Moving on Up...!

 So... The Phantom Phaeton... the Phantom is the nickname for our 2018 Tiffin Phaeton 37BH... Okay, okay, my nickname for the Coach.

   When I started this blog I wanted to use a variation on "Roughing It Smoothly", the slogan for Tiffin RVing. Easier said than done, as the saying goes... After many possible iterations I realized the attempt was futile. Instead, I thought, I might use an alliteration of Phaeton. Liking the way 'Phantom Phaeton' rolled off the tongue I settled on this and was pleased with the title chosen for my Blogspot...

  It was time to start looking for our next Coach. The 2011 Forest River Georgetown 337DS had been a wonderful starter for our RVing adventures, served us very well for five years but was staring to get a little small for living in full time. I never questioned ARVIE's (Get it? RV... ARVIE) ability to get us where we were going but it lacked a few of the features and creature comfort we sought in our future coach. Chiefly we were looking for a diesel  powered RV, less than forty feet long. Among the requirements were theater seating opposite a large TV on a televator, king sized bed and a  washer/dryer.

  Lanie found our 2018 Phaenton 37BH on RV Trader and whilst it appeared to 'tick all the boxes' it was out of our price range. There had been a modest reduction in the asking price but still above an amount we were comfortable with however I took note that when the price was reduced the number of 'people' watching the listing hand grown significantly... As we were pursuing other possibilities like one of the Newmar floorplans, unsuccessfully I might add, we got a notification that the listing dealer, Motorhomes of Texas was reducing the price by a substantial amount... Now was the time to make our move on our future home. The number of viewers ballooned from 187 to over 900. Wasting no time we called Mike Phillips at Motorhomes of Texas and were first in line to visit the dealership in Nacogdoches, TX 

   Before departing Lonestar LSC we took the time to seek the wise counsel of  our trusted advisors on all things Tiffin. Our concerns and questions answered, We were further assured that we would not be disappointed in our dealing with Motorhomes of Texas. Prophetic advice indeed... I have stayed at some five-star hotels and hadn't felt as welcome. 

   Rushing like lunatics, we emptied ARVIE of everything we didn't absolutely need for the trip to Nacogdoches... Saying hurried farewells to friends at Lonestar LSC in Hondo,TX we set our sites on Nacogdoches, TX  and Motorhomes of Texas. 

   We were greeted warmly by our salesman, Mike. After the pleasantry of the introductions and meeting the Management we went to review the Phaeton.  we were blown away !!  Without question, the 37BH filled all the requirements on our checklist, and then some... 

   I am writing this post from my full sized desk/work station which the original owner had custom made and installed in place of the ubiquitous 'Jack Sofa' below the televator on the Starboard (right) side of coach. The desk is much more useful to us in our situation.

   I jumped at the chance to test drive the coach, leaving our Georgetown in the hands of MoT (Motorhomes of Texas). And good to their word, they gave us what we were asking for as a trade-in.  We closed the deal on Thursday and after a multi phase PDI, we  were invited to stay with them thru the weekend, live in the coach, checking out all the features, letting Mike know if any adjustments needed to be made on Monday. We had ample time to transfer our belongings from ARVIE to the new coach and say our good-byes to our trusted steed. 

   Carefully, we operated all the systems and components, reviewing a trove of literature and documentation provided with the Phaeton, wrote down any of our questions and concerns.  Bright and early Monday morning the PDI team arrived and addressed all of our concerns. 

   Over the weekend, MoT is closed Saturdays and Sundays, Mike treated us to some awesome barbeque from a local restaurant on his day off. Checking in on us several times a day over the weekend made us feel like we were part of the greater MoT family. This was truly an experience I can honestly recommend to anyone looking for their next RV.

   We have settled into our routine in the Phantom, living in it full-time since October. This coach is everything we hoped it would be. I miss the Georgetown, but it is a good miss!