Roughing It Smoothly - Tiffin Motorhomes

keep it on file under “Nevada”for our next trip out West.Willard Crews, Florence, Mont.I was especially interested in thearticle about sealants since I didnot know how much attention Ineeded to pay to this item.Dan Gudas, Boerne, Tex. We lovethe entire magazine, particularlythe maintenance tips and recommendations.Also enjoyed meetingthe Tiffin family. This is one slickquarterly!James W. Brimhall, Germantown,Tenn. hanks for the reviewon the Phaeton. The scheduledmaintenance article on sealantswas not only helpful, but a reminder.The magazine is of high qualityand very much appreciated andenjoyed. Please give us articles onmaintaining different componentsand appliances, model reviews,what’s new & what’s coming. Wewould like to see dealer reviews.Robert C. Stephenson,Ward,Ala. Roughing It Smoothly is amagazine with down home qualitythat we like very much. Especiallyenjoyed the story on theTiffins, Generations.Jerry Hudson, Utica, Ky. Weenjoyed all of the articles, but weespecially liked the letters fromfolks like us telling about theirtravels in their RVs.Wakeman “Shine” Martin,Lake Wales, Fla. We like the newmagazine very much. Tiffin motorhomesare the best; I have beenan Allegro owner since 1977.Drs. Sandi & Ray Priestino,Irmo, S. C. We hope the magazinewill grow and become a bighelp to Allegro RVers. Pleasekeep the articles and informationfor us and not Allegro testimonials—youare preaching tothe choir. Print tips and articlesabout RVing written by the Allegroreaders, especially thingsabout dry camping. We live andwork on the road and have neverspent a night in a campground.Dawson L. Burton, Mobile, Ala.We thoroughly enjoyed RoughingIt Smoothly, especially the Nevadatravelogue and the feature on theTiffins. On future travel stories,please include a map. More techtalk and more recipes would benice. In features about the newmotorhomes, please make sure thepictures and the floor plans match.Don and Linda Patterson, Houma,La. We are the proud owners ofa 2003 Allegro 31-ft. motorhomeon a Workhorse chassis and loveour coach. We recently experiencedan unacceptable amountof front-end bounce that caused aseparation in a weld on a 2” × 2”angle iron floor brace. This causedenough alarm to pursue the cause,and eventually the solution.Walter Scott at Scotty’s CamperSales in New Iberia, La., suggestedwe call the Customer AssistanceDepartment at Workhorse and advisethem of the situation. Steve atWorkhorse listened to our concernsand directed us to a certified Workhorsedealer, assuring us that thework would be covered under our36-month/36,000-mile warranty.We went to G.M. Varnado andSons in Baton Rouge, where theservice manager greeted us andadvised that the front shock absorberswould be changed and upgraded.Monroe Gas Magnum RVGas-Charged Shock Absorbers(#557031) were installed. Withintwo hours we were on our way.While driving 110 miles to ourhome, we noticed no front-endbounce or negative effects on thedriver and passenger comfort.Our thanks to Steve at Workhorse,Bob Tiffin at Tiffin Motorhomesfor building a greatcoach, Walter at Scotty’s CamperSales for his always courteouscooperation, and Tony at Varnado’sfor superb service.Dean T. Haug, Portland, Oregon.The “Generations: A FamilyBusiness Model” article was akeeper. It is great to read about apresident–CEO of a multimilliondollar corporation who can stillbe humble and believe in God.George Godson, Mabank, Tex.We appreciate the thorough coveragethat went into the magazinearticles. Please do a featureon warranties that explains whatTiffin Motorhomes warrants andwhat the component manufacturerswarrant, such as the Workhorsechassis.Ray and Shirley Elmendorf,Whittier, Calif. Great magazine!Especially enjoyed reading aboutthe Tiffin family. The story is agood way to introduce Tiffin customersto their philosophy aboutbusiness. The Phaeton article wasgreat, but it described a differentrig than the photos showed.Richard Smith, Yoakum, Tex.Thanks for your background storyon TMH, Bob Tiffin, and hiswhole family. We liked all of thearticles in the first issue and thestyle in which they were written.