Video: "Don't Buy an RV"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IP_u2JR51_Y. This is a real eye opener. I guess I have been extremely lucky that my small, low cost travel trailer which is now one year old has had no major issues at all. I can't imagine the anger and rage I would be having if I spent several hundred thousand dollars on a new RV, ran into major problems, and THEN discovered that I have little legal recourse. I had been thinking about looking at motorhomes but I now have a real question about proceeding on this.

hes not wrong.

Actually watching Bob Wells video on 10 reasons to choose cargo trailer over an RV. I looked into this before. I may have to educate the wife on this and show her the differences. I know cargo trailers are plain vs a normal rv decaled up. its not traditional, but financially...it makes sense.

  Evan the by-line is stupid,,an "RV" (recreational vehicle) can be anything from a motorcycle to a boat!!>>>Dan

Sounds like a lot of good advice to me. This message board is full of horror stories from people who bought new RV's. The point of the video is simply to be aware of what you're getting into.

It can happen.  We've been lucky that the last two TT's we bought new had no major problems.

vito55 said:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IP_u2JR51_Y. This is a real eye opener. I guess I have been extremely lucky that my small, low cost travel trailer which is now one year old has had no major issues at all. I can't imagine the anger and rage I would be having if I spent several hundred thousand dollars on a new RV, ran into major problems, and THEN discovered that I have little legal recourse. I had been thinking about looking at motorhomes but I now have a real question about proceeding on this.

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vito55
That is an excellent video.... one everyone should see and think about before they buy a RV.

Unfortunately those of us who own RVs already know that buying a RV is not a logical choice... (but most of us are to proud to admit it).

BTW my 2 adult sons learned a long time ago that NOT owning a motor home is smarter, (and a lot less expensive),  than owning one.

I thought it was informational.

The take away from it may be the best buy is a 5 year old one. Let the first owner fix all the weaknesses and take the big depreciation. They do drop like a rock in value once used.

To us, buying an RV was a reasonable and logical decision.  One that we have never regretted in the twelve years and two RVs we have owned.  Ignorant people run the risk of getting taken to the cleaners on almost any purchase, but I do agree that getting taken to the cleaners on an RV is more costly than getting taken to the cleaners on a purchase of a bicycle.

Our current RV is one that was bought back by Winnebago.  They did some refurbishing, and we bought it at a good price and a three month warranty of which we used in the first month for a transfer switch, and a solenoid for the HWH jacks.

I encourage more people to go out and buy new RVs, so there will be more used ones on the market.

If any of you read my purchase of a used TT and its condition knows what I've  been through. What I understand now is there are two types of campers. Ones that are leaking and ones that will leak. You have to stay on top of the roof....no pun intended. Even if it cost a few hundred dollars a year to maintain it that will be money well spent. If not you will end up with this.

Paul & Ann said:

I encourage more people to go out and buy new RVs, so there will be more used ones on the market.

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Sorry Paul

I bought mine brand new 18 1/2 years ago with no intention of putting it on the market.<G>

  Terry's new paint proves that.>>>Dan :

Like almost any investment, the key is knowledge.

Look at any large investment ... say a house.  I have bought and sold a couple.  I know what to look for and how much things will cost to fix.  I also know what I can do myself and what I will need to  pay for.

A friend bought a house last year ... though he got a buy.  Well he knows nothing about a house and can't even hold a hammer.  After a new furnace, roof, rotting deck, leaking foundation, ... he could have bough one for less with all these things already done.  Plus he stripped out all the trim thinking he could refinish the interior himself (just a little Spackle and paint) .....  a year later it is mostly primer with no trim anywhere.

Anyway, everyone must understand that an RV like any item will have things go wrong (maybe even right from the factory) and if you can't repair them yourself, you will need to pay big dollars to have them fixed (our local shop is $125 per hour).

Knowledge is power!

Just FYI ... I have never had a motor home before this one.  My wife is paralyzed from the shoulders down and needs care every 4 hours in a hospital bed.  She had never traveled away from home.

