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Newbie intro from the North
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Good morning group,
Dale I have a 97XL Royale which I have been zeroing out and maintaining since 11/14.
This april the dash air became intermittant to non working. It had been wonderful in the Florida
and east coast summer heat….until this season. Now the repairs are done and dash air up and running.
When the dash air is on and the upper evaporator running our coach is very comfortable in the heat of New Mexico,
and the humidity and heat of the gulf. Thank you Peter for the info about the upper evaperator in my Royale.
With the right inverter, and the 240amp/12v alt I believe you can run an additional roof a/c unit while on the road,
I would run the bedroom if I could.
This is a great group, full of info and a willingness to help.
Hope to see you out there!!
Jonathan Fine
1997 XL Royale # 201
in Aztec, NM right now -
There is a 96 Royal on RVT that looks pretty nice in Alabama. It has heated bays and it looks like it’s been maintained and lots of updates, 147 K miles, interior I could live with and a 60 sieres engine which I really like. No mention of the tank sizes but all new batteries. If a coach has fresh water plastic tanks, I would like to change them out for stainless steel and I wonder if that creates any issues especially in colder temps? What else should be on my check list for a cold temp coach ? This may sound crazy but I would like to have a wood stove in it. I have only seen one coach with a wood pellet stove.
Did this vintage come standard with the solid front axel ?
Lots of great information and help and again I just want to thank all of you for your input and guidence. I feel like Grasshopper on the old 70s TV show !
Dale
Tradewinds Coach
Kyle Bennett (Service)
Brian Miller (Sales) -
The IFS replaced the solid axle in the VIN after around T-5875 ot 5880 I think. Any VIN prior to that on an XL is going to be a solid axle.
If in fact Peter saw OTR on a Royale he saw a double rare coach. A Royale with OTR on an H chassis would be even more rare than an honest politician.
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To add what Jon said above, IFS could have started as soon as T-5873. The “T” being the tenth digit of VIN indicating model year, 5873 sequential build number
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My brother bought the Royale with OTR air it will be for sale in one month after he Zeros it out with all new parts it is a H 3 -45 with OTR air ,it has wood inside and he lives in Canada
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Peter,
My thinking is to get an XL in 40 FT simply because they are smaller a handier as I will be in the booneis as much as I can be and I like stainless steel.
What do you use for the horse trailer ?. Currently we have a 4Star GN but will need to get a 3 horse bumper pull. with a nice big tack room. Any recomendations ? We are headed to Bishop,CA next May for the World Mule Show. Has anyone drove a coach to Bishop coming from the North through WA and OR ?
Thanks, Dale
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Right now I have a Featherlite but have had 4 star, Hart,and a few more , going through Wa or OR no worries what so ever
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This one has two box stalls 9×8 and a six foot tack room and 9 saddle racks , it’s 8 wide and 8 tall -
Dale,
We were just on 395 between Reno and Lakeview last month in our coach, and the road is fine for a Prevost. -
Peter,
Thats a nice rig you have there. I looked at your schedule and you sure get around alot. Our paths will likely cross at some point. I will be in Sask and Alberta alot this fall chasing birds. I hope to get over to Sask in a few weeks for some dog training. I just spent two years north of Moose Jaw building a potash mine. I just took a year off but am just waiting for a call to go back to work somewhere on the Canadian prairies.
Per,
Thanks for that information I am sure it was a nice drive on 395. I was at the Bishop Mule show last year and I saw a few Prevosts there dragging a horse trailer so I know it is not a problem. it’s a year down the road so planning ahead it good I guess. Once I get a coach bought and plans for our route I willl be sure to post on here for some input.
This is a great site and all the help and guidence is very much appreciated. Dale
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I have been mulling things over and have started look into what PeterC suggested, a Royale. From what I can tell they seem like what I am looking for. A more simple coach and I like the idea of a solid front axle and a 60 Series engine. As a matter of fact it wil have to have one. I have been putting together a list of items I would like to have on the coach, outlinning things I must have and some things I am more flexable on. I more than likely wont find this coach in Canada and will have to bite the bullet on the exchange. This will be viewed as a long term purchase and I just will trust in the end things will work out.
As noted above the coach will be used quite a bit for dry camping in northern climates. I dont ever want to be in the south in the summer. Ten years in Texas was enough for this northern boy. I love it there but could not deal with the heat. Most years I will be in the north until late fall then head south to AZ. for the winter riding mules and bird hunting.
Is there anywhere I can gather additional information on the Royal Coaches and what to expect and to look for ? I have scoured the internet and searched this site and have quite a bit on general information. There are a few on the market now and am having a look at a few on the net. Now, I am open to other conversions so if you see something or know of something that may fit, please let me know.
Thanks in advance and I have to tell you what a great group of people on here and a great site !
I guess when I right the check for my first Prevost, I will get the instructions for the serect hand shake ?
Dale
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Based on what you describe I fully agree with a Royale. They were made by Monaco and most had a nice wood interior. To get the Series 60 with a solid axle your model years are going to be around 95 to late 97.
If you are willing to consider independent front suspension you broaden your search. If you are willing to consider the 8V92 you also increase the number of available coaches.
There are other coaches of nice quality that had simple robust systems. If you are willing to consider other than a primarily wood interior I would add Angola, American, Hoffman, and possibly Vision to the list. I would also suggest a Liberty Classic for its somplicity but it will not have a wood interior, and in the solid axle, Series 60 model years that was a well equipped coach with a lot of features, but simple systems, unlike its counterpart the Elegant Lady which tended to be more complex.
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Don’t know your budget Dale, but Brandon at Legacy has a really nice 04 Royale here on our site.
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Jon/Tom,
Again, many thanks for the responses with all your unyeilding help. I think I need to be flexable or I may never get a coach. I heavly considered the 8V92 but from what I have learned over the last year for me a 60 series would be a better choice that is more reliable, better mileage and hopefully better resale in value and selling faster maybe. I am flexable on the front end but I would prefer the SFA. I also thought I would never want a coach without alot of wood interior but I am weakening on that as well.
There is a 97 Liberty on prevost-stuff, w/ a solid front axle, wood simulated laminant interior that is a very nice looking coach. It even has my exterior colors which is green., a 20 KW genset and 8x coach batteries, 2×4500 w inverters. I do not require any slides and could live with a 40 or 45 foot, so I am flexable on that as well. It has 147 K miles on it. He’s asking $137K which is a bit above my budget. It will need new house batteries right off the bat and who knows what else after a intense PPI. I am not sure how I feel about that price at the moment, I’m in no hurry and don’t want to get all emotional over the great exterior paint !!!
There is a 96 Royale on RVT that looks like a decent coach as well plus there are few others I am thinking over.
Thanks, Dale
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That is a Liberty Classic which has simple robust systems. It is a rare coach in that it is one of the very few Liberty coaches that does not have over the road air. That has a negative impact on value because Liberty coaches are almost all OTR equipped.
If OTR is not important to you and you are not planning to flip it anytime soon, the impact of the lack of OTR on market value diminishes over time.
That vintage coach is about as reliable as you are going to get.
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