Janss
Sedona, AZ
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Joined: 04/29/2010
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We are in the same boat now too. Went to a dealer lot to see the one we thought we wanted. Very disappointed in the condition inside. Can't believe they didn't spruce it up a bit before trying to sell it. The salesman called me recently because they got another similar model in. I asked him what condition it is in. "Good. It's good." We're going to see it next week. Hope he's not lying.
2002 Itasca Suncruiser 32V
1999 Chevy Tracker
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FIRE UP
Ramona, CA. USA
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Joined: 03/08/2004
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Flowergirl,
Well, as you've noticed and, lots of other folks have noticed, that people are people. That is, it's very difficult to trust the unknown. And that includes people. You'd like to think that people are honest, truthful, and sympathetic. You'd like to think that people who knew you were driving a long distance to see their rig would let you know the honest truth.
But, honesty and truthfulness is sometimes put by the wayside in order achieve a sale. Obviously there are lots of stories for this situation. I'll give you one more. We live in Ramona CA, close to San Diego and had been in contact with a couple in Cedar Park Texas who had a coach, with all the EXACT parameters we were looking for. I won't go into the details but, surface to say, it was presented as PERFECT, and we determined it was perfect.
We emailed the couple several times and requested more and more pictures of every angle of everything we could. In all honesty, they were more than willing to accommodate our wishes. Based on several conversations and at least 30-40 pictures, we negotiated a deal over the phone and we booked a flight to Austin Texas airport. Upon landing, they met us and whisked us away to the coach.
We began our inspection and the first thing I noticed was the tires were 7 years old. So, I made a comment on them and kept on with the inspection. As we moved around to the front end of the coach, it was then that my jaw dropped. The 3M mask, that many "full body paint" rigs have, was completely CRACKED severely, entirely, throughout the entire front end of the coach. It was hideous. It looked like chickens had danced on the front end of that coach.
Well, it was everything I could to from taking that guy out. I was so P.O.d that I could almost not even talk. After an $800.00 flight, and no way home, we both were livid. His comment, "IT'S NO BIG DEAL, IT'S ONLY COSMETIC". So, we booked another set of $400.00 tickets and flew back home by 09:00, San Diego time the next day.
So, you see, it happens to many folks. We then booked another flight to Reno NV, and picked up a sister coach to that one that WAS, AND IS PERFECT!!!!! We drove her home and have been happy ever since. Good luck. Take your time, and get as good of pictures from the seller as you can. Demand information. You'll get what you're looking for.
Scott
Scott and Karla
San Diego Fire Department RETIRED
2004 Itasca Horizon, 36GD Slate Blue 330 CAT
2011 White Honda CRV EX-L,4WD w/NAV Toad
2008 Caliente Red LVL II GL 1800 Goldwing
KI60ND
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randco
Sarasota, Florida
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Joined: 06/03/2007
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FormerBoater wrote:Flowergirl wrote:It is so frustrating to look for a used motorhome. I've been keeping my eye on one for several months. As we drove down to FL for vacation, we stopped to look. The lot owner assured me it was clean as brand new even smelled new. Had 12,000 miles on it. Well, we get there...he doesn't know what almost new clean is. Good grief, he knew we were coming...could he have vacuumed it? I know this is all easily cleaned up but, there were other signs that this was a hard 12,000 miles. We walked away...again. Ugh. Back to the internet again.
Try Quality Motor Coach in Apopka, Florida if you are interested in a used DP.
All of Gary's coaches will be clean, serviced and freshly detailed.
http://qualitymotorcoach.com/
I will 2nd that. We purchased our coach from him a year ago and are very pleased.
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Dale.Traveling
Newport News, VA
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Joined: 12/16/2010
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I think the 'Kiss a lot of frogs' statement is spot on. The problem you will face is that your standards and how it relates to material condition is going to be very different than what the seller considers.
When I was searching I would look past items I considered weekend fixable. Deep cleaning was in that category. Roof leaks and power train issues had me waking away very quickly. I probably looked at hundreds on line and dozens in person traveling as much as 500 miles to inspect a coach. Had fun getting away on weekends doing it. Made for a good a dress rehearsal to weekend camping, be it Holiday Inn camping.
Keep searching, you'll find a coach that fits your needs and remember you may love a particular coach but it will never love you back and if you feel the slightest bit uncomfortable with a particular coach just walk away.
2006 Hurricane 32D aka 'Moby' the Whale
FCC(SW) US Navy Retired 1980-2003
Stella my Navigator
Bogart the All American RV Dog
and
Cocoui waiting for me at the Rainbow Bridge
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imgoin4it
Alamogordo, NM USA
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Joined: 10/25/2004
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It is a funny thing that one can go to an RV park and see lots of folks with dogs in their coaches. You can also look at used motor homes and none of them have ever had any pets or anyone smoking in them. Most dealer also never go to the expense of cleaning a used unit, sometimes new ones also, until someone is willing to buy. Never could understand this way of thinking.
