Abandoned 1977 Chevrolet Motorhome Returns From the Dead, Goes Drifting To Celebrate

Most owners say that the average lifespan of a motorhome is between 15 to 20 years with proper maintenance. That said, RVs usually spend more time with their owners compared to regular automobiles. But this doesn't mean that many of them don't end up abandoned in junkyards.

Motorhomes aren't a very common sight in scrapyards and this may have something to do with the fact that they can remain useful even after they stop running. But once an RV hits the junkyard, chances are it won't get restored. That's because restoring a motorhome is usually a lot more expensive than reviving a classic car. But some of them do get saved for parts or to be fixed and flipped. This 1970s Country Squire is one of those lucky campers.

Purchased by YouTube's "Mortske Repair" at an online auction, this RV had a rough and shady past. According to our host, it was used as some sort of meth lab for a few years. Once "decommissioned," it ended up in a scrapyard and sat for about 15 years as of 2023. All told, it's the perfect vehicle for a "will it run" video, which is exactly what you're about to see below.

For a camper that has been sitting for more than a decade, this Country Squire isn't all that terrible. The interior is trashed, but hey, it still has all the amenities you'd expect to find in a motorhome. And it seems this thing had everything it needed when new, from a shower-equipped bathroom to a nice kitchen with a stove, a sink, and lots of cupboards.

But speaking of the "Country Squire" badge, this RV has nothing to do with the iconic station wagon that Ford produced from 1950 to 1991. Like most motorhomes built by this company, it's based on a van. In this case, it's a third-generation Chevrolet G-Series. Yup, that's the long-lived predecessor of the more iconic Express. The latter is still around after more than 20 years, while the G-Series was produced from 1971 to 1996.

Based on the front fascia, this particular model is part of the early 1971-to-1977 series, recognizable by its round headlamps. Chevrolet updated the hauler in 1978 and switched to square lights and a thicker frame for the front grille.

This hauler draws juice from a 350-cubic-inch (5.7-liter) small-block V8, one of six mills Chevrolet was offering with the G-Series at the time. The unit was rated at 157 horsepower and 255-pound-feet (346 Nm) from the factory, but our host suspects that the small-block got some upgrades over the years.

Not surprisingly given that it sat for 15 years without a sip of gasoline, the engine had a few issues and refused to fire up without a bit of work. But Mortske fixed it quite rapidly and took it for a spin around the block. Or should I say around the yard littered with junk cars and trucks that keep him busy. And to celebrate the fact that the V8 was still peppy, he did a few burnouts and even attempted some donuts. Drifting in a junkyard-found motorhome, now that's something you don't see every day.