Chevrolet Tiffin Allegro

[martyn]

Has any other member got an allegro?They seem to be quite common in the UK,but i havn't met with anybody who has one.:thumb:

 

[Forestboy]

No but the new Allegro FRED is on my list to look at when we go to the states
The link below is the Tiffin owners forum
I posted some questions but did'nt get much response they are'nt as helpfull as us

http://www.tiffinrvnetwork.com/forum/index.php

 

[martyn]

Thanks Ror,i think i'll stay here,'cos it's nice and friendly:thumb:

 

[Road Runner]

There nice buses

Funny no one on the boards seem to have one.

 

[martyn]

Our Allegro is 17 years old now,still looks good (on a dark day,from a distance)gets plenty of comments.Seriously though Tiffin do make solid rv's,we've had no trouble with ours on the build side of it.just everything else has busted.

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[Road Runner]

I had one on my shortlist it was a 94 model with a slide (must be one of the first) but it was just to dear for its year.

 

[kijana]

A Tiffin Allegro was our first choice when we decided to import an RV. We found a beauty - a 2002 32' diesel pusher. It had everything we wanted, plus gold taps! Does it get any better? We put a £10k deposit on it, and were waiting for a shipping date when we found it was 102" wide

Took a lot of hassle to get our money back.

Beautiful coaches, but the later ones are all way too wide for UK registration AFAIK.

Bruce

 

[Road Runner]

jI just spotted the picture in the gallery

Nice bus Martyn:thumb:

 

[johnsandywhite]

A Tiffin Allegro was our first choice when we decided to import an RV. We found a beauty - a 2002 32' diesel pusher. It had everything we wanted, plus gold taps! Does it get any better? We put a £10k deposit on it, and were waiting for a shipping date when we found it was 102" wide

Took a lot of hassle to get our money back.

Beautiful coaches, but the later ones are all way too wide for UK registration AFAIK.

Bruce

Never the less. Some are STILL being registered.

 

[kijana]

Good on 'em, as far as I'm concerned. Maybe one day we'll buy one someone else has registred.

It was only because we wimped out at the thought of not being able to either register or re-export, thus losing all our hard-earned, that made us pull out.

We're very pleased with our Hurricane, though, so it all turned out ok in the end

Hope your weather's improved, John. Did you get the free string of pearls from the Chinese in Altea the other night?

Bruce

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[Forestboy]

Hi Kjana, JSW
I would really value your opinions

I'm looking at the Allegro 32BA FRED at the moment and its high on my list along with the Monaco and at 32' 6" is ideal for me as opposed to the Monaco at 37ft now (despite what Uk dealers tell you). I do like the Tiffins and in the states they have a fantastic reputation for build and service.

I've spoken to a couple of UK dealers who have said when I am ready to ship home they will do the paperwork for me this end including registration if they get the conversion work. Are they spinning me a line or would this be a better way to get it through.

Is it really a big gamble and what would you do if you could'nt get it registered. It would be cheap as I intend to tour in the USA for up to a year possibly first but would hate to have to ship it back again.

This driving me nuts every time I think I've found the right one another bloody obstacle appears from nowhere.

 

[kijana]

Hi Ror

Agree, Tiffin look really nice coaches. And we find that our 30' bus will fit in most places a big European van will. It is also plenty big enough for the two of us plus Golden Retreiver, fulltime, but only because it has a large superslide (36" x 12').

BUT - I telephoned their works on 2 separate occasions to ask about the width of the Allegro, and was told both times by different people that all their coaches now (since when I don't know but certainly the last 3 or 4 years) are built to an extrernal width of 102".

Given that the legal max width for UK & EU is 100.4" this presents a problem.

I gather from others that things are a bit clearer now than when we imported our (99") Hurricane 30. We had to take ours to be measured, and jolly stressful this was too. We took off both awnings before we went, as is required, since the measurement is supposed to be taken over all projections except mirrors.

Nowadays I'm told that provided your coach appears on the 'approved' section of the SMMT list, you may not even have to have it measured. But if it's not on the approved list, as a private individual you will have great difficulty in getting it registered. Especially if it's 102" wide!

So it's up to you to take a view on all this. The problem is, if you are refused registration in UK you may well be in big trouble, as apparently it is extremely difficult to export it back to the States if it hasn't been registered in England. So you may finish up with a very expensive static :Angry:

As to the UK dealers offering to import on your behalf if they get the conversion work, I would be very wary of this. It is true that larger dealers are able to get oversize vehicles registered when private individuals cannot (that's fair, isn't it?), but unless you can get a written undertaking that a dealer guarantees UK registration if he does the importing - which I think would be all but impossible to achieve - you will be left carrying the can, and the costs, if the man from VOSA say no.

