Posted on 04/06/2019 4:29:58 PM PDT by N. Theknow
Wife and I are now officially retired. Looking at RV's to allow us roaming on our schedule. We have made an "Our Turn" list of things/places we want to do/see.
After years of caring for ailing parents, divorced siblings who sent their children to be raised by us along with our kids and all the activities requiring Mom and Dad taxi service, working our butts off making our small business thrive (which it is still doing as a nice tax write-off) it is Our Turn and we are getting ready.
Love yer tagline. :)
ImVho, you would do well to find an “OLD-SCHOOL” TRAVO or a BLUEBIRD Class A & remodel it to suit you.
(I’ve owned BOTH at one time or other.)
Yours, TMN78247
Also...RVs are overrated. Fly to your destination and pay a company to set up an RV in advance.
FWIW.
As many have said, buy USED, depreciation is huge.
Look in retirement locations: Florida, Arizona...
You want one that someone else bought new and decided they did not like it.
We had a Class C motor home, which is too small for long-term living, but good for traveling.
Biggest advantages of each:
Trailer — the motor is independent of the living quarters and you can use the truck for touring.
Motor Home you can make a rest stop without ever opening the door. If you have pets this is important. You will need to tow a car — be sure the car can be towed will all wheels on the ground.
Start reading rv.net before you buy anything.
I spent a winter in Kansas in a RV. Two adults, one large dog. Heat tape for the hoses and sheet insulation plus straw bales solved the worst parts of the first ice storm.
We, the dog, and the RV survived until Spring. The RV bug died on the prairie.
I'm glad to see this mentioned since I have been looking at them myself. I didn't see the OP's mechanical skill level stated so I wasn't expecting to see mention of the GMC's. There seems to be a fellowship of owners that is attractive to me. I have the skills needed to go this route but will be the first to say that driving a 50 year old motorhome cross country is definitely not for everybody.
:)
Whatever you do, don’t buy a new one! You can buy used, very nice ones for a fraction of what they originally cost. My uncle bought one new with a Cat diesel, paid over $100k for it several years ago. When he passed away, it sold for around $30k and only had 11,000 miles on it. He got to the point that he couldn’t drive it anymore but still took care of it. The new owner got a very nice, well maintained motor home that just needed the dry-rotted tires replaced.
There are probably hundreds of them around like this.
If they did, their very first question would be the one I'm going to ask you: have you ever (fully) restored a car/boat/airplane, or built a house/addition (including foundation)?
Because if you haven't, run, don't walk, as fast as you can away from any notion about RVing. The simple fact is that owing an RV - whether it's a trailer or MH - draws on every mechanical, electrical, automotive, plumbing and other engineering skills you ever developed and/or used, professionally or hobbyist.
If you cannot do a complete break-down and re-build, then you will be at the mercy of mechanics. It's bad enough with a trailer, where it can sit for weeks locked behind a huge backlog. But at least you still have your driving vehicle. Going with a MH, whether B, C or A, means the entire vehicle is gone - and seemingly forgotten - leaving you high and dry. (Oh, by the way, regular shop don't take class A or C - maybe some B - so that means it has to go to a truck or RV center. Which means, yes you have to drive there and back.)
Secondly, when the work is finally done, have a chair nearby to sit in when you feel faint after reading the bill. (If you have a diesel, it should be a cot because you're definitely going to need/want it.) And by the way, just because the work was billed doesn't mean any problem(s) were actually fixed. RV mechanics go from dealer to dealer, with no real oversight or guarantees.
I say this as an owner of both a trailer and class C, and as a person who HAS restored cars and HAS built an addition to my house. (In addition, I'm actually friendly with my mechanic since we're both "car guys".) My RVs have fully taxed my mental/skills database. Get used to needing to read and understanding extremely complex diagrams, whether it's electrical, gas, water, etc. There aren't any short-cuts. There also aren't any stringent home level standards either, so even a minor short in a 12v circuit can burn the entire mother down.
With all this being said, if you insist, then do this: buy yourself a new stripped F150 with the eco-boost 3.5L + 10 spd tranny. Make sure it's a 2-dr, rear wheel drive, gas. 4 drs, 4x4 & diesel are all very heavy and destroy payload/tow capacities. If you special ordered one with max trailer tow, your payload will be around 2,000lbs. Ignore my advice and buy a pimped out, heavily optioned FX4 off the lot, and you'll be down around 1,500 lbs.
