looking for info ???

[lbriant]

anyone have any info on ABC Coach in Fairbuilt Mn,
I need to get some Dogbone bushings replaced and a smashed aqua hot tailpipe ?
and maybe just a once over on the drivetrain ???
they seem to be one of the largest close to iowa?

[lbriant]

Really?
No one???
Wow I never thought I could stump this group??? :)

[BoaterAl]

A little help from KC just for the record....

I just went over to RV Service reviews and found two )2) postings. The last was 2009. Don't recall any postings positive or negative on CCO (Country Coach Owners) over the years.

www.rvservicereviews.com

AL

[lbriant]

Thanks Al,
good to know,
I think I will give them a shot I will post with my results,

[lbriant]

ABC has had my coach since Monday, for the first time I was able to get under it , They have pits in there stalls,
I had 16 bushings missing, and bad upper and lower ball Joints, Yet the Bus drove perfect?
I knew the front bushings were totally gone But I didnt know they had the same ones in the back, and there two sided bushings so it takes two for one bushing
I also had the engine and gen, seviced and fully greased and ran a new Aqua hpt muffler which I accidently smashed they have been doing very good work I stayed there for 4 days then came home it will be done next monday,
the problem was getting parts from canada every thing had to be over nighted or it would have been done already,
I will post with my final report,
The leveling system works off the sway bar also so it should make a big difference !!!

[garyde]

At our Rally in Austin, the Prevost Seminar. We were told that the bushings may look bad but they are probably ok. A mechanic needs to use a crow bar and test each of the
sway bars to see if the bushing is bad. The bushings will look frayed around the edges but that doesnt mean anything. Most non Prevost mechanics won't know this.

[lbriant]

They were not just bad they were all completly gone all 8 the replacment for the old rubber bushing is a two sided nylon bushing that should not rot out my coach is a 2000 but only has about 70,000 miles I think that is worse on a coach than miles somtimes ? I saw the front before I took it in but I didnt know the back had the same bushings,
the ball joints probably were not bad but the rubber was gone and all rusted so I said do it might as well get it all straight now then I will feel better on the road should last me awhile I belive,
With the Dog Bone bushings out you can hear a clank when you hit a bump, when you look it is easy to see they are completly missing, I am sure it was like that when I bought it last year,
on the good side the engine and gen, tranny seem spotless and like new,
the tires were a little over 800 a piece

[Jon Wehrenberg]

Gary is correct and if I remember what Bill Jensen said correctly it was if the pin going through the bushing is secure in the bushing the bushings are OK.

I do know however that in a relatively few miles if the polyurethane bushing does begin is final death throes those things are gone. I have similar bushings in my stabilizators and within a 1000 miles they went from being good during a visual inspection to gone. Not cracked or bad looking, but GONE.

[BoaterAl]

Gary, speaking of the Austin Rally, I wish to again thank you for the electrical help when I arrived. Finding only one hot leg at the pole. Gary diagnosed the problem as the breaker switch and the park maintenance guy came down for the repair.

Did you get a chance to try the new headlights at night you had installed on your bus ?

[garyde]

Hi Al. The new lights are awesome! No comparison to the originals. They light up the night.

[JIM CHALOUPKA]

There are two conversations here about bushings, front suspension and sway bar. Each using different bushings types.

JIM

[lbriant]

Yes I am having them all replaced on my bus right now
All 8 of the sway bar Bushings are already done The replacements are two piece Nylon or synthetic? so you need 16.
They are replaceing upper and lower Ball joints now, maybe they were not real bad but the rubber was all gone and they were rusted up pretty good I just wanted to get a good 12 yr replacment done and hopfully it will be good for another 10 or 15 yrs with the new style bushings,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
I dont like to scrimp on my steering components .)

[lbriant]

Going up this morning to pic up the bus Wow had allot of work done !!
Thats going to hurt .)
But hopfully it will last a while I will get 2 more tires next year Im in my rotation of changing them out :)
I will let you know how it turns out !!
If I have enough Fuel money to get home .)

[lbriant]

I was pretty satisfied with ABC Coach in Fairbault MN
I had my Aquahot tail pipe wrapped and replaced 2 new Mich, Tires and moved some around, all the Dogbone bushings were gone and they replaced all of those with the Nylon half bushings, 16 total for 8 bushings (they should last better than the rubber ones ) Upper ball joints and arms replaced and lower Ball joints, Full engine service , Full generator service, Two new radiator caps, both drive wheel inner seals replaced. All engine belts replaced, Full lube job !!!
Drives like new no more Clunking on bumps :)
Total $9,500

They were running busses in and out of that huge place like crazy !!
They had a Passenger coach in there that was gone back to the front tires and they had the framework all built back on, Wow what a batch of wires hanging out the window ?? dont know how they would ever get it back together again,, Glad it was not Mine :)

[Ray Davis]

I've used ABC in Costa Mesa three times. The first time they bent over backwards, and I was very pleased. Second and third times, I was not as pleased. I ended up having $2000 of work done at Prevost after a service at ABC, where I would have thought they would have caught the issues that Prevost found?

I can't say that I am really "unhappy" with them, just less pleased than after my first very successful service with them.

Ray

[lbriant]

Thanks Ray for your imput,
The only thing so far that I was not really pleased with was the time frame and that was not there fault, I was going to stay so I checked in a motel and after 4 days I drove the Jeep home, It was just the delayed shipping time from prevost??
so it was oit of everyones hands, The Mechanic Mike, spent allot of time with me and took me under the bus in the pit, the first good look I got on the old Girl, She is pretty straight, after everything he told me to put some miles on it and then might get the alignment checked, From all the front end work,
I would have used Prevost but they are just too far away and didnt fit into my schedule,
I drove home aboit 3 1/2 hrs and it drove great !! Hope it keeps it up,
The price for all that work didnt seem to bad to me, What do you think?

[BoaterAl]

Larry,the light bulb just lit up here in KC.
I don't know if you have made a choice for the alignment on your bus. A good place to get it done with an inspection of all the new parts would be Precision in Elk River, MN.
Dick, is working-owner. They are listed on RV Service Reviews. Excellent, is the only rating they have ever received. This shop is a major frame repair and heavy duty alignment. Last time I was there on one of the 3 in ground frame racks was tandem axle dump truck that hit a curb. The only problem was the snow plow with a wing was down.
You will be impressed.

[lbriant]

Thanks AL,
I think we will be leaving here between monday and wednesday for AZ ?
With a short lay over in springfield MO, then off to Lake Havasu AZ, need to hit one along the way this time?
Wouldnt hurt to do it in AZ it drives fine just not sure where to go,

[BoaterAl]

I was sent to a heavy duty shop here in KC for my front end align. The referral came from Arrow Stage Lines. Arrow runs mostly Prevost so to them it was just another bus. I remember another post about Arrow with locations around the U.S. for a referral. Now my Marathon pretty much drives itself. Should not have any problem with the Vantare, other then to wear sunglasses with all the shinny new parts.
Larry,
If you travel I-35 to KC with a jump over to Hwy 71 towards Springfield you are more then welcome to park overnight at the our RV storage ( we only store diesel pushers) in Peculiar MO. Flying J in Peculiar is on east side and our storage is on west side of Hwy 71. We are about a 1/2 mile west, all paved road, quiet, safe, and free. Grocery, liquor, deli 2 blocks from parking lot.

[rahangman]

Larry & Nancy, I had my coach fully aligned at Crumps in Springfield ,MO last year and am very satisfied, they are in the book and can do a lot of other maintenance and there is a large Detroit Facility only 1 block away. Thought I might mention it as you mentioned a stopover in Springfield.