Purchasing a vintage 1993 B190

[DaddyVanTrotter]

Hi Folks,

Thanks for the add. I’m new to the B190 community, though I do have some RV experience. Some of my fondest memories are from RV trips with my wife and our two daughters when they were young. These days, my daughters are grown and in college, and my wife has developed other interests—so it’ll just be me and my loyal dog, Mel, hitting the road.

I’m currently looking at purchasing a 1993 B190 Airstream for an epic cross-country road trip from San Francisco to Key West in Spring 2026, with plans to explore other parts of the country as well. The van has only 32,000 miles, which suggests it’s spent much of its life parked. Still, I know that age can bring its own set of challenges, regardless of mileage.

Once I address any issues, I plan to take it on a few short and boondocking trips to prepare for the big adventure. I’d really appreciate your expert advice on a few things:

1) What should I look for before purchasing a vintage 1993 B190 Airstream?
2) Any suggestions for prepping the B190 for a long cross-country trip?
3) In terms of the B190 reliability, what should I expect on a drive from San Francisco to Key West?

Thanks in advance for your guidance—excited to be part of the community!

I know these are veg questions, but any response would be appreciated.  

[skater]

Sorry for the delay in responding - not sure how I missed your question.

The main issue with these are leaks. Look for spots on the ceiling that show it has been wet. The fan over the bed is an extremely common spot for leaks, for example. It's also not unusual to see dark spots under the side windows in the top - they have a tendency to leak if the drains are clogged.

Check all the appliances work. The fridge is hard to check because it takes so long to cool down, and even a warm element doesn't mean that the ammonia is still in the pipes where it belongs.

Of course, the usual used-vehicle things apply as well - try to start it cold (i.e., first thing in the morning) to see how it runs. Make sure the transmission shifts normally. Listen for odd noises at steady speed (torque converter). Feel for vibrations in the front or rear. Is the steering okay? Note that this will NOT handle like a Porsche, but it shouldn't be wandering all over the road either. Some people put in steering stabilizers to improve the handling, but I think often they are used as a band-aid for worn out ball joints and the like.

I'd change the oil and transmission fluid before a long road trip. Maybe change the belts and keep the old ones as spares.

Expect to need new tires. Everyone always goes "oooh they have great tread" but then you check the date codes and they're 10 years old (most manufacturers recommend replacement after 5 or 6 years, regardless of wear). I was looking at a trailer one time and the seller said, "The tires just need air!" The tires were so dry-rotted that I wondered if it'd make it to the nearest tire shop.

When I bought mine back in 2017, it still had the tires that I put on before I sold it - one pair was from 2010, the other was even older. The first stop was a tire shop.

You can run into odd things like hoses drying out (I had to replace the fuel fill and vent hoses for both tanks on mine).

In general these are pretty reliable. Some '93s had issues with the computers failing, but I don't know how widespread that is. The transmission is the E4OD which are good, until they fail, usually around 100k miles. I'd try to drive it around locally as much as practical before a long trip.

Good luck!