dfwgreg
Dallas Fort Worth
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My wife and I are in our early forties and finally have some time to travel and are considering our first class A motorhome. We have identified a 97 Pace Arrow Vision 36 with one slide (chevy gas motor). It's in very good shape, has a washer/dryer, double door refrigerator and 49k miles with an asking price of $20k. It's my understanding that this rv has a "tag axle" which I've read polar opposite opinions on. I'm just hoping for some opinions on this particular motorhome..hopefully some personal experience + or -.
We plan to take long weekend trips within a few hours of the Dallas/Fort Worth area along with 1 week trips multiple times a year as we slide into retirement :-). Our trips will include Colorado, Arizona and California. We will sometimes have our 14 yr old daughter whenever possible, but often just us two. We really like the roominess of the motorhome and features like the washer dryer and larger fridge for this price.
Our plan is to go through the rv checklists prior to buying and have an independent mechanic check the motor, transmission, generator etc. prior to purchasing. At an asking price of $20k we hope that when we're ready to begin fulltiming and likely upgrade, we won't have lost our shirts on this one.
Thanks in advance for any advice, opinions, tips and experiences.
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RFCN2
MT
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The Pace Arrow was one of the high end Fleetwood motor homes. Sounds like a good starter motor home to me. Just check it out very very carefully before buying. It is after all 16 years old. Would you buy a 16 year old car? If yes, then just make sure everything works.
RFCN2
Country Coach
Jeep Wrangler Unlimited
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Gale Hawkins
Murray, KY
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We have a 1992 Chevy P30 under our 1993 32' Class A and we like it but doubt if we would replaced it if it was lost.
You would have one heavy P30 based MH. See if they will not deal in the $15K direction. A 15-20 MH can be looking for a lot of care we learned.
I expect after the fact you will realize buying a MH with less than 10 years on it would be cheap in a $$$$ sense. At its age the low mileage is a hard knock against it because it has been used lest than 3K miles per year on average.
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dfwgreg
Dallas Fort Worth
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Thanks for all the great advice! I'm planning to have a mobile rv service check it out prior to purchase. I was concerned about the age as well, but it's in unusually good condition. It appears to have been stored under cover. We've looked at several newer units with less miles that have much heavier wear inside and out. Are there any particular systems/equipment that we should be concerned about at this age/mileage combo?
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rolnhome
Casa Grande, Az
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Joined: 11/19/2007
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Age of tires
We're in Arizona
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dfwgreg
Dallas Fort Worth
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Isn't there a way to tell tire age from a code on the side of he tires?
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grant135b
USA
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Good luck.
* This post was
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edited 08/12/12 12:58am by grant135b *
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Wills250psd
walnutcove NC
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I would not have a p30
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gbopp
The Keystone State
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We have a 96 Southwind 37', tag axle, NO slide, washer/dryer. We love the floor plan.
It rides nice, it is a bit underpowered. You just go slower up hill, but you get there.
You probably have the AutoPark parking brake system. They can be annoying if you don't understand how they work.
Definitely check the Age of the Tires.
Check for exhaust leaks before you buy.
I would buy another P-30 Chassis if I liked the MH.
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phillyg
Front Royal, VA
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Had a '96 Bounder on the Ford chassis, but otherwise very similar to a '97 PA. The PA was the high end of the Fleetwood line in those years. Expect no better than 7mpg as the tag axle model is very heavy. But, the floor plans were nice for a one-slide RV. I was not pleased with the lack of quality and some issues in my particular FW product, but some folks seemed to think they were the bomb. Expect to have manifold problems with either Chevy or Ford engines of those years. Easy to fix. I would not pay $20K, however. Think you're in the $15-16K range, especially if the tires are five years or older. You'll have to get them because they will start to blow out at six years; been there, done that.
The tag axle has a separate braking system slaved off the primary master cylinder. Typically, they do not get serviced and you should get the seller to ensure they are working properly. You will need the tag brakes to stop the monster safely.
2002 Keystone Cougar 286, 8,400lbs loaded, pulled with a 2004 F150 Supercrew, 5.4, 3.73 gears. Retired and enjoying life
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