by Captain Jack
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by Captain Jack
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Why do I need a Top Ten List?
When contemplating an RV purchase, one of the most important tasks you can accomplish is to develop a Top Ten List.
The Top Ten List
A Top Ten list is a list that consists of the Top 10 things that you want or need in the perfect Recreational Vehicle. An RV has many more features and functional benefits than a car or a truck. Not having one or more of them can severely diminish your enjoyment of the time in your RV.
A Top Ten list is especially important if you plan to live in the RV full time.
Using a Top Ten list to evaluate the RVs that you encounter will greatly improve your chances of finding an RV that will make you happy for years to come. A Top Ten list is especially important if you plan to live in the RV full-time. An RV is a depreciating asset, just like a motor vehicle, so realizing that you’re not enjoying your time in the RV the way you had hoped will be costly to remedy.
You can view a complete list of the current Top Ten Items that we track on RV4.US here.
The more you pare down your list and prioritize your actual needs versus wants the easier it will be to find your perfect RV. Remember that no one unit will likely meet all of your criteria so be prepared to make adjustments.
We found there are two types of things that many people have on their list.
- Features
- Functional Benefits
Features
A feature is something that you can directly see or install. Most RV manufacturer’s websites list the available features of each brand and model in varying degrees of usefulness. Some popular features that many folks have on their top ten list are:
- Air Conditioning
- Full King Bed
- Nightstands
- Heated Tanks
- TV in the bedroom
- Generator
A complication is that if you’ve owned an RV before, you know you would like to have 2 or even 3 A/C units. Whether that is available on a new model can sometimes be a little challenging to discern on the manufacturer’s website. To make it even harder, there are manufacturers (including major ones) that call their bed a “King” when it really is smaller to fit in the space.
You can view a complete list of the current Features that we track on RV4.US here.
Functional Benefits
The other thing that people often state as a “need” or “want” is to have functionality that can’t be determined by a list of features. At RV4.US, we call them “Functional Benefits”. A functional benefit is a benefit that the RV has that adds to the value of ownership for the current owner. Functional Benefits that RV4.US currently has on the Top Ten list are:
- Access to bathroom while closed
- Access to bed while closed
- Access to refrigerator while closed
- Full Body Slide
- Opposing Slides
- Private Space
- Suitable for full-time living
- Wheelchair Accessible
Being able to select from a list of Functional Benefits to match an RV is only available at RV4.US.
Being able to select from a list of Functional Benefits to match an RV is only available at RV4.US. This list of functional benefits is described in another post here: RV4.US Functional Benefits Defined
Creating the Top Ten List
To get started, I recommend that you print out the current list of Top Ten Items from RV4.US. Review the list with those that will be using the RV the most. Once you have this list, you can navigate to RV4.US and use it to search for your dream RV. Click or tap to highlight the RV Types you are considering. Add any optional filter data that you might need, these entries are optional. Then opt for the “PREMIUM TOP TEN SEARCH” button.
One of my favorite features of the RV4.US Top Ten Search is that it will never show you an empty results list. It will also never show you any “sponsored” list of RVs that have nothing to do with your search. In fact, you can actually use more than Ten Items in your list to narrow down models. The goal of RV4.US is to get a small list of candidates for your Dream RV. The best-case scenario is that you only receive one!
RV4.US data is based on new models. If you’re in the market for a used model, when you click on “Have Dealer Contact Me”, check the “Include Pre-owned RVs” slider. RV4.US will let the dealer know that you are open to, or prefer, a used model.
Thanks, Captain Jack
RV4.US uses a term for features an RV has that you won’t find in a list of features from the manufacturer as Functional Benefits. Being able to select from a list of Functional Benefits to match an RV is only available at RV4.US. A functional benefit is a benefit that the RV has that adds […]
