used "C": how old is too old?
All, Thinking (dreaming) of buying our first RV. Not looking at new models... they depreciate too quickly. I see 10-12 year old used models priced from $12- $20K and 4-6 yr old units priced from $3...
Forum Discussion
That's a tough one, because whether or not a RV is going to be a problem depends much more on condition than age, and if it is in good condition, economics and suitability for use depends your budget and how you plan to use it.
I'm connected to a couple RV clubs, where budget, tastes, patterns of use vary. One member has a 30 year old 30-foot Winnebago picked up in great condition (from an estate) for under $1000, and what it costs to drive it matters little because she moves it only a few hundred miles a year, 15 to 60 miles a trip mostly, for monthly club outings. I know another who uses an old trailer the same way, pulled with a late '80s Chevy van. A third bought a 30-foot Stormy new 30 years ago and used it until he died 2 1/2 years ago, carefully maintaining it himself, retired engineer and dedicated putterer.
Others insist on buying new, and won't keep anything more than five years.
If buying something for road trips, if your can afford it you want new enough to have modern chassis components. There are a couple of stages for this, first would be the upgrade of ancient V8 engines to fuel injection, matched to overdrive transmissions.
Next stage was in the 1990s when those engines were scrapped for entirely new engine series: Ford Triton V8 and V10, GM's interim Vortec upgrades, then replacement with new L-series. Going with that were modernization and beefing up the first generation of overdrive transmissions. Other chassis upgrades with this timing included improved brakes, and capacity upgrades from Class 3 to the lowest tier in Class 4 (just over 14,000 GVWR).
Most recently, Ford has made further detail improvements in the chassis, and GM has moved on to more fuel efficient transmissions and power upgrades in the 6.0 Vortec series.
At each stage, better driving performance, and marginally better fuel economy, which matters more if you drive it more. It matters little if you make infrequent small moves and most of the time the motorhome is sitting.
There are similar age issues with appliances, upgrades over the years to more features and ease of use (like spark ignition rather than pilot lights). This does not necessarily mean newer appliances are better or more trouble free, but they are newer. The biggest impact will be maintainability, finding repair parts for things that were last manufactured 10 or 20 years ago. But in most cases, if an appliance breaks down and can't be repaired, it can usually be replaced by a newer equivalent.
My choice was buying "almost new" (5000 miles) at about 18 months old, which took the edge off the first year's depreciation. I did this because the wife liked to start with new or "like new" and my plan was 5000 to 8000 miles a year travel, which we did for the first few years until she got too sick. Now it is 10 years old, mostly makes short trips, but with new tires, new brakes, well-maintained drivetrain at 36,000 miles I feel I can also take it on a long road trip any time I am ready to do that.
Winnebago names change. For much of the period you are looking at, Winnebago Minnie and Itasca Spirit were "base level" twins (positioned against competitor mid-range models) while Minnie Winnie and Sundancer were the upscale twins, fitted with nicer furnishings and constructed somewhat heavier for something closer to year-round and longer term use.
With changes in the market, Outlook replaced the Minnie, and later Minnie Winnie and Sundancer disappeared, Outlook and Spirit were upgraded somewhat but not to where the Minnie Winnie had been, and a lower cost Access and Impulse introduced with construction closer to competitor entry level models.
2011 Winnebago fiddled the names again, making it Access and Access Premier, Impulse and Impulse Silver. I don't know if the upscale versions are comparable to Minnie Winnie and Sundancer, or something closer to Outlook/Minnie and Spirit, as I've not been shopping the coaches since 2007.
How much mileage is too much, I don't know. First "tuneup" for that generation of Ford Triton engine is 100,000 miles, and I know that the E-series chassis regularly gets to 250,000 - 300,000 miles before retirement from transit, emergency vehicle, school bus, and truck rental fleets, but I don't know what maintenance cycles were involved getting to that point.
I'm connected to a couple RV clubs, where budget, tastes, patterns of use vary. One member has a 30 year old 30-foot Winnebago picked up in great condition (from an estate) for under $1000, and what it costs to drive it matters little because she moves it only a few hundred miles a year, 15 to 60 miles a trip mostly, for monthly club outings. I know another who uses an old trailer the same way, pulled with a late '80s Chevy van. A third bought a 30-foot Stormy new 30 years ago and used it until he died 2 1/2 years ago, carefully maintaining it himself, retired engineer and dedicated putterer.
Others insist on buying new, and won't keep anything more than five years.
If buying something for road trips, if your can afford it you want new enough to have modern chassis components. There are a couple of stages for this, first would be the upgrade of ancient V8 engines to fuel injection, matched to overdrive transmissions.
Next stage was in the 1990s when those engines were scrapped for entirely new engine series: Ford Triton V8 and V10, GM's interim Vortec upgrades, then replacement with new L-series. Going with that were modernization and beefing up the first generation of overdrive transmissions. Other chassis upgrades with this timing included improved brakes, and capacity upgrades from Class 3 to the lowest tier in Class 4 (just over 14,000 GVWR).
Most recently, Ford has made further detail improvements in the chassis, and GM has moved on to more fuel efficient transmissions and power upgrades in the 6.0 Vortec series.
At each stage, better driving performance, and marginally better fuel economy, which matters more if you drive it more. It matters little if you make infrequent small moves and most of the time the motorhome is sitting.
There are similar age issues with appliances, upgrades over the years to more features and ease of use (like spark ignition rather than pilot lights). This does not necessarily mean newer appliances are better or more trouble free, but they are newer. The biggest impact will be maintainability, finding repair parts for things that were last manufactured 10 or 20 years ago. But in most cases, if an appliance breaks down and can't be repaired, it can usually be replaced by a newer equivalent.
My choice was buying "almost new" (5000 miles) at about 18 months old, which took the edge off the first year's depreciation. I did this because the wife liked to start with new or "like new" and my plan was 5000 to 8000 miles a year travel, which we did for the first few years until she got too sick. Now it is 10 years old, mostly makes short trips, but with new tires, new brakes, well-maintained drivetrain at 36,000 miles I feel I can also take it on a long road trip any time I am ready to do that.
Winnebago names change. For much of the period you are looking at, Winnebago Minnie and Itasca Spirit were "base level" twins (positioned against competitor mid-range models) while Minnie Winnie and Sundancer were the upscale twins, fitted with nicer furnishings and constructed somewhat heavier for something closer to year-round and longer term use.
With changes in the market, Outlook replaced the Minnie, and later Minnie Winnie and Sundancer disappeared, Outlook and Spirit were upgraded somewhat but not to where the Minnie Winnie had been, and a lower cost Access and Impulse introduced with construction closer to competitor entry level models.
2011 Winnebago fiddled the names again, making it Access and Access Premier, Impulse and Impulse Silver. I don't know if the upscale versions are comparable to Minnie Winnie and Sundancer, or something closer to Outlook/Minnie and Spirit, as I've not been shopping the coaches since 2007.
How much mileage is too much, I don't know. First "tuneup" for that generation of Ford Triton engine is 100,000 miles, and I know that the E-series chassis regularly gets to 250,000 - 300,000 miles before retirement from transit, emergency vehicle, school bus, and truck rental fleets, but I don't know what maintenance cycles were involved getting to that point.
