Mopar home or no home! What to look for?

For the age you're looking for, I recommend the American Clipper. They were built between 1973 and 1980. They came with 360 2bbl or 440 4bbl engines (the earlier ones were mostly 360s, from 77 on, they moved mostly to the 440).

They are built on the Dodge Sportsman B300 van chassis and the house portion is molded fiberglass in 5 sections (roof with overhang, front, rear and sides - none of the seams are at the corners).

The earlier years were all 21ft. There were some 24ft made in later years and in 78, they started making a bunkhouse model - these are MUCH harder to find. The most common one out there is the 21ft rear kitchen with standard dinette and flip-over couch. They all have the cabover bunk. They were made by Irv Perch who previously built the Aristocrat trailers - and he built them to last.

They were made in Morgan Hill, California and the majority of them are still in the Western U.S., but some have made their way across country and even into Canada.

Cost-wise, they usually run like this:

$2,000 and under - needs major work on both house and engine/chassis
$2,001 to $3,999 - needs major work on either house or engine/chassis
$4,000 and up - should be in good running order, appliances working, and no major tear outs of standard RV parts (e.g., the bathroom or kitchen hasn't been removed)

Anything over $6,000 is overpriced regardless of condition. Generators, awnings, tires and batteries should have no effect on the price. Cab AC is often not working - those old systems are very expensive to repair so most folks do without - and it doesn't affect the price either. House AC shouldn't be a problem.

There is one outside storage area on the passenger side. If the door to the storage has venting, the clipper was sold with a generator. If the door is solid, the clipper never had a generator.

You can find more information on them at www.americanclipperownersclub.com

There were some later year clippers that had a Chevy chassis due to a shortage of Dodge ones.

If you want more info, you can PM me.

If it were me I would concentrate on finding one prior to 1980 with the 440 big block!!!

Thanks for the info. I want to stick to dodge because I know the engines real well. Also have a lot of engine parts a may be able to use.

In that age and price range, don't worry about mechanical condition, you have the ability to fix that stuff yourself, and it's straightforward. Get the one that has the least amount of water damage and the most functional appliances. For $3K you're not likely to find one that doesn't need some major TLC. I don't understand limiting yourself to just one chassis brand, but some people are just that way.