07-13-2018, 07:30 AM
Hi Tom,
Having just purchased a 2008 Newell this winter I can give you some advice.
First, and most important, are you purchasing this coach from the factory with a factory warrantee?
This is an important issue as it directly effects the price you should pay. If your buying from a private individual you must factor in the cost of getting the coach back to the factory to have some amount of service done a your expense and the repairs over the first 2 years of ownership. Some good prices are available on used coaches from the factory, factor in a percentage reduction from that for what you pay privately. I would figure $10-15K each year for the factory visit plus $20K in repairs but who really knows.
Newells are complex and they do not have schematics or other normal technical documents such as wiring diagrams available from the factory. Yes Really... You will have to rely on the Newell factory people to lead you through repairs when you are out on the road. Finding shops capable of dealing with any complex component in the rural areas is very difficult. Engines, yes. Generators, maybe, so long as you can get to a decent size city, but everything else you will be on the phone with the factory.
The people at Newell are very helpful as far as they can be but when it comes to Silverleaf or Spyder controls (lighting, doors, etc.) you will find those companies actually have all the information available on your coach as long as you can provide the Vin #. Silverleaf is a great company to deal with. They helped me with several difficult problems AND they have available the components to upgrade my system to the current technology. Spyder has also been helpful with a bug my system has. We have not yet traced down the exact problem but they are very helpful. I speak with the company president on a regular basis to discuss the issues.
To find out about the Silverleaf dash upgrade history just give Mark a call at Silverleaf Controls 1-541-967-8111 and he can give you all the info your looking for and he can lead you through the process to get the version number of the programming the system has installed. He set me up with a programmer that allows me to look at the set up of the controls. The programming supplied by Silverleaf is annotated to list the mods done to each upgrade so its very informative.
Regarding weight. Ugh, yes they are very heavy. As each coach is custom made its the customer that drives the designs. All stone and tile are the stuff you would find in your home. Very high quality and very heavy. The Federal law allows City Buses and Motorhomes to have up to 24,000# axel weights. Otherwise these coaches would not be legal on the interstates. How legal they are on state highways is a bit of a grey area. I just looked at the specs on a new Newell and the drive axel weight was listed over the 24,000# limit so perhaps something has changed in the law or its just a statement regarding the rating of the axel not its loaded weight.
Regarding HP, you want as much as you can get. I have the Caterpillar C15 625HP, 2050 ft/lbs of torque. Towing a good size pickup behind its a great engine especially tied to the ZF 12 speed. If I am careful on how I approach a hill I can keep my speeds well within a comfortable range and when slowed by other traffic it has the power to keep from becoming bogged down. Cats are fuel hungry (5 avg to 6 best MPG) I understand the Cummings are getting as much as 7+ MPG.
Reliability.... If the person you are purchasing a used coach from has not been very active on keeping up with the repairs you will have work to do, even if purchased from the factory. Either way, my advise is get the coach to the factory have it gone over with you present. Ask allot of questions you will need to understand the systems before hitting the road. Make notes and videotape a discussion about each system with one of the factory people. Next take it for a short 2 week journey and work the systems. Then take it back to the factory and have everything you found repaired. Then take it out for the season and at the end of that period bring it back and have everything repaired. Visiting the factory each fall is a pretty normal thing for most of the owners I have met.
Newells are great coaches which due to the ZF suspension handle very well. Turning radius is better then anything else in the field. I truly enjoy having it on the road. BUT, your going to need to approach this much like an aircraft. Work done in preparation will yield you an enjoyable time on the road unless visiting repair shops is what you find fun about a road trip.
Good luck and hope it all works out for you.
Mike
Having just purchased a 2008 Newell this winter I can give you some advice.
First, and most important, are you purchasing this coach from the factory with a factory warrantee?
This is an important issue as it directly effects the price you should pay. If your buying from a private individual you must factor in the cost of getting the coach back to the factory to have some amount of service done a your expense and the repairs over the first 2 years of ownership. Some good prices are available on used coaches from the factory, factor in a percentage reduction from that for what you pay privately. I would figure $10-15K each year for the factory visit plus $20K in repairs but who really knows.
Newells are complex and they do not have schematics or other normal technical documents such as wiring diagrams available from the factory. Yes Really... You will have to rely on the Newell factory people to lead you through repairs when you are out on the road. Finding shops capable of dealing with any complex component in the rural areas is very difficult. Engines, yes. Generators, maybe, so long as you can get to a decent size city, but everything else you will be on the phone with the factory.
The people at Newell are very helpful as far as they can be but when it comes to Silverleaf or Spyder controls (lighting, doors, etc.) you will find those companies actually have all the information available on your coach as long as you can provide the Vin #. Silverleaf is a great company to deal with. They helped me with several difficult problems AND they have available the components to upgrade my system to the current technology. Spyder has also been helpful with a bug my system has. We have not yet traced down the exact problem but they are very helpful. I speak with the company president on a regular basis to discuss the issues.
To find out about the Silverleaf dash upgrade history just give Mark a call at Silverleaf Controls 1-541-967-8111 and he can give you all the info your looking for and he can lead you through the process to get the version number of the programming the system has installed. He set me up with a programmer that allows me to look at the set up of the controls. The programming supplied by Silverleaf is annotated to list the mods done to each upgrade so its very informative.
Regarding weight. Ugh, yes they are very heavy. As each coach is custom made its the customer that drives the designs. All stone and tile are the stuff you would find in your home. Very high quality and very heavy. The Federal law allows City Buses and Motorhomes to have up to 24,000# axel weights. Otherwise these coaches would not be legal on the interstates. How legal they are on state highways is a bit of a grey area. I just looked at the specs on a new Newell and the drive axel weight was listed over the 24,000# limit so perhaps something has changed in the law or its just a statement regarding the rating of the axel not its loaded weight.
Regarding HP, you want as much as you can get. I have the Caterpillar C15 625HP, 2050 ft/lbs of torque. Towing a good size pickup behind its a great engine especially tied to the ZF 12 speed. If I am careful on how I approach a hill I can keep my speeds well within a comfortable range and when slowed by other traffic it has the power to keep from becoming bogged down. Cats are fuel hungry (5 avg to 6 best MPG) I understand the Cummings are getting as much as 7+ MPG.
Reliability.... If the person you are purchasing a used coach from has not been very active on keeping up with the repairs you will have work to do, even if purchased from the factory. Either way, my advise is get the coach to the factory have it gone over with you present. Ask allot of questions you will need to understand the systems before hitting the road. Make notes and videotape a discussion about each system with one of the factory people. Next take it for a short 2 week journey and work the systems. Then take it back to the factory and have everything you found repaired. Then take it out for the season and at the end of that period bring it back and have everything repaired. Visiting the factory each fall is a pretty normal thing for most of the owners I have met.
Newells are great coaches which due to the ZF suspension handle very well. Turning radius is better then anything else in the field. I truly enjoy having it on the road. BUT, your going to need to approach this much like an aircraft. Work done in preparation will yield you an enjoyable time on the road unless visiting repair shops is what you find fun about a road trip.
Good luck and hope it all works out for you.
Mike
2008 Newell #1223 4 slide, Cat C15 with ZF 12 spd, 2004 Chevy Silverado 4x4 Duramax 6.6