is there any way to determine usage of a fifth wheel?

Check the hub odometer :B

Best you can do is look at condition, inside, outside, under, on top, appliances, furnace, A/C, suspension, etc. One unit used a lot but owned by someone meticulous about maintenance may well be in better condition than one used sparingly but never maintained at all. Only the previous owner(s) know for sure and the latter kind probably will not tell all. Would be good to have someone knowledgeable about RVs to help look it over.

On quick first inspection I like to run my hand over the stovetop grill. If it's shiny and smooth then it hasn't had much use, The rougher and more pitted it is then the more usage it has and the more times the rv has been used. Then I go on to other items .

Use is not a bad thing. Good maintenance is the thing to look out for. Upgrades that mean something, not a new TV. Upgrades in suspension, pinbox, wheels, type of tires, exterior care?

There is going to be carpet wear, counter wear, fabric wear on furniture, all to be expected. This is a pre loved unit, not fresh on the showroom floor with all of the bugs new units seem to have.

Main thing is be sure everything works and is good shape. Check date on tires, check the water heater anode, seals on the fridge, rubber on the slides, check for water damage, check the breaks. In other words check it over completely. A RV that is used and maintained properly would probably be in better shape that a unit that is not used.

Doesn't matter if anyone ever stepped foot inside the camper or not. A 2006 model will be 10 years old. That's 10 years exposure on the roof. 10 years of constant heat and cooling and cold and hot inside, causing the floor, carpets, walls, wood, plastics, to all expand and contract at different rates over a 10 year span, causing staples, nails, and screws to give and wiggle and even work their way out (if no one EVER set foot inside).

Linoleum floor may turn at the edges, glued trim may begin to come off. Lots can happen, even if never used. If never used, the tires will probably be dry rotted, who knows what else, rubber and plastic water lines, anything.

But a camper that's used is usually maintained as well. Parts are replaced, items are fixed when things happen, rubber is flexed. In other words, usage is a good thing.

An RV is NOT like an automobile when you think in terms of "how much was it used?" You can look at the odometer and get a good feel for how long the engine ran, and how many miles it has on it.

A camper can also be "used" in a number of ways. It an be towed a million miles and it can sit on the same spot for 10 years and never move.

The best you can do when it comes to a "used" 10 year camper is to assume EVERYTHING is broken, bad, kaput! And then item by item check it off when it's proven it works, its functional, it's good. Assume NOTHING is good and prove it is.

Usage? we keep our refrigerator on 24x7x365 (except on rare occasions and in the coldest months of the winter). It sits in our drive way and we "use" it much more at home (traveling nowhere) than on the road. So, in a sense, there are 2 types of "usages"... on the road and sitting? So it's almost impossible to tell how much a camper has been "used?" You can only determine what works.

Just look at wear and tear and check over all the systems to make sure they all work. Definitely try to get as much history from the owner as you can. I'm of the opinion that most people are going to be honest. I wouldn't necessarily say the same thing about most dealers.

I bought a used fifth wheel recently and it needed a few projects done on it, and we're replacing all the mattresses and the sofa, plus new batteries and tires. Stuff we knew we needed to do going in so nothing unexpected. It isn't quite as splashy as a new one, but we'll mostly be camping in it and we paid cash for it, and there's something to be said for that.

I keep a log with ours. But unless I pass it on to the next owner, it's just my records. I would pass it on though.

Look it over closely, it'll be like most anything else, a car, a boat or even a house. How does it look around the edges? Are things worn pretty bad? There are so many things to look at on an RV but look closely at it in general to see tell tail signs of abuse or "hard" usage. That first look see should give you some kind of insight as to how the unit was treated in the past.

Dan

Talk to the previous owner?