In September 2020 we purchased our current coach: a 2020 Newmar Dutch Star 4369.  We purchased it new from Kyle at Midway RV Center in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

It was love at first sight. 

The RV, not Kyle.  Sorry Kyle.

After we sold our previous Class A we said we’d wait until the kids were in college, or maybe out of college before buying another RV.

Then COVID-19 happened.  Lock downs, stay at home orders, vacations canceled, borders closed, air travel stopped.  It was a living nightmare.  We were so sad we had sold the RV.  While everything was locked down and it wasn’t wise to travel across county or state lines, having the ability to do so safely once open would have given us a glimmer of hope, a sense of normalcy.

We had looked on and off at coaches over time, just keeping up to date with what was out there, new features, new floorplans.  There was no question the next coach would be a diesel pusher with air ride suspension, better storage, and larger living area instead of bunks.

We had considered Sportscoach and Winnebago, never cared for the Thor, and didn’t like the new Forest River products (we loved our Georgetown!!).  The search kept growing:  what about a tag axle?  Hmmmm.  Anyone that’s done that search knows how quickly the prices go up, but so do the features and quality.  450 HP?  Ok!  A dishwasher?  I guess if I have to.  Washer and dryer!?!  A house-like shower? With rain head!?!  HEATED FLOORS!! NOW we’re talkin’!!!!

We narrowed our search down to Newmar and Entegra.  Tiffin coaches are of course nice, but are generally more expensive, and the ones we looked at seemed outdated.  We looked new and used.  A friend and neighbor has had a few luxury coaches and currently owns a Newmar Dutch Star so we went to check his out and take it for a drive.

In general the RV manufacturers seem to leapfrog each other.  One is on top with newer features and quality, then a few years later the competitor catches up and overtakes, then the cycle repeats.  For what we wanted, Newmar edged out Entegra.  Both quality coaches, but Newmar’s Comfort Drive really pushed the decision.  We knew we were going to put some miles on the coach, so comfortable driving was a requirement.

I had been talking with two dealerships, via email: Midway RV in Grand Rapids, MI and Independence RV in Florida.  Each had the coach we wanted, with some slight variations.  We were going to sell our Winnebago Era outright, but decided to see what the trade-in offers were.

Independence RV made the decision pretty easy for us, and off to Grand Rapids we went!!  It’s about a 5-hour drive so we left super early in the Era to go test drive the 4369 and see it in person, talk final details of the offer and hopefully buy a coach!

And that’s what happened…..we had done all of our homework, done the majority of negotiating before even seeing it in person, knew what we could (and wanted to) afford.  Wow did this drive like a dream!  It’s big, sure, but wow…..I was in love.  It drove just like I hoped it would, it had all the features we wanted and none of the fluff we didn’t (except the horrendous Excite navigation system…yuck).  Kyle was no pressure, no BS, if he didn’t know something he found the answer rather than just making one up.

All that was left to do was a handshake and a down payment, and in 2 weeks we’d be back to pickup our brand new coach!!

We of course needed a photo of the Winnebago Era next to the Newmar Dutch Star for compaison’s sake.  24′ vs 44′, 15,000 pounds vs 52,000.