Is older really better than newer....

Depends, some older trailers were built very well. Teton, Travel Supreme, Excel, NuWa, Forks RV, Holiday Rambler, Newmar, DRV along with a handful of other premium brands that are no longer in business.

Personally what I have found is after the economic melt down a lot of workers were laid off. When production picked up again anyone who could fog a mirror was hired. The building materials had not changed but they way they were put together did change and not for the better.

Any older trailer is subject to wear and aging. It depends on how the unit was maintained. The other thing is interior styles change and people want what's current.

colliehauler wrote:


The other thing is interior styles change and people want what's current.

Good point as that will definitely effect resale when we are ready to sell it. The 2006 Cedar Creek is already dated at 13 years old. Is anyone going to want to buy it from us when its 17 or 18 years old.

I definitely think the older ones (at least prior to 2014) are better built. As time goes on, everything is production and not quality.
I have attended the TAMP RV Super Show for about 12 years now. I have seen a steady decrease in quality fit and finish even on what are considered quality rigs.
All the better companies like Teton Carriage, Lifestyle, Excel, NuWa are gone.
The manufactures know how to distract from shoddy workmanship by all the glitz and glam.
I'd take my 2014 over anything new on the market.
you can take any older rig that has been properly maintained and upgrade the suspension or install a RV Flex Armor Roof and redo the interior and probably have a better rig than what you buy new.
If something was to happen to ours, I'd probably take my time to shop for a used one of the brands I mentioned.
Good luck.

I would say that statement is partly true for recent times. I use my 2003 Fleetwood Jamboree as an example. It was manufactured before the great recession started.

Later models of my MH were made with cheaper materials to cut costs. They were priced lower so more people could afford them. I would not want to replace mine with a more recent year.

That would likely not be true for top line RV's.

As for the much older ones; they had older technology and fewer options. They would be easier to fix back then. Much less to go wrong than with new ones.

Depends on your of point of view.
I just got a 2012 TT which to me is modern. It has an aluminum frame and fiberglass sides. The appliances haven't changed that much.

The large manuf like Forest R have many different lines now. I would rather have a quality older unit than an average brand new unit. A quality late model unit is the best of all.

I agree with most of the posts. We sold our 14 year old "Open Road" and bought this "Grand Design" and all I've been doing is work on this unit. Yes the technology is up to date, but that does not get me down the road. I do have to admit that this (Grand Design) unit is not as heavy as the older one.
We did keep the older unit in great shape and sold it for way more than it was advertised in NADA. Shop around, and if you can find a good unit, as mentioned in other posts,and, for a good price you would then have room for any and all updates.

In my case older just means older. Oh! were you talking about RV's?

Our 2007 Montana bought new in July 2007 has been amazingly trouble free, more so than I could have ever hoped for. I am not sure that can be said about most of those of any brand built in the last few years.

I bought my 2006 5th wheel for $12K. First RV and wasn't sure if we would use it much so didn't want to spend $50K to find out. We have had to do a little work to it but it was clean and everything works well. I've had it 2 years now and we use it a few times a year. Best thing is it is paid for so if something does come up it easy to swallow. Additionally, if I go to sell it in a year or two, getting $5-$7K for it seems like a good use of the unit. If we bought a new one and sold it in 4 years or so of ownership my guess is the depreciation would be more than $6K... Also, a 5th wheel doesn't have an engine so keeping the running gear in good order is simple and I feel I can take it anywhere as long as I have the right truck.

If the unit is clean and in good working order and you like the layout, then go for it. The original owner went through all the initial problems from the manufacturer and you can just enjoy. I would recommend having a professional shop do a check on it, they can look for leaks, properly running equipment, and anything else that might be a red flag. The biggest issue is the potential for leaks. They can be hard to find but cost more than the unit is worth to fix.

I'm not sure that older is better but new is not trouble free and used is less money and makes more sense economically because new ones depreciate huge. You may get something for the new warranty but picture needing repair hundreds of miles from a facility to do warranty work. Also, when the warranty expires you've got used. I would look for used but "quality", such as Winnebago.