By Staci Ritchie, Market Analyst for WholesaleWarranties.com
The RV Industry has been one of the most rapidly changing businesses in the country over the last 10 years. The incredible technology that goes into most coaches, combined with many manufacturers having gone out of business or having changed ownership, has left most RVers confused as consumers. With constant changes, it is difficult to determine what can be expected from a coach—how often will it breakdown, and how much will it cost?
This RV market volatility has made the repair business more complex and costly than ever before, adding to the struggle RV owners face when planning and budgeting for possible repairs. As one would expect, the reliability of modern RVs varies greatly across make and model. While some RVs are famously dependable, other RV models are durable but costly to repair when they do breakdown, and some RV models are simply notorious for needing frequent, pricey repairs. The question is: how does a consumer determine which RVs tend to be more costly to repair and maintain than others? This article seeks to explain the potential risks of RV ownership, along with helping to accurately estimate the long term liability of future repair for any given RV.
Jeff Shelton, owner of WholesaleWarranties.com, a leading provider of discounted RV Extended Warranties, is an advocate for customers seeking information on RV breakdown statistics. Jeff states, “Finding accurate information on which RVs have the most common and costly problems can be next to impossible to discover through traditional methods. I see more and more customers using online RV extended warranty providers like us to find out the warranty cost before they consider buying their desired RV. Most won’t buy a vehicle that comes with a high warranty cost, since it’s in the warranty company’s best interest to incorporate accurate repair cost information into their pricing. Whether the RVer chooses to protect their rig from breakdowns up-front with a warranty, or decides to risk it and pay for repairs as they come, most people are happy they got an idea of what to expect through our free warranty quotes.”
What is the likelihood of major breakdowns for most RVs?
It is impossible to tell how often any vehicle will experience a mechanical failure, but industry statistics do offer some insight for RV owners. The stats reveal that three out of every ten RVs will need some type of major repair by only their second year on the road, and nearly every RV by just their eighth. Along with more items to repair, RV repair facilities across the country have shown an increase in labor rates, with most charging $100 or more per hour. The cost of RV parts is even more shocking. As a nationwide average, the cost of parts for a given RV repair will average about double the cost of labor. Between the $100 for labor and $200 for parts, RV owners can expect an average of $300 or more per hour that the RV is being worked on. Unfortunately, many new RV enthusiasts neglect to include these high repair costs when crunching the numbers in their RV budget.
If breakdowns are inevitable, what are the most common items that fail, and how much could it cost?
Again, this would depend on the particular RV make and model, but the typical range owners can expect to pay for common repairs is as follows:
Common Repairs
Engine $1,400 – $30,000
Transmission $1,900 to $12,000
Dash Air $700 – $3,800
Fuel System $600 – $3,400
Braking Components $500 – $2,500
Roof A/C $600 – $3,500
Generator $400 – $4,000
Refrigerator $600 – $3,500
Waste System $400 – $3,400
Leveling System $500 to $2,000
Slide Outs $500 to $1,700
Heating Assembly $300 to $1,500
Of course, some RVs will go years without any problems, while others seem to have some type of issue every time they hit the road. For this reason, more and more people are using the internet to find out their risks by checking with RV warranty industry leaders such as WholesaleWarranties.com for warranty pricing as a guide.
RV warranty expert Jeff Shelton encourages RV owners to contact his company for a price estimate, even if they aren’t positive they’ll purchase the coverage. Jeff states, “Whether to pay for breakdowns ahead of time or as they come up is a personal choice. It’s our responsibility to provide accurate, reliable information on the risk and coverage that a warranty does and does not provide, and let the individual make the best choice for their RV budget. I feel the days of pushy salespeople are over. RVers come to us with different mindsets. Some are comfortable with taking the risk of RV repair on and just want to get an idea of what to expect, while others would not RV without the type of protection we provide, and we are happy to offer our service as a trustworthy place to get breakdown cost assessments either way. We are happy to offer these services, and to educate RV owners on the surprising costs of RV repair.” For more information on obtaining RV breakdown costs and information, or for help in setting up pre-purchase inspections, visit www.WholesaleWarranties.com.
