RV Imperfections

When I left the house Sunday morning I was really looking forward to driving the RV home. I had my insurance card in hand and a pocket full of money itching it's way out. 

The 1988 Holiday Rambler Alumi-lite was listed on Craigs list For Sale by owner. A single woman and her daughter had traveled between Florida and New Mexico making a living stopping along the way drawing for wages. Which is kind of what we are planning to do. 

She told me after 3 strokes and a possessive boyfriend she had decided to go back to Florida to be a caretaker while the owners were out of town and her daughter was going to ride there horses and keep them in shape. She was so nice and kept telling me how much they enjoyed traveling and how the motor home had been just perfect for them. So as you can imagine, I was hooked.... line and sinker!

We'll now... where do I start? I can say it was an interesting trip, Melinda, Chris, Cody and I had a nice lunch in Ruidoso we got to walk through a few of the stores in Mid-town, and Cody found a book he was looking for. As for the RV, it was not what I expected.

So heres the listing http://roswell.craigslist.org/rvs/2239813209.html
I noticed she changed the listing from the time I saw it to this ~
1988 Holiday Rambler Alumalite XL Motorhome. 30 feet...Not gorgeous, but runs good.. Needs fan relay for roof A/C, and fuel filter for generator....Couch folds out to bed....has twin beds in back...two way fridge, stove/oven, microwave. Holding tanks are good.....No roof leaks...Serious inquiries ONLY!!!!!

Take a look at it and form your own opinion before continuing ~

I'm sure the seller was upset I decided not to take it but she described it as cosmetically imperfect which was what I wanted something we could put a little elbow grease into and personalize. Unfortunately the "cosmetic" was the entire front fender being mangled at one time. The previous owner had patched the aluminum with fiberglass and lets just say it was not appealing.

Our pictures - Front fender

Looking back now I see that the photo in the ad had been taken a long time ago and looked cropped to make sure no one saw the damages. I would have never, and I do mean NEVER made the trip if I had know it had been wrecked, even if the repairs had been done correctly. She just kept saying it doesn't hurt anything, I told you it wasn't pretty and it drives fine. Like it was no big deal!

Our pictures - left front

But it was a big deal, there is a major difference between "cosmetic - not perfect" and "structural damage" and the more I talked with her the more I found would have to be done. She told me the refrigerator needed work but then she realized it needed propane so it was okay after all, the generator needed a tune up but we couldn't get it started and the fan on the air conditioner needed a sensor switch but she had been using a window unit. She left out the part about doodling a mural and business name along the side.  I had to bite my lip when she said "theres some house paint inside just slap a coat over it if you don't like it."

At least I knew about most of that, I already had the fix-it fees estimated and the costs merited the asking price. The reality was a body shop would have charged more than the RV was worth, the sensor on the fresh water tank said the level was fine but she said the tanks had been emptied. The battery was toast, and so where the 2 auxiliary batteries. All the tires where in terrible shape and every time I asked her about something like the radio, antenna, CB, fans etc. she didn't know if they worked because she never used them.

I didn't know weather to laugh or cry all I could think was 'how could you have traveled in it for a year and not know if these items worked. 

My uncle, bless his heart kept saying "offer her less" but I could see the money pit road ahead, trimmed in duct tape, it was already everywhere you looked. The front windows had even been trimmed out in it, then it had been removed leaving all the frail broken seals exposed, the back panel to the refrigerator had a piece of insulation instead of a door and.... never mind I had better stop there before I tell you how I really feel. 

Needless to say walking away from it was the best decision we have ever made.

And yes we are STILL LOOKING :) the right one will come along.