Just Purchased a 2005 Alpha that was seized by the government

I am brand new to this RV world and am very impressed with this site! Athough, this is the first and only site I have been on it seems very well run.  I recently purchased an Alpha See Ya and have no clue what I'm doing???  The most challenging issues I have are:

- This vehicle's previous owners were carrying drugs from Texas to Massachusetts and there are many unknowns.  They put 77,000 miles on it in a year.
- I have never owned or even been in a RV before in my life.
- When I bought the RV the dealer spent less than an hour with me going over the entire unit.  Needless to say , I don't remember much..
- I purchased this RV for my business (Fire and Water damage cleanup) and am 37 years old and I have 4 day old baby and a 2 year old and don't have much spare time.
- The RV was actually sold to me by a Dealer that was storing the vehicle for the government.  This dealer does not give me much confidence at this time.
- The RV has been in the shop 3 times and I have owned it for 1 month.  It seems to be mostly electronical issues.
- On the outside of the vehicle there are some pitting issues and I was told that it may continue to get worse.
-  I am scheduled to have the RV painted and put my company decals on it next week and am going to spend $12,000 on just the paint job.
Hoping that anyone that can offer any suggestion's as to how I should proceed would be very much appreciated !
Thanks Tim

Pardon my paranoia - - -  :-\

Consider asking the local PD to send a drug dog around and through the motorhome to make sure there isn't anything  in there that you don't want. The narcotics people don't always do a good job of "cleaning up," on a seizure. Keep all of the papers from the purchase, including anything that proves it was a drug seizure when you bought it. (Some PDs will do this and some won't.)  :

Others will have advice for you on the care and keeping of an Alpha. I am the wrong guy, for that.

Enjoy your new motorhome and congratulations on the purchase. I'll bet you got a good price!  ;D

Ray D  ;D

Find a local experienced RVer to go over the various systems with you if you can.  If not, take it to a local campground for a weekend and just ask.  You'll get plenty of help that way   Then come back here and we'll tell you if you got good advice.  RVs aren't that complicated, but they do take some learning to avoid the mistakes, and we have all made those.  We can help you with most of the questions, but I suspect you don't even know what to ask at this point.  If there were manuals with the RV, read them.  If not, contact the manufacturer and ask for a set.

But follow Ray's advice first.  Tell us where you're located and perhaps there is a forum member in the area that can help you.

Thanks for such a quick response.  I live in Portsmouth , New Hampshire and yes I don't have much knowledge of this Alpha.  It looks nice and seems to run OK but really want to do the most research prior to spending some serious cash on either painting or wrapping this, along with many other numerous tasks that need to happen.  I am very excited and am looking forward to introducing myself to this wonderfull new way of travel and fun.

In reply to Ned D:  The dealership said the cops went through it pretty well.  The cops founds over 2 million dollars worth of drugs in it.  I guess the family who do it is a fairly well known family but they wouldn't tell me.  Everything in it is brand new from what I can see and what the salesman said.  I ended up getting it for $90,000.  Not sure what kind of deal it was but I didn't have too much time to research.  I drove a gas RV and I was not impressed at all with the unit. I think it was a Georgetown?  I'm sure it's good for some people but I really needed something reliable and with power.  I will be taking it around the US to help people after they have a water damage or fire damage at there home or business.  So I figured a deisel was the  best move.  Oh well, time will tell.

Servpro said:

In reply to Ned D:  The dealership said the cops went through it pretty well.  The cops founds over 2 million dollars worth of drugs in it. 

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But you can't believe everything a salesman tells you so you might be doing yourself a favor by getting it checked as Ray suggested.

I agree about the drug sniffing dogs, I would ask for a repeat sniff just to have
piece of mind. One dog might find something another didn't.
Enjoy your new purchase though, and check the date on the tires, they could
be expired and due to have a blowout.

You might consider buying "RV Repair and Maintenance Manual" by Bob Livingston.  ISBN #0-934798-45-1

Even if you don't want to make repairs to the rig yourself, it will help you evaluate the information you are receiving from a repairman.  We have referred to it countless times over the 12 or so years we've been RVing.

