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Air Or Not To Air
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We have previously been a fan of bottled water, but my
understanding in many cases the bottled water is nothing more than
city water filtered to remove the chlorine.Paul?
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A simple carbon filter removes the chlorine taste and smell from water.
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Back to the OP thread….my XL40 gets down low within 12 hours after parking, plugged in at RV park, do I have a problem ?
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My 91 XL does also. Used to take a few days to drop on one side and took it up to Ft Worth Prevost a month or so ago to fix this, change fluids and a few other idems on coach. After I picked it up it was worse. It’s in Houston at new Prevost facility getting air bags replaced and drivers window moisture problem fixed. I think after this trip they would have replaced every valve on this puppy. Will let you know what they have done after I pick it up. If I had thought ahead I would have incorporated a walk in pit in my barn slab and tried to do some on this stuff myself.
glen s.
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When you turn off your coach the air in the air bags should be locked in place by the Norgren valves that control each of the three positions. The front, left rear and right rear are the three different suspension positions.
When the fittings are tight, the Norgren valves are not leaking and the air bags are not leaking the bus should remain at whatever height it was when the key was turned off. That’s the theory. As a practical matter, over time as rubber ages and valves, bags and fittings are no longer air tight the coach will settle. It usually starts out leaking air so slowly it takes weeks before you can notice the bus is leaning or sagging. But eventually the leak rate increases and the weeks turn into days and then the leak rate is measured in hours. In colder temperatures the problem is more pronounced.
Those of us that have experienced this know that once we begin to experience the “leans” the problem will get worse. It will never repair itself. From my perspective if my coach has 10 year old air bags and Norgren valves they are just about at the end of their service life. By then I have noticed my coach will start to lean and it is only a question of how long will it be before the “leans” become unacceptable. Once I see evidence of leaning I just bite the bullet and change all air bags and Norgren valves. Dealing with aging parts, chasing leaks, and replacing those parts that are leaking one at a time is both time consuming and expensive. I have learned the time spent chasing leaks has a cost that usually exceeds the cost to just deal with the entire coach.
For those who choose to not do their own trouble shooting and repairs they will soon realize the cost of fuel and the money spent for a tech to squirt soapy water greatly exceeds what it costs to just bite the bullet and replace all the parts.
Suspension repairs will have different costs and I would urge everyone to shop around for the best price. I am not suggesting you take your coach to the local shade tree mechanic, but to a shop that has specialized in Prevost coaches.
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Talked tp Prevost (Houston) this morning and all bags have been replaced and all valves. Gonna get this done right. (I hope) Will have new air system under coach. They Are checking it out overnight and see where we stand. I hate the leans, don’t care what it costs. Told the wife shoulda just traded it on a new one cause I probably will have that much in the old one with repairs.
glen s.
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The reality is every coach is going to need to have the suspension system “renewed” at some point. To have a coach that doesn’t lean start with a new one that is under warranty so if it does you don’t have to pay for the repairs.
But even then a time will come when the coach starts to lean. And when it does, depending on how old the air bags, valves and the condition of the fittings the problems begin. I am a believer in compression fittings, but most of the fittings on newer coaches are the push in type. They are great when new, save a lot of assembly time, and conceptually are a good idea, but those of us that spend our spare time chasing leaks will tell you for long term reliability it is tough to beat a properly installed compression fitting
So even a newer coach (or a new one) is not going to be any more leak free than your coach will be once they go through your coach two or three times to tighten and reseal leaky fittings and verify the new air bags and valves are leak free. Don’t be too hasty to pick up your coach. I believe the Prevost standard for acceptability is it will not lean in three days. If I sound cynical that your coach will lean earlier than that, I am being realistic. I have tried my best to insure leak free connections the numerous times I have replaced my air bags and valves and I am confident no matter how careful any of us are one or two of the fittings will be leaking. Leak free means just that.
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Thanks Jon for all the info. I usually dump all the air when we park at rv sites anyway because our 13 year old great dane has a bit of trouble stepping up into coach and he travels with us when we go. If the coach will stay up a couple days I figure I got it licked. I’m easy!
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Checking for leak(s) today, found the #3 (center) solenoid leaking air, so I called Bryan at JAX Prevost for advice on which part should be replaced.
When I pulled the solenoid out, valve stem still hissing and even more so if jiggled around. Should I replace the valve stem only or the entire solenoid?
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Assume you are talking about the 5 port Norgren in the steer bay. Replace both the coil and valve and carry a spare. The center one is the ride height. Be sure to check if it’s 12 or 24 volt when ordering. This is what the valve looks like when removed.
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That’s the one, thanks. I will order them tomorrow.
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Georges,
What Tom’s photo doesn’t show is there are two O rings that fit in a pair of grooves on the bottom of the valve (the part shown). They are easy to lose or to get out of place so just exercise some caution when replacing the valve.
Definitely excellent advice to carry a spare coil for the center valve. That valve is energized all the time the key is on and the Level Low is in the drive or road position. Since it is energized all the time we are going down the road it also is usually the one to fail. Usually when a coach will not return to the driving height it is that solenoid coil that has failed.
If you do not have a spare solenoid coil when you are ready to drive just swap it out with any of the other coils which are only used if it is necessary to level the coach on a campsite.
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