Buying a Former Rental Class C. How many of us out there?

[IAMICHABOD]

While researching these pages for my next Motor Home I saw a few threads discussing Rentals, most were Pros and Cons but very few posts from people who had purchased one.

I thought it may be a good resource and helpful to hear from these people. The good, the bad, what they liked and what they didn’t. Also if they had any problems, things they changed, if they would recommend this to others or do it again.

Here is my story: I am not a novice, having owned a Class A for more than 15 years and doing the camping thing with my wife and two daughters, I can say “been there done that” But life changes, and I sold everything so I have been away from this for several years. Starting over I lurked here for a while and got a lot of good insight then went looking.

My criteria was: A Class C within by budget, less than 30 feet so I can keep it at home, saving storage $, a rear bed, and a lot of storage space.

What fit that was Winnebago, Fleetwood and a few others, what I found mostly was Jamboree / Tioga 26Q. In the year models 2002 thru 2006. I did my home work looking at NADA and other sites to find the fair prices for the models that I was looking for.

After several months of searching the internet, Craigslist, private ads and Dealerships for a Class C that suited my budget and needs, this is what I found. Of the dozen or so I inquired about.Most were upsidedown in their payments, owing more than they were worth. All were on Ford Chassis, 7 needed tires, all had the original 7 to 10 year old tires, and they all needed repair of the awning and most needed some work inside or out and the maintenance records were sketchy, but most had low mileage. The Dealerships offerings were better but they had a profit margin to maintain so I got older models within my budget or huge up sales that didn’t work for me.

My next step was looking at the rental market for sales. In my area there are 2 large companies that have rental sales, Cruise America and El Monte RV,who also sell Class A RVs.

First up was El Monte RV Their units are production RVs that are made by major manufactures, with TV antennas and hookups inside and out, Ducted A/C and heat, 2 house batteries, a rear ladder and parts are readily available from those manufacture’s. I looked at their web site and it detailed their warranty and what was checked and serviced by their factory trained technicians. The unit I looked at was like new inside, the upholstery on all the seats was new as was the floor mat in the driver’s area, it had a new mattress, still in plastic and a new bedspread. All of the curtains were new also. Newer (2010 mfg date) tires with 98% rubber and the mileage was ninety thousand (90,000).

Then there was Cruise America: Their units that I looked at seemed to be Spartan,no TV antenna or hookups for one,non-ducted A/C,small counter space and only one battery, no rear ladder for inspection and maintenance of roof and built just for them, they were all “refreshed” their words not mine. They offered extended warranties at a huge cost. All had high mileage, one hundred and thirty thousand (130,000) or more and the price range seemed a little high. The sales staff had a take it or leave it attitude and were not very forthcoming when asked about maintenance records and service,they claim to have proprietary info in those records,It doesn't seem to be a problem for El Monte RV.

At El Monte RV I took a test ride; This Unit was a 2006 Tioga 26Q on a Chevrolet Chassis it rode
Drove and handled much better than the Fords that I had driven. It also had more leg room and was quieter. We got back and I asked about the service and maintenance on it, the salesman, Joey, handed me a 28 page single spaced document asked if I wanted some coffee or something to drink and said “read this and if you have any questions I will answer them”.

It detailed everything that was done before and after each rental, the mileage, generator hours and hours billed. Each time it was washed and detailed inside and outside, all fluids were checked and replenished if needed, the holding tanks were washed, LP system was checked for leaks, all torque on wheel lugs were checked, brakes front and rear checked for wear and cracks, pressure in tires, all appliances, generator oil, lights inside and outside, the list goes on and on.

It also listed all oil changes,coolant change,trans service,fuel injector service and cleaning,fuel filters,air filter, new brakes, all repairs and replacements all with date, mileage and time spent in complete detail from day one to when it was pulled from the rental fleet and was refurbished. I have a complete service record on this vehicle.Also the service records on the Onan Generator,all oil changes,air filter and spark plug replacement with hours and date. I negotiated a good deal with them and am very happy with my purchase.

It came with a 1 yr. 12000 mile power train warranty and 30 day on all appliances. It also came with a 28 page maintenance record that detailed everything. Also the original sales packet from Fleetwood with the manual and serial numbers on all appliances,refrigerator, microwave,furnace, AC, water heater, etc. and the manual for the Chassis. I have had no problems with it so far.

(ON EDIT) 5 Years and close to 14000 miles.Just Scheduled Maintenance and new tires,old ones were at the 5 year mark and I wanted new Michelin LTX M/S2s.