“Serious Tech Talk” left out aluminumroofs. Some old RVs withlow mileage are still on the roadand are very serviceable.David Day, Astor, Fla. Thanksfor the history of the Tiffin familyand the company. Great storyabout Nevada. We are going therein our motorhome in April.George S. Keith, Church Hill,Tenn.We liked your story aboutMargaret Herron and her 197832-foot Allegro because we havea 1979 32-foot Allegro with only39,850 miles. It is still in greatshape with all of the original interior.We made a trip to Alaskain 2000. No trouble at all. Keepthe section about maintainingthe exterior and other items likethat — anything to help us do-ityourselfers.Louis and Beverly Kuntz, Roswell,Ga. We liked the newmagazine very much. Glad tosee Tiffin Motorhomes publishsomething like this that is knowledgeable!Martha Sue Brantley, Winter Haven,Fla. Keep the recipes comingin “Gourmet Quick and Easy,” butnot quite so fancy. Be sure the ingredientsare something we wouldnormally have on hand in the motorhome.Thanks.Charles and Nancy Spano,Richmond, Tex. We like the formatof the magazine, the truthabout your products, the historyand the connection we feel to thefamily who owns the companyand oversees the quality control.Please give us information aboutsatellite systems and which service— DirecTV or Dish Network— works the best.Bobby Gore, Lithia Springs, Ga.The new magazine is very informative.The President’s columnwas particularly good.Lloyd Alexander, North Tonawanda,N.Y. “Smooth Sailing,” thecomprehensive report, was excellent.I also like the Owner Profileand the 5 Days Through Nevada.We need more tech information,service and maintenance, etc.Janet McCullough, Grandview,Mo. I enjoyed the issue verymuch — informative, educational,and interesting reading. Keepthe same format. Enjoyed the articleon Nevada. We need more“Serious Tech Talk” articles, andinformation on preventative andscheduled maintenance.Loretta Pilkington, Pine Level,N.C. I love the magazine! Pleaseask everyone in the Tiffin RVfamily to write and suggest goodcampsites and things they havedone at different campsites allover the U.S.Darrell Allison, Santa Fe, N.M.Please do a Tech Talk article on the“care and feeding” of diesel enginesand Allison transmissions.Lawrence E. Taylor, Corsicana,Tex. The article, “Do Tow BarsWear Out?”, was very meaningfulto me. Late last year while towingmy CRV, the pin in the receiverhitch came out. The “safety” keymost likely wore out and broke. Iwas towing with the safety chainswhen another RVer pulled up besideme and motioned me over.Of course, when I came to a stop,the CRV crashed, only scratchingthe cover on my spare tire, but doingconsiderable damage to theCRV. . . . After reading the articleby Mark Penlerick, I am carefullychecking every bolt and pin on mytow bar and hitch.Paul L. Bauereis, Lindale, Tex.Thank you so much for the magazine.It’s good to feel like we area member of a forward thinkinggroup.Bob and Barb Vorse, Red Bay,Ala. In the early seventies wepurchased our first Allegro from acouple in Florida. . . . It only had1700 miles on it, and in our eyeswas our dream. And that dreamcame to be a story we challengeanyone to top!After putting several thousandmiles on our 1973 Allegro, wedecided to look for a larger motorhome— so where else couldwe go but to Tiffin Motorhomes.We bought a 32-foot 1989 toreplace our well-used 27-foot.Then we traded for a 37-foot1991 Allegro. But our story reallybegins there.We made several trips to RedBay from our home in PalmBeach Gardens, Florida, mainlyto have our unit serviced. Butlittle by little we found ourselvesdrawn to our new family of employeesat Tiffin Motorhomesand the generous, kind, andhelpful people of Red Bay, Alabama.We thought that this couldpossibly be our future retirementhome. We bought some propertyjust to the east of Red Bay onBubble Gum Hill and installedthe necessary “hook-ups” on thewooded lot. After a couple ofyears, it was retirement time andwe lived in our Allegro whilebuilding our Red Bay home inthe beautiful hills of Alabama.Because of Tiffin Motorhomesand the fantastic people of RedBay, we have the best of twoworlds: a fixed home on BubbleGum Hill and our Allegro rollinghome. Our 1991 Allegro is stillserving us well. And why not— it has been cared for by thethoughtful employees at TiffinMotorhomes.William Schuller, Shiloh, Ohio.I appreciate the considerationTiffin Motorhomes has shown itscoach owners by publishing thismagazine to keep us informedwith the latest about new models,technical information, andplaces to go and things to see.George Gillette, Euless, Tex.We like the entire magazine. The“Generations” article about theTiffins was outstanding. Pleasemake this a monthly magazine.Editor: To make RIS a monthlymagazine we would have tocharge you a subscription comparableto MotorHome Magazine.Would that be okay?Robert Burns, Port Aransas,Tex. I would like to have a lubelayout chart for my motorhome.Can TMH furnish one?Editor: Lubrication charts shouldbe available from the chassismanufacturer or the service centerthat you use for chassis andengine maintenance.David Reynolds, Calhoun, Ky.In the “From the Road” section,add some of the problems customershave had and how theywere fixed.Editor: See “Tech Talk” in this issue.We have addressed problemsthat were raised by readers whoused the return mail card suppliedin the last issue. Questions that Ican answer in a few sentences willbe handled in this section.Tom Watrous, Linden, Mich.Thanks for the articles on theTiffins, the people profiles, differentmodel reviews, and technicalarticles. I read