i am told the 6.5 is a dog and one should avoid it also i hear the same comments on the 465...in the size unit i am looking at i
can only find these two power plants??i need
some advice as i am a first time motorhome buyer...looking at 28 footers....bernie

There are lots of nice 28 footers with 454s out there.

Do you have to have a diesel?

What is your MEANING OF DOG? Are you talking PICK-UP, ENGINE PROBLEMS, or FUEL MILEAGE? What have you heard?

Dale

well i am told they are slugish with very little pep,and hills is a complete disaster..yes i prefer a diesel as i have a 7.3 in my pickup,and it has awsomepower..the 28 footer i am looking at has the 6.5 i looked at two more both have 465 gas...in reading your forums ididnt see any positive comments on either.Bernie

quote:

Originally posted by firmbear:
well i am told they are slugish with very little pep,and hills is a complete disaster..yes i prefer a diesel as i have a 7.3 in my pickup,and it has awsomepower..the 28 footer i am looking at has the 6.5 i looked at two more both have 465 gas...in reading your forums ididnt see any positive comments on either.Bernie

Well, the newer diesels are pretty good. Be sure and do a thorough test drive on typical terrain for you.

BTW, what is a 465 gas engine?

bill h. Don't you know it is a 454 bored or stroked thus giving it 11 more cubes. Just kidding. Maybe bored 40 over should about do it. My 350 chevy bored 30 gave me 355. Someone out there just for the fun of it tell me what bore increase would give you 11 more cubes with a 454? Let's see, a 454 is 29.71% larger than a 350, but a 30 over bore on a 454 would give a lot more cubes than the 5 cubes you get when doing such to a 350. FUN IS GOOD.

Dale

Thanks bill for the quick reply...as this will be my first motorhome i have been reading up on most of the power plants and what i read disturbed me then i read the
diesel power page sent to me by a barth owner..this shows that the engine can be updated to pefor as good or better than 7.3
powerstroke...the 465 was a mistake i meant the 454 gas sorry....

thanks for letting me know dale i was creating a whole new power plant....i am just
concerned aboute spending a lot of money and not be satified with the performance...i sure like the barth and dont want to offend anyone who owns one thats for sure...

bernie

Dale, last time I did it, first overbore on a 454 was 468. That was .030 over.

Firmbear, I won't get into diesels, but the 454 has served me well in lots of applications. Motor homes, boats, pickup trucks, sedans, etc. My only complaint has been a little high oil usage. I am not sure I have heard much bad here.

Even though I am a big fan of the BB Chevy, if you find a nice coach with a Ford 460, they are good, too.

My friends with Powerstrokes love them. My friends who had 6.2 and 6.5 GM diesels make the sign of the cross when they speak of them. Except one guy--- He has been lucky and had no trouble, and cries all the way to the gas station about his good mileage. He is patient up the hills and doesn't tow. The folks behind him up the hills are not so patient.

Hey Firm!

Hey Firm I just bought my first Barth, a 28' 1985 Regal with a Chevy 454. It was properly tuned and had some nice Malory ignition stuff and some special spark plugs and wires, and had 75000 miles on it. Also AMSOIL everywhere. I got 10mpg on the 2100 mile journey from Prescott Arizona to Charlotte NC. and that's with the standard T400 3 speed automatic. It pulled every hill and I had to back off on many of them to keep the speed between 55 and 60. I used one quart of oil during the trip. I've had the GM 6.5 diesel in a Trek, a Cummins 300 pusher, and a 460 Ford hooked to a 3speed + overdrive tranny. None of them drove like the 454. It's a **** of an engine. Just think what it will be like when I put my Gear Vendors over/under on it!

My 28 foot with a 454 goes quite well pulling a 3000 lb Saturn. I do wish I had headers which I have been told adds substantial power.

As far as Chevy 454's and Ford 460's I have heard guys say they both are the best engines going. The only thing I have heard from more than one source, (which doesn't mean much) is that the 460 Ford runs a little cooler. Don't know if it's true at all but have heard it.

Firmbear you'll never find the "perfect" coach but if you are looking for a nice comfortable vacation coach which will also turn heads a 28,30, or 33 foot Regal with 454 or 460 will do you fine.


If you want to spend another 10K and want a quieter ride, look for a 30 foot Breakaway.




But then if you want to spend $25K more and live in the lap of luxury, by Dale Smiths 39 foot Regency.



Regardless of what you buy you will still have the safe and secure feeling of driving a Barth with structure which is virtually unsurpassed by any other motorhome on the market at any price.






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bill,i am sure glad i talked to you i feel better aboute taking the plunge now if not the deisel one i will go for the gas one..
i also talked to banks guy today he tells me he can improve performance by 44% its pricy but a option....

bernie

humbojb...my pleasure i drove a 28 ft with the 454 was impressed with the power also..
iwas reading the forum aboute different problems they have encountered,nothing to serious......

bernie

hi dave,god those are nice looking units i have been working on a list of things i wanted to have on a coach and your right you never find the perfect one i think that one coach the 38ft is pretty close to it tho!wish i could afford it....i am trying hard to find a regency 30 ft or a 28ft so far i have talked to afew owners they all swear by the unit they own and especially the barth name....thanks for your input..
bernie