No Warranty on your RV? Don't buy new?

[doghouseman]

I am new here and I am surprised most of you guys recommend not getting a new RV with warranty.

I bought a very old boat a few years ago and it was my first boat. Looking back I wish I had a warranty on it because it was impossible to find parts for the boat and I spent more time working on the boat than I did actually sailing. Seems like the same logic applies to an RV????

Are there any good RV warranties out there are all they all bad?

[Fizz]

Basically... You are towing a box down a bumpy road.
Something will go wrong, an inconvenience for you can be a major catastrophe for others.
There is no right or wrong
Sh*t happens!

[Veebyes]

"For every used cream puff story there is some poor soul stuck with a lemon and a horror story."

Buyer beware. Before buying a used car do we not check on the model to see if it has common issues? Is it not prudent to have a RV surveyed before committing to buying? It is my boaters mind working again, but $100K does not buy a very big boat. The smart potential buyer gets a survey & sea trial before signing anything.

Nobody is going to let you go camping for a weekend 'sea trial' however paying for a survey can be a whole lot cheaper than finding some costly secrets after you have bought it.

[Lantley]

Veebyes wrote:
Everyone likes new. The problem is that often the problems are.

Anyone who knows the difference between a torx & allen screw will be able to deal with most problems encountered. They simply are not worth the drive to the dealership or the down time while the dealer gets around to giving your rig the hour or so that it takes to fix.

Then there are those who only know how to use one tool. The credit card. The Newbs in this group come in thinking that the RV industry operates like the automotive industry. Wrong!

If your rig is under warranty & out of service you are not getting a loaner. You are not likely to be getting any special consideration so that you can do that long awaited trip. You are out of luck.

JMO, but find a well cared for, preferably lightly used, unit & find yourself a good independent RV tech who does not care what builder or where you bought yours from. Be prepared to lend a hand if one will make the job go easier & you might just learn something as you go along.

They are out there. I had to replace a large fridge. Took 3 of us to get old out & the new in. Learned something about RV fridges that day.

Being confident about buying used & fixing any problems has never been easier. YouTube is your friend.

The person without any DIY skills will not likely be able to identify a well cared for RV vs. a leaky lemon.
They will not recognize a minor issue from a major issue.
For every used cream puff story there is some poor soul stuck with a lemon and a horror story
.

[Airdaile]

Another issue is the increasing dependability of modern cars with little or no maintenance has lulled the newbies into believing that RVs are the same. After all, most class C RVs are just Ford vans, right?

[Veebyes]

Everyone likes new. The problem is that often the problems are.

Anyone who knows the difference between a torx & allen screw will be able to deal with most problems encountered. They simply are not worth the drive to the dealership or the down time while the dealer gets around to giving your rig the hour or so that it takes to fix.

Then there are those who only know how to use one tool. The credit card. The Newbs in this group come in thinking that the RV industry operates like the automotive industry. Wrong!

If your rig is under warranty & out of service you are not getting a loaner. You are not likely to be getting any special consideration so that you can do that long awaited trip. You are out of luck.

JMO, but find a well cared for, preferably lightly used, unit & find yourself a good independent RV tech who does not care what builder or where you bought yours from. Be prepared to lend a hand if one will make the job go easier & you might just learn something as you go along.

They are out there. I had to replace a large fridge. Took 3 of us to get old out & the new in. Learned something about RV fridges that day.

Being confident about buying used & fixing any problems has never been easier. YouTube is your friend.

[jplante4]

There's a big difference between people who bought new prior to 2018 and after. The shop at the RV parts store where I work has seen a big uptick in late model (<2 years) rigs. We do some warranty work, but do not sell RVs. Mostly they come to us to just get it fixed. Imagine buying a new trailer in March and being told that the dealer can't get to your warranty repairs until September. That's the situation in this part of the world.

