Finally got MH out for a few miles and washed.

[Gale_Hawkins]

Since our cross country in 2011 (bought it to go to GC) we have not done any tripping. We did get it out for a 100 mile drive this time last year and started the engine and generator in July and after falling flat on my back in September driving the MH was not a good option but while not over the fall I wanted to move and wash it. Being in the upper 70's for the last time this year per predictions we got it ready for the road. Having robbed the starting battery last month for the Nissan PU we went back on one house battery and moved the cables making the second house battery the chassis starting battery.

It was a short 30 minute run but the old 1992 P30 chassis ran and rode well. There was some tire bump the first few miles so I was glad to get a few miles on them but our schedule was tight and had high wind gusts and getting it washed for the first time since Oct 2011 was job one. The engine, transmission, dash AC and brakes worked well and the handling it the wind gusts was controlled.

It had been setting part way under some trees so the roof was in a mess as was the sides. We worked fast and got the roof washed twice and the sides one before the tornado warnings sounded and there was a touch down in Brookport IL.

Well we know it was well rinsed after that storm blew through just before dark. Yesterday we had ran the engine some and the generator for one hour loaded so I feel much better that it is clean and running well for the longest every since we got it in 2007. After no washing for two years the Red Max Pro/Zep Wet-Look coating needs recoating. The front cap really needs to be cleaned and redone but except for on top the rear cap is still shining quite well.

The kids have learning permits now so we will get it out maybe on a pretty afternoon so they can get under the wheel finally instead of steering from the doghouse. They are doing great with manual shifting with a shorter learning curve than I expected. Well the daughter got us side ways on the interstate when she asked to down shift from 5th to 4th just before an exit when she missed 4th and hit 2nd and popped the clutch but she clutched it quickly and stayed cool through the event. Still wonder what was going on in the minds of those behind us when we got side ways and rear tires smoking. Since they soon will be out on their own I hope these kinds of mistakes happen when I am in the vehicle.

We have a new 20 mile section of four lane that will be good for them to get the feel of driving a Class A but they have been co-pilot for years and know about watching the lines. The son states he wants the MH some day and his sister states it is fine with her. 🙂

[John_Joey]

Deano56 wrote:
...well if it's sold to another and something major goes out, what about them?...

That is the reason why older MH sell cheap! You roll the dice and take your chances. If you think you can buy a 20+ year old MH and have something as good as new then that's not being very realistic. Maybe in the virtual world it makes sense, but not in the real world.

The issue is who is rolling the dice. If you're using it often then it's not a bad gamble to make, you're getting something back in return. If you're just being a curator of an aging MH, then to me it's not a good gamble to take since the rewards will not be great enough compared to the liability that is being taken.

[Gale_Hawkins]

John&Joey wrote:
So why did the MH sit for so long after your trip. Has the joy left, lost faith in the 'ol gal, kids got other things going on, or did the cost of use just get too great.

It's a shame that older MH have so little value, but the liability of owning one keeps going up ($$$,) and the probability of issues go up with the lack of use.

Might want to break your kids heart, and sell the rig prior to something major going out that will turn the rig into scrap based on the cost of repair. Just my opinion Gail.

The MH was purchased in 2007 to go to the Grand Canyon and Four Corners but family member heath delayed that trip for a few years. Joy has not left but life gets more complex each years with the kids now being 16 for sure.

For sure MH as a travel vehicle makes less sense each year for us because of the cost and just being inconvenient.

In the spring of 2012 I had a tradeshow in Orlando FA the kids went to help. Before the event we did Space Coast and swam in Atlantic and afterwards we swam in the Gulf and did Dolphin Tales and Busch Gardens?? That fall we did a trade show in Grapevine TX and did the Boy Scout Museum and the zoo before heading south to see Austin and the Alamo, McAllen, USS Lexington, Holocaust Museum in Houston, Bourbon Street at midnight on a Saturday by accident and took the coast road from Gulf Port to Mobil and did the tunnel and the old US 45 back home. Both were by a large SUV and motels.