There were a few things that it didn’t have as it was a rental and the ones from private parties did have.
• Power steps, outside Stereo/CD don’t need or want them.
• An Awning, this I wanted and had installed. A Swivel Seat and a new Window in The Door that I installed.
• Wheel Simulators, I like the looks so I had them installed and at the same time had Tire Man valve stem kit put on.
• Replaced the Chinese WFCO with a US Made converter/charger
• It came with mini blinds and not the day/night that most have, these are more practical and have a lot less failure.

• It also came with Stainless Steel sinks,easier to maintain than the cheap plastic ones that come in the noncommercial units.
  

I am very happy with my Rig, it suites my needs and it was in my Budget range, I think I got a good deal.

So if you bought a rental please share your experience here for others to use as a resource.
Or if there are any other questions that have not been covered in these pages, just ask, there are many helpful people on this thread.

[beerguy01]

IAMICHABOD wrote:
I see that the other owners of 28As have not chimed in yet,they may be around soon,in the mean time I found this from STEVE-OTR #78.

It may be of help to you.

STEVE-OTR wrote:

Open the passenger door, and look right under the inside door handle. There you will see a Yellow label which indicates the Cargo Carrying capacity. I have a 28a and it states something around 3,144 lbs if my memory serves correct. With the door closed, the passenger seat kinda blocks this label and so it cannot be seen easily when the door is closed (see pic). Total that the motor home is designed to carry is 14500 lbs. With the motor home completely empty (empty tanks, only the driver, and empty storage) it should weigh in at about 10,500-11,000 lbs.

If you have all tanks topped off: 9 gals propane, 6 gals water for water heater, 48 gals of city water and 55 gals of fuel, together all of this weighs about 830 lbs which would have to be subtracted from the 3,144. So real CCC is 2314 lbs. If you have 7 passengers and each one weighs an average of 154 lbs then take away another 1078 lbs. Which would finally leave you with 1236 lbs that can be a mixture of food, the dogs or pets, clothing or bikes and any camping equipment.

Sorry I made the reply so long. I hope it helps. Also keep-in-mind that you can have the RV weighed on the CAT scales, Empty or Full, at a Loves, Flying-J or at the Pilot Travel centers.

Thanks, that is exactly the info I needed.

As much as we love our Winnebago 22r. because it's perfect for 2 people.

We find ourselves in need of a larger unit since we have the inlaws traveling with us this year, and the extra elbow room would be nice.

[IAMICHABOD]

I see that the other owners of 28As have not chimed in yet,they may be around soon,in the mean time I found this from STEVE-OTR #78.

It may be of help to you.

STEVE-OTR wrote:

Open the passenger door, and look right under the inside door handle. There you will see a Yellow label which indicates the Cargo Carrying capacity. I have a 28a and it states something around 3,144 lbs if my memory serves correct. With the door closed, the passenger seat kinda blocks this label and so it cannot be seen easily when the door is closed (see pic). Total that the motor home is designed to carry is 14500 lbs. With the motor home completely empty (empty tanks, only the driver, and empty storage) it should weigh in at about 10,500-11,000 lbs.

If you have all tanks topped off: 9 gals propane, 6 gals water for water heater, 48 gals of city water and 55 gals of fuel, together all of this weighs about 830 lbs which would have to be subtracted from the 3,144. So real CCC is 2314 lbs. If you have 7 passengers and each one weighs an average of 154 lbs then take away another 1078 lbs. Which would finally leave you with 1236 lbs that can be a mixture of food, the dogs or pets, clothing or bikes and any camping equipment.

Sorry I made the reply so long. I hope it helps. Also keep-in-mind that you can have the RV weighed on the CAT scales, Empty or Full, at a Loves, Flying-J or at the Pilot Travel centers.

[beerguy01]

Have a question for my fellow X rental owners out there.

I'm interested in purchasing a 28A from Cruise America.
Could someone post a pic of the yellow tag on the door.

Would like to know the cargo capacity.

Thanks in advance/jr

[Harvey51]

Photomike wrote:
The warranty reduction sucks as most of the RV's will be in storage for the winter after they are bought so the warranty will be expired before they get used by the new owners.

We bought our former rental MH in late October 2008. The dealer offered to fix anything found wanting in the house after our first trip the next Spring. No problems were found. A very trustworthy dealer, I guess.

[cencerrita]

Hi
Had another thought. Your panel will probably be secured down by a staple gun as wall panels are. So you need to start pricing it up but by bit to stop it breaking. Use a wide flat screwdriver knocked in around the edge

[cencerrita]

Hi and welcome.

