Considering A Big (for us) Change

[WheelEstate USA]

We've had our motorhome for 1 3/4 yrs and were on the road for the last year. Spent the winter in Quartzsite, but moved around and went a few places around there.
Its been great and the rig has been fantastic, especially for it's age. (1986, still just under 50K miles). Other than routine maintenance, I had to replace the fuel pump ($30 self labor, not in tank).

As much as we love having this RV, there is one main issue. We can't get as far offroad as we'd like to sometimes. There are many beautiful places we'd like to see/camp out in the boonies that we can't reach now.

I'm giving serious thought to trading our RV for a long cargo or 15 passenger van. Downsizing isn't a problem since we are rather minimalistic anyway. We are currently in Tucson and its "my town", so I know the market here pretty well. I'm into barter and that's how we got this rig...traded a 2000 Kia Sportage straight across that we bought for $1900 two yrs previous. (I still think we got the best part of the deal)

Since we may have to stay here a little longer for medical stuff, it would be the easiest place to do this, as we have friends and places to get what we need for a build on a van without a big hassle. I have the skills and can borrow any tools I need. We would keep our solar, so that would save chunk of the cost. Another upside would be more miles for our buck (MPGs).

Everything works on the RV, new tires last year, and it cruises down the road nicely, so I think its got good trade value for the right person.
Now, if I (the Captain of this ship), could just come to a finial decision and place an ad on Craigslist :s
This is a hard one for us both :-/

 

[One Awesome Inch]

I think you have to answer 3 questions:

1. which will give you more comfort?

2. is reaching more off-road places more important than risking a different vehicle who's reliability you cannot be certain of?

3. financially which is best?

 

[WheelEstate USA]

Those are good points and they are under consideration.

1. We have lived in less room. Lived aboard our sailboat, which had a little smaller interior than the RV.
I've traveled/lived in vans.
Margie is fine with less room, as am I.
Comfort is what you make it with what you have.

2. We want the opportunity to go where we can't now.
Reliability is always in question, as it was when we got this rig.
A friend is a certified mechanic and will go over a van with me and I was a navy engineman.
Life is all a big chance and we take it as it comes.

3. In terms of finances, more MPGs will give us more range.
RV parts are expensive if a system breaks down.
We can "furnish" a van home at minimal cost here and have nearly everything we need to make the switch except for a small 12v cooler/fridge, which will manifest itself at the right time (I have faith).
Its all just stuff and there's plenty of that out there if one searches the right places.

To add a fourth thought...This ain't my first rodeo, LOL.

Hey, thanks for your reply...that's why I'm here.

 

[GrinningPanther]

Hey Jay/B&U,

You've probably considered this option and ruled it out...but, I thought I'd bring it up in case you haven't.

What about keeping your main "house on wheels," and keeping your eyes open for a very inexpensive van you wouldn't live in usually but just use as the "get out into the hills buggy"?

If the van is ugly and old, but with a little work can be made to do its job, it could be cheap, and the arrangement might give you the "best of both worlds"...more space and comfort most of the time, and the freedom to squeeze into the backroads when you have that impulse. Since it sounds like you're pretty handy with repair and maintenance (and have a mechanic friend), maybe finding and maintaining such a vehicle would not be too difficult.

This option depends of course on a 2nd person willing and able to drive. But the gas and driving involved may not be that much more, especially if you plan to mostly stay in one part of the country and not do a lot of distant travel.

Again, it may be that you've already ruled out this option. As you know by a lifetime of experience, usually one kind of freedom costs a different kind of limitation, and one kind of limitation provides another type of freedom.

Good luck to you whatever you decide. Based on some of your comments, I'm sure you'll land on your feet no matter what develops, and will adapt well.

GP

 

[WheelEstate USA]

A second vehicle would be nice. My choice would be a Jeep as type as a toad (towed vehicle) to take side camping trips. Unfortunately, I'm not able to afford the expense of a second one. I'm on social security and Margie has no income.
Trading is our only option unless I found a van and had a buyer lined up for the RV who was willing to give us a couple days to make the move after purchase.

I appreciate your comments and kind support.

 

[One Awesome Inch]

Those are good points and they are under consideration.

1. We have lived in less room. Lived aboard our sailboat, which had a little smaller interior than the RV.
I've traveled/lived in vans.
Margie is fine with less room, as am I.
Comfort is what you make it with what you have.

