thinking of buying a motorhome

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steve321
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thinking of buying a motorhome

Post by steve321 »

I went hiking today with some friends and one of them told me he recently bought a motorhome and described how fun it is to travel; he also said that since he is in his seventies he won't be able to use it for many years and that he wishes he were my age (I'm in my 50s) so that he could go travel around the world with it. Anyway, to cut a long story short I got quite excited hearing him speak and looked at the adverts and saw that there's a used Laika Ecovip 4.1 motorhome for sale in the region we staying at the moment (in Europe). It's about 26K$, dates from the year 2000 with less than 100Kmiles.
This is all based on the discussion I had this morning as I never thought of motorhomes before...but then it sounds like it could be a good plan from the stories I heard; I am currently retired and want to make some fun projects.
So any tips, comments, suggestions etc both on the subject of living and travelling in a motorhome and on the particular model I mentioned (nor sure if it's used in the US too) would be very welcome.
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retiredjg
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Re: thinking of buying a motorhome

Post by retiredjg »

A motorhome is a bit like a boat. For many, the happiest days in your life are the day you buy it....and the day you sell it. :happy

Unfortunately, the only way to know if you want to do this is to actually do it and see how you like it and if you want to continue.

I'd suggest renting a motorhome or travel trailer and giving it a try for a few weeks. Or go on a trip with your friend.
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Re: thinking of buying a motorhome

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This topic is now in the Personal Consumer Issues forum (recreational vehicle purchase).
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Re: thinking of buying a motorhome

Post by quantAndHold »

I don’t know anything about this motorhome, or European motorhomes in general, so I can’t comment about that. We’ve owned a small (by US standards) motorhome for the last several years, and spent 3-4 months every year traveling. We’re in the middle of selling it. We’ve been the places we want to go, and my health is not good enough to travel that way anymore.

The main pro is that you take your home with you, and can get the wilderness places you want to hike than you can staying in inns. It was nice to be able to wake up right by the trailhead, rather than having to drive to wherever we were going from town. Also, nice to sleep in our own bed and eat our own food.

The main con is that motorhomes are not reliable like cars are. You’re always going to be tinkering, and things will always be breaking. If you have a sense of adventure and are handy, that can be fun in its way. If you don’t have a sense of adventure, trying to find someone to figure out why you suddenly have a massive propane leak can be stressful.

Keep in mind before you buy that you always need to find a place to park, whether you’re traveling or at home. Not sure about Europe, but in the US, that can get expensive.
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Re: thinking of buying a motorhome

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Agree with the suggestion to do rental for a start - maybe 2-3 times. Then decide.
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Re: thinking of buying a motorhome

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I got to take a short trip on some else's motor home one time. I disliked the experience intensely. I really disliked staying in camp grounds where everyone seemed to go to sleep as soon as it got dark and one had to be very quiet after 8:30 PM. So, no music, no TV. Very boring. Then there was the fun experience of emptying the holding tank. :shock:
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Re: thinking of buying a motorhome

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sport wrote: Sun Mar 19, 2023 2:55 pm I got to take a short trip on some else's motor home one time. I disliked the experience intensely. I really disliked staying in camp grounds where everyone seemed to go to sleep as soon as it got dark and one had to be very quiet after 8:30 PM. So, no music, no TV. Very boring.
Where was that? My experience in campgrounds has been the exact opposite, wanting to sleep while the people in the next site were having a party.

Nobody has ever stopped me from watching TV inside the motorhome. Frankly, how would they even know I was doing that?
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Re: thinking of buying a motorhome

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sport wrote: Sun Mar 19, 2023 2:55 pm I got to take a short trip on some else's motor home one time. I disliked the experience intensely. I really disliked staying in camp grounds where everyone seemed to go to sleep as soon as it got dark and one had to be very quiet after 8:30 PM. So, no music, no TV. Very boring. Then there was the fun experience of emptying the holding tank. :shock:
I'm like that, I go to sleep by 9 pm... :D
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Re: thinking of buying a motorhome

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quantAndHold wrote: Sun Mar 19, 2023 2:36 pm You’re always going to be tinkering, and things will always be breaking.
You mean the engine too is less reliable?
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Re: thinking of buying a motorhome

Post by bob60014 »

