Buying sight unseen and in another country, Am I crazy or what,

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Buying sight unseen and in another country, Am I crazy or what,

September 11, 2012, 08:33:19 pm

Hi, My name is Brian and I live in Australia,
After considering buying a bus and converting it to a mobile home here, The expenses were quite steep for what I would get,
RV's built here dont do any thing for me,
Looking on Google, for many months, I came across a site that exported RV's To OZ, American RV's are nothing like the crap we get here, I looked into it, and found that I could get one for a reasonable price, I was looking at Monaco, Beaver.
But Still not quite what I was after,
I missed out on a very nice RV earlier this year, A rockwood, due to financial problems when my Boat sank, Anyway that has alll been sorted and I came away in a very good financial position,
The exporter gave me a few options and informed what I could and could not import to Australia.
He gave me a list of RV's that could be imported to here,

The Foretravel Grand Villa was one of them, My Million dollar tastes on a beer budget, The Grand Villa ticked all the boxes and then some, I had not even known about a Grand Villa up untill then,

After cruising Google for a while, I found a 1989 36 foot SB ORED 300, that was built in August 1988 in Gladewater, Texas for sale, which I could import, It looked very good inside and out from the piccys,
After a few emails and phone calls to the dealer and the exporter to make sure it complied with Australian ADR's. I bought it,
I am very happy with my purchase so far, Countryside RV Sales is the Dealer. Very helpfull with my purchase I might add,

It is being driven the 1500 miles from Texas to Ontario in California this week, By the Previous owner, It would have been last week, But the PO put new batterys in it and said a few switches were a bit dodgy and he would replace them before delivering it, So he is still waiting for the parts to arrive and he will fit them before he leaves Texas to deliver the bus,

This made me confident that the PO was proud of his Grand Villa, Because he offered to do these things at no extra charge to me, Plus I would not know about them till it got here,

I paid him $2000-00 extra or the delivery, Which I thought was reasonable, It also gave me a bit of confidence in the bus that it is in a fit state to drive the 1500 miles with out a problem, It Means to me that it is Registered and more than likely road worthy and in good condition,
He will tow his car on the back of the Bus, and drive his car home, Back to Texas,

These are things I cannot do as I am so far away, Its also about $4000-00 to fly there and inspect it, Some times you have to have faith and trust in people,

After buying my American boat in Fiji and sailing it home, another sight unseen purchase, I have quite a bit of faith in my self for intensively checking out things I buy, even sight unseen, Talking to the people involved by Telephone, You get the feel if some thing is not right, so you run away from them, But I have been more than happy so far,

Reading a lot on here about Foretravels, and else where, and Looking at a lot of piccys of Grand Villa's for sale, I can see the difference in a good or bad one, I hope I have got a good one, I think so, any way,

My problem is, That I dont know the different models that were made at the time, So I am asking on here if you can tell me what model I have, Is it a base model, A middle model or a top of the line model. As I dont have a clue, And dont know how to find out, This info is missing from the sites I have looked at,

I dont have contact with the PO, Only the dealer. Who has been very good in getting information from, But she doesnt have the info the PO could give me,

I am having it converted to R/H drive and fully compliant to Australian ADR's in the USA as it is a lot cheaper then doing it here, The company doing the conversion is also doing the shipping for me,

I wont see it for about 3 months till it gets here,
These are magnificent peices of Craftmanship, I know I am going to be very proud of my Grand Villa, I am going to be living in it full time and travelling Oz in it,
I will be towing a trailer with my Jeep Patriot and my two bikes on board, I will be putting solar panels on the roof, so it will be fully self sufficient on the move,

Over to you, Hoping you can fill me on the details I am missing,

Thanks in advance,

Cheers,
Brian,

PS; This forum is absolutely tops for info, Thank you all for your input,

Re: Buying sight unseen and in another country, Am I crazy or what,

Reply #1 – September 11, 2012, 09:16:03 pm

Yup, you're crazy... but probably in a fun way.

I'll be interested in your continuing story. Welcome to the forum and to Foretravels. That Grand Villa should make quite a splash down there in Oz.

Craig

Re: Buying sight unseen and in another country, Am I crazy or what,

Reply #2 – September 11, 2012, 09:24:41 pm

Main problem is going to be the batteries discharging while sitting idle in whatever location the motorhome is going to be...a surface transport to Australia, waiting around in ports, etc. If the batteries are in great to outstanding/new condition, the problem will still remain. All that said, good luck with the transport of your new to you Foretravel.

Re: Buying sight unseen and in another country, Am I crazy or what,

Reply #3 – September 11, 2012, 10:47:13 pm

Brian,

My daughter lives in Brisbane. Diesel is just over 151 cents/liter but with a $22.30/hr minimum wage, she can afford the fuel. New car import duty used to be 100% in Oz but don't know about used vehicles (new or used is a little over 2% here).

