Is a 1992 Southwind a good motorhome?

[Roland Trombley]

My barber is selling a 1992 Southwind motor home for $9000. It is extremely clean and has 34,000 miles, with new brakes and new tires. Can a motor home like this be trusted to be reliable for long trips? Everything on it looks good and it appears to be well maintained. Any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks

[JOMARFL (FMCA 401058)]

$9K is pretty low book but good be a great deal. If it was stored inside, even better. Get someone mechanical to go over it for you. Check the belts, fluids, pumps, reseviors all the fluid and cables to make sure they work.

Not a mechanic here, but if it's in great shape and someone you trust looks it over and says okay, it might be the best deal of your life.

Will always have problems with older MHs but for the price it could be a lot of fun

[TXiceman]

Late 80 and early 90's model Fleetwood (Pace Arrow or Southwind) had major and severe sidewall delamination problems. They had a big problem with the front and rear cap attachment to the roof. Also had problems installing windows properly.

The glue used to laminate the Filon to the Luan was not good and any moisture caused then to delaminate.

If it has been stored indoors and the side walls look straight, ie, no bubbles, it should do OK as long as you store it indoors.

Once the delamination has started, you can not stop it and it cost about $7500 to $10000 per side to fix it.

Ken

[Teach]

We bought an '89 Southwind new and kept it for 11 years. It was kept outside all the time and we put over 127,000 miles on it. Never had a problem with the sidewalls or for that matter any of the structure itself. It had a Ford engine that required some work at 89,000 miles. It was probably one of the best MH's we have had.

[exrench]

We had an '89 Pace Arrow that we bought when it was ten years old and enjoyed it for four years. The quality in that rig was the determining factor that influenced us to buy our present MH.(we lost out there)In fact the only reason for parting with the Pace was it's lack of slides.

[TXiceman]

The one we had so much trouble with was an 89 pace Arrow. The coach was beautiful, except for the delamination problems. After a few years with ours and the problems we had, I noticed a unusually large number of 88 through about 92 or 93 model Fleetwoods with a lot od side wall bubbles.

The coached from the north and west seemed to fair better than the ones in the wetter climates. I guess the roof worked pretty well if it did not rain much...or you stored it indoors.

The factory repalced one side under warranty, but later, they were no help. Our insurance carrier took the clain as water damage and the bill was about $18,000.00. Once the side walls were apart, there was a lot of damage to the floor and cabinets due to the leaks. It was 5 years old when we got rid of the repaired coach.

I promised myself to never have another Fleetwood product again.

Ken

[justimagination]

Could be the best deal of your life, as mentioned earlier. If it suits your needs, you can't hardly go wrong @ that price. Even new motorhomes have problems, just read the forum, such as the 2008 Fleetwood with the Windshield moulding coming loose for the 3rd or 4th time. Go for it. Good Luck.
David G.

[Carvin Marvin]

Probably should plan on a set of tires, check the date on them.

[Gary RVRoamer]

That vintage did have some delam problems, but if it does not already have any delamination, it is probably is not going to get any. We had a 96 Southwind that was a great coach. Had oe small area of delam but is was not very noticeable and we never bothered to fix it. Had no trouble reselling it either.

If the 92 looks right for you, I would go for it.

[StevePav]

Last year I purchases a 90 Southwind and am very happy with it. I've only put a bit over 3,000 miles on it but can only praise it. There are a couple of minor spots of delam, nothing major, and no leaks.

Steve

[millsrv]

We recently traded in our 1998 Southwind Storm 31W that we purchased new in. When it was about a year old I noticed a spot on the back wall, under the stripe that looked like bubbles under the decal. The dealer contacted Fleetwood and they requested the coach be driven to Riverside CA for the wall to be replaced. I took time off work and drove the coach to Riverside and flew home to San Jose CA. About a month later the wall was replaced. All was fine for another year until the right and left side walls did the same thing. This time Fleetwood replaced all three walls, (rear again) with Fiberglass Walls. The repair took 2-1/2 months. Fleetwood told me that it cost over $40,000 for the repairs and that we would not have any further problems with walls. I actually was pleased with Fleetwood simply becaused they really seemed to care about making things right. The years that followed were great, we had no further issues.
I obviously would have prefered the sidewall issues had not happened but I was pleased with the way Fleetwood handled the problems.
I do not know if Fleetwood is as interested in customer service now as they were in the late 90s, but I would not rule out another Fleetwood Product.

[strato]

Quote:

Originally Posted by JOMARFL (FMCA 401058) $9K is pretty low book but good be a great deal. If it was stored inside, even better. Get someone mechanical to go over it for you. Check the belts, fluids, pumps, reseviors all the fluid and cables to make sure they work. Not a mechanic here, but if it's in great shape and someone you trust looks it over and says okay, it might be the best deal of your life. Will always have problems with older MHs but for the price it could be a lot of fun

Will always have problems with any motorhome!