farmer dan
Well-known member
I am looking at buying it. Sides look in great shape and the roof might go two years or so. I am concerned with the motor and tranny. Should I be? Or do they generally last alot longer?. It's on a Chevy chassis.
1994 bounder with 79000 miles.
- Thread starter farmer dan
- Start date
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farmer dan
Well-known member
It looks like the previous owners took really good care of it, they even have bills for all parts and service done to it. I've always thought of blunder as being a really low end Rv. If anyone has any information on blunders let me know.
GMascelli
Well-known member
Dan,
Good luck with the potential purchase. We just went through the same process. I went through the books/logs (habit from airplanes) I am the third owner. Original owner put 91000 on it and the second 5000. The first guy had notes and receipts to back up every oil chnage on the rig and gen set along with every single propane and fuel purchase, unbelievable. Owner two didn't record squat, but I did find two receipts for work done in the last six months.
Sorry to get long winded but the bottom line is the history is what sold me on the unit, that and just trusting my gut. I crawled all over the rig and brought a mechanic friend with me to give it a look. I started with a new maintenance baseline, changing the rig oil/filter and lube along with the gen set oil and filter and a transmission service. I could not find any info on the serpentine belt so I had that changed to be safe. Hoses were only a few years old and looked good.
I hope you can give it a good going over and feel confident in your potential purchase. Good luck and keep us posted.
Good luck with the potential purchase. We just went through the same process. I went through the books/logs (habit from airplanes) I am the third owner. Original owner put 91000 on it and the second 5000. The first guy had notes and receipts to back up every oil chnage on the rig and gen set along with every single propane and fuel purchase, unbelievable. Owner two didn't record squat, but I did find two receipts for work done in the last six months.
Sorry to get long winded but the bottom line is the history is what sold me on the unit, that and just trusting my gut. I crawled all over the rig and brought a mechanic friend with me to give it a look. I started with a new maintenance baseline, changing the rig oil/filter and lube along with the gen set oil and filter and a transmission service. I could not find any info on the serpentine belt so I had that changed to be safe. Hoses were only a few years old and looked good.
I hope you can give it a good going over and feel confident in your potential purchase. Good luck and keep us posted.
Bought mine with 67000, now have 72000 - 94 F53. No maintenance manuals except a few notes on Carfax (have you run that?). Started with new fluids, still runs perfect, and getting ready for a trip a a couple weeks - at the shop now, new brakes and fluid, trans service (guy just called - fluid looks too good to service?!), pack bearings, rear dif oil. Think they are great rigs! Price would be a big consideration, but having the records should relieve some concerns.
farmer dan
Well-known member
Thanks for the input. If it were Ford I my decision would be easier. Only because I have had my head under and over and all around a 1990 coachmen on Ford and a 2000 e150 van conversion. So only because I know Ford better. But my dad runs Chevy and seems to love it. Price is 10,000. We are gonna go back over again for more in depth looks soon. I will keep you posted.
Sloop
Well-known member
If you are already calling it a "blunder" I would think the answer is obvious unless that is your spell checker going awry.
farmer dan
Well-known member
Wow, sorry I missed that. It was my spell checker... Boy that thing got me into trouble once.
Gary RV_Wizard
Site Team
Condition is everything at that age, so records of maintenace would be a really positive indicator.
Motorhomes of that vintage were usually stretching the chassis to its limits, so the engine and tranny were working hard all the time. Pay close attention to any signs of wear and tear on the mechanicals. Check the tranny fluid for signs of overheating, a very bad sign if present.
Tires are another thing to check out - they may look great but be rotten with old age, so check the Tire Date Codes on the tire sidewalls. We generally recommend 7 years as a max age, but some people have achieved 10+ years on them. The odds are against that, though.
Motorhomes of that vintage were usually stretching the chassis to its limits, so the engine and tranny were working hard all the time. Pay close attention to any signs of wear and tear on the mechanicals. Check the tranny fluid for signs of overheating, a very bad sign if present.
Tires are another thing to check out - they may look great but be rotten with old age, so check the Tire Date Codes on the tire sidewalls. We generally recommend 7 years as a max age, but some people have achieved 10+ years on them. The odds are against that, though.
rodstowing
Member
- Joined
- Jan 3, 2012
- Posts
- 22
I bought a 94 34 ft Bounder recently with 52k miles. Was really clean. Everything worked. Then I did some research and read up they have major brake problems. PEople replacing the entire braking system and still not being able to stop. So I sold it within a couple weeks of buying it. I told the buyer to take it and get the brakes checked but they worked fine when I brought it home. About 60 miles into his trip he couldnt stop and avoided hitting a car and jumped a curb, busting a tire and knocking the front windshield out. I felt bad but I told him I would put new tires and get the brakes checked out immediately before driving it back to where he was going
scottydl
Site Team
x2 on checking the tires, as well as other high-dollar items like roof A/C and generator function.
