Introduce Yourself!

I think others have covered your questions well but I'll chime in on these two.

And being a somewhat skeptical type, I find this one to be, well frankly, remarkable.  Is it really possible that nearly all comments are positive and the company provides this kind of quality control and after sale service?  I'm not suggesting that negative comments are scrubbed, I just find it curious.  Very refreshing, but curious ;-)

When I was deciding I also did a lot of research, mostly looking for negative comments.  And for most brands there is a long list.  But after an exhaustive search I found one complaint for Phoenix.  And that from a person who to be polite can only be described as having some personal issues.  And I don't think this forum is scrubbed, since I spent most of my research time elsewhere not really trusting manufacturer hosted forums.  So yes, they do care and they will do their level best to keep customers happy.  That is partly because they are a small business and you can actually call up and talk to the owner.  I owned my own business for 30 years and when your name is on the building it is a lot different than just a job.  The company's reputation is also your personal reputation.
The other thing to consider is that while Phoenix is going to warranty their work, most of the things that go wrong in an RV are not Phoenix items but rather will be warranted by the manufacturer.  The truck is Ford, the furnace is Dometic, the refrigerator is Norcold and so on.  Phoenix seems to go above and beyond to help but ultimately if the furnace goes under warranty that is covered by the manufacturer.  RV builders are mostly assemblers of parts after you get beyond the frame design.  And that is one place Phoenix wins big, they have a very good frame and shell design.  As long as that stays sounds everything else is just parts.

One of the major draws to the PC is that it appears they will try to modify the interior, which is huge for me.  And all of the problems that seem to prevail with horrible dealerships.  Though warranty work is a bit of a concern with direct buy.  

That was in fact the thing that drew them to my attention initially.  We looked at a number of brands at several shows and being able to customize our rig to fit our needs was a major factor in our decision.  Our coach is still on the line, but I'm getting pictures from Kyle and things look good.  It will be unique and Earl and Kermit were very willing to work with us to make the way we wanted.  Within limits of course:)

I think we may be about to test whether this forum is scrubbed.  I have been cheering for PC and having such hope but I now feel snookered.  i also wonder about another theory about why this forum is always positive - did those who had a negative experience just not stay with the forum or get to?  I will create my post separately.  But having encouraged some here I must now temper that support.  We will see if I get to stay posted and on the forum

I guarantee you won't get scrubbed for just expressing dissatisfaction or problems. You can check my posts for issues we had - which Phoenix took care of. If you get nasty, you'll probably get scrubbed. If I respond to you in a nasty way and disrespect you or call you names, they would scrub me and probably pitch me off the forum. Those are the rules that we abide by. Those are the rules that every forum I've seen abides by.

Be honest, be fair, be considerate. For those of us that already have our Phoenix, I'll add be helpful. Others helped us and we try to help others. I've only seen a few instances in the last two years where people have not followed those guidelines. I've met many of the people you see posting on this forum and I hope to meet many more. I've met many of the people that work at Phoenix. They have all been awesome people. I hope your issues are resolved and you come to love your Phoenix like we do. I look forward to your happy postings in the future. I'm certain there will be some.

2Frazzled - I sincerely hope so too!.  I worked on this for almost 3 years now - to have my new life.  As I said elsewhere - the PC absolutely felt like the RV i HAD to have.  The one that I felt right in and would handle me and the animals.  I want this to be OK and to find that all my hopes come true with this.

I have appreciated help from you and others as I put together my build and I hope to meet many of you out on the road. 

Hi,
We are Joe and Gail Stone and own a 2012 2350PC on a 3500 Sprinter Chassis.  We are new to motor homes, but have had a 5th wheel since 2000.  There is much we don't know.  Our PC came without a spare time and rim and we want to know where to buy one that will work with our PC. Also we are planning a 3 month trip from New York to California and back and would like to know how people avoid tornadoes in the south.  How do you know how far north or south to drive to avoid them.
Thanks for any help you can give us.
Gail

Welcome.  I doubt that you can avoid tornado weather by going north or south as we've seen them all through the midwest and deep south.  I can however give you some ideas on how to  recognize and steer clear of them.  That is the beauty of travelling by motorhome.  You can wait it out, go another direction or turn around.  None of this information is 100% , just general info.  Most tornadoes are East of the Rockies.  Here in Colorado, they are usually in the afternoon and get later in the day as you move East.  They happen when a cold front hits warm air making for unstable conditions.  To me, the sky turns a spooky, olive green (BTW  hail  also happens when you see turquoise skies).   The best suggestion is to carry  a portable weather radio.  As I am not used to overnight storms, I find comfort that we will be awakened if storms threaten while we are sleeping.  Ours is rechargable but also has a battery back-up.  There are also lots of weather apps for your phone.  May and June seem to be the  storm-prone season around here.  I really wouldn't worry too much as long as you pay attention to your surroundings.   I think we have a wonderful family here at P.C.  I hope you enjoy your P.C. as much as we do!   Patti