Think of driving a house down bumpy, sometimes unimproved roads being shaken. You're constantly tightening or reconnecting plumbing and electrical connections, sealing water leaks, etc....and that's just for the living area. Now add regular vehicle maintenance on a vehicle that may be driven low, but hard use miles. If one is handy and doesn't mind the time that may be involved it's great. If not, it can be a drag.
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Re: thinking of buying a motorhome

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quantAndHold wrote: Sun Mar 19, 2023 2:59 pm
sport wrote: Sun Mar 19, 2023 2:55 pm I got to take a short trip on some else's motor home one time. I disliked the experience intensely. I really disliked staying in camp grounds where everyone seemed to go to sleep as soon as it got dark and one had to be very quiet after 8:30 PM. So, no music, no TV. Very boring.
Where was that? My experience in campgrounds has been the exact opposite, wanting to sleep while the people in the next site were having a party.

Nobody has ever stopped me from watching TV inside the motorhome. Frankly, how would they even know I was doing that?
IIRC, it was a KOA. Probably in Indiana or Illinois. It was a loooong time ago.
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Re: thinking of buying a motorhome

Post by retiredjg »

steve321 wrote: Sun Mar 19, 2023 3:06 pm
quantAndHold wrote: Sun Mar 19, 2023 2:36 pm You’re always going to be tinkering, and things will always be breaking.
You mean the engine too is less reliable?
In my experience, it was not the engines being unreliable. But there is almost always something to fix. Sometimes it is a major something to fix. More often, just a lot of little things to fix.
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Re: thinking of buying a motorhome

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steve321 wrote: Sun Mar 19, 2023 12:49 pm Anyway, to cut a long story short I got quite excited hearing him speak and looked at the adverts and saw that there's a used Laika Ecovip 4.1 motorhome for sale in the region we staying at the moment (in Europe).
So any tips, comments, suggestions etc both on the subject of living and travelling in a motorhome and on the particular model I mentioned (nor sure if it's used in the US too) would be very welcome.
Laika appears to be an Italian brand. You won't find them in the US unless someone imported one for their personal use. You definitely would be challenged to find parts for the house section and it's on a Fiat chassis, so probably an issue finding chassis service.

Definitely rent first. Consider doing some research on iRV2. Their forum is the largest RV discussion board and covers all aspects of RVs, camping, and RV brands.

We have been RVers for 23 years, have had 3 coaches (so far), and have spent as long as 6 months on the road at a time. We love it, but it's definitely not for everyone.
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Re: thinking of buying a motorhome

Post by Johny Fever »

My first question for you is how good are you at repairing things? I We own a 1991 Prevost Motorhome with about 385K miles on it. It is built like a brick. We have used this thin to travel and tailgate in for years and years,,,followed our kids though college sports and all over the USA..I would not trade a second of that time for anything. That said...I am mechanic and thats what I did for a living so fixing it was fine for me...for you its 150-175 per hour and hope it makes it to the shop cause tow bills are nuts. If you have the cash, cool...if I were you I would start by renting. Dont know a thing about the non US brands...but nothing is cheap...and they ALL break,,,some a lot...good luck!
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Re: thinking of buying a motorhome

Post by Watty »

Buying a RV is really a lifestyle choice and not an economic one since it will likely cost a lot more than just using hotel rooms or rental condos when you travel. The cost to buy one is just the beginning.

Rent one for a month, or even an entire season before you buy one since that will help you decide it if is right for you and also help you figure out what features are important to you.

It is really common for people to buy an RV to then decide they really want something else and buy a different RV in a year or two.
steve321 wrote: Sun Mar 19, 2023 12:49 pm ...so that he could go travel around the world with it.
With a possible exception of a van size camper they get such bad gas mileage that most people only use them in their local region. I really doubt that you would ever take it out of Europe if you buy one there.

A relative has a camper trailer and when they are towing it they get around 8 MPG. Especially with European gas prices the gas for taking a 5,000 mile road trip would be expensive. I have taken a 5,000 mile road trip in a car that got good gas mileage and the cost of gas was a very minor consideration.

One big problem with an RV is that once you get where you are going then you do not have a car to drive around in unless you towed one behind you.

