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First time buyers looking for advice


Grime_Divine

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Title says it all, Im new to the forum and have only been browsing so far so excuse me if this is a common question. My S.O. and I have never bought an RV/Motorhome before, but we've been searching for one and we've settled on a Toyota MH for a few reasons.I found an '87 Coachmen that looks pretty clean inside and out not too far from me for 5,000$. In a few days we're going to meet the guy and check it out. we'd very much appreciate any advice on where to look and make sure everything is in good shape. Looking for roof leaks, im guessing its best to try and look on top for any repairs that have been done, smell of mildew? Im pretty sure being an '87 we are clear of the "bad axle" era, but ill be looking for the 6 nut Hub on the dual rear wheels anyway. Are the coachmens considered good motorhomes? seems like most people on here praise the sunraders and dolphins most. Anything else I should be looking for? 

Thanks all!

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They are all pretty much the same other than sunraders being more valuable due to their fiberglass construction.  I'd bring a good flash light and crawl along all of the floors looking into the back corners of the cabinets and compartments, that is where you'll usually see the water damage.  Take it on a nice long drive.  Ask him to have it be cold when you get there so you can see a cold engine start.  The smell of mildew is definitely a hint of leaks.  They are old rigs, they'll all have issues.  Plan on having something like $1,500 set aside to go through it after you purchase it!  

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14 hours ago, Odyssey 4x4 said:

They are all pretty much the same other than sunraders being more valuable due to their fiberglass construction.  I'd bring a good flash light and crawl along all of the floors looking into the back corners of the cabinets and compartments, that is where you'll usually see the water damage.  Take it on a nice long drive.  Ask him to have it be cold when you get there so you can see a cold engine start.  The smell of mildew is definitely a hint of leaks.  They are old rigs, they'll all have issues.  Plan on having something like $1,500 set aside to go through it after you purchase it!  

Thanks, I appreciate the info. 

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20 hours ago, Grime_Divine said:

Anything else I should be looking for? 

If your spending 5k the rig should be in the higher functional range and everything should work and be road worthy.

Things that should work:

Fridge 3way

Furnace

Water pumpTh

Stove/Oven

Propane Tank (how does it look? Rusty able to be filled?}

Tires? (how old are they?} should be fairly new.  A new set of tires could be a thousand bucks.

Batteries? ( how old?)

Check to see if everything functions but if something does not function it is not the end of the world. If the three way fridge does not function properly 5k might not be the price point.

These rigs always leak around the front windows and water collects in the overhead sleeping area and rots the wood framing and plywood in the cab over sleeping area. This rots out the flimsy materials used.

So look for water damage every where .

How does it Smell? (mouse,rot,,mold)?

If you really want a fun way to move around on this planet.

Then get a Toyhome...

It is a motorhome that can park most anywhere and handles like aT sports-car...

 

Take it for a long drive.  If your not having fun in the first few miles this rig may not be for you.

 

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2 hours ago, REALLYRURAL said:

If your spending 5k the rig should be in the higher functional range and everything should work and be road worthy.

Thanks, I appreciate your detailed post, ill definitely check out the fridge and furnace, as I wasnt thinking about those. 

Assuming no water damage, this MH has 69K miles on it and new-ish tires, and supposedly runs great and is driven occasionally. So it seems like a pretty good deal from what I've been looking at. Only thing Ive been told is wrong is the master cylinder is starting to fail, but thats not an expensive issue.

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The ones for the heavy duty cab and chassis have both outlets coming out towards the drivers side fender. 

Part image

Regular trucks the outlets come out the top or some even on the passenger side

Part imageLinda S

You can also see the one at the top, which is for our trucks,  doesn't not have a sensor wire in the cap. Mine needed the wire so I had to send the first one back and get the right one. Best if you can save your reservoir. The original ones are no longer available and they are larger than what's available now

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On 1/28/2019 at 2:19 AM, linda s said:

The ones for the heavy duty cab and chassis have both outlets coming out towards the drivers side fender. 

Part image

Regular trucks the outlets come out the top or some even on the passenger side

Part imageLinda S

You can also see the one at the top, which is for our trucks,  doesn't not have a sensor wire in the cap. Mine needed the wire so I had to send the first one back and get the right one. Best if you can save your reservoir. The original ones are no longer available and they are larger than what's available now

Do you have a link where I can buy the correct one online?

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What's available changes often and you didn't even buy the rig yet. Don't know if the existing reservoir is usable or not. Rig might have a leaky brake line elsewhere or a bad power booster. Wait until you know what you really need

Linda S

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Some good advice here.   My favorite is the AC does not work and just needs a bit of a charge.  If the AC needs a charge it is broken and the expense of fixing can be very high,  like up to a $1000 or more. 

Tires have lots of tread,  ok and they are 10 years old ready to blow at any second, another $600 and up expense.  I personally would replace a tire of unknown history at 5 years and just read of a 4 year old tire failing.   Lack of use is bad for tires!

https://www.tirebuyer.com/education/how-to-determine-the-age-of-your-tires

The worst offender is over heating,   could be a simple fix like a thermostat or may require complete rebuilding of motor.  Hard to diagnose and loaded with misinformation on how to go about diagnosing and repair.    For me personally any sign of overheating and I would walk away unless the price was reduced by the cost of an engine rebuild!   The main culprit on this is DIY head gasket and radiator additives clogging the system.

Of course this is my opinion and worth what you are paying for it! 

 

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1 minute ago, jjrbus said:

Some good advice here.   My favorite is the AC does not work and just needs a bit of a charge.  If the AC needs a charge it is broken and the expense of fixing can be very high,  like up to a $1000 or more. 

Tires have lots of tread,  ok and they are 10 years old ready to blow at any second, another $600 and up expense.  I personally would replace a tire of unknown history at 5 years and just read of a 4 year old tire failing.   Lack of use is bad for tires!

https://www.tirebuyer.com/education/how-to-determine-the-age-of-your-tires

The worst offender is over heating,   could be a simple fix like a thermostat or may require complete rebuilding of motor.  Hard to diagnose and loaded with misinformation on how to go about diagnosing and repair.    For me personally any sign of overheating and I would walk away unless the price was reduced by the cost of an engine rebuild!   The main culprit on this is DIY head gasket and radiator additives clogging the system.

Of course this is my opinion and worth what you are paying for it! 

 

A solid point indeed.  Don't forget the, "I don't know if it works, I've never started it!" when talking about coach appliances.  My first toy home sat for a few years and it blew a tire within 200 miles of purchase.  A few hundred miles later it threw the front main seal and was spewing oil, good times.

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those reservoirs are  indead  smaller then the brake master on  my xtra cab I replaced that one a long time ago. they are about the same size as a clutch master  cylinder . and smaller then my toyhome.

Edited by 5Toyota
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The master cylinders were different because of the size of the front brake calipers larger calipers require more fluid to fill them. Somewhere around 87  there were quite a few changes.

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