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How Old is too Old
How old is too old. Would anyone consider buying a 1991 Country Coach with 94k miles. Phil Cooper has what appears to be a nice CC coach, non-slide, and of course, a pre-inspection would be required but are the systems too old to consider even if you do a zero out at East Tenn. Thanks Michael
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21 Replies
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You might want to look at this one. I just noticed this one yesterday. It has a 60 series and cost less then the one at Phil cooper.
Just another choice….
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That is a very attractive Coach for the year. As a thought, guessing, how much to zero a Coach of this vintage would be? Michael
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Michael,
i have a 1990 oldy but goody! If you can do without all of the latest bells and whistles you should really enjoy your old coach….. and have minimum depreciation. Your normal upkeep and maintenance will be far less than the depreciation alone on a newer coach.
you our would be wise to let Jeff at ETLC inspect the coach if at all possible.
As as stated here earlier, we enjoyed 5 new Prevost coaches during our youth and working years. We are enjoying this old classic just as much or perhaps more.
Happy trails!
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This is just an educated guess, so take it with a grain of salt.
On an older coach you have all the normal issues to consider such as the quality of the previous maintenance which is oil changes, coolant changes, transmission fluid changes, etc. and to that you can add the consideration of the potential need to replace aging air bags, brake chambers, suspension valves etc.
There have been numerous discussions on this forum about the likely cost associated with bringing everything current so you have a relatively trouble free coach. We have seen and discussed numbers from $30,000 to as much as $50,000 if you have a service shop do the work. It sounds like a lot of money, but you go out the door with everything that typically ages or wears out up to date and you will have a long time before you have to spend any serious money doing it again..
What is an unknown is what age might have affected such as issues ranging from corrosion of fasteners, electrical connections, or even some body members. You also have to consider if the coach has had a lack of proveable use and service there could be surprises such as pneumatic systems that have been damaged by moisture.
But there is a lot of good news in an older coach. As Hugh pointed out depreciation is very small. The systems are usually simple but robust and parts are often available at places like W.W. Grainger. Because the coach lacks the gee-whiz stuff that is becoming more common and more complex you have a coach that is easy to work on by yourself and you do not have to rely on a programmer or NASA scientist to keep it running.
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Thanks to all for their thoughts. I like simple and uncomplicated. I plan to use the Coach for travel between our home in Green Bay and to our winter home in Arizona. Side trips, golf coursed and browsing is the objective and to Florida some Januarys to visit friends. Don’t plan to live in it for more than two weeks on the way out. So Slides are not important, bells and whistles are not important (Direct TV and the Internet are mandatory. I like to chill at night and enjoy the current events around the world. Thanks to all East Tenn is definitely in my plan for inspection and for Zeroing. I have been on here long enough to know Jeff is the best for reputation. Michael
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Michael:
Where is that coach located? Is it within even a long day’s ride to look at it? If it is, I’d be open to riding along to look it over with you. I’m just down the road four miles off I-43.
How many Prevosts have you looked at? You’re more than welcome to drive down and I’ll walk you through our coach so you have a basic understanding of what you could be looking at.
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Being able to zero out a coach is great but may not be necessary all at once.
We bought our 1999 coach five years ago. Other than a weak house bank which we replaced quickly we had no big surprises. We embarked on a preventive maintenance program starting with the most critical systems first. Over the years we have replaced shocks, air bags, brake pads, tires, upgraded headlights and changed fluids regularly. There were some smaller repairs like upgrading to the automatic belt tensioner on the engine, getting an OTR leak fixed, replacing the upper A arms, etc but nothing too painful. The coach never left us stranded. Next major maintenance will be replacing the brake chambers and relay valves.
Gerald
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Gerald makes an extremely good point.
