2008 Legendary

The wife and I are in the market for a coach and found a new 2008 (2006 chassis) that fits the bill for what we are looking for.

We understand that Legendary is out of business, but still like the layout and the options/colors etc. Coach drives well and seems fine from what I could tell in a short 20 mile test drive at the dealers place. Coming from a marine background, many of the systems are the same or very similar to our last boat and I don't have any real problems figuring them out and the documentation appears to be available for most everything.

I have looked at other converters and some things I like in the Legendary are not present or are differently installed/operated in the others. My wife likes the layout and decorating the best of everything we have looked at so far.

I guess my question is this: it there any real reason to stay away from this coach? The dealer tells me that the chassis/engine/tranny warranty starts at first retail delivery and this is a new coach..never titled or sold at retail. I understand that there is no actual dealer support for the conversion, but it is my impression that Prevost/Detroit/Allison will still warranty/support the chassis.

Am I right or wrong on this.

Thanks for any input!

Mark

Mark,

First, welcome aboard POG!

If your wife likes it, buy it. There are places other than the original converter or their dealer network that can help with maintaining the converter systems. That is if you don't want to yourself.

Questions posted here have a turnaround of less than 15 minutes in general. Your only problem in posting is to separate the wheat from the chaff! You will get answers, however some of the respondents may have forgotten just what was the question!

Carole and I spent almost two years looking for our first, and so far only, coach. Wade Staley in Nashville told us that when we see it we will know. Since your wife likes it the search is at least half over. If she said wow during any part of the "inspection" that coach is likely the one for her and therefore by association, the one for you too!

Get the seller to give you a warranty on the converter's systems, possibly a set of tires (check the DOT build dates on the sidewalls - five years is usually the max time for coach tires with few miles), load test the batteries, both house and chasis - replace in sets as necessary) and go from there. The Prevost part of the coach is good to go, except maybe for the slides. Ask Gary for instructions since he just received a thank you note from Prevost for the time he took to giving Prevost an education on slide problems.

Come to OKC in October and get a real taste of the hospitality this group has to offer.

Mark, You are right on the Prevost warranty. I had the same thing when I bought my coach. I guess I would like to know how much support you will get from the dealer. My coach is also an orphan but I get all the support even after 2 years. You will have 2 years unlimited on the shell and drive train. I can tell you that I had more issues with shell than with my conversion. No big thing just an clutch Fan and alltenator and a relay for my rear slide. If the wife is happy than your 90% done!!:D

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Originally Posted by Will Garner

Mark,

First, welcome aboard POG!

If your wife likes it, buy it. There are places other than the original converter or their dealer network that can help with maintaining the converter systems. That is if you don't want to yourself.

Questions posted here have a turnaround of less than 15 minutes in general. Your only problem in posting is to separate the wheat from the chaff! You will get answers, however some of the respondents may have forgotten just what was the question!

Carole and I spent almost two years looking for our first, and so far only, coach. Wade Staley in Nashville told us that when we see it we will know. Since your wife likes it the search is at least half over. If she said wow during any part of the "inspection" that coach is likely the one for her and therefore by association, the one for you too!

Get the seller to give you a warranty on the converter's systems, possibly a set of tires (check the DOT build dates on the sidewalls - five years is usually the max time for coach tires with few miles), load test the batteries, both house and chasis - replace in sets as necessary) and go from there. The Prevost part of the coach is good to go, except maybe for the slides. Ask Gary for instructions since he just received a thank you note from Prevost for the time he took to giving Prevost an education on slide problems.

Come to OKC in October and get a real taste of the hospitality this group has to offer.

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Thanks...I will check into all of those things. The tires look fine, no weather checking at all, but I will ck the dates. The rest of the coach looks very good, better than I thought it would.

I am not sure the dealer will warranty anything, but I will strongly suggest that they do.

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Originally Posted by Sid Tuls

Mark, You are right on the Prevost warranty. I had the same thing when I bought my coach. I guess I would like to know how much support you will get from the dealer. My coach is also an orphan but I get all the support even after 2 years. You will have 2 years unlimited on the shell and drive train. I can tell you that I had more issues with shell than with my conversion. No big thing just an clutch Fan and alltenator and a relay for my rear slide. If the wife is happy than your 90% done!!:D

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I thought the engine and transmission had a five year warranty? I will have to check deeper into that. I should have a decision shortly if we are going to go ahead with the purchase. So far, we are impressed and haven't found anything yet that would make us run away...

Thanks for the input. It is all appreciated.

Just be sure your enthusiasm for the coach does not cloud your ability to see how the market values these coaches.