Good luck. Keep us up to date on your adventures. Don't think you're that crazy. I do know of a great bridge for sale, cheap.

Pierce

Re: Buying sight unseen and in another country, Am I crazy or what,

Reply #4 – September 11, 2012, 10:55:32 pm

Brian, see someone that will be looking after the transport if they can disconnect the neg battery leads for the trip, then put the engine one back on to drive it off.
Good luck and remember there are some very talented people on this forum that you can get all the help you need once it arrives. There are some nut heads too

John H

Re: Buying sight unseen and in another country, Am I crazy or what,

Reply #5 – September 11, 2012, 10:59:05 pm

Quote from: MR B2 – September 11, 2012, 08:33:19 pm

After cruising Google for a while, I found a 1989 36 foot SB ORED 300, that was built in August 1988

I was the ca. Sales manager then and know these well. Used to do phone walk throughs. Probably still can from memory. When you get it. Right hand drive? The dash is on the left. I would think about that. Drive on the left but no way I would try to convert that. My two cents.

Re: Buying sight unseen and in another country, Am I crazy or what,

Reply #6 – September 11, 2012, 11:06:55 pm

thing about Aus' is that they do not allow vehicles to be wrong side (I think I am correct)
Friend from there who has a Monaco in States now took back a Ford 250 and 5th wheel 2 yrs ago and had to convert the truck over. Cost $21,000. He then had to have the rear lights all changed on the trailer as it did not have the amber flashing turn signal (I think that is right) and now he has to replace the axles on 5th wheel as it does not conform to their code. He figures it is still worth it as units over there are a lot smaller and expensive.Plus they do not have the truck he now has.
John H

Re: Buying sight unseen and in another country, Am I crazy or what,

Reply #7 – September 11, 2012, 11:11:23 pm

Quote from: Pierce & Gaylie Stewart – September 11, 2012, 10:47:13 pm

Brian,

My daughter lives in Brisbane. Diesel is just over 151 cents/liter but with a $22.30/hr minimum wage, she can afford the fuel. New car import duty used to be 100% in Oz but don't know about used vehicles (new or used is a little over 2% here).

Good luck. Keep us up to date on your adventures. Don't think you're that crazy. I do know of a great bridge for sale, cheap.

Pierce

I bought that Bridge last week, already making a quid on it, I put a toll gate on it, Hahahahahaha
Brisbane is 1000 miles north of me as the crow flys, Petrol is a $1.34 a litre. at the moment, It fluctuates wildly,

I wanted a petrol pusher, and converting it to gas, But a diesel lasts longer, I am thinking of putting gas on the diesel,
Gas is half the price of diesel or petrol here,
The gas conversion is a dual fuel thing, It runs both at the same time, A little bit of diesel and a lot of Gas, Same fuel consumption and full power,
All my V8;'s run on gas here,

I cant import a new RV, its well and truly out of my financial realm,

Re: Buying sight unseen and in another country, Am I crazy or what,

Reply #8 – September 11, 2012, 11:24:03 pm

The company doing the conversion does the dash swap over to the right hand side as well, I have seen a few of their conversions, Monaco, Rockwood, Elite, They do it very professionally, including a left hand door to comply with here,
All the lights. gas lines, cut off switches Etc, are all done, as part of the conversion, It all complies with our ADR's before it leaves the USA, They do it full time,
$15,000-00 all inclusive, Then about $10,000-00 to ship it, Plus GST and customs, Etc, I will get a very small bit of change out of $50,000-00 Thats one cheap bus, I cant get any thing like that here,

The batterys I cant do much about, Its roll, on Roll off, Hopefully they arent flat after being on the boat for a month,
I will just take a big battery with me when I pick it up,

I joined a grey nomad forum here, and there are about 7 Grand Villa's here already, One couple contacted me about mine, The only difference between theirs and mine, Is the stripe down the side, They have a wavey paint job, mines a straight line,

Re: Buying sight unseen and in another country, Am I crazy or what,

Reply #9 – September 11, 2012, 11:34:16 pm

Quote from: MR B2 – September 11, 2012, 11:24:03 pm

The company doing the conversion does the dash swap over to the right hand side as well, I have seen a few of their conversions, Monaco, Rockwood, Elite, They do it very professionally, including a left hand door to comply with here,
All the lights. gas lines, cut off switches Etc, are all done, as part of the conversion, It all complies with our ADR's before it leaves the USA, They do it full time,
$15,000-00 all inclusive, Then about $10,000-00 to ship it, Plus GST and customs, Etc, I will get a very small bit of change out of $50,000-00 Thats one cheap bus, I cant get any thing like that here,

The batterys I cant do much about, Its roll, on Roll off, Hopefully they arent flat after being on the boat for a month,
I will just take a big battery with me when I pick it up,

I joined a grey nomad forum here, and there are about 7 Grand Villa's here already, One couple contacted me about mine, The only difference between theirs and mine, Is the stripe down the side, They have a wavey paint job, mines a straight line,

Cool I love it. Why not!

