What does a Breakaway offer that a Regal doesn't.?

And what does a Regency offer above a Breakaway?

Gillig or Spartan?

CAT or Cummins?

Has anyone moved up from a Regal to a Breakaway? Or from a Breakaway to a Regency? Would love to hear from those.

And, please, no MCC chassis discussions here.

bill h,

I cannot give you a comparison because I have only owned a Regency, but will describe my coach. My Regency is 36 ft. long, and 96" wide. It was also made in the 102" version. I believe Dale Smith's 1991 Regency is a 102" unit. My chassis is Gillig which is full air control. That is, air brakes, air suspension and air shifting to the Allison Tranny (model 647 four speed) thru a Stone Bennett toggle shifter. Until air pressure reaches the minimum of 90psi, the accelerator does not even function.

My generator is front mounted on a slide out tray. There is also a battery slide out tray holding two very large six volt golf cart type batteries (engine starting). The coach batteries (two large 12 volt) are located in the engine compartment. Along with the battery compartment, I have a dedicated 12 volt electrical and separate water control compartment. There are four other storage compartments, two large (48") and two smaller at 24". There is also an access door to the air tank which has four, 3/8" quick connect air nipples with shut-off valves. The air tank delivers 130psi. All interior cabinetry is solid wood (pickled oak in my case). I have a 147 gal fuel tank, 100 gal fresh water tank, 45 gal grey water tank, 40 gal black water tank and 65 gal propane tank. The engine is a Cummins 8.3, 300 HP, 6CTA (Cummins, Turbocharged and Aftercooled) diesel. The 120VAC electrical is 50 amp. The windows are thermo pane and there is a cold weather package which consists of an electrically heated water compartment as well as motor aid heating in that area. The brakes are drum type with 10.25" wide pads on the rear and 6" wide pads on the front. There is approximately 1,075 square inches of brake shoe surface area. The double steps are electric.

I'm not sure what else to say. I'm sure others will add significantly to this.

Bill G

The 1987 40'Regency I used to have (and still miss) was a Gillig chassis, full air ride, CAT with 4-speed Allison and Stone-Bennet toggle shifter. That coach had everything, was built like a luxury tank, and drove like a dream. I'm in the market for one again. My wife loves our 1997 Beaver but I miss my Barth.

Hi Jimmy, was this your coach?



As far as Breakaways and Regencys were concerned I think that the biggest differences were that you got a diesel engined short coach. Back in 1990-1994 when they were making the Breakaway I think there was a huge difference in the cost of diesel vs. gas and these 190 hp Cummins were getting something like 14 mpg. One guy told me he got 17 mpg. I think he was a kiddin' me.

Just think though, what other manufacture made an all aluminum 30 foot coach with a diesel engine, side entrance. And you have to agree that the floor plans were wide open, rear bed center bath and a skylight in the shower. There was no comparable coach. Who would buy a Breakaway now? Me...Regal guys who want a quiet, rear engined coach.

I tell you that I would rather find a 33 foot 8.3L 240 hp so we would have a dinette. We want a dinette...

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[This message has been edited by davebowers (edited October 11, 2004).]

Hi Bill;

You might recall I started with a 1976 21'(P30) and moved up to a 1977 27'(P30) rear bedroom model (loved it) and am now in a 1993 30' Breakaway (almost perfect).

First off,,,Engine noise on the highway WHAT NOISE. If the guages aren't working you don't know what the engines doing (Kinda like a 727 with the number 2 flamed out) you don't know anythings wrong till you notice everythings at zero. But I digress.

I've looked at a lot of Barth's and if they ever made a 30' Breakaway wide body with a center door I'd be after it.

I can go on for hours over why I'd take the spartin over a gillig but it boils down to time spent on maintenance. The improvement in ride dosen't warrent the extra upkeep on the Gillig.

I have a B5.9 with a Banks power pack(DON"T LEAVE HOME WITHOUT IT!) The thing would be a pig without it. Sometimes I'd like a little more HP but 75mph with an 18Klb bus with a car on the back is about as fast as you need to go.