Made A Mistake

[gwol]

Made a mistake by stopping by an RV Dealer yesterday while spending the week in Palm Springs. Just window shopping as we already have a 1995 Carriage Callista Cove that we love. Although it has no slides and is starting to get a little sluggish on some of the hills, we love the lay out in this little 28ft class C, which we own free and clear.
Yesterday we showed a little interest in a 2006 Fleetwood Tioga 31M (2 slides) with only 10,000 miles on it's Ford E450 chassis. While it only has 10,000 miles on it the unit is beat up, it looks like it was used as a college, party house, every thing is stained and soiled. Also when I was checking under the hood I noticed that the transmission fluid had like "coffee grinds" in it. We also like this floor plan but with a price of $59,000. (Asking price) we would go from no payments to a monthly RV payment. We use our motorhome 2 to 3 times a year on long trips (600 to 1500 miles) and once every other month on short get aways, close to home trips under 100miles.
I'm sure I will be able to get the price down, looking on line I see the same models selling for $45,000.
Dilemma, to go from no payments to $300~$400 a month just doesn't seem to make sense. On the other hand we love our road trips and the Callista is getting old with 53,000 miles. This new only only has 10,000. miles. When is the right time to bite the bullet and trade up?

[Travelcrafter]

Good on you!!

[short_kid]

WOW, I am glad you read all the posts, I was getting ready to offer a Bridge for sale.

[magnusfide]

gwol wrote:
Thank you all for your input and for pulling my head out of my butt. I can do a lot of work on my Callista, for the amount I would be spending in monthly payments. We're going to stay with what we have, fix the current issue, continue to keep it well maintained and enjoy it till the wheels fall off.
Thanks Gus

SMART MAN! :C

[gwol]

Thank you all for your input and for pulling my head out of my butt. I can do a lot of work on my Callista, for the amount I would be spending in monthly payments. We're going to stay with what we have, fix the current issue, continue to keep it well maintained and enjoy it till the wheels fall off.
Thanks Gus

[Rick_Jay]

Holy Cow!!! From what you posted, you wouldn't be "biting the bullet", you'd be jumping in front of it!!! LOL RUN!!!!!! 🙂


On a similar note, however, that floor plan (31' Class C/E-450/dual slide) really pushes the weight limits on the chassis. It's nice and roomy, BUT if you're concerned about axle weight limits, tire weight limits, chassis weight limits, do LOTS of research on any unit with this type of floor plan. And before you buy, have it weighed with both front & rear axle weights, and individual wheel weights if possible.

Good Luck,

~Rick

[Ductape_Dave]

Being on this forum and reading about the problems with RV's, I don't understand how you would even consider this unit unless you want problems and don't mind spending more money on top of the overpriced beat-up unit. Any transmission fluid that has coffee grinds is shot! Do yourself a favor and get a mechanic and rv friend to check out the next unit you are considering to save yourself a lot of headaches and bills!

[DaHose]

You said you "love" your current MH, but think it's sluggish. You probably just need some real tuning work. Even in a worst case scenario, you could install a new engine and tranny for less than $10k.

No way would I give up a coach I know and really like, to gamble on an unknown used rig and its potential headaches.

Jose

[camper19709]

RUN!! $300-400 a month will buy a lot of fuel!!

[Calisdad]

I saw an RV on Craigslist today that had 14k on the motor and 68k on the rig for $2750- leaves a lot of room for beer and Twinkies.

[toymaker10]

You can get a 2015 24' Forester, Thor Chateau, with a Ford or Chevy engine for the same money.

[cgmartine]

Since you are already in the area, take a drive over to San Bernardino, near Redlands, to El Monte Rents. You can pick up an excellent Tioga for $32,000, or less, depending on size.

Whoever is selling the motorhome you saw in Palm Springs is out of his mind, even if it only has 10,000 miles. For that amount of money, I would expect it to be no older than a 2010-2012. True, the ones at El Monte are higher mileage, but with good maintenance, will last at least two hundred thousand miles, or more. A good example is mine, a 2008 Tioga 31M, which I bought for $32,500, with 105,000 miles, but it is in excellent condition and the engine runs better than my car. I paid cash for it and can now afford to put in as much money as I want to in maintenance, which is very low.

[marty1300]

I agree over priced, our 2011 tioga montara was 39,000.00 it had 22,000 miles

[coolmom42]

j-d wrote:
You haven't made a Mistake Yet. Leave that deal in the dust and it'll stay that way.

This.

[othertonka]

You haven't made a mistake yet but you will make a mistake if you buy that RV, Run