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New to the Forum
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Nope, names glenn and I wasn’t very creative that day when it came time to choose a screen name!
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Tim: Larry and Diane wrote: “in excellent visual condition… interior and exterior was exquisite and we were in love with everything about it”
This sounds like our Prevost. Original owner kept it inside its entire life. Second owner had it from December (2013) to April (2014) when we bought it (long story), kept it in the original owners bus barn, and we don’t think he ever used it. Fortunately it was located only 18 miles from Jeff Rowe’s Eastern Tennesse Luxury Coach. There were NO maintenance records whatsoever. Just dates/mileage/hours on the oil and fuel filters. Third party helping to facilitate the transaction found out it had been Buddy Gregg’s in Knoxville as well as a truck shop in northern Indiana and had a trip to Liberty in North Chicago within the last few years. We got a little information from them, but nothing of signficance had been done on the coach. Jeff Rowe did a prepurchase inspection for us.
The coach was clean, bright, shiny, and most everything worked appeared to work. Original owner had told me he had a cracker jack electrical/mechanical guy take care of the coach for him and he always took care of everything on it. Everything is “up to date”. Coach had about 70,000 miles on it. A low mlieage dream coach … right?
A naive, uninformed buyer would likely have paid top dollar for the coach. After talking to George Prentice, Jon Wehrenberg, and relying on Jeff Rowe’s expert advice and counsel I negotiated aggressively and wouldn’t budge. Seller (second owner) wouldn’t budge on his big price. We walked away from the coach and started looking at others on the market.
The third party trying to faciliate the deal called about six weeks later and I still was agressive. Agreed on a reasonable price, had it taken to Jeff Rowe’s (only 18 miles) so it could be lifted and Jeff look for surprises underneath. Deal closed.
That was eight tires, nine batteries, new shocks, fluids, bags, valves, etc. all axle alignment, and about $38,000 ago. We still have the TVs to upgrade. We’re happy with the purchase and we’ve had little in the way of surprises along the way that we didn’t anticipate or couldn’t handle with Jeff’s assistance.
“Drinking from a fire hose” is the perfect cliche’ to use to describe the process you need to get from where you were before your joined the PC Forum and where you’ll be six months after you buy your first Prevost.
Enjoy it, the water is great!
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Thanks D&C!
Seems like Jeff’s Rowe’s business is the place I need to take the DP for a PDI prior to purchasing any Prevost, or at least take it for repairs once a thorough PDI is conducted.
Quick question, do you full-time or just travel occasionally? Just wondering since it doesn’t look like your bus has any slides. And, are you happy you went with an XLV vs. XLII?
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T&C there are a lot of coaches out there I have had both XL and XLll both had no slides I am in mine about 10 months every year move every week , they both are good , there are a lot of coaches that look good on the outside and inside but under the coach it’s covered in rust all over make sure you get a good look at the hole coach not just the surface of it .. I have seen rads rusted right off mounting brackets to all the air tanks rusted right through the band clamps that hold them on , A coach that roles down the road is much better than one that has been sitting around so many thing to rot or go bad dew to no use , I looked at a Liberty coach the other day it was a 2000 XL for a friend when I took out the rear end plug to check oil level it was as thick as grease and had never been changed in the coaches life it had 120,000 miles on it he ended up putting in new third member and all new bearings and seals if he did not have that checked out it would have cost him about 15,000 dollars to have that all fixed up out of his pocket , So look at the coaches closely not just the surface of the coach !!!!!
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I should clarify my question regarding the XLV vs. XLII. I realize many of you have not owned both models, but maybe during your research for your current model, you compared both models before you decided to go with one over the other. I’m also interested in learning about the H-3 model, but at this point, I’m a little more interested in the XL models.
Sorry for any confusion…
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One difference is up to chassis year about 1996 the XL had solid front axle and after that they have independent front axles , I liked the SFA not much to go wrong they had a power assist arm that would leak 17000 to replace it , but prevost said it was not needed and the coach would drive the same without it there is a bulletin on that from prevost . The IFA has more to it and more parts to replace when needed , they where both great but the IFA I think might drive just a little better but I would go back in a heart beat to SFA
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Thanks Peter,
Any delam issues with your ’03?
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Tim & Cindy asked: “Quick question, do you full-time or just travel occasionally? Just wondering since it doesn’t look like your bus has any slides. And, are you happy you went with an XLV vs. XLII?”
