Newmar All Star - Mid Engine - Any Thoughts / Recommendations?

[TJ&LadyDi]

Nice! Congratulations on the new coach. I've always thought the All Star was an intriguing idea.

TJ

 

[happyrvdude]

Hey Alex444 ..how do you like your All Star? Any praise/issues/etc? I'm curious..why?? Because I just bought an All Star too! Still have to pick it up..it's an 09 Toyhauler 4257. Would love to hear how your trip with it went

 

[Alex444]

Hey man! We’re actually still on our trip now! Almost 4 weeks in. It’s been great, but a huge learning experience. We actually are really loving the All Star. It is a perfect layout for us. We’ve had some “classic” things go wrong, so I’ve been trouble shooting it a lot, but I think it’s because the prior owners left it idle for a while and didn’t maintain it. But it drives nice, is pretty nimble for it’s size, and again, we love the layout. Issues... we had out ATS go out right before the trip... I have read that they were recalled, so you might want to look into that. I bought a new top of the line ATS with a surge protector built in. Our slide controller is dying... so sometimes our slide won’t get enough amperage... its actually really easy to manually slide out though and a simple part to replace. And I had my ignition solenoid fail on me as well which left us stranded for a day, but thankfully its just a simple 12v momentary solenoid so any replacement would work, which I did myself.

So it’s been a blast. Congrats on the purchase! Let me know if you have any questions! Do you know any others on this forum who have one?

 

[happyrvdude]

Hey man! We’re actually still on our trip now! Almost 4 weeks in. It’s been great, but a huge learning experience. We actually are really loving the All Star. It is a perfect layout for us. We’ve had some “classic” things go wrong, so I’ve been trouble shooting it a lot, but I think it’s because the prior owners left it idle for a while and didn’t maintain it. But it drives nice, is pretty nimble for it’s size, and again, we love the layout. Issues... we had out ATS go out right before the trip... I have read that they were recalled, so you might want to look into that. I bought a new top of the line ATS with a surge protector built in. Our slide controller is dying... so sometimes our slide won’t get enough amperage... its actually really easy to manually slide out though and a simple part to replace. And I had my ignition solenoid fail on me as well which left us stranded for a day, but thankfully its just a simple 12v momentary solenoid so any replacement would work, which I did myself.

So it’s been a blast. Congrats on the purchase! Let me know if you have any questions! Do you know any others on this forum who have one?

Hey Alex444.. Yes, I know about 5 people with All Stars.. 2 on the irv2 forums, and you on rvforums.com! I get mine in about a week. Tell ya what.. nothing like a 4 week trip to find out everything that can go wrong! I've dealt with ATS issues on my former rigs - I know that pain and inconvenience! Trust me!. So the slide controller is still an issue? What year is your chassis exactly? 2005 or 2006? (Or maybe even an 2007 on a 2007 coach?)

 

[Alex444]

Hey Alex444.. Yes, I know about 5 people with All Stars.. 2 on the irv2 forums, and you on rvforums.com! I get mine in about a week. Tell ya what.. nothing like a 4 week trip to find out everything that can go wrong! I've dealt with ATS issues on my former rigs - I know that pain and inconvenience! Trust me!. So the slide controller is still an issue? What year is your chassis exactly? 2005 or 2006? (Or maybe even an 2007 on a 2007 coach?)

Yup - this has been quite the trip but honestly I wouldn’t have it any other way. I love tinkering with things and learning new things. And we’ve been able to see so much awesome stuff.

Yes the slide is still not working, I am using a cordless drill with a socket attachment, it’s actually pretty easy to manually do it. For the life of me I cannot find where the controller is though!

Mine is a 2007. Thanks!!

 

[TJ&LadyDi]

For the life of me I cannot find where the controller is though!

I know there's quite an age difference in our coaches, but the slide controller in ours is in a passenger-side storage bay amidships. It is fastened to a panel alongside the frame rail. Yours may be in a similar location. It won't be very big if it is like ours; about the size of a small book.

Good luck.

TJ

 

[redbaron]

usually the controller is on the ceiling of a bay near or under the slide. I know that the ASME have very few bays that qualify, especially on the slide side. You might find it in the front bay below the driver. I do not remember what all that control panel operates besides the Jacks, but they are labeled. I know that a friend of mine that had an AMSE had to replace that panel up front.

Another quirk with the AMSE is the slide operation requires a good voltage. This is hard to do when the engine cannot be operational. Plugging into shore power, and making sure the chassis battery is above 12.0v, and using the battery interconnect became the standard operation for moving the slides. When shore power was not an option, then he would use the generator.


Here is an image of what it looks like:

or possibly like this:

 

[happyrvdude]

Well.. I definitely want to keep in touch with you in case my slide out is stuck!! Can't believe you still can't find the controller! That's crazy. Gotta love the RV Life! Not for the weak!

 

[Alex444]

usually the controller is on the ceiling of a bay near or under the slide. I know that the ASME have very few bays that qualify, especially on the slide side. You might find it in the front bay below the driver. I do not remember what all that control panel operates besides the Jacks, but they are labeled. I know that a friend of mine that had an AMSE had to replace that panel up front.

Another quirk with the AMSE is the slide operation requires a good voltage. This is hard to do when the engine cannot be operational. Plugging into shore power, and making sure the chassis battery is above 12.0v, and using the battery interconnect became the standard operation for moving the slides. When shore power was not an option, then he would use the generator.


Here is an image of what it looks like:

or possibly like this:

Thanks for the info!! We just got home a couple hours ago. 6,500 miles in 30 days. Whew! Now the ti can unpack it a bit and not feel rushed to get to the next place, I’ll explore it and find this sucker. Appreciate your help!

 

[pixturethis]

I just found this model and have plans on buying one at some point. I do have a question, it says that it is a mid engine, is it really in the middle of the RV? And how noise is it when driving ?
thanks Marc.

 

[TJ&LadyDi]

I just found this model and have plans on buying one at some point. I do have a question, it says that it is a mid engine, is it really in the middle of the RV? And how noise is it when driving ?
thanks Marc.

Yep; the engine sits between the frame rails at about the center point (front-to-back) of the coach. Engine noise was/is quieter than a front-engine coach but not quite as quiet as a rear-engine coach.

There aren't a lot of these coaches around as they were only built over the span of a very few years (2006-2009 IIRC). They are interesting coaches and have some good features, along with some that are not-so-great. Access to the engine is one of the drawbacks, though routine service access is available.

TJ

 

[pixturethis]

Thanks, I was wondering about how hard is it to get to the engine too. I still have a few years to really look for my next RV, but I have to say I think Newmar has the best for the money out there.
thanks again for the help.

 

[happyrvdude]

I agree.. its quieter..FAR quieter than a front engine diesel or gasser. Of course a rear-pusher is the quietest. As for access and maintenance.. its amazing and much easier than 90% of the DP I've seen. Ask any mechanic that's worked on one.

Biggest difference is the handling.. the low center of gravity makes these things corner so nice and much less body-roll than any RV out there. Also.. no TagAxle needed! Save on tires and maintenence and best part - tolls!

Love mine. Good luck!

Sean

 

[Doberlady887]

Congrats hope you had fun on your trip.

 

[Alex444]

I just found this model and have plans on buying one at some point. I do have a question, it says that it is a mid engine, is it really in the middle of the RV? And how noise is it when driving ?
thanks Marc.

I don’t have anything to compare to as this is my first coach but the engine noise is very quiet. We can easily hold a conversation back there at 70mph. The engine is just forward of the rear axle and sits right in the middle of the kitchen. To access it there is a large floor panel in the kitchen (though the slide must be out). We absolutely love ours!