Car and Accessories

RVTraderOnline.com, an online showroom of over 75,000 recreational vehicles across the US and a division of Trader Publishing Company announces the states that have received the most searches on

RVTraderOnline.com for end of 2005 are California and Florida. Focusing on the number of state searches conducted on RVTraderOnline.com from January 1, 2005 to the present, it was determined which states accumulated the most interest from RV enthusiasts.

Those top ten states are California, Florida, Arizona, Texas, Washington, Michigan, Georgia, Ohio, Oregon, and North Carolina, in consecutive order. It appears that mostly coastal states in the Southwest, Northwest, Midwest and Southeast regions of the nation are where online RV enthusiasts have been searching for recreational vehicles.

RVTraderOnline.com is an online classified ad service bringing RV buyers and sellers together in one virtual marketplace. Advertising their inventory on RVTraderOnline.com, dealers and independent owners alike are reaching RV enthusiasts who are interested in researching and purchasing new and used recreational vehicles online. Headquartered in Norfolk, VA,

RVTraderOnline.com is part of TraderOnline.com’s network of websites covering new and used vehicle categories such as boats, trucks, motorcycles, ATVs, aircraft, equipment and collector vehicles, and general merchandise. TraderOnline.com is a division of Trader Publishing Company, the nation’s largest distributor of photo-classified ad publications.

For more information about RVTraderOnline.com, call toll-free 888-813-7304 or visit www.RVTraderOnline.com.

The joy of recreational vehicle ownership hasn’t been dimmed by rising gas prices. As late as August of 2005 recreational vehicle sales were seeing only a very small affect of rising gas prices. Sales of recreational vehicles in 2004 were the highest see in twenty five years.

The popularity of recreational vehicles doesn’t seem to be waining at all. In fact, there is an RV and MV (Manufactured Vehicle) hall of fame located in Elkhart Indiana. Today’s motor homes or recreational vehicles have all the comforts of home, and then some. With luxury leather recliners, granite floors, washers and dryers, plasma TV’s and looks of professionally designed spaces recreational vehicles are a stylish and comfortable home away from home.

There are several different types of vehicles considered "RV’s". The first is a truck camper which is a unit affixed to the bed or chassis of a pickup truck. Then there is the folding camping trailer, or pop-up trailer. A travel trailer is a unit that is towed by another vehicle. A fifth wheel travel trailer is designed to be towed by a pickup truck. A motor home or what is frequently called a Winnebago which resembles a bus.

The process of purchasing a new recreational vehicle is somewhat like purchasing a new car. A recreational vehicle dealer will sometimes take advantage of an uniformed customer. There are huge markups on recreational vehicles by all dealers. The only way to come out with a fair deal is to do your homework before you buy.

There are several fixed prices when you are looking at new recreational vehicles. The dealer price, the taxes and any motor vehicle fees. As with a car, the only option left for the dealer is to play with the profit margin. As recreational vehicle dealers sell way less than car dealers do they must make a much higher profit margin per vehicle. As it is widely known that used recreational vehicles have a huge depreciation you don’t want to overpay for your vehicle.

Recreational Vehicle Buyers Guide Service Records – If you’re buying from an RV dealer and they can’t produce something – you’ve got problems – possibly serious ones. If not, he’d be proudly displaying the records. There should at least be receipts for repairs, service work, and possibly old owners manuals.

See http://busforsaleguide.com/rv_types.htm for the advantages and disadvantages of each major class of recreational vehicle on the market. Body Leaks -Other than structural rust, I know of no other exterior related problem that will cost you as much money and cause you as many headaches as exterior body leaks. Body leaks are among the most difficult to fix if the body design is less than first rate.

Front facing windows on many Class C’s are nearly impossible to stop leaking due to flexing and stress. I have been incredibly pleased with the purchase of my 1993 Class A. However, the wood over skeleton frame roofs like the type Georgie Boy used in this coach has begun to sag between the support tubes or "skeleton". The weight of air-conditioners, vents, my roof mounted kayaks, and walking up there to fix seams, has permanently created "ponding" issues.

Price quote from my very trusted and competent local RV service center was $4,200 to rebuild my entire roof. Ponding is water sitting on the roof when the coach is level. When this happens you have increased chances of leaks, bugs, slime and algae growth, and dirty water run off when you drive somewhere.

Rounded formed fiberglass roofs are the very best but only appear on the newer coaches that were out of my price range. I have seen $30,000 to $60,000 coaches nearly ruined by leaks that went unchecked. Be especially cautious if you see ANY delamination of the side wall. I have never seen the permanent damage fixed for less than $4,000 and that is WITHOUT a guarantee that it won’t happen again.

This is usually caused by poor roof and seam design. Nearly everyone underestimates how serious this is. I know I almost bought one. Couldn’t figure out why a great looking Santara diesel pusher would only cost $24,000. Then I walked around to the drivers side and saw the fiberglass body delaminating. I didn’t think it looked too expensive to repair. I figured caulk the seam and just screw the panel back tighter to the frame.

