Question would you buy another Winnebago

[Automobilist]

I've mentioned this before, but I truly believe it is better to buy a used coach and let someone else work out the initial problems. Doesn't matter if you can "afford" a new RV or not. No matter what brand you buy, you'll have numerous things to fix on a new RV. Not to mention the massive initial depreciation.

[Chuck 1935]

Originally Posted by Automobilist

I've mentioned this before, but I truly believe it is better to buy a used coach and let someone else work out the initial problems. Doesn't matter if you can "afford" a new RV or not. No matter what brand you buy, you'll have numerous things to fix on a new RV. Not to mention the massive initial depreciation.

My first Motorhome was a 1994 Fleetwood Flair 32ft Diesel Pusher that I bought in 2004 for $30,000. We never had any problems with it but decided we wanted slides so we sold it for $25,000 in 2007. We then bought our 34ft, 2004 Itasca Maridian in 2007 for $115,000. This one has been the perfect coach with no problems at all. The guy we bought the Itasca from wanted a fancier Motorhome which he bought brand new. After owning it for one month he took it back to the factory in Oregon where it stayed for over a month trying to get it sorted out. I would NEVER have a new Motorhome. I hear too many horror stories about new ones.
But then again I'm still driving my old used Ford from High School !

[garycz]

guys
I am about ready to pull the trigger on a 2008 winnie adventurer 35L, at dealer, 1400 miles, first owner husband died, wife coulnt deal with it. loaded, workhorse w24 chassis. Never, i mean never had any use (look at obvious areas), on consignment. First unit for me, drove it, liked it (rather have a Allegro RED next to it!) Dont want to be MH poor. Price seems reasonable. Any reasons i should not consider this one seriously as too quality etc? My short list was tiffin, newmar and Winnie (used foretravel was nice, but too complicated for our use. This will be retirement long weekend up to cross country, tow small car, take dog, homebase at our farm with pavilion, slab, all hookups next to our pond, not to far from the country store(big house!) Maybe do 3000 miles per year. i need to hit home run on this one!!!

thanks
Gary Cz in Cooperstown (area) NY

[Bob/Becky D - VA]

Second MH was a 1994 Winny Adventurer (no slides) and we were very happy with it at the time. My current MH is a Winny 2003 Itasca (with slides) and it is a definite improvement over the 94 in terms of space, power, and apportment. At the price point these sell for, I would definitely buy another Itasca. However, If I hit the lotto I might consider other options.

[Automobilist]

Originally Posted by garycz

guys
I am about ready to pull the trigger on a 2008 winnie adventurer 35L, at dealer, 1400 miles, Dont want to be MH poor. Price seems reasonable. Any reasons i should not consider this one seriously as too quality etc? My short list was tiffin, newmar and Winnie i need to hit home run on this one!!!

thanks
Gary Cz in Cooperstown (area) NY

Gary,

It's probably a fine coach. It's a Winnebago after all!
But... for the same money, you could get a slightly older diesel. We paid a touch under $50k for our '02 Journey DL 36. DL means it has the bigger CAT 330 engine, and much more in standard equipment/features. Having owned a gas coach, another diesel pusher, a fifth-wheel toyhauler, and now the Journey, we would be hard pressed to go back to a gas coach.

[Hikerdogs]

Originally Posted by Automobilist

I've mentioned this before, but I truly believe it is better to buy a used coach and let someone else work out the initial problems. Doesn't matter if you can "afford" a new RV or not. No matter what brand you buy, you'll have numerous things to fix on a new RV. Not to mention the massive initial depreciation.

Buying used is no gaurantee all the problems have been worked out. It would seem to me that if someone had a coach that was continually causing them problems and costing them money they would sell it or trade it in on something that at least had some type of warranty. Buying used may be buying someone elses problems.

[Automobilist]

Originally Posted by Hikerdogs

Buying used is no gaurantee all the problems have been worked out. It would seem to me that if someone had a coach that was continually causing them problems and costing them money they would sell it or trade it in on something that at least had some type of warranty. Buying used may be buying someone elses problems.

Yep, could be. Better thoroughly check out any RV, new or used.

