Former Rental RV? What say you..

[Veik]

In my search I found a number of discussions where people buy former rental rigs.
Cruise America now has a number of used 2008+ 25 and 28 ft RVs that have just a little over 100K on the ODO (not all of them are at 150k+...)

They are mostly four winds models.
Very spartan inside, tpo roof, etc.
No TVs, no awnings, no slide outs, no levels.

Selling price range - $19-25K. one year warranty on power train.

How much life can I realistically get out of one of this units?
Will it last 5 years?

Lets assume that they were serviced regularly, but did take some abuse from renters.

At that odometer readings, what usually goes bad ?
Are those ford transmissions pretty reliable?
E350/E450 engines?

Getting one of these rigs might save me a lot of money, or it may not...

[Veik]

Folks, there are rental units that are just about one year old
2015 models
with around 15K on the ODO
offered by two rental agencies at less than 50K.

Good deal? So so?
Risky?

Factory warranty remains.

[OutdoorPhotogra]

winnietrey wrote:
Give your prior posts and what you want to spend. If I were you I would be looking at 2005 rigs and older from a private party. (more than likely paid off or at least above water).

First question I would ask is, how long have you had it and why are you selling it.

I want to hear 10 years, and husband is ill etc. I want to buy from an older couple , who for some reason no longer wants to camp.

Much is made about private owners don't have records. While many times that is true, it does not mean the rig was not well maintained. In my case after 10 years, I don't have many records but my MH has had excellent care. Some people like me just don't keep records. I know in my head what was done, but never bothered to keep everything.

Private party, look for the small stuff, locks, latches drawers, good roof caulking, if they took care of the small stuff, chances are very good they took care of the big stuff.

Were you to buy my 2001 today, excellent shape 55K, well maintained, You would be looking at well under 20K. ( that's what I would ask), What would I take for cash? probably 15K, just to get it gone) Which in my opinion would be a good buy. People shop dealers, they are easier to buy from, much harder for a private party to sell something. And for some older couple who just wants it gone, cash talks. One less stress in the sellers life when it is gone. Especially if they don't really need the money

I agree, fridge could go out, heater could go, and on and on. But that is a risk with any used unit. And rental is going to have had heavier use of those appliances than a private party I would think.

I buy the seller as much as the rig. Nice well maintained house and yard? newer cars etc. If the took care of the rest of their stuff chances are good they took care of the MH as well.
Just my 2 cents

^ Strong post. Good material for a sticky on buying used.

[stargirl96]

This may make us look a little foolish, but we unknowingly bought a rental class c that was being sold by a large rv dealer in the Dallas area. It wasn't the typical rental type (2007 Winnebago Outlook) but it had 47,000 miles so I was suspicious about it being a rental. The salesman looked up the owner and told me it wasn't a rental but a trade-in. We test drove it twice, and examined it closely in the bright sunlight. Nothing out of the ordinary. It wasn't until we took it home that we saw the faint shadow of numbers on the cab overhang. The light has to be just right--usually you can't see it. So far the unit has performed well, but we wish we had investigated it more. The favorable purchase price affected our decision. I guess it could have been originally a rental and then sold to an individual who later traded it in.

[winnietrey]

w3ozwizard wrote:
But financing I have been told is out of the question on MH older than 7 years. That would be a problem for me.

We have Alaska credit union, and sound credit union for most of our personal stuff. (MH is paid off though) I like both

Quick Check

Alaska Web site says 7 years, but they leave the door open a crack, saying exceptions could be made

Sound credit union says 2005 or newer.

BECU says 70,000 miles or less, they do not mention a year. That I could see

It was my experience when we financed our rig 10 years ago (4 years old when we bought it) That sound credit added in all the so called extras, on NADA, really inflated the value, and made the LTV very favorable.

Remember as a buyer if you don't already know, don't add in any extras, to get the value. That you should pay

[w3ozwizard]

But financing I have been told is out of the question on MH older than 7 years. That would be a problem for me.