When I met her about 8 years ago, I got the idea of buying a small RV and converting it to a mobile care center.  I paid $18K for a 10 year old unit.  I went to have a wheelchair lift put it ... $25K!  No way ... so I cut a new door, designed and built my own.  I also built a track lift from front to back of the RV inside.  I put two hospital beds on tacks to move side to side.  Took almost a year to tinkering but it works great!  We even lived in it full time for almost 3 years (not easy here in VT with winter temps of -30 deg but we saved $1000 per month in rent) while building a house.

Here is a link to the project:  https://mcsele.shutterfly.com/2299

This RV has been a God sent!  Without it, my wife could never travel more than a couple hours away from home.  Now we hit the road whether it be for just a day trip or a month on the road.

Thanks .... Mike

Jericho, VT

I too found the video informative.
Dislike the title, "Don't buy an RV".
A better title would be "Do your due diligence before buying an RV".

I love our RV.  But it is a stupid financial decision- almost anything with an engine is a stupid financial decision.

Now the family time we spend in the RV is priceless AND if I get my kids through their teens without getting into any major trouble and drug free then again it is should priceless.

The knowledge I have picked up about owning an RV is better than taking a local course.  Prior to owning an RV, I didn't even know what a solenoid was or how battery chargers really worked.  I didn't understand tires and loads or properly towing something.  I also was more shy and more of an introvert.  Driving 3000 miles on a multiple week trip?  Would have scared the heck out of me.  I am doing it very soon.

My relationship with my wife?  We don't even fight when she spots me now.

So no don't buy an RV for legal or financial reasons!  Buy one for the priceless reasons!

KandT said:

I love our RV.  But it is a stupid financial decision- almost anything with an engine is a stupid financial decision.

Now the family time we spend in the RV is priceless AND if I get my kids through their teens without getting into any major trouble and drug free then again it is should priceless.

The knowledge I have picked up about owning an RV is better than taking a local course.  Prior to owning an RV, I didn't even know what a solenoid was or how battery chargers really worked.  I didn't understand tires and loads or properly towing something.  I also was more shy and more of an introvert.  Driving 3000 miles on a multiple week trip?  Would have scared the heck out of me.  I am doing it very soon.

My relationship with my wife?  We don't even fight when she spots me now.

So no don't buy an RV for legal or financial reasons!  Buy one for the priceless reasons!

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X2!! It's more of an experience than anything. I got pushed into living full time because I really didn't have another choice. I bought new and thankfully have not had any major issues, but living in an RV for the last 2.5 years has changed me as a person. I'm more willing to jump into things and try them out, Im far more independent than I was before, I have a whole new set of skills and knowledge I didn't think I would ever have. Yes, they have issues, but the good times had in them far outweigh that.

i think the video is a little bitter sounding.

xtal_01 said:

.......Just FYI ... I have never had a motor home before this one.  My wife is paralyzed from the shoulders down and needs care every 4 hours in a hospital bed.  She had never traveled away from home.

When I met her about 8 years ago, I got the idea of buying a small RV and converting it to a mobile care center.  I paid $18K for a 10 year old unit.  I went to have a wheelchair lift put it ... $25K!  No way ... so I cut a new door, designed and built my own.  I also built a track lift from front to back of the RV inside.  I put two hospital beds on tacks to move side to side.  Took almost a year to tinkering but it works great!  We even lived in it full time for almost 3 years (not easy here in VT with winter temps of -30 deg but we saved $1000 per month in rent) while building a house.

Here is a link to the project:  https://mcsele.shutterfly.com/2299

This RV has been a God sent!  Without it, my wife could never travel more than a couple hours away from home.  Now we hit the road whether it be for just a day trip or a month on the road.

