Road tripping for used TCs

We just went through this buying our fifth wheel. I love a good road trip and have no problem traveling for the right deal, but as are discovering, you never really know what you're looking at until you go and look at it. We set a search radius of 150 miles (about a 2-1/2 hr drive) and left the search running on RV Trader and a few other sites. We wound up buying the camper at a dealer that was about an hour from home. We probably looked at 2 dozen trailers before pulling the trigger on this one.

Also remember that buying long distance means at least 2 trips...one to go look at it and if you like it and make a deposit, then another to go back with the purchase funds and get title from the owner. If the owner is still paying a note on the unit, then you have to deal with the lienholder which may mean another trip to the bank or credit union.

Price of the unit is only one factor to consider when shopping used.

What we did was pack up some hand totes with bedding and many necessary items and tie them in the back of our truck and headed out to Washington state with the idea of staying in motels until we found what we wanted. There are dealers all along hwy 5. After 2 days looking we found what we wanted and wired the money from our bank. We then went shopping and stocked up on what else we needed and headed south along the coast for about 3 weeks and then back to Wisconsin. Great trip.

You have to glean as much subjective information as you can from the pics, talking to the owner, judging the owner as much as the camper, basically.
If you can’t get a relatively educated opinion of the condition by that, then you’re better off paying more to buy new or near home, imo.

Im in Northern Cal also, near Marysville, when I started looking I looked at dozens, drove from Livermore to Redding looking, most were Scrap. My first one, the guy saw me coming and afterward I could see where he pretty much led me away from the problem areas and, I had looked at so many i just wanted to get going. a BIG mistake. My second try went better I had to travel up by Placerville but found one that was in acceptable condition, NOT what I would say was great or even very good condition but I could work with the problems I could see. We have been happy with it and at the time I thought the price was high but turned out it was pretty much the going price and so It all turned out fine.
I had looked at many many fleetwoods and EVERY one was in terrible condition, I never ran across, even one that was not just totally ruined by water.I finally just quit looking at Fleetwood.
I ended up with a '02 lance 1130 and for the most part pretty happy with it. Wish it didnt weigh so much but it is "roomy" for a truck camper and a dry bath that the wife insisted upon.

We're Xscapers members, and once we decided to look at a specific TC, we posted on the Xscapers FB page asking if anyone would go take a look at it in exchange for a little bit of cash. We found an experienced RVer to give us an unbiased review and all the photos we wanted for $100, and bought it sight-unseen and had it transported to us.

That might not be a viable option for you (?), but speaks to the benefits of some of these RV clubs and networking with others.

It's a big investment, one you'll use often once you find it ... I drove 1300 miles to buy one in 2002, sold it in 2008 and upgraded ... we still cross-country camp in the 2008. The 2008 we bought was new, at auction, and 800 miles, which makes a difference, of course. But we had been looking for quite a while, both new and used.

It depends on how much a hurry you are ... eventually only you can decide if it suits you and how much to spend. You will find one you like and in your budget as long as it's a reasonable budget and camper is in acceptable condition.

Might take awhile, might not. Personally, we'd drive that far again for the right camper at the right price. Hope that helps. Good luck ... B & G ...

A phone call or message asking for more photo/closeups.

Things like under the bed by the nose, caulk seams at roof/wall/windows, jack brackets, under the wings, back of cabinets ceiling corners, etc. Also questions about maintenance and storage.

If they are unwilling, then you have another data point.