We have a 2010 27G having prefered it to the 28G. I think they are both the same in the bed area. Rear part of the bed is over the large storage an dthe front is over the water tank. Our panel was screwed down. There is a large gap between the bed panel and the tank which we have turned into a shoe cupboar. Some pictures on our web site here.pictures below bed of 27G

http://footlooserv.com/winterise.htm

[Majestic31]

2011 Majestic 28A has anyone looked under bed mattress and removed wood panel, mine is glued down .. what is under there . anyone have picture

[IAMICHABOD]

Hey, welcome beerguy01 to the forum and the Former Rental Owners Club.

I will definitely put you on the list,you will be # 104

It sounds like you got a smokin good deal on that RV and at that size it looks like you can take it almost anywhere you want to go camping and it seems to have plenty of storage.

I haven't heard of Best Time RV as far as buying a Former Rental but I will put it on my list of places to look for one.

I hope it all has gone well since you bought it,anything that others might get from your experience is helpful here.

Thanks for your post and Good Luck with that new RV.

[beerguy01]

Add me to the list.
In March of this year I purchased a x rental from Best Time rv in vegas.
Like El Monte, they purchase their units off the line.

Was able to get a 2017 Winnebago Minnie Winnie 22r with 6speed auto, on a E-450, with only 27,000 miles fully loaded for a fraction of the cost of a regular unit.


My ccc for a 25ft unit is right at 4600lb so I never worry about weight.

[NDTRAVELS]

Thanks for the reply this one is a 2016 from El Monte in Vegas with
80,000 miles the other one I looked at service records was a 2017 with about 55,000 miles. We were able to look at in Vegas in November
when we rented a 2014 from CA & transported to Pheonix for reconditioning it was a good way to check out floor plan & size. I was impressed with the 2014 we rented & it worked out great, the El Monte one was less miles & had more options that we wanted.
(leather,oven,tv,power awning,rear window,longer warranty & maintenance records) The El Monte was more money but felt we would be putting more money into the CA to get it how we wanted it. We were very interested in both units.This forum was very helpful in deciding to go with an exrental. We are flying to Vegas ater Xmas to pick up & take a little time in area before heading back to the cold. We will report back after our trip if it wasn't for this forum I think we would have bought locally for a much higher price or older unit Thanks for everything I hope to be reporting a purchase

[IAMICHABOD]

I had to go back and check my 23 pages of service history to see when the roof was inspected on my RV. It seems that it was checked often.

This may be a new protocol for them, I know that El Monte is very proactive in their maintenance. I don't know who your contact there is but I have found them to be very helpful when a question comes up.

At 80000 miles it seems that they are turning over their fleet earlier than when I bought mine,that is a very good thing considering the other rental outfits are doing it at 130000 or more.

As always do a good inspection of the roof and all other things and look for signs of water leakage.

When the deal goes through please come back here and tell us how it all went and your thoughts on buying a Former Rental.If there is anything I can help with just ask or PM me.

Good Luck on this.

[NDTRAVELS]

new member
Thanks IAMICHABOD great forum I have read the complete forum 3 times over the last several months as I am looking at buying a former rental. We have had motorhomes in the past but got out of it when we bought a lake home. I have a deposit on a 28a from El Monte & have gotten the service history on 2 of there units both of them have a lot of entries under Inspect roof,r&r dicor sealant 2.5 hours 250.00
The one I have the deposit on it started at about 30,000 miles & continues on from there about every 3-7 thousand miles & currently has 80,000 miles. The rest of the service looks very good. As both of these units have had it done many times is this there normal routine?
Any info would be great. Thanks to all

[Photomike]

calcanrver wrote:
Wow...thanks for the quick response Photomike! Yes the reduction in the warranty isn't good as I wouldn't be using it until spring at the earliest.

It just came to me (I doubt that they would do it) but see if they would start the warranty in June :B

[calcanrver]

Wow...thanks for the quick response Photomike! Yes the reduction in the warranty isn't good as I wouldn't be using it until spring at the earliest.

[Photomike]

calcanrver wrote:
After not much being available on the used market over the summer I am back looking at the possibility of buying a used majestic 23 A from Cruise Canada. The prices for the same model year vary depending on mileage and I'm wondering if anyone has any thoughts as to whether it is worthwhile to pay an extra $2000 for one that has 15,000 less miles on it. Unfortunately in Canada they have reduced the warranty to 5,000 km or three months.

Any input would be appreciated. Thankyou.

Myself I would not pay more for less miles, but that is me.

The warranty reduction sucks as most of the RV's will be in storage for the winter after they are bought so the warranty will be expired before they get used by the new owners.