? for the more experienced

[veraken]

This is what I have always posted when asked about buying a used MH regardless of age.

"Once you find a MH you are interested in, get professional inspections done. If you don't do this BEFORE you purchase, you run the risk of spending significantly more AFTER the purchase. If something is found, the inspector should be able to give you an estimate to repair. You can then decide if you want to proceed and can use it to negotiate a better price. You will be going into it with your eyes open. IF nothing is found, GREAT!!

I would suggest that you get an independent certified RV mechanic to inspect all the RV systems, including the roof. In addition I would have the engine, transmission, frame, etc. inspected by a diesel service shop. Having a coolant and oil analysis by a lab (like JG Lubricants ) would reveal any hidden problems.

Make sure everything is in writing!! Any purchase should be contingent upon successfully passing these inspections/tests.

I would do this to any used MH I was looking to buy.

https://www.jglubricantservices.com/
You get a 10% discount if you use "IRV2" as a promo code"

[AE Wanderer]

Originally Posted by Molokai Mike

We are planning on Full Timing in the near future and I know I want a class a DP. I have been doing a lot of research and have been looking at RV Trader comparing RV's almost every day. I have noticed the are some very nice high end RV's for around $40k. They are close to 20 years old, but a lot look like they have been well taken care of and have had quite a few upgrades. My question is would it be better to look into purchasing one of these even if they are older and knowing there may be some issues, then buying one that is less than 10 years old that may have the same issues anyway, but cost you twice as much? For example, if you had $100k and purchased a nice high end coach for $40k, you would basically have a $60k emergency fund. If you bought the same class of coach that is much newer, you could pay $80k and only have a $20k emergency fund and no guarantee that it would need less maintenance than the older one. Also, I am not really concerned about getting into places that do not allow older RV's. I don't think it will impact us much and if it does we will work around it.
Mahalo in advance

We have a 2008 coach with a Cummins 425HP ISL engine. We found out the hard way the EGR cooler goes on 90% of these engines between 45,000 and 55,000 miles. Our coach had 54,000 miles on it. It was a design flaw, and the new cooler is an ISX with a Cummins supplied adapter. Expect to spend between $4-$5 for this repair if you get an ISL.

Good thing, the older coaches are built much better than the new ones. Ours has solid cherry cabinets, tag axle, and an Aqua-Hot. It is a 2008 American Eagle 42F.

[barmcd]

If you're mechanically minded, a high quality older coach can be a good deal. We bought a 2000 Monaco Dynasty that was in good condition. I've learned a whole lot about truck chassis and RV systems in the 3 1/2 years we've owned it. Keep in mind that even high quality systems wear out with use and will need replaced.

[Molokai Mike]

Mahalo all for the great advice. I would definitely have the coach and engine/transmission inspected before I purchased any motor home as well as research any know issues. I just seems to me that going with an older, high end, well maintained coach at a much lower price would make the most sense to me. A lot of the ones I have looked at have the maintenance records, many new parts and many have been updated inside. I know the engine and transmission are expensive to repair/replace, but it is on a 10 year old rig also, but I would have a lot less $ to do it if they do fail. My thought is buy a really nice older coach for around $40k (after inspections). If the belts, hoses, filters, fluids, tires, air bags ... need to be replaced, do that right away (which I would use to help in negotiations). Now I should have a very nice coach that I would feel fairly confident to take on the road and if there was other issues, I would still have $ left for repairs. I also plan on taking a RV Tech course because I plan on doing as much as I can myself.

[vito.a]

I agree with your idea. Since you are willing to to the work yourself, recommend you focus your search on 2004-2009 models. The reason is the entire industry turned upside down in 2008 and many of the manufacturers went under. Additionally, EPA added increased emissions on newer diesel coaches.

Do not limit your search to a local area, search the entire US.
Be careful with pricing. Some dealers wil price coaches well above market and wait for the uneducated buyer.
Use RVTrader.com, RVT.com, eBay.com, and the classified section on this forum. Learn to sort your searches by price, lowest first. This will put the high priced dealers at the end of the list.
Be prepared to travel to the large RV market areas like TX, Phoenix, FL, and OR.
Take a notebook, a camera, a pair of gloves, an inspection mirror, and your spouse. You can go over the outside and she can go over the inside.
Have patience. Allow at least 6 months. You will learn from every coach you look at.