The loss of value in all of our coaches has been brutal, but espcially so in conversions no longer supported or supported very well. When Vantare has been dumping new conversions for under $800,000 it tells you how they value their product and know what it is worth, but it also reflects how the market is pushing the prices down.

No coach is ever going to go up in price so to minimize your loss through depreciation you need to insure you are not overpaying. Buyers are very rare in today's market so as a buyer you are in control. Not too long ago new Legendary coaches were selling for as little as $625,000.

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Originally Posted by Jon Wehrenberg

Just be sure your enthusiasm for the coach does not cloud your ability to see how the market values these coaches.

The loss of value in all of our coaches has been brutal, but espcially so in conversions no longer supported or supported very well. When Vantare has been dumping new conversions for under $800,000 it tells you how they value their product and know what it is worth, but it also reflects how the market is pushing the prices down.

No coach is ever going to go up in price so to minimize your loss through depreciation you need to insure you are not overpaying. Buyers are very rare in today's market so as a buyer you are in control. Not too long ago new Legendary coaches were selling for as little as $625,000.

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I think that I have an understanding about the current market conditions. I guess that this is the cheapest new coach that I have found out there. I looked at Vantare/Featherlite and did not see the pricing you mentioned. The best price I found on a new one was still about $1 million. Granted I have not looked at everything available, but in calling on several, and looking at some in person, I did not see the deals you posted. Am I missing something here?

Mark,

I bought a 2006 Legendary in April. The coach has been great so far. Legendary built a tight coach no rattles. The only problem to watch out for is a water leak coming in by the passenger side ceiling running down the post by the entrance door. My coach was the ninth one build, but I know the owner of the eight one built with the same problem. The water comes in under the cap connecting the awnings. Prevost found the problem and repaired it for me just last week. It's been raining here in Pa for four days and it is dry still yipee!The crestron people who programed the coach are still in business and can help you if you need it. The former service writer for Legendary is Dave Rousey Jr. and he has been a great help in finding information as he kept many records and knows the coaches intimately. If your near Panterra Coach in Indiana they can repair almost anything. They took care of my small punch list and have maintained my last two Angolas. If you like it buy it

Mark,

If that's the one at Motorhome Specialists advertised, maybe someone here has done business with them before and can give you some hints as to their support after the sale.

Welcome to the forum, Mark. Motorhome Specialists, if that is the dealer, is, or at least was, great to deal with. We bought a Country Coach Intrigue from them about five years ago and the service was first class. Good luck with your search.

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Originally Posted by truk4u

Mark,

If that's the one at Motorhome Specialists advertised, maybe someone here has done business with them before and can give you some hints as to their support after the sale.

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Yeah, that is the one. Only rub is that I live in MN and they are in TX. We went down to look at it a couple of weeks ago and really liked it. They seemed very good to deal with, and spent as much time as we wanted going over things. I should know in a couple of weeks if we are going to go for it.

Thanks for the information.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by tpr

Mark,

I bought a 2006 Legendary in April. The coach has been great so far. Legendary built a tight coach no rattles. The only problem to watch out for is a water leak coming in by the passenger side ceiling running down the post by the entrance door. My coach was the ninth one build, but I know the owner of the eight one built with the same problem. The water comes in under the cap connecting the awnings. Prevost found the problem and repaired it for me just last week. It's been raining here in Pa for four days and it is dry still yipee!The crestron people who programed the coach are still in business and can help you if you need it. The former service writer for Legendary is Dave Rousey Jr. and he has been a great help in finding information as he kept many records and knows the coaches intimately. If your near Panterra Coach in Indiana they can repair almost anything. They took care of my small punch list and have maintained my last two Angolas. If you like it buy it

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Great news. I was wondering if I would find anyone who actually had one! I don't know which build # this one is, but I will find out. I did wonder about the Crestron stuff, and if there was someone who either had a copy of the actual programming or if you can download from the installed unit.

How has the Crestron stuff worked out for you? It seems solid, and straightforward, but I did not have a lot of time to study it all. I have some RTI stuff at home and it looks somewhat similar in function and design.

Have you had any issues that I should be aware of, besides the water leak? Inverters, pumps, anything like that? I noticed that many of the lightbulbs were burned out, but I would imagine that after almost 2 years, some would be.

We really liked the layout and decorating. It didn't look like a Vegas whorehouse on wheels like some do...<g>.

Thanks for any info you can send my way.

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Originally Posted by Mark3101

We really liked the layout and decorating. It didn't look like a Vegas whorehouse on wheels like some do...<g>.

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New to the forum and already calling the Liberty owners out!

Welcome to group. Sounds like a nice bus you guys are looking at. Good luck.

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Originally Posted by GDeen

New to the forum and already calling the Liberty owners out!

Welcome to group. Sounds like a nice bus you guys are looking at. Good luck.