I briefly looked into buying one when I retired and if I was going to buy one I would likely get a trailer and a vehicle to tow it with instead of a motor home. That way when I got somewhere I could leave the camper trailer at the campsite and drive around in the tow vehicle.

You can easily spend $40K for modest towing vehicle in the US. A huge advantage of a tow vehicle like a pickup truck though is that you can find parts for it and an affordable mechanic anywhere you are at. With a motor home it may be hard to even find someone to work on it in a remote location and they may charge you a premium price and may need to wait for parts that are needed for a repair to be shipped to you.

When you are traveling with a camper the camp site fees are usually not free and can easily cost $50 a night or more in the US but you may need to reserve a campsite in a desirable location six months in advance.

I have played with numbers and having an RV or camper trailer was always a lot more expensive than just staying in hotels especially since you can often rent a condo by the week or month to get a better price.

Paying for secure storage for an RV when you are not using it can also be expensive and hard to find in some areas so also budget for that.
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Re: thinking of buying a motorhome

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Why don't your borrow, rent or buy the unused one from your 70-year-old friend?
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Re: thinking of buying a motorhome

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Seems crazy to me to drag your living room and bedroom down the highway burning tons of fossil fuels in the process, but maybe that's just me. And I see hundreds of these things parked in huge holding areas, behind homes, or (worse) on the street. I'd also be afraid that I'd end up living in the thing. Check out van life blogs - it's not as rosy as it looks at first.

I agree with others to rent one, but do_not_buy.
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Re: thinking of buying a motorhome

Post by michaelingp »

Rent first! We did that in the U.S. with Cruise America. Turned out to be the best vacations we ever had, so we did buy. But just because you liked it when you rented doesn't mean you should buy. Keeping on renting has a lot of advantages, like you can fly a distance, rent there and fly back. You can rent different models depending one who you are traveling with. Renting is probably less expensive in the long run because the motorhome you own sits unused for a lot of the time.
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Re: thinking of buying a motorhome

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snackdog wrote: Sun Mar 19, 2023 6:43 pm Why don't your borrow, rent or buy the unused one from your 70-year-old friend?
He's still using it, but he said he will only be able to do it for a few years that's why he regrets not buying one earlier
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Re: thinking of buying a motorhome

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A motorhome is like a boat or airplane - you don't buy them to save money. You own them because you enjoy them and you feel they're worth the cost and maintenance headaches. On paper it makes sense to rent vs. buy but the difference is you'll rent once or twice then quit doing it because renting is a hassle. You'll save money because you're not doing it, but you're also missing out on the experience of camping. Owning is a completely different experience because it's always there available to you and is filled with your stuff. When my wife and I want to head out for a few days or weeks we simply hop in the motorhome and go. Our clothes, cooking supplies, bedding, and everything except perishable food is already on board waiting. We like to hike, kayak, and fish so we can stay in remote state campgrounds right at the trailheads and rivers rather than at a hotel or AirBnB an hour or more away. As far as maintenance, the chassis (engine, transmission, brakes, etc) has the same reliability as any other vehicle. What you'll be working on is the house side. It's generally small, easy to fix things that you can take care of yourself if you're remotely handy. If you have to pay someone it can become a pain because RV technicians are harder to come by than regular vehicle mechanics. Most of the systems in RVs aren't complex so DIY is the way to go.

I see the same rent vs. buy argument with boats and airplanes. People who rent boats do it once or twice then never again. The boat isn't available when they want it and when they do get it the day isn't as relaxing because they know they've got a deadline to get it turned back in. There are no spur of the moment outings when you rent. So even though they love boating they aren't out doing it. The same for planes. People who spent $10K or more to get a pilots license stop flying within a year of getting their license because of the hassle of scheduling their flights around when the plane is available vs when they want to fly. And they can't take the plane for a weekend trip or even half a day because someone else has it scheduled so all they can do is go out for an hour or two and fly around the pattern. They lose interest and stop doing it even though they love flying. I know very few people who got a pilots license and still fly after 2 or 3 years if they're renting vs. own a plane. A motorhome will be the same as a boat or plane. Buy it because you love it and want to use it on YOUR schedule, not because it pencils out as being cheaper than renting.
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Re: thinking of buying a motorhome

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Sometimes a motorhome and RV Trailer, etc, are like owning a boat.

