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BinaryBob

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The Queen and I have narrowed down the floor plan and features we're looking for. Now it's a matter of the find. Do y'all have some tips and recommendations on how to search the internet listings?
Search Tempest seems to do well to consolidate craigslist and e-bay. I'm using RVT and RVTrader, but there are countless dealer websites that I don't want to overlook.
Do I just bite the bullet and bookmark all these dealer sites? Or is there a better way to find new listings?
 
I have done a lot of shopping for RVs online and my two favorite places are eBay and Craigslist. I find all the others basically a waste of time. Too many of the other sites aren't updated frequently and many of the listing are already sold. Don't get discouraged. It takes me on average of four months of intensive shopping to find one that meets my requirements. You just need a lot of patience. You will have to kiss a lot of frogs before you kiss a prince.
 
Bob-

When I was looking, I checked RVT and RVTrader like you. I also created a search on eBay with my price parameters. I didn't actually intend to buy via auction in the traditional eBay manner, but there are a number of dealers that advertise on ebay, and they make it clear that you can negotiate a sale outside the eBay auction.

Finally, I would search Craigslist in my home area of northwestern IL, plus a couple of metro areas where I would be willing to travel to look (Mpls and Chicago). Of course the problem with Craigslist is you have to sort through a lot of chaff to get to the wheat. Of course as you know, the Mpls Craigslist RV section is dominated by snowmobiles.  ;D  I set search parameters from $25k to 50k, which weeded out most of the sleds and the rolling ice fishing shacks. After all the searching, I ended up getting my rig off CL about 30 miles from home.

If you have some dealers that don't advertise on any of the above, by all means bookmark them as well.  I didn't bother with that because my local dealers were ridiculously overpriced. 
 
Here is a link to a good site for used rv's.
http://classyrv.com/v/used/class/a/motorhome/category=52
 
Thanks.
I'm finding ridiculous overpricing in CL too.
Just looked at 2005 Itasca Suncruiser. Nice unit but priced at $115,000.
NADA is at $55,000 low retail. Adjusting for low mileage and a couple of add-on options brings it up 65.
He want's "serious inquiries only".. Does all that "seriousness" apply to sellers too??  :( :(
 
BinaryBob said:
Great link. I'm also keeping my eye on PPL and MHSRV in Texas. Less rust down there!
In the north and east you get rust. In the west and the south you get dried out rubber. They are going to have issues no matter where you buy used.

Yes there are some overpriced RVs on Craigslist but there are also some real bargains. I got my last two RVs from CL and I expect to get the one I am currently shopping for from CL.
 
Good points Tom.
I want to pay cash, so I'm padding the budget for post-purchase maintenance.
The good part of search tempest is it shows the posting date. We can tell what's new on there.
 
Yep, CL prices are all over the board. A lot of the private sellers are either way under water with loans or don't understand that their pride and joy depreciated like crazy the minute they drove it off the lot, both of which lead to overpricing. But there are some gems out there too.

The one I ended up buying, I watched for about six months. The guy started out about 30% too high, but eventually he dropped his listing to within about 5k of where I wanted to be. I negotiated some more and got it for a few hundred over what he owed. He and I had the same bank so I just transferred the money straight to pay off his loan.
 
Scott,  (and others..)
I've also had my eye on the Itasca Horizon. Seems to be one of the shorter diesel pushers.
The Queen likes no hump in the cockpit and the reported quieter ride. I like the fact that mileage isn't as large of a factor.
Problem / question: I know nothing of engines other than changing oil and fluids. Is maintenance costs an issue on these compared to a gasser?
 
Bob,

I haven't owned mine long enough to give you the definitive answer on maintenance so I'll leave that to others. I can tell you that oil and filter changes are more expensive because it uses way more oil and has more filters. Tires are generally larger than gassers, so they are more expensive (mine had brand new Michelins, which made it an even better deal).  Finally, if you have a catastrophic failure like engine or trans, it is much more expensive.  On the flip side, Diesel engines generally last much, much longer if maintained.

Size wise, Horizons are among the smaller DPs. Mine is the 36ld, which implies 36', but its actually closer to 37'. Still, it doesnt feel large. They also made a 34' in that year. We love ours. The quiet ride is wonderful and we like the front entry.
 
Hear are a couple of places to exersize your mouse. Don?t think a 40 foot coach is to long if you can drive a 36 you won?t know the diferance in a 40. The benefit is more room and storage.
http://mcclainsrv.server3.myrvadvantage.com/Home.aspx
http://www.prosalesrv.com/index.php
http://www.i-35rvcenter.com/
http://www.pplmotorhomes.com/diesel/diesel-motorhomes.php
http://www.ancirarv.com/home-p1597.asp
http://www.mhsrv.com/
http://www.vogtrv.com/
Bill
 
There is a site named cranky ape which you can google.  They list autos, motorcycles, trucks as well as RV's and other items which are repossessed.  You can view the RV and then make a bid.  Often they have late model TT's and RV's. The winning bids are sometimes unbelievable low.
 
Take I-35 South Googl maps says it is 1008 miles. Temp today in mid 60s but upper 70s by Sat. Good weather to kick some tiers on a lot of different motor homes. Sounds like a road trip?..
Bill
 

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