NewBee, Needs PrePurchase Inspection Guidance

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treynolds03

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Jan 14, 2019
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Thanks for letting me join the group!
I'm looking for a used 35-40 ft Pusher. I have been trying to stay close to my area but as I broaden the search, I am finding better deals. I remember reading somewhere about getting pre-inspection folks around the country but I can?t find the thread for that link now. Any help is appreciated.
Also, best I can tell I should get two different inspections. Drive train and the coach itself. Am I missing anything else?
 
Some RV inspectors will give the chassis stuff a once-over, i.e. start the engine, shift the tranny and eyeball for obvious problems. If you want an in-depth chassis analysis, you need a mechanical shop that specializes in medium & large diesel vehicles.

For both the house and the chassis, inspections take time and a skilled pro, thus get expensive in a hurry.  You need to find a happy medium between getting some assurance and spending a ton of money trying to cover everything in depth. A half day spent on the house alone is still going to be superficial. For example, it takes several hours for an RV fridge to chill down to working temperatures, so anything less than a full day is only going to verify that it turns on and starts cooling.  Don't just hire an inspector - get a list of what will be inspected and to what degree and learn what he will report. Is a phone call saying 'looks OK to me" sufficient or do yu want an itemized report with condition on each item?  And are you willing to pay for that extra effort?  Get the idea?
 
Welcome to the Forum treynolds03

Looks like Gary's got your taken care.

He's one of the best....I would say he's forgot more than I'll ever know....But I don't think he's forgotten anything ;D
 
Thanks Gary RV_Wizard and Gizmo100. Much appreciated.
I get what you are driving at.

I'm currently looking at a 2014 Thor Motor Coach PALAZZO 36.1 with 28k.
Anything these coaches are know for that I need to specifically check?
 
As mentioned above proper RV inspections take time, and an RV coach inspection and RV chassis inspection should generally be separate things.  For the RV chassis inspection you need a person that has been trained and is familiar with the specific chassis, its known issues, etc.  In other words if it is on a Roadmaster chassis you need a mechanic familiar with the common problem areas of the chassis (trailing arm recall, etc.) as well given diesel engine.  For the house side of the inspection you need an inspector familiar with RV systems, and construction, one is not a substitute for the other, a mechanic will have no clue to look for side wall delamination, roof sealant failure, much less possible fire hazards like refrigerator leaks, or non-functioning LPG detectors.  On the house side a proper NRVIA certified inspector should spend something on the order of 6-8 man hours inspecting an RV of this type on a basic inspection, then another several hours writing up a detailed report, this is why a proper inspection cost so much, but if it finds just one major item it is likely to be worth it.
 
We have several RV buying checklists in the RVForum Library (under Checklists, right?).  A couple of them are quite extensive and will give you an idea of what a really complete inspection would entail. Probably unaffordable unless you can do much of it yourself, though.

http://www.rvforum.net/joomla/index.php/15-checklists

 
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