$4,500 DAY

[Woody]

Our first trip with the new coach was interesting. Left Maine and noticed a marked decrease in power, no turbo boost, in NY state. Called Prevost who referred us to Atlantic Detroit Diesel in Lodi, NJ.

Limped the last 100 miles to them and they were super. Dropped everything and took the next 3 days and lots of $ finding:

EXHAUST OUT OF TURBO – CLAMP BROKEN
TURBO FLEX PIPE INTO HOT SECTION BROKEN, PORT SIDE
OIL LINE TO TURBO LEAKING ONTO HOT PIPE AND TURBO HOT SECTION
STBD EXHAUST MANIFOLD BROKEN – AFT STUD TIGHTENED DOWN TOO HARD BREAKING CASTING
SENSOR UNATTACHED
WIRES BOKEN
STBD EXHAUST MANIFOLD GASKET BLOWN
STBD EXHAUST MANIFOLD BROKEN – FWD STUD TIGHTENED DOWN TOO HARD BREAKING CASTING, MANIFOLD IMPROPERLY INSTALLED
PORT EXHAUST MANIFOLD GASKET BLOWN
PORT EXHAUST MANIFOLD BROKEN – AFT STUD TIGHTENED DOWN TOO HARD BREAKING CASTING, MANIFOLD IMPROPERLY INSTALLED
TURBO ITSELF MIS-MOUNTED, NEEDED TO BE ROTATED ABOUT 10 DEGREES SO THAT EXHAUSTS WILL MATE PROPERLY
COOLANT LEAK INTO ENGINE OIL – POSSIBLE CRACKED HEAD
WITH VALVE COVERS OFF FOUND THAT NONE OF THE WIRES CONNECTING THE JAKE BRAKE SOLENOIDS WERE ATTACHED, GOOD REASON FOR MY LACK OF JAKE BRAKES

What a wonderful day with the new engine - the Prevost was great.

After the repair we had far more power - the problem was not new!

Thought you all would enjoy my joys of new ownership.

[HarborBus]

Tad, sorry to hear about the BIG $$$$$$$ you had to spend on you new ride, welcome to Prevost ownership. Silver lining is now you know that part has been repaired properly and hopefully will go many miles without future problems.

[Jon Wehrenberg]

Tad,

Nothing you posted was a surprise or something that would be overlooked in a casual inspection. I am not being critical here, but pointing out some things that we have all learned through experience.

On my 8V92 I had cracked manifolds (shitty design, not poor installation), blown manifold gaskets (see above), broken turbo inlet pipes, etc.

I learned to do a pre-trip inspection that not only looked for cracks, but signs of sooting around the manifold. On the 8V92 catching some stuff early saves serious money later.

Your post does show someone who was either a lousy mechanic or a lazy mechanic has previously worked on the bus. Loose wires going to the Jake prove that. A check as I outlined in a Previous post that put power to the solenoid wires would have flagged that as a possible problem.

I think the $4500 was cheap in the context of what some shops are charging today. I would suggest you recognize that the exhaust manifold castings on the 8V92 are prone to cracking so when you have nothing to do some day go visit big truck junkyards and see if you can find some manifolds that are serviceable. That will save you some serious money down the road. Just make sure the junk yard manifiolds have the opening for the pyro probe.

[Orren Zook]

Tad, I didn't notice your mention of a fix on the coolant issue in your post.... Be sure to keep an eye on your coolant/oil levels to be sure you're not makin' oil.

[Jon Wehrenberg]

Adding to Orren's concern, which I fully appreciate having dealt with a cracked head, all fluid levels in an 8V92 are important to check. You especially do not want to get oil and coolant mixed, you do not want to get coolant seepage into a cylinder because a hydraulic lock as a result is a bad thing, you do not want the oil level to rise indicating a fuel leak, etc.

You can lose coolant in any number of ways and oil and coolant can mix in any number of ways all due to problems that should never be allowed to continue.

FWIW on my 8V92 I learned to not fill the coolant header tank beyond 1/3 to 1/2 because as the coolant expanded it just blew the coolant overboard. Then when the bus cooled the level had gone down and I thought I was losing coolant via bad hoses or internally in the engine.

[Woody]

Jon

Detroit Diesel sent out an oil sample and suggested I get another analyzed after 1,000 miles regardless of what the oil looks like.

After 600 miles today the oil is right where it started and no sign of bubbling.

Thanks for your concern. Please widh me luck!

Tad