Of course the salesman agreed. WRONG! People do not realize especially in older coaches that the WOOD (yes I said the WOOD) that is under the fiberglass skin does offer quite a bit of the stability, and rigidity of the exterior. Once it gets wet for a prolonged period of time it rots, breaks down, and becomes heavy enough to cause the entire skeleton to sag. Windows no longer fit right, seams pop open worse, storage doors underneath stick, and on and on.

Do NOT buy an RV with this problem. It can cost as much as $13,000 to fix (highest horror story I have read about on the RV chat logs thus far). Body integrity is one of the more important advantages that the big solidly constructed bus conversions have over 95% of the factory built RV’s in use.

Do NOT purchase an RV that has signs of leaking without a thorough plan for paying for and fixing the problem. Otherwise, I can assure you, it will destroy your experience and investment in a short time. Mechanical Leaks – Look for ANY signs of leaks, particularly from Automatic Transmissions. Some Allison transmissions used in diesel motor homes have wimpy front seals and leak constantly when the transmission gets too hot.

Don’t buy an RV with a leaky transmission. A replacement Allison can cost $3,000 parts and labor to replace. Leaking brake components or hydraulic systems can be expensive to repair also. Leaky radiators can be expensive to repair or replace on larger coaches especially if the labor to pull them involves pulling a lot of other items. Same goes for leaky dash air-conditioning systems.

Body Style – Check out the visibility differences. The entrance door positions vary as well. The rear pusher buses offer a quieter ride. Fifth Wheels usually do not have flat foors inside and almost universally offer the "split level". Transmissions – Get an automatic unless you really like the absolute control of a standard and never intend to resell it. Standard shifts are MUCH harder to sell as conversions because retirees are the most common motor home buyers and they don’t like to shift. Allison makes the best transmission systems in the world.

Many older gas RV’s were mated to inferior transmissions that just cannot handle the extra weight and pull issue. Some RV’s have engine/transmission setups that are so underpowered you will never be able to afford to use them. These transmissions are forever blowing seals, leaking, overheating, and breaking down.

Buy a replacement transmission and guess what? Your only option may be a rebuilt version of the problematic transmission you already own. Engine – If you are going to be traveling through mountainous areas regularly get the biggest engine you can afford. There is NO substitute for size (raw cubic inches) I don’t care what the ads say.

My car has a 440 in it. Why would you buy a 34′ RV with a 318 in it? Check carefully how many miles on the engine or since the engine rebuild. Gas engines last about 60 -100,000 miles, depending on whether they are driven stop and go in the mountains or over long stretches of flat highway. Diesels can often approach 200,000 miles before needing much of anything with proper maintenance.

If economy is a major concern, look for a good affordable coach with a great miserly engine/transmission combination. I bought such a coach with a Cummins 190 HP 6 cylinder diesel engine mated to an Allison 4 speed automatic transmission. Over the course of our 31 day, 7,980 mile trip, in mixed traffic, tough mountain and city driving, we averaged 10.6 MPG in our 34 foot fully loaded class A liveaboard coach with 4 people and 2 kayaks.

NOTE: After evaluating the information above on SPECIFIC issues related to this particular platform you may find the prepurchase checklist found at http://busforsaleguide.com/bus_prepurchase_checklist.htm helpful. It covers GENERAL issues you should be aware of for ALL platforms. It will serve as a very valuable resource to assist you in evaluating a bus, motor home, or RV for purchase. Take a copy of it with you when shopping.

When looking to buy a new recreational vehicle think about what you would do if you were going to purchase a new car. You certainly aren’t going to take the first deal you’re offered. You certainly aren’t going to purchase from the first dealer you visit without comparing prices. You certainly wouldn’t go without any idea of the value of the vehicle beforehand. It is very important that you go armed with information when you’re thinking about purchasing a new recreational vehicle.

This is some serious cash you’re going to be spending and you want to get the best possible deal. Recreational Vehicle dealers must make a large profit on the sale of each vehicle. They don’t sell the numbers that car dealers do so they have to make the maximum mark up on each vehicle.

There are many sites online that can be a help to you with finding the actual MSRP (manufacturers suggested retail price) of a new recreational vehicle. Recreational Vehicle dealers, like car dealers, buy their vehicles wholesale due to the number they buy, they have a fairly wide profit margin generally 15% to 35%. The dealer price you see on the vehicle isn’t necessarily what he has paid for it with incentives he receives from the manufacturer.

Make sure that you visit at least three recreational vehicle dealers with the same or similar vehicle. When you’re spending potentially hundreds of thousands of dollars on a motor home you want to make sure you are getting the best deal. Deals do differ from region to region and from dealer to dealer. Don’t become attached to any one recreational vehicle. Again, when you’re talking potentially hundreds of thousands of dollars it’s a business deal and not one where you should wear your heart on your sleeve.

Remember, this is a new vehicle, and if you bypass this one the factory can always build another exactly like it. Make sure that you do a little research into the dealers after sales service. Many dealers are your best friends during the deal, but then lose interest in you afterwards. You will want to check with friends and family that own recreational vehicles and perhaps with the Better Business Bureau before you purchase. Also, RV blogs and forums are a good way to get information about a particular dealer.