Want to buy a Class A!

[Crazyskiier68]

We've been camping for 10 years in a TT and now a 31' 5th. The biggest hassle for us is the drive...(3 kids)- I really want to buy even a used class A but don't think I can afford it- With show season coming up- What realistically can I get in terms of deals?? It is better to buy brand new and finance longer? I don't think I can afford much more that 300-350 a month. Anyone care to share their stories on the deals they may have gotten?

[Crazyskiier68]

We've been camping for 10 years in a TT and now a 31' 5th. The biggest hassle for us is the drive...(3 kids)- I really want to buy even a used class A but don't think I can afford it- With show season coming up- What realistically can I get in terms of deals?? It is better to buy brand new and finance longer? I don't think I can afford much more that 300-350 a month. Anyone care to share their stories on the deals they may have gotten?

[george henry]

crazyskiier68 , welcome to iRV2.com
Go to the nearest rv show and see what they have. And while you are there , also check the parking lot for customers selling theirs. real good prices , I have found all the time.
or go with a new model and get the 5.99 finance and do 240 months. . get a new 2008 class a by coachman or any ford chassis with the v-10 for around $425 per month on $60,000 new coach don't paid MSRP get the 22 to 28 per cent off the MSRP or walk away. but let them do the paper work first then negotiate price .and right before you sign the dotted line , ask for the 28 per cent first and let them kick it around and start to leave , then go with 25 per cent but keep a firm face , they will bite. AS long as you have good credit.

Your best bet will be to find a dealer with the national m/h on their lots . Real down to earth prices, about 25 to 30 percent from MSRP , some are selling them 10 per cent over invoice., and some dealer are selling them at invoice prices. and they will finance.

Good luck and let us know how you did.

[Gary RVRoamer]

There are many excellent deals available on older Class A's, those with no slides or one slide. Dealers are practically giving them away because everybody wants lots of slides.. You should still be able to get 15 year financing, which should give you a chance at the monthly you want. Lots of nice rigs well under $40k.

[John66]

Don't know about buying a National no matter what the deal. I suspect there would be no warrantee (except on some of the components).

I got 20 years on mine, but that is not really a wise move. You don't ever want to owe more than it is worth.

[Bill Davis]

We are on our second National RV, and would probably buy another if the price was right. Even if they are in bankruptcy. Warrenty repairs we have done over the years could have been done by a third party, at our expense. You can currently buy a 2007 or 2008 National from Dan Gambel in California with a two year dealer warrenty. Don't know how good the warrenty would be, but factory warrenty response mentioned here has often been not so great either. Yes, if the roof caved in, I would regret it.
We are on our way to Quartzsite and Yuma AZ, and I'll be looking. That's called "brand loyalty."

[Whaler]

Whatch E-Bay motorhome auctions.You'll get a good idea on values.Hundreds of units on there with lots of pix to give you ideas.
Best of luck!

[Gary RVRoamer]

Lazy Days is also standing behind the warranty on the new National RV units they have in stock. Ought to be some good prices available on a new one and somewhat better on used ones too.

[Savannah]

I was just reading a blurb from Camping World about them and their dealers (Freedom Roads) selling National products doing all warranty work. Since CW is coast to coast that makes that part of the National problem much easier to swallow. Of course that also changes the "low" price situation just to move the rig.

Since you seem to have a 5th wheel to trade in then you will no doubt end up at a dealer so just shop hard for a really good deal that you can live with. A show might be a good place for that deal but maybe after the show would be a better time since the dealer was really hoping to sell at the show so might be giving even more off. The show is the perfect place though to look and see what all is out there and to get some price ideas without a salesman pestering you.

Happy hunting.

[Hillbilly2]

Now's the best time to buy, high gas prices have slowed RV sales and dealers are hungry. Over the past 25 years I've went from a pop-up, to a pull behind, and last fall upgraded to a class A and loving it! I bought it used. If you buy used, look for one new enough to have fuel injection, as the older carburetored versions are usually trouble and get poorer gas mileage. You can get one in good shape for $20-30 thousand fairly easy.

[chasfm11]

As Gary said, there are a lot of deals on RVs with no slides. We bought in January, 2004 on a "fire sale" that the dealer had. We had looked at our RV the previous August and the dealer had actually tried to sell it 3 different times in between. Since it only had one slide, however, he wasn't successful and decided that it had to go - and quick. Since we had been shopping frequently, knew the units and the prices from our research, we were able to recognize the opportunity when we saw it and jumped on it immediately. The dealer said that we were the first of several to do so. Based on our experience, I'd suggest doing your research, deciding what you want and then being patient in the your actual buying. Something that hasn't sold in a while might be a candidate for a "fire sale" for you, too.

I have a couple of other recommendations. Even brand new MHs often have problems. An advantage of buying a used RV is that most (not all) of the problems will be apparent. You really need to carefully look for things like roof leaks, including inside closets and fluids dripping from anywhere under the engine and transmission area. You would be well served to do a lot of research about Pre-Delivery Inspections (PDIs) and do one yourself or, even better, taken an experienced MH owner along when you do it. You need to know what you are getting into before you sign. That said, you will not find all of the problems even on a PDI, IMHO, because you cannot duplicate every function of every appliance. We bought in January (28 degrees F) and could not test the dash A/C which turned out to be broken, for example. You need to put aside a little contingency. You WILL have repairs after the sale.

Lastly, one of the biggest issues with MHs is maintenance. The most economical solution to that is to do it yourself if you can. First, you are sure that the work actually gets done and second, the costs are significantly lower. I can change the engine oil in ours for $43 (4 gallons plus filter) while everyone here wants $150-250 to do that job on our 5.9 Cummins engine. I carefully read all of the manuals from the chassis and appliances, developed a list of maintenance routines required and figured out the costs of doing each one. I've done passenger cars for 30 years but the total cost of the RV maintenance was double what I expected, even doing it myself. My point is that maintenance is not an insignificant afterthought and that you need to budget for it as a part of your financial planning. Unexpected repairs are also a factor. While we have been fortunate not to have had anything major happen, there always seems to be something wrong. We had the vacum pump for the dash air, the panel control board for the 'fridge and the board for the water heater all go out last year. I recognize that with your previous RV experience, you might already understand those possibilities and am only pointing out that the MH is a more complex machine that might desire a higher repair budget.

This is not intended to be negative in any way. We love our RV and are very happy that we got it. We use the heck out of it although I was concerned that we couldn't justify the purchase before we bought. It is just better to jump into an upgrade with your eyes wide open.

[amy5708]

Why don't you look at a Class C? We love ours, and the bunk bed over the cab fits 3 smaller kids or 2 larger ones, plus there is plenty of room for our childrens' friends.

Our Class C was $40K less than motor homes that could sleep 7 people, and I can drive it because it drives like a truck.

Just my .02