Roughing ItSmoothly from cover to cover. Iam a retired engineer and I likeknowing how things are built.Tell us about the processes/techniques used in the Tiffin productionsystem — maybe just aquarter-page blip per issue.Editor: Thanks for your suggestion,Tom. Last month our photographerspent two days shootingin the plant to give us thematerial we need to do exactlywhat you suggested. The “FullBody Paint” is to be the first ofmany stories and “blips” thatwill tell our readers how theircoaches are made.Harvey Ploghaus, Yorba Linda,Calif. I like to do my own maintenance,so I would like to seesome articles for people like me.Maybe Freightliner could do anarticle on chassis maintenance.Editor: We have an article fromFreightliner on “Engine CompartmentInspection.” If we can’tget it in this edition, it will be inthe Summer edition.OLDER ALLEGROSRobert H. Miller, Madison,Wisc. I would like to see articlesreviewing the past productionmodels, starting with the firstmodel year and moving up progressivelythrough the years.Editor: If Mr. Tiffin could haveforeseen the company’s phenomenalsuccess, he might havehired a company historian. Beinga history buff myself, I like yoursuggestion. Maybe I can begin topiece together some stories thatwill be of interest. Thanks.Donald and Wendy MacDougall,Vernon, Conn. We havethe first Allegro with the “doggywindow,” and we hope you willdo more features on the olderAllegro motorhomes. We werein a campground in New Mexicowhere there were four mid-80sAllegros. In 2002, we droveour motorhome 13,500 miles toAlaska and back.Editor: Thanks for your suggestion.I would like to urge ourreaders to pick up their pens (orkeyboards) and write about theirexperiences in TMH’s durablemotorhomes. Send your contributionsto P.O. Box 292912,Tampa, FL 33687-2912, or emailto fred@bookproduction.comJim and Judy Wells, Bessemer,Ala. Can you tell us how to upgradethings in our motorhomewith some of the nicer appointmentsthat you put in the AllegroBus or the Zephyr? Can Tiffinsell the materials for do-it-yourselfupgrades? Cost and availablemerchandise?Editor: TMH will make repairson all motorhomes they havemanufactured. New features, likehard surface counters, for example,are only made to fit currentcabinet designs and floorplans.“Upgrades” are called “restorations”at the plant and TMHdoes not have a division to dothis. A few larger dealers, suchas LazyDays in Seffner, Fla.,have restoration departmentsthat can undertake modernizingolder units. For more information,call (800) 626-7800, BruceMoreno at ext. 4365.Ken and Brenda Robillard,Watertown, Wisc. Many Allegrounits are just too good to junk.We need information on repairparts and newer components thatare compatible with older unitsEditor: Call the TMH plant at(256) 356-8661 and press “one”for parts. You will get Ricky,Mark, or Lloyd who will be ableto help you.FOR FULL-TIMERSEditor: This section of “Fromthe Road” is for full-timers to exchangeand provide informationthat will be helpful to living fulltimein their Tiffin motorhomes.Errol Barber, Winnemucca,Nev. We would like to hear fromothers who live on the road fulltimeabout how to find jobs andearn money other than being acampground host. Thanks.Robert G. Brilinski, Alpena,Mich. Can other full-timerssupply names and addresses ofcampgrounds that offer freemonthly rent for work?Chuck and Teri Hruby, Bloomington,Ind. We would like to seearticles about living on the roadwritten by full-timers, or questionsfrom those who want to befull-timers.Editor: It’s a big decision. I hopeyou will get some good responsesfrom full-timers who will giveyou the pros and cons, and howto do it right.THE ROAD LESS TRAVELEDJane Hogg, New York, N.Y.Give us features on roads not toowell known. I’ve traveled manyof them.Al Bender, Sandy, Utah. Wetravel the “two lane roads,” 50–55 mph, whenever possible.Editor: Jane and Al evoked anostalgic tone that made methink of Robert Frost’s wellknownpoem, “A Road Not Taken.”Again, I hope our readerswill take up their pens and keyboardsand tell us about thoseroads that allow us to slow downand reflect.A Road Not TakenTwo roads diverged in a yellow wood,And sorry I could not travel bothAnd be one traveler, long I stoodAnd looked down one as far as I couldTo where it bent in the undergrowth;Then took the other, as just as fair,And having perhaps the better claim,Because it was grassy and wanted wear;Though as for that the passing thereHad worn them really about the same.And both that morning equally layIn leaves no step had trodden black.Oh, I kept the first for another day!Yet knowing how way leads on to way,I doubted if I should ever come back.I shall be telling this with a sighSomewhere ages and ages hence:Two roads diverged in a wood, and I —I took the one less traveled by,And that has made all the difference.– Robert Frost, 192034 ROUGHING IT SMOOTHLY FROM THE ROAD 35