Would you ever buy a used RV from someone like travel America?

[1lonewolf]

I hear it's a good way to get into a starter RV but it's a really good idea?

[CJBROWN]

I take it 'travel america' is a rv rental company?

So, the question is whether anyone would buy a used rv rental unit?

I wouldn't. And I wouldn't rent mine out for the same reason. People just abuse the crap out of them, and generally have no idea what they're supposed to being with them anyway.

[1lonewolf]

I sort of all ready knew that I thought I just throw that out there.

[wblynch]

It looks to me that you can find a lower price on a higher quality used motorhome from a private party.

The rental companies are all about depreciation amortization and book value, where an individual just wants their used motorhome to go to a caring owner and if they get trade-in price or better then they're happy.

Just my observation...

[George Schweikle]

I'm thinking the selling price of the rental RV would be lower than a privately owned unit due to it's rental history. If so, if all systems work, and it's not too beat up, it might be a good low cost starter RV.

It's gonna be a choice between how much you have to spend compared to how much wear and tear you are willing to accept.

Originally Posted by wblynch

It looks to me that you can find a lower price on a higher quality used motorhome from a private party....

[Miamicamper]

Hello, I have just purchased a Cruise America rental and I am due to pick it up on May 12th. I researched for over a year and I think I am getting a great deal. I spent hours and hours trying to make a decision. Its a 2008 28' for 19,500. Anything else for that price is a 2002 or 2003 and none were in excellent shape. I was still hesitant about getting an ex rental but every forum I went to online had people saying that they would never buy one and that the renters treat them like crap. But I did find a few forums where people who had actually bought them had nothing but good things to say. So I made it a point to try to find people who actually bought one to see if they had any bad experiences and there were none. It's kind of weird, there's tons of people saying that they would never buy one but I could not find one instance where someone who had bought one had a bad experience. That was telling. I also spoke to my grandfather who retired at the age of 42 and drove an RV for 30 years and he says he wouldn't hesitate to get one of these. He brought up how the renters have to leave a pretty hefty deposit when they rent one and they have to bring it back in good shape to retrieve this deposit so that gives them incentive to treat it well. Also, I am fairly confident that these units go through the routine maintainence and oil changes that one traded in to a dealer or from an independent seller might not get. And I went to the dealership to see the refurb process and I am pretty confident. They change the tires, the brakes, inspect the roof and all that. We also bought the 5 year powertrain warranty so I feel like I will be happy. The only thing that stinks is it doesn't have a slideout. I will make sure my next one does though. This is our starter motorhome so we also like the fact that everything on this is pretty basic. I don't want to be too overwhelmed. Hope this helps. Like I said, I've been researching for about a year so hopefully my decision will be a good one

[1lonewolf]

Out the RV I lost in my divorce was in Itaska silver by Winnebago though the price of a used Rental RV was really tempted I'm still wrestling with you give what you pay for and I do like slide outs.

[compubmw]

I bought my class c from cruise america and its amazing. Sure it has a bit of wear and miles on it, but so far anthing that has come up on it as far as defects theyve fully covered, including a trans rebuold at 134k/mi.

Bought it last october in mesa and took it across country. Lived in it 3 months, drove through thst polat inversion stuff in the south heading back home to az. It worked like a champ.

Msg me directly with any questions and ill tell you all about it.

[Sparky1956]

Originally Posted by 1lonewolf

I hear it's a good way to get into a starter RV but it's a really good idea?

We bought a class c that was a rental for one of the big RV rental businesses. It's a 2008 Winnebago Outlook 31c and it has 50,000 miles on it. The unit was clean, had minimal wear n tear and drove well. We bought it in February of 2012. It now has 74,600 miles on it and other than routine maintenance we have not had to do anything to it.

Biggest advise is inspect the coach very closely and when you find one that fits the bill go for it and begin the fun.

[Knagy2688]

We purchased a 2007 winnebago outlook 31c last year. It had 18,000 miles and every upgrade possible. It was part of a rental fleet for 9 months and and they put 8,000 miles on it during that period. The very first question I asked the seller was about history. It was on consignment to dealer from a private party. They said a few owners and never a rental. My wife and I flew to Phoenix to purchase the RV. We have four kids and a crazy busy life. Leaving for 12 hours to buy an rv was a scheduling nightmare. Especially on short notice in the middle of the school week. With only 18,000 miles on an 07 we were excited. They all lied and after all the work and time to get us to Phoenix, I almost walked away. My wife was about to cry in the showroom. I had to make the decision to buy a used rental from a dealer that lied. The manager claimed he never knew and the younger salesman did not question the history because of the upgraded package and low mileage. This was a tough one for me. The coach checked out and looked amazing. I spent a week negotiating the price, the money to get there, time away from work and I was ready to walk away because it was once a rental. I demanded additional compensation from the seller and purchased the unit. It was a great buy and we love her. No real issues and a pleasure to own. I almost walked away because of he negative stigma. Do your homework and trust your gut. Remember every beautiful woman has a feed up ex boyfriend somewhere.

[GatorBait199]

We purchased our first motorhome through Cruise America, the Orlando/Kissimmee dealership, in 2008. We got a 2005 24 foot Class C with a little over 90K miles on it. They were very helpful. They replaced all the bedding and curtains. They told us they would even replace the linoleum floor if we wanted, there was nothing wrong with it so we kept it. It was our first RV and we wanted something that our kids could climb around without worrying about breaking/destroying anything (they were built tough to take all the abuse from the renters). Like someone else said earlier, the renters have to put a lot of $$ down in case they destroy or break something. It drives great and has been a good little camper for us. We are now looking for something else because we have outgrown it. A slide with bunks is what we have our eye on next.

I am having some leaking issues but that's my fault for not staying on top of sealing it (all campers eventually leak).

[Miamicamper]

I am picking mine up on May 12th. I already had them add on the awning but is there anything else that you guys can think of that I should try to have them throw in extra before I sign the dotted line? Also, I will do a basic inspection when I pick it up but is there anything in particular I should pay attention too? Thanks for any help you guys can offer

[BFlinn181]

Originally Posted by miamiclassC

I am picking mine up on May 12th. I already had them add on the awning but is there anything else that you guys can think of that I should try to have them throw in extra before I sign the dotted line? Also, I will do a basic inspection when I pick it up but is there anything in particular I should pay attention too? Thanks for any help you guys can offer

Turn on and test every light and appliance, all plumbing, dump valves, etc. Note in writing anything that doesn't seem right to add to the repair list in the sales agreement. It should take a number of hours to go through it all. The tech and I added water to fresh water tank, tried all fixtures and flushed toilet, then hooked up slinky and dumped black and grey. Using a multimeter, I verified all batteries charged on alternator, shore power, and generator. Furnace, water heater, both A/C etc. all tested. Check tires date codes and air pressures. Check when last oil & lube service was done.

[adlereins]

See if they will give you a complete history of all work done on the coach. All oil changes, generator maintenance, major repairs, etc. Should be no problem for them. If a problem, be cautious. My "re-purposed rental" from El Monte RV came with a stack of 20 some pages of all work done, including the changing of light bulbs Have fun and be safe!
Al