Secondly, buy a 3-5 year old travel trailer. Don't be too concerned about condition, because it will be worthless by the time you try and sell it. Unless it's an Airstream, the build quality is so low that they are essentially completely worthless after 7-10 years. (As the literally bust apart at the seams.)
The other standard warnings apply as well: service and maintenance, storage, MPG, camp fees, campground availability, degrading highway infrastructure, etc.
In summary, it is infinitely cheaper, more flexible, less stressful and more fun to simply drive a purpose built, long wheelbase transportation vehicle - say like a Honda Odyssey - and stay at lodges and hotels along the way. Get an Odyssey, load it with some fishing poles, cooler etc, and have fun driving to Alaska and back. Return to the Seattle area, and head east to Maine on I-90. When you're done with that, head down I-95 to Key West.
Traverse the country multiple times like Kerouac in On the Road, and you'll be thankful you followed my and Alloysteel's advice.
Budget? Class A or C. Gas or pusher? How big are comfortable driving? Motorized or towable? Fifth-wheel or bumper pull? Trust me I can help.
Excellent information. So true.
Problem with Good Sam Club, owner of Camper World said that he doesn’t want Trump Supporters in his stores.
Avoid anything powered by a Ford V-10.
I saw Tiffin mentioned. If you stick with Tiffin, newmar or winnebago you will be fine. Stay away from Thor, Forrest river or coachman
Done a lot research as I was looking for a good 32-34 ft gas coach. Came down to Tiffin and Newmar. Gave the edge to Tiffin after touring their factory in Red Bay Alabama last August.
I’d suggest taking a tour. Incredible access to everywhere but the weld shop. Great family owned company with a terrific product.
Good luck and have fun !
You're average msrp mark up is 30%. There is a website my wife used (she had to pay) to get the specific details for every model and model year.
Buying new: You can expect to get 20 - 40 issues that you will have to return to the dealer to get fixed. That is just the way it is. And I don't care who the manufacturer is. They can tout quality workmanship til the cows come home, but that is just the way it is.
That pay for website my wife used included driveability. That alone was worth it. If you can't drive the dang thing for more than 2 hours because your arms are shaking, don't buy it.
Case in point: First MH - a 25 foot forest river. Nice little rig. Terrible for driving. 2 hours and i was done.
2nd rig: 30 foot forest river. An absolute dream to drive, and you would never even know you are pulling a toad.
I know there was a freeper here that used to be in the RV business who said ALWAYS buy the extended warranty. FWWIW.
Make sure you get an RV/Trucker GPS. It'll make you mad, but, probably worth it.
Get a dash cam.
And yes, if you are patient, and know what exactly you are looking for, there are plenty of used RVs to be found.
It's like buying a home. Don't get sucked into the pretty pictures.
Good luck brother.
Beware of people who tell you stuff like this.
You must understand just EXACTLY how much weight your rig can carry inside, and tow.
Just because you have room for it, does NOT mean that you should carry it.
One of the most important things to look at is the CCC- CARGO CARRYING CAPACITY.
You could have the bestest, prettiest, RV around, but if you cant carry stuff, what good is it.
CCC includes YOU, WIFE, GAS, WATER, DOG, and that is 800 lbs before you put a single shirt, pants, pots and pans, etc. into the rig.
Good luck on your research.
https://www.escapees.com/
Do yourself a favor, escapees will have a plethora of information for you. If you can attend an escapade, you will learn a lot.
“Buy used. Depreciation is YUGE!”
Buying used is great advice. I’ve been RVing for 8 years. Bought a very lightly used 3 year old travel trailer. Still have it and I spend 150 days a year on the road. The good thing for people willing to consider used is many “newbies” buy new and then discover after 4-5 trips out they don’t like it. Hence there are many slightly used RV’s on the market at a steep discount from new.