Right now we travel occasionally. We spent 27 days on the road in January. Until next winter most of our trips will be one or four nights at the race track. Some trips will be longer. Once we’re fully retired we plan on spending extended periods of time in the coach. Like six to eight week trip to Alaska, two to three months down south in the winter.
No slides. That was driven by a number of factors. First was price range which put us in the mid to late 90’s. Second was desire for OTR (bus air) which I understand is difficult to have with slides. We really leaned towards a Liberty. Third, I was apprehensive about slides in the first place because of the added complication, potential for something else to go wrong, added weight, and potential additional expense associated with slides.
We were orginally looking for a 40′ XL because I figured we could get buy without the extra five feet, it was easier to manuever, and easier to back up with the trailer. But once we saw the additional room in the 45′ XLV and what it did and understood how the IFS added additional manueverabilty, we quickly started to focus on the XLV. As I understand it, a 40′ XL with IFS, Series 60 is in a very narrow range of years. We also found it hard to find one that met those criteria that also had a private commode which the lack of is a deal killer for us.
Not that there is anything wrong with a 40′ coach. A longtime friend who introduced me to Prevosts had three or four (maybe five) 40′ Liberty Prevosts (he traded every year or two for a new coach) all without slides. He and his wife lived in the coach for three or four months every winter for ten or more years. They had a big house in Wisconsin and made the 40′ coach without slides work.
Why XL vs H? I like the classic look of the XL and the fact that driver and co-pilot are on the same level as the rest of the coach. We’re not tall people, so the added height that I think is in the H wasn’t of value to us. We might be missing extra height I think is in the bays.
So that’s how we got to where we got. Never considered an XLII as that was beyond the price range we were looking in.
The more coaches you look at (like at Bella Terra or whatever its called), the more coach owners you talk to, the smarter for the two of you you’ll get! One thing nice about the exchange on this thread and other a few other threads is the willingness of some of the other Forum members to openly share the mistakes they have made.
Good luck in our search.
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One of the questions often asked is about slides and while every one has different reasons for or against slides there are some considerations that should enter the decision making process.
Here are a few facts.
Slides add weight. Our coaches usually are close to the weight limits per axle so adding slides to a shell increases the difficulty converters have in meeting those limits. The usual result is if the axle (front especially) is not already overloaded, adding a lot of owner’s possessions will push it up to or over the limit.
Slides both add space and take it away. For space inside the coach used to move around slides make a large difference in how much space is available to move around in the coach. But that extra floor space causes the loss of space. Upstairs with the side trim and space used by the slide mechanism each slide can take away 6 to 9″ of space per side of the slide. On a two slide coach that means up to 36″ of space is lost due to the slides and that could be the equivalent of a pantry or closet or additional seating space. In the bays there is an equivalent loss of space attributable to the structure needed to replace the framework lost when adding the slide. More than owners it has impacted the converter’s need for space to access a generator or bay for example. On my current coach the structure intruded into the first bay and has prevented me from bringing bikes in the bay.
Slides require maintenance. To make slides function there are a lot of parts that have to work or be in adjustment. If one of the parts quits working or something goes out of adjustment repairs are needed. It could be a drive motor replacement or a pin adjustment or some other issue, but it is certain whatever issues there are a slide needs more service.
Slides are expensive. A look at the pricing of slide coaches compared to non-slide shows there is an additional expense to get slides. That is money not in your pocket, but invested in a depreciating asset. But it goes further. Our slides require an inflatable seal and that seal is a normal replacement item. I am not sure we have enough evidence to suggest strongly they have a life of XX years, but we do know they will fail. It could be 3 years, 5 years or even 10 years. But whatever it is just the seals alone for the front and rear of a two slide coach are in excess of $4500. Add in replacement labor and the slide seals can cost quite a bit to maintain.
If the above seems negative it is because when slides are considered using practical considerations a buyer has to want them bad enough to ignore the negative aspects of a slide. I will tell you before others get all over this I was initially very reluctant to get a coach with slides. But here are the reasons why I ignored all the above issues. A slide changes the entire character of a coach and makes it more like a small apartment than an RV. There is a completely different and better feel to a slide coach. It feels spacious. The increase is relatively small but the entire character of the coach changes for the better.
Slides are reliable. Early slides had significant growing pains and those coaches with early slides spent a lot of time at “Camp Prevost”. But Prevost stood behind them and finally got them right. We now rarely hear of slide issues and that reliability made us take a second look at slides.