We used a US shipping agent to do all the work for us with exporting, and he did a very good job. Shipping costs were about £2500. There are various people over here who will do the conversion work for you, and there is a range of prices depending on exact spec. But it shouldn't cost you more than £2500 to get all the MOT requirements plus the electrics converted - maybe quite a bit less.

You will find lots of advice in forums on the other site, but p.m me if you want any more info on how we imported.

As to the Tiffin Allegro width issue, you pays your money & you takes your choice. For us, we couldn't afford the risk of not getting it registred, so we chickened out. You may be braver/luckier.

Good luck, whatever your decision.

Bruce

 

[johnsandywhite]

:Cool: Hi Ror (Forestboy). Registering an RV is not the problem it was a year ago. You shouldn't have ANY problems doing it yourself. With regards shipping? It costs between $125 and $150 a running foot. It is actually based on the Cubic foot of the RV. Our Newmar cost just around $3800 for 37.5ft. We used Brunswick International to handle the Customs at Southampton. Although once again. You can do it yourself. Shipping from the USA was from Jacksonville. But you can ship from Brunswick (USA) and several other ports.

http://www.brunswickinternational.co.uk/

 

[Forestboy]

Thanks guys really appreciate your comments

It's a hard decision but I think we'll have to wait until we 're out there, hopefully January.

I really do like the Allegro because of the length and eng & box the only other in the same category is the Gulfstream FRED but they have such terrible press and I don't know anyone who's owned a recent Gulfstream.

 

[Road Runner]

Ror

If your intending to save money do it yourself re shipping home and DVLA you don't need dealers help.

JSW is very knowledgeable and I have done it to and will advise if JSW is not about

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[kijana]

You shouldn't have ANY problems doing it yourself

Hi John

So are you saying width is no longer an issue??

I think you've recently been able to register your Newmar which at first had been refused. Did you not have to get it measured, or is it that your model now appears on the SMMT list? Does the SMMT list still exist?

Would be grateful to hear the latest on importing - it's obvoiusly changed since we did it.


Bruce

 

[Bigrog98]

Tiffin Allegro

Has any other member got an allegro?They seem to be quite common in the UK,but i havn't met with anybody who has one.:thumb:

Hi Martyn

I have owned an old Allegro(1982) for the last four years, I love it even if it has cost me almost the purchase price in putting things right.

I spent a whole winter clearing the sh1 of the seams where some amateur tried to fill it with P28 bodyfilla, it does not give with the movement of the ali sheets, still stripping it was worth it Three years and still watertight. We changed the upholstery as it was a bit past it and smelt. Next the big fridge/freezer packed up, got one s/h for 1/4 of the new price. Then the furnace and the water heater refused to work so replaced. Last thing to go was the auto gearbox not enough cooling, as we tow a Fiat Multipla we now have that fixed, put relays in so that the headlamps gave a few more candle power and a pair of alpine horns as we toured France & Italy for eight weeks last year.

Do I still love it you bet I do, I get the best nights sleep in her, she starts and runs like a dream, oh yes we have even installed multi fuel petrol/LPG average 12 mpg on gas 15 on petrol.

I am approaching 70 soon so must get the miles in to make it all viable before I sell and get a fithwheel.http://www.motorhomefun.co.uk/images/smilies/wink.gif

Leave me a mobile no and perhaps we can meet up I live in the Midlands
Bigrog98

 

[ruffingitsmoothly]

Hi Martyn,

How are you mate?

As you know I had a 1998 Allegro 26' 6.5 Turbo Diesel here it is in early 2007 pictured with the Monaco I imported from Houston.

Hence the forum name

Regards Pat

 

[steve231057]

What about mine

Has any other member got an allegro?They seem to be quite common in the UK,but i havn't met with anybody who has one.:thumb:

I have one 34 foot 1989 tiffin allegro with john deere chasis cummins 5.9 turbo diesil engine.

 

[Tony Santara]

Hi Martyn,

How are you mate?

As you know I had a 1998 Allegro 26' 6.5 Turbo Diesel here it is in early 2007 pictured with the Monaco I imported from Houston.

Hence the forum name

Regards Pat

Hiya Pat
I saw your old Allegro in La Manga Spain last week , it had your forum name " Rough it smoothly " written over the panel above the windsreen......wish i'd have had my camera handy :Sad:

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