Test Drove

This morning we test drove the Phoenix Cruiser. It's got the same wheel base as my Freightliner did, but a larger overhang.

It's a nice cab. Lots of fun stuff like a 6 way electric drivers seat, power mirrors, back up camera AND a rear view mirror with a view of the road from the window in the back over the bed! That was nice. The monitor for the camera was mounted to high to be of any use to me. I could give it a quick glance.

It handled okay. Not great, just okay. No big wobbles. It stayed on the road and I had no trouble with it in narrow construction areas with Jersey barriers close in. It was bouncy, but it was empty.

It would have to feel pretty rock-solid empty and toadless for me to want to go all the way with it. We definitely want to tow the Honda. It was not.

There were a couple of other small issues. The large storage compartment had water damage and the floor of it appeared to be rusty. The sales guy said that they had to replace the cover for the floor of the compartment as someone had left the door open and it had rained in. He said it couldn't be rust. It was fiberglass. Then why was it rust colored? Glue?

The carpet on the side of the compartment was still damp and the bottom 1" was discolored. I didn't like the story. Even a fiberglass roof can leak if not sealed properly.

The unit is a 2007 but the weather stripping was already discolored by the sun. Granted we have pretty strong sun, but it's not even a year old!

The gen set is set so low that it's going to be costly to service. Even for an oil change, it appears that it will have to go on a lift. It extends below the lowest edge of the unit and I thought it was too attractive to big bumps and road rocks. The macerator is outside of the compartment on a hanger under the back of the rig. It was too vulnerable.

We left the radio off so that we could listen for rattles. There were not many. The salesman said it was the blinds on the door. I think it was the bathroom door which, though it stayed closed, was loose. There were a couple of very slight brownish discolorations on the carpet headliner. Could have been glue, could have been from the cherry stain on the cabinets or could have been a leak. The bathroom window was open when we looked at the unit the other day and, on closer inspection, it appeared that it had rained in. There were marks of rain on the commode cover and in the shower. Since we had record rains last week, I don't know how much the negligence on the lot allowed to come in and how long it sat. The floor is lino and their could have been seepage.

I'm sure the warranty could have addressed the rattle and the real or imagined leaks, but I don't want to have to deal with warranty issues on the road and I don't know enough about this dealership to trust them to fix things or just "clean around them." There aren't any other dealers close by with better reputations.

The cabinetry and fit and finish are quite impressive, other than the rattles and the loose-fitting bathroom door.

We didn't buy it. We didn't even start negotiations so we'll never know if the salesman would have really done an even swap or not.

It looks like we will be taking the bus to the consignment lot as soon as the outside compartments are empty. I've already cleaned out the inside.

Thanks one and all for the helpful information and encouragement. For those looking for a small unit that isn't claustrophobe city, I recommend looking at a Phoenix Cruiser.
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Janet Wilder
Bad spelling. Bad punctuation
Good Friends. Good Life
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