Buying An Older Class C

I know I'm asking you to breakout the old crystal ball and there are many variables.

We are looking to buy our first RV. Senior citizen bracket. Being total newbies we wanted to be in for around $20,000.00 for two reasons.
a. if we decide RV'ing is not for us we can sell without losing are shirts.
b. if we find RV'ing is for us we'll learn what features we want so moving up we won't lose are shirts in a resale.
c. with 2 adults a 24 foot unit would fit our needs.

I'm seeing units 10+years old with low mileage, <50K, priced less than $10,000.00. Assuming everything works and the unit drives & stops as it should.

Searching on this forum I've read when buying lower priced motorhomes expect to spend at least the purchase price on repairs.

For peace of mind and as a W.A.G I would plan on doing:
$3,000.00 6 new tires
$500.00 brakes
$500.00 tune up
$200.00 belts
$500.00 fluids (oil, transmission, radiator, PS, brake fluid)
$150.00 battery
$4,850.00

That would leave us with $5,000.00 for surprises.

Would I be good to go?
What am I not seeing?

Thanks!

"I'm seeing units 10+years old with low mileage, <50K, priced less than $10,000.00. Assuming everything works and the unit drives & stops as it should."

Just because the ads say everything works that does not mean everything works like it should. None of the under $10k crowd are in very good shape or they would not be priced so cheaply. Remember you are buying both a vehicle and a house. Under $10k does not get you very much.

What you are forgetting the roof. RV roofs take a beating because of where they are located hence they swing and sway while driving. RV roofs should be inspected and patched every year and resealed every five years. Most old cheap RVs haven't had anyone even look at the roof in many years. Figure a few grand to get the roof resealed.

You are also forgetting the refer. RV refers on old RVs have bad seals and are no longer efficient at keeping things cold. Plan on either replacing the seals or the entire refer.

Also, low mileage is not necessarily a good indicator.  Cars might be fine with low mileage, but motorhomes like to be driven.  If they sit a long time in a dry climate especially, rubber components dry out and replacing them can get expensive.  Tires rot from the inside out and usually need to be replaced if they're around seven years old.  Maintenance, or lack of same, is a primary requisite and you want good maintenance records.

ArdraF

SeilerBird & Ardraf, I see motorhome owners on this forum driving 10 year old rigs. What price would assume to be an indicator for a decent 24 foot Class C? For peace of mind I would plan on replacing all the items I listed unless the seller had receipts showing recent work.

NCSU Dad said:

SeilerBird & Ardraf, I see motorhome owners on this forum driving 10 year old rigs. What price would assume to be an indicator for a decent 24 foot Class C? For peace of mind I would plan on replacing all the items I listed unless the seller had receipts showing recent work.

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My last class A was a 1994 Damon Challenger 33 foot and it cost me $6200 in 2012. I ended up spending a few grand on tires, brakes, refer, roof, and minor stuff. But I have owned RVs most of my life and I have lived in them a lot. I used to be a mechanic and an electrician and I know a lot about the systems. So for someone like me buying an older RV is not a problem since I know what to look for and how to fix it. For a total newby you are going to have to depend on paying mechanics to do work and they start at $100 an hour unless you are really good at DIY projects.

New here, first post.................

You are way over estimating the tires. My Winnebago View has a common tire used on C class, and if not that exact same tire size, they will be in the same price range. I recently installed 6 new Michelin LT225/75R16 M/S2 tires using the Family Motor Coach Assn Michelin Advantage program and the cost of tires, mount, balance, disposal and taxes was $1320. Even without any discounts, and possibly replacing the spare also, you should not exceed $1500 to $1600. My spare was 11 years old, I moved one of the tires I was replacing (4? years old and only about 5,000 mi) to the spare position, and scrapped the original spare.

Depending on what work, if any, you might do yourself, vs what you hire done, your numbers are probably not far off.

You will be surprised at how much little stuff you will find wrong however, even on a low mileage, super clean, hardly used motorhome. Be sure and budget for new smoke, LP/propane, and CO detectors if they are over 5 to 7 years old. Its the odd stuff that drives you nuts, however.

Charles

My suggestion is to not shop for the bargain basement coaches, instead shop for the ones that have been well maintained.  By this I mean if you were to look at 3 appropriately (appropriately priced being the key term here) priced 15 year old coaches of the same model, where one is priced at $7,500 , one is priced at $12,00, and one is priced at $17,000.  The $7,500 one will likely be a money pit, which may have some remaining value, it will be likely beyond economic repair, these are typically referred to as hunters specials, meaning with basic maintenance they may last years on traveling 50-100 miles each way a couple of times per year to some hunting camp, you could spend an additional $10,000 fixing up one of these, then you would have a coach worth $9,000 - $10,000.  The $12,000 example may be viable, roadworthy, but often in somewhat rough shape, showing wear, and has some issues that don't limit its functionality severely.  By contrast the $17,000 will be in great shape though may need minor updating (new tires or batteries, ...), it will likely have spent its entire life being stored indoors or at least under a roof, it will have detailed service records, and often numerous updates.  This $17,000 coach will likely be the best bargain of the lot, as it would take a lot more than $5,000 to bring the $12,000 coach up to the level of the $17,000 example.

