buy new for warranty security, or buy used and save on depeciation but risk repair costs (1 Viewer)

Feb 24, 2013
12,990
101,153
Bolsover, Derbyshire
Funster No
24,833
MH
Hymer S800
Exp
not long enough
I know more than most that owning a used motorhome outside of warranty can be expensive

When it comes to cars I rarely keep any car after the three year warranty period ends, I have been caught in the past with expensive repairs

We saw our current MH for sale privately and fell I love with it, blinkered by the rush of blood I ignored my normal concerns about warranty and bought it

But the MH we now own was list price £135K in 2007 o_Oo_Oo_O, we could never have afforded or justified that much money, but it was registered in 2009 and we presume the buyer got some discount, we don't know what they paid, but we paid £68K in Feb 2013, even if the first buyer got it for £100K they then lost £32K and only did 2200 miles in their 3 year ownership

Based on this we got quite a bargain, so the £7/8K or so we have spent on what might have been warranty if newer has more than been covered by the saving

However, in reality, we invested slightly more than we ever planned to when we bought it, then added 'extras' that we felt we needed, so were basically skint, luckily it behaved near perfectly for 2 years giving us time to save up for these repairs :)

so back to my question, maybe a survey would be interesting but I don't know how :LOL:, do most of us worry about no warranty when buying used, or do most of you buy new or nearly new to be safe?
 
Oct 7, 2013
5,867
36,736
South Wales
Funster No
28,463
MH
Swift Escape Compact
Exp
Since 1988
We have bought new, nearly new and eight years old.

On each if the new/nearly new units we had remedial work carried out under warranty. On one unit, in particular, costs would have been high if not under warranty.

Our eight year old cost us £600 on repairs within twelve months but then nothing for the next two years.

I think it can simply boil down to luck. We had a " competent" engineer check out our eight year old before buying. So was £600 over three years good value or not?

All I can say is that, although it was not as "shiny" as the new/nearly new ones, we still had a lot of fun in it.

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funflair

LIFE MEMBER
Dec 11, 2013
19,196
29,881
Guisborough
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29,351
MH
MORELO palace
Exp
since 2012
Well ours was 6 years old when we bought it and we paid £52k which was £50k less than the previous owner paid new and close to £100k less than a new one would have cost us, he did 30,000 miles and in 4 years on we have done another 30,000 miles, service MOT and any repairs/replacement have been £1000 to £1200 per year, so to answer your question NO we didn't worry about not having any warranty and the saving would outweigh any possible repair costs.

So the next question is would we buy new next time, well the heart might say yes but the sensible head definitely says NO.

Martin
 

TheBig1

LIFE MEMBER
Nov 27, 2011
17,509
42,755
Dorset
Funster No
19,048
MH
A class
Exp
many many years! since I was a kid
the best option in my opinion is nearly new plus spend a few quid extra for mechanical break down insurance each year
 

Minxy

LIFE MEMBER
Aug 22, 2007
32,488
66,003
E Yorks
Funster No
149
MH
Carthago Compactline
Exp
Since 1996, had Elddis/Swift/Rapido/Rimor/Chausson MHs. Autocruise/Globecar PVCs/Compactline i-138
The only way I'd buy new now is if it was the ONLY way I could get what I wanted and there was no other option. Our last 2 have been 'used' - the Autocruise Accent PVC was a few months old and approx 1,000 miles on it, so still under warranty. Our current PVC was an unregistered ex-demo so we got the full 2 year warranty with it. So my choice would be to buy a nearly-new one with some warranty but without the high additional cost of a brand new one.

Contrast this to cars ... our Smart cars are not under warranty and, even though we've got an Ypsilon which is, it doesn't worry me about the Smarts though.

I suppose the one thing to consider is how likely is it that there'll be problems that are so major that you'd wish you had paid a higher price for the warranty ... and would that difference more than cover for the repair.

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Feb 16, 2013
19,498
51,185
uttoxeter
Funster No
24,713
MH
ambulance conversion
Exp
50 years
If you buy used the warrenty will have been done and the owner will have took a lot of care over a motorhome of this money , so you gain both ways.
 

MC 55 FUN

Free Member
Feb 18, 2016
3,432
6,347
Rural South West Wales.
Funster No
41,707
MH
2015 Majestic 195
Exp
Since 20th Feb' 2016
Buy nearly new through a dealer & negotiate a decent warranty ?

