Hello everyone! This is my first post on this forum. My wife and I are wanting to trade our current motorhome in on an '09. My wife is in love with the '09 Diplomat and Endeavor 41SKQ, I am in love with the the 2009 Dutch Star. One guess as to who is winning this battle

I have a couple of questions/concerns that I hope will be answered by the kind members of this forum:

1. I have heard that monaco is no longer using their patented aluminum superstructure. Is this true? If so, is this a bad thing or a good thing?

2. Looking at the 2008 vs. 2009 brochure, it appears that different the same slide-out construction technique is no longer being used on the '09. The '08 brochure goes into great detail discussing how the slide outs are built the same as the sidewalls. The '09 brochure is silent on this.

I also like the Endeavor and Diplomat and would love to order one. However, I am extremely concerned with the construction changes in '09. To make matters worse, I am really afraid of them using a different construction technique for the first time. In addition, they are moving the factory to Oregon which is quite far from Maryland.

Any advice or insight you can provide is appreciated.

We have a 2008 Diplomat SKQ. The layout is very pleasing and when it is not at our home dealer for warranty repairs it is quite enjoyable. That said, the Diplomat does not quite live up to the Monaco hype for road stability. At 7000 miles we changed the shocks from Monroe to Bilstein, the Monroes are a joke, a bad one. by the way our road speed is between 55-65 mph. We also ordered a steering control unit, the Diplomat is great on smooth roads but the steering suffers greatly on poor pavement.

I would not worry that Monaco is moving to Oregon, that is a positive as all the high coaches (Dynasty and up)including Beaver (Contessa and up) come out of the Oregon plant.

As for 2009 construction please note that the Diplomat is really an entry level coach, with hung walls (as opposed to bonded sides)no multi-plex wiring and poor slide insulation.

As an aside,for some reason the 2009 SKQ is a foot longer than the 2008.

Best thing to do is to carefully check the differences in build of the Diplomat SKQ against the Camelot SKQ to realize the value points. Then checkout the build of a Dynasty and you will readily see where quality at Monaco starts.

Not that I own one but I feel Monaco quality begins with the Camelot, but you will pay dearly for that quality believe me.

I've noticed the same things you mention. Some features in the 2009 Dip appear better, some not. Does any other manufacturer use the alumastructure c-welds like Monaco? It could be that unless you are buying a semi-monocoque chassis it doesn't mean much anyway.
I bought a 2008 Dip SFT early this year. If I had taken the time to consider, I'd have purchased a tag axle something and paid a little more money.
We are really happy with our Diplomat, and haven't had a problem that I haven't caused. I have ordered Koni shocks because it may improve the ride, but I already like the ride and stability. My daughter says it is pretty rough when in the bed in the back while we're driving. I don't know what that means. She stayed/slept on the bed for about four hours with her daughter and we woke them when we arrived, so it must not have been too terrible!

You'll hear every end of the spectrum on ride/quality/mileage. Everybody's coach is the best/worse! I'm not sure why there is such a disparity. My coach is tight, quiet, solid, and gets 9.3 and up mileage. Somebody else could drive it and say it's the worse coach they've ever been in - I don't know. It is the ONLY coach I've ever been in other than a Class C Fleetwood Jamboree. It has no problems that I can determine. I haven't been able to drive 55mph yet, so maybe the mileage could be better. That's my fault.

The Dutch Star is on a Spartan Mountain Master GT Chassis with a 55 degree turning axis and IFS suspension. The Diplomat/Endeavor is on a Roadmaster RR8R Chassis with a solid axle front and 50 degree turning radius. Both 'return to zero' when you release the wheel, but a 55 degree turn radius will turn you around in a cul-de-sac without having to backup and retry. I'm not totally sure, but I think a 55 degree turning axis will turn a 45' coach in 37 feet. In other words, it'll turn so tight you can see your tail lights! Mine does pretty doggone good, but I still have to back up to finish a cul-de-sac turn-around. Outside a cul-de-sac, I'm not sure all of that is important. You can still run over every curb turning left/right even with a 45 degree axis. Most often you will have to swing wide to turn.

Monaco does some terrific tricks with a solid front axle to improve turning radius, and the air comfort-ride comes very close to simulating an IFS while providing the inherent stability of a solid axle. I do not worry about body roll or dipping. I change lanes, round turns, enter and exit the expressway without concern.

I am told that the Monaco has a 'firmer' ride. One salesman compared the Monaco vs Country Coach ride quality to a 'porche vs cadillac.' He said there is less body roll and dipping, but the CC 'floats' down the road. I think I'd like to have both!

Make sure you drive in both coaches you are considering for a good stretch on the expressway and you and your wife judge the rides. Besides having an interior layout that works for you, the ride is the second-most important quality.

I'd recommend that you go for the most coach your money can buy - it seems like you do get what you pay for. Do some research and don't let your money burn a hole in your pocket (like I did!!) My next coach will be a tag axle, but I'll be a lot more critical going thru the construction, and we'll spend more time judging the ride quality. Again, that's not to say I don't like my Dip - I do!

Good luck in your choice.

my reply may not help your specific question. so i'll try to keep it brief... we just bought an 09 tag axle with a bath and a half. we couldn't be more pleased with our new coach... our safari cheetah is selling at an extremely cheap price right now.. monaco initially sold about 12 of these coaches to MHSRV.com of alvaredo texas... he has sold quite a few but still has plenty left. if price is factor send me a private message for more info.... we have 7000 miles on our 2009. http://www.mhsrv.com/inventory_mfg.asp?manufacturer=801

here's another nice one for only 30K more 2008 Beaver Contessa 42' W/4 Sides http://www.mhsrv.com/inventory_item.asp?id=521736

You may want to consider a several year old higher quality tag axle coach at the same price or less than a new model.

Enjoy a nicer coach and sleep well knowing someone else took the huge depreciation hit.

Thank you for the thoughtful replies.

I spoke with a salesman this morning who verified that the alumiframe is no longer being used. He said that the decision was made based upon the cost of the double welds it required.

This will be very upsetting to my wife, but based on what I am hearing on this forum and from the salesman, the '09 Monaco sounds like a poor choice. It is very unfortunate they decided to change the build quality of their rigs for the '09 model year. Thanks again for the help

the monaco chassis is the world's best not because of the material it's made from, but because it's computer designed for motorhome use only. that puts the weight as close to side walls as possible... also it's not over built as all truck chassis are.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Majeasy,

you-tube
roadmaster chassis video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rJzYO23RTt8