91 Toyota New Horizon

[crystal72]

I am looking at purchasing a 1991 Toyota New Horizon. Does any one have any information on the New Horizons? It is a 6 cyl. automatic with 50,300 miles. Here are some pictures of the motorhome we are looking at. Any Help would be greatly appreciated.

Crystal

[John H]

Looks good. Check for water entries; remove the mattress in the overcab bunk, open all the cabinets, especially those near the ceiling and check for water stains. Walk carefully all over the floor to check for soft spots, look at the roof to determine if it is OK, check all appliances to determine if they work, ask if the recall was done on the V6 engine. Drive it to determine if the shifting points are sound. It looks a little low at the rear axle. If it has air bags check the pressure in them.

Good luck, John H '86 21' Sunrader; 22RE, A43D, auto.

[bufbooth]

Hello Crystal,

I do not know anything about New Horizon models, but I think there are a couple members on this site that owns one.

All the Toyota V6 chassis are the same (1989 - 1993), so you will be okay with the chassis (truck part). I do like

the mileage, 50,300 is low.

I do like the floor plan, nice and roomy with the bath in the rear, the same floor plan as my Odyssey. All the devices

on the inside should pretty much be the same as in any of the Toyota models (Frig, stove, heater, AC, etc).

From the pictures the outside looks like smooth fiberglass, so it has a modern look to it.

All the Toyotas are at least 16 years so, so in my opinion any coach model that makes it past 16 years and is still holding

up well is a good model.

There are things you need to check to be sure she is in good shape, looking for water damage is number one. Take your

fingers and push against all the inside walls and ceiling, especially around each window and vents. If you have water

damage you should know it, the wall will flex under you light finger poking. Be sure to step on every bit of the floor, a

little give should be okay, anything more is probably major water damage. If the tires are 8 to 10 year old, they need

to be replaced right away, even if they look like new. Each tire will have a DOT code, the last four digits is the weeks and

year (ie. 2202 = 22 week of 2002). Also, most motorhomes are over due for resealing, should be done about every five

years, the putty type material under the window frames and on all seams should get replaced to avoid future water damage.

The tires should be a truck tire with a size of 185R14 and either a Load range C or D. D is better, they will handle a couple

more hundred pounds of load per tire.

Make sure the Frig works, and the overhead A/C as well as the truck A/C. These are probably the most expensive items to

fix, all in the $500 to $1000 range to replace.

Let us know how it goes and good luck,

Dennis...

[crystal72]

Thank you for all of the information. I have done a lot of research on the Toyotas over the past year and am finally ready to purchase one. I really like this floorplan as it looks more open without the back to the other dinette bench. The exterior of this one is fiberglass. Are there any issues I should especially worry about with the fiberglass models? Does any one know if all the fiberglass models have the metal framing or are some wood?

The tires will need to be replaced as they are old.

This motorhome is located out state from us. If we do purchase it we would be driving across 2 states to return home. What, besides the tires would you recommend getting checked out before our drive home?

My concern is we only have a few days to purchase it and drive home. Most shops are about a week waiting to get in. Any suggestions?

Thanks for any info you may have

Crystal

Edited May 22, 2009 by crystal72

[Maineah]

I have a New Horizon and it is late enough to have the fiberglass body (thank goodness) and yes they are over a metal frame. They are nice Motor Homes you'll enjoy it! If you are going to buy tires any way maybe a tire dealer in the town could help you out with new ones then I would have no worry about driving it home.