Inspection and Maintenance
In-Shop RV and Trailer Pre-Purchase Inspection
Typical range
$250 to $1,200
Shop hours
2 to 6
Labor rate
$210/hr
The short answer
A paid pre-purchase inspection puts a used RV, trailer, or van on our lifts at Yorba Linda for structural, moisture, and body assessment with a photographed written report. It runs $250 to $1,200, or 2 to 6 hours at $210 per hour. In shop only.
01
What this work actually involves
The number that matters on a used RV is not the asking price, it is the deferred repair bill behind it. Moisture metering routinely finds five figures of hidden damage on units that photograph beautifully, because water enters at a seal, travels inside the wall, and destroys substrate for years before anything shows on the surface. A coach that has been repainted or had its interior freshened is not evidence of care. Frequently it is evidence that someone wanted the symptoms gone before the listing went up.
Our inspection is a body, structural, and moisture inspection, and it is performed in our shop with the unit on our equipment. That is a deliberate limitation and it is worth being clear about. We do not inspect at a seller location, we do not perform engine, drivetrain, or transmission evaluation, and we do not perform DOT inspections. What we do cover is what determines whether a used unit is a sound purchase or a project: the frame, the cage, the laminate, the roof, the seals, the openings, the running gear, and the moisture picture across the whole envelope.
The report is photographed and written so it is usable. Every finding gets an image, a location, and a plain description of what it means and what correcting it involves. Buyers use it to walk away, and they use it to negotiate. Sellers occasionally have one done before listing so the unit does not lose a buyer at the first meter reading. Either way, the value is that the findings are documented by someone with no stake in whether the deal closes.
Location: All work is performed at our Yorba Linda facility. We do not offer mobile, roadside, or fleet route service.
02
What the job includes
- Full-envelope moisture metering of floor, walls, ceiling, and slide openings
- Delamination mapping by tap test and raking light across every panel
- Roof membrane, penetration, and seal condition assessment
- Frame, cage, crossmember, and outrigger inspection from underneath
- Evidence of prior collision or structural repair, including hidden reworks
- Slide-out operation, seal condition, and room alignment through full travel
- Window, door, and compartment opening operation and seal condition
- Running gear survey including tires, date codes, bearings, brakes, and suspension
- Fiberglass cap, sidewall, and skin condition including gelcoat and crazing
- Photographed written report with location, description, and repair implication
03
When you need this service
- A used unit under consideration that you have not had assessed by anyone independent
- A private party sale where no service history is available
- A recently repainted or freshly refinished unit with no explanation for the work
- Any coach with a musty smell, a wavy sidewall, or a soft spot underfoot
- A price that seems well below comparable units on the market
- A unit that has been stored outdoors in the desert or near the coast for years
- A seller who is reluctant to release the unit for an inspection
04
How we do it, step by step
- 01
Scheduling and arrival
The unit is brought to our Yorba Linda facility by you or by the seller. All inspections are performed in shop, never at a seller location or a storage lot.
- 02
Exterior envelope survey
Roof, sidewalls, cap, and skin walked and mapped by tap test and raking light for delamination, prior repair, and seal condition at every penetration.
- 03
Moisture metering
Readings taken across the whole envelope and mapped, not sampled. The pattern of readings is what reveals a travel path and therefore hidden damage.
- 04
Underside and running gear
Frame, crossmembers, hangers, and welds inspected from underneath, plus tire date codes, brake condition, bearing play, and suspension wear.
- 05
Openings and slide operation
Every door, window, compartment, and slide operated through full travel with seals and alignment checked, since binding openings signal a racked structure.
- 06
Prior repair assessment
We look specifically for evidence of previous collision or water repair, including fill over laminate, mismatched fasteners, and refinish overspray in odd places.
- 07
Photographed report
Findings compiled with an image, a location, and a plain-language explanation of each item and what correcting it involves, delivered to you directly.
