Flummoxed RV Plans

[Adventurous Traveler]

Earlier this year, there was a thread, I can't find it, that asked about travel plans for 2026. I joined in detailing what my DW and I were doing, starting with a month in Florida with a late Winter departure date in February. The Finger Lakes region in NY, Lake Placid, and perhaps hope over to Maine and NH were on the list in July. The big trip was going to be 6-8 weeks to the Grand Canyon, New Mexico, and Big Bend NP in Texas, besides the unscheduled stop along the way starting early September.

Well, after Florida, which was picture perfect at Northflow RV Resort and Marina in East Palatka, FL, for March, the whole trip went to **** starting April first. It started with a coolant leak at a Walmart in South Carolina for an overnight stop. Calling for a mobile mechanic from a Google search, we got dinged $210 to be connected to a local guy. We sat in a Schoney's restaurant parking lot for seven hours while the mobile mechanic worked on the problem for five hours. Luckily, he only charged us $396, plus we tipped him another $75. Next stop, Falls Lake Recreation Area outside of Raleigh, NC, 220 miles away. We got within 15 miles of the campground when the check engine light came on, along with other warning lights. We made it to the campground, enjoyed a glass of bourbon, and called it a night. The next morning, I called a local diesel repair shop, Creedmore Diesel and Welding, 10 miles away. They agreed to look at my motorhome as soon as we got there. These guys were awesome. The tech Casey worked on my rig for an hour, cleared all the codes, ran diagnostics, checked the last guy's EGR repair, and declared the rig ready. I paid for one hour of labor, $155. I went to leave, and the check engine light came back on. Casey rechecked things and determined that it might need a new coolant temperature sensor, and we'd have to leave the rig overnight. They even ran an extension to our motorhome so we could leave the residential fridge running, stocked with food for 2 months on the road. The next day, bad news, it wasn't the sensor, and they couldn't determine the cause of the codes. Their recommendation was to take it to the Raleigh Freightliner dealer. Parts and labor for the sensor work, $430.

Creedmore Diesel got us into Velocity Freightliner the next day, jumping ahead of their 2-week waiting list. To shorten the post, we drove our Kia back to WNY after Velocity told us some needed parts, a new wiring harness, the big $$$ item, was backordered. They had our rig for over a week. Besides the harness, they also replaced various EGR components, broken bolts, etc., at a labor rate of $240 an hour. Total, $10 under $14,000! Plus, we have two airline tickets to fork out for to go back down to Raleigh to pick up our motorhome and dolly on Tuesday.


So, Grand Canyon and everything West is cancelled, Lake Placid and NE probably will be too. When we get home, the RV goes up for sale, and we really don't know if, how, or in what way we would continue our RV lifestyle. I hate shopping RVs. I had two payments left on the Sportscoach. I don't want to start all over with high monthly payments on what could be even a bigger used RV nightmare. We got into RV'ing fast and by the seat of our pants, and we may be leaving the same way.

I/We just don't know at this point.

 

[Domo]

... And sometimes the trips are smooth and glorious.

Let us all remember those good ones and learn from the others so we can share and teach.

Sorry you got so sidetracked.

 

[Professor David]

Sorry to hear about these troubles. We’ve had to limit our travel this year because we are moving our kitchen to a new location in our home.

 

[Derby6]

Slow down and take a breath. You put that much into fixing it, I’d keep it at this point. Try some close to home trips and see how she does. No issues then off you go when your ready.

 

[RayIN]

It is said that owning a boat is buying a hole in the water, into which you throw money. A MH is somewhat the same scenario, as it is the most expensive way to go camping.
I would guess, we've spent approx, $22,000 over and above the purchase price on our MH. Do we regret any of it, heavens no.
It's sitting in the RV garage, ready for another trip, as I keep everything repaired and maintained.
However things just happen. DW missed a Dr. appt. at the Mayo Clinic one year because the injector pump, fuel distributor failed. That repair bill alone was $10,000 to Cummins Great Plains.

 

[UTTransplant]

Since you only have a couple of payments left, keep it. Just take local trips that are enjoyable. I am betting once the shock wears off you will remember the good times. Maybe you will not take any long trips, maybe next year you will try again for this year’s plans. But being stuck sucks. I say that as I sit in Iowa with my motorhome sitting in a Velocity service shop in Las Vegas waiting on a part that was quoted as 60-90 day lead. And sadly my final cost will be even more than yours (complete VGT replacement plus some accessory parts with labor at $260/hr). But this is really the first major issue we have had in 8 years, 106,000 miles, and 6-8 months on the road each year. $2000/year and lots and lots of joy is still worth it. I understand my view is coming from a state of privilege, but the fun has been worth the $170 a month it comes out to be. Maybe it will help if you calculated the cost per month of ownership. It certainly made it a bit more palatable for me, though I am sure I will make a big gulp when I pay the final bill.

