A lot of readers have been flooding our tips line with different RVs that are out there in the wild. We’ve gotten bus conversion projects, fantastic vintage VW Bus campers, and what appears to be a hearse turned into a camper. Some of these campers have actually been pretty cheap, and it’s seemingly sent your favorite Autopian writers looking for inexpensive and cool RVs. We have a stack of these things, and let’s take a look at a few of our favorites.
1974 Starcraft Starcruiser – $2,500
This first one is a camper that our very own David is considering buying. I mean, you can’t blame him when you get this much vehicle for just $2,500. And David makes a great choice. Before the GMC Motorhome challenged the RV norm, motorhomes were commonly giant bricks that hurtled down America’s highways. These rigs sat high off of the ground and designs were often best described as “functional.” Starcraft was founded in 1903 as Star Tank Co., manufacturing farming equipment in Goshen, Indiana. In 1915, the company expanded into boating, first with a rowboat in 1915. The company’s name changed to Star Tank & Boat Company and in the 1920s, the company began making galvanized steel boats. Aluminum boats followed, and in 1956, Star Tank & Boat made a fiberglass boat. Star Tank & Boat didn’t get into making campers until 1964 with its release of a tent camper. In 1966, the name was changed to Starcraft Corporation. This 1974 Starcruiser was made just ten years into Starcraft’s journey into campers. There isn’t much information out there on these, but there is one factoid that I love: The Starcruiser is a one-piece fiberglass body. I like fiberglass as a building material for RVs because it means fewer places where you can expect water leaks. For example, my U-Haul camper is two fiberglass molds joined together as one. That means no disasters of water destroying luan walls here. The Starcruiser is said to be the first, and maybe only motorhome to use a single piece of molded fiberglass. However, an owner disputes this, as they say that they found a seam in the fiberglass, suggesting that two fiberglass molds were combined to make a one-piece body. Likewise, the Ungers Crown Commander motorhome predates the Starcraft by almost ten years. It too made the same claim about being made out of a single piece of fiberglass. Fiberglass campers are generally made from more than one mold combined into one. For an example, my U-Haul was built from left and right pieces of fiberglass joined together. Either way, it’s not the first or the only motorhome of its kind, but it’s still pretty awesome. Production numbers aren’t known, but after going through seemingly countless pages, I haven’t seen an estimate higher than 50. Power comes from a Dodge 440 V8 that at one point made around 225 HP, but the seller says that the motorhome has sat for a couple of years. So the carb will probably need to be cleaned out before it’ll run again. Other than that, the seller says that it just needs a new water pipe and bedroom walls finished. It’s in Ferndale, Michigan, and the seller offers to tow it for free. Now let’s look at other choices. I’m intentionally choosing campers with prices under $10,000. You can find tons of these things all over the place!
1998 Chevrolet C/K 2500 With A Valor Camper – $8,500
This one’s a package deal, and you get an orange Chevy C/K 2500 with a Valor truck camper on top. The seller believes that the Valor is 1996. As J.D. Power notes, Valor ended camper production in 1996. So, if that model year is true, this is one of the last of Valor’s campers: Amazingly, Valor’s history is so short that the only solid information that I could find was from that J.D. Power blurb. But despite the dead brand, you do get a lot for your buck, from hydraulic jacks and turnbuckles to a real bathroom with a toilet that dumps into a black tank. It also has solar panels, a house battery, a full-size bed, and even a heater for those cold days. And did I say that it also comes with a whole truck with service records and a relatively fresh transmission? Engine isn’t specified, but a common configuration is a 5.7-liter V8 making 255 HP. If you want it, you can get it in Milford, Michigan.
1999 Dutchmen Express 28A – $9,000
Want something that looks and feels modern? Yeah, don’t worry, you can even find one of those cheap, too! Save for the seats, this Dutchmen Express 28A looks like it was built in the past decade and provides 28 feet of living space. It’s built on a Ford E-450 cutaway chassis and comes equipped with a 6.8-liter Triton V10. In this application, it’s making 305 HP and 420 lb-ft torque. Dutchmen first opened up shop in 1988, building travel trailers and later fifth wheels. The company positioned itself as an entry-level brand, and grew fast enough to attract Thor Industries’ attention. And it became a part of Thor in 1991. There’s not much to say about the Dutchmen Express, aside from the fact that you get an RV that sleeps six with everything that you’d expect from a camper. The shower doesn’t look too bad, either! This one is in Harwich, Massachusetts. This is to say that if you want to, you can get some pretty cool campers for dirt cheap. You can even find Class A rigs for under $10,000! I mean, take a look at this 1995 Thor Industries West Manor 3000 for just $6,000. It’s 30 feet of some decent luxury for the price. This little guy has a huge awning, two air-conditioners, automatic leveling jacks, and the seller says that it doesn’t leak. Specific engine isn’t noted, but it’s fueled with gasoline. I’ve talked about Thor Industries a lot, but have never said where it came from. Thor was established in 1980 when Wade F. B. Thompson and Peter Busch Orthwein purchased Airstream. You’d think the name would have to do with Norse mythology, but nope, it’s just a combination of its founders’ names. Thor collects different RV brands, but also makes its own motorhomes. Thor Industries West reportedly built Class A motorhomes from 1991 until 1999, when it was spun off into Mountainhigh Coachworks. This one is in Spanaway, Washington. I’ve frequently written about absurdly expensive RVs, including near-six figure school buses with fire pits on top, Greyhound buses turned motorhomes, and all sorts of new campers that cost north of $50,000. But you don’t need to spend nearly that much to take yourself or your