2. We want the opportunity to go where we can't now.
Reliability is always in question, as it was when we got this rig.
A friend is a certified mechanic and will go over a van with me and I was a navy engineman.
Life is all a big chance and we take it as it comes.

3. In terms of finances, more MPGs will give us more range.
RV parts are expensive if a system breaks down.
We can "furnish" a van home at minimal cost here and have nearly everything we need to make the switch except for a small 12v cooler/fridge, which will manifest itself at the right time (I have faith).
Its all just stuff and there's plenty of that out there if one searches the right places.

To add a fourth thought...This ain't my first rodeo, LOL.

Hey, thanks for your reply...that's why I'm here.

By your responses I think the van is seriously worth considering. Best of luck.

Off topic/ I know this is none of my business, but I really think you guys gotta get Margie some sort of income. If something were happen to you, what would happen to her financially and otherwise? Something to think about I guess. Best of luck to you both.

 

[WheelEstate USA]

Off topic/ I know this is none of my business, but I really think you guys gotta get Margie some sort of income. If something were happen to you, what would happen to her financially and otherwise? Something to think about I guess. Best of luck to you both.

Not a problem, buddy. I hope I can provide an answer.
Margie has been fighting a disability case for a while now. If she took a job it would end it, as well as cause her more pain and discomfort. She was a caregiver, and her only other skills are that of a store clerk. Standing and lifting don't work for her. Lack of education and learning disabilities preclude anything she could do online, much like myself as far as computer skills go. (you don't want to watch her type with that one wandering finger, nor make sense of it most of the time).
There are many challenges for those with learning disabilities which we carry thru life. For my part, reading, spelling and writing come easier than many other things, with understanding written directions being my weakest of the above three, and math being even worse.
This is not to imply that we are unable to reason and neither are brainless.
We are simply challenged.

I don't mind discussing this, as many people look at learning disabilities as a childhood thing and don't often realize just how many around them have this issue. Meeting us in person, you wouldn't notice it in normal day to day conversation...just don't ask me to remember the formula/numbers for figuring out your battery/solar needs (for example).

 

[akrvbob]

I think your best choice would be a pickup with a small slide-in camper like the Capri. Especially if you could find a 4x4. However, if it has to be a straight across trade, that probably isn't going to happen.

A van, on the other hand, could work pretty easily for that kind of money. I got be honest with you that I've always thought a couple in a van was so difficult only a very few special people could pull it off. Generally my advice is not to try it. But, I am just about to do it myself so my ideas will be put to the test. My girlfriend and I will spend the next 4 months in her regular length Express van in a trip to Alaska. So I will have better information for you then

I have an extended van and live in a 6x10 cargo trailer. I think that is easily doable for a couple, and I've taken the trailer into some very bad places. Assuming you will mostly stay in Arizona, the problem is sand and that's a bad problem unless you have 4x4. In the mountians I've had no problem taking the trailer most places I want to go. The problem there is narrow and short roads with the trees encroaching and the trailer is not so much of a problem.

Just some thoughts.
Bob

 

[Bela's Mom]

I hope that you find just what you are looking for and the price is right. I admire people who have the skills to do what they need done and I know that whatever vehicle you find will be made quite comfortable and reliable.

You seem like very sweet people and I hope to meet you one day.

 

[rvwandering]

That's a hard decision. Your RV is in such great shape too. I'm such a wimp - gotta have all the little comforts. A year on a van was enough for me and we were practically kids then too! :-D

Good luck with whatever you decide!

 

[WheelEstate USA]

Jo...The price I can afford is an even trade for the best van I can find. That's the way of barter I'd look at a few, assure the owner's interest, and check others with the understanding I'd decide in a week and can make the shift in one day using a friend's driveway, or theirs.
I think it would be good at an RTR to have a day (or whatever) of barter. Free piles are great to unload that which someone else can use, but barter makes people start digging for the good stuff they don't use to trade for something they like. You know, things like, a spare charge controller, DVD player, or that Ovenette they wanted. Stuff you can't quite toss in the free pile, like books and even those are fun at barter day.

Bob, I'd love a combo a combo such as you mentioned. It would be nice to slide off a camper and go deeper, but I think we'll forgo any thoughts of 4X4 and concentrate on getting the most van for our trade. That's if we could even find the combo even up, as you noted.

