Need advice on motorhome purchase please

[TriMoot]

Originally Posted by leslie1988

I ended up getting the damon intruder it's a 349 model with 60,648 miles. It has 248 miles on the generator, 36 feet long. When I pulled out of the lot today and was driving home I was scared to death!!! But I did pretty good.

Well Congratulations! I bet you are VERY excited! When we first got ours we couldn't stop oohing and aahing over everything as we went through each cabinet, drawer and closet...so exciting.

Just think of all the good times you're going to have!

Like everyone's already said, take it slow, and be sure to ALWAYS do a walk around before you leave to go ANYWHERE. Even if it's just down the street to get gas. I have caught numerous potential mistakes by ALWAYS doing a walk around before I move the rig.

You'll find a ton of good information and advice here on this site with lots of knowledgeable people. Don't be afraid to ask ANY questions..but...do your due diligence 1st...search this site, or even plane old Google before you post as many of the answers will lead right back to IRV2.

Very happy for you and when you can post some pictures of your new baby!

Happy trails!

[fottip]

Originally Posted by Bahamaniac

Don't forget, motorhome tires age out at 10 years.

WOW! I'd be mortified driving any RV with 10-year-old tires.

[George Schweikle]

Excellent advice

Originally Posted by TriMoot

... and be sure to ALWAYS do a walk around before you leave to go ANYWHERE. Even if it's just down the street to get gas. I have caught numerous potential mistakes by ALWAYS doing a walk around before I move the rig...Happy trails!

[TriMoot]

Originally Posted by fottip

WOW! I'd be mortified driving any RV with 10-year-old tires.

I remember when we test drove our rig before buying it. It was from a private individual and when I said I wanted to take it on the highway he said something like, "..but not too fast!". I thought that was strange, and I noticed he was very nervous during the short test drive.

When we got back, I started looking more closely at the rig and OH MY GOSH!!! I was SHOCKED when I actually LOOKED at the tires! I have NEVER seen cracks THAT wide and long!!!!

But the price was right and the King bed and low mileage was what we wanted so one day before we bought it, I purchased a roadside assist package from Coach Net as I was CERTAIN we'd have a blow out going the 35 miles from their house to ours! Whew...I was never so nervous!

But we made it, and put it right into storage (It was November) and in the Spring ordered some Hercules H901 tires. (Which we love!).

But yeah...I was pretty green back then and no idea about DOT dates and the general rule of tire life on RV's.

We're coming up on 7 years and I know I will be replacing the two up front but may hold off on the four in back another year...especially since we 'might' be moving up to a newer rig.

[Sonic]

Originally Posted by fottip

WOW! I'd be mortified driving any RV with 10-year-old tires.

It all depends on how they're maintained. The RV Geeks as an example are full timers who take meticulous care of their tires and just changed their Michelins out at the 10 year point. The tires were still in decent shape.

[red300zx]

Inspect, check, recheck, inspect verify confirm and then hire a professional to completely go through ever system. Tire codes, tire code, tire codes. Pull oil sample and transmission sample and send it to Blackstone $ 100 buck. It will be the best money you spend.

[leslie1988]

We took it out the day after we got it for a weekend getaway and it ran very good. However there where a few issues that came up. The driver's side windshield wiper stopped working which was a nightmare because it was pouring down rain, the outside step does not retract, and the rear camera stopped working after a day. I have someone coming out tomorrow to see what's wrong.

[timjet]

Welcome to the world of RVing. Hope you are somewhat of a DIYer or willing to learn. The fun has just begun.

[HJLowell]

Watch carefully how the person
troubleshoot s
Your unit.
This is just the beginning for the little stuff.
That You need to learn to do yourself.
Your on the way to becoming a DIY
Guru. Enjoy.

Originally Posted by leslie1988

We took it out the day after we got it for a weekend getaway and it ran very good. However there where a few issues that came up. The driver's side windshield wiper stopped working which was a nightmare because it was pouring down rain, the outside step does not retract, and the rear camera stopped working after a day. I have someone coming out tomorrow to see what's wrong.

[okcnewbie]

Originally Posted by leslie1988

We took it out the day after we got it for a weekend getaway and it ran very good. However there where a few issues that came up. The driver's side windshield wiper stopped working which was a nightmare because it was pouring down rain, the outside step does not retract, and the rear camera stopped working after a day. I have someone coming out tomorrow to see what's wrong.