Thank you for your useful information.
Gail

Welcome Joe and Gail!  We just bought our 2012 PC 2400 Sprinter in Dec 2016, so we have much i common as for our PC's.  We lived in North Texas for a bunch of years, so we know tornadoes.  Just recognize the time of year that usually breeds storms. . .in the "Tornado Alley" states that's March-June.  You just need to be aware of weather conditions where you are heading for a stop over.  If you are caught in a campground during a weather alert that might involve high winds or tornadoes, know where a concrete building is (bath house; ranger station; camp store).  I'm 73 years old and a former RV full timer and we have never had to dig out from a tornado.  I think we went to a safe shelter like the ones mentioned above maybe twice in all our years in an RV.  We once tracked a tornado warning storm on our laptop while we were in North Central Illinois, but even though the TV said it was in Kane County, Kane County extends 1/4 of the way down the state.  Just read up on how to make educated decisions when crossing the affected states.  Heck, your chances of have a tornado problem are probably no different than us having a blizzard,whiteout problem if we traveled from our home near Chicago to upstate New York.  Just read up, sit back and enjoy the ride.  See ya on the road.  

Hi Joe and Gail! I agree on the weather radio and recommend a physical, Rand McNally type atlas be tucked somewhere on board also. We were nearly hit by a tornado when traveling the Natchez Trace a few years back. We were in a campground with no signal. We heard about the bad weather rolling in by accident while visiting a National Park - the volunteer at the desk was chatting with us and told us it was coming. We returned to our rig and dug out that weather radio. It went nuts that night with alerts of tornado sightings all over, like in Transylvania County... but we didn't know the area so we couldn't tell how close that was until we pulled out that map book (where the heck is Transylvania County? - next state over, but close enough). We were hunting counties and townships and cities and towns to see where the sightings were when the radio blipped and specifically named our campground as the expected site of touch down... whoopsy. We ran through the campground notifying fellow campers, packed the cat and hunkered down in the concrete block toilets. We were lucky, the tornado touched down about a mile away. While I am sure that block house was more secure than our Phoenix, the huge plastic skylight that made up most of the ceiling caused a bit of concern and we kept a close eye on it while the storm raged around us.

We have since used alerts on our phones and the radio when we are away from cell towers. There is no guarantee the radio will get signal but they have decent coverage for the alerts. It might help to read up on how to lock into a signal and practice before you have to actually use the radio in an emergency. We were learning as we went along. Thankfully the tornado waited until we figured it out.

After saying all of that, tornadoes can occur and touch down just about anywhere. They can decimate one house and not touch the one next to it. You cannot accurately predict. But you can prepare. The main difference between between being on the road and being at home is you are not familiar with the area and weather patterns so read up first and carry a physical map book.

Thank you.  We will now add our atlas and learn how to use our weather radio before we take off.

Hi Helpful PC owners,
Our 2012 2350 PC on Sprinter chassis did not come with a spare tire.  We need to buy one.  We don't know what brand to buy and whether the one that comes from the factory is the same as the 6 rims on the wheels or is not as pretty.  We don't know where to buy one that would match the rest of the wheels, if that is what we need to do.  Thanks for any hints.
Joe and Gail

Hi Gail and Joe (Gail43),

Welcome to the PC family of owners!

Regarding your Sprinter spare tire.

The spare tire is "optional" at the time the RV manufacture purchases the chassis from Ford or Mercedes.  Your PC might have had a spare tire when purchased brand new, or the spare might not have ever existed.  Phoenix will not have extra spare tires & wheels for purchase, but it never hurts to ask them anyways.  You will need to buy one direct from Mercedes, or second hand from places like junkyards, Ebay, Craigslist and even RV forums.  You might also try an internet store like Tire Rack.  The spare tire is a real tire and wheel, identical to the other six on your PC.  It is not a temporary spare as is common with typical vehicles.  The wheels are mounted in either direction depending on whether you are mounting it on the front axle or in either position on the rear axle.

Thank you, Ron, so much for your helpful information.  I'll start looking for a used one first.
Gail

There was no spare in our 2012 PC2400 Sprinter either, and no marking like the had ever been one.  We have chosen to rely on our TPMS to monitor slow leaking tire issues, with an aerosol tire repair kit to help limp to a repair facility in case of a puncture.  In case of a catastrophic tire failure, we'll have our emergency road service bring a tire with them, which we have done when we owned our Airstream trailer.

We are using the spare tire compartment to store a 50ft water hose to compliment our usual 25ft one when needed.  We also have our unused and sanitary bagged 3" sewer hose in there in case of macerator failure.  It's a good place to store those "not-often-used" items.  But, that's our choice. 

Thank you, Ron, so much for your helpful information.  I'll start looking for a used one first.
Gail