Got to go eat with family now and will continue later on answering your questions.

OK I am typing from the MH. 🙂 While we had 120 volts from a 20 amp outlet fed by 30 amp source with a 12 gauge ext cord at the other parking spot it was leaning a lot and not so comfortable because of the chances of slipping and falling getting in and out of the MH. Here it is 20 amps fed by a 14 gauge cord I think. I noticed the converter and 1500 heater dragged it down to 114 volts so it is OK. If I decide to keep it here I can feed it with the double duplex to 30 amp RV adapter with little voltage loss using the 30 amp rated RV ext cord. Bottom line in thinking about your questions got me back into the MH.

As you can see from my earlier work on answering we are going places and doing things without taking the MH. This last and 2014 New Years the kids should be in MX building homes and holding VBS for the kids so that gets them out of the country. This March we had a show in Boston and did DC and took the boat ride near the base of the Liberty Lady then hit CT, RI, MA, ME, and VT where we saw maple syrup harvesting and cooking and cross a real cover bridge before heading home through PA and OH. Due to falling flat on my back in Sept and having to get a barn and fencing for the mini horses we did not travel farther than 100 miles from home and that was horse related.

On selling it the wife has NO desire to travel but likes having a back up home. I told the son he can have it if he wants it someday and he said he did. With the horses here the daughter is not interested in a cross country at this point at least. It will also serve as a training vehicle for the kids so they will have experience driving a Class A before leaving home. The son is 6'2" and growing so he is more physical able to drive it than I am so we just need to get him some hands on time so when he starts taking it out with friends someday I will know he had the best training available to him. 🙂

As for the liability going up as they age I think is questionable. The person that goes out and buys a $200K new MH is going to be out about $25K to $50K a year depending on where they borrow the money. Even if they pay cash there is the money opportunity cost.

Sure ours might need a fuel pump, batteries and could loss the engine or transmission like your or anyone else rig. It came with a re-manufactured transmission that now has 33K miles on it and I done the bucket flush twice with a filter change the first time. It had new Dexron VI in it before our last 8K mile trip to the Pacific Ocean. Yesterday it was firmly shifting when the engine would hit 4000 RPM on WOT take offs so both the engine (110K miles) and transmission sound and feel good. We actually had new plugs and wires after the trip but ran well on the $20 set of wires we put on it at 92K miles. We got new tires and Koni FDS shocks before the cross country so we should be good on tires, tune up, shocks and heavy up keep of the chassis for the next 8 years but I expect the son will want it long before that and he knows how to keep it up because he changed the plugs at age 9 and changed out the dash temperature engine sensor the next year and has rotated the tires.

I think insurance is about $600 a year for full coverage with $500 deductible. Property tax is like$80 and tags I think is about $25.

Sure there are going to be some things that will need to be replaced. If the 20+ year old converter goes that will be a couple hundred dollars. Since we robbed it of the new Interstate starting battery and converted one of the two house batteries to a starting battery you could say we are going to need $200 there in the next few years if not sooner since I only plan to by two new DC batteries if we are not going to be much more than overnight at like WM with no AC and not carry the weight and cost of a starting battery. If we took a serious trip I would just rob the chassis battery back from the PU for the trip.

Scrap is a real possibility with any old vehicle. If we had an accident or took a big limb throw the center of the roof it would be totaled for sure. If we were on the road I would just rent a SUV or crew cab PU (we do not tow for several reasons) and load up our stuff and head home and let the insurance company get rid of it.

Thanks for your questions because I really have not thought too much about the MH other than the dirty roof and getting some run time on chassis and generator which we have and are good until spring now.

[Gale_Hawkins]

Deano56 wrote:

John&Joey wrote:
So why did the MH sit for so long after your trip. Has the joy left, lost faith in the 'ol gal, kids got other things going on, or did the cost of use just get too great.

