Picking Up Your New or New To You RV - Must Read!

[creativepart]

Whether your RV is new from the factory, or existing stock at a dealership, or even just "new to you" when buying used from a dealer, consigner or private seller you MUST take care of more than picking out an RV and arranging financing.

Here then, is a good start on the process and keep in mind YOU SHOULD NOT BYPASS THESE STEPS! Even if you think you have a good reason to pass up these important steps you will rue the day you did not follow this advice.

https://www.gorving.com/tips-inspiration/expert-advice/picking-new-rv-dealership

We constantly see new (and old) members showing up here that did not get a thorough walk-thru, did not learn how everything works or even if everything works. And folks that had too busy a schedule to do an immediate shake-down camping trip to put everything through its paces. And these folks are the members that post here and are totally lost, shocked and stuck with an RV that they don't know how to operate, didn't know it could come to them with problems - even when new.

We hope you will not be one of those members down the road.

 

[DavidEM]

Creativepart offers good advice. But after buying a brand new Thor Axis early this year and spending two hours on the PDI, I have found that it is very difficult to find everything that is wrong in a predelivery inspection. So far I have fixed a half dozen or so things in my new Axis and none were found in the PDI. They all take time living with the RV to understand what is really working right and what isn't.

A couple of examples. The converter was definitely charging from shore power during the PDI- the coach battery voltage was at 13.5+V. But months later when I had run the batteries down to 60% it would only charge at a few amps, not the dozens of amps it should have. I ended up replacing the POS WFCO charger with a Progressive Dynamics PD9260 charger. I also had to rewire the Precision Circuits BIM 160 so it would let the chassis alternator charge the house batteries effectively. Both of these took time to understand that they weren't working as they should have. But they did work well enough to get through the PDI.

So unless the dealer is in the same neighborhood as where you live, maybe plan to camp for a few days near the dealer after taking delivery so you can come immediately back to have them fix the things that you have found. Even then you will still have other things that crop up over time.

David

 

[RayIN]

In actuality, a pre-delivery inspection does/should not involve a buyer. It is the dealers opportunity to find everything wrong, ill-fitting, or mis-adjsuted and correct same BEFORE a buyer sees the unit..
The part that does involve the buyer is a demonstration walk-through. This is the opportunity for the dealers rep. to show a buyer how everything works, what controls what, and location of everything.
At that time the dealers rep, has the option of disclosing what was found and corrected during the PDI.

 

[creativepart]

In actuality, a pre-delivery inspection does/should not involve a buyer. It is the dealers opportunity to find everything wrong, ill-fitting, or mis-adjsuted and correct same BEFORE a buyer sees the unit..

Maybe in the past, or in a perfect world. Certainly not today. Most dealers today don't look for problems because if they did they'd have to expend time and effort to make things right. Dealers have learned that the only things they must fix are the thingsnes the customer discovers and points out and makes them fix.

 

[Wyatt-WO]

Maybe in the past, or in a perfect world. Certainly not today. Most dealers today don't look for problems because if they did they'd have to expend time and effort to make things right. Dealers have learned that the only things they must fix are the thingsnes the customer discovers and points out and makes them fix.

Good point. When we picked up a brand new rig in Southern California we had to be back the next day up north 450 miles away. So I took my time and did the walk-through with the inspection tech. when we got to the Lippert Jack control solenoid it was easy to see that one of the wires (happened to be the hot lead), didn’t have a nut on it. I asked him to take care of that and a couple other small things I noticed.

Fast forward a week later we take it out on a quick shakedown cruise. I put down to Jack’s and they won’t come back up. I go around and look and note that while they put on the lead to the pump, they never tightened it so it came loose…almost funny.

 

[sundog964]

We bought our first RV in Ohio, flew out there, and our shakedown camping trip was 3500 miles and 10 days back to CA. I wish we had spent more time at the dealer listening and asking questions. Only a few issues popped up, and none huge. But I’m pretty self sufficient and handy.

So do a good preinspection and read and ask questions about the model you are buying prior to arriving at the dealer.

 

[Ted Fyden]

after we picked up our RV and drove it home our next step was safety inspection. we live in MA and bought in NY. found out our break lights did not work. i guess i drove 90 miles with no break lights. i know because when the inspector replaced bulbs for us they were corroded not broken. after that it passed.

 

[creativepart]

found out our break lights did not work. i guess i drove 90 miles with no break lights. i know because when the inspector replaced bulbs for us they were corroded not broken. after that it passed.

As you probably know... before starting any trip check all your outside lights.

And, if the bulbs were corroded, then water has leaked into your lenses. So, it would be good to reseal the tail light lenses with some silicone caulking. Just remove the lens, apply a light bead of caulk around the outside and put the lens back on.

It's not just corrosion. Tail lights and brake lights will go out if there is water in housing. Sometimes, with incandescent bulbs they'll get hot and then driving will splash water inside the lens on the bulbs and cause them to burst, as well.

 

[Morich]

A second point to look at when finding water on/near the bulbs is the way it is mounted. Some have wires which come out of the RV wall into the light and slope down. If water is seeping in between the wall and fixture, that water may be following the wires down into the fixture and finally the bulbs! Make sure that joint at the wall and fixture is sealed as it also lets water go into the rear wall to rot the thin plywood there.
We only found the problem when the inside of the compartment just through the wall from the taillight began to bubble!

 

[Svessey]

I just bought a used View from Cousins RV In Denver and prior to closing they found several problems and fixed or replaced them. This is my 6th motorhome and on the first outing EVERYTHING worked properly. This was my first positive dealing with a dealer. Cheers to Cousins RV!