[UFO Pilot]

Originally Posted by Hikerdogs

Buying used is no gaurantee all the problems have been worked out. It would seem to me that if someone had a coach that was continually causing them problems and costing them money they would sell it or trade it in on something that at least had some type of warranty. Buying used may be buying someone elses problems.

I traded my 1st Coach in after 15 months and less than 5000 miles due to major electrical problems. It went back to the dealer and he sold it as used. Hopefully they fixed everything for the new owner.

[DAN L]

Originally Posted by garycz

guys
I am about ready to pull the trigger on a 2008 winnie adventurer 35L, at dealer, 1400 miles, first owner husband died, wife coulnt deal with it. loaded, workhorse w24 chassis. Never, i mean never had any use (look at obvious areas), on consignment. First unit for me, drove it, liked it (rather have a Allegro RED next to it!) Dont want to be MH poor. Price seems reasonable. Any reasons i should not consider this one seriously as too quality etc? My short list was tiffin, newmar and Winnie (used foretravel was nice, but too complicated for our use. This will be retirement long weekend up to cross country, tow small car, take dog, homebase at our farm with pavilion, slab, all hookups next to our pond, not to far from the country store(big house!) Maybe do 3000 miles per year. i need to hit home run on this one!!!

thanks
Gary Cz in Cooperstown (area) NY

have it checked out by an independent mechanic. most areas of the country have ''mobile rv service'' listed in the phone book.
if you are going to use it 3k miles a year imho you don't need a diesel's extra high priced service requirements.
if it checks out, i would go for it. imho you can't beat the 8.1 engine and allison tranny combination. the w24 or the ufo are undoubtedly the best workhorse chassis. there are no brake recall issues on the w24.
as for prices, they are really depressed now and going lower as the price of gas goes up. nada prices are on the high side. imho about 50% of nada wholesale would be a fair price in todays market. at least that would be a good starting place to bargain. unfortunately, the original owner may have it financed and may be ''under water''. of course, deduct the cost of any repairs necessary from this price. do not add any extra $ for accessories, etc. for nada prices. the low mileage of this unit would seem to add about a 3% premium to this moho. of course the dealer will tout this.

2008 Winnebago M-35L-WORKHORSE(*) - 36'(ADVENTURER,MH,Queen Bed,1) Standard Equipment, Prices & Specs - NADAguides

[BarbRN]

We found a 2005 33 Adventurer in January, same situation only private owner. We drove it but didn't get a full try out on every little thing. We got lucky, everything was top notch except it was ready for tires because of age, not miles. We love it, aren't totally poor either. They are fine, well respected units. We considered a Tiffen too. Now, we like this a lot better that we found it.

[RVNeophytes2]

Originally Posted by Chuck 1935

Even all the talk about screws on the rear cap in the wrong place and any other problems that folks report about Winnebagos are nothing compared to the major complaints that some of the other manufacturers have. Call me crazy but I would rather have a loose rear cap than a steering box causing the frame to flex or cracked trailing arms and lets not forget about bad brakes.
I did own a 93 Fleetwood Flair 32 ft Diesel Pusher on an Oshkosh chassis which we loved and had no problems with.
When it comes to Motorhomes, I pick the chassis and my wife picks the interior. That way we are both happy.

Thanks, Chuck. I own a Fleetwood, and have heard some snide comments about 'em. Of the hundred or so I've walked through at this point, I thought the Prevost had the best quality, followed by Monaco, Fleetwood, Tiffin and Gulfstream.

[garycz]

Barb
thanks for the response. My wife and i will be making the final deal saturday for the 08 adventurer 35L. After lots of reseach and thought, not to discount the crazy second thoughts, we think it is a good fair deal and a strong MH. Cant control the cost of fuel, but we can get up every morning and still enjoy life!
Gary

[jackrobinryan]

Originally Posted by DAN L

nada prices are on the high side. imho about 50% of nada wholesale would be a fair price in todays market. R,MH,Queen Bed,1) Standard Equipment, Prices & Specs - NADAguides

Dan, are you serious when saying you'd make an offer of 50% of NADA wholesale book value to a private seller???

