At $7,500, Is This 1996 Winnebago Vectra Grand Tour A Pretty Big Deal?
They say "go big or go home," and with today's Nice Price or No Dice Winnebago, you could do both! Let's find out if this Class A Motorhome is priced to quickly find a new home.
When considering the 2023 Nissan Z Performance we looked at on Thursday, both the car and its $41,800 asking price appeared reasonable, if not overwhelmingly exciting, to most of you. The ad, however, which demanded proof of said funds before a test drive would be offered, left many of you feeling a bit prickly about dealing with the seller. That, along with the general malaise toward the car, resulted in it dropping in a substantial 72% 'No Dice' loss.
Takin' it to the streets
Like many urban enclaves, the city of Los Angeles, along with the vast sprawl of LA County that surrounds it, suffers from a housing crisis. Long an auto-centric region, LA's clogged freeways and underwhelming mass transit system conspire to force people to live as close to where they work as possible. The lack of affordable housing in areas with high concentrations of workplaces has led individuals to park recreational vehicles on city streets, where parking is unrestricted, and rent those RVs out like apartments. This has given rise to the term "Vanlord" and has sparked intense debate about public safety and urban blight. The city and county seemingly have turned a blind eye to the issue since, hey, it's getting people off the streets!
Since we're not here to solve all the world's problems, we instead might want to ponder whether or not jumping on the Vanlord bandwagon might be a viable option for the next owner of this 1996 Winnebago Vectra Grand Tour 35 WQ-P Class A motorhome. Before we delve into the details, though, where do you think Winnebago sourced the headlamps for this beast? Let me know your guesses down below.
All the comforts
Motorhomes come in all shapes and sizes, and this Winnie's shape and size are, respectively, rectangular and huge. That 35 in the name represents the home-away-from-home's overall length in feet. At over 96 inches, it's also pretty darn wide. In fact, the model's brochure (pdf) contains the following warning:
The Vectra Grand Tour floorplans feature a widebody design – over 96". In making your purchase decision, you should be aware that some states restrict access on some or all state roads to 96" in body width. Before making your purchase decision, you should confirm the road usage laws in the states of interest to you.
Of course, should you choose to simply park the Vectra at the curb and throw a "For Rent" sign in the window, that would prove to be a moot point. Such a large-and-in-charge size does have its benefits inside and for its under-the-floor storage compartments. The living area offers a full galley, a dry head with a separate shower and foot bath, a dinette, and an en suite owner's cabin in the back featuring a queen-sized bed. According to the seller, both interior and exterior could stand some cosmetic work. That's made obvious but not too onerous in the ad's pictures. There's nothing overwhelming on the inside, it seems, nor is there anything that would require a hazmat suit. The motorhome also appears to have all its glass intact, and aside from missing some trim and one rear corner cap, it's in pretty decent shape on the outside.
Pusher
As far as the mechaniacals go, it seems that this Winnebago is still in good order. It's built on a Freightliner truck chassis with a solid axle up front and a dualie rear end. The P in the name means it's a "pusher," indicating that the drivetrain sits in the back, as on a similarly sized commercial bus. That drivetrain is comprised of a 230-horsepower, turbocharged 5.9-liter Cummins diesel straight-six and an Allison six-speed automatic transaxle with two-speed overdrive. The layout allows for the driver to sit ahead of the front axle, with the steering column in a bus-like, near-vertical position. Next to that is an old-school CRT screen for the backup camera.
According to the seller, the motorhome runs great, has had one owner since 1996, and carries a clean title. It's offered in Southern California's Antelope Valley (hence the rental option idea), but wears Alaska plates. That trek obviously contributed to the motorhome's 124,000-mile odometer reading.
Home on the range?
Realtors will tell you, the most important aspect of any property is "Location! Location! Location!" With this Winnebago, location doesn't matter since it's a real-world version of Howl's Moving Castle. All one would need is a Walmart parking lot to bed down for the night and the gumption to fill its 75-gallon diesel fuel tank. That, by the way, would cost nearly $425 at the present national per-gallon average.
Considering all the potential this Winnebago has and the minimal work needed to make it habitable, what do we make of its $7,500 asking price? Does that make for a screamin' deal for a vacation retreat or a potential income generator? Or does the motorhome's huge size overwhelm its possibly puny price?
You decide!
Los Angeles, California, Craigslist, or go here if the ad disappears.
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