Originally Posted by
Jon Wehrenberg
Any coach as it ages develops "ghosts". A little used coach may have more issues than a coach that is used often, but the bottom line is if it is made of rubber there will come a time when it needs to be replaced, not because of wear or use, but because it has aged out. A perfect example is tires. The major tire manufacturers agree that when a tire has been in service for 6 years its life is just about over, and at 10 years from the date of manufacture they wash their hands of any warranty support on a tire.
From my experience air bags start to get checking and cracking at the point where they roll over the "piston". The suspension Norgren valves are likely to start leaking if they haven't already, brake chamber diaphragms may be getting prone to cracking or leaking, etc. If the coach has slides the seals may be getting brittle and likely to start leaking. But this has nothing to do with whether the coach was sitting or being used. This is what happens. Maintenance is an ongoing process and regular use somehow tends to prolong the life of some components, but it doesn't prevent the ravages of age. I think people that buy coaches with low mileage and the expectation that those low miles translate into a trouble free product get disappointed when they realize those low mileage coaches still require maintenance.
That coach may have issues with the bushings in the front suspension A frames or sway bars or shock absorbers. All of this is normal and if you budget to deal with these issues you could end up with a very good coach in new condition (mechanically).
If you are a do-it yourselfer, relatively speaking the cost to bring these above items up to date will take a week or so of your time and a few dollars relative to the cost of the coach. The thing to remember is a coach that was frequently used compared to one that has not been used much may still need to have every item listed above replaced. That is not to say the rarely used coach is not going to have some issues as a result of non use. Depending on where and how it was stored there could be corrosion inside the engine. The roof could be suffering from leaks due to aging of the seals around all openings, something that would have been maintained on a coach that was used often.