We sold 30 air conditioners last summer. Half went to rigs 2-5 years old. One owner of a new fiver came in with a small leak. It was hard to locate so we put the Seal Tech machine on it. They counted 20 separate leaks, mostly around windows.

There's a lot of junk out there. Buying new is no longer a guarantee of problem free RVing, and the wait to get the warranty work could be all summer.

[valhalla360]

BizmarksMom wrote:
I bought new because I could get it set up exactly the way I wanted. Solar instead of a television. 12 volt vent fans. Larger grey tank.

Yes, I know I could have bought a used Nash and done modifications. But I work full time and definitely don't need another thing to tinker with. I used the snot out of the trailer that first year, and never did need any repairs. Since then, repairs have been minor things my independant repair shop handles quickly.

You can buy used and pay someone to make the modifications, so it doesn't mean you have to be a tinkerer....and it will still probably be a lot cheaper.

Of course, if you buy new and spec a different holding tank, you probably have the same RV tech yanking the old one and putting in the new one.

[valhalla360]

Veebyes wrote:

When it comes to boats, how old is old? Not talking trailer boats here. A 10 year old well maintained cruising boat 30' plus is considered young. Sure, you can buy a basket case dirt cheap but it will cost tens of thousands before the bottom gets wet again.

One of my all-time favourite boat names was seen on such a boat. "DEBT FINDER"

Umm...no. 10yr is not considered "young". Young isn't really a term commonly used but if you are talking about near new, it's more like 5yr old.

Of course, a basket case is what the OP apparently bought and is setting his idea of what should be.

[Grit_dog]

Good to see you came back!
Never know sometimes....
Warranty is good for a year for most RVs and based on this forum's reports and real world folks I know who've bought new RVs, warranty service is spotty/not great.
Extended warranties are generally a rip off.
So, think of a new RV as no warranty, but you may get a couple things fixed for free, then it's yours and yours alone to get fixed.
Also, seems "most" common issues are with assembly, QC, defective components and "alot" of these issues show up pretty quickly.
So a used or slightly used one has a better chance of these things worked out already.

I don't believe most RVs are the purported piles of junk some make them out to be. Now, we don't use ours often, but through 2 different truck campers from 8, to now 17 years old, I've had no real issues. Yes, some little fixes, just like your car, house, anything else that is made of of thousands of little pieces.
By far the biggest problem was a jack that froze up. I cribbed up the camper (since it was not on the truck), removed the jack, figured it was toast. Took it apart, ended up cleaning it up and greasing it....good to go.
But, unlike your boat story, the one's I bought were pretty well cared for prior to us owning them and then cared for since.
I'm sure if I just parked it in the back pasture when not in use, all year, and generally did not maintain it, the story would be different.

[doghouseman]

Grit dog wrote:
Can we now agree, the OP's over-simplification and the first post, never came back to the discussion was probably bait?

Doghouseman = bored, off season RV salesman....

Sorry, yes thanks for all the great advice. I am not a salesman, just got too busy to repost, but I have been reading the replies when I get the chance, and I learned a lot.

I guess having an old boat taught me a lot about fixing things on my own, so I can do that, but I have gotten to the point were I dont want to fix anything anymore, and I was thinking a warranty would be away around that problem with all the things that can go wrong in an RV. But if the dealership is far away and they wont authorize other dealers to fix, that can be a problem.

[Grit_dog]

Can we now agree, the OP's over-simplification and the first post, never came back to the discussion was probably bait?

Doghouseman = bored, off season RV salesman....

[BizmarksMom]

I bought new because I could get it set up exactly the way I wanted. Solar instead of a television. 12 volt vent fans. Larger grey tank.

Yes, I know I could have bought a used Nash and done modifications. But I work full time and definitely don't need another thing to tinker with. I used the snot out of the trailer that first year, and never did need any repairs. Since then, repairs have been minor things my independant repair shop handles quickly.

[happy2rv]

Veebyes wrote:
"I know who's slept in my bed, who's used the kitchen and appliances, and for the most part who's put what down the toilet." I love excuses like that for paying tens of thousands more for a new unit.

