National Dolphin LX 6355

[lilgreek7]

Looking to buy a 2003 Dolphin tomorrow morning and just found out that national went bankrupt in 2008. Should I be worried about purchasing this unit? We do a walk thru in the am, what should I be asking and looking for? The cost is 53,999. is this a good price? The unit is or appears to be in perfect condition. I broke down with my 1986 Coachman in Memphis and kinda in a hurry to trade in and upgrade. What kind of services should I get out of this dealership? oil changes, tranny flush, ? I'm new to this shopping for a rv as well as to this forum page. Please give me some pointers and or advice you may have. I will be up all night looking on this website. Please help! This unit has 39000 miles on it.

[Jeepster47]

lilgreek7,

What year is the Dolphin?

Ed

[lilgreek7]

The Dolphin is a 2003. It appears to have been well kept (indoors and outside) and well maintained. Thanks. Pat

[Belgian]

Check prices at www.rvt.com There is a brake recall that may involve the MH. It is covered by Workhorse and should cost $0. When you buy any vehicle make sure everything works. There are a lot of systems on a MH so it could take a long time to test everything. We have owned our 2004 Dolphin 5342 for 6 years and are very happy with the quality and workmanship that went into the MH. Most current owners say they would buy another National product if the were upgrading if National was still in business. That to me says a lot. Since you have owned a MH in the past you are ahead of the game when it comes to how things are suppose to work. Good Luck!

[Jeepster47]

How old are the tires (date on the tires)? Is the coach being sold by a private party or a dealer? The fluids (engine, tranny, rear end and lube fittings) should be changed. What other add-ons, i.e. track bars, ant-sway bars, new shocks, UltraPower ECM/TCM reprogramming, etc. does it have? Make sure all of the recall campaigns including the brake caliper recall are taken care of.

Ed

[sgtjoe]

The NADA shows the average retail at 49,020. I take it it is a Workhorse chassis. If so ask if it was on the Brake Recall and were the brakes fixed. Also, check the date on the tires to see what year they were made. If over 6 years old try to get newer tires or get the price reduced. Check the batteries. Have you driven it yet?? Take it up on a hwy to see how it handles with trks passing.
Don't worry about National being closed, I've yet to meet anyone who has anything bad to say about the National RV's. There are plenty of places to get any National specific parts you may ever need.
See if they have any service records from the previous owner, most leave them in the RV when trading them or selling them.
Off the top of my head you should get them down a few grand and get new tires if needed. Good luck and let us know how you do.

[lilgreek7]

Thanks guys. Yes I drove the rv up and down the road and it drove like a champ and handled really nice. Didn't really feel them 18 wheelers at all. Nothing like my old 86 Coachman. This Dolphin does have a power booster of some sort for more power and gas efficiency. This unit just happens to be on consignment sorta. The owner is friends of the Sales manager at the dealership (Southaven RV in Ms.) that I am buying it from. The sales manager has the authority to sell it for him (owner). It has a couple of different stickers on the coach, by the door, indicating power booster, and special suspension. Wish I could tell you more about it. You could go to the website and see it. Thanks for all ya'lls comments. The tires look good, but I will check the date tomorrow, It has all the paper work in it, a big binder. It may have the owners service records in it. I will check that out too. Keep bringing the comments and suggestions. God Bless!

[lilgreek7]

OK! It's official, we are new owners of a beautiful 2003 National Dolphin LX 6355! Today the dealership is going thru a 7 hour pre-delivery inspection. I feel real happy with the deal and with the dealership. The brake recall was done and confirmed. The previous owner also had the tranny flushed at 25k miles. I was able to get it for 44k. Can't wait to get back on the road again. We are headed for New Orleans this evening and will use this time to check for any problems or if we have any questions. We will be passing back thru Memphis on our way home to Wisconsin. If there are any questions or problems, we will stop back by and they will be answered and or corrected. Thanks for your help here in the forum and I will be checking in from time to time. Peace!

[Belgian]

That's GREAT news. You will enjoy many wonderful trips and have long lasting memories.
Now you can really get to know your new Dolphin. There is so much good info here at IRV2.com I learned so much when we first started that has made our use of our Dolphin more enjoyable. Plus all the other info at other posts has helped with travel and destinations.
Have a fun time on your maiden trip.
Steve

[Lit]

I own a 2005 Dolphin and I love this coach, it's too bad National went under because they made a very decent unit. The unit it's easy to drive and the ride is second to none, it has the feel of a coach that costs a lot more $$$.

Enjoy your unit.

Lit

[JohnRR]

Nice looking unit, enjoy it

Link to unit

[YosemiteBobR]

Congrats lilgreek, you will love it. A fine motorhome indeed. Rade safe.

[Vegasdan]

Congrats!

[lilgreek7]

Hello gang! It's been a great ride. We are still on our trip down to New Orleans and now we're in Ga. Enjoying some awesome weather. Don't really want to go back to Wisconsin yet.lol I see on the weather channel a snow storm is passing thru the state. Going to head home later in the week. Our new Dolphin has been awesome. What a great way to travel! Before leaving the dealership we heard a bang in the front end on the driver's side. After an inspection by the techs, everything looked good, tight steering and joints. I believed it was the shocks causing the problem noise. So the dealership changed the front shocks. After arriving in Ga. turning into the rv park, the knock showed it's face again. Not sure what the dealership will say now. Any ideas what this knock could be? Hopefullly they will let me get it looked at in my home state, at their expense. Wish me luck. I don't think it's a safety issue, just quite agrevating to hear. I guess thats the bad thing about not buying from a local dealer, but remember I broke down with my 86 Coachman. Still we are having a good time!