[Dorel]

Dale:

I went through what you are experiencing and here is my
experience.

I made a list of what I required. OTR, Retarder, Aqua Hot (I like long hot
showers) and a private potty. Everything
else, other than Pepto Bismo Pink, I would tolerate. To me, high mileage was not as much a factor
as it is to some others, as I believe that a mechanical device that is
exercised usually lasts longer than one that just sits. Also rubber parts last longer with exercise
and there are a LOT of very important rubber parts on these coaches.

I spent about three years looking and even traveled to some
remote place called Vanore, Tennessee to meet 20+ members of this group and learn
more about the Prevost shell. I ran
across a bus that met my criteria, but the price was, in my opinion, way out of
line. Seems that some well known
individual had purchased the Coach initially and the second owner thought that
since that individual had sat on the toilet, the bus was worth a lot more. Needless to say, I did not contact the
seller. About a year later, after
looking at a lot of other coaches, I found one that checked all my boxes and I
called, but was too late and the coach had sold.

I decided that I needed to have my finances ready to jump if
another coach came by because I did not want to miss another chance. I seriously considered a really nice Royal,
but no OTR, I found a CC that Suited my needs, but again no OTR. The coach with the butt prints of the famous
person on the toilet seat dropped in price, then about 3 months later dropped
again. Still too expensive, in my opinion. However, I decided that if the price got to
my price, I would pounce.

About 2 months later, I was at the computer and it flashed that
the coach had dropped a little below my figure and I spun around, picked up the
phone and called. I was number 2 in
line. I had to wait 3 days and the other
buyer passed, so it was my chance. After
extensive phone and email communications, I wired a down payment. The first buyer turned down the coach because
it had 202,000 miles. The original owner
put 60,000 in two years and the second owner used it in his job, so I surmised
that it should be in mechanically good condition since his livelihood depended
on the coach. When I went to close on
the deal, the inspection showed that the coach was in extremely good shape with
adequate service records (receipts), but the coach batteries were timed out.

Since I picked up the coach 7 months ago, I have replaced
the coach batteries using my NAPA card (Thanks BA), had a wire from the
alternator break and replaced a relay. I have put 6,000 miles on and plan to go
back to Vanore next month and let Jeff perform one of his famous high priced
oil changes, to see what other items I need to address.

My advice, develop your criteria, have your finances in
order for a quick down payment, keep asking questions of this group (no
question too dumb) and keep looking because your coach is out there.

Hope to meet you on the road some day soon.

Triple Foxtrot

[Dorel]

Where does your brother live in Canada Peter I would be interested in talking to him.

[Dorel]

Davey…

So glad you got it fixed…Happy fourth to you and your family !!

Diane

[Dorel]

Thom,

I hope you enjoying your bus and getting a lot of use out of it.

Sorry I don’t have any input on the mattress.

Jim

[Dorel]

Exactly where are you located at…. what state and city

What reading is showing on the air gauges on the dash… or have they gone to zero

[Dorel]

[Dorel]

George,

I tried to look for a lock, but can’t find one other than the one on the rearmost door, and that locks anytime the door is closed.

[Dorel]

We aren’t required to cross any scales, however as soon as a person buys a coach, and loads it as it would be loaded for a trip, the coach should be weighed and all axle weights noted. This is the only way to determine the correct tire pressure for the various positions on the coach.

[Dorel]

On the H make sure when you close the door you then push in at the top and verify it has latched all the way in…you can look at the gasket and verify it looks the same all the way around…..using things like silicone paste and chalk you can tell how well the gasket is making contact with the coach body…

[Dorel]

It may be a problem with my IPhone. Anyone else get directed to a make-up artist?

Thanks Tom for the correct site.

[Dorel]

Dean,

Why attempt to match an older carpet with a patch. Now is a good time to change all the bays carpeting. Just get the wife’s approval before selecting the color!

[Dorel]

Alignment, bad suspension parts, wrong tire pressures, bad balance can all impact tire wear. Have you done an alignment on your coach? Also, the right side tire seems to sometimes wear more because of the crown of the road.

[Dorel]

Thanks Jon the gauge on the dash is the transmission oil temp so is 200 to 220 degrees normal operating temp or is that getting to hot do I need a transmission cooler or will I be fine.

[Dorel]

the AC problem has become a disaster. I really need some advice as to where I can bring my bus in and get my system fixed ASAP. If Chuck Williams can’t take me in, I hope Jeff Rowe can. If neither can, I need someone ASAP.

i got all the parts in and had them shipped to the local RV shop that had a decent Reputation. The RV shop installed the new Dometic penguin 2 & put in the 5 button board. The put on the conversion boards for all 3 units to work with the 5 button. All was well for the first week except that I was given a conversion board meant for heat strips not heat pumps. No big deal as I needed the the drain cups to work with the bus condensation drain.

The system worked well and we had full AC on all 3 units. So i took Friday off and went back to have the heat pump board and cups put on. This is where the fecal matter hit the oscillating device.

On Friday the tech pulled the new AC & put on the cups and new board. He then reinstalled the unit. When he put power back on the units compressor came on but not the fan. After a few minutes he asked if I’d check the circuit breakers. I did check and they popped. He reset the breaker and still we had no fan. He then checked his wiring work and said the ground wire connection came loose. After wiring it correctly the system came on.

The AC blew cold for about 10 minutes, we switched to heat pump. The heat pump worked. I thought we were good to go. Paid the bill and headed back to the fort. As soon as I got bedded down on shore power I noticed something. The new AC stopped running after 10.5 minutes. The compressor ran but the fan stopped. After 5 minutes the system turned off. Then 5 minutes later came on. It repeated this a couple of times. I turned off the system and called the RV place. They said bring it back on Saturday morning.

yesterday (Saturday) I went back and the tech said the motor was pulling high amp loads and when he shot the motor casing temp it was 220 degrees. He said I had a bad motor. I asked if they had one, no they did not. They said it was something to deal with Dometic. I asked about the wiring problem on Friday having damaged the motor. The tech said no, there was no issue. Needless to say, I was pissed. The service super said the AC is defective and they are not at fault. When we addressed the ground wire issue the tech denied it. Round & round we go. So, I leave the RV place without a functional AC and I’m out $ for parts and labor. Arrrgh!!!

Plan B: replace all 3 units. Get program boards for all 3 to work with 5 button CCC. Get 3 drain cup kits to work with bus drains. Find reputable installer to put them in ASAP. RV place go go to H.E. Double toothpicks.

If Chuck Williams @ Commonwealth Coach or Jeff Rowe can’t take me in for this quickly, is there someone you know that can? I am just south of DC. I’ll take leave and put the wife and cats in a hotel. I need to fix this quickly

[Dorel]

Mr. Bill,

When we were looking at building a new coach, I made comparisons of Liberty, Marathon and Millennium.

One thing that I like about the Liberty is that the generator radiator is mid-ship which keeps the radiator clean. Marathon puts the radiator at the front grill, Millennium puts their’s on the roof. (unless things have changed).

Marathon would not put in a macerator and stopped putting in a co-pilot monitor (told to me by the salesman). Liberty installs both of those items which we wanted.

Also, I was intriged by Lithium Ion battery technology that Liberty uses 100% on all of their coaches.

I also liked the chrome accents that Liberty uses around the coach and their patented LED exterior lighting that has a dimming feature (the lights mid height around the coach).

Look at them all and see what works for you.

Good luck,

Mark