-
word of warning
-
Great picture Peter. Have a great tour.
-
Thanks George , took pic this morning getting ready to leave!!
-
Safe travels Peter!
-
Peter also polished his horse trailer while off season….
-
Looking good Peter.
I hope everyone realizes the reason Peter is pulling the horse trailer is because if he has a problem with the coach he can ride into town on the horse to get help.
-
Ride into town? No. He’s got the Budweiser Clydesdale’s in there to pull him into town!
-
Peter, Great picture, safe travels and hopefully we will cross paths again soon
-
When you visit Peter’s ranch, the stainless polishing is complimentary. When I pulled in there last year, my 2nd visit, as soon as I shut down there were two young men washing done the front of the bus, the bugs had to go per Peter.
-
Awesome picture Peter… You sure know how to do it right !!
Safe travels to you !!
Cheers, Diane
-
Peter,
Safe travels and if your ever near St. Louis and looking for a place to chill for a while. We have room for you… the bus and your horses could teach our horses some good habits!
Bill
-
From the point of view of a first-timer who’s looking into a major lifestyle change and considering a Prevost, yes it’s an intimidating world!
From a current non-owner’s perspective, I’m doing my best not to bother dealers at this point. But when I decide it’s time to move forward with a purchase, things such as making sure the specific model has undergone a full PDI and operating as promised is intimidating to those who are new to this arena. I can only guess that there are others out there like me who would like to find a preowned model that suits my needs but simply don’t have the experience to make sure we’re making a good decision and avoid the costs of buying new.
It sure would be nice to have some sort of independent “personal shopper/consultant” who is not connected with a specific dealer/seller who can provide advice on available coaches and be able to make sure the buyer (in my case, me) is making an educated decision and selecting a model that’s ideal for a specific lifestyle and mechanically sound. From a newbies perspective, finding someone to provide some sort of eduction on the buying process, deliver training on the proper operation (when running and stored) as well as ongoing maintenace would be a very good thing. From a first-timer’s perspective, this would be a valuable service.
I’m taking my time in figuring this out, but from the outside looking in, the dealer websites all look great and are a good way of narrowing down workable floorplans. But learning the ins-and-outs from a seasoned professional about which dealers/converters/sellers are credible and provide the best service after the sale as well as what to look for when buying a pre-owned coach could assist in simplifying the process.
This Summer, I am planning a trip around the country and hope to meet many motorhome owners to hear various opinions and through that process, attempt to provide a level of self-education. Yeah, I know that opinions are like…, but I figure, if I hear the same opinion over and over, there might be something to it. Until then, reading the posts on sites such as this one (a well run non-drama site!) is a good start. The one thing I’ve learned online, is that when it comes to high end motorhomes, there’s Prevost and there’s SOB. That statement alone speaks volumes.
Thanks for the words of warning. I’m doing my best in reading just about everything I can so that when it’s time to make a decision, I know I’m buying a coach that will last me many, many years with no regrets. Yes, I’m attempting to only purchase once and hope to get it right the first time.
But getting back on topic, the PDI process is a scary one to a newbie and if anyone has suggestions to make it less painful, I’m all ears! I’m sure there are numerous others (possibly some lurkers out there) who could also benefit from some type of professional consultation.
-
I noticed myself reacing to a couple of your comments and observations.
I will start out by remembering our first bus purchase and I can truthfully say I did not know what i did not know. By that I mean I had no clue where to begin looking, asking questions, and even if I asked the right questions how I would know I was getting the right answer.
So from that I can suggest you start by asking questions. Here is a great spot because you are going to get a lot of very good well thought out answers. Read through previous posts. Read the articles. Every chance you get look at a coach. You will get a lot of knowledge that will help you. If at all possible, however start by doing youor homework and set your budget and define how you intend to use the coach. The more you define what you will spend and your wants and needs in terms of use of the coach the easier it is going to be to narrow your focus.
That leads into the use of a consultant. Don’t be afraid when the time comes to again rely on the folks on this forum to screen coaches of interest. This is a big country and you can spend a lot of time and money going places to look at coaches that are not the quality level you expected, or that may have obvious issues. If you live in Wisconsin and what appears to be a nice coach in Texas, make a post asking if anyone is near where the coach is that is willing to give it a cursory look. You can weed out a lot of bad coaches, or confirm a coach is as good as advertised. The folks could be “consultants”.
But I think you are looking for someone to represent your interests that can do a top to bottom inspection. That might be tough, it might be expensive, and it might not be the best way to protect your interests. There is no doubt someone that has bought and sold coaches is going to be able to very quickly recognize issues you might not see. But I actually think you can do the job of inspecting the coach just as adequately and in the process get to have your training.
If you are buying a coach from the converter that built it and they agree to bring the maintenance up to date and then provide support after the sale, plus provide training you have no need for a consultant. If you buy from some dealers who are clearly experienced in the sales of Prevost coaches and they agree to go over the coach and take care of any defects you might benefit from a consultant. If you buy from a private individual I can see how a consultant can help, but the consultant has to be well versed on the specific conversion and model year and that is where it gets tough. At that point a consultant without the converter specific expertise is in the same boat you are in. I think a combination of developing your own pre-purchase inspection list (look at the articles on this site) along with getting the coach checked by the engine manufacturer, the Allison transmission dealer, Prevost in the case of an XLII for skin delam, you are well on your way to verifying the coach condition.
As to maintenance history, I have found a coach with detailed maintenance records is rare. So most of the time buyers just have to make assumptions. Owners with excellent maintenance logs can and should get more for their coach. Without those records you have no idea about the age or condition of some very expensive items such as transmission fluid, coolant , air bags, etc. So before you start kicking tires try to develop a sense of the important maintenance events and make those a part of your pre-purchase inspection with the lack of proof being an expense you or the seller have to bear.
-
Thanks Jon. Great advice!
-
PBG, this is what Jon started with. Very basic, environmentally friendly, economical, no stainless to polish, no panels to come unglued. It was kind of cold in the winter but he made it.
-
PGB, this is what Jon started with. Very basic, environmentally friendly, economical, no stainless to polish, no panels to come unglued. It was kind of cold in the winter but he made it.
Could be Tom’s new bus, well not bus exactly.
Log in to reply.