Margi

Tom and Margi said:

You might consider buying "RV Repair and Maintenance Manual" by Bob Livingston.  ISBN #0-934798-45-1

Even if you don't want to make repairs to the rig yourself, it will help you evaluate the information you are receiving from a repairman.   We have referred to it countless times over the 12 or so years we've been RVing.

Margi

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Excellent suggestion Margi.  That book can be very helpful.

I will definately get the book,  makes a lot of sense.  Does anyone know of someone who would do a full wrap on the RV and what the cost shoud be for that and also for a paint job?  I got a quote for $12,000 to paint it from a reputable local company, but that's all I have is just the one.

I would also suggest: The RV BOOK, in addition to the repair and maintance manual mentioned above or the Woodall's Rv Owner's Handbook, both are very good "Generic" owner's manuals and will explain most of your rig's systems

There may be a bag in your rig, With a ton of manuals, but I'd not count on it.

I would contact Alpha, give them your VIN and ask them if they can send you manuals for your rig

For different systems within the rig, for example the KING DOME antenna on the roof, the Television Radio, Fridge, Jacks, Slides, and ________ You can go to the manufacturer's web sites and often find copies of the manuals for download under Customer Support.  I actually do that with most everything, I find paper manuals go walk-about but the digital one is right here, just under my right hand (i'm typing on a laptop, a laptop that is fully backed up I might add)

Finally, you can ask here.  Some of use know about one, or another system on that rig.. I know one system (just one very minor system) for example.

As for the pitting on the side.. The body shop that does the paint and decal job.. have them look at it and advise. I would never go to a dealer with a body problem.  They simply don't have the skills, I' go to Ramo (My body man) as he knows his stuff.

If you can't find a body man call Greyhound and ask who does their work. (Used to be Ramo here in Detroit)

Wow, I am very impressed with this site and all of the helpfull people here.  This is just my first day on this site and already have had gained so much knowledge.  Thanks again for everyone that has replied to my question's!!!

I am very shocked at how well this RV rides.  I drive a new Cadillac Escalade and I think the RV might be smoother to ride.  I am shocked about the performance.  I actually took it out into Downtown and to pick up some take out the other day.  My wife thinks I'm crazy but whatever it's just the way I am..

The Dealership told me they could plug this into their system and tell me everything that what wrong with the RV.  That seems not to be the case however, because I have had to bring this back a couple times for another problem.  Is there actually a computer that can detect these problems or was he just giving me a sales pitch?

Does anyone know some one that designs and does wrapping?

Does anyone know some one that designs and does wrapping?

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I am on the other side of the country from you, so I don't know  anyone in Portsmouth, let alone anyone who might do a wrap, there. However, we have city buses here, all of which have had advertising wraps. If you have similar public transportation there, you might ask them where they get their wraps done. Another alternative would be to ask at a company that has had a bus wrapped with their advertisement. They, at least, would know who they paid, which might lead you to the company or the agency that arranged the advertising wrap, to begin with.

I don't know which thread it was, but this was discussed here, previously. From that discussion I got the idea that a wrap is somewhat less expensive than a full body paint job. Also, it is probably not quite as durable. That may not be an issue, in your timeframe.

Hope that helps.

Ray D  ;D

Thanks Ray. Really appreciate the help.

You said you live in New Hampshire, so it will not be long before you need to winterize the coach.  What is that you say!  Well the coach is not like your house.  The water is supplied either from an on-board tank, or from shore connection in an RV Park.  When using the on board tank, you must turn on the pump.  There will be a switch ( or perhaps several switches ) for this pump.  The pump provides water pressure.  The toilet flushes into what is called a Black tank, and the sinks and shower dump into what is called a Gray tank.  There will be a connection in the outside service bay where water can be connected from a shore source, or added to you tank.  There will also be a connection to dump the black and gray tanks.  The gray tank will have a smaller pipe normally than the black tank.  Generally both tanks will be piped to one dump pipe connection.  To that you will connect a flexible dump hose and connect it ONLY to an approved sewer line or dump station in an RV park.  There will be a handle for each tank to dump its contents once you have the flex hose in place.  The black tank should be dumped first and then the gray.  Never dump the Black tank until it is about 3/4 full.  You most likely have a tank flush connection that will allow you to insert water into the black tank after dumping to wash more out.

