Buying a used RV is a great way to get the rig you’re after without spending a huge sum of money on a brand-new vehicle. Just as with new cars, brand-new RVs depreciate in value as soon as you drive them off the lot; letting someone else take that hit can save you tremendously. However, you do want to be careful when you’re buying a used RV, lest you end up with a lemon.
In this used RV buying guide, we will discuss what to look for when buying a used RV.
1. Never Buy Sight Unseen
If you can’t get to see it before you make the transaction, or worse, if the seller wants to do the transaction without allowing you to take a thorough walk-through, your best bet is to just walk away. It may seem like a good deal, but unless you take a closer look, you’ll never truly know if you’re getting a good vehicle or a lemon.
2. Look Very Carefully for Signs of Mold
Even if there’s no visible water damage in the usual spots like floors and ceilings, mold on the interior of an RV is usually a good indication of leaks or other water problems.
Check the corners of the ceilings and floors, look up and down the walls, and especially check the corners and caulk in the bathroom around the fixtures. Also, open up cabinets, closets, and under-bed storage areas, and shine a flashlight to see if there’s any mold growing. You’ll often smell it, but if the closets or cabinets feel especially warm (warmer than the rest of the RV), there’s a good chance that there’s mold growing in there.
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3. Go Over Every Inch of the Ceiling
You want to look for brown spots—a very visible sign of a leak—as well as parts where the ceiling is bowed or coming down. All of these point to evidence of water damage. Yes, a damaged ceiling can be repaired, but you run the risk of exposing even more problems that need to be addressed when you tear it out. On a lemon of an RV, it’s typically not worth the expense.
4. Do a Close Inspection of All the Floors
When buying a used RV, you definitely want to check out the floors. This is especially the case where they meet the walls. As with the ceiling, brown spots are never a good thing to see. Also, as silly as it sounds, jump up and down in a few spots, especially around the kitchen and bathroom where water is used the most. The floors should all feel stable and sturdy; too much give could indicate rotting.
5. Test the Walls
After examining all of the walls for brown spots, mold and mildew spots, and soft spots, push them with a fair amount of force. Do this on the interior and exterior walls all around the RV. The interior wall panels may move a bit, but there really shouldn’t be too much give there, and you should see the panel pop back into place. The exterior walls should not give much at all with the exception of the sides of some slideouts.
6. Look Under the Exterior Trim and Check the Screws
This does take a bit of work because most screws will be hidden under a strip of trim at the seams where the walls meet one another, but it is work worth doing. Any visible corrosion or rust could be an indication that water is starting to get in. If the screws still look clean and painted, the RV is probably in good shape, at least in that particular area.
7. Inspect the Storage Bays
Sometimes the biggest issues can be hiding away in the RV’s storage bays. Open every single bay and look inside. Look around the edge of the door trim for rotted-out wood, and feel the floor and the walls inside the bays for squishy spots. It’s also a good idea to stick your head all the way inside and sniff for damp or moldy smells.
8. Carefully Give the Roof a Thorough Inspection
Look at all of the caulking to make sure everything is sealed tightly. You’ll want to look not only around the skylights and vents, but around the entire perimeter of the RV where the roof meets the sides, along the side seams, and along the seams where the storage bays and other accessories meet the wall. Old, blackened, crumbling, or moldy caulk could be a sign that water is getting in and creating a lemon of an RV.
9. Check that the Roof is Stable
If the RV has a ladder built in, it generally means the roof is walkable. In this case, walk around the roof (carefully!) and make sure it feels sturdy and stable beneath your feet. If there’s too much give, it’s probably rotted.
If the RV does not have a ladder mounted to the back, the roof may not be walkable, but that doesn’t mean it shouldn’t be inspected. Carry a ladder with you when you go to see RVs. Use the ladder to inspect every part of the roof, using your hands to push down on various spots, especially around the vents and skylights. This will allow you to identify soft spots in the roof, something you definitely want to avoid.
10. Crawl Under the RV
In addition to checking the top of the RV, it’s also a good idea to check out the underside before buying a used RV. Wear clothes you don’t care too much about, or bring something along to lay out under you, so you can crawl under the RV and check for any dripping water, leaking fluids (in the case of a motorhome), damage from tire blowouts, or an opened underbelly where a leak may have been.