While doing it all at once may enable you to enjoy a trouble free coach immediately, there is no reason to do so. If you are comfortable setting a schedule in which you deal with issues that impact safety first (brake chambers for example), then those that prevent expensive repairs (timely coolant change or oil change), and finally those that will prevent a potential problem (air bags?) you can work to your schedule and stagger the costs so you don’t have to feed the kids macaroni for the next year.
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You buy older and age gets them a little. Bought my 1991 XL Mirage with 50,000 easy miles on it going on 7 years ago. Repalced all the usual goodies, bags, vavles, trans fluid, tires, shocks and who knows what else. Mine is down getting the blower R&R’ed now. Things ie rubber gets old and seals let loose. Be prepared to fix and replace a few things. Mine ran for a while before it needed anything major. Best thing about these old coaches is cash purchase and no payments if your set up for it. With $70,000 0r $80,000 bucks compared to $200,000 or $300,000. Fix a lot of stuff with that much moola diff.
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I took 4-5 years to zero mine out. Not only does it spread the initial expense, it sets you up for staggered subsequent replacements. If you can do some of your own work the initial cost will drop.
Jeff and Lindsay
91 Marathon XL -
Bought our 1992 CC five years ago. Immediately replaced tires, airbags, shocks and batteries. I get service at Elite Coach Lines in Ephrata PA. They run a fleet of Prevost busses and the mechanics we’re excited (really) to have an 8V92 in the shop. Said it was in remarkable shape. Only constant source of maintenance seems to be Norgen valves. Only watch item so far is a little copper in the oil analysis last change. I think that means crank bushings.
For us the drivers were a) affordability and b) last model year of solid walnut cabinets.
Biggest challenge was finding a shop that didn’t run me off with a shotgun when they heard the 2-stroke. I drive 2 hours to Elite, who do a good bit of contract servicing for the top converters.
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OK, so in my search, I finally find the “perfect” Coach for my needs and in my price range. I want Jeff at East Tenn. do a pre-inspection, but the Coach is in Dallas or Stanford Florida. How do I get the owner to drive it up to Jeff, and who pays the travel expense and time while the inspection goes on? Is the potential buyer or owner responsible for picking up the tab? I know I, as the buyer, has to pay for the actual inspection, Jeff’s tab, but with the other travel expenses is who’s responsible. Now, Jeff finds a fair amount of items to be fixed, not wants but needs; is that negotiated off the selling price and if the owner says no, it represents a lot of wasted time and money for both the seller and the buyer. How is that addressed prior to the pre-inspection? I expect the negotiation between a private seller will be different from a commercial dealer/seller who might do their own inspection and might be offended if you push for an independent inspection. I would appreciate anyone’s thoughts. Michael
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If you can find a seller considerate enough to transport the coach to TN For a Jeff inspection, consider yourself very fortunate and pay the tab! May cost you a few hundred $ but may save you thousands of $.
Just one guys opinion.
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Michael,
In the real world very few owners would do that.
Especially if they knew you could walk away from the deal if the inspection turned up any issues. If I knew my true mileage costs would be covered, not just the cost of fuel, but wear and tear on tires, oil, my time etc. then I would consider it, especially if I knew the coach was in great shape. But there is the problem. We all are afraid something might turn up so we do not go to that extent for the sale.
Keep in mind our posts can scare people. But put it in perspective. When we buy a coach what we really care about is that the tires, batteries, generator, and A/C units all work well. In the absence of records to prove otherwise we have to assume any coach may need air bags, brake chambers or Norgren vlaves for example and we can calculate what they will cost and mentally adjust what we are willing to spend.
The seller or someone who knows Prevost coaches locally can check the big stuff for you. I would not especially fear the need to do all fluids, air bags, batteries etc. because if you do that soon after buying the coach, you are the one that gets the benefit from driving on new components.
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Hi Liam, RE: Biggest challenge was finding a shop that didn’t run me off with a shotgun when they heard the 2-strike.”I thought the 8V92 was an engine thought to be one of the best ever built. You’re the first I’ve heard mention it’s too loud?
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