[winnietrey]

Give your prior posts and what you want to spend. If I were you I would be looking at 2005 rigs and older from a private party. (more than likely paid off or at least above water).

First question I would ask is, how long have you had it and why are you selling it.

I want to hear 10 years, and husband is ill etc. I want to buy from an older couple , who for some reason no longer wants to camp.

Much is made about private owners don't have records. While many times that is true, it does not mean the rig was not well maintained. In my case after 10 years, I don't have many records but my MH has had excellent care. Some people like me just don't keep records. I know in my head what was done, but never bothered to keep everything.

Private party, look for the small stuff, locks, latches drawers, good roof caulking, if they took care of the small stuff, chances are very good they took care of the big stuff.

Were you to buy my 2001 today, excellent shape 55K, well maintained, You would be looking at well under 20K. ( that's what I would ask), What would I take for cash? probably 15K, just to get it gone) Which in my opinion would be a good buy. People shop dealers, they are easier to buy from, much harder for a private party to sell something. And for some older couple who just wants it gone, cash talks. One less stress in the sellers life when it is gone. Especially if they don't really need the money

I agree, fridge could go out, heater could go, and on and on. But that is a risk with any used unit. And rental is going to have had heavier use of those appliances than a private party I would think.

I buy the seller as much as the rig. Nice well maintained house and yard? newer cars etc. If the took care of the rest of their stuff chances are good they took care of the MH as well.
Just my 2 cents

[Veik]

Test drove a 2009 28 ft with CA today.
166000 on the odo
These units sure show that they were rentals
Rattles, noisy, not really something I will ecen consider.
They are askinf arouns 23k for em, I shall pass.

They repaint them, put new tires on and push em out.
Rubber gaskets torn, storage compartment locks missing, etc

Will look into El Monte...

[w3ozwizard]

A little more on my last post. My point of reference and maybe a little prejudiced toward rental MHs is that my wife was a bookkeeper for a local RV rental establishment. Now this was a relatively small company but they did rent motorhomes that traveled all over the country. They had a staff of mechanics that inspected and fixed any problem that was reported by the customer when they returned and staff people who refreshed and inspected the MH when it came back in. The worst thing that can happen to rental places is to have the MH or RV brake down on the road. It is a loss for everyone and very expensive to have to retrieve the rental have it repaired and in some cases refund money to the renter. So I am quite confident that the rental places must keep the equipment in very good shape to not lose money. Just my opinion and my wife's experience.

[loneryder]

Veik wrote:
In my search I found a number of discussions where people buy former rental rigs.
Cruise America now has a number of used 2008+ 25 and 28 ft RVs that have just a little over 100K on the ODO (not all of them are at 150k+...)

They are mostly four winds models.
Very spartan inside, tpo roof, etc.
No TVs, no awnings, no slide outs, no levels.

Selling price range - $19-25K. one year warranty on power train.

How much life can I realistically get out of one of this units?
Will it last 5 years?

Lets assume that they were serviced regularly, but did take some abuse from renters.

At that odometer readings, what usually goes bad ?
Are those ford transmissions pretty reliable?
E350/E450 engines?

Getting one of these rigs might save me a lot of money, or it may not...

I would consider one from a smaller rental agency that will give you service records. Don't think I would buy a Cruise America. The ones at Manassas have about 150k on them. They clean them up and repaint them but interior stuff will show lots of wear. Looked at one in Manassas that the formica on the dinette table was worn away. I talked at length with the national sales mgr for them at the Fredericksburg RV show this spring. He said they are always in use rather than sitting and are checked after each rental and if there are any complaints, they are fixed. That all sounds great and that's what the car rental companies will tell you also, but half the cars I've rented have been low on oil. They are so busy at times they can barely clean them between rentals. And how many people will take the time to tell them all the stuff they found wrong when their trip is over and they just want to get home.Cruise America will not show you any service records if they even have them.

