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Purchasing First Toyota Sunrader!


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Hello everybody!!

 

I joined this forum because I am currently in the process of buying my first home/vehicle, a 21-ft 1986 Toyota Sunrader!

 

72,000 miles, no mechanical issues (they say), 5k on their tires, new batteries BUT lacks a stove, fridge, and a/c.

 

Little bit about myself and what I am planning for use.

  • I am 21 years old, will graduate college in May 2021, and I made the decision that after graduation, I want to travel the United States on an extended road-trip. 
  • Never really left my home-state of New Jersey growing up, and this is a trip I have always wanted to take so I figured, why not now?
  • I'm not married, I don't have a house or a mortgage, don't have kids, I barely even have any belongings and I'm young so why not?
  • Originally, I was looking for a camper or trailer, but when I saw this Toyota Sunrader on Facebook Marketplace, I could not resist at least taking a look. 

 

 

I am going with my father tomorrow to check it out in person, and I am planning on negotiating down the price because it lacks a stove, fridge, and a/c.

 

If I do buy it, this will be the largest purchase of my lifetime, and I don't want to completely screw it up. The problem is, I really don't know what red flags to look out for on this rig? Do any of you have any tips or things I should be looking out for/checking out in this Sunrader before I take the leap? 

 

I would really appreciate any advice! Thank You all so much!

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Well for starters a stove fridge and ac unit will cost you about 2 grand. Look at how they capped off the propane lines where the stove should go and in the outside fridge access. Are they still there or are you going to have to have new lines run. Maybe another 500 to have an RV place do it. 

Ask if they ever used overdrive and check trannie fluid. Excessive use can cause lots of heat in the transmission and severe damage. Slippage will be more noticeable when it's cold. 

Check water systems for leakage. Anywhere that gets below freezing if they didn't drain the system properly can break water lines. Is the furnace and water heater still there. Make sure they work too. Hundreds to replace them, maybe 6oo or 700.

Check walls and overhead under bed for any leaks anywhere. Fiberglass is less prone to leaks but every place there's a hole can leak. Vents, windows and marker lights. 

5000 miles on tires is good unless they are 10 years old. There is a date on the tires, google it. Anything older than 6 or 7 years needs to be replaced

I'm sure more people will chime in with other stuff

Good luck 

Linda S

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2 cents regarding your potential purchase. Recognize the machine is almost 35yrs old and no matter how sound the seller says the machine is it will require a lot of investment in upkeep. Know the purchase price is the beginning of your expenses for a machine this old. 

 

Wonder why the current owner removed the AC, stove and fridge? Most of us like those things and would not want them gone unless there was an underlying issue. 

 

A motorhome is comprised of all of the systems of a truck + all of the systems of a camper. Priority will always be on vehicle safety first. Sounds like the camper side of things needs quite a bit. Plan on the truck side needing a thorough going through as well considering its age: Brakes, exhaust, suspension, alignment, all aspects of the motor, electrical, tires, wheel bearings before you get to the camper. 

 

If you have mechanical skills or a good teacher and a plan to do the work yourself you can save a lot of money. If not, take note of what I said: The purchase price is only the beginning of your expenses. 

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Thank You Linda for your valuable input!

 

I will definitely take this into consideration. The thing about this rig is that it is practically bare bones. The previous owners are a young couple and they removed pretty much ALL the appliances as I believe they were using it as more of an off-grid weekend camper or they ran into mechanical issues with them. 

 

No stove, propane, water heater, ac. Basically the only thing they decided to keep was the shower, bathroom, sink and plumbing.

 

Because it is missing all these essentials, I am definitely going to negotiate the price down because I will have to dig into my pocket to install these things over the next year or so. 

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Scott!

 

Thank you for the sound advice! I do wonder as well why they removed all these things, in the description, they did mention that there is no hot water because the water has been re-routed so it doesn't fill the hot water tank which used to leak. There must have been some issues with the old appliances so they just opted to remove them.

 

Yes thank you for that! I knew that this was going to be a project of sorts and before decorating and making things pretty, I need to make sure that the vehicle is sound and operational. My father is pretty good with cars so that's why we are going together to check it out! 

 

Given the age of this rig, I know its for sure going to be a recurring cost. I am hoping that it will retain its value as I see there is high demand for these campers, but im not banking on it

 

 

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A gutted camper can allow you a lot of freedom in designing something unique to your needs. 

I totally gutted my 1979 Galavan. As I have no intention of using it for “camping “ I removed the refrigerator, cooktop, visible plumbing etc. and made the useable living space more suitable to me.

My emphasis has always been on mechanical condition. Long road trips can be demanding on old drivetrains. Update things like brakes, exhaust and tires. Make sure you have some type of RV tow coverage. I use a planet fitness black card for showers and exercise while traveling. There are so many of these clubs now you can find them everywhere.

I know your looking at a 1986 model year, but check the real wheels anyway. They should have 6 lug nuts on each side. If you only count 5, the axle is bad a will need to be replaced.

Post a picture here (pre purchase) if possible. Members are very savvy with things to look for.  Good luck, Fred

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