Cyclone 3950 or 3850 and cost question

isisrider

Member
Hey all, we have been looking at toyhaulers for quite some time now. I currently pull a 30' fifth wheel with a four place trailer behind and it is time for a toy hauler. The wife and I have narrowed it down to one with a half bath in the back for kids and muddy shoes. I wish there was a 14' garage with a half bath. Anyway we have narrowed it down to the Cyclone 3950 or the 3850, we are leaning towards the 3850 as it looks like it has more cabinets and we like the two chairs. My question is that I can find either of these models online from a dealer about 1500 miles from me and save about $8-10K from what my local dealer is quoting me, even with delivery charges. My local dealer tells me that these mega dealers order the units with cheaper tires, appliances, etc. I think he just blowing smoke, thoughts? I would really like to just order or purchase a unit from my local dealer but a savings of $8-10K is just to good to pass up.
Thanks for any input.
 

jimtoo

Moderator
Hi isisrider,

Welcome to the Heartland Owners Forum and hopefully to the family. We have a great bunch of people here with lots of information and all willing to share their knowledge if needed.

As far as I know, all appliances are the same, I think you can order upgrade tires now, not sure. But 8 to 10k saving would be hard to pass up.

Enjoy the forum.

Jim M
 

trackeer

Member
Kudo's on the 14' garage and the second bath, we decided or should I say we decided that she can have the HD Package and I got the 14' Garage, I think it was a decent deal so we ordered a 3814 from a dealer 830 miles away in oHIo. We are arranging a pick up at the dealer and save the 800 bucks or so and go get the RV and walk it at the dealer.
I could understand your dealers comments, but how cheap is cheap is the cost of appliances and tires enough to justify 10K in price difference? I have not read anywhere that the dealers are selling anything different than the local guy has here and it appears the biggest difference is simply they sell a lot of RV's. We shopped several brands and narrowed it down to Open Range and Cyclone, the local Open Range dealer was easily 10K over the Cyclone and the Local Cyclone dealer had 09's that were priced in the neighborhood of what we paid for our NEW Cyclone.

I will give our new unit a very good inspection and have no problems leaving the same way I arrived if all is not as it should be.:D

Goodluck

Moe in NH
 

trvlrerik

Well-known member
When we decided to purchase we also wanted to buy as close to home as possible, but the lure of saving over 15k had us travel. After deciding what we wanted my wife spent about a week on the phone with dealers that had a 3912 in stock. We knew how much options would cost us from the factory, or if we upgraded them ourself.
We then called each dealer and told them we were going to buy a Cyclone 3912, and wanted a two bids from them, one bid was for the unit they had sitting on the lot as is, and a secondary bid for the unit with the options we wanted.
We wound up buying a new "year old" Cyclone and only had to travel 900 miles round trip. One plus about traveling to pick up your unit is that you learn about it quick and in my opinion it is a great way to find any issues out quickly. We only had a few issues and the dealer took care of them easily by allowing us to use our "home" repair facility.
When I get my next Hearland product I will do the exact same thing.
 

kkflstf

Member
Ordered a 2011 3850 not quite a year ago about 450 miles from home for several reasons. Price was a big part but a lot of others as well! I was in kind of the same boat as you, but I did a phone trade deal with a dealer that I was very happy with and will probably deal with again. He's closer to you than he was to me. If you want to PM mail me I'll gladly give you details!!
 

DW_Gray

Well-known member
I think one other thing you may want to consider is which of the dealers service department is going to give you the best service after you buy it. Have you used Google to research the dealers and read some reviews? Also check the BBB for ratings or complaints?

As for the local dealer blowing smoke about the mega dealers, I'd say he/she is. Salespeople will tell you just about anything to get you to buy from them.

Also, I hope you have late model F350 or 3500 diesel to tow the big Cyclone. Any thing less will not be safe. Above all don't let any dealer try to tell you otherwise.
 

trackeer

Member
Absolutley Correct,

Dave is 100 percent correct, F350 or better and really should be a DRW for any of these 40 Foot Beast. I traded a 09 F250 Diesel as I new that trailers we were looking at were going to be big and have a hefty King Pin Weight, so not only does your truck need the towing capacity it needs the payload capacity as well.
After debating the subject with the salesperson at the Open Range dealer he conceded that a F250 Diesel has the right motor just not the right chassis.

Good Luck

Moe in NH.
 

isisrider

Member
I currently have an '04 350 LB CC diesel, but I will NOT buy a new trailer without first purchasing a new tow vehicle. I have been looking at the new '11 F450, and this is probably the way I will go.

thanks,
 

DW_Gray

Well-known member
I currently have an '04 350 LB CC diesel, but I will NOT buy a new trailer without first purchasing a new tow vehicle. I have been looking at the new '11 F450, and this is probably the way I will go.

thanks,

That's good thinking. If I had known when I bought my Cyclone what I know now, I'd bought a bigger truck. With my 3500 I can't really go over 18K on the Cyclone. So I'm now trying to figure out how to lose 1,800 pounds so I can buy and carry a Smart Car.
 
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trackeer

Member
Hey isisrider,

Before U spring for a 011 F450 make sure to take some time reviewing the capacities, U might be surprised that for towing the F450 doesn't offer much advantage over the F350 when U consider the MSRP's of both trucks, U can check out towing and Capacity specifications at Fords Fleet Services which gives you all the capacities as rated by the factory.
We just purchased a 2011 F350 DRW Diesel, without getting into major details suffice to say I am not sure the price difference gains much regarding towing a 5th Wheel. On the short the new F Series is a HUGE improvement over any previous F Series trucks I have owned and I have had several:cool:.

