Mango Bob (5 page)

I was.

We ventured inside and it did look like there'd been a party. A few empty whiskey bottles, dirty napkins, food wrappers.

But the overall condition was good. In fact, you could say it was luxurious.

Across from the door, a leather upholstered dinette with room for five people.

Opposite the dinette was a fully equipped kitchen. Granite counter top. Microwave oven. Two door refrigerator/freezer. Stainless steel sink. Solid wood cabinets.

Further back to the right, a private bathroom with toilet, vanity, and a shower.

Next to the bathroom was a bedroom with a wall mounted flat screen TV.

Looking toward the front of the coach, there was another large flat screen TV, a stereo and a DVD player.

Behind the passenger seat, a swivel lounge chair with wall mounted desk.

All the comforts of home, packed into a very small package.

The more I looked, the more I could see myself living in something like this. It was definitely better than my tent. And had plenty of space for my meager possessions.

Molly grinned, “Pretty nice, isn't it?”

“Yep, a lot nicer than I expected. Who would have thought it had so much room inside? A kitchen, bathroom, and bedroom? This thing has more room than some of the apartments I've lived in.”

Molly nodded, “Yeah, it's pretty cool. I could see you living in something like this.”

She pointed to the front, “Check out the driver's seat. It's leather. Get behind the wheel, let me see what you look like.”

It was an old car salesman's trick. Get the buyer in the driver's seat. Let them dream about how much fun it would be going down the road.

I knew better, but I took the bait. I settled into the leather and got comfortable.

Putting my hands on the steering wheel, it felt like I was king of the road. The gauges were easy to read, the view forward impressively expansive.

The side mirrors provided full views to the back and were remotely operated making them easy to adjust.

Above the dash, a small TV screen – Molly said it was the backup monitor – providing a wide-angle view behind the coach.

She sat down in the passenger seat. “Wonder if it'll start? It's been sitting here for weeks. The batteries might be dead.”

I found the key with the Ford logo on it and put it in the ignition. Gave it a turn, and the coach started right up.

No smoke coming out of the exhaust pipes. All the gauges were working. The speedometer showed just over nineteen thousand miles. Pretty low for a seven-year-old vehicle.

This thing was looking better and better.

But there was the matter of price. I didn't know if I could afford it. And what would I do with my Toyota truck if I were to buy the Love Bus?

I'd had the truck for seven years, paid it off long ago. It had served me well. Got me through mud and snow. Was a great daily driver. My main means of transportation, my pride and joy, my escape vehicle for as long as I could remember.

Selling it now, especially after the divorce and losing my job, might be too much to take on. But if I wanted to buy the motorhome, I'd have to sell the pickup. I'd need the money.

That's assuming the price was right. Molly hadn't yet told me what it would cost.

“Molly, this is really nice. And I can see how it might work for me. But, there's two problems.

“First, you haven't told me the price so I don't know if I can afford it. And second, I'd need to sell my truck before I could buy this.”

Molly smiled, “Don't worry about the price or selling your truck. The company really wants this thing gone. And if you're interested, I've got a way to make it happen. Today.”

13

I was thinking I wanted to buy the motorhome.

Having it would solve some immediate problems. It'd give me a roof over my head and buy me time to decide what I wanted to do next with my life.

Maybe it would be part of the 'freedom to make better choices and go in a new direction' Molly had mentioned as one of the benefits of losing a job.

Or maybe I was just tired of sleeping in a tent and was looking for a way out. Either way, I was interested in hearing Molly's plan.

“Okay, I'll bite. Tell me more.”

Molly smiled, “Here's how it can work. My brother-in-law, Raymond Ridge, is looking for a good four wheel drive truck. He says he really wants a Toyota double cab like yours. But he hasn't been able to find a good used one at a decent price.

“Just yesterday, he told me he'd be a cash buyer for the right truck. But he can only pay $9,500. That's the top of his budget.”

“Molly, my truck is worth at least $5,000 more than that. No way I'm going to let it go for $9,500.”

Molly smiled, “Don't worry. I've got it all figured out.”

“According to NADA, the wholesale value of the Love Bus is a little over $26,500. But corporate says I can sell it to you for the fully depreciated value of $13,500.

Molly paused, “If we could do an even swap, your truck for the motorhome, would you do it?”

I thought about it. My truck was worth $13,500. The NADA wholesale for the motorhome was $26,500, and if I did an even swap, I'd be $13,000 ahead on paper.

I nodded, “Yeah I'd do an even swap. I'd be a fool not to.”

Molly picked up her phone, “I'll call my brother-in-law, see if he can come over and look at your truck.

“If he wants it, do you have clear title?”

“Yep, I've got clear title. In fact, the title is in the glove box. If we do the deal, I can sign it over today.”

“Good. I'll call Raymond. Go clean out your truck before he gets here.”

While Molly called her brother-in-law, I went back to my office and got on the internet to check what a seven year old Winnebago Aspect like the Love Bus would really sell for.

Searching RVTraderonline, I found several for sale. Ten were the same year and model as the one in the parking lot.

The lowest asking price was $32,500 – and that one had almost 100,000 miles on it. A lot more than the Love Bus's 19,000 miles.

Most of the others were priced around $40,000.

That meant if I could get the Love Bus for the $13,500 my truck was worth, it was a real deal. I'd be getting it for less than half of the lowest retail.

