Fleetwood Bounder reviews

We purchased our "Bertha" as second owners two years ago, and it is our first Class A experience. The original owner took pretty good care of this ol' girl, and installed a lot of extra goodies which I'll cover in a bit. We've spent 28 nights in it, and have driven it more than 6,500 miles. We're pretty easy-going, so we don't usually notice some things that others may want to nit-pick. Having said that, we've learned a few things along the way that (if we could) would fix. To begin with, our 8.1 Duramax gasoline engine is more than up to any task we put to it, but the noise! I guess this is to be expected with a forward control coach, but even cruising at around 2,000 RPM in top gear (a bit over 60 mph) listening to the radio impossible. My co-pilot (my wife, not the cat) and I find ourselves shouting to each other to be heard, so convivial conversation along the way is out of the question. The windshield "visor" (which functions more like a privacy screen when in camp, doesn't roll down all the way to the instrument panel. Leaves about a 6 inch gap which, when standing outside, is about eye-height. One other thing is, nit-picking aside, merely bothersome: The bedside lamps are in a goofy position that precludes sitting propped up in bed to read the paper and jointly enjoy a cup of coffee in the morning (again, not with the cat). Finally, and I suppose this is just the fact that "Bertha" is getting a little long in the tooth, is the rattles. I've crawled under, over, and inside as far as I can go into the coach, but I'm unable to find what the heck causes all those rattles somewhere in the front of us! Nothing appears loose, and everything functions as it should, but a pavement seam or slightly sunken maintenance cover in the street sends a shiver through the ol' gal and makes us want to look for NBW or parts on the floor. In all, we love our Bounder. The split bathroom is a great idea -- we wish our previous tow-behinds had this, instead of giving no knee room when on the throne! Despite the engine noise, she rides quietly and smoothly. Nothing beyond the instrument panel rattles, and everything works as advertised. The amount of storage space in the living area is great, and the basement storage is far more than we've ever needed. Our Bounder rides nicely, steers nicely and has pretty decent 360 degree vision from the flight deck, thanks to mirrors and the rear vision monitor. We tow a 2010 Subaru Forester with a 5-speed manual tranny, with no effort. We got "Bertha" a full spa treatment recently, and now she gleams like new and seems as anxious as we are to start our 3 week September ramble ... including the cat. Show less

We bought this older motorhome almost three years ago now. It is solid and well built and we've driven across the country from Idaho to upstate NY twice now and have driven just over ten thousand miles. The fuel injected 460 Ford runs excellent with th added power of the Banks system we added. Overall we've been so impressed with the quality and durability of this now 27 year old motor home. Interior is like new and has held up to years of use. There is tons of storage and when it comes time for a new one, we will look to Fleetwood first as this old girl is and has been just about perfect and we wouldn't hesitate to hop in her and take her anywhere. Don't be scared of an older motorhome, with a little TLC they have tons of years left to enjoy. Show less

This coach just works. The prior owner ket the RV in good condition. I have owned it for a while. I added exterior cameras and have had few problems. During one of the fires, a family and their pets stayed in it. I have plans to redo a few things but the coach just runs. The floor plan is simple and roomy. I’m fortunate enough to have a nice couch and upgraded chair. The dinette booth provides an area to enjoy on the road. Once parked the slide goes out and the Coach opens up for a nice space. I have traveled with dogs and kids and the materials have held up nicely. The original solar panel keeps the batteries charged. Show less

