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.

[socal77]

No insights on my question regarding how to replace the water pump in my 2009 28A I posted a few days ago? Hoping for some guidance on pump model, etc. Thanks!

[SJ-Chris]

SJ-Chris wrote:
Does anyone know if the 2015 Majestic 28a has a CABIN AIR FILTER?

Usually, air filters are located (in cars) behind/under the glove box.

I called one store to ask if they have a cabin air filter for the e450 Super Duty V10 and they said they don't and there might not be one.

Anybody here know? If so, I'd like to change mine as I haven't since I purchased them.

Thanks,
Chris

I heard today from Thor that the 28a Majestic has no CABIN air filter. One less thing to change I guess lol...

[socal77]

Link to photo with arrow showing where leak coming from
Link to photo showing pump model info

Hi Guys,

We've been enjoying our 2009 Majestic 28A the last 5 years and counting. Amazing how durable they are constructed. Having said that, things are going to wear out over time. Our water pump started to leak this weekend. I'm hoping someone can point me to some YouTube instruction videos to replace it, the model # of the pump, and the best place to order it from.

Thanks in advance!

[SJ-Chris]

Does anyone know if the 2015 Majestic 28a has a CABIN AIR FILTER?

Usually, air filters are located (in cars) behind/under the glove box.

I called one store to ask if they have a cabin air filter for the e450 Super Duty V10 and they said they don't and there might not be one.

Anybody here know? If so, I'd like to change mine as I haven't since I purchased them.

Thanks,
Chris

[SJ-Chris]

SJ-Chris wrote:
Black tank rinse/flush on a Majestic 28a...
What I do NOT know is....where does the pipe from the toilet actually come down into the black tank?? Does anyone know? The reason I ask is because I don't want to put the tornado nozzle (which will stick into the black tank about 3-4 inches) directly underneath where all the bathroom material drops into the tank. Seems like that would be a disaster.

So...Does anyone know WHERE the pipe enters the top of the black waste tank? Does anyone know a part# or something for a replacement tank? If I saw a replacement tank (or diagram) it would likely answer the question.

Thanks in advance!

-Chris

I figured it out. In case you ever wonder, on the 2015 Majestic 28a the waste pipe from the toilet enters the tank very close to the corner that is in the rear and on the inside (away from the driver side). So, it looks like I can put the Tornado tank cleaner pretty much in the middle (near the top) on the rear wall closest to the tires. That will help to blast water towards the drain which should help with flushing/cleaning the waste tank.

Regarding the Tornado device itself....I did some testing on a garden hose on my driveway (not installed). What I noticed is that there are ~5 small holes shooting straight out at a pretty tight radius/angle of about 50-60 degrees. So that would do a pretty good job shooting streams of water ACROSS the length of the tank and getting SOME spray on the walls (but not enough in my opinion, especially since the inner side wall closer to the rear is where the tank sensors are located). There are also some jets that spray out a lot of water almost exactly 90 degrees in both directions which is what causes the tornado to spin. Here is what the "Out of the Box" pattern looks like (remember, it is spinning also):



I didn't like how that seemed to be "missing" a lot of the tank walls and ESPECIALLY seeming to miss the area on my wall where the tank sensors are. So I took a chance and made a modification. I took the smallest drill bit I had and made 2 more holes (one on each side of the spinning dome of the Tornado). Even though it was the smallest drill bit I had, it still created holes that are probably 3-4 times larger than what sprays out of the top (the 5 streams that mostly go straight). I drilled on the dome in spots that made it so that the water would shoot out more on the walls. Here is what my new and improved spray pattern looks like:



I'm quite happy with how the pattern looks and I am looking forward to getting it into my black waste tank. This should make it so that I can hopefully keep my black tank clean and the sensors clean without ever having to put another hose+wand through the window and down the toilet.

I'll keep you posted and let you know how it works out.

Happy Camping!
Chris

[gotsmart]

I've ignore my tank sensors for 10+ years. I listen to the water as the toilet flushes. As the water rises in the tank the sound changes, especially as it approaches the neck. If you listen well you can pretty much gauge when the next flush will cause the toilet to burp. At that point it's time to dump.

[SJ-Chris]

I'll let you know how it works out.

I'm also looking for these:


Anyone know where I can find/buy them? I have reached out to Thor but perhaps others of you know where I can find them. I want to add an extra bracket on the front and back of my black tank (on 2 of my Majestic 28a units) for extra strength. Recently, one of the tanks dropped while at a campsite (yikes!).

Thanks!
Chris

[IAMICHABOD]

I installed a Quickie Flush in my Class C and it was one of the best Mods I have done, and pretty simple.Works great keeping all my sensors working.

I picked the Quickie Flush over the Tornado because of the high failure rate of the swivel part. A few of my friends had them fail and it leaves it useless in the tank.

The install is pretty straight forward.

The only thing that I changed is where the hose connects up with the flusher I put a 90 Degree Elbow in it to reduce the strain on the hose and make it closer to the tank.


It looks like this when finished, with a quick disconnect on the end.




Don't get discouraged if it leaks at the hose connections at first they are sometimes hard to get tight. Tightened mine up and have had no leaks anywhere.
Another suggestion is to make a test hole in a piece of wood or something and test fit the device to the hole. I found that the hole size suggested was much larger than needed.
Good Luck and if you do it let us know how it works out.