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Re: thinking of buying a motorhome

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It really depends on your idea of vacationing in retirement. Many like going from campground to campground and for that, they excel. But if you want to spend some time in a big city, they can be very challenging to parallel park and finding a parking garage tall enough is out of the question. Even parking one is a highly recommended restaurant parking lot can be a challenge. Likewise, we often go places that are accessible by most commuting type vehicles but are nearly impossible with an RV due to it's length, width and height. The only way to get around that is to tow a small vehicle behind your RV which wastes even more energy. Since our idea of vacation is to leave the bulk of our worldly possessions behind instead of bringing them with us, we find RV's to be limiting. If we feel like watching television in a conditioned space and eating a homecooked meal is in order, we stay home.
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Re: thinking of buying a motorhome

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I saw some to rent for a week or so: would you agree that it's best not to rent a long one for the first time? That's what my friend said, to ideally find one say 5 or 6 meters long at the maximum.
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Re: thinking of buying a motorhome

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I’d rent one to try it out before you buy.
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Re: thinking of buying a motorhome

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steve321 wrote: Mon Mar 20, 2023 2:55 pm I saw some to rent for a week or so: would you agree that it's best not to rent a long one for the first time? That's what my friend said, to ideally find one say 5 or 6 meters long at the maximum.
If you are not accustomed to driving long vehicles, this is good advice. They do not maneuver like a car or truck. In particular, you will need to learn to swing out wider and longer on turns.
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Re: thinking of buying a motorhome

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I bought two motorhomes, both new (1985, 1996). Made sense at the time. Some good times travelling with dogs and our son. Expensive. Depreciate terribly. Can't say it was a bad decision as it was right at the time. But certainly would not do again (felt the same way "never again" for at least the last 15 years).
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Re: thinking of buying a motorhome

Post by BrooklynInvest »

I've thought about this. Have done 7 cross country trips on my motorcycles and occasionally the idea of a motorhome piques my curiosity. But it doesn't last -

There are definitely places where motorhome "camping" would really add to the experience. Roughing it... but not too much. Monument Valley, National parks etc. but I like to mix my trips up with some city stays which I'd think would be a bit impractical in a land boat? Then the gas bills could be very unpleasant.

I'd also worry about driving long distances. I've seen some crazy traffic jams in the middle of nowhere when a few motorhomes wind up in a slow moving convoy. Not enough oomph to pass anything so you're stuck. Then again, maybe there's no hurry.

As soon as my boy is old enough think our plan is road trip in a rented jeep or Bronco. Mix of hotels and occasional camping would be ideal for us and I just wouldn't own something to use only occasionally.

Good luck OP!
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Re: thinking of buying a motorhome

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mjg wrote: Mon Mar 20, 2023 3:43 pm Expensive. Depreciate terribly.
I get the impression they depreciate less than car though; perhaps because the ones I've seen have done fewer miles than a car of the same age would have(?)
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Re: thinking of buying a motorhome

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steve321 wrote: Tue Mar 21, 2023 2:53 pm
mjg wrote: Mon Mar 20, 2023 3:43 pm Expensive. Depreciate terribly.
I get the impression they depreciate less than car though; perhaps because the ones I've seen have done fewer miles than a car of the same age would have(?)
Lately they've held their value or even appreciated, or at least have for the past few years until now.
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Re: thinking of buying a motorhome

Post by tibbitts »

Regarding the rent suggestions, I would say that kills a good part - maybe more than half - of the advantage of owning an RV, so you might not feel the same benefit as you would from owning.
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Re: thinking of buying a motorhome

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tibbitts wrote: Tue Mar 21, 2023 3:01 pm Regarding the rent suggestions, I would say that kills a good part - maybe more than half - of the advantage of owning an RV, so you might not feel the same benefit as you would from owning.
To me, renting an RV is something to do a few times to be sure you like the lifestyle. Or to accomplish a certain goal on a certain trip.

Either you enjoy the RV lifestyle or you don't. Renting is a way to find out. If you do enjoy the lifestyle, renting is not going to be as satisfying as owning in my opinion.
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Re: thinking of buying a motorhome

Post by ktdintex »

If you've never RV'd before, buying a 23 year old motorhome sounds like a massive gamble unless you're really handy. You're buying a vehicle and a house, and the house gets shaken like an earthquake going down the road.

