[Archived]

There should be a Detroit Diesel/Allison Transmission authorized service center in the area given a community that large.

In my humble opinion (have purchased only one Prevost), I’d be just as concerned about obtaining engine/trans/generator maintaince and service records as I would be putting the coach on a lift and plugging the engine/trans into the computer.

[Bryan]

Dick,

Thanks for the reply. As with every coach we have looked at, it has been “maintained perfectly”.

I have a call out to Middleton and Meads as another place to try to get an inspection.

We will keep you posted.

Time to put our ETLC education to the test.

[Doug]

Just remember documentation of past service work is everything….Without that you must assume things have not been done…..

[Archived]

John, Your question is frustrating, not because it is not excellent, but because so far, unless you can get a team of experts to look at the coach you as buyer are at the mercy of the locals and a seller who will always tell you how well the coach is maintained.

You need Detroit and Allison to hook it up and do an analysis on the health of the engine and transmission. You need to spend a night or two with the documentation and compare that with what is suggested for a schedule.

Then someone needs to do a visual on the underside. Wet spots. loose linkage, cracked air bags, tires and batteries out of date, corrosion, etc are all important expensive factors that help determine price and value.

The house needs to have someone operate every switch, knob, dial, or button, and they all have to do what they are supposed to.

The burden is on the seller to prove its condition. If you hear the normal “everything works, it needs nothing” then the seller has to prove it. Make the seller have the technicians prove to you all maintenance was done to the schedule and everything is in good shape and works.

An almost 20 year old coach is not ever going to be free of defects or need nothing unless the owner did a great job of managing it, and if he did he will spend all the time necessary to prove to you he did so. He will be proud of it. If he cannot or will not you have to assume it wasn’t done the the price needs to reflect what you have to spend ot make it right..

[Bryan]

Jon,

We have been trying to arrange an inspection, the local places call it a Maryland State Inspection. Most places

are quoting 4 to 5 hours for certified inspection. Problem is they do not make appointments, all first come first

served. Except if there are inspections from previous day or days that did not get done, then they are ahead of you in line.

Tried to explain that I am not interested in the certification part, and would pay hourly to have coach put on the lift

and have systems inspected, but no one will do inspection that way. It is really difficult to arrange getting the

current owner to agree to bring the coach to a garage and leave for a day or two, while we will be in a hotel, out

of work waiting for an inspection. Wish the coach was closer to ETLC.

[Archived]

John,

When I have bought a coach there are certain “filters” I use to begin the process of sorting it out. If it is not convenient for you ask a fellow local PC member to look at the coach and give you a first impression. Owners are very quick to pick up on clues. They can see signs of care or neglect, sense smells if any, and generally gauge the overall appearance. If it passes the test then the process goes to the next level, and that is a review of the service history. This is where the seller is put on the spot to prove its maintenance and if you get the run around that is a huge clue you need to be concerned.

But if you really like the coach, it looks nice, and you know its price allows you to treat all maintenance as something you will have to do then sort out the big stuff which is the engine and transmission. all usually done at the Detroit Allison dealer.

If a seller can’t prove maintenance, doesn’t know if the brake chambers or air bags are a reasonable age then you have the burden of assuming they need to be replaced and should adjust the price accordingly. If you can come to an agreement on price knowing you have to deal with service work that likely needs to take place, then you should go through the coach as I stated previously operating every knob, switch, button and dial. If there are any house related issues such as a bad AC you have further negotiations.

We need some sort of program to help potential buyers and sellers to get through the process of buying or selling a coach. FWIW even though Liberty sold me my last coach and was going to stand behind it, I still needed 2 days to go through everything, including a review of the undercarriage. There is a lot going on with these coaches and a few hours is inadequate for an inspection.

[John]

John,

Not sure who you have spoken with in terms of DD/Allison techs in the area, but a quick search turned up Johnson & Towers with three locations in that area (http://www.johnsontowers.com). The owner may need to bring it to one of the two NJ locations if the Baltimore location can’t get you in.

They say they are DD/Allison premier service center, so they should be able to do a mechanical inspection on the engine/transmission and the chassis (they also provide fleet services).

As for the house side, you will need to find someone that knows Marathon systems or just spend the time yourself (as has been pointed out, could be a couple days) going through all systems, learning them and working them to confirm they are working.

