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Side panel delamination on XLII models
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Dean,
If our lot isn’t sold by then, it very well might be available come January of next year. If you still have an interest, just keep in touch as we get closer to fall.
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Well, mine is at JAX now waiting for Rick’s to get done. I sent him some pics today and they are making good progress on it. Mine is up next and should get into the shop Tues or Weds this week. They were swamped with work today. John was out working on stuff they were so busy.
I will call him later in the week for an update. There were two guys working on Rick’s coach when I was there this morning, so it looks like they are trying to speed things up.
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Thanks Paul I will follow up with you around the first of Oct.
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Mark thanks for the pictures. It looks to me like they are really moving along. I dropped mine off early thursday May 23rd. When I arrived that thursday morniing I asked where to park her and they told me just to leave her in the parking lot as she was the next coach in. I guess Elegance is the place to go, my undrstanding is they will only paint the affected areas or “stripes”. They will tape off the whole “stripe”, repaint it and clear it after. From what I have seen its undetectable. Like everyone else, I’m looking forward to get her home.
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Tom
All I was told is that is was taken to a paint shop in Orlando after Jax did there work.
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Picked up the bus yesterday at Elegance and all I can say is “Wow.” They did a great job, it was ready to go with no issues and I couldn’t be more pleased. While I was there, they had 3 new Prevosts starting the paint process. Willy Nelson’s bus was due in later that day.
For those of you that have this process coming in the future, Mark & Rick, rest easy, Elegance will take good care of your bus and make sure it’s powered up. The job took 9 days to complete. You have to look real hard to even see the patch panels.
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Wow is right! Great lookin’ bus. Glad to see you’ve got your ride back….
Time to turn diesel fuel into noise and miles into smiles!
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Looks amazing ! Congratulations.
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I have gotten questions over the last several months about the skin issue on XLII coaches. I hope those who have completed the repairs or had their coach tested to determine no repairs are required will add to this post but here are the facts as near as we can determine based on information provided on the forum and in private.
The repair ends concerns about skin delamination and potential leaks as a result. Tom’s coach is an example of one with the repairs and his panels are bonded and now riveted. In addition he has a drip edge to prevent moisture from ever getting behind the skins. That coach will never have skin delamination issues.
Not all XLII have the delamination problem. Several owners have had their coaches tested and no repairs were required.
Since a lot of concern has been expressed about how the delamination problem has impacted market values, let’s address that from a worst case scenario relating to 10 year and newer coaches. So far we have not had ANYONE report their 10 year old or newer coach would not be repaired at Prevost Car’s expense. So that means all coaches within the 10 year limit are repaired if necessary without it costing the owner anything with the possible exception of the cost of paintwork. The cost of paintwork may be absorbed by Prevost if the coach has its original owner and the coach is within a certain age range (time in service).
From feedback from many owners who have or who are going through the process the total cost to them is zero if Prevost covers the entire cost. If the owner has to pay for the paint, we have had reports of costs ranging from a low of $6,000 to a high of $18,000. Most reported paint costs are in the $8,000 to $8,500 range.
So despite the total cost of repairs being in the low to mid 5 figure range, the actual out-of-pocket cost to owners is on average under $10,000.
So for those concerned about buying or selling an XLII coach the total impact on a coach less than 10 years old is likely less than $10,000 an amount a buyer or seller can use when determining the fair market value of a coach. Obviously a coach with the repair is going to be worth more than a coach that needs or has yet to have the repair, but the difference in the average coach price is almost inconsequential when one considers a lot of factors determine the value of a coach.
Coaches beyond the 10 year limit are another issue. We have no base of information large enough to suggest Prevost will offer any goodwill relating to the repairs, nor do we have enough to suggest they are making owners of older coaches absorb the total cost of repairs.
Tom and others who have posted here about their experiences have made one thing abundantly clear. Prevost Car and the recommended paint shops have all done superb work. The coaches that have been repaired have been completed in such a way that nobody has expressed any regrets or unhappiness with the work. The quality of the work by Prevost and the paint shops has been described by all as excellent.
Bottom line: Do not hesitate to consider an XLII if you are a potential buyer. The exposure to the cost of dealing with the issue of delamination is minimal when all costs are considered. If you have an XLII, and you want peace of mind take it to Prevost and have it checked. If you are a seller, take the issue away by having repairs made prior to selling the coach.
If you own or are considering the purchase of a 10 year old or older XLII, consider sharing information with others because there may be oportunities to have repairs covered by Prevost, or at least some contribution. As yet we do not have any answers to questions about who will pay for repairs to older coaches that have alread had repairs prior to the current rivet repairs. Only by sharing information will owners, buyers and sellers get some guidance. With the cost of repairs easily capable of being $30,000 to $50,000 and even more older XLII coaches can have a substantial impact on their values by this problem so help everyone by sharing information. We know of no other place on the internet currently covering this topic.
Just to remind everyone, there is a specific procedure required to begin addressing delamination. First the coach has to be taken to a Prevost service center and the extent of delamination is determined. If any is found the service center provides that information to Prevost Car in Canada and a determination regarding who pays for what is made and that information is provided to the coach owner. Only then can a coach be scheduled for repairs. There are no shortcuts and the procedure has to be followed even though an owner may know exactly if there is delamination and where.
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Tom: Your bus looks great! I am glad that it turned out to your satisfaction. I was also very happy to read that the shop took good care of your bus while it was there. That lowers the stress level once again of the process.
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After going through this process, I would not hesitate to do it again. Once you get over the stress of leaving your bus in someone’s hand for 4 to 6 weeks, the whole process is pretty straight forward and Prevost has gotten pretty good at getting them through the shop. Mine took 140 hrs of labor, but some of that was for the replacement panel. Slide coaches probably take longer. I dropped it off on May 2nd and picked it up from the paint shop yesterday June 7th. If if wasn’t for the panel problem, I would have done in less than 4 weeks.
Both Prevost and Elegance did their very best and I think the end result is added value to the bus and piece of mind that the fix is permanent.
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I went there and took a peak and everything they were doing looked top knotch you bus looks amazing …
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Kudos to Tom! He was at Prevost JAX today and checked out my bus while he was there. Bus was plugged in, batteries charging in float and they were working on it!
Here are a couple of pics of the start of the process courtesy of Tom:
Thanks again to Tom for getting these pics and checking things out. Makes this a lot less stressful!
I also got a call from Cindy at Prevost while Tom was there asking if it was ok for someone to be in my bus. I told her it was and that I knew about it. She indicated she wanted to check as it is my home and she didn’t want anyone in there that didn’t belong. A nice touch that proves they are looking after our buses when we have to leave them there. It made me feel even better knowing they are watching out for things like this! Thanks to Cindy too!
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The Adhesive used now in Jacksonvile for the panels is Simpsons 70-03.
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Did they change again? I thought they were using a Loctite product?
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