Thanks

Moe in NH
 

DW_Gray

Well-known member
Maybe you're an all Ford man, but the new Chevy/GM 3500 is worth considering. With the 5th wheel towing capacity of 21,700 pounds, it's best in this class.
 

porthole

Retired
Maybe you're an all Ford man, but the new Chevy/GM 3500 is worth considering. With the 5th wheel towing capacity of 21,700 pounds, it's best in this class.

Looking at new trucks that is a term I have heard more then once, from both brands.
Towing capacity has been a numbers game (keeps changing), but both GM and Ford are in the 22K range with the DRW. The 450 is 2500 heavier I think.
They each have advantages over the other, but not any real disadvantages. Except - the Ford has the new engine and trans. But that said, I have been following two Ford truck forums and there seem to be very minimal issues and rave reviews from the new setup.
 

trackeer

Member
LOL,

Ford Men :rolleyes: yea it is probally true, but it's hard to get past Bail Outs, Big CEO pay while taking said Bail Outs, I might forgive but it won't be soon!!!!

As for the new Ford Diesel, the raves are well justified but I won't open mouth and incert foot at least not for now, gotta see how the test of time pays out ;) !!!!

Moe in NH.
 

isisrider

Member
Well, we finally decided and ordered a 3850.............woohoo!! Should be here by February...........now I gotta work on selling the '04 350 and getting a new '11 350 DRW. I think I have decided on the 350 vs the 450, mostly for cost and insurance costs. Thanks for your input.
 

Bob&Patty

Founders of SoCal Chapter
Moe, you correct on the bailouts.....but Ford had to hock the BLUE OVAL to stay in business. Ford was in the same position as GM and Dodge. GM has paid back almost all of the loan/bailout ...dont know about Dodge.
 

PUG

Pug
I bought a 09 3950 new that was used in a RV show. It has the 12 ft garage which works good for either 2 dirt bikes and a street bike or a four wheeler and street bike. If you have the 14 ft garage it will of course take 2 ft out of your living room. I like the bigger living room myself. I bought it from a dealer about 250 miles away and haven't been back. I have had warranty work done here at a local dealer and didn't have any trouble. I did try to get some warranty work in Tucson a year or so ago and that was almost impossible so I told the factory I would install the invertor myself because their dealer in Tucson were butt heads. I am of course off of warranty now but I am handy enough to fix about anything needed. I pull the 3950 with a one ton dually Ram. I had pulled it with a 3/4 ton Chev Duramax single rear axle but was afraid of blowing a driver tire and going for a ride.
 

ScubaSteve

Full Timer
Looking at new trucks that is a term I have heard more then once, from both brands.
Towing capacity has been a numbers game (keeps changing), but both GM and Ford are in the 22K range with the DRW. The 450 is 2500 heavier I think.
They each have advantages over the other, but not any real disadvantages. Except - the Ford has the new engine and trans. But that said, I have been following two Ford truck forums and there seem to be very minimal issues and rave reviews from the new setup.

Not quite. The F450 is only around 250 lbs heavier than the F350. The only difference is a few suspension components and the 4.30 differential. The result is a slight decrease in payload. When we bought our F450 the difference was 130 lbs payload for a F350 vs F450 (crew cab, 4X4), now they've added a 13,300 lb GVW so the difference is a little more, link below. The towing is 24,400 in the 450 and 21,700 in the 350, so a difference of 2700 lbs. Both should suffice, you'll get a little more pulling power with the 450 differential and a little better fuel ecomony with the 350. Take your pick.

I was able to get regular insurance on the 350. I was misquoted, but my insurance company stuck with their quote. You can always explain (as I did) that the 2011 F450 and F350 are the same and the GVWR is almost identical and well below the 14,000 lb cutoff for 'commercial' vehicles and they may give you regular insurance (as they should). I'd make sure you get a quote before you decide to buy.

As for bailouts. Ford did not and has not taken a bailout. They did finance their company a couple years before the bailouts because they were in the crapper. However, they did this on their own without government assistance. They recently took a $600 million LOAN from the government along with many other automakers. The loan was to retool for more fuel efficient bla bla bla. It was another government handout in the form of a low interest (or perhaps no interest) loan to help 'create jobs' and 'stimulate automakers for more efficient vehicles'. It was not a bailout. It's just good business to take a low interest loan and it's no different than taking a deduction on your taxes. You don't need the deduction, but it's financially stupid to not take it.

We also couldn't turn down the savings and drove 900 miles for our 3950. It had the same tires, wheels, walls, electronics, etc. as all the ones we checked out on the lots. The difference was over $10k and we got to pick our options and have one made to our liking (it's hard to find dual pane windows on a lot). I'll gladly take over $11/mile and save. As far as warranty service, I haven't taken it in. We opted for a 5 year warranty which covers everything and it covers remote service (the repairman will come to you if necessary). If we don't use our warranty in 5 years, we get our money back. If we use it for ANYTHING, even a 50 cent plastic clip, we don't get it back. I'm opting for not using it since I can usually fix just about anything.

Best of luck to you. I'm sure you'll enjoy your 3850 as we have enjoyed our 3950.
http://www.ford.com/trucks/superduty/specifications/payload/
 

Bighurt

Well-known member
My next truck will be an F450 or greater and my next trailer will be a Cyclone what model is undetermined as they may not even make the Cyclone when I'm ready to trade up. It's a safe bet there will be a Heartland toy hauler in the barn at some point...
 
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