Before you go any deeper, check on the cost of insurance and figure out where you would store it. Those are potentially huge hurdles that you have to figure out first.

Having said that, I had a trailer RV for many years and currently on my third year with a 40 foot diesel motorhome. Love the motorhome and spend 3-4 months traveling in it every year. But the storage is almost $400 / month and insurance is as much as my first house (because it cost as much as my first house).
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Re: thinking of buying a motorhome

Post by tibbitts »

retiredjg wrote: Tue Mar 21, 2023 4:31 pm
tibbitts wrote: Tue Mar 21, 2023 3:01 pm Regarding the rent suggestions, I would say that kills a good part - maybe more than half - of the advantage of owning an RV, so you might not feel the same benefit as you would from owning.
To me, renting an RV is something to do a few times to be sure you like the lifestyle. Or to accomplish a certain goal on a certain trip.

Either you enjoy the RV lifestyle or you don't. Renting is a way to find out. If you do enjoy the lifestyle, renting is not going to be as satisfying as owning in my opinion.
But only a part of the RV lifestyle will be available if you rent. A big part, maybe the biggest for a lot of people, is having all your "stuff" ready to go in the RV at all times, so you can just take off for a day or a week with virtually no preparation. And you will have done all kinds of little customizations and acquired all kinds of little gadgets to make your RV experience exactly what you want. Without that it's like driving a generic motel room around and it's hard for someone who hasn't had the owning experience appreciate how much different that is.
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Re: thinking of buying a motorhome

Post by retiredjg »

tibbitts wrote: Tue Mar 21, 2023 5:05 pm
retiredjg wrote: Tue Mar 21, 2023 4:31 pm
tibbitts wrote: Tue Mar 21, 2023 3:01 pm Regarding the rent suggestions, I would say that kills a good part - maybe more than half - of the advantage of owning an RV, so you might not feel the same benefit as you would from owning.
To me, renting an RV is something to do a few times to be sure you like the lifestyle. Or to accomplish a certain goal on a certain trip.

Either you enjoy the RV lifestyle or you don't. Renting is a way to find out. If you do enjoy the lifestyle, renting is not going to be as satisfying as owning in my opinion.
But only a part of the RV lifestyle will be available if you rent. A big part, maybe the biggest for a lot of people, is having all your "stuff" ready to go in the RV at all times, so you can just take off for a day or a week with virtually no preparation. And you will have done all kinds of little customizations and acquired all kinds of little gadgets to make your RV experience exactly what you want. Without that it's like driving a generic motel room around and it's hard for someone who hasn't had the owning experience appreciate how much different that is.
Agree completely.

My thinking is that a person who hates the renting experience is unlikely to enjoy the real experience. The rental experience might save some people a good deal of heartache if it prevents them from making such a purchase when they are not really suited for it.

On the other hand, if one enjoys the rental experience, there is at least a reasonable chance that the real experience will also be a good one for them. But as I said earlier, there is no way to know how you feel about this without actually doing it.:happy
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Re: thinking of buying a motorhome

Post by tibbitts »

retiredjg wrote: Tue Mar 21, 2023 5:35 pm
tibbitts wrote: Tue Mar 21, 2023 5:05 pm
retiredjg wrote: Tue Mar 21, 2023 4:31 pm
tibbitts wrote: Tue Mar 21, 2023 3:01 pm Regarding the rent suggestions, I would say that kills a good part - maybe more than half - of the advantage of owning an RV, so you might not feel the same benefit as you would from owning.
To me, renting an RV is something to do a few times to be sure you like the lifestyle. Or to accomplish a certain goal on a certain trip.

Either you enjoy the RV lifestyle or you don't. Renting is a way to find out. If you do enjoy the lifestyle, renting is not going to be as satisfying as owning in my opinion.
But only a part of the RV lifestyle will be available if you rent. A big part, maybe the biggest for a lot of people, is having all your "stuff" ready to go in the RV at all times, so you can just take off for a day or a week with virtually no preparation. And you will have done all kinds of little customizations and acquired all kinds of little gadgets to make your RV experience exactly what you want. Without that it's like driving a generic motel room around and it's hard for someone who hasn't had the owning experience appreciate how much different that is.
Agree completely.