I guess these buyers have never slept in a hotel, never used a public restroom & never been to a restaurant. They must be relations of Howard Hughes.

Nice! Many would say that anyone who can afford ANY new or used RV, especially for "recreational" purpsoes, must be rich. I'm definitely not related to any wealthy benefactors and the wife and I work hard for every dime that comes in and goes out. What you call an excuse, I call a reason. You may not agree, but there DEFINITELY is a difference between a new and a used RV. For many, the depreciation, especially the first few years, is not worth the difference, for others it is. Have I slept in hotels? Yes. Is it my preference? NO!!! That's one BIG reason I have an RV. Have I used a public restroom? Obviously, although most of them, especially on the road, I would prefer not to.

As for tens of thousands of dollars, my TT only cost a few 10's of thousands and a five year old "equivalent" unit still costs a couple of 10's of thousands. I use quotes around equivalent because, despite what some may say, there are differences. The same floor plan was available, but that's about the only thing that's the same. The decor is different, the refrigerator was a gas absorption RV refrigerator vs the residential compressor refrigerator in my TT, the cabinetry design was different/less functional, etc... Mine also had zero wear and tear on it when I bought it.

Some might find that garage kept, constantly cared for, used just enough to keep everything in perfect working order RV, just 1 or 2 years old being sold by a little old lady from Pasadena for 10% of the price of a new unit. I never seem to find that deal. I did pretty well with the repossessed class C we owned, but it wasn't that great a deal.

Buy what you want. My advice is to buy within your means. There are advantages to new, if you can afford it and if those advantages are important to you. There can be advantages to buying used, if you're careful. Cost can be one of the big advantages, again if you're careful. Not unlike the automobile market, the used market value is at least partially driven by the average amount remaining on loans on similar units. Unlike the auto market, the majority of RVs are finance for 15 years, not 5-7. There is also a two edged sword in the used market. If you're buying from a conscientious, caring, previous owner, as with houses they will likely have worked out any fit and finish issues from the manufacturing process and may have installed some nice and possibly expensive upgrades. Most upgrades don't add any significant value to the selling price. However, the other side of that sword is that if you are buying from a less scrupulous or even well meaning but less conscientious seller, they may be intentionally concealing or unwittingly passing on significant defects. There are lots of reasons people sell RVs. Some sell because they fall on hard times financially or just aren't getting enough use to justify the cost. Others sell because of poor health or their spouse or other family passed away and they no longer want to or are able to travel. But just like in the used car market, there are those who try to conceal defects to increase profit/avoid losing money. Everyone's heard fables of saw dust in the transmission. I once bought a used car from a dealer that had more stop leak in the radiator than water or antifreeze. What can I say I was younger and stupider.

A used unit will have wear and tear. It will have however many miles of rattling down the road with all the screw loosening vibrations and twisting and flexing that comes with those miles. It will have however many nights of firing the heater and/or running the air conditioner. It will have however many years of sitting, usually in the open unprotected and usually neglected for months at time. It may have that child's wallet, or worse, stuck in the black tank drain (did I mention, 18+ years later, I still really don't want to relive that day...). It may need tires and batteries and other maintenance. Those are the negatives. Those are the reason it's less expensive than a new unit.

Some times that wear and tear is very light and the previous owner has been good about maintenance and proper storage. Some times, as previously stated, they've added worthwhile updates. Some times you get a true bargain.

A used RV is better than no RV in my opinion. The right RV for the purchaser, at the time they want to purchase it, is the best RV. If you have specific preference with regard to layout, brand, size, etc. It may be difficult to find your preference in a used RV. If you do, that's great. If not, I would rather spend a few thousand more for the RV I want than a few thousand less for one I'd be settling for.

[ReneeG]

For me buying a few years older means getting a better built unit, but you have to still do your homework. The quality in new is not there as it was years back.