Experienced Help Please

[bennyjamesthedog]

My husband and I have decided that we would like to purchase an old
Bluebird Wanderlodge (late 70s/80s). They are very unique. We are
just starting to learn about them and intend to gather info over the
summer to verify that we haven't lost our minds and then to actually
make a purchase toward the end of the year.
As all of you appear to own one and love them, we thought that
perhaps you could guide us on what to look for based on your
experiences. We are total novices as it relates to these units so
any input would help.

Examples of our questions are below:

How many miles is too many miles? For example we see some at 50,000
miles and some at 140,000 is the latter too many?

Is it unreasonable to think we can purchase one from the late
70s/early 80s and expect it to be reliable?

If you were to break down is it hard to locate people that can work
on these units? Can any diesel truck mechanic fix these things?

When buying one are there certain things that we should focus the
most attention on because they are the most expensive to fix?

Is there a noticeable power difference in the late 70s non-turbo
engine vs. the 80s engine with the extra power?.

What is the expected fuel mileage on of these units?.

That's it for now. We greatly appreciate your input on any of these
items. And we look forward to meeting up with you someday in our
new 'old' rig.

Bob and Sue James and Benny the dog.