My thinking is that a person who hates the renting experience is unlikely to enjoy the real experience. The rental experience might save some people a good deal of heartache if it prevents them from making such a purchase when they are not really suited for it.

On the other hand, if one enjoys the rental experience, there is at least a reasonable chance that the real experience will also be a good one for them. But as I said earlier, there is no way to know how you feel about this without actually doing it.:happy
You make a good point in that the value I can see to renting is more on the negative side, where you can eliminate if for example you find you just don't want to drive a larger vehicle. You may not get a feel for that by just a short test drive at a dealer. It's just that you have to go into the renting process realizing that you won't experience a good portion of the upside.
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Re: thinking of buying a motorhome

Post by retiredjg »

I think people who are "driven" to the RV life don't really need the rental "try-out". These people know who they are. :twisted:

For people who have never considered it before, like our original poster, I'm not sure that jumping in feet first with a large outlay of money is a good choice. Now, if original poster said "I've been mulling this over for months and just can't get it out of my mind", I'd say "go buy something and give it a whirl".
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Re: thinking of buying a motorhome

Post by DoubleComma »

We had an RV and camped/traveled in it a lot for about 7 years before we found our spot and purchased a second home. We loved RV camping, met some fantastic people and few duds. In many ways I miss it.

What I didn't mind, but really frustrates many, and you need to answer for yourself...Do you like tinkering and fixing things?

There is always something breaking or coming apart on a RV. Doesn't matter if its a $500 20 year old travel trailer or a $1M brand new motorhome. When your home is bouncing down the road things break, there just isn't anything to be done about it. RV Service Centers have long waits, prioritize customer who purchased new units from them, and supply chain was terrible before covid can't imagine what its like now. RV warranty also doesn't work like automobiles. Essentially every dealership who sells a specific brand RV does NOT have to provide warranty support for units they don't sell. This has to do with being authorized reseller of an RV vs franchisee of a automobile.

So your enjoyment with owning an RV will largely be dependent on you enjoying to tinker and fix.
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quantAndHold
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Re: thinking of buying a motorhome

Post by quantAndHold »

retiredjg wrote: Tue Mar 21, 2023 5:49 pm I think people who are "driven" to the RV life don't really need the rental "try-out". These people know who they are. :twisted:

For people who have never considered it before, like our original poster, I'm not sure that jumping in feet first with a large outlay of money is a good choice. Now, if original poster said "I've been mulling this over for months and just can't get it out of my mind", I'd say "go buy something and give it a whirl".
Renting was useful for us to figure out what type of RV we wanted. If we had just gone out and bought something, we would have spent a lot of money buying and selling the wrong thing repeatedly.
Lalamimi
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Re: thinking of buying a motorhome

Post by Lalamimi »

2000 is way too old. Friends recently bought a "pristine" 1998. the electrical went out and they can't get it fixed. Would you purchase a 23 yr old car? Agree, pick out a few areas to visit, and rent. Where would you store it? What is the licensing and inspection? Fuel. We bought a 25' Travel Trailer in 2020, stay mainly in state parks, had 2 blow outs in Oct on a 600 mile trip to visit family. $800 later, we were back on the road with 4 new tires.
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firebirdparts
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Re: thinking of buying a motorhome

Post by firebirdparts »

The primary advantage of a motorhome is that on the road, you're in it. You're not sitting in the truck. That really doesn't help the driver, it just helps everybody else. they are fun on the road. They are ever so slightly easier to park. In every other way, they're disadvantaged vs. other forms of glamping. More expensive, less useful, harder to take care of. FWIW. I love them but I also am glad I don't have one.

You should be handy. You need to take care of a medium duty truck and a flimsily built (but with limited accessibility) propane-fired house while you're on the road with a bunch of uninterruptible plans. That's what I think. Of course if the house breaks, you can ignore some of that. If the truck breaks, you're stopped.

If you're the kind of person who doesn't know when and where to put a car in a lower gear going downhill, then you do need to be better about stuff like that.
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firebirdparts
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Re: thinking of buying a motorhome

Post by firebirdparts »

I'll just add too, that people have strange ideas about "risk". When you have a certain loss, it's no longer a risk, and so they think that's okay.

