Slides Or No Slides, Is It A Deal Breaker?, What is your preference? Options

[Fitzjohnfan]

After one of the readers asked about motor homes without slides, A popular motor home magazine posted a question to their readers: When you purchased your current coach and when you purchase your next coach, what is your preference to have slide outs or not? The magazine did a good job of posting replies from both sides and it looked like a 50/50 split, but the letters posted might have been carefully selected to show both sides evenly.

It's understood that slides are great for adding room and livability to the RV, but they can have mechanical problems and add weight and cost to the RV.

So how do you feel?

My opinion is that my next coach would not have any slide outs. I can set up very quickly without setting out levelers or supports, and I don't have to worry about the slide(s) not retracting or leaking. I had a pop-up trailer in between my two motor homes, and I loved the portability of the unit, but I hated the setup time and vowed to keep set-up as simple as possible with my next unit. Also, all my cabinets and features are available all the time without having to extend any slide.

[fpullanosr]

We prefer slides as full time RVers. The trade off of snapped shear pins and leaks are far outweighed by the roominess and accomodations that slides provide.

After one of the readers asked about motor homes without slides, A popular motor home magazine posted a question to their readers: When you purchased your current coach and when you purchase your next coach, what is your preference to have slide outs or not? The magazine did a good job of posting replies from both sides and it looked like a 50/50 split, but the letters posted might have been carefully selected to show both sides evenly.

It's understood that slides are great for adding room and livability to the RV, but they can have mechanical problems and add weight and cost to the RV.

So how do you feel?

My opinion is that my next coach would not have any slide outs. I can set up very quickly without setting out levelers or supports, and I don't have to worry about the slide(s) not retracting or leaking. I had a pop-up trailer in between my two motor homes, and I loved the portability of the unit, but I hated the setup time and vowed to keep set-up as simple as possible with my next unit. Also, all my cabinets and features are available all the time without having to extend any slide.

[John Blue]

No slides for me as well. Our set up time is around 5 minutes or less. No water leaks, no broken parts and less weight to carry around. We have air bag leveling system so no jacks to deal with as well. We do not stay anyplace very long. If we need more room we stay at home. I have helped a number of people in rest stops who had slides out for lunch and they would not go back in.

[Dutch_12078]

We've been very happy with our current no-slides coach. We've looked at a number of newer units with slides, and we've pretty much determined that the only real advantage for us would be the additional space from a living area slide would make it easier to walk around our dog when she's stretched out on the floor. That hardly seems worth the potential problems.

[Lindsay Richards]

We switched from a no slide to a 2 slide unit about 4 or 5 years ago and could never go back. It really increases the livability of the coach and allows more space to "get away" from each other. We stay as long as 3 months at a time and the extra room makes it much easier. Resale on a slideless model is also worse as most folks want them.

[dog bone]

My first 5 ver had no slides and was a real pain to move around in, especially when the sofa was out. We kept it only a year, maybe.
Set up time will be the same with or with out the slides. Its just a matter of pushing a button. I still have to level and drop the trailer.
They do add extra weight, but with a trailer, I don't really notice it. Hopefully my slides will keep working. Knock on wood. It would be a bad thing trying to go through a toll both with them out. lol.
In my opinion, they are worth the extra wight and chance of a breakdown. I would be a deal breaker for us.

[DXSMac]

I like slides. I'm hoping I don't have issues with them.

[jamarynn1]

Slides for me. We go out for 4-5 months at a time, so that's our home for a good portion of the year. I think we'd probably kill each other in a smaller space.

[Denali]

We've been very happy with our current no-slides coach. We've looked at a number of newer units with slides, and we've pretty much determined that the only real advantage for us would be the additional space from a living area slide would make it easier to walk around our dog when she's stretched out on the floor. That hardly seems worth the potential problems.

That's exactly the reason we traded in a coach with one living room slide for one with two (plus the bedroom slideout). We were tired of tripping over the dog!

Even now, after eight years of living in this rig, after each day of travel we still say "Wow!" when we push the buttons to open the two front slideouts and see the width of our kitchen/dining/living room expand from eight feet to twelve feet.

In our three rigs with slideouts we have had one slideout clutch fail in the fiver and one hydraulic leak in the actuator for one of the slides in the current rig. Compared to all the other mechanical misadventures we have had in well over 100,000 miles on the road, these have been trivial. The only leak we have had was quickly fixed when that coach was under warranty.

In any case, I think the market has spoken. For years now, you would have to select a pretty small rig to get one without slides.

[vincee]

DW and I just upgraded our one slide 32ft Moho to a three slide 34.6 Moho in August. Can't believe the difference in room both in the living area but also the kitchen. Will really get a good sense of the change after our Nashville trip in two days through Columbus Day week with step son and his girlfriend.

[GandJ]

Our TT is only 7 1/2' wide so that slide in the main area makes it ALOT more comfortable. Wish it had a slide in the bedroom. Next time......

[pianotuna]

Hi,

In my climate and my style of Rv'ing a slide would be a bad item for me. That's because I often use the rv at -30 c.

[GandJ]

I often use the rv at -30 c

Holy carp, 'Tuna! That's like...[::using fingers to do the math::]…20 below zero F!
Ice fishing perhaps?

[jamarynn1]

Holy carp, 'Tuna! That's like...[::using fingers to do the math::]…20 below zero F!
Ice fishing perhaps?

At 20 below, he could probably go ice fishing in the toilet.....

[FosterImposters]

At 20 below, he could probably go ice fishing in the toilet.....

Yikes! Hope he doesn't eat anything he catches!