Our Autoquest 145 is 2010 with just 6300 miles & 1 previous owner in '' as new '' condition, full hab' & engine / chassis service history & we got a 2 year warranty, amongst other sweeteners :)
 

Lenny HB

LIFE MEMBER
Oct 18, 2007
52,684
147,582
On the coast in West Sussex
Funster No
658
MH
Hymer B678 DL
Exp
Since 2008 & many years tugging
Only on our second van both brought new, by buying our Hymers in Belgium we can buy a new van for the same cost as a 2 year old one would cost in the UK, last van we kept nearly 6 years only lost 23% in depreaciation 5% a year. So for us it makes financial sence to buy new, but not in the UK.

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Techno

LIFE MEMBER
Deceased RIP
Jul 28, 2010
15,475
20,752
Leeds the one up North
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12,905
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Rapido 7090F 3 litre 160
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May 2010
I would not dream of buying from a dealer unless I win a fortune and it is the only way to buy new.
Being the confident sort I have bought our only two vans privately and have no regrets.
Using the forum for advice is where the savings are made e.g. @JockandRita directing me to an Alternator supplier at under £100 new etc etc etc
FUN is worth a fortune
 
Oct 5, 2012
4,283
9,569
Ayrshire
Funster No
23,166
MH
Carado T132
Exp
5 years, feel free to ask me about the Carado!!
I buy new or nearly new if I can, I certainly don't want to end up like the couple I saw in a layby in Portugal recently with a dangling broken obsolete exhaust.........most likely end of that trip!
 
Aug 4, 2013
1,138
139,134
Oop North
Funster No
27,309
MH
A Class
Exp
2013
As novices we bought ours new, absolutely on impulse and have never regretted any of it. We simply knew that we would enjoy holidaying in that vehicle and if we were mistaken and didnt like it / or it didnt work out we might quickly loose £20 K but you could soon spend that on a 2 or 3 luxury holidays and never see that money again. We wouldnt have borrowed the money for it though.
I would now, if I wanted to change, buy a top end nearly new motorhome and be glad to save thousands and willing to sort out repairable problems, but I would be worried that it was someone elses pup.
Personally I would always be reluctant to blow £150 K on a new van, but husband would do it. I just feel its a bit over the top for camping .......
After years in the office I absolutely hate paperwork and would happily pay a third party a fee to manage a purchase from abroad and save a chunk of money...... Business opportunity ...... but we are happy for now.

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Apr 13, 2012
5,501
18,588
Funster No
20,541
MH
Mobilvetta Euroyacht
Exp
1996, then break 'til 2011

Somebody has to buy a new vehicle.......but not me............ modern vehicles are so reliable.... apart from the first few years (sorting out the 'glitches') ............... the depreciation on new costs far more than any repairs on older vehicles... unless you are very unlucky

The most I have ever spent on a vehicle is £19k on a motorhome.......5 years ago

My current vehicles are a 2003 S type Jag, a 2006 PT Cruiser, both low miles and drive 'as new' and cost £1600 each....... a 1991 Eriba Motorhome with less than 60k on the clock (£6k)

I could afford newer........... but why?

I love driving them all........and (touch wood) I have never needed recovery or had 'catastrophic' repair bills in 50 years.............. the biggest cost is always depreciation

......my way, not everyones ..........

(y)



 
Aug 6, 2013
11,941
16,527
Kendal, Cumbria
Funster No
27,352
MH
Le-Voyageur RX958 Pl
Exp
since 1999
I haven't bought any vehicle with a warranty on it ever (well - 3 months :)). You can afford one almighty repair bill by not paying first year depreciation never mind the next five in the case of a MH.

Edit: as BB has just said ;).

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Puddleduck

LIFE MEMBER
Jan 15, 2014
12,357
43,865
Scottish Borders
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29,703
MH
Without at present
Exp
On and off for many years.
Our Autoquest 145 is 2010 with just 6300 miles & 1 previous owner in '' as new '' condition, full hab' & engine / chassis service history & we got a 2 year warranty, amongst other sweeteners :)

Buffy was the same. We are buying new but only because we are having it customised for us and the price was right.

Our first van was a DIY conversion, the second an old Hymer and still on the road (had a few issues with it but got them sorted), then a few years without, Buffy was for a dealer but 2nd hand, and now we will have Jemima in the summer.

There is no right or wrong way overall, just what is right for you.

