Prospective Grand Canyon Owners!

[SkiCruiser]

This is my first post on the HOF! I have been lurking for a month or two and hope to get lots of advice from all that have gone before us!! I've learned alot already! We have been looking at 5th Wheel RV's since June and have been inside at least 150 different units so far - new and used. Man, it's hot when you are looking at RV's during the summer in Florida (except at La Mesa RV in Sanford - they have the air on)! We hope to full time in about five years!

We think we have narrowed it down to the Grand Canyon or Bighorn 3600RL. We have not been able to find a new Grand Canyon in Florida yet. We did finally find a dealer with a Pinehurst last weekend and we are very impressed.

We are thinking about flying up to Elkhart to see the factory and hopefully see a Grand Canyon still on the line. Have any of you been to the factory? Was it worth the trip?

We will also need to buy a tow vehicle and could use any advice and recommendations! We will choose Ford, Chevy or GMC since we get an employee discount on those brands.

Thanks in advance for any and all help!!!

Cheryl

 

[Bob&Patty]

Cheryl, you will need a 1 tn for any of the Landmarks and even the 3600RL.

A FORD (just kidding). There all good trucks.. I'm just a GM guy. Love my Duramax/Allison combo.

Quite a few people have gone to the factory to see their coach being built. Good luck with your choice of truck and camper. BTW, welcome to the HL family. Bob

 

[jmgratz]

Hello and welcome to the Heartland Forum. At the national Heartland Rally in June of this year we all took a tour of the factory. It was very informative and interesting. The Rally was held in Goshen Indiana. Goshen is next to Elkhart. Seeing them being built gives you insight as to the issues and challenges faced when putting an RV together. I think a tour of the factory is well work it. As far as a tow vehicle we are partial to Fords. We just replaced our 1999 F350 with a 2010 Ford F350 dually. The 6.4 liter twin turbo has ample power and pulls our Landmark without any problems. If you are going to get a Landmark or Big Horn 3600RL you will need at least a 1 ton pickup. A 3/4 ton is not enough truck IMHO. Good luck in your search and welcome again.

 

[2010augusta]

Cheryl,

The BEST advise I got when buying our truck and trailer was: Buy the Trailer of your dreams with the options YOU want FIRST... Then find a truck that can safely tow and STOP the a trailer of the weight of your trailer.

The Landmarks have GVWR of around 16,500-17,000 pounds and I know with all the options we had it would be very close to those weights by the time it was loaded for full-time use. The GM trucks had the lowest towing capacity, and We ended up with a F-450 and are very happy with it, they maneuver a lot better than the 350/3500s.

 

[DWH]

Cheryl,
My DW and I traded a 2008 BH 3370 on a 2010 Landmark GC. We really liked the BH. We love the Grand Canyon. With the GC, we ordered all the options that we wanted. I'm sure that accounts for some of our increased satisfaction. That said
the Landmark is the top of line for Heartland and we think it shows. Of course you pay for this. We felt it was worth it. Quality of materials and construction appears to be good for both. I don't think you can go wrong with either choice. Good luck.

Doug Hoeffner
2010 GC
2008 Chevy 2500 D&A

 

[kakampers]

We have an 08' BH 3600RL...we actually looked at, and considered upgrading to the GC. However, we noticed that there is a conspicous lack of overhead cabinetry in the kitchen in the GC, and no pantry, if you opt for the 4-door frig...this lead us to stay with our 3600, as the floor plan and storage space works perfectly for our fulltime use.

That said, I keep looking for the Heartland to come out with the "perfect" floorplan for us in the Landmark...you never know!! Whichever you choose, I'm sure you'll be very happy!

 

[sgtbigb]

Tow Vehicle

2010 Dodge LARMARIE Mega cab Dually with 4.10 rear end. wOW

 

[bill40]

As said before get the 5er first.I would go for disc brakes on the trailer and then shop for a truck. Any of the brands will pull but you probably will be looking at the 450 size units for long term use. My 3500 does well but I am much lighter than what your are looking at. The fun is in the hunt. Welcome to the group.

 

[SkiCruiser]

Hi Again!!

Thanks to all that have replied so far. GREAT INFO!! Keep it coming!!

Last evening we printed out the 09 Ford RV and Trailer Towing Guide and we are more confused than ever. Then I tried to build the PU on their website and you can't put this engine with that axle ratio, wanted a short bed and the bed has to be 8ft to do the DRW, etc, etc, etc. Maybe we should just move to Mexico and drink margaritas all day and watch the waves roll in and out. Just kidding, I really do want the 5er and a PU and to be able to go when and where we want!! Alaska here we come!! We delivered a Class C in May for a rental RV company in Anchorage, AK (will do this again in May 2010 and have fallen in love with the Last Frontier and the Alaska Highway. Lots and lots of land to explore and it's so quiet!

Again, we appreciate the info!!

Cheryl

 

[jmgratz]

The 2010 Fords are out so even if you built an 09 you are better off with a 2010. We just got ours and love it. 6.4 liter, dual turbos, tow package, long bed, dually 4wheel drive. Pulls the Landmark like it is not even there. We do have disc brakes on the LM.

 

[sprehoda]

Disc Brakes

How did you get the disc brakes?

Landmarks do not have that option.

Did you end up paying for drum brakes and have to toss them for the disc brakes?

 

[jbeletti]

How did you get the disc brakes?

Landmarks do not have that option.

Did you end up paying for drum brakes and have to toss them for the disc brakes?

Mor/ryde and various service centers will do this for you.

 

[Superduty]

I had a 2008 Bighorn 3670 that I traded for a 2010 Landmark Grand Canyon in June of this year. I do not know why, but the Landmark pulls much easier than the Bighorn. My Tow vehicle is a 2008 6.4 Ford F350 Crew Cab, Long Box with Dual rear wheel, 3.73 gear ratio. With the Big Horn, I averaged between 7-8.5 mpg. With the Landmark I am averaging 8-10mpg. The Landmark is heavier, I also have the LP generator which addes 250lb. I have been trying to figure this out... Why the difference. The two reasons I have come up with are the Goodyear tires that the Landmark has, compared to the Goldway tires the Bighorn had, and the possiblity that the axles were not aligned correctly on the Bighorn.

I am writing this after pulling 100 miles against a side wind of about 35-50mph. (We were going home) The Big Ford had no problem with power. If I wanted to it would run 70 mph agains the wind. I averaged about 50-60 mph, made 7.4 mpg. The Dual rear wheels make all the difference in the world on a day like today.. Especially when the road conditions are rough.