[77newell]

Over the 10 years of owning the 77 Newell I averaged somewhere between 2500-3000 per year for everything. That includes tires, batteries and airbags, plus lube changes and an amazing list of other stuff due to the previous owner not being able to keep up with maintenance. I did virtually all the labor myself except for the in-frame on the 6v92 which was 5,000 and is included in my figures.

The 93 coach hasn't been my responsibility for long enough to know but its systems are far more complex than the 77 and I expect to spend maybe fifty percent more. Thankfully this coach, compliments of Forest, was in hugely better shape when I bought it.

My coaches have been well maintained and very reliable (well, only once I got caught up with the 77's issues). If I had to spend 10 grand a year on maintenance plus depreciation (50% of my initial purchase price over the 10 year - and this appears to be typical) I couldn't justify the expense versus other ways of traveling. I prefer the motorhome greatly but there are limits to what I can justify. This is just me, others have different perspectives that work very well for them.

The important thing is to recognize the degree of ongoing cash flow required to support the particular coach you are interested in and be comfortable with that considering the use you will make of it. I met a guy that had $50 depreciation for every mile he had driven his coach. There is no way I could make myself do that, but he was so pleased with the experience he was in the process of buying a new coach and doing it all over again. It's all a matter of be realistic and comfortable with the realities.

[Fulltiming]

The Newell recommended annual maintenance is a lengthy list and as has been pointed out costs some serious $'s. If you are handy with a screwdriver and wrench, you can take care of a number of the items yourself and save the labor costs but there is no question that neglecting annual maintenance is a beginning of a slippery slope. Things as seemingly minor as changing the air conditioning filters can be costly if they plug up and put extra wear on the A/C unit. Changing fuel filters is extremely important, especially for coaches that sit for extended periods of time to allow algae to grow inside the tank.

I have several file folders of receipts for maintenance and upgrade items that I keep both for a future reference and if someday I decide to change coaches.

[Foodsman]

Hi guys,

I don't know a lot about all that is motorhome but I do read a lot and its interesting when you buy a new coach. Its best to spend about a week around the coach maker to make sure everything is right and to make any adjustments.

It is obvious if you intend to own a motorhome the key word is "maintenance" and the other kew word is "money"! And it seems to make little difference if you're talking a 1982 Newell or a 2012.

Yet it seems the allover truth is if you perform maintenance on a timely basis, stuff can still happen but for the most part it is somewhat tractable! Is that right or where have I gone wrong?

Harry

[qcj]

Clint, Motor Homes of Texas is at $110 an hour and if you purchased a motor home from them you get 10% off on parts and labor. When I owned my Foretravel they were the same and if you belong to the Foretravel club you get 10% also. I wished Newell would do the same thing. 10% of parts and labor really helps.

[encantotom]

unfortunately, even the best kept coaches can have issues. there are several threads on the forum right now on coaches that were well kept that are having issues.

but it does help. at least then you know what has been done.

but stuff does break. on the more complicated ones, there is lots to go wrong. on the mid 80's back, much less. but then age of components enter in.

owning a coach is a passion, not an investment. and you have to be willing to spend a lot of time and money in most cases.

the guys who seldom have issues are the ones who spend an enormous amount of time on their coaches and even then, they are not exempt from seeing issues.

what most of us are saying is that all in all, that a high quality coach lasts longer, is easier to fix (though may be more expensive in cases) and will be great to use. this is our 4th coach and 2nd newell. the first two were no where near the coach that i had in my 90 or in my 02.

these are great machines, but not simple or cheap. ask bill who has had to fill up his 310 gallon diesel tank.

tom

[Ozarkguy]

Yet it seems the allover truth is if you perform maintenance on a timely basis, stuff can still happen but for the most part it is somewhat tractable! Is that right or where have I gone wrong?

Harry

Harry that applies to anything mechanical, but with big ticket items it seems more important.
I've been in aviation 45 years.. we always say that if you want to arrive where you intended you will spend the time and money required to properly maintain..... If you don't someone else will sooner or later...

[Richard]

Toms post was a great summation of the maintenance cost issue. I would add that almost all of us go through a period of buyers remorse with a new coach. It's that period where you are spending money to properly address issues you didn't see or didn't exist when you bought the coach AND the coach is new to you and you don't see an end to the cash outflow on the horizon. It does get better when al the ankle biters are fixed AND you begin the understand the new to you systems. With new to you coach sometimes it is hard to know what is normal behavior, operator error, and something broken.

[dave-n-marjorie]

This is a great thread! One thing we did before we left for full timing 3/13 is go through the main systems, air and level , hvac, aquahot, ect... and replace parts that were not broken, but were original and could break. I know this sounds crazy, but when we had the aquahot opened up, we replaced elements, coils, and a dozen other parts that were not broken but original. Sure it was expensive, $1,500 in just parts from Roger, but basically have a new aquahot. Same for basement a/c's, replaced both compressors on rear unit even though only one was bad. The other was an original and working fine. Replaced all the capacitors because they were original even know they were not broken. Replaced both circuit boards as they were original and are known to break. Things like that. Same with engine, was easy to replace belts and hoses even though not broken. All fluids ect..replaced, batteries that were 5 years old and tires 5 years old, replaced although they were in great shape and working perfect.

18 months of full timing and 25,000 miles in our Newell, zero issues! None, not one! Yes I do believe like someone said that the non slide and earlier Newell's are less complicated, but by being proactive on certain things, I think it has paid off for us. We have been camped in 100 deg plus in the desert and inside was ice cold and 18 deg and inside nice and warm. Also during that time have put 1,500 hours on the generator, zero issues. I also think that because we are full timers, and use every component everyday, the wheels are always turning, things work better when they are being used and not sitting. Maybe its a myth, but its working for us so far!!! LOL or our we just lucky?

Dave

[Foodsman]

Hidey-Ho-Good-Neighbors,

I have narrowed my search from 1999 t0 2004 and part of the reason is this and previous conversations of “clean up, paint up, fix up". First off I like what I see in those years and I've come to understand they were good builds, maybe especially the 2004.

So why put $500,000.00 into a 2008 coach and possibly have the same issues of a 2002? I don’t think I’d be to happy buying a half million dollar coach and dropping $10,000 to $15,000 right out of the box for a new oil-om-meter.

If I have learned nothing else I've learned not to confuse a Monaco, Newmar and American, all good coaches, but not compaired to a Newell. Somtimes you do get what you pay for!

I don’t want to get all tied up in the maintenance aspect of things because there’s a lot of fun stuff to go with it. But forewarned is forearmed and I don’t like being a Pilgrim in the John Wayne parlance!

I have a nice home and take pride in keeping it that way. My Newell coach will be thought of and treated the same way...

As always you guys are the best and Jimmy its the old story isn’t it “Don't forget to fly the airplane”!

Harry

[Ozarkguy]

See ya at the Next Rally!