Re: Buying sight unseen and in another country, Am I crazy or what,

Reply #10 – September 11, 2012, 11:39:50 pm

Brian,
To your question about the model line up, (I might be wrong) from top to lowest:
U300/U280 (has the Unihome monocoque frame with no frame rails) - U300 is same as U280 but with upgraded engine
ORED Oshkosh chassis rear engine diesel
OREG Oshkosh chassis rear engine gas
3000 series/2900 series (all front engine gas) - I think on a Dodge chassis

And of course, there's no such thing as a cheap Foretravel - they are all quality just different configurations that cost more or less

This website has some of these models for some of the years (best collection I know of):
Foretravel Specifications, Floor Plans, Photos & Brochures by Year

Re: Buying sight unseen and in another country, Am I crazy or what,

Reply #11 – September 12, 2012, 01:37:17 am

Quote from: JohnFitz – September 11, 2012, 11:39:50 pm

Brian,
To your question about the model line up, (I might be wrong) from top to lowest:
U300/U280 (has the Unihome monocoque frame with no frame rails) - U300 is same as U280 but with upgraded engine
ORED Oshkosh chassis rear engine diesel
OREG Oshkosh chassis rear engine gas
3000 series/2900 series (all front engine gas) - I think on a Dodge chassis

And of course, there's no such thing as a cheap Foretravel - they are all quality just different configurations that cost more or less

Barry's website has some of these models for some of the years (best collection I know of):
Foretravel Specifications, Floor Plans, Photos & Brochures by Year

Thank you,

A cheap Foretravel was a figure of speech, Very very cheap for me to buy, against the ridiculous prices they charge here and there is nothing here with any thing like the same build quality, Half a million dollars and they still look takky,

There is nothing cheap and nasty about a Foretravel Grand Villa. They are a superb machine and their build quality is magnificent, They are a credit to the manufacturers and their employees who put them together, And that comes from a Tradesman that knows what he is looking for and at,

Re: Buying sight unseen and in another country, Am I crazy or what,

Reply #12 – September 12, 2012, 02:06:45 am

Brian, you mentioned Oz several times. Why not just have Dorothy bring it over in her next tornado? Sorry, bad joke but I'm not hitting the delete button. If the U300 is in decent shape, you'll love it! No risk, no reward my friend!

Re: Buying sight unseen and in another country, Am I crazy or what,

Reply #13 – September 12, 2012, 02:10:46 am

By the way, when you get tired of touring Oz in about 10 years, hit me up and we'll do an RV swap. You come over here for a 6 month tour of the US in my RV and I'll head down there to do one in yours!

Re: Buying sight unseen and in another country, Am I crazy or what,

Reply #14 – September 12, 2012, 04:41:52 am

Quote from: Benjie Zeller – September 12, 2012, 02:06:45 am

Brian, you mentioned Oz several times. Why not just have Dorothy bring it over in her next tornado? Sorry, bad joke but I'm not hitting the delete button. If the U300 is in decent shape, you'll love it! No risk, no reward my friend!

Must be an American joke, Dorothy in the wizard of Oz, We dont have Tornado's here, But we do have strip winds,
Half a mile wide and flattens every thing in its path, Rips huge trees out by the roots,
Cyclones (Hurricanes) are a 1000 miles north of here, We dont get them down here either,

Getting out of bed in the morning is a risk, Then, if you stay in bed because you have a bad feeling about the day,
A plane engine will come crashing through your roof,

I do have a good sense of humour, I even laugh at myself, Just from different countrys, you lose the meaning or punch line some times,

That RV swap sounds great, Its like a house swap, Hahahahaha

Re: Buying sight unseen and in another country, Am I crazy or what,

Reply #15 – September 12, 2012, 09:48:22 am

Brian, it was a bad joke, regardless of the country you're from!

If we do the house swap, the Super Blackbird will need to be part of the deal! My last bike was a Honda Superhawk. Loved it!

Re: Buying sight unseen and in another country, Am I crazy or what,

Reply #16 – September 12, 2012, 11:47:49 am

Quote from: Benjie Zeller – September 12, 2012, 09:48:22 am

Brian, it was a bad joke, regardless of the country you're from!

If we do the house swap, the Super Blackbird will need to be part of the deal! My last bike was a Honda Superhawk. Loved it!

