones don't. Different years and different models have different sewer hookups (one you have to unhook and rehook to dump black and grey). The 06 has two floor plans (H-sofa and dinette, feels very roomy, and J-rear bed). Later a B model (bunk beds, no slide) was added. Now for 09 there's the A (full-length slideout with sofa-bed and includes a Euro chair with ottoman) and the P (bunk beds but also a slideout and a lounge chair--not sure if this model is available yet or will be in the fall). There's also the Navion IQ, which has a rear slide-out.
Good luck with your decision. Any year View is a great RV!
I have a question some where on here some body did a comparison of the I5 and the new V6 the horse power was the same and the torque the same . only some epa stuff added to the engine was why they changed to the V6 . true or not? my I5 has plenty of power . I drove both the I5 and the V6 I didn;t see a differance.
midnightsadie wrote: I have a question some where on here some body did a comparison of the I5 and the new V6 the horse power was the same and the torque the same .
When the V6 was first announced the published torque and power were the same as on the I5. The last time I looked the power was still the same but the torque was a bit higher. Going by the peak numbers both will climb hills the same because the power is the same. The higher torque on the V6 should give it a little better acceleration. You would really need to look at the curves not just the peak numbers. If the V6 has broader peaks than the I5 then it will give a performance boost beyond what the peak numbers indicate. But then you've driven both and say you saw no difference so there probably isn't an obvious difference between the two.
The notion that the EPA was behind the change might have some merit. EPA rules for Diesels have changed lately. MB's common rail engines were well positioned to adapt to the new rules. VW's PD engines were not and VW imported some extra 2007 Diesels to sell while redesigning their engines to meet the new rules. The new Jetta Diesels will be out this fall, as 2009 models I presume.
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