What's the best bang for my 20k?

[Safari360]

I am overwhelmed and need some expert advice on the best RV I can get for 20K cash or less. There are too many options in the used market to wrap my little brain around. We (us two) are hitting the road full-time at the end of summer, and are super excited to start working on a rig, so I am trying to buy an one now. So many models and configurations. I am looking for a diesel pusher class A in the 30 to 35 foot range that is self-contained. I simply want to know what is the best built makes and models that could provide near trouble-free operation. I know it is a tall order for the money, but any support is appreciated. Thanks.

Dave

[timmac]

Daveinet wrote:
I would like to give you some level of caution about the years to look at. Having been very active on RVnet for 12 years, I can tell you that the tone of the discussions have shifted dramatically over the past 5-8 years. When I first started on here, most of the discussions surrounded quality - well actually the lack there of. Fleetwood was by far the worst, but there was plenty of complaining to go around, as far as production built coaches. If one interprets that info, you can derive that around about year 2000 and newer, significant improvements were made in the construction quality industry wide. As the quality improved, the tone has changed significantly over the years. So my advice is, that pre-2000, you are really hit or miss in the production built coach. I would tend to steer away from a pre- 90s coach unless it is a Foretravel, Barth, Vogue, Newell - super high end brands. Post ~2000, the quality improved so much that I think has given people short memories.

Your post is right in one aspect but not so right in another aspect, yes 2000 and newer many RV's got better as well as the chassis, but Fleetwood was not the worst, I am now into my 3rd Fleetwood and so far no issues with either, however the years were 2000-2002 and now 2008, been great on all 3 so far, so I would not discount Fleetwood.

[John_Joey]

mike brez wrote:

Haley wrote:
When you compare mileage diesel vs gas be sure to check your local price in diesel. For me it's a bit higher. Convert it to "MPD" - Miles per dollar for fuel. Some will say though that if you are minding the pennies this close Class A may not be the way to go.

Regarding low mile units. I am looking at two right now. Same make. Very similar floor plan. One is a 2000 gasser with 30k miles. One is a 1998 diesel with 100k miles. Very similar in price. Some will say " a diesel for the price of a gasser - it's a no brainer - take the DP" and some will say "one third the mileage? It's a no brainer - take the gasser." The gasser has sat in a barn. Nicely stored. The DP is with full timers who are now in FL, were recently in southwest and before that Pacific Northwest. The DP guy can answer my questions in great detail. Knows status of every thing on board. If he does not sell he is driving it back to Pacific Northwest. So it sounds like this rig is road worthy. The gasser seller can not recall if the second A/C works, did not use it the one time he took it out this year - which was local. Personally, I am looking for a unit that is well exercised but not beat up.

In this case to me it's a no brainer the DP.

You would be surprised how beat up some FT'er rig can be when you see them in person. Pacific NW with high humidity and maybe salt damage, Arizona with high UV, then Florida with more humidity and possible salt damage.

If they are elderly and have issues with eye sight or lifting their arms or bending way over and getting down on their knees then you can imagine where the dirt will be. Then add in the fact that there is a high possibility of pets that have lived in there FT and you start to get a completely different picture.

Nothing is a no brainer with RV's in real life. I have seen too many rigs on the web then have seen them in person now to ever get on a plane and fly out to buy a RV. Sure you can get lucky, but what you see/get told is not always what you get.

[mike_brez]

Haley wrote:
When you compare mileage diesel vs gas be sure to check your local price in diesel. For me it's a bit higher. Convert it to "MPD" - Miles per dollar for fuel. Some will say though that if you are minding the pennies this close Class A may not be the way to go.

Regarding low mile units. I am looking at two right now. Same make. Very similar floor plan. One is a 2000 gasser with 30k miles. One is a 1998 diesel with 100k miles. Very similar in price. Some will say " a diesel for the price of a gasser - it's a no brainer - take the DP" and some will say "one third the mileage? It's a no brainer - take the gasser." The gasser has sat in a barn. Nicely stored. The DP is with full timers who are now in FL, were recently in southwest and before that Pacific Northwest. The DP guy can answer my questions in great detail. Knows status of every thing on board. If he does not sell he is driving it back to Pacific Northwest. So it sounds like this rig is road worthy. The gasser seller can not recall if the second A/C works, did not use it the one time he took it out this year - which was local. Personally, I am looking for a unit that is well exercised but not beat up.

In this case to me it's a no brainer the DP.

[OhhWell]

ddndoug wrote:

Make sure you get on the roof and do a visual inspection yourself, or better yet have a friend that owns a MH go with you to do the inspections.

Doug

Always a good idea even if you are familiar and know what to look for. It is good to have someone there who is not emotionally invested in the unit. I have missed a couple obvious things in the past just because I was excited about the RV.

[Haley]

When you compare mileage diesel vs gas be sure to check your local price in diesel. For me it's a bit higher. Convert it to "MPD" - Miles per dollar for fuel. Some will say though that if you are minding the pennies this close Class A may not be the way to go.

