Ex-rental purchase - thoughts?

[Tony68000]

Just arranged to view a MH, doing a little Googling I’ve now discovered it’s an ex-rental.. for the last 3 years. Seller hasn’t indicated this on advert.

Van‘s a good price, appears well maintained. 13 years old Hymer, 90k miles. Very bottom range of our budget, but still £20k+.

View, walk? Thoughts appreciated, and thanks in advance.

 

[Puddleduck]

View and be prepared to negotiate hard. Walking away remains an option.

 

[Jamesh]

The 90k with FSH wouldn't worry me, however I'd be concerned about minor interior / exterior damage. Less likely to be damp having not been left in storage for 50 wks a year.

Cheers James

 

[peterc10]

13 year old Hymers are pretty close you get to being bullet proof. Much better build quality than the newer ones like I have got, but, of course not so modern and not got all the goodies. If you can pick one up in the 20k range that is not bad.

Don't worry about high mileage, it is better than having one that has spent most of its time parked up. The base vehicle will be a commercial unit designed to be good for 250k miles or more, as long as it has been maintained.

Check for maintenance records, rust underneath and internal damp. If it has a garage check the plywood floor for rot as well.

 

[suavecarve]

My question would be "When was it last rented"
Not that I know a lot about rental vehicles but 13 year old is not likely to have been hired recently I would have thought and any snags caused by the renters may have been sorted.

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[mitzimad]

any van that age can hide problems being ex rental isnt realy a problem its all about how well its been maintained 90 k isnt a huge mileage for its age you do need to get a damp check done

 

[BouncyBoatFolk]

It may well be news to the seller that the vans an ex hire bus. If you are not sure of your abilities to spot a wrong un, get the AA, or similar to go out and have browse around it, they'll root out the most potentially expensive faults, well worth the fee.
Mike

 

[Badknee]

I would ask the seller if it’s ever been out for hire. Check very carefully the fittings and fixtures, check out the mattress/ soft furnishings, try to find out if the fridge works properly. Then get on my hands and knees and have a looksee underneath.
Good luck

 

[Tony68000]

My question would be "When was it last rented"
Not that I know a lot about rental vehicles but 13 year old is not likely to have been hired recently I would have thought and any snags caused by the renters may have been sorted.

Last rented in September 2021. There are reviews for the last 3 years, owner states he’s owned it for 3 years.

 

[Tony68000]

It may well be news to the seller that the vans an ex hire bus. If you are not sure of your abilities to spot a wrong un, get the AA, or similar to go out and have browse around it, they'll root out the most potentially expensive faults, well worth the fee.
Mike

He‘s the one hiring it. Currently active on a rental site. Reviews from the last 3 years. No mention of this in the advert, so will see what he says tomorrow…

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[Tony68000]

View and be prepared to negotiate hard. Walking away remains an option.

Yeah, good call. Decided to view. Rental status good chance to negotiate if we like it, but if the seller isn’t going to come clean about it… and tell us it’s a hire vehicle, we’ll just walk. If he doesn’t volunteer this when we’re viewing we’ll just walk away… if he’s hiding this, goodness knows what else he’s hiding.

 

[Tony68000]

I would ask the seller if it’s ever been out for hire. Check very carefully the fittings and fixtures, check out the mattress/ soft furnishings, try to find out if the fridge works properly. Then get on my hands and knees and have a looksee underneath.
Good luck

This is one of the things putting us off. Seller claims it’s had a new mattress a few months ago, but goodness knows how many people have slept on it! Soft furnishings look very tired from the photos, but these can all easily be sorted if the price is right.

 

[The Wino]

This is one of the things putting us off. Seller claims it’s had a new mattress a few months ago, but goodness knows how many people have slept on it! Soft furnishings look very tired from the photos, but these can all easily be sorted if the price is right.

I think some people are really funny about beds. When we had our first flat we bought the bed from the people who moved out lots of friends said they wouldn't buy a second hand bed. The same people a couple of years before were in a student hall of residence where the beds got quite a lot of use! and no-one asks for a new bad when they stay in a hotel or go on holiday ( except maybe the Queen).
Does he know that you know it's ex rental?. I would ask someone else to ring ask if it's for sale and say they wouldn't fancy an ex rental motorhome. If doesn't say straight away it's being rented walk because you won't be able to believe anything else he says

 

[Tony68000]

I think some people are really funny about beds. When we had our first flat we bought the bed from the people who moved out lots of friends said they wouldn't buy a second hand bed. The same people a couple of years before were in a student hall of residence where the beds got quite a lot of use! and no-one asks for a new bad when they stay in a hotel or go on holiday ( except maybe the Queen).
Does he know that you know it's ex rental?. I would ask someone else to ring ask if it's for sale and say they wouldn't fancy an ex rental motorhome. If doesn't say straight away it's being rented walk because you won't be able to believe anything else he says

No, he doesn’t know I know, when I searched for the model, it popped up, active, on a ’rent your motorhome’ site, reviews, etc.

