4 ms·

Not everyone has a $100k+ class A motorhome. In fact, lots of us don't ever want one. The article applies perfectly well to a ~$30k Sprinter or similar van out

by grecy 9y ago

Not everyone has a $100k+ class A motorhome. In fact, lots of us don't ever want one. The article applies perfectly well to a ~$30k Sprinter or similar van outfitted with queen bed, sink, stove, tv, etc. There is no reason it will cost significantly more than a Model 3 does now. It makes perfect sense to be able to sleep/eat/cook/wash/read/watch TV whenever the vehicle is moving, once you don't need to drive.

chewyland 9y ago
Exactly. I paid 10 grand for my diesel Fiat Ducato. Put 60,000k on it and only had to replace the battery, tires and brakes. She's been to 27 countries and 100s of cities, villages and towns....yes, 100s. From Chernobyl to London, to Southern Greece and Asian side of Turkey... and everything in between.
- grecy 9y ago
  Nice! I drove my $6k Jeep 65,000 kms through 16 countries, then sold it for what I bought it for. Now I'm driving my ~$35k Jeep through 30 countries in Africa, should be well over 100k kms. Have fun out there!
SwellJoe 9y ago
A Model 3 isn't exactly cheap, though it is more obtainable than most new motorhomes. Another major consideration is financing. Obtaining financing for a motorhome is harder than obtaining financing for an automobile, especially if you don't have collateral (like a house). Back when I first bought an RV, I had good credit and had bought a 350Z partly on credit and paid it off a couple years before I went shopping for a motorhome. I couldn't get a loan...no bank, credit union, or anyone else would loan on a used $60,000 motorhome. So, I paid cash for a $30,000 motorhome, instead. Admittedly this was just after the mortgage crisis and the motorhome industry was among the hardest hit by defaults, and I also had only one year of good income to show (the two years before were right after I'd started my company and was living on savings), but nonetheless, I still would have been able to get an auto loan at that time for the same amount of money (and was told so by my bank credit person). So, yeah, the RVs pictured are relatively high end (though not extravagantly so), and you can spend a lot less on a used motorhome. The older you buy, the cheaper it will be, but the more maintenance and upkeep you'll have to deal with. Motorhomes do not age well at all. Again, I understand the appeal of this lifestyle (been doing it for years). And, my RV is an old Avion travel trailer now; much lower priced than the motorhome I was traveling in last time (though I have a big truck to tow it, too, which puts the total price into the same ball park). I know it can be done relatively affordably, but it's not realistic to expect everyone will want to. And, of course, the requirement that it be autonomous for this "paradigm shift" to happen means that you'll have to buy a new motorhome for at least the first few years of the shift. It'll take five years (after they begin to be widely available, which is likely still five years out) for a healthy used market for autonomous motorhomes to exist.

by grecy 9y ago

chewyland 9y ago

Exactly. I paid 10 grand for my diesel Fiat Ducato. Put 60,000k on it and only had to replace the battery, tires and brakes. She's been to 27 countries and 100s of cities, villages and towns....yes, 100s. From Chernobyl to London, to Southern Greece and Asian side of Turkey... and everything in between.

grecy 9y ago
Nice! I drove my $6k Jeep 65,000 kms through 16 countries, then sold it for what I bought it for. Now I'm driving my ~$35k Jeep through 30 countries in Africa, should be well over 100k kms. Have fun out there!

SwellJoe 9y ago

A Model 3 isn't exactly cheap, though it is more obtainable than most new motorhomes. Another major consideration is financing. Obtaining financing for a motorhome is harder than obtaining financing for an automobile, especially if you don't have collateral (like a house). Back when I first bought an RV, I had good credit and had bought a 350Z partly on credit and paid it off a couple years before I went shopping for a motorhome. I couldn't get a loan...no bank, credit union, or anyone else would loan on a used $60,000 motorhome. So, I paid cash for a $30,000 motorhome, instead. Admittedly this was just after the mortgage crisis and the motorhome industry was among the hardest hit by defaults, and I also had only one year of good income to show (the two years before were right after I'd started my company and was living on savings), but nonetheless, I still would have been able to get an auto loan at that time for the same amount of money (and was told so by my bank credit person). So, yeah, the RVs pictured are relatively high end (though not extravagantly so), and you can spend a lot less on a used motorhome. The older you buy, the cheaper it will be, but the more maintenance and upkeep you'll have to deal with. Motorhomes do not age well at all. Again, I understand the appeal of this lifestyle (been doing it for years). And, my RV is an old Avion travel trailer now; much lower priced than the motorhome I was traveling in last time (though I have a big truck to tow it, too, which puts the total price into the same ball park). I know it can be done relatively affordably, but it's not realistic to expect everyone will want to. And, of course, the requirement that it be autonomous for this "paradigm shift" to happen means that you'll have to buy a new motorhome for at least the first few years of the shift. It'll take five years (after they begin to be widely available, which is likely still five years out) for a healthy used market for autonomous motorhomes to exist.