'94 Thor floorplan - WOW

Found this '94 Thor Residency on eBay, and have fallen in love with its floorplan!  I have never seen such an open, functional, comfortable-looking living room & kitchen in an older rig with no slides.  Check it out:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=270107070361

That L-shaped sofa + removable coffee table (or is it a dinette? ) with a snack bar on the opposite side... Holy COW!  Anyone know anything about Thor MH's?  Amidst my additional eBay searching I found a '95 Allegro Bus with an almost identical layout.  Was Thor made by Allegro (or vice versa) at some point?  Any other experiences with this style of Class A?  $20k is way above my current price range, so I'm really hoping 94-95 wasn't the first year for this type of floorplan.

Scotty - I'm with you ... a very sharp MH! In all my snooping around, that layout is the first of its kind I've seen and I like it! Funny ... after buying our rig, I keep saying MH's that are a bit older and substantially cheaper that I'd snap up in a heartbeat. Because we're VERY part-time RV'ers right now, there's no need for a super tricked-out rig.

I know I'm being nosy and you can decline to answer but when you talk about your budget, are you looking to pat cash or finance? If you're financing, would it be conceivable to stretch it a bit to get something you'd really like ... like this rig?

Danny
Poulsbo WA

No, Thor and Tiffin (Allegro) were never associated in any way.

This is called a side aisle floor plan (walk thorugh space at the side rather than down the center) and several manufacturers have offered them from time to time.  Rexhall is another manufacturer who offered quite a few side aisles in the mid to late 90's, so you might keep an eye out for their models (Roseair, Rexair, Aerbus, Rexhall, etc.)

That appears to be a very well kept rig and $21k is probably a fair price. It's pretty cheap for  nice clean Class A.  Might even get it for a bit less, especially if the auction ends without a winner (does not meet reserve). You might want to put a bid in just to get yourself on the sellers list. Or send him a question about it so you get his email address for later negotiations.

chaajoad said:

I know I'm being nosy and you can decline to answer but when you talk about your budget, are you looking to pat cash or finance? If you're financing, would it be conceivable to stretch it a bit to get something you'd really like ... like this rig?

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All this time I've been shopping I've stuck with the idea of paying cash... with a ceiling of $10k which limits me to late 1980's and occasional early 1990's motorhomes.  However rigs like this Thor make me reconsider on some level.  Financially I know it's best to pay cash, in general and for my family specifically.  But man that Residencey "hits the spot"!  In addition to the floorplan it has many other nice amenities as well (brass light fixtures, skylights, ducted A/C, oak cabinetry), seems like it was fairly high-end when new.  A quick search on rvtraderonline.com revealed Residency and Pinnacle models (although I like the flat-nosed Residency better) listed in the high teens to low 20's... so hopefully this one is not so much a "diamond in the rough" and I have time to keep looking.    I'm not into impulse-buying, and we're not yet sure if THIS is the year we'll pull the RV trigger.

RV Roamer said:

No, Thor and Tiffin (Allegro) were never associated in any way.

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What about Thor and Four Winds?  From the ads I'm seeing online, Thor motorhomes were only around from 1991-1996 or so.  Although I found this one on RVtrader.com that has the familiar "Four Winds" model name and script on the front.

EDIT: I answered my own question via the Thor Industries RV website here.  Looks like they do make products by Four Winds, Dutchmen, Crossroads, and a host of other manufacturers.  I often forget how many of these companies have merged over the years and are now subsections of each other... kinda like how GMC/Chevy/Pontiac/Buick/Oldsmobile/Saturn are all GM products I suppose.

Scotty  Cincy isnt' that for from you.  Why not make arrangements with the people and go view it for yourself.  Remember we've always said make a lower offer if you are really interested and have cash to put down.  Make all your financial arrangements before you go check it out..  If you like it and make a deal  Give them a substancial Retainer  and then arrange to come back a dn pick it up and finish paying for it.  Just remember to try to buy it at a lower cost it might just work.  If I were near there I'd go with you to check it out.

Thanks for the tips Shayne, as always.    I need to call on that unit I linked and find out the details.  Google Maps shows Cincinnati to be 4 hours, 32 minutes driving time from me.. so probably 3.5-4 hours in reality.  Not bad at all, I drove almost that far to St. Louis to buy my last car after getting all the info and making the deal over the phone.  I'm a little confused on the model, it looks like a Residency but the ad calls it a West... so I'm not sure what the inside looks like.  Nothing that a phone call won't answer for me!

Scotty, that Residency is a great layout and a really lovely home. I thought that one had to have slideouts to be comfortable but I think I could work with that layout. I can even see how it could be converted to our standards by shifting the door to the other side then converting to right-hand drive - the door swap would be relatively easier than the driving location
I guess what makes it feel comfortable to me is that you have little rooms and walk from one to the other. In the centre aisle plans you have a long shape and things are on one side or the other. I just didn't feel as comfortable as I felt looking at those pics.

Just a thought for you to consider when adding up what you can afford to pay. After 7 years the tyres will need replacement so figure out your final cost by adding in a complete set of tyres. From what I have read here, any tyre past 7 years, no matter what low mileage it might have done or good tread it might still have on, 7 years and it is out and replaced.

All the best with your searching, hope you find just the home that you are looking for.

When we first started looking for a Class A, we seriously considered an Aerbus that had the L-couch. We really like that L-couch layout but it had no slideouts and we decided we really wanted a slide in the living room.

