Fixing, trading , or selling .... need some logical thinking

[225digger]

ok . 1st off just a little history im not sure how many "younger" people are on here , but im 32, im saying this because i consider myself young with RV's and dont have the experience some of you more experienced lady and gents have on here with RV's and im looking for advice ..... when i was 26 i bought my 1st diesel pusher becuase i worked on motor homes when i was at a big cummins shop doing engine maintence road testing and other little things with coach care that was when i was 23-24 so i wanted a DP when i could afford it, i have been a camper all my life with mom n dad but in tents and with the boy scouts ..in tents....also at the time of purchase i was doing local drag racing so the RV was great for staying at the track , fast forward to now , i have 2 young kiddies and love enjoying time traveling more than at the track .

so here is my problem . the RV i currently have is a 36' georgie boy on a frieghtliner chassis , with a small 5.9 cummins and 6spd allison, its a cruise master , so for the time it was pretty nice , 1 slide , air ride , etc , it is a very capable RV and has been all over , when i got it in 08 it had just under 60k miles on it , now its just about 90k miles . and well its 14 yrs old , and mileage , its starting to show its age . so im at a major cross roads .

the things that need fixed:

the lower luggage doors , they are made out of 1" starofoam with a fiberglass outside , but between the fiberglass and foam is luane board or what ever you call that 1/4 wood stuff , and well , the fiberglass is stating to delaminate , its not bad , but it is something that should be addressed and is occurring on 5 of maybe 8 doors i notice it all the time beucase i see it ... alot of people dont say anything becuase it may look normal to them

next issues ,some water damage... mine has a driver side door , one of those goofy little doors , im not sure why i bought it with that side door but i HATE it . anyways as we all know over time these things move around and the door doesnt seal as it should... mainly the door seal got compressed , well rain water has wicked up into the inside and is making the inside paneling bubble above the door its not coming from the roof that i can tell as the water damage is more along the top of the door and not below the roof. also in the bedroom , under the one window it has water damage , not from the roof , but under the window the window was left open for some time and not noticed so it made the wall panel bubble , the bedroom has those flip up style windows , not the slide type windows . the inside of this motorhome was before the nice FRP panels so water damage is very easy to see. it has a wood panel that was wall papered .

aside from those 2 major things it has carpet in it . for me to keep it i want to rip it out and install wood or linoleum .

o yea tires are at 6 yrs old . so theres a hit if i decide to try and sell it or trade it .

other than those few things its a very solid RV , and very dependable . so do i spend 10k + to fix it myself and still have a 14yr old rv that i may want to trade up into something bigger ? , or do i try and trade it in ? i could do the luggage doors myself , i own and operate a metal fab shop , so making the new doors out of aluminum wouldn't be to hard for me as i have the stuff to do them right . id probably have 1500 ish into it with material and paint . plus time , im guess 1 week to do the job .

inside wise i do things the right way so i would want to pull the inside out to repair the walls . i could probably short cut it , but i dont do things that way .

i have read alot of threads on forums where users are asking the same as me and most people said just take the hit trade into something else and be done with it let the dealer worry about it . some have said just repair it and enjoy it for alittle longer .... maybe im looking for someone to help push me off the edge of the cliff and trade into something else .

im not the kind of guy that has to have the best or gets jealous of that new fancy tag DP . but at the same time i work alot of hours and i would like to enjoy my time off enjoying the RV . so having something newer and bigger would be nice .

help , suggestions , anything would be greatly appreciated ...

[jaminman]

I am fairly new to the diesel world, this is however my third MH. I have two brothers that are gas mechanics and they buy and sale vehicles. I can only inform you that from an investment point of view assuming you purchased this MH and it was not a gift that $10,000 would be to much to invest in a fairly old MH. Look at your cost to buy it and then how much it would be to get it right, add that together and see what the total is.

I would then see what that age of MH is selling for. My brothers have had owners come in and want a certain price because they feel that is what it is worth. I was at his shop this morning and someone had a 2000 28ft C class, they wanted $16,000. In a polite way he told them to keep on dreaming, lol. The man ended up trading for a $5,000. truck and $5,000 cash. Hope this helps

[TeJay]

Well there are several way to approach your concerns. You know that just because things are NEWER does not mean that they are better. Many a poster has had dozens of items to be fixed at the dealer. Trading up or buying new and you'd be spending a lot of $$$$$. You might inherit another guys problems unless you look for the right upgrade with issues that you know you can fix. You could steal a good unit with an engine or transmission problem and fix it yourself. Units for sale that can't or won't move are much cheaper.

