Buying a used RV...

[Matt_Colie]

My neighbor just bought a beautiful used MH.
A 1995 Winnebago 30' something with only 30K on the odo. The tires look great and he was told that they are a couple of years old. The interior is in great conditon. He was told it was used last year. (Right!)

We were on the road when he found and bought it.

Well, he got it a good price and that is good.
He knew that the microwave was toast and the parts needed are N/A.
We finally found a date code on one tire. 1309 Tires are six years old. OK, he can use them a few years more. Oh, and no valve stem extensions, so checking tire pressures is real tough.
He had seen something on a water heater fitting, but we decided to pressure test the system. That lasted about 15 seconds before the patch on the water heater tank blew off. It had been freeze cracked and "repaired" with JBWeld and silicone.
He also did a jury rig with his grill bottle to pressure test the propane system and that failed.

None of this is all that bad. He has a friend with a TIG that can fix the water heater. Then, we will find and fix the propane issue. As said, the tires have a few years and he is going to get stem extensions.

Very fortunately, this guy has the right friends and is a facilities man at a work. He knows how to do things. If he had to pay other people to do what needs doing, he would have lost big time on this deal.

As is, he will be into this a couple of grand more than he expected, but he will have a pretty coach when he is done.

Matt

[Sam_Spade]

azdryheat wrote:
It's just me but I wouldn't buy a 20 year old RV.

I probably wouldn't either.

But something in the 5-10 year range can be a very good value if it has been well cared for and has relatively low mileage.

The biggest cost of owning a new vehicle in the first 5 years is depreciation. Specialty vehicles have a bigger upfront hit that cars do.

Having said all that......my 8 year old value has some little (but important) thing fail on almost every trip. The last one was the turntable motor in the microwave......AND the alternator.

[NYCgrrl]

Matt_Colie wrote:

azdryheat wrote:
It's just me but I wouldn't buy a 20 year old RV.

Me either, I'm not sure I could trust anything that new.

Matt

Point taken:B.

Personally, I think a lot of older RVS were made better than many of today's offerings. A friend of mine is in the middle of restoring a Bluebird motor coach and enjoying the process. Right now the mechanical upgrades are finished and "we" are up to cosmetics. I plan to nuzzle my teardrop up to her gigonda wheels when we all get out on the road. Who knows? Maybe she'll feed me gas:).

[Matt_Colie]

azdryheat wrote:
It's just me but I wouldn't buy a 20 year old RV.

Me either, I'm not sure I could trust anything that new.

Matt

[DallasSteve]

I never saw the price he paid for the motorhome. That seems like an important detail to decide if it was a good deal.

[azdryheat]

It's just me but I wouldn't buy a 20 year old RV.

[toedtoes]

For me, buying used isn't about getting it cheap. It's about how you pay out the money.

Buying new, you put a lot more money up front on the cost. Often that means making monthly payments. When the payments end, you hopefully have a few years before you start putting out for age-related repairs.

Buying used, you put less money up front on the cost. However, you spend several years making repairs (age-related and failure to maintain). Then hopefully, you have a few years before you start back in with new age-related repairs.

What your friend has found are the "easy" things - they can be worked around until he wants to do the work and fix them. Hopefully he won't find "little" issues in the engine/chassis - those are the things that can't be ignored and can make using the rig difficult.

[Roy_Lynne]

New tires Oh, me too, That is one thing your friend doesn't want to have happen on the road and that is a blow out. Large tires have a habit of tearing up the undercarriage when they go, plus losing control while flying down the freeway is scary as hell. Tires are a must.

[Sam_Spade]

Third recommendation for new tires.....NOW.

Mine came with 7 year old tires that looked great.
One threw a tread on the first trip.

[midnightsadie]

new tires a must, and from your story he bought a project. good luck.

[gbopp]

Matt_Colie wrote:

We finally found a date code on one tire. 1309 Tires are six years old. OK, he can use them a few years more.

Manufactured the 13th week of 2009. Doesn't that make them Seven Years old?
Based on the 'repairs' your friend found on the Winnebago, I think I would advise him to consider replacing the tires. Especially with no valve stem extensions. They may have been run on low pressure.

[Oasisbob]

For as much as I have learned over the many years or RVing I would still have a potential rig checked out by a unbiast reliable service center. Money well spent in my book.