Wendy

Wendy, thinking about that layout (in a '94) and a slideout, how much later was it before slideouts started to appear on the RV scene? Do you know of any side aisle floor plan with a slideout or is the side aisle floor plan an idea that doesn't appear anymore with 'modern' coaches?

Scotty  Remember if you  are going to do some financing.  You might consider Refinancing your house and take the extra cash you need to pay for the unit.  That way you will only have 1 payment.  Just a little food for thought.  You'd still be paying cash  and have  a clear title.

Mike's cousin has a Winnebago with a side aisle from the kitchen by a side bath to the bedroom and it has 2 slides.

Rexhall still makes a lot of models with the L-shaped sofa, with and without slides.

Seems to me that slideouts were becoming very common in the 90s. However, when we were looking at used units a couple of years ago, we were looking at mostly early 1990s and none of the ones we looked at had slides. Of course, we may have told the salesman that we didn't care if it had a slide or not. That was before we actually sat in a motorhome with a slide and realized how much it changed the size.

Slides are very nice.  Our brother-in-law has a 5er with 3 slides.  It feels like a small apartment.  But we knew we were buying used, and felt that if we bought an older mh w/slides, without a warranty, we might be begging for mechanical problems and leaks.

Shayne said:

Scotty  Remember if you  are going to do some financing.  You might consider Refinancing your house and take the extra cash you need to pay for the unit.

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Believe me I have thought of that.  Only problem (if you want to call it that) is that I already have a 6% interest rate on my 30-year fixed mortgage and I don't think any current refinance option out there can beat that rate.  The last thing I want to do is increase my home interest in order to buy a MH.

cuts_up said:

Slides are very nice.  Our brother-in-law has a 5er with 3 slides.  It feels like a small apartment.  But we knew we were buying used, and felt that if we bought an older mh w/slides, without a warranty, we might be begging for mechanical problems and leaks.

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That's one reason I don't mind going without slides at the moment.  More moving parts, more potential for problems that I don't know how to fix!  Plus I can't afford any used model with slides anyway. 

scottydl said:

Believe me I have thought of that.  Only problem (if you want to call it that) is that I already have a 6% interest rate on my 30-year fixed mortgage and I don't think any current refinance option out there can beat that rate.  The last thing I want to do is increase my home interest in order to buy a MH.

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Scotty

As long as you have a good rate on your home mortgage, why not just take out an RV loan? RV lenders are pretty competitive, charge no closing costs or other fees and are pretty easy to deal with. You can get up to 20 year financing so your overall monthly payments would be about the same or less than if you refinanced you home and you'd save the $3-6,000 in closing costs.  AND the interest on the RV loan might be deductible on your tax return just like if you refinanced. Some caveats are that the RV must be self contained, that you don't have $1,000,000 in home loans, that you don't have another loan besides your home loan and the RV loan. Check with your accountant.

People might say that you shouldn't finance a depreciating asset, but if you refinanced your home, that is what you would be doing anyways.

Uh, we are talking about 15 year old RVs here, and maybe a $10,000 loan. Rates will not be the same as a siny new coach and you certainly won;t get 15-20 years to repay. I don't think Scotty is ready to step up to a $100k loan yet.

But the interest on any self-contained RV is indeed tax deductible as a mortgage on a second home, as long as you don't already have two homes or use it for commercial purposes.

No only that Scotty  you will be having nearly 10K Cash so your financing isn't going to be that great.

Scotty -

I understand everything you say. I thought the same way about slides. They're wonderful but A) I've read of many problems with them and, as a newbie, I wanted to keep it as simple as possible and B) they cost more money than I had.

As for financing - here's why I'm not wealthy. Well, at least one reason.

When we were thinking about this, one selling point to my wife was my upbeat "Tax deduction" ploy. So, I paid cash after refinancing our house and then I realize that it's only the INTEREST on a loan that can be deducted on a second home.

When will I learn?

But I've said this before - I hope I'm still in this forum when your search ends and ownership begins. You are so enthusiastic and becoming knowledgeable. I would think the RV community will really welcome a young, energetic guy like yourself. Keep hunting, Scotty!

This forum has been a Godsend, literally.  I can't even calculate the amount of knowledge I've picked up from you folks during this searching process, and I can't believe that a lot of people out there go into RV buying/ownership totally blind!    I am an Administrator at another auto forum so I knew the benefits of such a place... I'm just glad to have found this one for RVs.  People aren't always nearly as friendly at other unnamed RV forums I've visited in the past. 

As far as loans... Gary nailed it for the most part.  I'm looking for a $6-10k older (obviously) MH if I pay cash, and even if I "step up" and take a partial loan it will only be for another $10k.  Basically I do not want to rope myself into monthly payments for a long period of time.  You never know what the financial future may bring, and I'd rather pay cash for something and own it from the start... not pay some bank for the benefit of repeatedly socking my paycheck every month.  Overall the wife and I have been working hard for several years to REDUCE our debt as much as possible... so purposely racking it back up is just not a good feeling to me no matter how you slice it.

Another thought,  if your loan has a privelege of a 2nd loan at the prevailing loan rate, you might be able to handle it that way.  some loans you can take a 2nd at the rate of the 1st mortgage.  Just an idea of trying to find a way for you.

Good idea Shayne, and a home equity "line of credit" like you mentioned is probably what I will pursue for any amount of a loan needed.  We had a similar line of credit set up like a 2nd mortgage when we purchased our house 4 years ago, supposed to be a 10-year loan but we busted our hineys and paid it off in 2 1/2.