I've been looking at a few used Desert Fox toy haulers, 04-08 in the 28 and 24 ft configurations.I've noticed on a two that I looked at that the wood at the very bottom front has moisture in it and is somewhat soft. Is this typical for this location since its completely exposed to the elements/road spray and its below the frame and insulation? Here's an attempt to post a pic of the area I'm talking about, circled in red.

Soft wet wood is a problem. Hard to say out extensive it is. Generally DF haulers are a good trailer, but sounds like some have had issues. Can you get under the trailer to see what is wet? Personally, unless it was an amazing deal I'd keep looking. Water damages can cost a lot to repair. Since the factory is in Oregon you might give them a call to talk about it too.

I doubt that road spray is the source of that moisture. I had a Pioneer that would get moisture in that area, but it was coming from the down-spouts. In my case the spouts did not extend out as the newer ones do so the water was running down the side of the trailer when it would rain. The water would then get caught in the storage door, and if it was enough rain it would start to puddle up in the storage area. It is amazing how pesky water can be. I put extended down-spouts on mine and would also put a big towel inside the storage area to absorb any moisture that would get in. Mine did not damage the wood, but I made sure to air it out when possible. Depending on the extent of the wood damage you may want to pass. Fixing dry rot can be expensive. Not to mention you still have to find the source of the water, which could take a while itself.

The under belly there is supposed to be sealed (common on all Northwoods) to prevent that kind of issue. This implies a design fault, a construction fault, a road-hazard issue, something....Personally the deal would have to be super-super good to get any rig with a soft floor. The way rigs are made, everything from the walls and built-ins rest on those floors and repairs could be, ugly.

Are you talking about the frame/wall in that area or the floor in that area? I haven't seen that being an issue on any of the DF trailers that I looked at. I'll tell you this though that I am very pleased with the quality of the DF trailers they make. If there is a soft spot in the wall or floor though I would be cautious about purchasing it.

My cousin use to have the 28ft version and I can tell u they are a very heavy trailer for their size. What is your TV? As far as any sign of moisture I would run, not walk away from it. Wood rot is not fun to deal with.

What to look for in a used Desert Fox | Good Sam Community

20 Replies

bkirkpatrick
Explorer
Jul 21, 2014
kids and a psycho ex
gwrace
Explorer
Jul 16, 2014
souraider wrote:
I think that the toy hauler segment in general has blown up coming out of the recession. These dealers forget that 3 years ago they couldn't give these things away now they are asking huge prices. I shopped local and various in-state dealers and could not find what I thought was a reasonable price. I ended up buying from a dealer in CA. and having it transported. Saved huge over local or in-state dealers.

The Desert Fox is one of the higher end units, and thus have a higher end price. I speak to a person on the Forest River website who is an employee of Northwood and he claims that they cannot keep up with the demand for the DF...so don't expect dealers to be too willing to deal till November.

I've love to know what dealer you purchased from in california?
Thanks!
keeseckb
Explorer
Jul 13, 2014
mrkoje wrote:
Must be normal on these because mine does the same thing. I wish it had the hard molded front cap - I don't know why they didn't do that.

Thanks for the response, glad this isn't the only one like that...

Seems like a weird design but it would be easy to replace the entire front since it isn't glued to the entire wall, only on the edges.
mrkoje
Explorer
Jul 13, 2014
keeseckb wrote:
So is it common for the front filon panel to be "floated" on these trailers? When I was up on the roof ladder I noticed the entire front panel seemed to not be attached to the wall except for the top edge, sides and bottom. It seemed to be the most noticeable about 6 inches from the top edge where it curved the sharpest to reach the top. There wasn't any cracks and the edges were very solidly attached, but it caught me off guard when I pushed on the front and the panel gave about a 1/4 inch or so before it hit a very solid backing.

Sorry for all the questions but thanks for all the answers! :-) This is my first RV purchase so I have a lot to learn. You guys have been a GREAT resource.

Must be normal on these because mine does the same thing. I wish it had the hard molded front cap - I don't know why they didn't do that.
keeseckb
Explorer
Jul 11, 2014
So is it common for the front filon panel to be "floated" on these trailers? When I was up on the roof ladder I noticed the entire front panel seemed to not be attached to the wall except for the top edge, sides and bottom. It seemed to be the most noticeable about 6 inches from the top edge where it curved the sharpest to reach the top. There wasn't any cracks and the edges were very solidly attached, but it caught me off guard when I pushed on the front and the panel gave about a 1/4 inch or so before it hit a very solid backing.

Sorry for all the questions but thanks for all the answers! :-) This is my first RV purchase so I have a lot to learn. You guys have been a GREAT resource.
carringb
Explorer
Jul 11, 2014
I wouldn't worry about trim pieces mounted below the floor. Even if there is light water damage, anything below the floor will be easy to fix (often just removing the damage and backfilling with epoxy or Bondo will work). Above the floor.... use your judgement... It'll be easy to see how far it has spread with filon sides. Local damage is pretty repairable, just hard to match it to the sun-faded non-damaged walls.
big_buford
Explorer
Jul 10, 2014
Take the approprate driver with you. (Square head, phillips). Trim can vibrate loose due to use. If the screws dont tighten up and bite into the wood likely water damage.
keeseckb
Explorer
Jul 10, 2014
So the search is continuing for a clean used Desert Fox in my budget... Here is one I'm going to go look at again because I wrote it off earlier thinking I wanted a 24 footer. Turns out the 24 footers are a bit harder to find.

Anyways, when I originally looked at this one I noticed some of the trim pieces on the exterior were peeling off. Is this normal and can be easily repaired? Here is a not so great picture of what I'm talking about. Should I look for something else that may be causing this?

Thanks again!!
keeseckb
Explorer
Jul 02, 2014
Excellent insight!

Thank you guys!!
souraider
Explorer
Jul 02, 2014
I think that the toy hauler segment in general has blown up coming out of the recession. These dealers forget that 3 years ago they couldn't give these things away now they are asking huge prices. I shopped local and various in-state dealers and could not find what I thought was a reasonable price. I ended up buying from a dealer in CA. and having it transported. Saved huge over local or in-state dealers.

The Desert Fox is one of the higher end units, and thus have a higher end price. I speak to a person on the Forest River website who is an employee of Northwood and he claims that they cannot keep up with the demand for the DF...so don't expect dealers to be too willing to deal till November.