Thanks .... Mike

Jericho, VT

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Kudos to you for what you have done!  I found your work on this to be an inspiration.  There are many who would never have undertaken such a difficult project for fear of how it would turn out, but as you have seen every project is possible if you take it one step at a time and if you are sufficiently motivated to help your loved ones to better enjoy life. 

Joel

Yes, this video has accurate information in it, I am sure; however, it does not count the people that bought new and had a good experience.  Those people won't be starting a thread saying "I had a nice experience buying a new RV" because that is simply human nature.  People may even see it as bragging. 

Do your due diligence no matter what you buy!  And if it has an engine plan for it to break and lose money on it somewhere!  Personally, for part timers you could probably drive and stay in a hotel cheaper and with less problems but hotels frown on your s'mores campfire by the valet?.  Of course the more you use it the less it is compared to a hotel.

Kudos to you for what you have done!  I found your work on this to be an inspiration.  There are many who would never have undertaken such a difficult project for fear of how it would turn out, but as you have seen every project is possible if you take it one step at a time and if you are sufficiently motivated to help your loved ones to better enjoy life.

Joel

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Thanks Joel.

It is very true ... I don't  think I am any smarter than anyone else.  if you just break down a project into little steps, almost anything can be done.

I am actually working on the generator right now.  I have never touched one before but I found the manual online.  Going through the test procedure one step at a time, I have isolated the problem down to one of two parts.  A lot better than paying the shop $125 per hour to do this.

I have actually thought about forming a non profit group and maybe converting one or two of these to lend out to people who could not otherwise travel.  The idea came to me when an ex fire fighter looked at my unit.  He was injured on the job and wished he could take his kids and family out camping like they use to before his injury.  I also had a mother come and talk to me.  Her child needed almost constant care.  He wanted to go to scout camp.  The camp was accessible but he needed a place to do his care (with a lift, bed and such) and a place to sleep with an attendant.  They thought it would be great to have a  unit like this that they could park at the camp.  He could to most of the activities with the other kids and then be with his parents at night.

Maybe something to think about in the future.

Thanks ..... Mike

We have had what I considered to be above normal amount of problems with our coach.  However, after going back to the factory for the third time, am still amazed at the number of owners who are there for several times more than me and shrug their shoulders and feel that all of the problems are normal.  I don't believe this.  There should be more leverage for owners to have against the manufacturers.  I don't want them to buy it back, I want them to produce it correctly the first time.  The margins must be pretty great for the amount of warranty repairs that are made.  Must say that Fleetwood has been excellent in taking care of my problems, however, hate the fact that I have had to go three times from various parts of the country to get repairs made.  In the video, when the manufacturer's lawyer states that they didn't pay enough for their RV ($200K), that is false.  I know people with million dollar plus units with the same problems as me.  I think the video is good, especially for first timers like me, but I did the research suggested (didn't do the RV park visit, which is an excellent idea) by talking to RV owners.  Still happy that we bought it, not happy with quality.

1PlasticMan1 said:

We have had what I considered to be above normal amount of problems with our coach.  However, after going back to the factory for the third time, am still amazed at the number of owners who are there for several times more than me and shrug their shoulders and feel that all of the problems are normal.  I don't believe this.  There should be more leverage for owners to have against the manufacturers.  I don't want them to buy it back, I want them to produce it correctly the first time.  The margins must be pretty great for the amount of warranty repairs that are made.  Must say that Fleetwood has been excellent in taking care of my problems, however, hate the fact that I have had to go three times from various parts of the country to get repairs made.  In the video, when the manufacturer's lawyer states that they didn't pay enough for their RV ($200K), that is false.  I know people with million dollar plus units with the same problems as me.  I think the video is good, especially for first timers like me, but I did the research suggested (didn't do the RV park visit, which is an excellent idea) by talking to RV owners.  Still happy that we bought it, not happy with quality.

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Lack of attention to detail, (aka: quality), when building RVs the problem with most RV builders.
If RVs where constructed to be as good as they are made to look  there would be fewer problems.
(However glitz, glamor and gadgets is what sells RVs).