[trh299]

New member here.  I have been contemplating selling my bumper pull camper and buying a used motor coach so that I can pull my boat on family trips.  I have seen this Newell sitting for years in my local area and while I do not need any more projects, after doing some internet searching I realized this might be worth looking into.  I gave it a quick look the other day and can see it has pealing clear coat, cracked sidewall tires and some rust stains around trim strips etc.
I got ahold of the owner and he is an older gentleman in poor health.  He claims the interior was redone in the late 90's and that it has no known mechanical problems other than it needs new batteries.  Any idea on what year it is and a price range I might want to offer.  I will stop and look inside tomorrow, I am assuming it has lots of issues from sitting that the owner is likely unaware of.  I am thinking it is worth $10-20k ?  Edit... Tried to post a picture, but it did not go through...

[bikestuff]

TRH....

Depending on the year, there will be a placard visible from outside the drivers window. This should show the VIN number. The last three numbers are the “Coach number”. It would be helpful to know the number when talking about Newells.

Also, the very worst thing you can do with a coach is let it sit. Seals dry out. Varmits get in and chew things. Water gets in and sits. Don’t even get me started about the engine or generator.

I am not saying it would not be a good coach....but “sitting for years” makes be kind of cringe.

Bill

[kyleb]

If you like it & the possibilities -- If it were me, I'd put in good batteries & see how it wakes up after sitting so long. See how it drives, etc. ( Just be sure someone qualified checks its road worthiness before leaving private property ).

I once bought a bus that had been sitting for 5 years - We used one car battery to check out the lights & etc. When we hit the starter to see if it would try & the old 8V71 fired right off & the air pressure built right up. -- So, you never know what will happen until you try.

[trh299]

    Thanks for the response guys.  For what it is worth, I am a mechanical engineer by day, have mechanical experience and a large shop.  I have restored cars and motorcycles and built an experimental aircraft.  In other words, I have the skills and equipment necessary to fix one of these up, but am not looking to do a full restoration at this stage in life.  But after viewing some of these classic Newells here and other places on-line, I am getting the itch to pursue this one further.  I am going to take a peek inside today and hopefully can post some pictures.

[ron skeen]

Thanks for the reponse guys.  For what it is worth, I am a mechancal engineer by day, have mechnical experience and a large shop.  I have restored cars and motorcycles and built an experimental aircraft.  In other words, I have the skills and equipment necessary to fix one of these up, but am not looking to do a full restoration at this stage in life.  But after viewing some of these classic Newells here and other places on-line, I am getting the itch to pursue this one further.  I am going to take a peek inside today and hopefully can post some pictures.

The coach is a wide body but has the slanted window maybe a 87-88?

[trh299]

Couple more pics.

   

[Richard]

Go for it ! Back out 20k from what you are willing to spend for a roadworthy coach. That 20 will cover tires batteries air bags and radiator if needed. Do oil analysis on engine and tranny. Dont drive it on cracked tires

[77newell]

Every time I've purchased a coach and brought it home, one of the first things I've done is give it a bath outside and a good cleaning inside. Every time I discovered problems I'd previously missed. Each time I would vow to do the cleaning BEFORE the next purchase, but then I didn't and discovered a whole new set of problems I had missed yet again.

[trh299]

Yikes!!!  Went and looked inside the coach on my lunch hour.  Took some pictures, but it looks worse in person.  Most of the basement is filthy and disgusting with soaking wet grime.  A couple basement doors were not latched and pretty much all seals (windows, doors, compartments) were toast.  Engine bay is filthy.  One side window was left cracked open, the driver's windshield is cracked.  The awning frames are corroded.  The floor felt soft just aft of the stairwell and the stairwell itself was disgusting.  The main leather couch had grease stains on it.  There were mouse droppings in various locations..... etc etc.  On top of all that, I found a post on another coach site where someone posted about this same coach at the same location 4 years ago (at which time he said it had been sitting for 5-6 years).  He said the owner would not go below 50k at that time.  From the previous post, it was listed as a '86 with about 200k miles but the engine and trans were replaced about 25k back (which was probably 20 years ago) I do not even want to make an offer at this point as this would be a huge long term project for me. Even if it runs as the owner told me it did on the phone, I place it's value at not much over the price of it's weight in scrap steel.  I can't believe someone would let such a high quality item go to heck like this.... disgusting!

   

   

   

   

[smagown]

That is not a '96, maybe an '86.