Some suggestions: Travel Supreme Select (these are sleepers), Newmar Mountain Aire and Dutch Star (although these are usually priced high), Country Coach Intigue and Allure, Monaco Camelot/Windsor and Dynasty, Holiday Rambler Imperial and Navigator, Beaver Contessa and Patriot, and Tiffen Allegro Bus. When you find some models you like, focus your search on these. If they are priced too high, just drop the model year back.
Don't get caught up in searching for a short (under 34') diesel coach. Most of these drive terible as they have a very heavy engine and trans hanging off the rear and it becomes the tail wagging the dog.

If you plan on towing a car out west, ask for the engine torque rating, not HP. Try to find at least 1000 ft lbs.
I prefer a coach with a side radiator. This makes it easier to work on the engine. Also, if the manufacturer compromised and placed the radiator in the rear they made hundreds of other compromises to achieve a price point.
Hope this helps!

[Wiweeds]

We looked for almost a year before buying. Our budget was $50k. We wanted side radiator, Cummins engine, under 40’, generator, and push out. As we looked we found lots of $40k+ units that still needed some work. We ended up with a inside stored 1995 Holiday Rambler 37’ that was stored for 10 years. Ran and drove good and most systems worked. Paid $19.5k and have put on new tires fixed several things and have spent $6k in repairs. Total of $25.5k invested. But I like to do this work my self and now am familiar with the systems and operation and know that all of the maintenance is good for several years. This was older than I planned but is built very well with oak cabinets, porcelain toilet, large storage tanks, and well cared for (before storage). Good luck on search.

[marjoa]

This kind of question always IMO misses the big picture.

The OP has done a good job (you can tell) by outlining two different option arguments. This option vs that option of what coach to buy or what to look for. But for me when analyzing this type of question—which we also did in preparing to go FT—about 3 years ago was this: "What will be the total annual operating cost of the coach itself and then list all our other projected annual costs to come up with a projected annual budget. Now with these numbers I can get a real good feel for what we can do vs what should do.

Post# 4 said, "Insurance is also pretty inexpensive". Ours was too....3 years ago in the beginning when we played with our RV. So, if you bought your RV as a play thing to go out two or three times a year and the rest of the time it's parked, then yeah pretty reasonable.

But that all changes when you go FT like the OP is planning on doing and especially with a DP. We just renewed our FT insurance last month for our coach and toad. Our Insurance rep. (who works with Escapees) said that every insurance company—across the board—that writes RV policies, has raised their FT rates substantially and especially on DP's. Lots of claims, expensive to repair. West coast Fires, midland floods and east coast hurricane type natural disasters and high DP repair cost was the real things that fueled the increases.

So to the OP, be sure to put this insurance item in your annual budget. Many things determine insurance premiums—of course—but it wouldn't surprise me a bit if this turned out to be around a $350-$500/mo. item for what you're looking at buying.

I would not worry one bit about the age of a coach getting into a CG's unless you go to a real exclusive, glitzy CG that cost more per night to stay than you'd be willing to pay for it anyway. As long as the coach is well kept and looks nice it will not be a problem.

Good luck in your search.

[RKins]

You said you're not afraid to dig in and fix stuff both mechanically and in the "house". I have replaced and fixed a lot and even took it back to the factory to have them rebuild the windshield area - glad they did it and not some hack.

I say find the top of the line in a brand that you are comfortable with as far as quality and go for it - mine is 22 now, was Newmar's top of the line in '97 and I don't regret it. I am not full time and don't expect to spend more than 4-7 months a year in her. I know if I needed to haul butt out of here for this storm, she's ready to run to anywhere I want to run to.

[Ivylog]

I’d planned on my Dynasty lasting me another 14 years until I aged out but my son decided he’d like to have it instead of a new Class C. Rubber parts or seals do not age out at 10 years

Buying a older top of the line DP is money well spent and saying you need 10s of thousands dollars for upgrading and repairs is not what I’d say.

Other than 2 new front tires (4 year old cracking Michelin) none of the other things I did to our “new” 08 Navigator were actually necessary...led Smart TVs, 900W of solar, 880AH of AGMs, and replacing a oven-stove with an induction cooktop...less than $5000.