[w3ozwizard]

I am in the same situation as some others here in regard to buying a used or new motorhome (MH). At my age I do not want to invest as much money as it would take to purchase a new motorhome so I have ruled that out for me.

I have talked on several occasions with the people at Cruise America and have visited the larger MH dealers in the area and looked at their inventory. I am trying to compare apples to apples but that is not easy. One thing is abundantly clear is a great disparity in price upfront. I looked at a 2009 Majestic 28A at CA. It had mileage in the 140K range. I looked at several other 28 foot class C MH on other lots with much less mileage. Most of these seemed to have options that the CA unit did not have. Some were nice but some I don't feel I need being that I used to own a MH.

Now here is what I am fighting with myself about. The CA MH was in the $27K range as far as price. Most of the other ones on other lots where in the $45K to as high as $65K range. Now using the lowest price MH and comparing it to the CA motorhome that would be $18K difference. Both are the same year, been in the sun, rain, snow what ever for the same time. Either could be abused in many ways. The local lots told me that they would give me the maintenance records they have on their MHs but they would only be as good as the former owner had kept them. All places told me something like. "No need to worry, we have gone over the MH with our staff and everything has been brought up to standard and is in great working order".

Sooooo. I am asking myself is it really worth at least $18K to have less mileage? As far as the coach is concerned, I will spend hours inspecting every part of it. If I can not look at the roof and test everything on the MH I will walk away and go somewhere else. In any place I buy a used motorhome I will buy the extended warranty on the frame, and I feel I am capable of fixing just about anything on the coach part of the MH. Just for curiosity sake, I asked my mechanic friend who works on cars and trucks how much, in ballpark terms, would it be to replace the engine and transmission and he told me between 5 and 6K. Well within the $18K margin.

I am ready to buy now, but I am in the middle of an extensive and costly home remodel/refresh and I do not want a MH tempting me to stop working on the house and go camping so I have time to investigate and listen to the learned folks here on this forum.

[Veik]

Going out tomorrow to check out some local rental rigs.
Potential shortcomings as I see them after speaking to few Cruise America reps.

1. No warranty on roof and no real way to tell if leaking occurred and is now hidden. Moisture meter I have...

2. No service records - too many locations, trucks move around, etc. THIS IS HUGE. Were spark plugs changed? Was 100K service performed? Or did they just flushed oil and moved on?

3. No Awnings, No TVs, no roof ladder = can be installed extra, but this is $$$ Would be nice to have...

[JaxDad]

Jim Shoe wrote:
Two things to consider:
1. Almost everyone that rents an RV is a newbie.
2. Why would they sell a rental unless fixing the newbie mistakes cost more than its worth?

2. Because when a renter paying $1,000++ / week breaks down on the highway they a) make ZERO money, b) have to send out a tow truck, replacement m/h and have staff to deal with it, c) need extra 'loaner' units to accommodate for the broken down units, and d) they can only depreciate the book value to a certain point before they're better off financially to buy a new unit.

But other than that? No reason really.

[Bordercollie]

You can't really use an RV until the "wheels fall off". Any RV will need tire replacement about every 5 years, the fridge and roof AC, etc, etc,, will need replacement when about 10 years old. The awning fabric may last ten years, the furnace, RV generator, converter/charger and batteries may need repair or replacement at around 10 years. The truck part may run well over ten years without major repairs except for brakes and cooling systems. The roof requires inspection and resealing around vents and roof AC.

[Veik]

Jim Shoe wrote:
Two things to consider:
1. Almost everyone that rents an RV is a newbie.
2. Why would they sell a rental unless fixing the newbie mistakes cost more than its worth?

Because those units paid for themselfs over and over.
Cruise america roughly charges 150 a night.

These are bare bones units, retail on them would be like what? 40-45k?

They get 5 years out of them +++ $20K later.

Why fix? They get another NEW unit in.