Finding any one of these things isn’t necessarily a reason to turn the RV down, but they should be inspected further.
11. Test the Electrical System
Obviously, you will want to have electricity in your home-on-wheels, so testing the electrical system is a must. First, test the lights and vent fans on battery mode. Once you see those are working well, plug in to an electrical outlet and test all electric appliances.
These may include a:
- Refrigerator
- Microwave
- Air conditioner
- Water heater
The fridge and electric water heater will have to be left on for a while in order to truly test them. Because of this, you might want to ask the owner to turn them on before you arrive.
12. Run the Propane System
You’ll also want to make sure the propane system is running properly. Ensure the propane tank is open and then attempt to light the stove and oven.
Once you’re sure those work, turn the fridge and water heater to gas mode (if available) to make sure those work. You’ll be able to tell the fridge and water heater are working in gas mode when you see a small flame in the burner tube behind the panel located on the outside of the RV behind each appliance.
Finally, turn on the propane furnace. Make sure the fan kicks on and then listen for the furnace to light and feel for warm air at the vents.
Keep in mind, propane lines that haven’t been used in a while might need to be bled. To do this, simply hold the stove and oven knobs in “light” mode until you are able to light the stove.
13. Check the Water System
The water system is just as important as the electrical and propane systems. Don’t forget to test it as well.
First, make sure the fresh tank has some water in it and run each tap using the water pump. If that all works well, turn off the water pump, connect the RV to city water, and test each tap and the toilet using city water. Go outside and look once more for leaks under the RV, and make sure to check for leaking lines under the sinks and behind the toilet.
14. Run the Generator
If the RV has an onboard generator, run it. Make sure it starts up easily and continues running without surging. Once it’s running, use appliances, outlets, and other electrical components to be sure it is providing power the way it is meant to.
15. Go for a Test Drive
If you’re purchasing a motorhome, you will obviously want to take it for a test drive before buying. This will allow you to feel whether or not the rig drives as it should, and will let you get a feel for driving a motorhome to make sure you’re comfortable with driving such a large vehicle.
While driving, use your senses. Listen for odd noises, feel for vibrations, and sniff for smells that shouldn’t be there. If you find anything unusual, be sure to have it checked out by a mechanic before buying.
16. Look Under the Hood
In addition to taking it for a test drive, it’s super important to look under the hood of any motorhome you hope to purchase. Look for signs of leaks, listen for weird sounds, and try to sniff out unusual scents. Keep in mind that a lot of dirt under the hood is a sign of poor maintenance, as a well maintained vehicle would be worked on regularly, meaning dirt would have less time to accumulate.
17. Check the Tires
RV tires are not cheap. For this reason, it’s best to buy a used RV with good tires that’ll last a while. Check the tires before you buy. Look for signs of wear or damage, and check the tread depth. If it looks like the tires will need to be replaced before you can use the rig, ask for a reduced price, or at least factor that cost into your overall budget.
18. Get a Professional Inspection
Believe it or not, you can inspect an RV for hours and still miss things, especially if you aren’t 100% sure what you’re looking for. Because of this, we strongly recommend getting a professional inspection after doing your own inspection. This does cost a small amount up front, but might just save you thousands of dollars in the long run.
Understanding NADA RV Values
You definitely don’t want to overpay for a used RV. Fortunately, there are ways to find out what an RV is actually worth before you agree to anything. We recommend finding out as much as you can about the RV and then using NADA to get an idea of what kinds of prices might be typical. From there, you can head over to RV Trader to see what other people in your area are selling similar RVs for.
Try an RV Rental Before Buying
Besides making sure you don’t purchase a lemon of an RV, you also want to make sure you get the right RV for you. If you’ve never gone RVing, this can be really hard to know. In this case, we highly recommend renting an RV before you jump into buying.
This will do a few things:
- It will ensure RVing is something you enjoy.
- It will help you determine what you want (and don’t want) in an RV.
- It will give you an idea of what a quality RV feels and looks like so you have something to compare potential purchases to.
As you can see, there is a lot to consider and look for when buying a used RV. Fortunately, as long as you know what to look for, you should be able to get out on the open road in a quality RV of your own in no time!
