New RV Owner

[bobhaff]

My wife and I just purchased a 1977 Dodge Vogue. We want to take it somewhere to have it checked out prior to parking it and hooking it up. Does anyone have any suggestions? We don't want to take it to someplace that is just going to cause more problems for future profit. Any thoughts? Thank you for your help!

[Jim Stewart]

Welcome to IRV2, glad to have you here!

I would just hook it up at home. You can then check the air, heat, refer, inverter/charger, batteries, lights, micro/oven, stovetop, water heater (electric/propane), faucets, drains, holding tanks and valves, levelers if applicable, generator if applicable, vents, fans and anything else you can think of.

I would not take it to the Dealer blind and tell him to check and fix anything that is wrong. First, they probably will not check everything and if they do, they may spend a lot of money fixing a simple problem you could solve yourself.

With that vintage model, you may have to look a little to find parts.

Good Luck, Jim

[paz]

bobhaff, welcome to iRV2.

I agree with Jim about checking out the house systems at home; but unless you're mechanically inclined, you may want to take it somewhere to have things like brakes, steering, and alignment checked. You could also have a tune-up done. I'm not that familiar with the Vogue, but maybe a Dodge dealer could steer you in the right direction.

Even if you're not too mechanically inclined, you could check the age of the tires. The sidewalls have date codes. If they're older than 7 or 8 years and/or they show signs of cracking, I would replace them.

The second thing I would do is change (or have someone change) oil, brake fluid, antifreeze, etc., unless you know these things were recently changed. Also check brake lines and fuel lines, and check and/or replace hoses and belts.

Best wishes with your new purchase.