Just trying to understand .....

jack

[DAN L]

Originally Posted by jackrobinryan

Dan, are you serious when saying you'd make an offer of 50% of NADA wholesale book value to a private seller???

Just trying to understand .....

jack

yep, well maybe 60%, would be a good place to start bargaining...
it worked for me.

[azloafer]

If someone offered me 50 to 60% for my coach that would be the end of the conversation. Joe

[BarbRN]

Originally Posted by garycz

Barb
thanks for the response. My wife and i will be making the final deal saturday for the 08 adventurer 35L. After lots of reseach and thought, not to discount the crazy second thoughts, we think it is a good fair deal and a strong MH. Cant control the cost of fuel, but we can get up every morning and still enjoy life!
Gary

We had buyer's remorse before and after the purchase but we love it and have accepted that we made the leap and it was meant to be.

[Automobilist]

Originally Posted by azloafer

If someone offered me 50 to 60% for my coach that would be the end of the conversation. Joe

Joe, lot's of folks have their coaches priced unrealistically high. They just don't understand market conditions. A seller who really wants to sell, has a lot of competition. Smart buyers research the market, and pay as little as they can, for the coach that's right for them. Currently, that's somewehat under low "book". If someone wants to sell, they need to price it right and be willing to discuss serious offers. Just because someone starts low, doesn't mean you can't come to a reasonable final price.

[Traps90]

Originally Posted by Automobilist

Joe, lot's of folks have their coaches priced unrealistically high. They just don't understand market conditions. A seller who really wants to sell, has a lot of competition. Smart buyers research the market, and pay as little as they can, for the coach that's right for them. Currently, that's somewehat under low "book". If someone wants to sell, they need to price it right and be willing to discuss serious offers. Just because someone starts low, doesn't mean you can't come to a reasonable final price.

I think I have to agree with Joe, If I priced it to sell and someone offered me only 50%, I would ask them to leave the property now.


Trap

[4Knights]

Originally Posted by Traps90

I think I have to agree with Joe, If I priced it to sell and someone offered me only 50%, I would ask them to leave the property now.

Trap

Traps & Joe,
Hate to say it but it's a buyers market and your "priced to sell" may or may not be market/buyer pricing. That said it's all about how much you're willing or wanting to sell. I'm not talking about a dealer mark up of $5-20k. I'm talking about what does local market bring?
Examples: here in good ole Kansas folks seem to think a 25 year old boat that starts is worth NADA high prices same goes for the MH market
Looked at over 50 rigs before we said let's look elsewhere(another state) prices were MUCH better but still more than what we wanted to pay based on work needed to make the rig value in line with NADA.
In the end you either sell and are somewhat comfortable on both sides, take it to a dealer where they can massage the numbers enough to make folks think they are on target or hang on until someone is willing to pay what you want.

All said and done it's a personal choice but I wouldn't be offended if offered 60% of asking price, after all I'm the one trying to get rid of it. Just sold my M/C and had tons of lookers with super lowball offers, no problem not in a hurry to sell so I waited until the right person came around and offered close enough to asking to make us both happy

Safe travels
Ron

Ron & Wendy 94 Pace Arrow 454

[Automobilist]

Originally Posted by Traps90

I think I have to agree with Joe, If I priced it to sell and someone offered me only 50%, I would ask them to leave the property now.


Trap

Big difference there, Trap...

By "priced to sell", I interpret that to mean you've done some market research and have a good knowledge of what similar units are actually selling for. Joe simply stated that he would reject all low offers. There are quite a lot of folks who really believe their coach is worth far more than it actually is. We have no idea if Joe would price his coach realistically, or choose some wildly optimistic figure. (Sorry Joe. Nothing personal, you seem to be a really good guy, just using your post for reference. Cold one's on me...)

While this thread has strayed from the original premise, I do think that many folks are not well versed in these dealings. I read of folks paying far too much for RV's, for various reasons.

Finally, buy outright rejecting an offer, you simply cut off negotiations. It could well be the buyer will pay what you want, but if they're smart, they will not start negotiations at that point.

Yes, I would certainly buy another Winnebago, and at a very good price...