[SJ-Chris]

Black tank rinse/flush on a Majestic 28a... Anyone use the Tornado cleaning device from CamCo (Camping World)?

Greetings all!

This is for a 2015 Thor Majestic 28a, but I imagine it is similar for most recent years 28a also...

I have frequently had issues AFTER dumping my black tank with the sensors still reporting either 1/3 full or 2/3 full. I have one of the flexible hose wands that can rinse the inside of the black tank by sticking it down the toilet (which is always a bit of a pain). Everytime I do that, the sensors will then properly read "Empty" after dumping. I want to make this process easier so I investigated some tank flush options. I recently purchased the Tornado flush kit from Camping World.

Have any of you installed any sort of black tank flush system? Would you care to share what you used and how it has worked?

I want to install the Tornado product (which is basically like a spinning water sprayer that is installed into the tank near the top on one side of your black tank. When you hook a hose up to it at the dump station, it will spray water in multiple directions while spinning (all inside your black tank) which should do a pretty good job of rinsing the tank and interior walls and sensors. I want to install in on the rear (closest to the rear tires) of the tank to give it the best chance of actually spraying on the sensors (which in my RV are on the side of the black tank). What I do NOT know is....where does the pipe from the toilet actually come down into the black tank?? Does anyone know? The reason I ask is because I don't want to put the tornado nozzle (which will stick into the black tank about 3-4 inches) directly underneath where all the bathroom material drops into the tank. Seems like that would be a disaster.

So...Does anyone know WHERE the pipe enters the top of the black waste tank? Does anyone know a part# or something for a replacement tank? If I saw a replacement tank (or diagram) it would likely answer the question.

Thanks in advance!

-Chris

[IAMICHABOD]

TwistedGray,sorry to see you leave,sounds like you had a good time with your Rig and got a nice price for it. Tell the new owner to stop by and let us know how it is going.

[TwistedGray]

Sold my 2017 19G

For reference, 88k miles, I added a power inverter, painted the interior white, and that's about it.

I got $45,000 for it.

[IAMICHABOD]

Racerboy76,thanks for the information that I am sure will be very useful to all the other Majestic Owners on this thread and any other Thor owners.

I will put this information in my archives for future use if needed to help others, thanks to you #139.:B

I hope your camping season is going well and come on back with any more information and share anything else that will be of interest to all the others.

[Racerboy76]

Hello my fellow RV'ers. I just wanted to share a some info and a good experience. On our maiden journey last March we lost the external vent cover for our range. After months of trying to locate a replacement I was poking around on Thor's website and found this https://www.thormotorcoach.com/owners/need-parts-help/.

I filled out the form and within a few days I received an email that they did in fact have the part I needed. Needless to say I was pretty happy. The following day a customer service rep contacted me to complete the purchase of my part. She was very friendly and mentioned that Thor is now selling directly to the public and has quite a few parts on hand. What I found neat was that they still had the build sheet for my Thor Majestic and knew exactly what parts were on it. Over all was very pleased with the whole transaction and received the exact part I needed rather quickly.

So if you need a coach part that you cant find elsewhere they may just have it. Hope this helps someone out there for us former CA rental owners 🙂

[IAMICHABOD]

MtnBikeMarty wrote:

IAMICHABOD wrote:
Marty Great Job!!

Thanks for sharing your latest Mod,and the pictures of your handy work.
I am sure that others here on the Forum that want to do the same will be helped by your informative post.

Are These the ones that you installed? If so I will archive it all and keep it for future use in case others come along and want to do the same thing.

No, I didn't see that model when I searched for what would fit a 2011 E-350/450. The model I ordered was the DeeZEE DZ2045 which lists the dimensions as 40x11x8. The one you found is the DZ1034 with dimensions 40x17x8... so a little taller mud flap??? and a little more $. Other than that I'm not sure the differences.

When I get some time, I'll post some pics of the brackets, I didn't take any during the install cause I didn't want to get my phone dirty cause I had lock-tite all over my hands...lol
Marty

OK thanks for coming back with that,I see the one that I referenced, the DZ1034,looks like it would be wider, length 40'' x width 17''x 8''height.

I am looking forward to the pictures of the brackets and your great write up and handy work.

[MtnBikeMarty]

IAMICHABOD wrote:
Marty Great Job!!

Thanks for sharing your latest Mod,and the pictures of your handy work.
I am sure that others here on the Forum that want to do the same will be helped by your informative post.

Are These the ones that you installed? If so I will archive it all and keep it for future use in case others come along and want to do the same thing.

Thanks again for coming back again and sharing your mod with the others,keep it up.

No, I didn't see that model when I searched for what would fit a 2011 E-350/450. The model I ordered was the DeeZEE DZ2045 which lists the dimensions as 40x11x8. The one you found is the DZ1034 with dimensions 40x17x8... so a little taller mud flap??? and a little more $. Other than that I'm not sure the differences.

When I get some time, I'll post some pics of the brackets, I didn't take any during the install cause I didn't want to get my phone dirty cause I had lock-tite all over my hands...lol

Marty