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It wasn't Liberty...it was another that will remain nameless...<g>.

I don't want to get a reputation as a troublemaker my first day!

Pull the trigger, and tell your wife how smart you are that decided to buy it, and she can tell you how smart you are for picking the one she liked.

You can add that other stuff (I meant Liberty stuff) later.

the sooner you buy it, the sooner you get to start enjoying it.

I would go for it and start enjoying ownership. ;)

Welcome Mark, enjoy the site, be cautious on what you buy.

It's easier to buy a bus than to sell one.

JIM

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Originally Posted by JIM CHALOUPKA

Welcome Mark, enjoy the site, be cautious on what you buy. It's easier to buy a bus than to sell one. JIM

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Jim C. why would you make a negative statement like that to Mark, :( a new POGer, excited about a Bus he has found, ready to jump into the best experience he has ever had, of driving the finest RV on the road?

Everyone knows RV's are hard to sell in this economy, except Bob Boies! :)

How does he do it? :confused: What is that now, 5 buses sold in 5 years?

Bob/Debbie, what are you bringing for us all to drool over in OKC, now? :)

Gary S.

I think Jim C is correct in pointing out what may be obvious to us, but not necessarily to someone new to conversions.

Mark is doing it right, and he has the benefit of not only his efforts, but of comments based on experiences of POG members.

There are buyers like Bob-05 who like to flip buses. Obviously Bob makes everybody else look like apprentices but he knows clearly what he is doing, he knows the market, he knows the players, and he knows the conversions. For Bob he has to buy right, and he has to keep depreciation in the back of his mind. Bob is my idol. I wish he would adopt me.

There are buyers who are in it for the long term. What they buy will be a "keeper" and retained value and purchase price are less critical. For those buyers what is important is that the coach is as close to exactly what they want as possible because while the depreciation is only a number to them, the layout or colors or decor is very important. We don't know which category Mark is in, so all advice may have some value to him.

One thing I am glad to see has disappeared and that is the use of the word investment in any context relating to a bus.

[QUOTE=Gary & Peggy Stevens;
Bob/Debbie, what are you bringing for us all to drool over in OKC, now? :)
Gary S.[/QUOTE]

Gary,

We are very sorry to report that we won't be able to attend OKC and visit with our friends. We adopted Jon and we are broke:D

Seriously, my class reunion is, unfortunately, at the same time as our POG event. This year my reunion wins, Bob is of course thrilled, but we are without a bus now so we will just look forward to the next rally. Have fun for us!

Debi and Bob ??

Mark,
The crestron system is the same as all the other coaches that have them. It has been a learning experience for me, none of my other coaches had them. It seems to be reliable however I just had mine reprogrammed two weeks ago. I flew the original programmer in from Oregon and he updated the screen graffics and changed out the Rotell surround sound and installed a bluray dvd player made by Integra that are used in the 2010 conversions. He also programmed a universal remote so you don't have to carry around the cumbersom wireless unit. At completion he gave me a memory stick with the program for my coach and also can make changes from Oregon through my cable internet. The inverters are Xantrex SM4024Mc2, very common and can handle stage one airconditioning going down the road without genset. The water system is a headhunter system very common in boating and high end conversions. Sorry to be so long winded if you want you can send me A private message and I'll try to answer any questions. I'm glad you are doing your homework. Smart.

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Originally Posted by tpr

Mark,
The crestron system is the same as all the other coaches that have them. It has been a learning experience for me, none of my other coaches had them. It seems to be reliable however I just had mine reprogrammed two weeks ago. I flew the original programmer in from Oregon and he updated the screen graffics and changed out the Rotell surround sound and installed a bluray dvd player made by Integra that are used in the 2010 conversions. He also programmed a universal remote so you don't have to carry around the cumbersome wireless unit. At completion he gave me a memory stick with the program for my coach and also can make changes from Oregon through my cable internet. The inverters are Xantrex SM4024Mc2, very common and can handle stage one air conditioning going down the road without genset. The water system is a headhunter system very common in boating and high end conversions. Sorry to be so long winded if you want you can send me A private message and I'll try to answer any questions. I'm glad you are doing your homework. Smart.

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Thanks!!!! Looks like the bus I am looking at has the same inverters, water pump and similar, if not identical Crestron stuff. I think that the surround sound is Marantz and no blu-ray either, but that is something to add as that is all we buy these days. During the test drive, we ran two of four a/c units off the inverters, so that is also the same.

I would venture that there are not too many differences from 2006 to 2008 builds. I would imagine this one was actually done in 2007 because I think they went under that year...

If we get it, i will have to get in touch with you to get caught up on everything you have learned! Nice to be able to get some first hand info.

Thanks!