[Michael]

Is that the liberty for sale at olyimpia coach ??

If so I think that coach sold from them three or five months ago I would have Jeff Rowe in Knoxville check it out before you buy it , why is it up for sale again so fast????

I could be wrong but better to be safe than sorry

Get Jeff Rowe to do a DMI number of shop. 1-844-884-6036

[Peter]

Peter is right. If it is the bus at Olympia(Nashville)then Jeff(Vonore,near Knoxville) is the guy, especially with a Liberty.

[jack]

yes, it is at that place, and i’m glad i asked, as i too wonder why so soon.

[jack]

please what is a dmi? not ready to spend any $$ yet, but am kinda pre-checking. thanks!

[Tom]

It is a Detailed Maintenance inspection before you buy the bus to let you know what it needs or doesn’t need fixed

[Bill]

Call me a cynic………..

Unless you have access to all service records there is no way in the world anyone can inspect a coach and tell you what it needs for maintenance properly.

I can look at grease fittings and judge whether it has been greased recently. I can see obvious things that Stevie Wonder could see such as oil leaking from shcocks, bad hub seals, or low fluid levels.

Apart from looking at black dirty oil and guessing it needs a change (diesel oil gets black fast) I cannot tell from looking if the transmission fluid or filters are over due, I don’t know if the coolant has been changed, if the oil or coolant filters or fuel filters are OK, etc.

And will the inspection reveal the age of the air bags or brake chambers? The condition of the skins or CAC? Any guesses as to how well the air system has been maintained? Will the inspection reveal if the Norgrens are full of a wet sludge due to poor maintenance?

My free advice is plan for the worst in the absence of good documentation. Then if everything does work well and if everything has had timely service, life is good and you come out ahead.

[Peter]

Well. Take Jon ‘s approach , plan on spending about 45,000 plus what you bought the coach for and all things will be good , Sorry not for me I want to look under the coach and look over things !!!!!!

Not everybody has a pit or a way to get it in the air, and if you don’t know what to look for what’s good or bad it can ruin your dream , but if somebody other than the seller checks it out and knows what to look for it could help you

[Paul]

I hope my remarks were not misunderstood.

First, the question was about paying someone to do a DMI. That is a world of difference from having Peter do an inspection. A mechanic is never going to sweat the details like Peter will. It is better than a poke in the eye with a sharp stick, but what Peter is talking about goes far beyond the average inspection.

With no documentation, no matter what the inspector says I think anyone buying a coach should plan on replacing all fluids, all filters, all belts, and do a very detailed inspection of all hoses, particularly those associated with the conversion.

That is not going to even approach the dollars Peter suggests.

But depending on your tolerance for risk the items that might be considered for replacement are air bags because if they are over 10 years of age they are likely to start showing some cracks and their potential for leaking starts to go up. Same with brake chambers. If the coach is starting to lean after sitting for a while include the Norgren valves on the list of things to do. My guess is less than $10000 will take care of everything I mentioned. Less if you do your own work.

Then if you really want to zero out the coach consider tires, batteries, and all the valves relating to the braking system. Finally, if the coach has push in fittings consider a changeover to compression fittings when you have time and money.

[glen]

I have spent time with knowledgeable / reputable sales people and I have to say I am with Peter, get as much information as you can from a knowledgeable 2nd party inspection. Documentation is the best but in most cases limited. If you generically take $50k maintenance into consideration on all coaches you look at I suspect it might take a long time to make a purchase. For a novice like myself, I will use East Tenn. Luxury Coach for my question, will they give a defined maint plan suggestion going forward and a current $ value for a coach.

The knowledge of this site is great, I have had sales people refer to this site as making their job more difficult because of what people get from it, I was surprised by that conversation and it certainly raised the radar for this sales team. I would have thought they would have encouraged knowledge. Many others have. Those are the ones I want to deal with.

[glen]

Lets
not scare potential buyers to death here boys. An inspection is money
well spent if you don’t have the ability or knowledge to check it out
yourself. If a Coach has good tires and batteries at point of sale,
you may need nothing more than a complete fluid change and some minor
issues taken care of. Not everyone is going to zero out a Coach if
the systems and running gear are in good condition. If you have the
resources to zero it out, that’s all well and good, but not a
necessity in order to use and enjoy the Coach.

