Feb 2013 Build Date---REDBARON73 DSDP

[redbaron73]

Originally Posted by Canuck53

I thought you traded it in with Midway?

Yes , I have a deal for trade. Midway is such a straight forward deal that the trade offer is actually a cash offer. They consider the trade part standalone and not connected with the new purchase price. So my purchase price is the same with or without trade, and my trade is same with or without purchase. It's one of the reasons I said it was such a fair deal, straight forward, and no hassle.

I am listing it for sale ( http://www.newmarhoots.com/2013-newm...-sale-by-owner) to save the cost of fuel driving it up to napannee. Not a big expense, but one less thing to worry about. That is why the listing price is firm, as anything less doesn't make sense to sell direct.

I am running it for 60 days, and if it doesn't sell, then it will go to Midway

[Zarbek]

Never extend the full wall slide in an unlevel condition. I level, roll the slide out, then level again. I then check with a carpenter level inside just to double check.

[redbaron73]

Originally Posted by Zarbek

Never extend the full wall slide in an unlevel condition. I level, roll the slide out, then level again. I then check with a carpenter level inside just to double check.

I would be sure of the reveal, regardless of level . Newmar recommends to keep coach at ride height, check reveal, extend slide, then level.

To bring in, return to ride height before moving slide.

This is crucial for the fws that is electric.

[redbaron73]

Today my RV sold. When I decided to list my coach for sale, I knew that I didn't want to answer 100's of phone calls or emails, so I decided to take the approach of listing my bottom line price up front. I listed the coach on 6/24, the day before we left on our summer trip, with a note on the ad's stating the coach would not be available until July 25th, and it would not be available after Aug 24th.

Lots of pictures where put up on the web, and a lot of information, including a throw away phone number, in preparation for the onslaught of "spam" phone calls.

We paid for the listing on RVTrader, using the minimal package, used the classified here on IRV2, and put it on Facebook.

I didn't get a single phone call the entire month of July, which I attributed to the fact that the coach was "not available until July 25".

Everything changed Aug 9th, when 3 emails from RVTrader came in, and 2 phone calls. I was in a meeting, so I couldn’t respond right away, but from 10am until 2pm I had very detailed conversations with 3 people. From the way the conversations went, these were well qualified leads, and not just casual shoppers or scam artists.

One of the parties indicated they were having trouble getting financing but would keep attempting. Their bank called me within an hour, confirming details, and that was the last I heard. This was very unusual, as this caller asked very little about the coach, and seemed to be "sold" before calling, but just unable to make the financial arrangements.

The other two parties kept me busy for the next day, with lots of information requests. A couple of times I was confused as to whom I was talking with, because the approach was almost identical by both. Lots of questions about condition, features, etc.

I took the approach of sending my initial Newmar build sheet that came from the factory along with lots of pictures that showed the coach clean and then detailed photos of the damaged areas (2 tile, walls that had scuff, wood damage, etc.) I spent almost as much time describing the areas that have been repaired or damaged as I did the areas that were operating normal or in good condition.

I included pictures of the broken windshield, roof, the condition of the dicor, along with recommendations that the dicor be maintained. I also included detailed pictures of all of my modifications, such as the Fence Post, Pressure washer, Spot-Free Rinse, HWH Active Air, BMK, Sanicon Turbo 400s, TPMS, and other small items. I offered to remove any of the customizations that were “unwanted”.

Friday morning, I received a call from Les, letting me know he wanted to make the trip to come see the coach. He had already arranged for an inspection to be done and was wanting to confirm this would be acceptable. We went over the details and agreed on his arrival being Wednesday. An hour later that morning, the other shopper called, wanting to travel to see the coach, and was willing to show up on Tuesday.

I made a pretty quick decision to not allow the Tuesday visit, and hoped I would not regret the decision. I informed him that I had just completed talking with another individual that would be flying out and having an inspection done on Wednesday, and that I was going to wait until he left on Wednesday before showing it again, due to the expense Les was incurring in both the inspection and travel. The buyer understood, and we agreed to talk on Wednesday.
I spent all day Sunday removing 4 years’ worth of living from the RV, as well as removing all of my Media center upgrades, computer systems, and other various personal items. I was amazed at how much “WEIGHT” I removed from the coach, which really didn’t seem like a lot up to that point.

Les arrived Tuesday night, and we did a test drive in the coach and he had the opportunity to do the initial look at things. Wednesday the inspector arrived on time and got to work. I was very worried about the knowledge an inspector may or may not have, but this person was TOP NOTCH Excellent. She was a “Level 2” certified inspector and understood all the systems and their operation. I was not expecting that.

During the inspection, we did various leveling of the coach, and that is when Murphy arrived --- you know, that guy that only shows up at the worst time? I had posted back in June about a failed master solenoid for my leveling system. This master solenoid is a continuous duty solenoid, and I had found one that was very close in spec to the original. At the time HWH told me “it should work” but offered to ship me one. I declined, thinking it was good enough. And it was, for 2.5 months, and then failed right in the middle of our inspection.

