We scoped out some local RVs last April and again in October and did a little more online research in the interval since then. That research yielded a couple more floor plans we were interested in checking out, but we couldn't find them both locally. We thought about going to Ohio or Michigan so we could check them both out, but ultimately decided we just didn't have the time to be driving to Ohio or Michigan, and what if we couldn't complete the transaction in one day?
why we're getting an RV
After more research we were able to find the floorplan we liked the most at a small dealership about an hour and a half away (where we had found our previous favorite floorplan back in October), so we decided to forget about the third floorplan and focus on the two we liked that were actually within a reasonable distance.
We drove up there on a recent Friday afternoon, but traffic was worse than expected and we arrived later than planned. We checked out the RV we liked online (that's the floorplan up at the top of this post) and decided that we like it in person as well. However, we couldn't test drive it because it was jigsawed into the lot behind a couple other RVs and it was 5 minutes before closing.
So we made arrangements to go back a week and a half later (the earliest opening they had available) to test drive it, complete the paperwork, and do the complete run through of how everything works.
In some ways the delay was good, but in some ways it was nerve-wracking.
We'd been planning this purchase for some time and had saved up the money for the down payment, but it's still a big purchase. We'd have preferred to buy a used RV, but this floorplan is only in it's third year and it's very difficult to find used. The closest one we could find was in Louisiana, and the price difference wasn't enough to make it worth the huge hassle it would be to get there and back (Mr M is using all his vacation time for our road trip, so he can't take unplanned trips out of state to get an RV).
Having more time to consider the purchase gave us more time to second-guess ourselves. Should we really be spending this much money right now? We haven't been able to find any used RVs with floorplans that work for us in our area, so if we don't get this new RV, what are our options? We did actually figure out a way to make the road trip work without an RV (a bigger deal for us than for most because of our food restrictions), but it would require a lot more planning and some itinerary changes as we'd have to camp along the way. We can pull over and spend the night in a truck stop if we're in an RV, but we can't do that if we're tent camping.
we managed a 10 day trip to Boston without an RV or travel trailer, but we were in the same hotel the whole time, not road tripping across the country for 5 weeks
It would be a cheaper option, but we ultimately decided against it, because there's a good chance Mr M will have to return home for work at some point during our road trip and I would feel a lot safer by myself with the kiddos in an RV than in a tent. We will most likely use those ideas we came up with for shorter, closer to home camping trips.
We opted for this particular RV because it has the potential of being a comfortable fit for our family for a lot longer than the other floorplan we liked that was smaller. The amount of seating and sleeping surfaces was a huge factor in our decision to go with this RV.
Pictures and a walk through to come!
No comments:
Post a Comment