If the seller is not willing to work with you to get the coach inspected, I would walk away from the deal.

Just a quick note. Just because something was inspected, passed and there is documentation doesn’t mean there wont be issues. Airbags can look fine will on the coach, yet pulling them you can see everything and an inspection could have missed some major cracks. The amount of hoses and other fittings on these coaches is hard to inspect everything and make sure a coolant hose may not fail 5000 miles down the road.

Expect to have repairs, replacements, etc. after you buy any coach, it’s just a way of life with any RV (not just a Prevost). One of the big differences with the Prevost is the importance of the air system. People wouldn’t complain about it so much if we had jacks to level with, yet we depend on a tight air system to keep our coaches level while parked.

Documentation is great, but the documentation is only as good as the tech that did the work. Johnny’s mobile repair may not know what they are doing on a Marathon, yet there is an invoice for work on it. Doesn’t make it solid. Heck, you can hear negatives against Prevost service, marathon service, Liberty Service, etc. Just be aware and go into a purchase with an open mind knowing not everything is perfect and it may need something day two that wasnt caught even during standard service.

[Doug]

John,

You can do a lot of the inspection yourself,especially on the house items. Jon authored a very detailed Pre-Purchase Inspection List that is easily followed. You can find it by clicking on the “Articles” link above and page down to “Prevost Pre-Purchase Inspection List.

[David]

Charles,

We have contacted Johnson & Towers, and they will do a “Maryland State Inspection”, but the problem for

us is not being able to get a scheduled appointment. It is a 7 hour trip for us to Baltimore.

We are aware of the equipment issues of owning an RV. We were there at ETLC with you trying to absorb

as much as we could too.

Give our best to Tammara and we hope to see you on the road. If you are ever in Mass, let us know.

We have hookups available.

[Jim]

Chuck,

We were fortunate enough to have attended one of the seminars at ETLC last year. I would highly recommend

it to everyone. I have many of Jon’s articles printed and would be lost without them.

My biggest problem is I know what I don’t know.

Thanks for the reply.

[Chas]

Prior to the recent purchase of our “vintage” coach we had it brought to the local DD/Allison shop, put on a lift and the engine, trans, suspension, and drive train looked over. The inspection was beneficial and there were no surprises but it definitely lacked the thoroughness that we later saw in March at ETLC.

Also, before buying the code reader, double check that it has the software (and correct connections) for your version DDEC.

[John]

Thanks for the info.

How do you tell which version of DDEC the coach has?

[David]

excuse me if I am barking up the wrong tree, but it seems you want/need a pre delivery inspection.

and all the responces seem to be vehicle inspection.

jim Brown

[John]

I am assuming a “Maryland State Inspection” has something to do with safety, etc. Kind of like when I was growing up in MA, they required an annual safety inspection in order to get your reg. Checked your lights, windows, tires, brakes, exhaust and the size of the rust holes. Gave you a sticker in the window and a cert for reg.

You dont need that. You need them to simple do a detailed mechanical inspection which should be to go over the vehicle’s chassis, engine, transmission, etc. Read codes from the engine/transmission and check for fluid leaks, wear items, and the like. Talk to the service writer and not the receptionist. Some people who answer phones can’t get beyond basic concepts. If the service writer can’t get past that, then ask to talk with a tech and explain what you are looking for. Any shop should be able to do this. You just want one that knows the engine/transmission and can look at other chassis items to make sure they are sound (axle seals, brake systems, etc.).

The best choice would be Prevost as they do a very detailed mechanical inspection (which does take 4-6 hours) and provides you with a detailed write up of their findings and what they feel is needed to be serviced. Well worth the $500-$600 (I think that is what I paid four years ago at DFW Prevost). But like I said, any DD/Allison shop should be able to inspect the chassis and give you a good report on the coach from a mechanical standpoint.

[Archived]

Charles,

You are right on all counts. I have tried to explain that I am not interested in the “certificate of Inspection”.

I have tried to explain that I just want to know the codes for the engine and the transmission and to lift the coach

and examine the different components from underneath.

I wish they had more horses in Maryland, then maybe I might have a chance of Peter being in the area and

taking a look at the coach.