1988 25ft Classic

Hello, we are thinking about purchasing a 1988 25ft Hilo trailer. It has been garage kept with one owner. It has all of the manuals and appears to be in great shape. Problem is they are asking several thousand dollars above NADA values. Any opinions??? Thanks

Price of HiLo.

The condition of the HiLo may dictate a higher price. Use the buyers check list. Have the appliances been replaced ? Any maintenance records? The NADA guides are only a starting point. I only paid $4,000 for a 1996 26ft HiLo. It needed the seals replaced and body work. It has all the original appliances. Needed quite a few plastic drawer glides replaced (cracked). The smoke alarm and co2 detector were out of date. At the end of last season the converter was shot(original). One channel of the radio was shot. Radio replaced. Make an offer. It seems to be a sellers market. If this one doesn't work out for you perhaps another one will come along. We also had to put new tires and rims on.DH installed an ADA height toilet for me(knee replaced).J&R valued my HiLo at $8,000. It was garage kept and was in exceptional condition with no fading of decals. Spider cracks in the front due to flexing going down the road. Had a 1909 25ft. We did extensive repairs for water damage. Replaced toilet(ADA). Converter,radio.ref.and hot water tank replaced. Leaf spring broke and was replaced by our HiLo dealer. Needed to make room for our new HiLo. Was able to give it away to a returning veteran. He was able to park it on his parents property as a neat bedroom/man cave. What about the condition of the roof? Has it been recoated. Best of luck in what ever you decide.

Thanks. Would $5000 be over priced?

Price of HiLo

I can't decide for you. You have to use the buyers check list and find the answers to the questions that i have asked. Make a list of questions. You can always make an offer. Take pictures and post. Let us know what you decide.

Worried if it’s too old.

We checked it out it’s definitely been garage kept. It has brand new tires but they’ve been sitting for seven years so I’m sure we still need to change those. The interior is immaculate no water damage water tanks look great, no rust on the outside of the water tanks. Its in superb condition visually. Our concern is what are some potential issues we may face because it hasn’t been used in 10 years & it’s over 30 years old.

You won't have rust on the water tanks. they are plastic. If the tires are 7 year old, they will need to be replaced, regardless of condition. Does the top go up and down easily? Do all the appliances work on both AC power/DC power/propane (depending on appliance)?

When the top goes up and down, do you see any evidence of hydraulic fluid leaks under the trailer? Hydraulic systems sometimes degrade when not used.

Do all the lights work inside and when hooked up to a tow vehicle, do all the outside lights work? Rats or mice can chew up wiring when a trailer is in storage.

There should not be any evidence of water leaks if it's been inside, but you might have to reseal the windows in a trailer that old.

I would think the battery will have to be replaced too, if it's been in the trailer for 7 years.

There's a checklist for buying trailers on the forum, but because it's been in a garage, many of the items in the list probably don't apply.

I'll add that due to Covid, the cost of used trailers, like used cars and homes has gone up some. Realize that even if the trailer is in great shape, you will find there are things you will have to repair/attend to during ownership. A trailer becomes somewhat of a "hobby". Are you "handy"? I think it's best if YOU can repair problems, rather than depending on RV repair places - they don't do good jobs in many cases. That said, most everything in a HiLo is rather generic and you can find replacements for broken things online or locally in hardware stores.

Make sure the owners show you how to operate EVERYTHIING!

- Jack

Jack has given you some good advice.

Let us know what you decide. On my 1996 I had to replace all the tires and rims. The seal was shot between the layers. The battery was fried up from being plugged in for six years(no distilled water added). My only thought is that brand new trailers are poorly made and cost around $33.000. Tough decision for you to make.

Thanks so much for the responses. He’s hard nosing $5000 & you are correct when we look at what you get for $5000 this maybe a better use of our hard earned funds. They haven’t used it much. We’re wondering about the brakes & ac.Lights came on with battery power. Thinking about taking generator to test AC/fridge. Any insights?

Go for it!!

Use a generator to test the AC. The Refrigerator would have to be run on generator for a number of hours.It takes all night to get cold. The appliances could testr good and then the next day need replaced. Sooner or later brake work will need to be done. Possibly repack of the bearings. Go look at some other brand of used trailers to see how they compare.

NADA values on a 30-year-old camper are just a guess. I wouldn't pay much attention to it.
Hi-Lo of that age that hasn't routed down, that has been kept in such good condition is a rare gem.

It's personal perception, but $5k for a one owner, garage kept 25' 1988 HiLo doesn't seem out of line to me - about 3 years ago, we paid just under $9k for our 2307. It was a 2nd owner trailer, had been out in the elements for several years (with good maintenance), and had been lived in nearly full time for a couple of years by the seller.

We've put some addition $$ into it and have found evidence of minor leaks around the windows which we're quite sure had never been resealed (did that last summer), but it's been a great investment.

If there's no rodent damage from long term storage and everything works it's hard to see how you could go too far wrong.

Minor point, but if you're interested in vintage trailer rallies, it's probably old enough to qualify for at least some of them......

We are on our 3ed hilo...our current trailer is a 2807C... we love these trailers...ours was a 1 owner trailer that was traded in and we paid $12k for it... while it wasd in great condition, I resealed all the windows and had to fix all the cabinet doors as they were coming apart at the joints....As I am handy, i made all new oak panel doors...point being...all trailers will need some work, no matter their age...