resale buyers questions to ask seller?

Aloha;

We've decided to go look at a used TM this saturday. Can any of you give us a list of things we should look for and questions we should ask the seller? Any input is appreciated.

Sinjin

TM owners can give you specific points to look for, and a search of the posts will no doubt give you a list of things to check.

You're probably experienced at buying a used car/truck, and the basic process is the same. After the intitial wow factor (you know, it just looks so beautiful), after you have taken it down & set it up, ask to look at it unsupervised. This is the time you want to note what you don't like and what appears to be wrong. Now is the time for a critical look. You'll have time later to think it over and decide what to do. You may buy things differently than I do but try to avoid the impulse purchase.

And like any RV, make sure the tires aren't checked or cracking, check the spare if there is one, check the appliances to be certain they work. If possible run the water from each faucet. (the trailer we looked at prior to the one I currently have had this bloody awful smell when running the hot water. I decided that the smell may never come out and passed on an otherwise really nice looking rig).

We recently saw a 1991 TM26 (I think that's the right model) and this unit was clearly abused, not used. No pride of ownership was evident from the previous owners.

You might try a search for "whats wrong with a TM" or "buying a TM" or whatever topic you can dream up. There's a wealth of knowledge in past posts, just used the Search on the top tool bar.

Good luck!

Check the gray water tank and drain valves to be sure they don't have any patch material on them. I looked pretty good under our TM before buying and did not notice the black tape that was hiding the epoxy repair patch on the pipe exiting the gray water tank. Our TM leaked from the gray water tank and did not know about this until our first trip out. Very disappointing. Still wondering today if the dealer knew about the patch?
Cody

Thanks Grouse;

I did do a search, but probably used the wrong words.

We don't have much experience in buying used. Only bought one used car in my life (turned out to be a good deal).

We usually buy new cars, keep them for ever, then sell or give away the old car. The only other experience we've had was buying a used airplane, but airplanes are required to have regular maintanence and be certified for flight, so that makes it easier.

Thanks again;

Sinjin

[B_and_D]

Originally Posted by Grouse

If possible run the water from each faucet. (the trailer we looked at prior to the one I currently have had this bloody awful smell when running the hot water. I decided that the smell may never come out and passed on an otherwise really nice looking rig).

Sometimes when our TM sits with the hot water tank full, we get this funky smell from the hot water heater. It goes right away after you run some water through it. I think it's a pretty common occurrence.

You can always add some bleach to the water tank and pump the water through the lines so that it sits in the lines and in the water tank for a while. We have to do this occasionally with our well & tank at the house here. Just make sure you flush it out completely before drinking it (or in the case of our house, washing green towels ).

Just make sure everything works when you check out the TM. It takes a while to get the refrigerator cooled down, so ask the person you're buying from to put the frig on gas 24 hours before you come to see it. For our style of camping, it's most important that the frig run on gas. Turn off the gas to the frig and try to light it again. Ask them to be sure that the battery is charged up, ask them to be sure that there's propane in both the tanks (and switch from one to another to see if the switch works), ask them to charge the toilet, and have everything ready for inspection. Turn everything on, run the faucets, if possible run a hose over the trailer to see if there are any leaks. Open and close it yourself. Read the manuals here and familiarize yourself with how things are supposed to work. If there's an awning open it up and look at it. If there's a TV antenna/booster, raise it up and down. If you can bring along a small TV you can test out the booster to see if it works. Bring a coax cable. There are a lot of things that might go wrong, such as the toilet valve slide, and leaks at the top of the grey water tank that you won't be able to test unless you are somewhere where you can fill up and dump. Turn off the converter and test the 12v water pump. I could go on and on, but if you read the manuals a couple of times it will give you an idea of the things to check.

I hope you find a good one!

B&D, where were you when we bought ours. I didn’t think to fill up the gray water tank and consequently have a problem (Patch last night will check the repair, Sat.) Great tip on buying. You got to love forum Thanks for getting the word out
Cody

Cowboy Cody, Texas Camper and BD thanks for the great advice. I'm going to consolidate it all into a single checklist. I will be calling the dealer tomorrow to let him know what I expect to see as far as system works. I never would have thought of half of the things you all suggested. But they all make perfect sense.

Thanks again;

Pat

Originally Posted by B_and_D

Sometimes when our TM sits with the hot water tank full, we get this funky smell from the hot water heater. We have to do this occasionally with our well & tank at the house here.

B&D,

A few years back I got some bad water in my trailer in Indiana. The trailer cold water system cleared up right away without special cleaning, but it took two years to get the smell out of the hot water heater. Since then it has not come back.

I see from your post that this is a problem at your home as well. If you're putting water from home in your TM prior to leaving then you maybe the "smelly" water source in the TM is water from your home.

Sinjin,

When it comes time to negotiate the price (yes, it is flexible and ALWAYS negotiable) you should find that there is about 20% between the asking price and the final purchase price .... new or used. This may not be entirely true for new units depending on which dealership you go to. For example, I see many TM dealers use suggested retail where this is most certainly true. But I also see several dealers online advertise their units with appoximately 20% off all ready.

Take the time to go to NADA.com to get an idea of what the trailer will sell for. Just be sure to add on only for optional equipment, not for every item the trailer has on it. This is probably a good target price to buy the trailer at.

I didn't start off as a good negotiater, but after finding that "trusted friends" were burning me, I learned. Last new car I bought I purchased at invoice when they weren't offering any deals other than financing offers. The trailer I have now I purchased used and paid more than 20% less than they were asking. After all, I work too hard for the money I earn, and I'm sure you do too!

The best advice i can give is read up on TM's and ask questions here. When i went to the dealer for my final inspection I knew more on how to setup the TM then the dealership. Also remember its not a home. It moves so things do come loose and break occasionally. If you start with that attitude it helps through campings little crisis's. Good luck. Let us know how you make out! Dave