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Purchase Questions 1983 Sunrader


StevenJT

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on Tuesday I'll be looking at a 1983 18' Sunrader. The owner will be selling it in a few months.

He said it has 82000 miles and everything works except the fridg.

l've been looking for a newer 6 cylinder toy but this one has come across my path.

seems like a bargain at $3500.

Besides checking: all the systems, rust, motor, upgraded axle, leaks etc. What questions should I ask and what issues with this year/model.

thanks for the help!

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There really is not a bargain in a 30 year old camper, it is worth what someone will pay. 

The 2 main things I see are,  tires are great, lot's of thread!   Unless you have a automotive background or are trained to inspect tires of unknown back ground they should  be replaced at 7 years old. Learn how to read the DOT code.   http://www.tirebuyer.com/education/how-to-determine-the-age-of-your-tires    6 or 7 tires is a big expense.

Air conditioning is next,   "just needs recharged, shot of gas etc"   If it needs to be recharged it is broke, if it is broken it may cost BIG $$$$$$$ to fix. If you do not need AC, no big deal.

RV refrigetrators are expensive, some are a simple repair.  I fixed one by turning it upside down over night. 

I am sure others will chip in,  good luck    Jim  

 

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Some things that I wish that I thought of prior to purchasing my new 1981 Sunrader were the following: 

- Car registration, title, and other state documentation fees for Pennsylvania. This is the first car I registered in PA and it cost over $200 total.
- New tires - all tires needed to be replaced due to dry-rot. This ran me about $500 for the 7 tires.
- Tools needed - First time working on a car away from a friend's garage or family's tool kit, so I had to get a decent set of tools.
- The propane tank if not certified will need to be recertified. I think that is about $15 at a propane fill up station. However, mine didn't have a propane tank, so that was another $175.
- Car batteries - My diesel Sunrader takes two batteries under the hood and another battery for the coach. The one battery under the hood was 18 years old and the other was around 10.5V when tested. Both under the hood needed to be replaced with new terminals, new cables, etc - $225 or so.

If I think of more things, I'll edit this post to reflect them.

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if saving money was something you thought an RV would help with Think again. About the only thing one of these rigs will save you from is your sanity.

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1 hour ago, cdt5058 said:

Some things that I wish that I thought of prior to purchasing my new 1981 Sunrader were the following: 

- Car registration, title, and other state documentation fees for Pennsylvania. This is the first car I registered in PA and it cost over $200 total.
- New tires - all tires needed to be replaced due to dry-rot. This ran me about $500 for the 7 tires.
- Tools needed - First time working on a car away from a friend's garage or family's tool kit, so I had to get a decent set of tools.
- The propane tank if not certified will need to be recertified. I think that is about $15 at a propane fill up station. However, mine didn't have a propane tank, so that was another $175.
- Car batteries - My diesel Sunrader takes two batteries under the hood and another battery for the coach. The one battery under the hood was 18 years old and the other was around 10.5V when tested. Both under the hood needed to be replaced with new terminals, new cables, etc - $225 or so.

If I think of more things, I'll edit this post to reflect them.

All good to know. Thanks for this info!

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He said it has 82000 miles and everything works except the fridg

 

Prior to 1985 all the Toyotas had a 5 digit odometer. This means after it hits 99,999 miles it resets to zero and starts all over again.

Try to verify its 82K and not 182K.

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19 minutes ago, linda s said:

According to the guys at Marlin Crawler, 6 digits started in 1982 so he's fine. Should be the real mileage.

Linda S

Thank you Linda S, you are a wealth of information, and good to know you own a Sunrader. I appreciate this site and all the time and effort you put into it!

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Take along an inspection mirror and a good flashlight as well as a ground sheet of some type to lay on. You have to go underneath because things down there can get expensive pretty quickly.

All those bits and pieces of rubber unless they have been replaced over the years they may be in very poor condition on a 1983. Things like the rubber bushings on the suspension need to be looked at. It can quickly run up the repair bills just to bring it up to being reliable for travel over slightly bumpy roads.  Look under the entry step pullout and make sure it is in good shape with no cracks in the metal and the surface it mounts to is also sound.

Make sure the waste water tanks have not suffered damage. They can take some pretty hard hits when going over badly potholed roads as there is not a lot of ground clearance. Inspect the straps on them too and of course the plumbing lines and drain valves.

Also check under the battery to see if the battery tray is in good condition. That is another pesky repair to do if it is rusted out.

Edited by snail powered
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8 minutes ago, snail powered said:

Take along an inspection mirror and a good flashlight as well as a ground sheet of some type to lay on. You have to go underneath because things down there can get expensive pretty quickly.

All those bits and pieces of rubber unless they have been replaced over the years they canl be in very poor condition on a 1983. Things like the rubber bushings on the suspension need to be looked at. It can quickly run up the repair bills just to bring it up to being reliable for travel over slightly bumpy roads.  Look under the entry step pullout and make sure it is in good shape with no cracks in the metal and the surface it mounts to is also sound.

Make sure the waste water tanks have not suffered damage. They can take some pretty hard hits when going over badly potholed roads as there is not a lot of ground clearance. Inspect the straps on them too and of course the plumbing lines and drain valves.

Also check under the battery to see if the battery tray is in good condition. That is another pesky repair to do if it is rusted out.

Thanks, I'm adding to my check list now.

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My inspection didn't take very long as the first thing I noticed was the 5 lug rear axle. The owner has had the rv for five years and I believe he really didn't know about the recall on the axle. Also looks like plenty of leaks around the front windows and above the kitchen and below the big rear window. Some of the overhead cabinets looked loose with gaps from the ceiling as well as missing doors. Still glad to have seen the inside so I have a better idea about interior space on a shorty. 

I'd like to report back to him what the cost would be to upgrade the axle, any answers are appreciated.

Thanks again for all who chimed in on this!

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5 lug wouldnt be a deal breaker per say on an 18, provided you dont use foolies (fake duallies) rear wheels.  Spare the special leprchaun rare and never seen in reality 5 lug full floating axle if it has 5 lugs and dual rears its a foolie.

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I'm curious, did the odometer have 5 or 6 digits? Remember the white colored wheel on the far right is for 1/10 mile, only count the black.

Also, I did a axle swap to a GM 1 ton. Your small enough it might work. Figure about 3K for the axle with the GM. That's a total rebuilt axle.

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1 hour ago, fred heath said:

I'm curious, did the odometer have 5 or 6 digits? Remember the white colored wheel on the far right is for 1/10 mile, only count the black.

Also, I did a axle swap to a GM 1 ton. Your small enough it might work. Figure about 3K for the axle with the GM. That's a total rebuilt axle.

odometer has 6 digits however it had stopped turning at 62000, so the owner was estimating the current miles to be 82000 (I'm laughing about this as I type). If the camper didn't have so much water damage and the price was a lot lower I'd consider buying it and upgrading the axle. 

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