Our unit listed a for a little over $100,000. I could have bought used for maybe $15,000-$30,000, spent another $30,000 to $40,000 and been way ahead. I didn't want to start that at age 70.

I as you have a good background in the fix it area. I've done car painting some FG work, taught automotive for 35 years, fix and work on everything in the house which we built from the ground up. Worked on radar repair in the AF and have even some aircraft work experience but mostly things related to mechanical which is not to different from auto.

The DW on the other hand likes new and is concerned that if we got a used unit I'd be working on it all the time. So we decided to get a 2014 WBGO unit and I am not sorry. Were I your age, experience level and with a lot of time ahead of me I think I'd buy used and fix her up the way I want it. That said, I do like the idea of having a unit that has a slide. Slides do add a lot to the floor plan. You already have an air ride system which I wish we had. I've spent a lot of time trying to get the new gas unit to ride better. But that's another story.

If your engine, drive train and brakes are in good shape and with your abilities I think I'd fix the unit you have and use it until the kids are in their teens and don't want to go camping anymore. Then trade for another fix-er-up and do it again until the kids are out of the house so you and the DW can travel.

A lot of folks here on the forums won't attempt what you're thinking because they don't have the skills or tools to do it. They know they are going to pay top $$$ and may still not get it done the way they want it done.

I just turned 70. I'm in good shape but time will catch up with us all. As I travel down the road in the MH It's wonderful to know that almost anything that breaks I will understand what is happening, can probably fix just about anything or at least understand what has to be fixed. That makes traveling a lot easier and more pleasant. You are young, have the skills and a perfect opportunity to re-build a unit and save a bunch of cash and have it the way you want it.

Your decision would be an easy one for me.

Best of luck and let us know what you decide.

TeJay

[225digger]

Originally Posted by jaminman

I can only inform you that from an investment point of view assuming you purchased this MH and it was not a gift that $10,000 would be to much to invest in a fairly old MH. Look at your cost to buy it and then how much it would be to get it right, add that together and see what the total is.

I would then see what that age of MH is selling for.

i purchased in 08 for 50k . was not a bad price for then , and it was what i wanted , a cummins engine on a frieghtliner chassis .

georgie boy did have a pretty good name , unfortunatly they are gone , closed up in 06 i think . doing some research nada lists this one around 35k .... and better named RV's are selling in the high 20k range

[jaminman]

You purchased it used in 08 and now it is 14 years old, so it is a 2000? So you have had it 9 years? How much would you say it is worth as it stands right now?

[225digger]

Originally Posted by jaminman

I am fairly new to the diesel world, this is however my third MH. I have two brothers that are gas mechanics and they buy and sale vehicles. I can only inform you that from an investment point of view assuming you purchased this MH and it was not a gift that $10,000 would be to much to invest in a fairly old MH. Look at your cost to buy it and then how much it would be to get it right, add that together and see what the total is.

I would then see what that age of MH is selling for. My brothers have had owners come in and want a certain price because they feel that is what it is worth. I was at his shop this morning and someone had a 2000 28ft C class, they wanted $16,000. In a polite way he told them to keep on dreaming, lol. The man ended up trading for a $5,000. truck and $5,000 cash. Hope this helps

Originally Posted by jaminman

You purchased it used in 08 and now it is 14 years old, so it is a 2000? So you have had it 9 years? How much would you say it is worth as it stands right now?

i forgot to mention that ... i purchased it used in 2008 . it is a 2000 model yr .

looking at what is on the market and what things are selling for i feel private party i should be able to get 20-22k for it as is . i know it needs the minor work . but looking at the pros . everything works . 7500 onan diesel gen set , 2 15k air units , water heater works , fridge works great . newer sat dish {auto} aside from the cosmetic things you can get into it and drive it anywhere without issue , and probably for some people they would do just that and not even put the money into fixing it up , but for me and the wife , we preffer to have nicer things that is why we are looking for advice on fixing up , or trading out

i knew going into it that RV's do not hold there value . i consider what i paid for it and how much i used it worth every penny so far .

[225digger]

Originally Posted by TeJay

Your decision would be an easy one for me.