SeilerBird - I've never been a mechanic but I am a lifelong DIY. So excluding major drive-train work or replacing the roof I should be good to go. I'm assuming a gasoline powered Class C would be serviced at your typical Ford or Chevy dealer. Is that right?

CharlesinGA - I read somewhere RV tires were $500 each. Maybe that was bus tires. It's good to read 15-1600 should be the range.

Isaac-1 - I never thought of looking at pricing that way. I assumed an older $17,000 unit was basically the same condition $7,500 unit being offered by someone dreaming or someone who was horribly upside down on what they owed. Wouldn't buying the $17,000 unit put me upside down from the start? Way above book value? Since this is a first time purchase I might be better off in the mid range so I don' get skinned alive if we decide RV'ing is for us and need to sell?

NCSU Dad said:

SeilerBird - I've never been a mechanic but I am a lifelong DIY. So excluding major drive-train work or replacing the roof I should be good to go. I'm assuming a gasoline powered Class C would be serviced at your typical Ford or Chevy dealer. Is that right?

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Some do and some don't. It depends on whether or not the RV fits into the service bay.

CharlesinGA - I read somewhere RV tires were $500 each. Maybe that was bus tires. It's good to read 15-1600 should be the range.

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Some class C tires are cheaper than others. It depends on if they are 19.5 or 22 inch tires.

Isaac-1 - I never thought of looking at pricing that way. I assumed an older $17,000 unit was being offered by someone dreaming or someone who was horribly upside down on what they owed. Wouldn't buying the $17,000 unit put me upside down from the start? Since this is a first time purchase I might be better off in the mid range so I don' get skinned alive if we decide RV'ing is for us and need to sell?

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The 17k unit could be upside down or a clueless owner or it could be the bargain of the year. It takes a lot of shopping and a lot of knowledge to make a successful purchase of an older RV. Most are money pits but there are some gems. You should shop until you can tell the difference. Usually the more money you put into an RV in purchase price will result in less money being spent to make it usable.

Sure you may be upside down on paper, however would you rather buy a coach where someone else has already recently bought new appliances (fridge $1,500, air conditioner $1,000, etc.), installed new or reupholstered seating $500-$2000, recoated the roof $1,000, replaced shock absorbers $500, and suspension bushings $200 installed new tires $1,500,  and batteries $400, ...  then sold the coach at a price that failed to recoup the cost of all of these updates, say getting 50 cents on the dollar or less for the costs for these updates.  Or would you rather buy the mid priced coach, and then do all of this stuff yourself and be out an additional $5,000+

Some RV tires are over $800 each, but for a typical older Class C it is likely more in the neighborhood of $200-$350 per tire. For a 24 footer, the tires may be 16" LT (light truck) type and probably under $275. 19.5" or 22.5" are much bigger and pricier.

Stop trying to apply car-buyer logic to an RV. You are first & foremost buying a house, not a vehicle. It happens to be on wheels, but the house/roof, plumbing and electrical systems, furnishings and appliances are the the more critical things. Of course, you want a functioning vehicle under it, but that is not the part where most newbies to Rvs go wrong. Most motorhomes have relatively low mileage anyway - 6000 miles/year is typical. You will probably find many 10 year old units with 45k-60k miles.

I personally think that you are optimistic in thinking a 24 ft RV is plenty for two. It is ok for a weekend, but most people get to feeling really cramped after a week or so. Tiny galley, cramped shower and toilet, a nuisance to make the bed or get in/out during the night, etc.

I think Isaac has given you some good food for thought.

All that said, there are some good older units out there and $10k might well get one for you if you shop extensively (or just get lucky). Most of those ads, however, will disappoint when you actually see the coach. Get out and see some and then come back here to discuss further.

Rent a 24' Class C for a 2-3 day mid week short trip and see what you think.  Think about spending 2-3 rainy days in there instead of being able to sit outside.  Look at the storage.  Then rent a 30' Class A and see what you think.  Yes, it will cost you $200-$500 for each rental, but it will be money well spent. 

Assuming you are not thinking of towing a car/SUV drive into grocery store & museum parking lots and around city streets to see what you think of having this for your only vehicle.  Also consider the disconnect/hookup process to go from your campsite to the store and back to camp. 

Lots of people spend months at a time in all the above vehicles and conditions and are happy.  It just depends on what you are happy with. 

BTW, it makes sense not to spend $50k to $100K only to find out you don't like RV'ing.