 

[Ohiosnowbird]

Hello! On a brand new rig…Black tank fell off. Generator quit working. Slides failed. Levelers quit working. Microwave fell off the wall. AGS system never worked. Door lock randomly gets stuck in locked position. Batteries constantly covered in corrosion causing random failures. Definition of lemon here!!! It feels shocking now, but the trip from **** will be funny, one of these days. Trust me I know. Cool off. Take a deep breath. It will be better the next time out. Really.

 

[Adventurous Traveler]

Since you only have a couple of payments left, keep it. Just take local trips that are enjoyable. I am betting once the shock wears off you will remember the good times. Maybe you will not take any long trips, maybe next year you will try again for this year’s plans. But being stuck sucks. I say that as I sit in Iowa with my motorhome sitting in a Velocity service shop in Las Vegas waiting on a part that was quoted as 60-90 day lead. And sadly my final cost will be even more than yours (complete VGT replacement plus some accessory parts with labor at $260/hr). But this is really the first major issue we have had in 8 years, 106,000 miles, and 6-8 months on the road each year. $2000/year and lots and lots of joy is still worth it. I understand my view is coming from a state of privilege, but the fun has been worth the $170 a month it comes out to be. Maybe it will help if you calculated the cost per month of ownership. It certainly made it a bit more palatable for me, though I am sure I will make a big gulp when I pay the final bill.

I read this back to my DW, we laughed hard at UTT's post and realized we are not alone in the world of RV misery, right down to Velocity Freightliner!

Every call I got from them to update the status of my RV it was another $4000. That last one they told me I had an exhaust leak and they wanted to replace the exhaust manifold and associated parts for an additional $4500 + tax which would put the bill close to $20K. I told them no my bank account is just about empty. What did they do? Put a new exhaust manifold gasket on!

My plight with the his rig with the "trusted, tried and true 6.7 Cummings" by whom(?) goes back to a new radiator in 2023 $5000, New England Trip cancelled, In 2022 the serpentine belt went caused by the A/C compressor seizure which shorted out the electronics. Heavy tow from my driveway because it wouldn't start, $3000 total. Alternator 2024 $1000 Lake George Trip cancelled. In 2025, while in St.Mary Montana and Glacier NP both front air springs or chambers went. Closest mechanic over 100 miles away. Parts, $124, labor including drive time back and forth for parts, $3800!

Besides the calamity highlights from above I didn't include the dash A/C pooped out while leaving Florida, again. Already on the fourth compressor at about $650 with labor each time. I can't remember all of the other smaller repairs totaling a few more thousands I'm sure.

This "venerable" Cummings reminds me of early Harley s where advocates would boast you'll get over a 100K miles on them, if you could keep them running, or even get them to start. Cummins, good for 500K miles or more, yeah, but they might bankrupt you beforehand! Junk

 

[Derby6]

Forget my earlier post. I’d be over it and cut my losses as well. That things really been a pain for you all. I was thinking it was a one time major issue — not so much.

 

[UTTransplant]

Ouch! We have the 6.7L Cummins on a Freightliner chassis. The only engine-related issues we have had was a cracked $75 hose ($300 or so labor of course) and a crazed radiator overflow tank discovered during our routine maintenance. That is considered an items that needs to be replaced every 5-8 years anyway. This replacement of the entire turbo was a surprise, and I was so worried I had driven the rig poorly and caused it. But after reading a lot more, it seems like it is just something not rare with this engine. Definitely not common, but not rare. Sigh. We first thought it was just the manifold, then they discovered the entire VGT needs replaced. I am actually comfortable with the repair shop. They have a good reputation, and we had that early hose crack (2.5 years, 30K miles) fixed there. It is just so hard waiting on parts. Luckily we have a house and family so we will just replan our summer when we know when we can get the rig on the road again. Current estimate is $18K. Oh, and our house got hit with a huge hail storm. Final estimate coming tomorrow, but it looks like new siding all around, new roof, new gutters. The deductible for that is 1% of current appraised value. Talk about “ouchies!” Now, doesn’t that make you feel better?

 

[woof-n]

If you're going to pull something, think about a fifth wheel and gas power 3/4 ton. IMHO best bang for the buck.

 

[Oldgator73]

We decided to scrap RV life and spent what would have been plenty for a decent MH or truck and trailer $220,000) on 40 acres and a small cabin in Southwest Virginia. So instead of trips crisscrossing the country and the occasional cruise or few weeks in Europe we will be pouring money into rehabbing the cabin to our taste. We enjoyed the RV life but decided to spend our kids inheritance in a different way. How many ruined trips can one experience before you say that’s it, I give up. Not many of us have an infinite amount of retirement to keep pouring into these RV’s. It was fun while it lasted and we have some great memories. I gave our little TT to our SIL in the hopes he will use it to make memories with our grandkids.