As you know, I'm an Az guy and hopefully, I've learned how to avoid sand traps and to carry come along & shovel. Walk it first and watch that wheel base in narrow washes. Anything can happen and I can surely make mistakes, like everyone else. (once spent a day building a rock roadbed after a storm took out part of an arroyo I had crossed a week before going the other way...stuff happens)

I think I have an interior design that will work for the 2 of us. We spend 99% of our time together, have since '05 and don't get into serious conflicts, a few bad words and its over, LOL. I think we get along well enough to handle van life.
No trailer, at least for now.

I hope you are able to report good results during and after your Ak trip.
I remember your van/trailer from our visit on Chilli Day at RTR. I didn't see inside, so I'm guessing your long van won't work for this trip for good reason.

Our motivation is not only Az travel, but to be able to range to more states with the seasons. as it is, budget only allows fuel for 1 state per month, without side trips...can't cover a lot that way. So, more MPGs, more travel.

Thanks for your comments. I feel sure I've got bases covered, but the good part of community is that it helps one think of things we might have overlooked, as well as the open-hearted support and cheers onward.

So, cheers to you, hope you both enjoy yourselves.

 

[jeanontheroad]

I like Bob's idea of a truck camper. More versatile and probably more comfortable. One thing I would wonder about in downsizing on a limited income is getting locked into a smaller space that age and health issues may make inadequate.

 

[WheelEstate USA]

T&K...Been fixin' dinner, you know, chief chef and bottle washer, as well as driver, handyman, and ship's captain rolled into one.
That's another good thing about a van...Margie can drive one and is a good driver. She's afraid to get behind the wheel in the RV, so that fear translates to major confusion. One attempt at a closed (big) WalMart lot was enough for me
I'd love to sit back, ride, and be the camera guy/DJ. Gee, I might get to see some of the country we drive thru, instead of watching the line all the time.

Guess y'all are about ready to head north pretty soon.
When ya gonna be back out west? Sure be nice to see you both.
And, next time dinner is on us if I have to do the cooking Shoot, a van might help add a dinner out to the budget, LOL.

Take care and have fun.

 

[rvwandering]

Having two drivers and a chance to watch the scenery pass by is a powerful reason to downsize. Hope you find the right van. Whoever gets your RV will be getting a good deal.

We're heading north now. Very slowly. We're hoping to make it to Newfoundland for the summer then across the top of the US, down Route 66 in the fall and Quartzsite for the winter. Looking forward to hanging out with you and all of the other rubber tramps. Home cooked dinner sounds great - much better than eating out!

 

[Belinda2]

Jay, Margie, and sweet, soft Bindi,
I can't tell you how excited I am for you. I am extending a personal invitation to my Maryland farm for as long as you need. Drop me a PM if you are ever in my area. I have a totally fenced in farm with a mesh fence over top for sweet Bindi.

 

[WheelEstate USA]

That's a mighty sweet offer, Belinda, thank you.

We've decided to go for it after a long talk into the wee hours as we lay in bed last night.

I'm composing an ad which I'll share when I'm done. We'll see what comes up, keeping in mind that we're in control and don't HAVE to trade. In barter the other guy wants what you have, so to some degree it gives you the upper hand to determine if you're pleased with their offer. If we find a van below the value we place on our rig I would see need to ask for cash boot, or something of value to sweeten the deal.

We both appreciate everyone participating in this thread. Your comments and suggestions were all taken under consideration as we discussed this trade.
My granddad was a mule trader in his younger days, I guess some of that is in my blood somewhere

Thanks y'all...wait for the BANG cuz I'm pullin' the trigger

 

[GrinningPanther]

Coming to a decision releases good energy and confidence, doesn't it? Good luck to you!

I hope you find a great van, that will give you more freedom and financial flexibility as you move toward future adventures.

 

[WheelEstate USA]

Yup, sure does, yet we all feel that little fear factor sorta off in the background.

Margie summed the whole thing up before she dozed off...
"If its meant to be, it will work out for the best."
I drifted off imagining us tucked into "new" wheel estate that we would proudly call home.

 

[WheelEstate USA]

Spotted this rig. Unfortunately they need the cash.
Didn't show Margie...she'd want it.
No prob, only the first shot.

http://tucson.craigslist.org/rvs/4423262025.html

`

 

[GrinningPanther]

Yeah, that little van-rig looks promising. With its built-in genny and stove and stand-up shower, it really is self-contained. (Mine doesn't have any of those, and it makes me wonder if I paid too much for mine.)

Sorry that one doesn't seem to be in your future. Maybe, though, since you found that one so quickly you'll find another one soon that will accept a trade.

GP