I’ve observed newbies who discover they like the RV lifestyle rarely keep their first RV more than 2-3 years. They change type - i.e trailer to motorhome or motorhome to 5th wheel, or they trade to a larger or smaller model of what they have. Rarely do people buy something that suits them perfectly the first time. This is another reason to buy used, if you like RVing but decide you’d rather have a travel trailer than the motorhome you bought, you can get most or all of what you paid back if you sell within a year or two.
Some brands hold more value after the initial depreciation than others. Airstream, Grand Design, Arctic Fox and Casita are examples in the travel trailer and 5th wheel universe. In Class A motorhomes the Tiffin, Newmar, and Winnebago models are typically considered more desirable than the Thor brands or Forest River brands. In the Class B and C motorhome market the Leisure travel vans, particularly the Unity line, are well regarded and the company has a substantial backlog. Airstream’s class B offering is also popular but comes new at a very high premium price.
One thing to consider when choosing type of RV. If your motorhome has a mechanical failure and takes several days for repair, your living quarters go to the shop. If the pickup you are pulling your travel trailer or 5th wheel goes to the shop for a few days, you can rent a car and continue to enjoy your RV at a nearby campground while your tow vehicle is being repaired. That has happened to me twice.
If you buy a towable (travel trailer or 5th wheel) make sure your tow vehicle is adequate. Don’t look just at the towing capacity, look also at the GVWR rating.
Spend some time on the RV forums (iRV2forum.com/forums, rvvillage.com, Airsforums.com) for the brands you are considering to see what problems owners are experiencing as well as their thoughts on different sizes and floorplans.
There are a number of full time RV owners putting out very good videos on YouTube. These videos cover different aspects of the RV lifestyle, various popular destinations, as well as the pros and cons of various models. Check out these channels - Long, Long Honeymoon (Airstream trailer); You, Me, and the RV (Tiffin Class A Motorhome); Keep Your Daydream (Grand Design travel trailer), Changing Lanes (Grand Design 5th Wheel), I’m Not Lost I’m RVing (Class B motorhome). A few hours subscribing to and watching these YouTube channels will give you a good feel for the RV life and the various alternatives.
RV owners are for the most part very friendly and helpful. We’ve made some great new friends in the past 8 years. Actually, the social dimension of RVing is something we did not anticipate and is actually the best part of RV life. There are many conservatives in the RV community.
I think that there is a consistent consensus here..... rent before you buy being an obvious takeaway. I would totally concur with this approach and in fact would go further....plan to always only rent. These things invariably end up costing way more than one plans for... fuel, park fees, maintenance, insurance, storage and worst of all, depreciation etc. Then there is the unknown time and expense of trying to sell it once you are done with it... these don’t move that fast as you can see on many used RV websites... some of them are on there for years. It’s a good rule of thumb to not buy stuff that you can’t get rid of... especially big expensive stuff. Tastes change and things such as fuel hikes creates gluts on the market for toys like this. One sees the same thing happening with larger cruiser style boats.
I own an almost new 33 foot fifth wheel but it’s permanently parked with a roof over it at a lake... the only way it may ever get moved is if I sell the property and a new owner doesn’t want it, or I build a cabin there and the RV becomes redundant. I’ve rented numerous class As and Cs over the years and always had reasonably good experiences... fly to LA, pick up an RV and away you go. Fly to Orlando, pick up an RV and away you go. Fly to Vancouver, pick up an RV and away you go. This avoids all the tedious driving, the high ‘getting there’ transportation costs and gets you to a place where you can relax and do things that befit being retired. You can buy a lot of airline tickets on the fuel that you don’t burn. And if there are problems with a rental, those are somebody else’s problems. If you find out that the RV doesn’t do what you want, then you can return it for another one or put up with it for the limited time you have it....
Two other comments... 1. My brother-in-law bought a nice Class A that was lightly used a number of years ago. It was a beautiful (and expensive) unit. He quickly found that it had a water leak that drove them nuts trying to source it out... don’t know if they ever did. These aren’t things that don’t typically get picked up in an inspection no matter how thorough. 2. There was an earlier comment about the negative aspects of slide-outs.... a lot of people with these end up with mice inside and if that happens, it’s very difficult to get the slide-outs to seal up tight enough to keep the varmints out.
Totally agree. I lived in a conversion van for a year and just got hotwire hotels when I wanted an upgrade. Cheap, free, and easy!
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