Pro: drives very well. Comfortable captain chairs Con: overall quality is poor. We have had RV in shop more times than we have used to go on vacation. Pinched wire in over head bunk. Unable to locate problem, so light intermittently goes on and off 3rd time that an arm has broke on our captain chairs Bunk beds were not installed with a strong magnet so they flop when you open them. It is easy to pinch your fingers when you open the accordion type doors, don’t think it is child friendly. Bunk bed drawers are hard to open Roller shade over kitchenette has already broke. Kitchenette seatbelt is too small on one side, can only fit kids, not adults. Kitchenette table continually will slide down. The locking mechanism is poor and does not keep table upright. Need inverter plugs on left side of RV. Basically can’t charge anything at the kitchenette when traveling. Poor design. Rear axle leak before 10,000 miles. Had to travel over 50 miles to get this fixed Side mirrors block driver view when making left hand turns. Hard to see median or travel lanes. Kitchenette seat is short, not comfortable for a long travel. Seatbelts on these seats positioned so you sit to left, so it is hard to sit and table during travel and be able to look out front window. If someone is seated at kitchenette person seated at couch will not be able to see out front window. Screw in over head fan (over stove) and already worked itself loose and now fan over won’t close. Overhead bunk staples falling out of trim Bunk beds and overhead bed mattresses just average Overall the workmanship of this RV is very poor. Show less

We purchased our RV one year ago . We are very happy with the quality of the RV. Extremely minor issues that were addressed quickly by the dealership. The Fleetwood Bounder 35 K is very comfortable to drive. Exterior paint is very beautiful. Interior cabinets are very solid and provide plenty of storage. The half bath is great when you have guests traveling with you. Basement compartments provide lots of storage and is heated. We highly recommend this RV. Show less

With a recession on the horizon in 2023, people returning to work instead of working remotely and that COVID is under control, the RV market is now over priced in decline as shown by many recent articles such as these below. In addition that the NADA guide is very inflated and does not reflect the true market valuation based on: supply/demand, economic climate, rising interest rates and high fuel prices to name a few. Major RV distributors throughout the US will only pay less than 65% of what the asking price from a private seller. Bottom is, do your homework! https://www.barrons.com/visual-stories/rv-sales-thor-winnebago-forest-river-01665437945 https://www.rvtravel.com/motorhome-prices-drop-13-month-wholesale-survey-rvt-1072b/ https://www.rvtravel.com/rv-sales-head-downward-whats-future-hold-rvt-1074b/ https://www.rvtravel.com/preowned-rv-prices-continue-dive-heading-back-normal-territory-rvt-1081b/ Show less

Beautiful Bounder! Everyone loves the beautiful paint job of our RV. We always get the best compliments. All of the initial kinks and bugs are worked out. It has 26K miles on it with lots of life and energy for the next family! Show less

I've been driven this motor home 4 times this year, and it was great feeling to drive, it's very stable, we drove it through strong wind, snow, heavy raining weather, it runs perfectly, brought mw and my family to wherever we want to. Interior space is very larg when two slides are out. Dashboard camera record every second, and we download so many vidoes when we have no time to take picture or record what we met on the road. this brought back so many wonderful times and saved to our memories. Cabinet inside and out are way enough to store food, and all necessaries like fishing and hunting gears on the road. The overall size is not too big to find parking space in most RV parks. To go wherever and whenever you want to, just start engine and go! Show less

We did a lot of research prior to buying and learned that this is one of the best (few) RVs that were built well enough for full-time living/travel. This motorhome is very durable and during our 4 years of ownership we had few problems. Our main complaint with full-timing in it is the Vaccuflush system pump. We had to change it out twice (we think because of constant use). We love the floor plan of 1.5 bath and especially the extra large shower with bench. We also have a washer/dryer combo. All the conveniences of home while on the road. Unfortunately the Flex-Steele couch and chairs peeled. We contacted Fleetwood and FlexSteele and both said that the problem was common in units built between 2015 and 2017 and there was nothing they were willing to do about it. We ended up replacing the couch ourselves, but not the chairs (too difficult and expensive). Overall, we love the motorhome. Our travels in it were comfortable. It drives smooth and towing our car 4 down was easy. This motorhome is exceptional. Show less

Rev Group is amazing!! They are very supportive and make sure you are happy with the end results of any issues you have with your RV. They are very personable and care about your happiness in your Motorhome. Show less