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Old 08-22-2020, 08:16 AM   #1
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From Melbourne to Hawk to Seneca possibly

I may be selling my 2020 Hawk 29MVP and moving to a 37K Seneca. I am looking for opinions on pros/cons and general thoughts.
Little about me:
- Just wife, dog and I
- Full time job but allows me to take off when I want and we use the MH as much as possible.
- Typically trips from 3 days at a state park to 10 days within 15 hours from home
- Will camp anywhere
- Tow a Jeep Gladiator

Love the life of camping! Wife is absolutely more of a Glamper while I tinker. I enjoy automation and ease of life. I know nothing about engine repairs but own a shop that works on rams (I know different engine) and there is a cummins power shop 5 miles away.

Just general thoughts from anyone that has moved up or down?
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Old 08-23-2020, 04:56 AM   #2
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Pros
Much larger towing and carrying capacity. You can safety bring your toys
Chassis is rock solid and easy to drive. Hardly notice passing trucks.
Great visibility and comfort while driving. I have driven multiple 12 hour days and there is very little fatigue due to fighting wind or comfort in the seat.
Power, while it is not quiet the engine runs at lower speed then gas engines it hums rather then screams going up hills.
Freightliner chassis can be worked on by thousands of heavy truck shops across the US.

Cons
Size. The added 2 ft or so of height and 10 ft longer length reduces the number of sites and areas you can go. This just requires more planning.
Weight is significantly greater meaning you can get stuck easier, again more planning.
Expense. Heavy duty truck parts are more expensive. Oil changes are measured in gallons not quarts. Filters are larger and more of them. More batteries 2 chassis and 4 house.
Power supply. 50 amp vs 30. Again reduces some available camping locations.

Just some things to consider.

Having owned a 37ts for 3 years I would do it again. Truelly enjoy driving and staying in the unit.
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Old 08-23-2020, 06:47 AM   #3
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Op thanks for posting as I have been looking at several 37L and 37TS Senecas. I currently own a 2018 GH 31FS and have been looking at the Senecas and pondering the same thing. They look pretty amazing going down the rd and when i see them at campgrounds although a bit more rare.
Prior to the camping life that we got into 3 yrs ago I had never driven anything this large and was overwhelmed at first but got the hang of it rather quickly. We towed for 1.5 yrs so it helped me get the hang of things. Do you also get the hang of driving a Super C Freightliner relatively quickly? I think I would need to do a couple of test drives to see how it feels first before making the huge inv on a Seneca. I don't want to make a 100k+ mistake. Lol. I love my Greyhawk but do wish it had more power and was more solid when driving on rougher rd but the fact that you can easily maneuver / turn around in a pickle is a big advantage for me. I have modded the suspension a bit and it has improved the ride a bit.
I just saw a YouTube video of a Thor Omni class C using the Ford F550 diesel in some of their builds so maybe that might be an option for me also. It looks pretty incredible also. Will be doing some more research on that and hoping Jayco will carry it over on to their builds. I thought I had seen a Jayco on that chassis last yr but maybe I'm wrong.

We love visiting all sorts of places. I even park in some downtown areas. The last thing I want now is having to be restricted on where i can go based on bigger length, height and weight. That might be the biggest drawback of the Senecas that I can think of.
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Old 08-23-2020, 08:02 AM   #4
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Before buying our 2020 Jayco Seneca 37HJ, we have always had a 40’ foot plus fifth wheel. The Seneca was our bucket list purchase after we became empty nesters. We’ve had it for about 3 months now and have been from Texas to Florida and Texas to Northern California. We already have 7500 miles on it. We absolutely love it. I’m finding it’s a true cult following. You don’t see many on the road. It’s a joy to drive. I’m still getting to know the unit and putting our own touches to it. Easier than the fifth wheel and convenient. Definitely pre plan if going off the path from standard RV parks. Glad we made the move to the Seneca!
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Old 08-23-2020, 10:22 AM   #5
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https://youtu.be/LpQBZH5J030
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Old 08-23-2020, 12:35 PM   #6
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We actually looked at those. The con for me was interior heighth and the smaller viewing front windshield as compared to the Seneca. The Seneca front windshield feels so wide open for viewing. The pro On the Thor, however, was height wise was shorter to get into off the grid places. It was a really nice unit though.
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Old 08-23-2020, 07:34 PM   #7
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We looked at the Magnitude before we bought the Accolade. Lack of storage space, no wet bay, can’t use the bed with the slide in and next to impossible to go from cab to house without going outside. No thank you very much.

As a note some Magnitude owners are having over cab structure issues. Glad I didn’t make the mistake of buying one.
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Old 08-23-2020, 09:50 PM   #8
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We contemplated going from our aged 24' gas Class C to the 30-32' Class C units. Our expectations were that we would have a little more room and more towing capacity.

We looked at the typical motorhome owner lifecycle and agreed that 2-foot'itus was too small and we should just eliminate the next two motorhome purchases and go to the end-game.

We have a few friends that have Country Coach'es and while they love them, they hate them too... The love the rig, but hate the constant maintenance and repairs of a DP. We originally were looking at showhauler and Renegade that were on Class-8 platforms. Learning what we would weigh with our toys, and adding that to the the Seneca capacity, it was a real good fit for us (the newer Seneca's have more GCWR than we do 33k) and we decided to focus on floorplan with a list of our past preferences already well known.

The Seneca has been with us for 4 years now. -NO, we will not consider trading it in... Jayco no longer makes this model and we don't want a different floorplan. We have modded ours to what we want, some additional ones are still on the plan, but we used the heck out of ours till covid - and are about to depart on another 7-9 month adventure real soon...

The old sayin... Use it or loose it! rings true. Don't let it sit at the dealers service department for 9-months after you buy it... Plan to fix it yourself (with real craftsmen you hire) to fix it right.
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Old 08-24-2020, 07:15 AM   #9
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Quote:
Originally Posted by EA37TS View Post
We looked at the Magnitude before we bought the Accolade. Lack of storage space, no wet bay, can’t use the bed with the slide in and next to impossible to go from cab to house without going outside. No thank you very much.



As a note some Magnitude owners are having over cab structure issues. Glad I didn’t make the mistake of buying one.
Thanks for the info. I am actually looking at a Magnitude that a local seller has listed and will look at and ask about some of these things. I was told you can access the bedroom in the BB35 bunkhouse via the bathroom which has 2 doors. I do think that the Senecas and Accolades are priced pretty similarly to a Magnitude so it's a no brainer to go with the Freightliner Chassis. We currently own a Greyhawk 31FS and it took me a couple trips to get really comfortable with it. With about 14k miles on it now I can maneuver it in pretty much any situation with no stress. When I consider going to a freightliner chassis I get pretty nervous as I know nothing about driving these beasts. Lol. The Magnitude is kinda best of both worlds and love the outdoor kitchen.
Thanks for posting.
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