It's a shame that older MH have so little value, but the liability of owning one keeps going up ($$$,) and the probability of issues go up with the lack of use.

Might want to break your kids heart, and sell the rig prior to something major going out that will turn the rig into scrap based on the cost of repair. Just my opinion Gail.

well if it's sold to another and something major goes out, what about them? They will be on here telling a story that they are having to sink lots of money into something that's not worth it. We were all set to buy a newer MH a few months back but have decided to add new parts here or there since I can do all the labor. If we bought a newer one, theres payments and things will still be deteriorating and I will have to spend money on repairs plus the payments. Sometime it's best to keep what you have unless it,s rusting away underneath you. My opinion of course

Deano56 you make some good points as well. Clearly at 62 it would be fool hearted to go in debt for a newer MH that might be less dependable.

[Gale_Hawkins]

A case could be made for all of the above and I will have to put some thought into a reply. 🙂

[Deano56]

John&Joey wrote:
So why did the MH sit for so long after your trip. Has the joy left, lost faith in the 'ol gal, kids got other things going on, or did the cost of use just get too great.

It's a shame that older MH have so little value, but the liability of owning one keeps going up ($$$,) and the probability of issues go up with the lack of use.

Might want to break your kids heart, and sell the rig prior to something major going out that will turn the rig into scrap based on the cost of repair. Just my opinion Gail.

well if it's sold to another and something major goes out, what about them? They will be on here telling a story that they are having to sink lots of money into something that's not worth it. We were all set to buy a newer MH a few months back but have decided to add new parts here or there since I can do all the labor. If we bought a newer one, theres payments and things will still be deteriorating and I will have to spend money on repairs plus the payments. Sometime it's best to keep what you have unless it,s rusting away underneath you. My opinion of course

[John_Joey]

So why did the MH sit for so long after your trip. Has the joy left, lost faith in the 'ol gal, kids got other things going on, or did the cost of use just get too great.

It's a shame that older MH have so little value, but the liability of owning one keeps going up ($$$,) and the probability of issues go up with the lack of use.

Might want to break your kids heart, and sell the rig prior to something major going out that will turn the rig into scrap based on the cost of repair. Just my opinion Gail.

[Gale_Hawkins]

NCWriter wrote:
Maybe I misunderstood what I just read. Are you saying you have teenaged kids with learner's permits, and you've begun letting them practice their driving in a Class A on Interstate Highways?

Sorry for any misunderstanding. The driving on the Interstate was in the pick up. Interstate speeds are just too fast for first time MH drivers to be behind the wheel in my view based on my personal experience.

A four lane rural road with two fully paved shoulders is a much safer place for new MH drivers. With 55 MPH speed limits one is OK driving much slower but has to keep eyes peeled for tractors and combines currently.

I had to hit I-57 with only three miles of driving a Class A and it was tense because that was the first MH I had even ridden in and was in for a shock. At 16 I started driving loaded grain trucks but max speed was more like 40-45 MPH due to lack of good brakes back then. Yesterday in 40 MPH cross winds and not having driven the MH in a long time was all I wanted to deal with.

Just getting the sense of handle when driving a box on the back of a one ton truck I think is very important. Coming home in ours I had not been driving but maybe 20 minutes when I came out from under an overpass and got broadsided by a crosswind. That was a new experience for sure. After that I got on our two lane road with nice dirt shoulders and practiced running off the road so in case I did it would not be a first time experience. I learned even a narrow P30 chassis is quite stable if one does not whip the wheel.

As a rule of thumb for the first time loaded truck driver the interstate is not the place to start. Like driving a straight shift the earlier one starts (in the right environment/condition.) driving a loaded truck the better. I am not talking about a cross country trip but locally on non interstate routes in a one ton truck. The advantage of doing it on rural four lane with paved shoulders is there is more room for error without crashing.

[NCWriter]

Maybe I misunderstood what I just read. Are you saying you have teenaged kids with learner's permits, and you've begun letting them practice their driving in a Class A on Interstate Highways?