Now back to winterizing.  The above systems need to be protected from freezing.  If you have a place where you can keep the coach connected to shore power all the time, and can keep heat on, you may not have to winterize.  In this case it would be a good idea to have some remote temp units inside your tank areas and the service bay to make sure nothing freezes.  A 60-watt bulb inside a shield will provide lot of heat in a closed area and may also help.  If you do not plan on using the coach during winter, then winterize it.  That is done by draining and cleaning all tanks, draining the water lines, and filling the water lies with RV Antifreeze.  Also put some in your P-traps.  Before doing this, turn off the by-pass valve for the hot water heater.  This may be in the service bay or near the hot water heater.  Now remove the drain plug from the water heater and drain it.  Don't put any RV antifreeze in the hot water heater.   Do put some in the toilet to prevent the rubber seals from drying out.  In the spring, connect to shore water and run lots of it through all your outlets to flush the RV antifreeze.  Turn on the by-pass and fill the hot water tank.  

You will have lots of questions, so keep coming back here for help, there is plenty of it available.

From what I have heard about painting cost for a motor-home, your quote is reasonable.

If your engine is diesel, have the oil and all filter changed, and have the oil analyzed.

Tire pressure is VERY important in a motor-home, so have the coach weighed at a truck stop, go to the tire manufactures web site and look for a tire pressure chart for your size tire.  There you will fine the pressure you should have in the tires.

Learn all you can about the heating system, the refrigerator, hot water heater, and stove.  All these will use propane.  When a coach is stored for a while, it make take several attempts to get these systems running on the propane.  Air will intrude in the lines during storage and is bled by repeated starting of these systems.  These systems in your coach should be self starting in that the needed spark is most likely electronically provided.

If you have jacks, put the front jacks down first and raise the front a bit before running the rear jacks down.  This will help prevent twisting the coach and causing the windshield to slip from its seal, or worse, crack.

There is lots more you will need to know, so ask here often.  Good luck.

The Dealership told me they could plug this into their system and tell me everything that what wrong with the RV.  That seems not to be the case however, because I have had to bring this back a couple times for another problem.  Is there actually a computer that can detect these problems or was he just giving me a sales pitch?

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He was snowing you, which is pretty much the norm for RV salesmen. You can get equally reliable info at a used car lot.  The engine and transmission have computer controls and there are computer diagnostic systems that can interrogate and report on them. Just about everything else is diagnosed the old fashioned way, with the human eyeball and a service manual. And the technicians accumulated experience.

One thing I forgot,  RV ANTIFREEZE is NOT like you use in your car.  It is called the Pink Stuff by those of us using it.  Check at Wal-Mart in the automotive department.  If they have any RV supplies there, it will be near them.  If they don't have it, then go to a local RV dealer.  May take a couple of gallons.

Tim the Servpro Man said:

The Dealership told me they could plug this into their system and tell me everything that what wrong with the RV.  That seems not to be the case however, because I have had to bring this back a couple times for another problem.  Is there actually a computer that can detect these problems or was he just giving me a sales pitch?

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Dealers and salesman have a reputation of telling untruths.  This sounds to me like another example of salesman/dealer lies.

I am staying optomistic they will take care of any issues that were supposed to be OK prior to me buying it.  Wondering what a ballpark cost I would be looking at if I had another company do a thorough walk to check for any problems?

"Is there actually a computer that can detect these problems or was he just giving me a sales pitch?"

Maybe there is. The top line coaches have everything controled by a Silverleaf computer. Tou control all the features with one remote (lights, awnings, blinds, temperature, etc).