Slides actually are very quiet and may contribute to the strength of the chassis. I expected to hear some squeeks and rattles associated with slides and I was very pleased to find the bus is totally silent with respect to what I expected. I figured a coach would twist and flex because of the slides and actually it makes no noise associated with the slides at all.
Bottom line…..the decision about slides is driven almost entirely by how a coach is used. Now that we go somewhere and park for a week at a stretch it makes sense to have slides. When we were doing trade shows and seminars and were in a different city every night it made no sense.
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Great post Jon,
Are there specific year(s) which Prevost had slide problems before correcting the issues? Only the early years of the XLII, i.e. 2001, or did Prevost come out with a solution to fix the early slide issues which a buyer should look for come PDI time?
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The early years seemed to have issues and with each version the reliability of the slides improved. I believe that all years are now reliable as Prevost made repairs they addressed the issues.
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Tom and Cindy,
I had to smile when I read your posts and the responses. You are where I was approximately 15 months ago. I received the same helpful advice from many of the same forum participants that are offering their advice to you. It is good advice, but if you have never owned a Prevost before, it is difficult to appreciate how good the advice really is. One thing is for sure: When some forum members claim expertise in their ability to spend your money, they are not kidding!
Originally, I thought I wanted an H. My girlfriend was partial to the XLII style. I eventually abandoned my efforts to change her mind.
I tried valiently to buy a Liberty XLII. I originally sought a non slide coach, being influenced by the “negatives” associated with slides discussed in this thread. After looking at about 20 coaches, I decided that the “positives” of slides outweighed the “negatives.” We get to use the bus only about 1-2 times a month, as we both work a lot, but we travel with two dogs, who like to spread out. In a non slide coach, we would have to constantly step over the dogs to move around in the coach.
We then searched for a single slide coach with a north/south bed. For us, having a bedroom slide with an east/west bed made little sense, and the second slide increased purchase and maintenance costs. My girl really likes Libertys, so we tried to buy a single slide XLII. I had serious reservations about the Liberty, because it had very limited basement storage, due to the cruise airs, OTR air, and slide installation. My last coach was a four-slide Newmar with ample basement storage. I was willing to reduce my basement payload, but the bay storage on the Liberty was really inadequate, at least for me.
During the course of our search, we visited several dealerships, met many people involved in the conversion bus business, and met with many private sellers. Some of our experiences with the sellers were not good. In my opinion, some of the dealers, even those that seem to have a good reputation, are worthy of careful supervision.I learned some hard lessons during our shopping experience, all of them cost me time, and a couple of them cost me money.
In the end, I bought a Marathon H with a single slide. How did I prevail over my girl’s aspirations to have a Liberty XLII? We first saw the coach during a visit to a dealership. The coach was not for sale, but we were allowed to look at it during our “H345 vs. XLII” education. My girl loved it. When it became available 10 months later, I bought it. My experience with the seller (Florida Luxury Coach) was very good. I would definitely buy from the dealer again.
I hear that I am likely to trade to another bus in the future, at least according to statistics. The next time around, it will be much easier to know what I want and to know how to evaluate the price and condition of a potential purchase. And I will not waste any time dealing with people in the industry who, in my opinion, cannot be trusted.
Please let me know how I can help you with your search.
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Tim mine has had the rivet process and strips done buy Prevost
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Thanks Double K!
A lot to absorb and I will try to do what you did. I’m in the XL corner right now, but who knows, that may change.
If any PC members are in the N. Virginia area or plan to travel thru the D.C. area, I’d love to get together to chat, buy you a cold refreshment of your choice and, of course, discuss your Prevost experiences along the way.
Just hit me up …
Tim
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T&C, Colt brought up some interesting observations. I talked to him on the phone a couple of times while they were looking for their bus and hope that I was some help to them. He ended up with a very nice bus. We had a non-slide XLV that we were very happy with and would still have it to this day if our present bus had not fallen into our laps. It was very liveable for a non-slide even when parked, but it was a true side aisle. we now have a single slide H and I don’t think we could go back. We travel alot and appreciate the slide even being stopped briefly. We were looking for a 2 slide, but could not find the right bus in our price range (the right bus far outweighed the bed slide) which we helped by installing a wall hugging retractable bed. The XLII vs H is a personal decision only you can make by looking at a number of different busses. The XLII chassis is a driveability improvement over the XLV and remember a late 99 shell year H has the XLII chassis. Hope this helps and hope to see you at Bella Terra. Geo.
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