Questions about a Trailer I'm buying.

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OnebigBugga

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Jun 24, 2018
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I have the chance to purchase a 1984 Terry Travel Trailer. Here is what is bothering me. According to the owner, he says the trailer weighs less then 3000 lbs. If this is true then that would mean I don't need a title for it in MA. I didn't get a good look at the registration but on the Bill of sales it does say 3000 lbs. However this trailer is 28 feet long. I have NEVER heard of a camper trailer being 28 feet long and 3000 lbs. I have looked high and low for specs on this thing but can't find it. Can anyone help me with any kind of information on this trailer. I've looked up the vin number and it's legit.. though the websites get the wrong year and even the sites say the year might be wrong. I just want to make sure this is legit.

Right now it sits mostly empty save for appliances. No water or anything in storage. It also has no AC unit in it. It's a fairly basic trailer for it's size.

I found the ad for it. The thing says don't have title. Here is the link. https://boston.craigslist.org/nwb/tro/d/camper-trailer/6625279960.html
 
From that era I rather doubt it is under 3,000 pounds, probably the only way you are going to know the actual weight is to take it to a CAT scale and weigh it, this will likely mean weighing the tow vehicle only then the combo and subtracting the difference.  All common markings on trailers of that time period would only show GVWR (max allowable loaded weight), not dry weight.
 
What trips me is I can't find anything on it at 28 feet. I can find 29 feet and 27 feet but not 28. The guy that owns it says it was never titled, only registered.
 
Isaac-1 said:
From that era I rather doubt it is under 3,000 pounds, probably the only way you are going to know the actual weight is to take it to a CAT scale and weigh it, this will likely mean weighing the tow vehicle only then the combo and subtracting the difference.  All common markings on trailers of that time period would only show GVWR (max allowable loaded weight), not dry weight.
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What trips me is I can't find anything on it at 28 feet. I can find 29 feet and 27 feet but not 28. The guy that owns it says it was never titled, only registered. Thing is the trailers I look up are light weight. It's not impossible but I know it's highly unlikely. I got the it was my father's and he passed away a few weeks ago and we're trying to just sell stuff. Honestly it's not in bad shape at all. Bathroom floor needs to be replaced and some light covers and 1 marker light needs to be replaced but that's it. All else works fine. The tires are new ( I checked ) The guy feels legit, just.. yea.. 3k lbs at 28 feet? I never heard of it.
 
" The guy that owns it says it was never titled, only registered."


No title?  He needs to work with the Dept of Motor vehicles and get a title. 

I sure wouldn't give anybody any money for an RV that doesn't have a title.


Have you yourself called the DMV and asked them about it?
 
Arch Hoagland said:
" The guy that owns it says it was never titled, only registered."


No title?  He needs to work with the Dept of Motor vehicles and get a title. 

I sure wouldn't give anybody any money for an RV that doesn't have a title.


Have you yourself called the DMV and asked them about it?
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I've tried to look it up myself. The Vin comes back clean but the wrong year.. thing is even the websites say the year might be wrong. I can't call the DMV till tomorrow. I might be willing to risk it if I know more about it.. even if it means a title search. Guys says never titled because it weighs 3000 lbs
 
Look closely, very few trailers that age have survived relatively rot free, that soft floor spot can easily turn into a trip to the junk yard when you start digging into it to repair it, see this recent thread as an example. http://www.rvforum.net/SMF_forum/index.php/topic,114403.0/topicseen.html
 
Isaac-1 said:
Look closely, very few trailers that age have survived relatively rot free, that soft floor spot can easily turn into a trip to the junk yard when you start digging into it to repair it, see this recent thread as an example. http://www.rvforum.net/SMF_forum/index.php/topic,114403.0/topicseen.html
Click to expand...

I've gone over it pretty well testing everything. The floor is solid everything works, some of it is even new. Where it was parked is not a casual place. Steep drive way over by a fence. It's self contained so it has 3 tanks. Water, Brown and black. It's just a little dirty on the inside but a quick clean. I honestly wish I took pictures of it. I might be stuck biting the bullet here. I'm not overly worried about it's over all condition, just worried about getting it registered... with no title at that size is what is bugging me. I'm going to be towing it without registering it, just to get it home... I know how dangerous that can be but I don't have another way.
 
Not a chance that thing is 3,000 lb. Materials and build back in '84 were heavy.
I'm guessing the tag on the front driver side showing weight and tire specs is faded?
If you can find model number, google machine should be able to find specs.

 
I would never buy anything without a title. Make him get a title if it is even possible. May cost more to get a title than RV is worth.
 
We had a 24 footer of that vintage and it was a little over 3000 lbs empty and ran about 4000 with a normal load.  Also had a 1988 Wilderness 5W that ran 4500 loaded.  I'd say 3000 is conceivable but not likely.  If your state DMV says no title if under 3000, make sure that is empty weight (UVW) and not Gross (GVW).  Be aware, though, that most states would require a title for that vehicle, so you will have problems if you move or try to sell it out of state.  Since he has an existing registration, what weight does it show?  And is it current year?  If current and that weight meets your states no-title criteria, you can register it just as he did. If not, I would insist on it having a title.

The length thing is imprecise.  The brochures and specs typically list the usable length, sometimes call the floor length, while casual references may use the overall length, which includes the bumper and the tongue. That's about 4 feet more than the floor length of a travel trailer, so an overall  length of 28 would probably be a 24 foot (spec0 trailer.
 
I'm curious what your DMV requires as far as proof of weight.

I can just imagine lots of people claiming their RV is less than 3,000 lb.

Also you mentioned the year is wrong. By how far?

Assume it is listed as a 1984 model. It could have been built in 1983. That's very common with RVs
 
FWIW our 2000 Wilderness 27BH (Fleetwood made the Wilderness, Terry, and Prowler which all had several similar floor plans) was 5,200 empty and 7,000 gross. Our floor plan was not the same but similar - front bed, mid couch/dining/kitchen, and rear bunks & bath. It was 29' total length.
 
According to NADA/RV.com, all 1984 Terry travel trailers over 24 ft weigh in excess of 4,000 lbs.  The only ones UNDER 3000 lbs were three units, 16 ft, 18 ft and 19 ft.

http://www.nadaguides.com/RVs/1984/Terry
 
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