05
Pricing and posted rates
| Item | Rate or range | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Typical job range | $250 to $1,200 | Varies with extent of damage and parts availability |
| Shop hours | 2 to 6 | Quoted after teardown, not before |
| Body and paint labor | $210 per hour | 2026 posted rate |
| Paint supplies | $55 per paint hour | Calculated automatically on every estimate |
| Body supplies | $5 per body hour | Calculated automatically on every estimate |
| Parts | 100% markup under $100, 35% over | Special order parts require a non refundable deposit at order |
| Deposit | 50% at authorization over $2,000 | Additional 25% when parts arrive on jobs over $10,000 |
| Sales tax | 7.75% on parts and materials | Labor is not taxed |
Insurance billed jobs may be billed at carrier negotiated labor rates that differ from the posted retail rates above. See all posted rates.
07
Vehicles we do this work on
Vehicle
Class A Gas Motorhomes
A Class A gas motorhome is a flat-front coach built on a Ford F53 or Workhorse front-engine chassis, typically 28 to 38 feet. Rear
Vehicle
Class A Diesel Pusher Motorhomes
A diesel pusher carries a rear-mounted diesel on a raised-rail air ride chassis, usually 34 to 45 feet with full-body paint and pa
Vehicle
Class C Motorhomes
A Class C is a coach body built onto a cutaway van chassis with a sleeping or storage cabover extending above the factory cab. Tha
Vehicle
Standard Fifth Wheels
A fifth wheel couples to a hitch in the truck bed through a kingpin and pin box, with a raised forward bedroom over the truck. The
Vehicle
Travel Trailers
A travel trailer tows from a ball hitch behind the tow vehicle rear axle on an A-frame tongue, which makes it the most sway-prone
Vehicle
Vintage and Classic RVs
Vintage coaches, from riveted aluminum Airstreams and Avions to GMC motorhomes and 1970s Class A units, use construction and parts
Vehicle
Truck Campers, Slide-In
A slide-in truck camper sits in a pickup bed and is clamped down at four points, so it absorbs the truck frame twist directly. Jac
08
Questions about in-shop pre-purchase inspection
Frequently asked questions
How much does an RV pre-purchase inspection cost?
It runs $250 to $1,200, or 2 to 6 hours at $210 per hour. A small travel trailer sits near the low end. A large diesel pusher with multiple slides, a full underside survey, and extensive moisture mapping sits at the high end. On a used coach it is consistently the least expensive money anyone spends, because it either finds nothing or it finds five figures.
Can you inspect a unit at the seller location?
No. All inspections are performed at our Yorba Linda facility, on our equipment, with the unit accessible from underneath. That is what makes the frame and moisture findings reliable. We do not offer on-site or route service of any kind. Arranging for the seller to release the unit for a few hours is a normal request and a reasonable seller will accommodate it.
What does the inspection not cover?
We do not perform engine, drivetrain, or transmission evaluation, and we do not perform DOT inspections. Our scope is body, structural, moisture, openings, and running gear. If you are buying a motorized coach, plan on a separate chassis evaluation elsewhere. We will tell you plainly which findings are inside our scope and which are not.
Will the report help me negotiate?
That is a large part of why buyers order it. Every finding is photographed with a location and a plain description of what correcting it involves, which turns a vague concern into a documented item. Buyers regularly use the report to negotiate the price down by more than the inspection cost, and sometimes to walk away from a unit entirely.
Can you find hidden water damage?
That is the single highest-value part of this inspection. We meter the whole envelope and map the readings rather than spot checking, which is how a moisture path gets traced back to its entry point. Water travels inside a wall for years before it shows on the surface, so a unit that looks clean and reads wet is a common and important finding.
09
Related services
Service
Water Damage and Subfloor Replacement
Water damage restoration covers soft floors, rotted subfloor, failed wall substrate, and the seal failure that caused it. Work run
Service
Delamination Repair
Delamination is the separation of the fiberglass skin from the substrate underneath. It shows as bubbling, waviness, or a soft spo
Service
Frame and Structural Repair
Frame and structural repair corrects bent rails, cracked welds, failed outriggers, and out-of-square cage on RVs, trailers, and co
Service
Annual Maintenance Service
Annual maintenance service covers seal inspection and renewal, roof assessment, opening and slide operation, running gear checks,
Service
Pre-Trip Body and Structural Inspection
A pre-trip inspection checks the items that strand people: tires and date codes, bearings, brakes, seals, slides, hitch, and frame
10
More inspection and maintenance work
Ready to move on in-shop pre-purchase inspection? Bring it to Yorba Linda.