We just purchased a 103yr old 2-story 1700sq.ft. house in West Virginia with a very outdated HVAC system. The furnace is 40+yrs old and the A/C is 20+yrs old. All 3 bedrooms are upstairs and currently the house is leaky with old windows and doesn't have the best insulation. I plan on fixing this but not immediately.

A nearby heating & cooling place has a special going on offering a 'free' Trane furnace with the purchase of a Trane A/C unit. The Trane A/C unit you have to buy is the XL15i (16 SEER) and the free furnace you receive is the XB90 (90% AFUE gas). Our current A/C unit is a 3 ton model and he recommended getting a 3 ton model since we have a 2-story with old windows and quesionable insulation. Our current furnace is 150,000 BTU but he said 100,000 BTU would be good due to the upgraded efficiency.

I would pay $5,883 for the A/C unit plus $497 for relining the chimney and general labor, for a total cost of $6,380 for both A/C and furnace.

I also have the option of paying $5,883 for the A/C unit and upgrading from the 90% AFUE XB90 to the 96.7% AFUE XR95 for an additional cost of $700, bringing the total to $7,080 for both A/C and furnace. The catch here is that with the 95%+ furnaces you qualify for the $1,500 government tax rebates, so pay the extra $700 now and get a little over double back at tax time. He also mentioned they have a variable speed model (XV95) that continually blows and does a better job at keeping the house comfortable for an extra $400.

My main question is, do you think this is a pretty good deal? I know Train is supposed to be a top-of-the-line product but I never would've considered going with them had I not heard about this deal. I probably would've went with a more cost-effective name. The special ends May 15th so I have about 2 weeks to make up my mind. It's not something that we absolutely need right now, but if it's that great of a deal then we may just decide to go for it.

Any input or comments are greatly appreciated - thanks.

John