Not likely, I dont let any one ride my Super Chook, Hahahahahaha

I didnt get your Joke any way, Bad or other wise,

Re: Buying sight unseen and in another country, Am I crazy or what,

Reply #17 – September 12, 2012, 11:59:19 am

Watch the Wizard of Oz. You'll at least get it then, just won't be too funny.

Best Regards,
Benjie

Benjie Zeller
(512) 587-4628

Re: Buying sight unseen and in another country, Am I crazy or what,

Reply #18 – September 12, 2012, 12:00:40 pm

Quote from: JohnFitz – September 11, 2012, 11:39:50 pm

Brian,
To your question about the model line up, (I might be wrong) from top to lowest:
U300/U280 (has the Unihome monocoque frame with no frame rails) - U300 is same as U280 but with upgraded engine
ORED Oshkosh chassis rear engine diesel
OREG Oshkosh chassis rear engine gas
3000 series/2900 series (all front engine gas) - I think on a Dodge chassis

This website has some of these models for some of the years (best collection I know of):
Foretravel Specifications, Floor Plans, Photos & Brochures by Year

I have just uploaded new 1989 specs files that I had but had not gotten to yet. Hopefully they will help you.Foretravel Specifications, Floor Plans, Photos & Brochures by Year

Re: Buying sight unseen and in another country, Am I crazy or what,

Reply #19 – September 12, 2012, 01:23:47 pm

(from Google) Why is Australia called Oz?

Australians typically shorten words to the least amount of syllables and still be understandable.

The nations name Australia started out being shortened to Aussie (this can also mean someone from Australia). Australians always pronounce Aussie with a hard 'S' sound (said exactly like Ozzie as in Osborne fame). It was only natural with that pronunciation that Aussie would be shortened to Oz.

It should be noted that Australians almost never shorten Australia to aus as is commonly done by Americans when abbreviating words on the internet. They will always use Oz over Aus. Doing differently instantly marks you as an foreigner

Re: Buying sight unseen and in another country, Am I crazy or what,

Reply #20 – September 12, 2012, 02:06:57 pm

I have noticed that there are different layouts in the kitchens on these models, Some have a table and chairs, Some have cabinets behind the chairs, some dont, Mine has a full cupboard, and over head cupboards,

On the Sink side, I have a breakfast bar and a two seater Couch, Some dont have the extended bar, They must have had different models or the customer just added what they liked,

I have added some interior piccys so you can see what mine looks like inside, All comments welcome,

The bus in my avatar is actually my bus,

Re: Buying sight unseen and in another country, Am I crazy or what,

Reply #21 – September 12, 2012, 02:15:54 pm

Brian,

You have what is known as the SBI layout.

The other layout is the SBID with the "D" denoting dinette. The SBID was the more popular layout.

Both layouts were offered for a number of years.

This floorplan for our coach shows the difference: 1993 U225 - U240 GV Floorplans

Re: Buying sight unseen and in another country, Am I crazy or what,

Reply #22 – September 12, 2012, 02:25:23 pm

Brian,
Looks like it's in pretty good shape. All appliances appear to be original except for the refrigerator.
I"m just curious, how will you handle the power conversion when you hook up electric with all of these 120 VAC 60 hz appliances?
Do you know if it's a requirement to select a standard 8 ft wide coach for import? (my '91 was the last year for 8 ft wide U300/U280 coaches)

BTW, no offense taken in the use of "cheap" - I didn't even notice.
Cheers!

Re: Buying sight unseen and in another country, Am I crazy or what,

Reply #23 – September 12, 2012, 02:29:08 pm

Thanks Brett,

I do prefer the bar and couch, set up, There is only two of us, We both cook, so one sits and the other cooks, That way we keep each other company, And can pick on each others cooking, Hahahaha

Its 4-30 AM, I might go to bed,

Re: Buying sight unseen and in another country, Am I crazy or what,

Reply #24 – September 12, 2012, 02:39:07 pm

Sue and I have the SBI layout with the little 1/2-dinette booth. At first we just assumed that the booth would just be for kids but have discovered that the spot makes a good "workbench" for sewing projects, electronics assemblies, etc. It also makes a secure place to prepare snacks and lunch "on-the-go" without worrying about being tossed around by bumps and curves. And it really is the perfect place for one or two kids to eat or assemble Lego toys.

Blankets and pillow storage in the bench seat and a good place to stow the wooden step (the U225 doesn't offer an automatic step) and ground mat under it.

The "entertainment" area above the garbage compactor aft of the door is also handy for dishes, cups and glasses and the extra drawers are invaluable. I am mounting my battery monitor system in this area somewhere.

i'm wondering how your exporter will handle the entry door situation; moving it to the other side will inevitably create some interesting problems to solve.

Craig

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