Taking the Plunge Again

While we believe that we need to continue to return here to Sunshine RV Resort, we are not thinking of being here in south Texas full-time. So, we needed to plan where to live once we leave here. Once again, we concluded that an RV was the answer. We enjoy full-time RV living. An RV allows us great flexibility in where and how we live. At this point, a motorhome is our most feasible option. So, we decided, a motorhome it would be.

Even though our last motorhome had been a bad experience, we chose to look at another older motorhome.  There are thousands of older motorhomes in use around the country. If you pay attention, you see them all the time. Most of them have not been used a lot and have low mileage. But we were a bit skittish to go down that road again. We decided to do at least two things differently for our peace of mind.

Once we found the motorhome, we were ready to buy. We brought in a certified professional RV inspector to inspect it. We found a motor home that was perfect for us right here in the RV Resort where we are. It had been the full-time home of the previous owners until they had moved into a park model in the park about six months earlier. I’ll say a little more about the motorhome later. I visited the National RV Inspectors Association’s (NRVIA) website and searched for a certified RV inspector near me. I found New Beginnings RV. Jim Lundeen is New Beginnings RV. He and his wife are full-time RVers and would be in our area when we needed our inspection. On the inspection day, Jim arrived and began at 8:00 AM. He inspected the motor home from top to bottom and end to end. He checked for signs of water infiltration, covered at least 170 points of inspection, and did an engine analysis by testing engine fluids on both the coach and generator engines. He spent eight and a half hours going over the motorhome. He then gave us a 120-page report which included dozens of photos. He was very thorough. He found only a few minor problems, which the seller agreed to address before we made the purchase. The seller also agreed to cover half the inspection cost, which was about $1,800.

The second thing we did was purchase an extended warranty. Had we had an extended warranty with Chance, we would probably still have him. After some research, we bought our warranty through America’s RV Warranty. One big reason I chose them was the flexibility of repair options. I can use any shop, but most importantly, I can use mobile repair services. I’ve heard too many stories about RVs being in the shop for weeks, even months, so a remote repair sounds good.

While not cheap, these two decisions have provided peace of mind as we again take the plunge.

Let me introduce you to RV number four for us. We have named him Chance II. He is a 2006 Fleetwood +Bounder 35E. He is built on the General Motors Workhorse chassis with an 8.1-liter Vortex engine. Chance II is the 20^th Anniversary edition, so he has a few upgrades. He has two slide-outs, one of which is a super slide. It has leather upholstery on the furniture. There is a split bath with the toilet and vanity off the living area and a larger vanity and roomy shower off the bedroom. The layout makes for a lot of room. Chance II is the roomiest RV we have had. It came with a Sleep Number bed, a satellite TV system, and an RV GPS. We are delighted with our purchase. We enjoy living in it and look forward to hitting the road again.