You've all made good points on buying an older, but good condition van. Not too old that it's a handyman special, because I'm not mechanically inclined, but something that's taken a fair bit of depreciation but still has a few more years of life in it. I really was not looking forward to paying $40,000 or more for a newer one (which would be a stretch), especially when that vehicle would probably be worth half that in a few years. Being used, there's no guarantee it would not require any repairs anyways, so may as well buy a cheaper one (but preferably a Chevy for the better road handling). I'm thinking, for example, would a 2001 Chevy need more repairs than a 2008 Chevy? Depending how they've been maintained, they could be be in very similar condition, so might as well buy the cheaper one. I think.... :?
That was what I was wondering when I started this thread, if I'll have to spend $5,000 on repairing a newly purchased used Class B, might as well buy a $20,000 unit instead of a $40,000 unit, if they would both cost about the same to get up to par. Granted, at the time I was thinking an older Dodge, but I think a 1996-2002 Chevy would be fine. May not be perfect, but about the same price range (though a bit harder to find) than the older Dodges of the same years. But at least the Chevy has the better road handling which I like. Much as I'd love to have a newer Chevy based Class B, I don't really feel comfortable maxing out my $40,000 budget. I'd rather spend about half that, even if it needs a few thousand in repairs. I think any used van I buy would need at least something. Looks like some nice 1996-2002 Chevys can be bought for $12,000 to $24,000 based on what I've seen in the completed auctions on eBay. :B
I really need a Class B to work out for me. In future, I might buy a Class A or C, but for now, the B is the best choice. In the spring I'm selling my house and hitting the road. I want to buy a small studio condo somewhere for a home base but I'm not sure where. In fact, I'm considering several cities across the country, and I'm counting on traveling to those cities and living in motorhome until I find a condo, which could take a few months.
A nice, discrete class B that looks like a regular van or maybe a wheelchair accessible van (to the average passerby, maybe not a an RV person) would be perfect. I can park just about anywhere while I'm traveling. And when I get the condo, I want to be able to park it at home, which may end up being a parking space or a short driveway. And for the winters I want to do the snowbird thing. Again, I'm not sure where I would like to spend my winters, so for the first couple of winters I will probably go all across the south and south west until I find the place(s) I like best.