Regarding low mile units. I am looking at two right now. Same make. Very similar floor plan. One is a 2000 gasser with 30k miles. One is a 1998 diesel with 100k miles. Very similar in price. Some will say " a diesel for the price of a gasser - it's a no brainer - take the DP" and some will say "one third the mileage? It's a no brainer - take the gasser." The gasser has sat in a barn. Nicely stored. The DP is with full timers who are now in FL, were recently in southwest and before that Pacific Northwest. The DP guy can answer my questions in great detail. Knows status of every thing on board. If he does not sell he is driving it back to Pacific Northwest. So it sounds like this rig is road worthy. The gasser seller can not recall if the second A/C works, did not use it the one time he took it out this year - which was local. Personally, I am looking for a unit that is well exercised but not beat up.

[ddndoug]

Safari360 wrote:
... only staying two weeks in a place and moving 100-200 miles for another two week stay.

Well you answered the question that I was going to ask. I would definitely lean toward a gasser as opposed to a DP, for what you are looking for.

During your search you will want to consider towing capacity for your TOAD along with any installed systems that may make your towing choices easier to make.

Make sure you get on the roof and do a visual inspection yourself, or better yet have a friend that owns a MH go with you to do the inspections.

If you're going to be full-timing in it another big consideration is storage. We have what I consider tons of storage in ours, but... we don't full time. They may change our mind if we had to store everything that we would need to use for the next year or two.


Doug

[bsinmich]

One thing to watch out for is delamination in the walls. Newmar and a couple others do not use laminated walls so delam can't happen. Newmar was also the first with a slide in production MHs in 1990. They definitely have the knowledge on slides. Insulation is also one of their quality features. Insulation keeps you more comfortable in any weather. The central AC is a Newmar is also very quiet.

[Hwayfun]

Dave (Safari360),

Another one to consider...
2000 PAV 22k This is the same coach we own. we love the layout. Two slides make a huge difference in livability when you're set up somewhere for longer than a day.
We tow a Jeep and have been on several cross country trips with no issues. Consider hiring a professional to do a full vehicle inspection prior to any purchase you may make. PM me with any specific questions...I'm in the Seattle area.

[Francesca_Knowl]

OhhWell wrote:

Safari360 wrote:
Thanks, Ohhwell. I appreciate the information. Why would a low mileage rig be a concern? I can think of a few reasons but would like to know for sure. I found a 98 Dolphin 35' with 31k mileage for 20k. It has a slide a looks nice in pictures. Thanks.

The low mileage is a warning (NOT a deal breaker) because that means that the drivetrain has not been run often which is not good for it. The thinking is also that if the coach just sat, it probably wasn't maintained as regularly as one that was driven often. Like I said though, it is NOT a deal breaker at all, just something to ask the owner about.

I'd add that at that mileage it may well have the original tires, which would have long since aged out of service. An immediate thousand dollar expense-or more, depending on the tire. Do be sure to check date codes on tires on every rig you look at. Link to date code info. Note: If you see a tire with only three digits at the end of the DOT code, it was made BEFORE the year 2000.

Other rubber/seals etc. should be checked for soundness- I've been told that long periods of inactivity can result in parts such as belts/hoses/gaskets getting brittle.

Another routine thing to do for every rig you look at is to check for recalls, and if any exist to make sure the recall repairs have been made. Not sure which 1998 Dolphin this is- I don't see one identified as a "35 footer" at this 1998 Dolphin specs page. But if it's the 5350, there is/was a recall out for that model. Not a deal-breaking defect, in my opinion, but certainly something to check on when you look at the rig again.

[Safari360]

Daveinet, if I was to look into a 90's model for price considerations, which would you suggest? The Bounder, and Dolphin have come up as suggestions her so far.

[Safari360]

...that does look good, Ohhwell. I saw that when I was still looking for a DP. I may go check that one out. Thanks.

[Daveinet]

I would like to give you some level of caution about the years to look at. Having been very active on RVnet for 12 years, I can tell you that the tone of the discussions have shifted dramatically over the past 5-8 years. When I first started on here, most of the discussions surrounded quality - well actually the lack there of. Fleetwood was by far the worst, but there was plenty of complaining to go around, as far as production built coaches. If one interprets that info, you can derive that around about year 2000 and newer, significant improvements were made in the construction quality industry wide. As the quality improved, the tone has changed significantly over the years. So my advice is, that pre-2000, you are really hit or miss in the production built coach. I would tend to steer away from a pre- 90s coach unless it is a Foretravel, Barth, Vogue, Newell - super high end brands. Post ~2000, the quality improved so much that I think has given people short memories.

[OhhWell]

I would take a look at this one:

Link

If it hasn't slid away down that hill yet...

[John_Joey]

I'll add one more thing if you're new to this and attempting to figure out what is a low, mid, or upper level class A.

This isn't perfect, but sure is darn close. Go to NADAand put in the coach and year. You will then see what the coach listed at when new. Needless to say the higher the price the better the coach was. Again not perfect, but will make a newbie look pretty smart.

In that price range it seems that upper end coaches sell for just slightly more then lower end coaches, even though when new there was a huge difference in price. You can use that now to your advantage.

Good luck

[OhhWell]

Safari360 wrote:
It's the Chevy 7.4 (454).

I believe that year has the larger (19.5") tires and the heavier duty chassis. I am not a Workhorse expert so.....

There are a couple downsides to the workhorse platform as it had been discontinued and a few proprietary parts for the Dash units are reportedly Really hard to find. People that have them seem to like them better than the same year Fords. There was also a big problem with brakes but at that age usually those kind of issues are worked out.

As far as Gas MPG vs Diesel MPG : You will be surprised to find that there is little difference.