One other thing here, many / most class C's are designed to sleep as many people as possible, though some recent models are getting away from this.  Therefore you often end up with a layout that accommodates sleeping for 6-8, a kitchen with 10 inches of counter space and a bathroom so small that you can barely get the door closed.  So not only do you need to find one in good condition, you need to find one with a floor plan that you can live with.

I think there may be merit in comparing area as opposed to length. For example, we have owned three class A's. The first was 22 ft. with no slides or 8 by 20 ft inside ~ 160 sq ft. The second 32 ft and two small slides ~ 8.5 by 30 plus 2 ea 8 by 1.5 for ~ 281 sq ft. Our current mh is 34 ft long with a full body slide plus two smaller slides ~ 8.5 by 32 plus 2 ea 8 by 1.5 plus 1.5 by 28 for about 348 total. Only two ft (6.5%) longer,  but nearly 24% more area and believe me it shows when it comes to livability.  More inside storage, larger bath, washer/dryer,  etc, etc.

We used the first to see if rving was for us; the second we used to work up to full time. It didn't have enough room, although we did full time for two years in it. Our current mh is well suited for us and we likely will not upgrade it. Note that a 40 ft two slide mh would actually have about the same area as our 34 ft.

Thoughts?

Ernie

I upgraded from a 32 foot class A with no slides (256 sq feet) to a 33 foot fiver with three slides (365 sq feet) and the difference is unbelievable. I have a stunning site and it is hard to believe I am living in an RV.  ;D

Floor plan is a make or break. Get the wrong floor plan, and it could end up convincing you that RV'ing is not for you. Get the right floor plan and you will be as happy as a lark.

Climbing a ladder to the cab over bed is no fun when you are 60 and have to do it a couple of times during the night. Converting the dinette into a bed every day is a royal pain and not worth the trouble. Most jackknife couches are not all that comfortable. Get a corner rear bed or something with a permanent bed and you will be happier.

Charles
2007 Winnebago View 523H on a 2006 Dodge (Daimler-Chrysler aka Mercedes) Sprinter 3500 chassis (T1N). Bought Sept 2015 with 18K miles on it, Prog Ind HW30C, Prog Dymanics PD4645, Coleman Chill Grille, PML/Yourcovers.com deep alum trans pan, AutoMeter 8558 trans temp gauge, Roadmaster sway bar, Koni Red shocks (front & rear), Fantastic Ultra Breeze hood, added OEM parabolic mirrors and RH aspherical mirror, MB grill conversion.

CharlesinGA said:

Floor plan is a make or break. Get the wrong floor plan, and it could end up convincing you that RV'ing is not for you. Get the right floor plan and you will be as happy as a lark.

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This is exactly the reason I am often against the often heard advice of renting before you buy, for example I knew before buying that my wife would not be happy in anything with a tiny bathroom, well specifically a tiny shower, or small kitchen, which describes almost every rental unit out there, so knew renting would only turn her off from the whole idea of traveling in a motorhome.

I think a lot of problems originate with the manufacturer, and not age.
We rented a 24 foot RV for 2 weeks in 1999 and set all our priorities based on that well spent ( $ 2,000) experience ( lots of miles and locations.)
We bought a 2000 31 '  Coachman Santara ( Top of the line class C) and have had superb longevity on most all parts and we have over 106,000 miles of enjoyment so far
Replaced the water pump twice, the hot water electronic  igniter and  the battery charger - Thats it!
We store the RV in a Storage garage and the roof is still perfect , but has been caulked  2 times.
Since I drive in the mountains, I want good tires and change them at 35,000 miles ~....reguardless !
Never had to touch the refrigerator, A/C or the generator ( except oil changes)
Have had one brake job on the front and two steering alignments. I keep batteries ( 2) for four years and then change them.
So the fact that a unit is old, does not mean it's a money pit, but of course if the owner pays no attention to the needs of the vehicle, it's a crap shoot.

To a Newbie..."THE" most important thing IMHO is too rent or borrow a RV First and spend a week or two .
Find out how you want your bed. (Size and shape and convenience)
How the ride is ( we opted for rear axle airbags after experiencing a jarring rental ride)
How comfortable is the drivers seat ( This is not your "run to the corner" type time experience)
How easy is it to dump the tanks , or fill them ?
Does the shower fit your body ?
Can you stand the 'roar" when parked and it rains ?
Does the sway make you feel uncomfortable ?
If it has a slide, what do you do with no power ? (Will you sit a week in a camp ground for service ?)
Make your list......!  Do not believe the salesman , do not believe the salesman, do not believe the salesman

NCSU Dad said:

I'm seeing units 10+years old with low mileage, <50K, priced less than $10,000.00. Assuming everything works and the unit drives & stops as it should.

What am I not seeing?

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You have to go back way more than 10 years to get a coach for under 10K that has not burned down. Are you seeing these deals on Craigs List? There are scammers who place ads attempting to farm your data. The ads typically have either one or four pictures, one picture with an email address embedded, a too good to be true price, an odd number price, and typically an odd sounding description.

Any updates on the search?