So, for instance: Old motorhome, depreciates $10k while you own it, "risky"
New motorhome, depreciates $100k while you own it, "not risky"

That's a lot of money, but it's certain you're going to lose it, so it's not risky. I like money too much to lose it that way. I'd rather lose it another way.
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steve321
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Re: thinking of buying a motorhome

Post by steve321 »

firebirdparts wrote: Wed Mar 22, 2023 10:23 am I'll just add too, that people have strange ideas about "risk". When you have a certain loss, it's no longer a risk, and so they think that's okay.

So, for instance: Old motorhome, depreciates $10k while you own it, "risky"
New motorhome, depreciates $100k while you own it, "not risky"

That's a lot of money, but it's certain you're going to lose it, so it's not risky. I like money too much to lose it that way. I'd rather lose it another way.
Sorry I don't follow you. Why is the old motorhome that depreciates "risky" and the New motorhome that depreciates "not risky"?
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beernutz
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Re: thinking of buying a motorhome

Post by beernutz »

I don't know what the wait times for RV repairs in Europe are like but in the US they are long enough to make DIY repairs my go-to option.

Case in point: we got to our current campsite, settled in, connected the site water to our trailer and I hear my wife yelling that there's water spewing out of the bathroom toilet. Yikes.

Turns out a part on the toilet had failed causing the spewing. Unfortunately there was no water cutoff valve for the toilet so that meant we couldn't run water anywhere in the camper. Double yikes.

Doing a bit of YouTube research revealed something called Sharkbite valves. I was at Lowe's when they opened and had a cutoff water valve installed soon after and we were good to go with a new water assembly module from Amazon on the way to our house.

If that kind of repair situation intimidates you then don't bother with RV life. It isn't rocket science but it's not kindergarten either.
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tibbitts
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Re: thinking of buying a motorhome

Post by tibbitts »

beernutz wrote: Wed Mar 22, 2023 5:43 pm I don't know what the wait times for RV repairs in Europe are like but in the US they are long enough to make DIY repairs my go-to option.

Case in point: we got to our current campsite, settled in, connected the site water to our trailer and I hear my wife yelling that there's water spewing out of the bathroom toilet. Yikes.

Turns out a part on the toilet had failed causing the spewing. Unfortunately there was no water cutoff valve for the toilet so that meant we couldn't run water anywhere in the camper. Double yikes.

Doing a bit of YouTube research revealed something called Sharkbite valves. I was at Lowe's when they opened and had a cutoff water valve installed soon after and we were good to go with a new water assembly module from Amazon on the way to our house.

If that kind of repair situation intimidates you then don't bother with RV life. It isn't rocket science but it's not kindergarten either.
Also related to d-i-y repairs, consider that you will usually end up carrying a large number of tools, which add considerable weight and take up space. Once you have an RV with water and gas systems, you basically need the same amount of weight/space for tools in a tiny van or egg trailer as you would in a 40ft coach. The added weight and space will be a much larger burden for a small RV than for a larger one.
rockstar
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Re: thinking of buying a motorhome

Post by rockstar »

This cracks me up and perfect timing for this thread.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uTKNbKJoM6I
midoxidil
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Re: thinking of buying a motorhome

Post by midoxidil »

sport wrote: Sun Mar 19, 2023 2:55 pm I got to take a short trip on some else's motor home one time. I disliked the experience intensely. I really disliked staying in camp grounds where everyone seemed to go to sleep as soon as it got dark and one had to be very quiet after 8:30 PM. So, no music, no TV. Very boring. Then there was the fun experience of emptying the holding tank. :shock:

Wait! wha......? :shock:
rockstar
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Re: thinking of buying a motorhome

Post by rockstar »

midoxidil wrote: Wed Mar 22, 2023 7:31 pm
sport wrote: Sun Mar 19, 2023 2:55 pm I got to take a short trip on some else's motor home one time. I disliked the experience intensely. I really disliked staying in camp grounds where everyone seemed to go to sleep as soon as it got dark and one had to be very quiet after 8:30 PM. So, no music, no TV. Very boring. Then there was the fun experience of emptying the holding tank. :shock:

Wait! wha......? :shock:
Camping is mostly sunrise to sunset. And some campgrounds are now no fire because of forest fire risks. I actually like this. Sunset is camper midnight.
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