Best of luck and let us know what you decide.

TeJay

hi tejay , didnt want to qoute your whole long msg , i appreciate the comment i know it would be an easy one for you and most others . but for me being younger its harder . we try very hard to live within our means , so redoing this one is being heavily considered .

[jaminman]

I guess if you could get say 22k right now and say you decide to keep it and put 10k into to fix it, if you took the 22k and the 10k saving how much more would you have to put in to get what your DW would like? It might only be a 20k difference and you to have newer and a happier wife, lol.

My wife likes newer (ask me how much our new kitchen is gonna cost). You paid 50k and after 9 years you will get almost half back, I would say that is not to bad. Let me break down mine that I purchased last year. It is a 2005 and new in Canada it was sold to the original owner for $249,000. Two years later they traded and the second owners purchased for $140,000. They kept it for 5 years and we purchased for $70,000. 4 slides, 2 furnaces, washer/dryer etc. I figure if I keep it for 5 years I might get 40k to 45k. I consider that as good as it gets, at least for a MH. How much is enjoyment in this life and a happy wife worth?

[225digger]

Originally Posted by jaminman

I guess if you could get say 22k right now and say you decide to keep it and put 10k into to fix it, if you took the 22k and the 10k saving how much more would you have to put in to get what your DW would like? It might only be a 20k difference and you to have newer and a happier wife, lol.

How much is enjoyment in this life and a happy wife worth?

if i could get that , i would be happy . unfortunatly . we want a DP tag unit becuase thats what i want due to towing an enclosed trailer to race tracks . and looking at our options we are in the 130-150k range . that 32k would deffenitly help with the purchase . however finding a buyer who wants a DP i think is going to be hard .

in the long run , i know what i want to make me happy , and the wife .,....the hard part is doing it .

oddly for me, i have no problem doing a huge lease for my business at a moments notice for a piece of machinery or buying 10-15k worth of steel to venture into a new market that i didnt even sell into yet .... but man when it comes to this personal stuff its hard as all heck .

[ahicks]

10k for tires and the required TLC to build/rebuild the doors? The door frames are still good, right? Have you considered rebuilding them? If you paid yourself a thousand per door, you'd still have plenty left over for tires....

[bamaboy473]

Originally Posted by 225digger

oddly for me, i have no problem doing a huge lease for my business at a moments notice for a piece of machinery or buying 10-15k worth of steel to venture into a new market that i didnt even sell into yet .... but man when it comes to this personal stuff its hard as all heck .

That's the sign of a dying breed; a true American businessman

[225digger]

Originally Posted by ahicks

10k for tires and the required TLC to build/rebuild the doors? The door frames are still good, right? Have you considered rebuilding them? If you paid yourself a thousand per door, you'd still have plenty left over for tires....

i figure 10k for tires , and redoing the interior with new side panels , linolium or wood flooring .and some other things the inside may need that i may replace . and the luggage doors , these luggage doors are cheap , they basically took the foam board , laminated the wood/fiberglass outside to it , inside they put plastic sheeting its hard kind of like .065 thick . then they used c-channel to encase it , to me its cheap , if i would re do them i would start fresh with all new ....use .090 aluminum , bend the ends on our finger brake to create the sides , then laminate foam board into it , then layer it with plastic . i have tig welders at the shop so i can easily weld the corners etc to make it rigid .... trust me when i go camping i sit there and run it thru my head on exactly how i want to build them .... then we get back home to the business and its back to working on customers stuff and everything else goes to the way side .

Originally Posted by bamaboy473

That's the sign of a dying breed; a true American businessman

thank you ! i try to invest back into american everything . machines , steel , etc . very picky on what i do.

[kustom]

i say go for it. and do the repairs you known what you got if you do the
repairs / upgrades you will have what you and your wife want with out
spending or getting a loan on a new used one . a tip check cragislist
you can find lots of stuff for your motorhome our last motorhome we
found the oak flooring new leftover bought for $20 did whole thing and
had a few leftovers our curent motorhome now has solid surfice counter
tops table tops ect got off of cragislist for $ 50 so lots of deals out there
to do things but at low cost pic of counter john

[ahicks]

So this "logic" exercise must include proper motivation for you to take the time to do the required work as well? You have no regular "me" time you'd like to devote to the project?

Sounds to me like you need a coach you can get excited about, and this one isn't the one.