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No time to fix our Rig!


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So here's the story: My husband and I bought a 1993 Toyota Winnebago Warrior 3.0 V6  for a 5 month road trip we’re beginning in August. We took the Winnebago for a test drive prior to buying and it ran fine. Then the day the owner was going to meet us at the mechanic's for an inspection, it was stalling. So we offered them a lower price and towed it.
 
Our first mechanic replaced the fuel pump and drained the gas. Now, the engine will run and not stall, but when you put in drive it dies. The first mechanic thought there may be damage to the wiring and that the harness may need to be taken out. 
 
So far the following work has been done within the last couple of months:
 
         1st Mechanic with us: 
1. Installation of a new Fuel Pump 
2. Tank drained of bad fuel
 
          Previous Owner:  
3. Installation of new computer (see invoice attached), done by previous owner
4. Installation of new coil igniter (see invoice attached)
5. Installation of new ignition coil (see invoice attached)
 
We decided to take the rig to a new mechanic for a second opinion. First they changed the air flow monitor, and that did not work. Then their electrician spent some time with it, and they determined that there was a short somewhere which broke the computer. They were able to rule out the transmission solenoids as a cause of the short.  They had 2 theories about what was causing the short:
 
  1. The computer has a short in it, and replacing the computer will could fix the problem, or at a minimum point them in the right direction.
  2. The short is somewhere in the vehicle and they’d need to test 21 different electrical circuits to determine where the short is, and then replace the computer anyways.
 
We decided to go with option 1 and hope for the best. HOWEVER, the computer is on back order and may not be available for a couple of weeks (they've looked at different suppliers and no one would be able to provide one quicker). Now, we’re 3 weeks out from our trip (we can’t reschedule), and we’re out of time. We’ve decided that it is probably safest to sell the Winnebago and move on with Plan B (buying a trailer to tow).
 
I’m looking for some advice on how much we could sell the Winnebago for given that its not currently driving.  We bought it for 4,500 and then put about 1,000 into it. We know we’re going to take a hit, but the question is by how much. 
 
How much would you recommend we list the vehicle for?
 
Much thanks for any guidance you can provide!
 
Nicole 
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9 minutes ago, NicoleWilliams said:
So here's the story: My husband and I bought a 1993 Toyota Winnebago Warrior 3.0 V6  for a 5 month road trip we’re beginning in August. We took the Winnebago for a test drive prior to buying and it ran fine. Then the day the owner was going to meet us at the mechanic's for an inspection, it was stalling. So we offered them a lower price and towed it.
 
Our first mechanic replaced the fuel pump and drained the gas. Now, the engine will run and not stall, but when you put in drive it dies. The first mechanic thought there may be damage to the wiring and that the harness may need to be taken out. 
 
So far the following work has been done within the last couple of months:
 
         1st Mechanic with us: 
1. Installation of a new Fuel Pump 
2. Tank drained of bad fuel
 
          Previous Owner:  
3. Installation of new computer (see invoice attached), done by previous owner
4. Installation of new coil igniter (see invoice attached)
5. Installation of new ignition coil (see invoice attached)
 
We decided to take the rig to a new mechanic for a second opinion. First they changed the air flow monitor, and that did not work. Then their electrician spent some time with it, and they determined that there was a short somewhere which broke the computer. They were able to rule out the transmission solenoids as a cause of the short.  They had 2 theories about what was causing the short:
 
  1. The computer has a short in it, and replacing the computer will could fix the problem, or at a minimum point them in the right direction.
  2. The short is somewhere in the vehicle and they’d need to test 21 different electrical circuits to determine where the short is, and then replace the computer anyways.
 
We decided to go with option 1 and hope for the best. HOWEVER, the computer is on back order and may not be available for a couple of weeks (they've looked at different suppliers and no one would be able to provide one quicker). Now, we’re 3 weeks out from our trip (we can’t reschedule), and we’re out of time. We’ve decided that it is probably safest to sell the Winnebago and move on with Plan B (buying a trailer to tow).
 
I’m looking for some advice on how much we could sell the Winnebago for given that its not currently driving.  We bought it for 4,500 and then put about 1,000 into it. We know we’re going to take a hit, but the question is by how much. 
 
How much would you recommend we list the vehicle for?
 
Much thanks for any guidance you can provide!
 
Nicole 

Going to have to see pics to give any opinion.What mechanics did you bring it to in Houston?

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Our first shop was Floyd's Auto Repair. 

The second shop was T and S.

I'm having trouble uploading all the photos for some reason. I'll try adding more in a different post. 

Thanks for any input you may have!

 

 

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4 hours ago, redskinman said:

Going to have to see pics to give any opinion.What mechanics did you bring it to in Houston?

Hmm... I keep receiving error messages when I try to add additional pictures of the cabin. Well, the cabin looks pretty nice / well kept. There's a refrigerator and microwave. 

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It's worth more than $5500 if it's in any kind of shape nice 93's can fetch $12,000. I don't know how many times I have heard "replace the computer" , frankly it's fairly rare that they go bad. All the info as far as a "short" is right there at the ECU plug connection if they know how to check it throwing parts at a problem gets expensive very quick. The components that feed back to the ECU are low voltage in the 5 volt range generated by the ECU so if one goes to ground it will throw a code. It's far fetched but it is possible that there is a transmission issue with the lockup converter if it's locked up standing still it's like letting a clutch out with the brake on, older GM were famous for that no bets on that one.

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When I had a no start condition I was assured the computers rarely go bad.   I checked every possible thing that could be checked and there was nothing wrong. I am not electrical so took me days to  do it, members here on the forum helped a lot! 

The last thing that could possibly be wrong was the computer. There are NO new ones available anywhere in the US, only rebuilts and not many of those.  I sent mine to a place on Ebay for diagnostics and repair.   Had a separated trace and something else. Was $180 with a 1 year warranty.