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Judge Mental

Funster
Deceased RIP
Sep 2, 2009
6,650
5,883
Sarth London
Funster No
8,272
MH
Possl 636 FR panel van
Exp
1994 and beyond...
You never miss a chance do you Eddie :),even while in recovery

Surprised you couldn't squeeze in a reference to chunnel sharing :LOL:

Glad to see you are up to posting so quickly (y)

Eh? Are you saying everyone knows about importing!?!? Blooming hell!:)
 

irnbru

LIFE MEMBER
Jun 27, 2013
13,503
31,101
Glasgow
Funster No
26,684
MH
Benimar 264
Exp
11 yrs
We always buy private and hope that we have chosen well. The money we save can then be spent if a repair crops up. Mum would rather line her own pockets rather than a dealers.

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Judge Mental

Funster
Deceased RIP
Sep 2, 2009
6,650
5,883
Sarth London
Funster No
8,272
MH
Possl 636 FR panel van
Exp
1994 and beyond...
I don't think repair problems such an issue as long as you by wisely , apply fur diligence by having van professionally checked out
 

sedge

Funster
Jul 7, 2009
5,491
13,024
Nr Jct 3 M6
Funster No
7,396
MH
C class
Exp
Aug 09 to date 9,000 miles!
By heck - we saw a LOT of exceedingly crap 2nd hand vans when we were looking for ours - we expected them to be in as good condition as our (ancient) Avondale caravan - which had had a comparatively hard life TBH - and they defo weren't. There wasn't ONE we were even tempted by.

A second hand van would have to be exceptional to get either of us interested in the first place.

You walk in some and think 'dogs' or 'shit' or 'piss' or 'Brewery' so you don't even LOOK at it. Others are tatty in the extreme - for instance you know normal edging strip whether on Formica surfaces or 'wood' (Contiboard type) ones? Well yes, it does come loose at the joins doesn't it? so it's V important to get it re-attached with the utmost speed, to prevent it catching on someone's clothing and breaking off completely, doesn't it? You go any buy a tube of woodglue or Loctite or whatever the job needs wherever you are, asap don't you - even though you know for a fact that you already have gallons in your garage at home.

Well - we do! But evidently we must be really weird since it appears that not many other people do ....... in one , I opened the cutlery drawer and there they were - all the broken bits of edging strip, all the screws and everything else that had fallen off it. It would have taken you ages to work out where each belonged for starters. No thank YOU! I expect to be able to USE the thing for its intended purpose with everything in or on it working perfectly when you drive it off the forecourt - not to have to spend several days sorting it - it wasn't even surprisingly cheap for its age and mileage etc, which usually gives you a hint that summat's up LOL

Another had a badly ???? water -marked mattress on the overcab bed. We'd both stuck one foot on the ladder side by side, we looked at each other and said Well - couldn't sleep on THAT - no idea what caused those stains - wonder how much that would cost? Then Pete had shoved me back into the floor and he climbed up on it to have a better look, so I was opening doors and drawers etc, all the service history was there for the vehicle and all the receipts for everything from a sidelight bulb to a full service over the last however many years. Not ONE 'hab check' sheet though. How odd, I said to Pete who was down from the bed check by then and we'd sat at the side dinette table to look at the contents of this informative folder, together.

Just on it there was an absolutely torrential downpour so we were saying things like 'Could do with a pack of cards - have they left any in the drawer?' etc. Pete was telling me that there was a sort of 'gutter round the whole of the mattress, moulded into the bed support, and it was wet when he went crawling about up there. So we both stood up again and turned round and could now see there were gallons of rainwater coming in through the window across the front of the overcab.

It had been pouring with rain like that on and off over the previous couple of months ...... No thanks then! - we did go to specifically tell the dealer - as they would no doubt wish to sort it asap - who said Thanks - but we know! - just haven't got round to looking at it yet .......

So that's Oaktree Motorhomes, deleted from any list of possible dealers we had then or might ever have in future.

So - we bought NEW.
 

ColinandDawn

Free Member
Feb 20, 2012
221
474
England
Funster No
19,888
MH
Home Brew
Exp
Yes
@DavidG58

I think the question you are pondering is the difference between

"betting" and "gambling" as it applies in British English...

Me? I use to own my own car repair garage - I can gamble.

