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Don’t forget that Prevost PASS is there for you…
I wanted to send out a public service announcement regarding Prevost Action Service Support (PASS) and what a great resource they are. Anything Prevost related and they are there to help you in any way.
I was in Dalhart, TX a few days ago headed to Colorado. Unhooked everything, started the coach, pulled the slides in and started to leave. My wife was driving and within 30 feet states that “something feels wrong”, which I quickly dismissed. We turned out on the highway and sure enough she was right.
It is my practice to drop the bus suspension to the bump stops when I park for the evening. Always done it, done it for years……no issues. (I know this is a controversial topic, but this is what I do). Well, this time, the bus did not come up to ride height like it should. In fact, there was no air in the suspension at all and created a very rough ride. Fortunately, there was a Love’s C-Store just ahead, so we pulled in and found a good parking spot to sit.
I discovered, during my diagnostic of the problem, that the rear and front suspension bags would air up manually and retain their air. I could have travelled on in manual, but decided this was a job for PASS to see what they had to offer.
Called the PASS number, on hold for less than one minute and a technician picked up. I explained the situation and he quickly understood my problem and got to work. He told me it sounded like there was an issue with my “5-Stack” suspension valves located in the drivers compartment under the drivers seat. More specifically, the center valve in the stack is the one that controls Ride Height and we should start there.
He directed me to swap the solenoid/coil for the center valve (ride height) with the bottom solenoid/coil (left rear suspension control). This should get the ride height function back in service and if the coil is bad, disable control to the left rear bags. A simple procedure to take off two c-clips, move the coil, swap the electrical connections and it was ready to test. Turned on the key to the bus and immediately heard the whoosh of air flooding into the system and lifting my coach to ride height.
The PASS tech stayed on the line with me while I did the work. He was direct, informative and best of all……he was correct! I can’t say enough about the service I get from there. I highly recommend calling if you have a Prevost system issue that needs attention.
BTW……I don’t know what all the valves do in the 5-stack, but the center one controls ride height, the one next to the bottom of the stack controls the right rear bags and the bottom valve controls the left rear bags. I suspect one of the top two valves must control the front bags…….
Replacement coils for the valves are $32 from Prevost. Probably good to get a few spares to carry along with you. The Prevost part number is #641107. I suspect they are branded Norgren.
Hope this helps someone out with diagnosing a ride height issue.
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6 Replies
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I should note that I had all my Norgren valves replaced in February. Not sure if the coils were replaced at that time, or if the original parts were reused……either way, the fix is simple to perform.
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Excellent info – glad you were back on your way quickly!
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Anytime I see a Prevost owner with a problem on one of the Facebook pages I follow, I recommend Prevost PASS and give them the number. Most of the time I get raving reviews and “Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!”
Sometimes the response is somthing like Prevost PASS helped me confirm that I have a very series problem and helped me find a tech to look at it.
Very rarely do I get “They couldn’t help” or something more derogatory. Even Prevost PASS can’t bat a thousand.
I’ve called two or three times myself and have gotten very good responses and help. Once I called about 5:30pm CST. The CSR connected me to a Service Manager who was driving home from work. He finished the diagnosis while sitting in his driveway.
Its there, its free, just use. Part of belonging to an elite club.
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I should mention that when recently working on these valves to be sure everything worked correctly and to fix air leaks, that the center solenoid was given 26volts when the key was on. The rest were given only 12volts when activated. If you put a 12volt solenoid in the center spot, it will work. However, it will be extremely hot and likely start smoking/smelling eventually since it’s constantly hot when key is on. It is definitely a potential for fire.
The 24volt solenoids work with 12volt as far as I can tell. I bought about half dozen of these coils as spares. It was very difficult to find a 12volt coil. So, it might make sense to just have 24volt coils which will work in any position.
This is on my 99. Your bus may vary.
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The 5 stack coils on most Prevost are “all” 24vdc (Norgren# 54452-03). But a few Prevost like our 96 Liberty classic, only the middle one is 24vdc, the other 4 are 12vdc (Norgren# 54452-02). I’ve never had a problem w/12vdc coil availability. Norgren.com has 99+ of them in stock now. The $35 price over the 9+ yrs we’ve owned our Prevost has doubled.Someone before we bought our Prevost had installed a 24v coil where a 12v belonged and this gave me fits until I figured it out.Armatures (Norgren# (54462-31) are all the same regardless of coil voltage.
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Excellent info!
Michael & Debra
04 Marathon H3 0851
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