The Cab and Chassis computer is a different number than the regular pickup, so carefull of that.   I had mine redone as it was cheaper and I might have got a rebuilt from a Toy with 400,000 miles on it.  I think the rebuilt from auto parts stores were about $300 vs $180 for a rebuild. 

Installed it and was thrilled to see the check engine light come on (was not on before)   turned the key and has been running well since. 

This is mine from a 93 toyota so yours should be the same. 

http://www.ebay.com/usr/zkboys?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2754

IMG_0685.JPG

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Well it sounds like they are wanting to sell it now as is.As a prospective buyer I wouldnt want to pay more then 4500 for it not knowing whats wrong with the engine,but thats me.Nicole,how many miles are on it? Any signs of water damage? How old are tires? All appliances work? Hot water heater work? All those things add up on how much to ask for it,and it not running would scare me off of it unless I thought the price was low enough to cover my butt,but I"m not a mechanic so any engine problems scare me,another prospective might think differently.

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2 hours ago, Maineah said:

It's worth more than $5500 if it's in any kind of shape nice 93's can fetch $12,000. I don't know how many times I have heard "replace the computer" , frankly it's fairly rare that they go bad. All the info as far as a "short" is right there at the ECU plug connection if they know how to check it throwing parts at a problem gets expensive very quick. The components that feed back to the ECU are low voltage in the 5 volt range generated by the ECU so if one goes to ground it will throw a code. It's far fetched but it is possible that there is a transmission issue with the lockup converter if it's locked up standing still it's like letting a clutch out with the brake on, older GM were famous for that no bets on that one.

 

Hey Maineah - the second mechanic said they tried to run a code early on and it wouldn't throw one. 

1 hour ago, redskinman said:

Well it sounds like they are wanting to sell it now as is.As a prospective buyer I wouldnt want to pay more then 4500 for it not knowing whats wrong with the engine,but thats me.Nicole,how many miles are on it? Any signs of water damage? How old are tires? All appliances work? Hot water heater work? All those things add up on how much to ask for it,and it not running would scare me off of it unless I thought the price was low enough to cover my butt,but I"m not a mechanic so any engine problems scare me,another prospective might think differently.

Hey - it has 100,000 miles on it. As far as I can tell there is no water damage. We did a thorough search of the walls, nooks, and crannies. The fridge is electrical only. The generator needs to be repaired. I agree with your point about having a price that's low enough since someone will need to put in a  bit of elbow work to figure it out. 

1 hour ago, jjrbus said:

When I had a no start condition I was assured the computers rarely go bad.   I checked every possible thing that could be checked and there was nothing wrong. I am not electrical so took me days to  do it, members here on the forum helped a lot! 

The last thing that could possibly be wrong was the computer. There are NO new ones available anywhere in the US, only rebuilts and not many of those.  I sent mine to a place on Ebay for diagnostics and repair.   Had a separated trace and something else. Was $180 with a 1 year warranty.

The Cab and Chassis computer is a different number than the regular pickup, so carefull of that.   I had mine redone as it was cheaper and I might have got a rebuilt from a Toy with 400,000 miles on it.  I think the rebuilt from auto parts stores were about $300 vs $180 for a rebuild. 

Installed it and was thrilled to see the check engine light come on (was not on before)   turned the key and has been running well since. 

This is mine from a 93 toyota so yours should be the same. 

http://www.ebay.com/usr/zkboys?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2754

IMG_0685.JPG

Hey jjrbus - thanks for the insight. I think this is worth mentioning to a perspective buyer as a potential cause for stalling. 

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If it were closer I would buy it and flip it for $4500 but then again I most likely could fix it.

11 hours ago, NicoleWilliams said:

Hey Maineah - the second mechanic said they tried to run a code early on and it wouldn't throw one. 

Two possibilities it either has no code or the code check does not work. There are things that can produce a problem that the ECU does not relate to a code problem in other words things like fuel issues vacuum leaks mechanical problems would not set a code. By today's standards the control system is pretty antiquated.

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  • 3 weeks later...

Well saw this listed on Craigslist for 3500,post deleted now so must have sold.I wanted to buy it{within 50 miles of me},wife said no way,already got one in the driveway cant figure out whats wrong with it:(

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couple words of advice:

" The first mechanic thought there may be damage to the wiring and that the harness may need to be taken out.  "

this was your quote... in most all tests in life the first guess is the right one.

your first mechanic was most likely the prize winner and the computer is fine.

when dealing with BCU or BCM units the FIRST order of business is to verify all wiring going into and out of them are legit. they can be corroded or even pinched from hitting accidents, animals etc.

simply replacing those harnesses would have saved you a lot of peace of mind for small amount of cost and should really be done anyway on rig this old as copper corrodes. I would also have the ground and all fusible links replaced. from there see what happens and talk computers.

-just my 2 cents. My own no start condition turned out to be the ground wire being rotten inside. it was OEM original ground from 1985...

 

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  • 1 month later...

Just saw this on Houston craigslist today,OP had it listed beginning of August for 3500 with the rig not working correctly,now dealer has it for sale for 10,000:o

https://houston.craigslist.org/rvs/d/1992-toyota-winnebago-warrior/6303361035.html

I guess they got it fixed,hopefully this will help me get more money from adjuster for my total loss rig

Edited by redskinman
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  • 3 weeks later...

Sleeps 6...where? I thought 5 max unless stacking people like canned fish

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4 hours ago, linda s said:

At least 2 of those people have to be the tiny ones called children so they and fit on the dinette section.

Linda S

My 2 kids are very little but I don't think I would ever put them there as one of them will end up on the floor in no time hehehe

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