 

[nibroc]

ya did good gator

 

[Ohiosnowbird]

We decided to scrap RV life and spent what would have been plenty for a decent MH or truck and trailer $220,000) on 40 acres and a small cabin in Southwest Virginia. So instead of trips crisscrossing the country and the occasional cruise or few weeks in Europe we will be pouring money into rehabbing the cabin to our taste. We enjoyed the RV life but decided to spend our kids inheritance in a different way. How many ruined trips can one experience before you say that’s it, I give up. Not many of us have an infinite amount of retirement to keep pouring into these RV’s. It was fun while it lasted and we have some great memories. I gave our little TT to our SIL in the hopes he will use it to make memories with our grandkids.

How many ruined trips can one experience before you say that’s it, I give up. Not many of us have an infinite amount of retirement to keep pouring into these RV’s.

Those are the sentences we utter every time we have a fail and our fails have been quite $$. We have that and a log cabin we’ve been rehabbing for the last 10 years which is an expensive “hobby” too. 10 acres, which used to be our working farm. Raspberries and small fruit grown for farmers markets was the priority for the first 5 years, we’ve had the place for the last 15 years. Farming, now that’s a fun hobby. Covid rules plus bad backs, we couldn’t do it any more so we turned to rehabbing the cabin. But 10 years, because things are so expensive and hard. There was no water, we ran a mile of pipe to get county water. No electricity, generators, solar, propane.

Original

2022

Kitchen 2020 - still looks mostly like that. Covid supply shortages stopped us and we moved on to the addition. Those are morels on the counter we delivered to farmers market customers prior to quitting that life.

Original kitchen.

Addition, which has gotten really expensive. We use the RV, which frequently disappoints, to get away from the never ending cabin rehab - when it gets cold.

Point is, one can have many hobbies at our age, none of it will go fast or as expected. You just have to have a sense of humor, we won’t be around forever.

 

[Robert K1]

We have been pretty lucky I guess. Our old 96 Safari class A has only been towed once over the 15 years and 110,000 miles.It took awhile to get over that and to keep traveling with it but that 20,000 miles ago.
Just to increase my RV fun I now have 2 MHs. We leave about the 1st of May to head to Alaska with the newer class C.

 

[Jackiemac]

After spending all that I'd definitely be tempted to keep it. Is there someone knowledgeable you trust who could give it an inspection and advise if it's likely to have more problems? I totally understand not wanting to have to spend more on it. However if it's now OK wi you recoup the money? If not it might be worth keeping.

Just a thought.

Sorry you've had such a crap experience. It can really get you down.

 

[Adventurous Traveler]

Deeedadeee.... Update!

So, today Tuesday 4/21, My DW and I went to pick up our motorhome at Velocity Freightliner, after flying in to Raleigh Monday.

The mechanic who worked on our rig came out and explained what he did on our rig, and why each step needed to be done. He showed us some old parts, and pictures of others that were discarded.

I shook his hand and thanked him for taking the time to explain things to me, and also the service writer for her communications and we were on our way.

We stopped at a gas station to pickup some beer, wine, and snacks for our overnight at a Harvest Host in Gettysburg, PA. Ready to go, The Check Engine Light Comes On! After over $15,000 of repair, the engine light comes on! Code 1209, ??? wiring harness!

If course Velocity says bring it back, can you make it back. We do, they jump right on it. After an hour of waiting they call me back to the rig, says the exhaust sensor that goes into the exhaust manifold needs replacing, and the tech tried everything, he can't get it out. New Exhaust manifold needed, $1619.00, + labor......$5000+! They offered a ride to a hotel.

All camping for 2026 cancelled, we're done, if I don't croak first.

 

[Derby6]

You have got to be shitting me.

 

[Adventurous Traveler]

Minute by Minute update.

At 9:30 this AM Service Advisor emails me with a quote of $7500 + $$$ for "nuts and bolts" literally! Permission needed to go forward.

At 10:15 the mechanic himself calls on his own cell, tells me he got permission to try to help me out by working on the sensor. He was able to heat it up, remove it, and replace it and rubber hoses the first mechanic in So. Carolina installed with parts that he scavenged off of engine cores going back to Cummins. Assured me I'd be on the road today, price much much less the price, no new manifold or price for parts! Yeah, finally a catch a break.

No way Jose, I'm not that lucky. At 1PM the friendly Service Advisor calls. Mechanic got everything buttoned up, but now the exhaust manifold leaks even more, back to $7500 + and who knows when it'll be done My question, what's wrong with the manifold that it needs replacing? She didn't know, I asked isn't it just the gasket that blew, those manifolds are cast iron and should last forever. At 1:15 she called back it "might be just the gasket" but they won't know until the manifold is removed and has it warped or not! Engine never overheated, why would it warp?

On hold again in Raleigh until minimum tomorrow, either a couple thousand, or $7500+.

 

[Jackiemac]

Incompetence by the sounds of it. How infuriating.