My '94 had similar mileage when we bought it, but the tranny was recently rebuilt. Make sure you have enough extra money socked away for that potential expense, should it be needed. As Gary said, rigs of this vintage are operated at the upper capacity limits of the engine, tranny, tires, etc. so you don't want to take chances there.
What do you mean the "roof might go two years or so"... ? RV roofs don't just automatically fail at some interval. You can re-coat it every few seasons as needed, or seal the seams with Eternabond tape and many of us (myself included) have done. Roof maintenance is definitely something to stay on top of, to prevent leaks into the ceiling/walls of the RV. Don't wait until you KNOW there's a substantial leak, because chances are there has been a small one for quite some time before noticing.
Check the Library link above, and find the Buyer's Checklist for used RV's. That will give you a whole lot of things to check out when you inspect it.
My '94 had similar mileage when we bought it, but the tranny was recently rebuilt. Make sure you have enough extra money socked away for that potential expense, should it be needed. As Gary said, rigs of this vintage are operated at the upper capacity limits of the engine, tranny, tires, etc. so you don't want to take chances there.
What do you mean the "roof might go two years or so"... ? RV roofs don't just automatically fail at some interval. You can re-coat it every few seasons as needed, or seal the seams with Eternabond tape and many of us (myself included) have done. Roof maintenance is definitely something to stay on top of, to prevent leaks into the ceiling/walls of the RV. Don't wait until you KNOW there's a substantial leak, because chances are there has been a small one for quite some time before noticing.
Check the Library link above, and find the Buyer's Checklist for used RV's. That will give you a whole lot of things to check out when you inspect it.
farmer dan
Well-known member
Funny you mentioned brakes.... There is a brand new set of brake in the center console. Interesting.. I will be looking more into it... They have open house this week at the dealer. So maybe a lower price too.
Seajay
Well-known member
- Joined
- Nov 7, 2011
- Posts
- 448
One thing I advise anyone to do before buying any coach is LOOK AT THE WINDSHIELD SEAL RUBBER......
This sounds stupid but believe me, I have seen a lot of coaches with the windshield taped to the rubber. Yep, its true.
A week or so ago I talked to a glass repair man that was ''resetting'' a windshield in a Bounder. He said he usually fixed about one bounder a week down here in Fla..
We had a 30 foot Cobra that you could not keep the windshields from falling out. I bought new rubber and had two different people put the windshields back in the coach and they still got lose and leaked and the tape held them in the coach. I fixed them a third time and sold the coach. When you look at a coach, check for leaks and the ''fit of the windshield'' to the front cap of the coach. If there is any sign of leaks or a back yard glue job WALK AWAY you are buying troubles you dont need ...........cj......
there will be a charge of ten cents for this valuable advise and you can pay me the next time you see me......cj....
This sounds stupid but believe me, I have seen a lot of coaches with the windshield taped to the rubber. Yep, its true.
A week or so ago I talked to a glass repair man that was ''resetting'' a windshield in a Bounder. He said he usually fixed about one bounder a week down here in Fla..
We had a 30 foot Cobra that you could not keep the windshields from falling out. I bought new rubber and had two different people put the windshields back in the coach and they still got lose and leaked and the tape held them in the coach. I fixed them a third time and sold the coach. When you look at a coach, check for leaks and the ''fit of the windshield'' to the front cap of the coach. If there is any sign of leaks or a back yard glue job WALK AWAY you are buying troubles you dont need ...........cj......
there will be a charge of ten cents for this valuable advise and you can pay me the next time you see me......cj....
Water Dog
Well-known member
farmer dan said:
If you are buying this from a dealer, they should do a safety inspection on it which should include brakes. If not, I would require it before buying. Last November we bought our used Bounder from a local dealer and they told us that they would do a complete safety inspection including brakes...long story short, they wound up replacing all 4 rotors, calipers, pads and bearings before we took it home.
farmer dan
Well-known member
Thanks Dennis. I forgot that Maine state law requires an inspection sticker new with in 1 month of purchase. That's a good thing. So at least it will be safe to drive.