That also meant if I bought the Love Bus and it didn't work out, I could probably sell it and make a pretty good profit.

I liked that.

Satisfied that it was a good deal, I found an empty packing box and headed out to my truck.

I didn't want Molly's brother-in-law to find all my worldly possessions in it. He might think I was homeless – which was technically true.

After cleaning out the truck, I brought the box back to my office and continued to research Winnebago Aspect motorhomes on the web.

On YouTube, I found a video walk-through showing all the features, including one I had overlooked – the dinette was really a slide room.

On the video, the salesman pushed a button and the dinette wall moved out. Opening a lot more living space inside. An unexpected bonus.

Molly walked into my office and tapped me on the shoulder. “My brother-in-law is out in the parking lot. He wants to see your truck.”

I followed Molly outside to where a man about my age, dressed in business casual, stood by my truck.

Molly introduced us. We shook hands.

“Nice looking truck. How long have you had it?”

“I bought it new.”

Raymond walked around the truck, looked under the frame, kicked the tires.

“Any problems with it?”

“Not that I know of. I've had all the service done at the dealer. Changed the oil every 5,000 miles. Everything's original and works the way it should.”

Raymond smiled, “OK, I'm interested. Let's take it for a drive.”

I gave him the keys, slid into the passenger seat, and we headed out.

Before we left the plant parking lot, Raymond tested the steering with a figure eight maneuver, then a panic stop.

Satisfied, we headed out onto Interstate 40.

Merging into traffic, Raymond accelerated up to seventy five, set the cruise control and turned on the air conditioner.

As we cruised down the highway, he took both hands off the steering wheel to see how well the truck tracked and whether it pulled to either side.

No problems there.

Happy with the way it handled, Raymond took the next exit, drove three miles, turned down a dirt road, and pulled over.

“OK for me to put it in four wheel drive?”

“Sure, no problem.”

He pressed the 4WD button on the dash, shifted into four low, and we took off down the road.

After about five minutes of four wheeling, Raymond brought the truck to a full stop, took it out of four wheel drive and said, “It drives real good. No rattles. Everything works.”

We headed back to the plant. Raymond continued to ask me about the truck. “Any rust, wrecks or other damage?”

He was asking me the kind of questions I should have been asking Molly about the motorhome.

“No rust. No wrecks. No problems. New Battery last year. And tires are less than three months old.”

Raymond was clearly impressed, “Okay. I'll buy it. With just one condition.”

“Molly explained how this was going to work. I get your truck for $9,500, and you get the motorhome.”

“But your truck is worth more than $9,500 and Molly tells me the motorhome needs a new set of tires.

“So here's the deal.

“I've got a fleet account down at Independent Tire. If you'll take the motorhome down there today and ask for Ron Sanders, he'll put six new tires on it and charge them to my account.

“I'll call Ron and let him know about the deal. He'll do you right, and it won't cost you anything. My treat.”

This was definitely an unexpected surprise – made parting with my truck a lot easier.

I wondered if Molly had anything to do with this? Getting Raymond to pay for the tires? Not that it really mattered, but Molly was really going to a lot of trouble to make this deal work for me.

When we got back to the plant, Raymond parked near the front door and told Molly the truck was exactly what he was looking for. He'd be a cash buyer at $9,500.

Molly looked pleased, then turned toward me, “So if Raymond buys your truck, you'll buy the Love Bus?”

I smiled, “Molly, if you have a clear title to the motorhome and can sell it to me for $9,500, I'd be a fool not to buy it.”

“Good. Then it's a deal. I've got a Bill-of-Sale for each of you to sign. Walker, bring the title to your truck.”

I got the title out of the glove box and followed Raymond and Molly to her office.

Raymond counted out ninety five one hundred dollar bills, and handed the money to me.

I signed the truck title, the bill of sale, and gave the keys to Raymond.

We shook hands and with a big smile he said, “I've already called Ron at Independent Tire and told him about the tire deal. They'll be expecting you. Just call them to let them know when you're coming in.”

He gave Molly a hug, picked up his paperwork and said, “Thanks for making this happen.” He headed out the door. As he drove off, I said to myself, “Man, I'm going to miss that truck.”

Molly turned to me, “Don't look so sad. You're getting a pretty good deal. Let's sign the paperwork and make this official.”

She pointed to the cash Raymond had given me, “Hand it over. Time to pay for the Love Bus.”

I gave her the money and she handed me a signed bill-of-sale and the title for the motorhome.

“Congratulations, you are now the proud owner of the Love Bus.”

14

“It's your fault. Until this morning, I didn't even know the Love Bus existed. And now, I'm the owner.”

Molly laughed, “Don't complain. You're going to love it.

“But before you do anything, make copies of the title and the Bill-of-Sale. Then go online and get the Love Bus insured.

“After you get the insurance, print out a 'proof of insurance card', then come back to my office.”

I saluted, “Yes ma'am! Will do.”

Getting insurance was easy. Just went online and searched for 'motorhome insurance'. Filled out a form, and used my new credit card to pay. Just as the bank had promised, the card had arrived four days after I applied.

Per Molly's instructions, I printed out a copy of the 'proof of insurance' card along with the policy.

With both in hand, I headed back to her office.

“Did you get the insurance?”

“Yep, sure did. Through Progressive. It was less than what insurance cost me on the truck.”

“That's good. Now that you've got insurance, take the motorhome to the revenue office. Get it registered. Get plates on it.