Just bid on ebay. What do you think?

[Fireweed25]

I just bid on the Norman Rockwell 1997 34' excella on ebay. Not sure how much higher to go. It is up to 15,800. Does it look like it is a good deal and in pretty good shape?

1997 AIRSTREAM "NORMAN ROCKWELL" 34' TRAILER NO RESERVE | eBay

[LawChick]

Wow. That looks almost brand new - and almost too good to be true - which would scare me some. If it really looks like that, and I was in the market, I might go a little higher. But I don't know much about ebay sales. We gave $9,000 for our 1992 29 foot which is a little dinged up and needs work if that's any comparison.

HOWEVER, I've heard some horror stories about eBay purchases of Airstreams. How do you know it's really the one in the photos? Or whether those photos were taken when it was new? It looks new in the photos. I recognize the blue carpet as being what is still inside the cabinets of our 1992. But the seller has a good record, apparently.

Best wishes. I love that trailer! But, I think it's always buyer beware on ebay. The photos are gorgeous.
Good luck to you!

[ROBERTSUNRUS]

Hi, I have to agree with LawChick; These pictures [look like they] were taken when brand new. No wrinkles in the upholstery, no finger prints on the refrigerator door. No marks on any surface, and no personalizations. Not even a magazine in the rack. This could still, very well, be a great deal, but I would want to look at some recently dated pictures. It's just too perfect, inside and out for a 13 - 14 year old trailer.

[Silverwanabe]

Look at the fabric on the rocker, that does look a little used.

A unique unit.

[Stefrobrts]

It's always buyer beware on eBay! But this looks nice to me. It is from an estate sale so it's possible it never got a lot of use if someone older bought it and it has just sat. It looks to me like it's been cleaned, the chair and carpet look freshly vacuumed. Is there stuff in the cupboard in front of the couch?

If you've got that much money to spend on a trailer, I'd say you should use a little of it to fly down there and look at it in person. Otherwise you might end up walking away from your deposit if it's not what you expected.

[sandlapper]

Just for comparison, we paid just under 21,000 for our '93 34'. We consider it pristine, like yours. It needed nothing except a good home. Bought it from an elderly gent who kept it inside . Also bought a '90 34', paid 12,000 for it. Very nice trailer, not quite as nice as the 93. We think both fair buys. Good luck.

[Shacksman]

You won't get that trailer for under $25,000 at the end of the auction. Those are great looking trailers and there are less of them each year. That one looks pristeen. There's one at Colaws wrecking yard that had a huge tree fall lengthways on it.
I've bought on Ebay and what I do is after the auction I get the money and go see the trailer before I give over any. That way I don't even loose the deposit, if the trailer isn't what it's looks like in the pictures.

[tkasten]

That same trailer was listed on Ebay a week or two ago. At the end of the first auction it went for $24,000 +. Looks like the first buyer backed out as it is now back on ebay.

[Michigander]

Ooh Baby, that is one good lookin' unit! Good luck.

We found our MH on eBay and called the seller, who pulled the listing and sold it to us outside of the auction.

The listing had eighty photos attached to it. When it was delivered, it was exactly as posted. (Whew!) The bonus we had was that there was still significant factory warranty left when we bought it, which we milked to the max on a lot of little things.

Is there any way you could visit it before purchase? Why did the previous bidder back out?

It says in the listing that one of the red stripes is faded, indicating prolonged outside storage with the same side facing the sun.

[Road Ruler]

Sweet!

A good sign is the seller has a 99.7% positive feedback record with over 800 transactions under his belt. Still there is a risk factor.

[Mikethefixit]

Althought it really goods good in the pictures,Personally I would not buy it on eBay,the reason begining YOU CANT REACH OUT AND TOUCH IT. ITS in Calif and U in Alaska, it not a good deal. Personal inspection is the only way I would buy something for that much money. Although its your money do what you wish.

[jsutro]

AS Forums features a way to contact a local AS inspector. No guarantees, but a pair of local and independent eyes are better than none. Seller feedback is indicator of reliability- EBay keeps that feature VERY clean, and furthermore, eBay and especially PayPal is responsive if the rig is not as advertised. So there are several routes to satisfaction. YOu are asking the right questions. Wish I had the first time around. The lessons I learned were too late for the first purchase, but applicable ever since. Good luck. jim

[triplenet]

We found ours on Ebay. I talked to seller on phone, but did not bid. It did not sell on auction. They called me and we made a deal contingent on our seeing it and approval.

[Mexray]

Fireweed...I think the listing company of that eBay offering is a legit outfit, been by there many times but haven't payed attention lately to their 'inventory'...

Sent you a PM...Ray