[Archived]

Jon:

I agree with every word you just posted. Being involved in the yachting industry for over 38 years I have witnessed numerous older yachts (20-30 years old) be refurbished and have their value increased.

As Jon has stated, there are a lot of older Prevost o the market that have plenty of years and plenty of value left in them. I have stayed awake at night trying to figure out what the yachting market has done to make people realize the value of a refitted yacht so maybe that mindset can be transferred to Prevost.

We have a lot of smart people with a lot of business knowledge as part of this site, how do we change the mindset of the market like the yachting business has. Wow if we could figure this it would help not only the owners of the coaches but all the associated businesses too.

I believe the starting place is in the marketing of the resales.

[Jim/Chris]

The problem with retaining value is everything we buy has a depreciation curve of some sort and it typically relates to how much actual life is left in the product. Think about our cars. The average car is often 10% worn out its first year, and each succeeding year depletes another 10%. By the time the car reaches its 10th year stuff starts to fail such as starters, alternators, engine sensors, etc. making the cost of ownership directly related to the accumulated repair needs that have to be addressed.

So we are conditioned to think age defines value.

But in the case of a Prevost conversion that is not true. Because of complexity we probably have infancy problems with a new conversion so there will be visits to the converter and Prevost. But at some point we are done tweaking those issues and the coach becomes very reliable. By the end of its first decade or so of life a great deal of the expense outside of required routine maintenance is elective work, ranging from such things as replacing a floor or going to ipad controls or replacing an appliance that is starting to act up.

I doubt if a 15 or 20 year old coach that has been well maintained has less than 75 to 80% of its life remaining and yet it can be bought for a number that suggests it only has 15 or 20% of its life remaining. We need to sell remaining life and we do not.

[Dick]

Very eloquently articulated by Jon.

We bought a late 90’s Prevost for a number of reasons … some of which Jon put forth.

I was introduced Prevost motorhomes some time ago. While I thought it would be great to have one and travel the country confidently in style, I thought a Prevost would be out of my reach financially and if in my reach it would be very well aged out and used up.

After I discovered POG, PC, talked to Geo Prentice a few times, and went to the first All Prevost Show in Tampa (now the Prevost Expo in West Palm Beach) I realized that for all practical purposes a Prevost motorhome lasts practically forever and pre-2000 coaches trade at very reasonable prices that coupled with the original build quality and life left in them makes them a real value.

That said, I think the real deals in Prevost motorhome are in the early 90’s, all electric (no propane) coaches with 8V92 power. Whenever I cross paths with someone who is contemplating a mid-range to high end motorhome I encourage them to look at a Prevost. Often they are surprised what they can get for their dollar.

[Jeff]

I do want to make sure that my position on this topic is that I am comparing an older coach well maintained, with a newer one exhibiting a similar level of care.

I have seen some older coaches whose prices reflect the fact they are poorly maintained pig pens not clean, neat, coaches that show pride of ownership.