I’ll see if he mentions it during the viewing, and take it from there.

 

[The Wino]

No, he doesn’t know I know, when I searched for the model, it popped up, active, on a ’rent your motorhome’ site, reviews, etc.

I’ll see if he mentions it during the viewing, and take it from there.

If he doesn't just let it slip that you wouldn't fancy an ex rental and see how honest he is!

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[TheBig1]

the failure to mention the renting would be a very big red flag to me. What else isn't he telling you? If you do go for a look, take a piece of carpet or cardboard to lay on under the van. Pay VERY good attention to the underside of the floor behind the rear wheels. Hymers that age it's plywood and frequently rotten. If repaired, how well and when?

I bought and sold motorhomes and caravans for years, doing them up and selling on. Unless you are a competent DIYer or tradesman, fixing that sort of damp is very expensive as time consuming. Check the maintenance records closely especially that the cam belt has been changed regularly. Check for rust and bad repairs. Check the MOT history on the government website using the registration number. That should show if previous owners looked after it or just fixed anything failed at the MOTs.

Oh and check the age and condition of ALL the tyres

 

[Tony68000]

the failure to mention the renting would be a very big red flag to me. What else isn't he telling you? If you do go for a look, take a piece of carpet or cardboard to lay on under the van. Pay VERY good attention to the underside of the floor behind the rear wheels. Hymers that age it's plywood and frequently rotten. If repaired, how well and when?

I bought and sold motorhomes and caravans for years, doing them up and selling on. Unless you are a competent DIYer or tradesman, fixing that sort of damp is very expensive as time consuming. Check the maintenance records closely especially that the cam belt has been changed regularly. Check for rust and bad repairs. Check the MOT history on the government website using the registration number. That should show if previous owners looked after it or just fixed anything failed at the MOTs.

Oh and check the age and condition of ALL the tyres

Mot history before current owner (2019] is a little concerning… failed on an oil leak, lots of ‘maintenance’ advisories - tyres, track rod ends, corrosion to sump, oil weep from engine, steering rack, wipers duff, etc. last 3 mots have been great.

Current maintenance regime seems decent, new tires, exhaust, suspension bits, battery, etc.

…not sure I’m cut out for buying something this old with this sort of history…. I don’t do mechanics, just computer stuff…

…but it could be cheap…and we’re struggling to find a suitable van…

 

[Jamesh]

Your getting to the age where stuff will wear out so it's good much has been done.

Cheers James

 

[Tony68000]

I’ve just cancelled the viewing. Thanks for the input into this.

MOT history is very concerning - 2019 - Front Vehicle structure corroded to the extent that the rigidity of the assembly is significantly reduced Cross member.
…. many other bits indicating poor maintenance.

’Undeclared’ rental status for last 3 years - goodness knows what’s it’s been through.

The good points is the current owner seems to have spend money on repairs and kept it well.

All-in-all, not being mechanically minded, I couldn’t risk something with this history.

Thanks again MHF and it’s brilliant members who take the time to help a novice like me. I’m sure I’ll be back asking about my next potential van… or maybe if I get to the point of needed to ask that could be my flag to just walk away..

 

[BouncyBoatFolk]

At the moment purchases are so expensive and a lot of old stock is currently overpriced you may consider delaying any purchase until this phase of motor homes being the must have accessory has passed. To keep your finger in the pie so to speak perhaps consider hiring one yourself for a couple of times next year when you can get a good deal.Just follow all usual caveats that you would with any vehicle hire, phone camera is you buddy, use it plenty.
Mike.

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[Puddleduck]

At the moment purchases are so expensive and a lot of old stock is currently overpriced you may consider delaying any purchase until this phase of motor homes being the must have accessory has passed. To keep your finger in the pie so to speak perhaps consider hiring one yourself for a couple of times next year when you can get a good deal.Just follow all usual caveats that you would with any vehicle hire, phone camera is you buddy, use it plenty.
Mike.

And as Mike says once the novelty has worn off and people find they don't like driving such large vehicles and finding somewhere to park them, the perceived lack of privacy, filling the water tanks and not forgetting emptying of the cassette there will be more available at much more sensible prices.

 

[Jamesh]

I'd be patient and wait for something to come up from someone who is retiring from motorhoming?

 

[Bessy765]

I spent over ten years servicing and maintaining a fleet of hire vans. If it got to the stage that the corrosion was that serious then someone has not been doing the care and maintenance properly. For myself I always made sure things were correct and only had one mot failure (screen washer pump actually stopped as the tester was using it. When you get to chuck it in for the mot and see what it fails on commercially is an indication of how its been looked after.

 

[Soycd]

I'd also be a bit wary, given the description you have provided. Having said this I have only ever bought ex-rental (4 in total) but from dealers in Germany. They are only used for one season so are usually 6-12 months old and heavily discounted. A 3 year old undeclared ex-rental would not be for me.