Mike, 92 Country Coach
Forum Replies Created
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I agree with the cruisair putdown. It was a stupid engineering thing from the get go. Designed to be used with sea water to cool the condenser so some genius decided to stuff them into the belly of a bus. Unfortunately, may be hard to find an older bus with roof airs. I also agree with avoiding slide outs. Having grown up in the trucking business, I was always aware of things that can keep you from going down the road. A stuck slide will do just that. I do all my own work like Jon and Don (lonestarace) both of whom I trust and listen intently to what they have to stay. Having trained as a mechanical engineer (not what I ended up doing), I often “de-engineer” something when it needs fixing since a lot of what is in these buses is over engineered – see Jon’s posts on air bag belt tensioners. I have the luxury of my bus being stored in my shop which is part of our house. Since you are in the Chicago area, if you aren’t going to do all your own work, you may want to give Liberty preference since they are made in Chicago and have a service center there.
10 to 11k per year is a reasonable estimate of cost to own the beast all things included except fuel.
Free advice, worth the cost. Mike
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I purchased this during a remodel so I have not been able to track all and how things work. I was in it the other day and just had it running to turn the drivers heat on and it’s not as simple as sliding the knob to heat?! It’s just the little things that without the procedures manual it’s tough. Is there a number I can text or call you? I’m out of Illinois
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Engine driven Bendix Air compressor, Governor, Power Steering Pump, 24 Volt Alternator and two new Vanner 66-100 Equalizers. All completed today.
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I don’t run enough miles on my bus to afford Michelin’s. I run Toyo M144’s.
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BWB that’s your first mistake taking counsel about Prevost from a Sticks and Staples salesman. All the information you need is right her, use the search function and ask questions.
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Folks, thank you for the feedback. I’m pretty set on a Prevost but the common “it costs soooo much to maintain” is what puzzled me given the commercial-based chassis. The $100,000 of maintenance in roughly a decade mentioned would be a show stopper unless all that was 100% done by service centers and even then that seems steep. I have ZERO interest in non-Prevost RV, to be perfectly clear, but looked at them to judge size/space/layout since there are no Prevost near me to look at in person (I’m in the greater Chicagoland area..until I retire in just a few years).
I did get to drive a Prevost in ~1994, a 40ft or 45ft Liberty owned by a pilot family I met while at Oshkosh’ (b’gosh) AirVenture. They parked near my tent campsite and we cooked out and traded beers for the week. When talking RVs, they gave me the grand tour. When we all left we agreed to meet up south of Oshkosh where the owner graciously planned to give me some time at the wheel before they headed home somewhere west. I was hooked on some day “doing the RV thing.”
Present day, I’m avoiding the XLII due to the delam issues or potential issues just like avoiding the Grumman AA-5 in the aviation realm (glued wing panels). As I said, I’m sticking with an XL pre-egr. I’m not opposed to an 8v92 except that I’ve “heard” parts are unobtanium. The maintenance history is number one and as for coach builders I prefer Liberty, Marathon, and Royale as their house systems seem straightforward from what I saw in pics/specs and they have a very good rep.
I was planning to find good late 1990s units in the $150,000-$180,000 range that were well cared for and NOT “stored” for years which I did find, but they were sold before I could travel to inspect in person. Mileage doesn’t scare me if the maintenance is provable and it’s been in regular use, like 8000-10,000 miles/yr average. Just like airplanes, a machine sitting too long starts to rot.
All that said, I still do not see the maintenance nightmare since the stick/staple/fibercrappola RVs still need maintenance and they really are not built for easy maintenance…a Prevost is a huge plus in that regard. (except that $100,000 repair/maint history)
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BWB:
Last fall I posted a thread here at PC titled “Our Total Prevost Cost$ for Last 10+ Years”, here is the linK:
/threaddetails.asp?Category=General%20Discussions&ThreadID=15528
I have further broken down our ownership mx experience and can email you the word processing file if you like?
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Assuming you have pinpointed the specific year range and converter, and established your budget you are more than halfway to making an informed purchase.
If you are bouncing around about model year, model and converter you will never be able to accumulate the knowledge required to make the best decision. Focus is critical.
When you do begin the search be prepared to not believe anything a seller is telling you. If the seller does not tell you outright lies, you will often get “I don’t know” as an answer to your questions. Start with making sure you like the coach. Forget colors, forget the decor, but concentrate on floor plan and features. You have to live in it and it has to be able to provide you with the features that suit your life style.
Once you have identified the coach you want, YOU are responsible for inspecting it. Nobody will care as much as you do. NOBODY. Start by asking to see the maintenance records. If they are not available the maintenance was not done. If they are available, and are detailed you just won the lottery.
Use a sharp pencil and track all the work needed to bring the maintenance to zero. Coolant, oil changes, all other fluids, filters, air bags, Norgren valves, brake chambers, tires, batteries, air leaks, etc. are all routine maintenance needs and some are critical. If the coach is an XLII 2000 or newer make certain Prevost has done a skin inspection or repair. If you can get a Detroit dealer to pull up all the engine and transmission codes and give you a history.
Keep in mind a low mileage coach may be ideal if a continuing maintenance history can be proven, including things that age like air bags or Norgren valves, but if not you may be buying a very expensive repair cost because items with rubber age out, especially if they are not exercised.
Once you get past the paperwork inspection then start at a given point like the driver’s seat and operate every switch, knob and dial so you understand their function and verify they work as intended. Move methodically through the coach in both the house and underside and the chassis.
A person selling a well maintained coach will welcome such a detailed inspection because it validates his representation it is a good coach. Someone selling a less than good coach will not.
Don’t even consider a sticks and staples RV as comparing to a Prevost. That is like comparing a Peterbuilt to a Dodge pickup.
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Clint you can screenshot his picture, and circle your question. I don’t think anyone knows what you are talking about.
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For what it is worth, I had a miss on #5 (heat gun on exh manifold) and changed injector without change. Found the problem in the ECM connector, a tiny bit of corrosion. Cleaned both mating surfaces (pins and sockets) and no problems for several years now..
your issue could easily be the same.., it’s worth a try if you have not found the problem yet.
Gordon …Marathon build 564
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What are you referring to? Pictures?
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Jon;
Feel your pain. Attempting to make a full lithium upgrade on a large boat I am overseeing, It will involve new lithium batteries, alternators, new chargers,new inverters, new monitors, and replacement/adding new cabling as needed.
Non of the smaller marine electrical contractors want to take this project on. We have turned to one of the largest marine electrical companies on the East Coast. It’s been over 3 months now and they continue asking specifically what we want after they have charged us to inspect the vessel to tell us what we need.We turned to the supposed specialist for advice and direction and all they are doing is requesting us to do the research and tell them what we want.
This will be around a $60,000 project once completed and we can’t get anyone to take it on. I am an amateur on the outside looking in when it comes to electrical, but would think this project would be pretty straightforward for a professional. Low hanging fruit ripe for the picking and no takers.
Does anyone want to work anymore?
Chuck
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Ditto on Diesel Kleen.
On a previous sticks and staples brand new class A I owned I used Diesel Kleen from day 1. Five years later I rebuilt my Aqua Hot and there was no soot and just a thin yellow coating on the burner and nozzle.
Never add fuel without it.
Chuck
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Looks close to this chart in book, everything I’m doing now is for driving, My gen battery AGM is going to send volts to DC to DC charger set on LFP mode to charge new house batteries, will charge 14.6v