Why I Bought a Redwood

[Rick and Mindy]

I know there are a great deal of prospective buyers who get on this forum to try and get information about what the current owners like or dislike about the Redwood product. I would like to start a thread to tell those future buyers why we bought a Redwood. I think the info will be greatly appreciated by them. I will start by saying that after a great deal of research of various manufacturers, there were several reasons my wife and I chose the Redwood. We liked the quality of the interior, the plush residential carpet, the furniture, the one piece shower, Quartz countertops and the rich wood look throughout. All the standard features at this pricepoint seemed to far exceed the competitors offerings and the 2/5yr warranty played into our decision as well. We drove 150 miles to actually set foot in one and once we were in it we were sold!

[0nTheRoad]

Thanks for starting the post Rick and Mindy...I'll give my input too/

We looked at many, I mean many 5th wheels over a period of 3 years. The funny thing is we stumbled onto the redwood product line!

In our search for the ideal coach we saw a DRV Mobile Suites in a campground so looked for a dealer that sold them in the Atlanta market. When we went to look at them we were quite impressed but the price point was more than we wanted to spend. The DRV is a beautiful coach but expensive!!

The dealer also sells Redwood and he suggested we look at the ones they had on the lot (2010), we did and fell in love with them. The layout, furnishings, quality of construction and amenities were far better than anything we had seen for a coach under $100K.

The major attractions for us were...
1. Quality of construction & 2/5 year warranty!!!
2. Layout of the main living area, especially the huge island in the kitchen
3. Wood treatment. The stained cheery was beautiful, the natural is even better, we actually ordered the natural finish without ever seeing it,
4 .Shower in the FB...I don't like small showers and if I'm going to live in a coach it is going to have a large shower!!
5. Amenities, things that were included in the package, e.g. second A/C, leveling system, two-door refrigerator, fireplace, large TV's, etc.
6. Full paint design
7. Waste tank capacities
8. Quartz countertops {no longer available)
9. Full front-cap closet, the W/D is located in another location
10. Value of q beautiful, quality built coach at a reasonable price

[atom ant]

Started out looking for a Big Sky, worked our way to DRV, Redwood, Landmark, Lifestyle. We bought Redwood because of:

• paint
• interior wood
• pantry
• diswasher
• disk brake option
• and because Dave and Ginney liked theirs so much

[piper guy]

We were originally going to get/order a Montana Big Sky. Then ...... as the saying goes ..... we walked into a Redwood at a show and it was all over.

Absolutely love our 36RL ......... but would also like a 38GK in a couple years (unless they come out with something even more impressive !! ).

[Tobys Home]

Seems like we experienced the same romance period. Three plus years for us zeroing in on something until WE stumbled on our first Redwood at the Springfield RV show. Boy did I want a Champange or DRV but could not find one to look at. Had all the PDF brochures and spent a great of time comparing those two to all the other highend models. Well here I sit at my desk in our going on third season RL listenting to Prarie Home Companion on the radio and watching the birds gather material for there new homes while thinking this was a great choice for our second home. Even with the rain falling outside we are both very happy. Yes we have had issues but managed to work through them and keep smiling. We have four Redwoods…3 RL's and 1 SL here today and everyone is inside keeping dry and warm.

[Blenhardt]

Great thread, thanks for starting it. Not much I can add to the previous posts. We are also ex-Montana owners. We liked the two Montana's but when we walked into a Redwood it was love at first sight. The fit and finish of the solid cherry wood and the extras that are standard. No, its not perfect, but real close and we really like it.

[LadyEcooper]

Originally, I owned a Sierra 5th wheel by Forest River. I purchased it because of the floor plan that seemed right for me and my teen aged daughter. (I was single at the time). I learned a lot through that experience.

When the Professor and I married....we did much research on what manufacture would work best for the two of us, as my daughter moved on and we didn't need that space for her any longer.

It came down to two manufactures. Redwood and DRV. When the Professor said 'pick the one you want'....I went for the Redwood and have never looked back. It has been all that we wanted and more. We appreciate the consideration, quality & care that they put into their product.

Lady E Cooper
Baby Boomer Nation!

[Foxfire]

We looked at the Big Sky, Excel and Redwood. I had 2 requirements, the length and floor plan. The 31SL had it as did the other 2. After finding a 31 with the floor plan I wanted, my wife took over. Everything after that was hers. Wood color, fabrics, couches anything asthetic was hers. I was just there to shake my head yes. Once we decided on the Redwood she let me in on the option additions. LOL
We settled on the 31SL we're in it now for just about a month and love it.

