Overcab rebuild cost

[Ramblin__Rosie]

We have a 2007 Winnebago 331c motorhome. There has been some severe water infiltration in the overcab area. As a result, the wood paneling below the bed and the wood on one side of the interior of the overcab has rotted to the point where it is very spongy. We took it to a nearby dealer. They said the entire overcab area will need to be replaced. Although were were not surprised to hear that it would need to be rebuilt, the quoted price of $10,500 seems a little steep. We plan to get some other estimates, but I wanted to see if this sounds reasonable for others who have had to have similar work performed. This is the first motor home we have owned, so it's difficult for us to jude whether or not this is a reasonable price.

Does anyone have any recommendations for a shop or individual who can perform this kind of work? We live in the Northwest Georgia area, only about an hour form the Metro Atlanta area. We are willing to travel up to a few hours if the work can be done for significantly less.

[maillemaker]

I paid $7500 for my entire RV 10 years ago. 🙂

[bobndot]

$10k is ballpark. A friend had a cabover done 8 yrs ago for $8k and that was ballpark.

[Ramblin__Rosie]

We appreciate all of the replies thus far. Lots of good advice. Please keep them coming!

[Sqdancecaller]

We had the same issue several years ago on our then 2001 Sunseeker. The charge to do the complete rebuild was right at $11,000. Thank goodness our insurance company covered all but our deductible as it was determined it was caused by a storm we had that damaged the cabover. One time we were glad we had paid the insurance for years never using it. Came through when we needed it!

[ron_dittmer]

Not intending to add salt to the wound here, but a seamless over-head bunk (or bunkless B+) would have prevented that $10,000 disaster. Then there are the doubts. Was the rebuild done right? How long will the rebuild last?

It bothers me that seamed over-head bunks are still made today. How much more does it cost to have a seamless over-head cab like the 2009 Tioga shown here? It offers a nice standard size cab-over for people who need sleeping comfort up top. The RV industry ticks me off that they still make rigs seamed like that. Just add the extra $500 into the price and make the rig right.

[lane_hog]

I had similar issues with our 2005 31C, and did all the work myself... spent around $200 in material but only because the filon exterior was still intact. I’m not suggesting anyone else try this if they’re not comfortable destroying walls or taking apart your rig... way too many opportunities for things to go bad.

For the floor, I had to first take apart the bunk area from the inside, remove all the exterior corner trim, and then carefully peeled back the fiberglass cap from the bottom. That created an opening we could slide full 4x8 sheets thru to lay down for the cabover floor. I could have used pieces cut to come thru the door, but I didn’t want to lose any strength. I also left in place the original 1” marine plywood —it was spongy at the edges, but the center was still solid. The new plywood got anchored to the original by putting in screws every six inches left to right and front to back.

Hardest part was the wall over the drivers door. It was fully delaminated, and I had to build a new foam core wall around the aluminum framing. I knew it wouldn’t ever be as strong as the factory vacuum bonded sandwich wall, so I made up for it with thicker wood and thinner pink closed cell foam. The interior wall was then attached to the metal frame with self-tapping lathe screws.

So far, it’s holding up, but I will probably redo some of it when I reskin the front cap and remove the front window, and may remove the side windows as well. That’s a job for a barn or large garage bay (and I have neither) so I’ll save that for another off season.

[DownTheAvenue]

A great, capable and honest repair facilty, Apalachee RV is just east of Lawrenceville in Auburn. You might call them 770-868-0999.

[Bumpyroad]

do you want/need the overhead bed? If not, you can check out the cost of the cabinets/etc. that were an option instead of bed.
bumpy

[way2roll]

Define reasonable. You have major water damage to the point that you have structural issues and an entire section of the MH house needs rebuilt, framing, support, decking, fiberglass, trim and painted. And that's only what you can see at this point. That's a huge job. It's worth getting a few quotes but I wouldn't be surprised at $10k for that job. I would also be concerned about mold.