Hopefully for your sake this is the last time you need to hire someone for relatively small items. OTOH, if you happen to find a really good mobile tech and you have more money than time than don't sweat it.

[okcnewbie]

Originally Posted by DurangoNick

The inspector found everything to be working correctly with no apparent leaks. It was back in 2017. Use the link I provided to find a certified inspector in your (or the RV's) location.

Thanks. I have already made contact with a local inspector here that's part of NRVIA. I was quoted $595 for a 5-7 hour inspection that doesn't include going under the MH.

[Steve 716]

First of all, I am not trying to recommend or disparage a Bounder. My last coach was a 2010 Bounder 33U and here are some of my observations. You can read more as you conduct your research.

Pro:

One reason I purchased a used Bounder is because there are alot of them still on the road. We really liked the 33U floor plan. There was more storage capacity than we expected, both inside and outside. It drove well and was comfortable to ride in. What we could see in the RV mostly was of decent but definitely not upscale quality. There was more wood inside than expected. Items like the hydraulic fluid bottle, batteries, and other components were accessible. My inverter went out and it took just a few minutes to replace it. The shower was huge and included an above the head bar running the length of the shower for hanging things up to dry, a thoughtful feature. It towed my car without issues. There was a place for a washer/dryer combo. I wish I could have installed separate machines (personal preference), but didn't expect room for anything at all so that was nice. It had a 10 gallon water heater instead of 6 gallon and heated fairly quickly. We drove an 8 month trip from Savannah, GA to Alaska and back again. The Workhouse chassis never went out of alignment in spite of some poor quality roads. That was really impressive. Some owners have complained about their dash display failing but I didn't have any issues.

Con:

The wood I could not see easily was mostly cheap press board quality that did not hold nails screws, or tacks very well. I had continuous toilet plumbing issues. (I suggest that you stay away from marine macerating toilets). The wall covering was cheap and some of it peeled away. The coach was grossly underpowered. It took Banks headers, Dynaflow mufflers, and a retuned engine computer, a $3500 expense, to be able to drive uphill at a decent speed, but the upgrade was worth the cost. When the radiator started leaking rapidly I discovered that it was made of plastic, not metal. My floorplan had a full length slide. Wind blew through the slide awning during storms and ripped the first one. After having a replacement installed I pushed a blowup raft into each end and clamped them to the awning when it was windy. I will never again have a full wall slide. The air conditioner leaked at times and neither I nor mobile mechanics were able to figure out why. I discovered soon after leaving the dealership that there was no AC power on the driver side that the dealer hid from me. It took me a few weeks to troubleshoot and it turned out to be a design flaw in the way some power cables were routed.

I had a love/hate relationship with my Bounder but I loved more than I hated. Check your prospective coach carefully both inside and out and weigh the pros and cons before deciding. You should do this anyway but be thorough. I don't regret buying a used Bounder and it served me well for the three years I owned it.

[Grandpa5x]

We had a ‘99 Bounder 35’ built on the terrible Ford F-53 chassis. The V10 engine was relatively new at that time with 2 valves per cylinder, the spark plug holes had 4 threads compared to 9 threads on the plug so they were prone to blowing the spark plugs out of the heads resulting in an expensive repair. My stabilizer bar bar fell apart the first and only trip to FL. Even driving no faster than 62 mph it would only get 4.8 mpg. When the stabilizer fell apart I could only drive 50 mph because it swayed like a ship on the ocean. When we returned home we immediately began looking for a replacement. We found a 38’ Mountain Aire on a Workhorse chassis with the Chevy 8.1L engine that gets 7-8 mpg all day long (8-9 in FL) has way more power and rides so much better.

[jimbobway47]

Our first Class A was a Damon Intruder and we got a lot of miles out of it. The strange coincidence is the failure of the wiper. I had a failure of the passenger wiper while driving in the rain. The wiper was off the windshield and banging into things. Was able to drive since the driver side was working. Got the arm off and later was able to find the correct replacement pivot point. Had another failure where the module for intermittent and low speed wiping failed. They were either on full speed or off. Again I was able to locate the proper replacement part. That was before Damon changed ownership so I am not sure they would be as responsive now. Good luck and glad you got new tires. I specified new tires when I purchased (from a dealer) after a horror story trip with my Class C (Also a Damon)