purchase of older stored motorcoach

Welcome to the forum.
The tires need replacement ASAP. X3 on the FMCA program and the Michelin tires. Make sure that the date codes on the new tires are recent. Some tire dealers will give you tires that are old before they put them on the coach.

Search the coach for any maintenance records. If the previous owner has good records, that probably means that he treated it well. It sounds like it was stored well and this should be a positive experience.:)

Each coach that I have purchased has been used. Here are a few of the things that I have learned from those 3.
1. Take a good look at the belts and hoses. It is not fun to be on the side of the highway with a broken serpentine belt. On my current coach, I replaced all of them before I even hit the highway. It is not cheap to replace them but a ruined vacation is not cheap or enjoyable either.
2. Have a facility, (ie: Cummins) that is familiar with motorhomes, inspect the operation of all of the systems and change the fluids and filters.
3. Have that same facility continue to service your coach. The more they know you and your coach, the better they can serve you.

Have a Blast and don't look back.:B

Welcome and no I would not drive it any distance as the damage from a blowout can be more than the cost of new tires. Unfortunately you have asked one of the most debated issues... replacing MH tires. Fortunately you are so far past the usual debate about replacing them at 5 or 7 or heaven forbid... longer than 7 years.
I would not wait long enough to join FMCA so you can buy heavly advertised and overpriced Michelin's. Many on here will not replace with GoodYear because of the uneven front tire wear called rivering. I will not buy Michelin any more because of the poor customer support they had for the early XRV (a MH tire) tires that blew out too often.
As for why Hankook or Toyo are not OEM tires the manufactures know there are some that will only buy American not that Michelin is or only a tire that has name recognition from expensive advertising.
In my 10 years of reading on here I do not remember any posts about unhappy Hankook or Toyo tire owners but I have for Michelin and GY. For what it's worth I have Firestone's on the front and Hankook's on the back of my MH and when it's time to replace I'll go back with the same. Let the tire seller know you will not settle for tires that are more than 6 months old. There is a lot of info hidden in the Search box at the top left of the page and in the right under Class A. Good luck and safe travels with your new adventure.

The original tires have 50,000 miles, are 13+ years old, and still look good. To me that is a pretty good indication of the quality of that tire brand, no matter who made it.
Why not replace the tires with the same brand that are on the coach now? They obviously have a proven track record. Tires are not the place to pinch pennies.

Changing coolant, fuel, oil, all filters and possibly the fan belts should be at the top of the list before the tires. Don't want a breakdown and a tow bill getting to the tire shop. Some will say flush the brake system and replace the air dryer cartridge, but that could wait until after the tires. The Tiffin Zephyr is a very nice coach, hope you get a lot of great memories out of it.

A few things come to mind:

Tires need replacing without a doubt. We have Hankooks on our 2003 Executive and cannot say enough good things about them.

A Zephyr probably has an AquaHot furnace/hwh. It will likely need routine service. Check to be sure it works, as sitting unused can lead to problems such as stuck check valves, circulation pumps, etc.

Verify the fridge is in working order if having sat unused for a length of time.

Does the current owner have good maintenance records? That goes a long way toward peace of mind when heading down the road!

It's 14 years old, so closely check out any slide gaskets and roof sealant to be sure she won't leak when out in the elements. Check everywhere inside for ANY signs of water damage.

Other than that, just check to make sure everything functions. Sounds like a private sale, so any repairs will become your responsibility and should be part of price negotiations.

Nomadac wrote:
Join FMCA (Family Motor Coach Association) they have a program that you can buy Michelin for a good price. My MH came with Michelin and I have had good service and ride, so that is what I replaced on mine. IMO if other brands were so good why don't the MH Manufacturers use them on new MH's?

X-2

Join FMCA (Family Motor Coach Association) they have a program that you can buy Michelin for a good price. My MH came with Michelin and I have had good service and ride, so that is what I replaced on mine. IMO if other brands were so good why don't the MH Manufacturers use them on new MH's?

Welcome to the forum:

1. Read the rules at the top right of the opening page. Otherwise, you'll be chastised if you happen to break one. Forum police are watching. :B
2. When posting a question, click on the "Subscribe" button right below your post heading. This will put your post up on the right side of your page and show you any new replies.
3. Whenever possible, post the year, model and any other information relative to your question. The more information we get, the more information you get.
4. Be sure to return to any of your posts and give periodic updates. If your problem is resolved, please return and share the solution. That helps us all.
5. Enjoy the forum(s). There's lots of knowledgeable folks on here that truly want to help. Sometimes you'll need a flak jacket or at least some pretty thick skin. Take all posts with a grain of salt. Some will be helpful, some hurtful and others will leave you scratching your head, but we all mean well.

Enjoy your new (to you) coach. Your tires are toast. Check with FMCA for the best price on Michelins. IMO, they're expensive but worth the extra cost. There are others, of course but Michelins and Goodyears are the only ones forumulated for RVs. The others are truck tires. Truck tires are generally cheaper. Toyos, Hankooks, Bridgestone and Firestone are well thought of tires too. Your choice as to what you want to run. Just remember, don't sacrifice safety for price.....Dennis

We purchased Toyo truck tires. Very please with them after 3 years.

For tires we went with Kumho.

Any older MH is going to have age related issues. If you plan to keep a long time things like belts, etc might be done soon. If you can keep it at home drive it to WM, Krogers, movies, etc to build some tight place handling skills. We bought a 15 year old MH and did not venture out more than 100 miles one way for a while. That gave us a chance to learn it and check out the week places. Even inside if the roof did not get attention for 8 years it will need some. We got 18 years out of our frig then replaced the cooling unit.

Hey they do cost a few thousand+ to get road ready but a lot of that will never have to be replaced. Ten years is max on tires per Michelin.