Retired and loving it 
Living in the Land of Enchantment
Traveling in 2007 Newmar KSDP
towing a Jeep Liberty
with a Blue Ox tow bar
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Shot-N-Az
Va
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Joined: 06/22/2007
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imgoin4it wrote: You can also look at used motor homes and none of them have ever had any pets or anyone smoking in them.
It often seems to me that on any given day, campgrounds have a far greater concentration of smokers than the population at large.
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ryanallie1
Magalia, Calif
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Joined: 04/12/2005
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Hi All.
We feel for you also. We spent almost 5 years looking for the right Motorhome also. Just now and then. But part of our problem was we only wanted one brand. A "Rexhall". Another reason, besides being well built Motorhomes, Rexhall is still in Business. We found that you don't see them for sale all that much. And we were not going to travel all over the country for one either. As with us also, our idea of clean and in good condition, does not meet most peoples standards of what that means. We also wouldn't ever touch an RV that has ever been smoked in. And trust me, there is no way they can hide that issue from me, as I have a nose like a Bloodhound. It turned out great for us, we bought our Rexhall only a couple of blocks from our house. We watched the add for months and months. As the seller had his price pretty high, but it only had 12,061 miles on it. Every month he keep bring his price down some more. When he got it way down in price, we went and looked at it. We didn't pay what he was asking for. He should have keep his personel information to himself. He actually told us, he was in a terrible shape money wise. But the Motorhome did have a clean and clear title. Yes we bought the Motorhome, I made him a pretty low "Cash Offer". I actually had the cash on me. He took it. We bought our Motorhome for a "Once in a Lifetime Buy". We did feeel sorry for him, but for the money that we saved, it will put fuel into our Motorhome for a long time. Even today, it is still listed as worth a lot more than what we paid for it. We have already been asked by a few people if we wanted to sell our Motorhome, at a lot more than what we paid for it. We have been RV'ers for 45 years now, and I have done all of my own Repairs and Mods. And this is our last RV, Period. We really liked the floor plan, but we didn't care much for the inside colors or some of the Furiniture. So we did an "Inside Make-Over", and I also did all the Mods at the same time that we wanted to do to it also, and now its the way we wanted it to be and to look. And with he cost of the "Motorhome" and the "Inside Make-Over" we still don't have all that much invested in our Motorhome. Just keep looking and take your time. Find out what brand of Motorhome that you like the most, and just look for that brand. Or at least narrow it dowen to just a couple of brands. It really paid off for us anyways. Take your time, and Cash really does speak. We haven't had one problme with our Motorhome. Of coarse I have gone completely though it, from Bumper to Bumper, inside and outside, and everything in between. I'm a real nut case when it comes to "Proventive Maintence Programs" Good Luck. Happy Travels. Dan & Jill
1998-33.5 Rexhall, Rexair SL. 460 EFI. F-53. HWH Levelers. 5.5G Gen. Convection/Microwave. 12 Cu Ft Side by Side. Water Purifier. Water Softner. 2 A/C's. Alarm Systems. 2 Honda EU2000i W/Kit. Toad CR-V W/SMI System. FMCA #F414397 Nam-Vet, 66-67-68,& 70-71
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daverich
Lebanon, MO until April 7 then to St. Joseph, MO
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We also found that our idea of clean and others idea of clean was different. It took many trips of up to four hours each way but finally found the right one.
We found that pictures lie. We have been looking again but between cleanliness and floor plan we have found no reason to get rid of our current one.
Keep looking. What you want is out there.
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horizon451
Henderson, NV
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Joined: 02/19/2006
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Wow! After reading all this, I think we'll keep ours. As they say "It's cheaper to keep her". We'll just do some remodeling as the coach is in, by our standards, very good condition.
Live Long and Prosper.
Home is where we park it.
FT since August 2010
'02 Itasca Horizon 36LD
'02 Jeep GC toad
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FIRE UP
Ramona, CA. USA
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horizon 451,
I'm not sure how serious you are about that statement but, believe me, there are some very nice, CLEAN, and attractive motor homes out there. Yep, there are a few that are not so good, clean etc. but, there are way more nice ones than are being led to believe here. Sure, sometimes some travel is warranted and sometimes you get just lucky. We've traveled to three different states for purchase of vehicles and our motor home.
It's not something we've proud of, it's just that, that's what it took for us to get what we want. I've purchased things (autos, motorcycles, motor homes, and much, much more) with the intent that if it/they needed some work to bring it up to my level of acceptance, well so be it. But, I don't do that anymore. I'm done refurbishing other peoples junk. If they don't care about their equipment, then they can KEEP IT. I'll (We'll) go through the effort it takes to expand a search, for what ever, (listed above) to make us happy. They're out there, Just be patient.
Scott
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