I diagnosed it quickly and did a jumper bypass to get the levelers working. That was the only item that failed. I felt bad about it, and I completely understood the uneasiness the potential buyer was having at that point. I called HWH and had a part shipped overnight to fix it properly.
There was a few more wear items that I had not noticed that the inspector found, all of which I felt were fairly described and identified. Les left without making an offer but did inquire if the price was at all negotiable, which I reaffirmed it was not, but that I would repair the Level system and broken windshield.

Later that evening, the second buyer contacted me to ask the status, and I gave a full report of what was found, including the additional wear items and solenoid issue. We had a lengthy conversation, with a few more pictures, and then a discussion on timing. I had a deadline of all transactions that I had disclosed in my advertising and in discussion that all transactions had to be complete by Aug. 24 and didn’t want to waste their time if they could not pull financing together that quick. They assured me that would not be an issue, but they wanted to discuss traveling on Saturday via air, or driving down and arriving Sunday, with plans to return home with the coach. As they had a lot of complexity to their decision, they decided to discuss, and call me back on Friday.

Friday around Noon, Les called me to tell me that he wanted to purchase the coach. While talking with him about the details, the 2nd buyer called me and left a voicemail. Timing was just crazy on this whole thing. When I called them back, I explained that I had just sold it, and the timing was just off for them. They offered me more than my asking price, raising their offer twice, but I wasn’t interested in going back on my acceptance.

There are several things that you should take away from my experience:
#1 - you do not need to spend a lot of money advertising it. The basic package is all that is required to put the information out.

#2 – It is much easier to describe all the faults up front. Don’t gloss over the issues, don’t make excuses. Accurately describe and demonstrate what has happened. This will save you the hassle of a buyer expecting something more than what you have to offer.

#3 – Be reasonable in the price you list it for. A common mistake is to price it too high and wait to be beat up for a better deal. Price it fair up front.

#4 – Don’t panic when Murphy shows up during a delivery, inspection, or anytime during the process. RV’s are never perfect, and the new owner will be doing repairs soon enough.

#5 -Use extreme caution when dealing with payments. I kept a portion of my RV under a loan, so that the bank would handle all the details of collecting payment and remitting to me. If you do not have a loan, you can still use your local bank to assist with the payment process. It is best to be done between financial institutions, using a wire service. Be weary of certified checks, or any other instrument that can be easily forged.

I should also mention that when a person has a Winnebago product, and they look at the Newmar electrical, just agree up front…Winnebago is better at electrical. I understand they also have colder dash air conditioners, and easier closing entry doors. Those 3 items where mentioned to me several times, but the over all Newmar quality was apparent.

Throughout the process, I met several nice people, and have hopefully added another Hoot to the group with the new owners of my 2013 DSDP4347

[Dutch Star Don]

"redbarron73".....Thanks for the above info. The timing is PERFECT. I'm stripping the gear out of my coach now and will do one more trip on Labor Day. I plan to do the same thing as you and list at the end of next week. My dealer recommended RVTrader as a primary listing spot. Your price also gives me a good starting point for mine.

Emptying the coach is killing me.....I have two sets of dinette chairs to go with the coach and have to get one set out of the rafters. Washing and waxing begins tomorrow.

Murphy hit me too. I was getting things out of the bedroom and saw the small MCD shade by the bed was unfurled. The mechanism was broken....MCD is shipping a new mechanism tomorrow.

[redbaron73]

The unloading is the absolute pits. I was happy that the buyer wanted all of my extras, as I didn't want to add another 4 days removing all the tweaks I installed. It was a lot of fun putting it in, and I have that to look forward to in the next few months.

The only issue with the basic package is there is a limit to the number of photos. I solved that by putting extras on my website. You can use any number of free services to share photo galleries with potential buyers.

[Ernie.]

unloading, labeling box boxes, and packing... it starts out organized, as the last of the stuff comes out, not quite so neatly.

[OceanTom]

Good write up and the BMK is an important option for anyone who wants to manage their expensive batteries carefully i.e. don't discharge more the 50%.

However, "Soldering instead of crimping" high amperage cables is a major mistake and will never be seen in a professional/factory installation.

It may look neater but, solder is a very poor conductor.
One can correctly say that soldering AFTER crimping can prevent moisture from entering the crimp and wicking into the cable.
With the space between the copper cable and the uncrimped lug filled with solder, you will have a high resistance that, with high current flow will generate a tremendous amount of heat.
I have seen a cable for a high output alternator actually melt with the solder dripping out of the lug.
Best to all!

[redbaron73]

Agree . On my 2019 I did not solder, instead used crimps. The solder never failed, but once I learned it was replaced

[Big_Lebowski]

Great thread.... as a first time MH buyer and with the plan to order what we want, this has been a very valuable thread for me. We're stepping up from the truck camper world as we move into retirement.

[redbaron73]

Originally Posted by Big_Lebowski

Great thread.... as a first time MH buyer and with the plan to order what we want, this has been a very valuable thread for me. We're stepping up from the truck camper world as we move into retirement.

Check out my more recent one for my 2019 DSDP