[Gegallant]

We took delivery on our Redwood in February and moved right in. We wanted to be full-timers for a long time and spent countless hours at dealers and RV shows.
We thought we had made a decision on a unit and were focused on making that our new home. It took us over three years to make that decision.
One day, while at a show, we spoke with a person who was also looking at RVs. We both noticed the manufacture was removing features on the unit that contributed to our original decision. They claimed it was to maintain the price point. He suggested we look at the Redwood before making the commitment. He had just seen one and thought it was a nice unit.
Once that happened, the rest of the story is history.
When Redwood introduced the residential package, we made our move. We could hardly contain ourselves while is was being built.
Just like owning a home, there is maintenance needed to keep a unit in tip top shape and insure it's reliability. Remember, its like an earthquake back in the trailer while rolling down Americas highways. It's certainly not as much as needed by a 2500+ square foot house. But things are going to happen. It's just best to deal with them before they become a major issue.
We have a great deal of pride in our Redwood and feel that this is an extension of the pride taken by everyone we dealt with during our buying process. Everyone we met associated with the manufacturer, the sales staff at our dealer, and the service technician seemed to be proud of the Redwood.
Aside from all the things already listed in this topic, we were confident that if we had an issue, there would be someone there who would help us through it. That confidence is what ultimately made us one of the proud Redwood owners. The fact that many other RVers comment how beautiful the unit is and want to see inside is a plus as well.
We love our Redwood and are very pleased with our decision.
And finally...what other product has a better bunch of people ready to help with any experience than the bunch here on this forum?
Safe travels
George and Kay

[0nTheRoad]

In my previous post I left out one of the most important things that convinced me to go with a Redwood...the forum [only one at that time, and it was actually hosted by Redwood]. During our research phase I spend lots of time on the forum and asked lots of questions...the attitude and helpfulness of the people on these forums just can't be matched by any other RV manufacturer, the love and pride of Redwood owners is amazing.

I figured that an RV that had that kind of loyan, and happy, customers must be a quality coach... I was right!!!

[Steve & Linda]

We looked at hundreds of RVs online and were pretty sure on Redwood before we actually went to the dealer. At the dealer, we looked at 3 Redwoods and we just knew this was the coach for us, we just had to figure which model would fit our needs. After starting with Redwoods, we looked at several others on the lot, but Redwood just had that look and feel of quality that grabs you and you know this is the one. When we went to the RV Show we thought we should give DRV and a couple of other premium brands a look, but couldn't justify paying more for a coach that didn't have that "at home feel" we got with Redwood.

The floorplan, the large shower, options, paint, storage, slide-in-slide, quality of furnishings, Redwood Support, warranty, etc., just made the best choice for us.

[TNTBaker]

Though we haven't taken delivery yet, we have purchased a RW! I concur with all of the above... the Redwood, of all the fivers we've looked at over the last 2 years, (and we owned a big Everest about 6 years ago) had the most natural, "home" feel. Less like a "trailer" if that makes sense. The furniture is not miniature to make the space look bigger, the appointments and appliances EXCEPT FOR THE RANGE!!! are of residential quality, and these are important upgrades. We like the warrantee, but are a little reserved because of the need for the annual inspection (at our cost?) to keep it active. If that is so, then it really isn't "included at no cost". I just need to learn more about that. I also liked that they made SOLID accommodations for a real generator, and for REAL climate control and ventilation which matters a LOT when you are full timing. Most 5th wheels, though they are used for full timing, aren't really designed for it, and often will have a disclaimer right in their owners manual saying so. Moisture and constant use quickly presents problems. I have heard an amazingly high proportion of POSITIVE feedback from Redwood owners, which was the biggest seller of all.

[Dave&Ginny]

I researched RVs for several years and almost bought a Carriage a month before they went out of business. For the record I believe there are a some good RVs being made now but Redwood won us over and I don't regret the purchase. The company stands behind their product and have always treated me fairly.

[S&K]

My dream of owning a 5th wheel started in 2000. There were several years that I just gave up hope (for a while) and didn't even look. Maybe that was a good thing. We started approaching the idea again about 18 months ago, as retirement is closer in sight and more time to play.

We visited SO MANY different dealerships all over TX and searched online for quite a while. I had a "top 3" list always looming in the back of my mind, some not really in our price range; but when we happened upon the Redwood, it moved to my number 1 spot right away. Why?