Regards,

Colin

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JockandRita

LIFE MEMBER
Aug 2, 2007
11,402
148,456
Lincs/Cambs border
Funster No
49
MH
N+B Flair 8000i
Exp
Since May 05 (Ex Tuggers).
We could never afford new, so that't one half of the questioned answered. ;)

We bought our six year old tandem axle Hymer eleven years ago, and the only genuine "breakdown" was in Narbonne Plage, when the immobiliser on the diesel pump failed to respond to the signal from the ignition key. All sorted and reprogrammed, and we were on our way again. (y)

We've not taken out any warranty cover in the past, but do have annual breakdown cover. We've renewed both roof seals, 2 x rooflights, Heki rubber seal, twin box exhaust, N/S front drive shaft, alternator, air con pulley, crankcase breather, rear handbrake cables x 2, plus items which are part and parcel of routine servicing. Oh yes, and she's had a new engine at around 53,000Kms.
At seventeen years old, she's looking good, and runs a treat. (y) It pays to look after them properly ;)

Cheers,

Jock. :)
 

Geo

Trader - Funster
Jul 29, 2007
11,757
14,563
Mansfield,Notts
Funster No
35
MH
Autotrail Tracker FB
Exp
45 +years with breaks
I could not get my head around the depreciation of a new vehicle, maybe its a trade thing,
I, like BB above only buy based on condition, and my biggest bang for the buck mentality.

I'm surprised by some of the comments on here with regard to second hand vehicles.
There are some real dream machines out there, ££££££££££££££££££££££££££ below there real value, and up for grabs,

I don't believe luck has anything to do with it, it's a mind set thing.

And I'll pick on sedge's post as an example,
I feel they were defeated before they left home, But I'm glad people like this exist, it means they walk away
leaving my dream machines for me:)

No, its all about perceived value, Sedge might run a mile from what I see as a base for improvement and room for profit £££££;):cool:.

Loosing money on vehicles IS NOT AN OPTION, there you go, that's the trader talking again What do Iknow???about buying new? Nothing!!!
I will never have the "I'm the first feeling though" whats that worth in £££s?
 

funflair

LIFE MEMBER
Dec 11, 2013
19,196
29,881
Guisborough
Funster No
29,351
MH
MORELO palace
Exp
since 2012
When the day comes to change I am sure we will look at year or two old, but would want to know why somebody had bailed out of a very expensive motorhome and lost £?,000.

If we bought new it would not be for the warranty aspect but more to get the exact spec that we wanted if w couldn't find it used.

Martin

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mustaphapint

Free Member
Oct 9, 2015
580
778
Worcestershire and Brittany
Funster No
39,344
MH
A Class
Exp
Just starting
We could never justify the cost of a new motorhome even though our last 2 cars have been new. Our Hymer is 17 years old and cost us just over 18K privately through an eBay ad. It had about 80,000 miles on it. Inspection was walking round it and talking to the owner. It had almost all the features we were looking for and not found in the previous 4 weeks of searching the dealers and the adverts. We replaced the mattress in the fixed bed (fortunately a standard UK size fits) and took it on an 800 mile shakedown trip. When we came back I booked it in for a chassis and habitation service. With a couple of new tyres and some minor repairs this cost us something like £800. Since then we have done another 3,000 miles or so and so far, 5 months later, (touch wood) we have not regretted our purchase. We had a minor incident on this trip which resulted in a broken rear light and cracked quarter panel. If we had bought new I would have been devastated but on an older vehicle it's just another battle-scar. There are some things we would change and we have to decide whether to spend money on modifications and improvements or keep looking for one which ticks all the boxes, but 30K is the most I could justify spending on one.
 
R

Robert Clark

Deleted User
We spend so much time away in our MH, not only is it our 'little palace on wheels' but also our 'home from home', so as such every little detail has to be right (its not that I'm obsessive compulsive)
By choice I'd normally buy new, but only if I've been able to negotiate a SUBSTANTIAL discount.

We sold our first van (originally bought new) at one year old, however we lost very little because we'd been able to get a really good discount on it.

Our latest van (new) was bought at 20% below list price, which means that we've got a new van for the cost of a nearly new one, PLUS its still got a full guarantee, and nobody has peed on the carpet, or crunched the gear box.

Without wishing to set Eddie @Judge Mental off, I'd certainly look at buying in Europe if I couldn't negotiate a suitable discount in the UK.
Getting the best possible price when buying can not only reduce or eliminate future depreciation in the short term, but enables you get a new van for the same price as a second hand one, without the risks of having to fork out putting things right if the warranty has expired.

I guess everyone's situation is different, and people do what's right for them.
 

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