 

[worc1349]

Travel Trailers

Good luck with your new rig. You will be taking it back for warranty work or doing a lot of repairs yourself. Once you finally shake out all of the bugs, you can start to enjoy it. Almost 2 years since my purchase of a micro minnie and hopefully will be done fixing problems soon. I have documentation of all my troubles. This is my 4th brand of towable and they are all the same.

 

[Jacjayco]

100%, insist on a PDI, but also do your homework. Lots of detailed information about your rv is available. Know what's in your unit and look at videos on line that include them in a PDI. Ask the dealer to operate everything. It should be plugged in and hooked up to water and sewer. Again, operate everything. If you can, film the demo with your phone. Insist that any defects be repaired before you accept delivery and leave the dealership. Do not let the dealer rush the process.
It's easy for me to,spell these things out. Not so easy to actually do them all. Do not rush the process. You won't regret it.

 

[Morich]

Very late if the deal is already done but I think many RV buyers are not aware of things that can change the price of what they buy!
Simply looking just at the price of any speciifc year, make and model of RV can be much the same as when we buy a car. If we don't look at the options each dealer orders on the RV he sells, we may wind up not getting some of the little convenience options that a different dealer adds!

Every new Winnebago should have a sheet listing the options. Much like what we find in the windows of new cars?
So it seems important to me, to actually look at that sheet and find out if we are getting the same stuff as the RV down the road which may be a few hundred dollars higher!
I think about every new Winnebago will have options. Do those options give enough extra value for you that you want them or do you want the lower price?

You can't answer that if you don't LOOK at the options listed!
They are not likely to tell you how to operate the inverter if you don't ask and it may be true that you didn't buy one.
The devil is in the details but you have to be aware and look!

 

[Morich]

Since I brought up the subject of options, I thought it might be worthwhile to show some examples of what I see.

Going through the electrical drawings for only one 24 Vista model and only the 12 volt coach electrical section, I found this many options that can change what you get and what price you may pay!

Think how many there may be of you look at what is involved in the chassis options!
This doesn't even begin to cover the drivetrain, generator, etc., only one portion of one electrical system!

Click this snip to get a better view!

 

[Marine359]

Good luck with your new rig. You will be taking it back for warranty work or doing a lot of repairs yourself. Once you finally shake out all of the bugs, you can start to enjoy it. Almost 2 years since my purchase of a micro minnie and hopefully will be done fixing problems soon. I have documentation of all my troubles. This is my 4th brand of towable and they are all the same.

You won’t be done soon with repairs. Things break all the time. Fortunately, with the Micro Minnie line, there is safety in numbers. Meaning, there are tons of helpful MM owners on this forum. Anything that breaks on yours, likely will have broken on somebody else’s MM. I did most new gear installations at home, but most repairs on the road. Could have returned for warranty service, but never did because we wanted to enjoy camping from day one, and frankly it’s easier and more convenient to fix stuff yourself. DIY and the repair will be done right, and there’s no wait time. Imperative to carry a good tool kit, variety of fasteners, baling wire, splicing kit, bubble gum, heat gun, multimeter, and band-aids.

 

[PeterI]

We can attest. Picked up a 2025 Sprinter EKKO 23B two days ago. Dealer caught a build flaw with the batwing awning and was able to fix it while we were there. However, once we got home my wife noticed that the window (right side) between passenger seat and side door does not have a framed screen/shade. Every video we have seen clearly shows the window equipped with them How did the MFG and dealer miss this? We also can’t seem to activate the rear camera. Throw it into reverse-no camera. The mount high on the rear panel clearly shows 2 lenses (digital mirror/rear camera?) but only the RV mirror seems to work.
Fearful of what else we will discover. With an MSRP just short of $250K first impressions are disappointing.

 

[whitebus91]

How is it that a $100k+ vehicle is so poorly constructed, and never QC'd for defects, no matter the brand. Equipment is better on any brand new $20k car. the radio always works, doors always shut, wipers work. at most, the paint is scratched.

 

[Pointyears]

How is it that a $100k+ vehicle is so poorly constructed, and never QC'd for defects, no matter the brand. Equipment is better on any brand new $20k car. the radio always works, doors always shut, wipers work. at most, the paint is scratched.

That's what happens when something is exempt from lemon laws, the ability to be sued, and the lack of government oversight.

 

[creativepart]

How is it that a $100k+ vehicle is so poorly constructed, and never QC'd for defects, no matter the brand.

The easy, but unsatisfactory answer to this is that the volumes of even the slowest selling automobiles is 25 times the volume of any RV model. And, without mass volumes the margin of profits in RVs is minuscule compared to autos and trucks.

That lower profit margin shows up in dozens of ways in every RV. The entire design is cost constricted, the parts list is lowest cost, and the vendors providing goods know they must build to a low cost to become successful in the RV industry, Plus the sales chain is built on the realization that a dealers best sales are on the lowest cost products.

Add to this that it's always been this way in the industry and yet buyers keep buying regardless.

With automobiles the sales volumes are high enough to fund design, testing, QC and both vendor and dealership control.

Keep in mind, that nobody has to buy a RV, or Boat, for that matter. So, the price of entry is highly elastic. Like anything there are those starting out with their first RV and there are alos those that are at the top 2% of buyers that demand higher specifications. But even on expensive RVs, much higher priced that your $100,000, the volumes are extremely low.

 

[Pointyears]

With automobiles the sales volumes are high enough to fund design, testing, QC and both vendor and dealership control.

Don't forget hand made. Automobiles took a quantum leap forward with the introduction of robotics into the assembly control.

When I was shopping at General RV (NOT where I ended up buying from) I kept on noticing glaring defects in various units. The salesperson said "We'll get them taken care of during the PDI." Me: "Umm, doesn't GRV brag about the QC facility they have in Indiana to pre-PDI every unit?" Salesperson: <crickets>
QC can be done. It's just not.