Affordability. It had everything we could ever ask for, and still be in our price range.
Style. I love and appreciate art. I admire the creations of artisans in any form, and I feel the Redwood and other finely crafted units fall into that category.
Boomer Nation. Okay, it did catch my attention that the company 'listened' to what the "up and coming" retirees were looking for, and designed their units to fit those needs. I think they did quite well in capturing what "full-timers" were looking for.
Satisfied customers. I joined a few forums to see what people said about the products they owned along with searching reviews on the web. By far, the most consistent 'yays' were from the Redwood owners.
Company. Of the many distinctions between brands of RV's, Redwood was one company that seemed to put customer satisfaction first. I tend to support this type of relationship, and my hopes are that Redwood will remain steadfast in their commitment to do so in the future.
Support. The wealth of information on from other owners on this forum have been invaluable to us, as we are new to RVing for the most part.
Fit. Of all the units we looked at, I made hubby "fit" into the shower, the headroom in the bedroom, the 'water closet', and where other units barely cleared his height, Redwood was the most comfortable fit.

This is our first unit, other than a rental "pop-up trailer". We have friends and acquaintances who have purchased units only to keep them for 18 months and grow out of them, or find they want something different. We know of one couple who are on their 4th unit in less than 5 years. I didn't want to do that. Using the experience of others has helped us find a unit that we could keep AND be satisfied with 2 or 5 or even 10 years down the road.

I know that we have made the right decision and look forward to many adventures on the road ahead.

[Ramblin Roadrunners]

Something you hear over and over again on the Montana Owners forum about why to buy a Montana is how they are the "best bang for the buck." That is one of the biggest complements or reasons to buy.
Jay D.

[atom ant]

Nice pic S&K!!

[Oriana]

Great topic, thanks to Rick & Mindy for starting it.

Well our journey to Redwood and an RV lifestyle started about 6 years ago when we initially discussed travelling in retirement. Fortunately these discussions started about the same time as the local RV show, so off we went to our very first RV show. We quickly decided that a 5th wheel was our preference - in travel trailers we didn't find a floor plan that suited and motorhomes demanded a price point that didn't appeal to my Scottish heritage.

We continued reading magazines, attending the local RV shows and researching on the web, resulting in a preference for Montana, particularly the one with the front living room. Once we got serious we started looking at dealers, seeing a Brookstone down in Oregon that was a very nice unit. At the local dealer we were looking at the Montana when the salesman asked if we had seen a Redwood, as they had just started stocking them. Never heard of them was my response.

Well as soon as the boss walked in the door I knew I was done and she had transferred preference to the Redwood. It was a 36RL and with the rich wood it immediately had a feeling of quality. I decided to closely inspect the interior and the quality of the finishing was substantially higher than any other coach. I note we hadn't seen any DRV Suites at that time. On talking to the saleman we found out they had an FL, so I decided to research their website, which is when I found the forum. An actual forum hosted and managed by the manufacturer. I spent hours reading the posts, most of which were extremely positive.

Then a couple of weeks later our dealer got an FL on the lot and the rest is history. The points that sold us were:
- offering an industry leading warranty of 2/5. Yes it requires an annual inspection, but the truck also requires maintenance or the warranty is voided.
- exceptional customer service reported by owners on the forum, with Redwood standing by their product.
- floor plan that really works for us
- quality of the wood work and finishing, except the wrong colour of wood filler in some places.
- fireplace, which I initially thought what a waste of money, but boy was I wrong
- tank capacities
- single piece shower, which is also a good size
- king size bed
- trail air hitch
- full body paint

We have owned our coach for almost 18 months and completely no regrets. Had a couple of minor problems, plus a failure of the wheel bearing seals, but am happy to report that Redwood fixed everything under warranty.

We are very happy Redwood owners.

[rcflame]

We hadn't been looking for a trailer replacement when we bought the Redwood. At the time we had on '06 Carriage 5 slider and were at a dealer getting a price to add an additional a/c. While they were figuring the price we looked at a 36RL they had on the floor. We both liked the layout and amenities. Have had numerous 5th wheels and other camper units, and started full timing in a '02 Montana Big Sky. got the Carriage in 06, and thought we were satisfied. After seeing the Redwood we started thinking differently. Started coming up with reasons why we should maybe switch. Asked the wife how long she wanted to keep up this lifestyle since we had been at it since '02. She said as long as we can, so that was the deciding factor.

[SLfischer]

can you post a picture of the black and silver paint, ordering ours and have not seen a great picture yet of this. Thanks

[Don and Judith]

Here's a couple pics of ours. We really like the black and gray
Seem to have a problem adding the pics