Peter
is in a very different position, his bus has to perform day in and
day out because it’s a business tool and piles up miles 9 months of
the year. If I were in Peter’s shoes, I would do the same thing
because having a maintenance failure is not an option when on such a
tight schedule. He’s running his business from the bus and not
sitting in a campground sipping squeezins.

So
for those Coach buyers, become informed, make your best deal, rely on
experienced people to help with the bus health and enjoy the
lifestyle. Not every Coach requires a huge amount of money for
repairs, especially if it’s been maintained and documented.

[Richard]

I agree with you Tom 100% , I am in a differnt boat , you hit the nail on the head!!!

[Archived]

As everybody has said, checking systems will only go so far. Having bought my 1991 XL Mirage in early 2011 in Odessa, It looked like it had come out of a time warp with 52,000 miles on it and around 25 hrs. on Kubota Gen Set. I knew the bus since new and owner. Sat in climate controled barn the the last 7 years and everything looked new. That’s where the fun started. Bought mine for $57,000 and have wrapped around another $25,000 since purchase. The usuall tires, batteries, electical & air goodies and it will go on. Like anything these ain’t cheap. Just got back from Prevost Houston Tuesday for all led clearance light change out. Could have done it myself and you should if you want to save a little money with these if you can but I’m getting lazy. $830 bucks for change out. 3.5 hours labor and well worth the price as I didn’t have to climb up and do it. Just don’t go into these coachs thinking they are gonna last forever as with anything their will be things to fix. I wouldn’t take anything for mine as it drives like a dream and looks cool too.

Haven’t been to Jeff’s but if I ever have any major work on mine will make the 1200 mile drive to him. Let him look and check systems if you buy.

[jack]

I had planned to have “an expert” check it out for us for all those reasons, which is the reason for the question. But now there is a BIG red flag on why this particular coach was/has sold so recently & is for sale again. We realize things happen, but are also thinking that to purchase from a dealer and not have the particular owner not involved is likely to cause/have some problems. I would want to talk to them especially as to why the sale again now. I also feel like I WILL need to have to spend some more $$ to get it “mine”. For example, this one has new drive/steer tires but not tags? why not? I’d purchase new tags just to keep the dates up. Most of the other stuff is beyond my ability/s knowledge levels at this point so I expect the “paid inspection” will just be the starting point in my ownership tour of a particuar coach. I WILL have somebody (who?) check which ever one or two that we short list. Again this one only has records back to 2006 it says, which is better than none, but picks up 11 years after new……??? I expect that the term “zero out” is to put one to “like new” as much as possible….?

[gary]

yet Peter would be the guy to hire to get a great check! What could be the charge to have a dmi done? is the dmi test a “standard set” of things, or does it test every switch/system for function or and i suppose it would vary about the degree of the check, but i would want fluid anylasis’s etc as well…, however, if all the fluids are new it wouldn’t tell much….??? Reckon what then? Be suspisious? LOL!

[Archived]

There are many reasons why a coach is sold and comes back onto the market quickly. If it is being re-sold by a dealer the concerns would be lessened to a great degree.

When you buy from an individual you have no warranty or assurance the coach is OK. While a dealer may not offer a warranty, most dealers are going to avoid a coach with a defect so serious the owner is dumping it unless they buy it cheap and can afford to fix it. Some owners are just overwhelmed by these conversions and don’t want the future responsibilities of caring for one.

But still do the inspections to the extent you can for your peace of mind.

I have had all three of my coaches inspected in great detail, one by a converter, one by me, and one by Liberty who delivered a flawless coach, yet I still inspected it.

Depending on the age plan on spending some money. That is why a 10 year old coach for example is going to cost so little compared to a new one, yet can offer much the same features and systems as a new one.

My theory is to do much the same as Peter does and go through the entire coach with a fine toothed comb replacing everything I can think of that is going to need it because of age or miles. Then I get to enjoy a trouble free coach for years to come.

As to the tires, the date and condition will dictate when they get replaced and different owners have different definitions as to what those are.