family on a camping trip. Old campers are practically worthless, and there are oh so many out there. Even better is the fact that winter is coming, so you’re bound to find some folks trying to get rid of their campers so they don’t have to pay to store them for the season. So you might get an even better deal. Of course, as we’ve written about here, RV quality varies, as does the level in which someone has taken care of their rig. If you can, always get an inspection before parting ways with your cold, hard cash. With luck, you can find some sweet deals out there! Keep those awesome campers coming, and if you’re rocking an old RV, we want to know about it! But on the other hand, I wouldn’t want to own it because of the cost of fuel and how much that old Chrysler 440 would drink. And I’m guessing that old girl needs a lot more than just a rebuilt carb. If I had the money, I’d restore it and try to keep it as original as possible. Though instead of messing around with the existing or a new carb, I’d probably convert that Chrysler 440 to EFI so the fuel consumption will be a little less dreadful and make the vehicle easier to start and more pleasant to live with. I’d love to see more of this as a semi-regular feature. Also, dare I say it would be both fun and informative to see a deep dive into how one goes about inspecting a used RV pre-purchase? What should one be looking at when going through one of these things, and if you’re not going to do it yourself then how does one go about hiring a competent third party? And of course, more cheap RVs are on the way! Thanks for this article, it really looks like an affordable danger zone. Another point is that people don’t just go to the same places – the coach has an engine, it can go just about anywhere you want. Going to the same cabin year in and out would get tiresome to me, and you have a TON of yearly maintenance to do on said cabin too. We used to own a lake home, 2 hour drive from the house – the first day there was usually spent cleaning up from rodents and killing/removing wasps. Then it’s unloading all the stuff you brought for the weekend – clothes, bedding, food, drink. Sunday was spent on the lake, but by mid afternoon you’re getting loaded again, putting the boat away and closing up the house, then the 2 hour drive home, usually in traffic. And two times the house to furnish, clean, paint, repair etc. No thanks….. I thought having a motorhome would be perfect for us, the two dogs travel easily in it, you don’t have to panic looking for a bathroom. If you want a coke or a sandwich you just pull over and get one. When you arrive for the night you don’t have to schlep all your crap in and out of the hotel room, then try to find a restaurant you like/can afford for dinner, then back to the room to watch TV till you fall asleep….and what do you do with the dogs? Can’t leave them in the hotel. Can’t take them to the restaurant, etc I would prefer the RV, but the bride felt like if she had to cook and make the bed it’s not really a vacation for her, so we don’t have one. (looks at upholstery in Dutchman’s interior) It’s kinda modern….I guess…. Also many campsites have the 10 year rule as many RVs have issues like leaking black tanks (ewww) and other issues. Yes the prices are higher, that is life. No longer can you get a full loaded new car for $20k and RVs/Trailers are not cheap either. But you don’t buy an RV because it makes financial sense. Same reason we all don’t drive Prius Cs and live in 600ft2 apartments in major cities. Sometimes we just want what we want, and that is OK. What makes more financial sense? Paying rent for a tiny studio you’ll eventually get priced out of, or buying a big luxury suburban McMansion that you don’t need that will guaranteed appreciate faster than inflation as long as you never panic sell at the bottom of the market? People live in the tiny apartment because they want that major city lifestyle. Not because it’s the smart financial move. Your basic point is spot on though. What I really don’t understand are the people who buy these six-figure RVs and then go to the same couple campgrounds most of the time. That makes no sense. You can have the same lifestyle, more comfort, and an appreciating investment if you just buy a cabin somewhere. And you might even get a toilet you don’t have to pump as part of the deal. If you are handy, like many people on this site, a vintage camper is a good way to go. Mine has increased in value from when I’ve bought it, and there’s a whole community of vintage camper rallies that you can get into. Airstream also has a club and I’ve met great people at their rallies. The vintage Airstreams hold their value or increase in value. The ones like mine that are 15 years old have reached a much slower part of the depreciation curve and a lower price of entry, but still are a depreciating asset. We used it for 6 trips this year, so short and some long, but probably close to a month of total use. It makes our vacations cheaper (just gas, a campground fee, and food for cooking our own meals) and less stressful (pack the camper and you aren’t living out of a suitcase), but at the cost of a large upfront purchase. The Airstream was still what I would consider a “toy” purchase and has no payback, but I think it’s a better long term value than a new white box with swooshes. We enjoy camping and meeting other campers and would rather do that with our time off than jet off to some city and stay in a hotel. But it’s not for everyone. At $666 per night, it’s clear that Satan has a hand in all of this… The black and grey tanks on my 1986 Fireball trailer are tight, and the state parks don’t care that it was built in Ronald Reagan’s first term. The $200/night “resorts” at the beach would have a fit of the vapors, though. My current personal rule of thumb is that if a campground is serious about how old your rig is, then it’s probably not worth visiting in the first place. Thankfully, there are countless campgrounds in America, so we never had a problem finding an accepting one. I love going to state parks, where you get way more than just a place to set your trailer down, and in my experience, nobody cares if you’re towing an ancient camper with a rusty SUV. And while we’re on the subject of stationary mobile homes, why would you want to attract tornadoes to your project car?
