Preparing to take the Plunge

[aggies09]

We wished we could have made the trip to TN for the rally. It sounded like it was going to be a great time.

The wife and I have found a bus that we have made a deposit on and are going to look at in a couple of weeks. It is '97 Liberty Elegant Lady and we are very excited and apprehensive. This forum has helped a great deal in our education and we look forward to meeting all of you at a future event.

I would appreciate any comments that anyone might have regarding the initial inspection of the bus. Keys to look for.........absolutely must haves...........and absolutely stay away froms.......... It is on the Liberty lot in Stuart, FL if that helps any.

Thanks for all the help and support.
__________________
No bus yet club...........Looking and Learning
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[Ray Davis]

Aggies09,

Jon Wehrenberg wrote a great article on pre-purchase inspections, which is listed in the articles section of the POG site.

http://www.prevostownersgroup.com/pu...ntype=Articles

Ray

[Loc]

Whoop!

Aggies,

It is nice to have another Aggie on the website to take the abuse from those (not mentioning any names, but he knows who he is) who like to abuse anyone from Aggieland.

I went to the Liberty website, but couldn't find a 97. Liberty makes a great product and has a very good reputation for supporting their product. Tell us a little more about the bus. Is it a 45 or 40 foot? Does it have bus air?

Ray is right about Jon's list for looking the bus over even though the list is a little overwhelming. Ask Liberty for a PDI (pre delivery inspection) it should show the minor and major issues with the bus and the condition of tires and batteries which can easily run you $8k to replace. An inspection of the bus by a qualified mechanic/inspector is a good idea since it is hard to know everything to look for even with a checklist. You might want to give Tom Spirito a call and ask him for the name of an inspector (Tom is at Gulf Coast Funding which is a sponsor for the Prevost-Stuff website).

In addition to the mechanical issues, be sure that you really like the interior and exterior of the bus. We spent a small fortune redoing the inside and repainting the exterior of our first bus. It is much easier to find one that you really like and there are plenty of them out there for sale.

Good luck.

Loc

[garyde]

The Liberty Web site has about 32 used Coaches for sale right now. Loc is right, Browes a little while your at Liberty. Liberty is very good about taking the time to show new owners everything on their new coach and how it works. But just like any dealer, they won't tell you what you don't ask. So, Jon's article regarding purchasing is a must read.
As far as support after purchasing from Liberty, they have been great for me.

[aggies09]

Loc,

Liberty has pulled the coach down on their website, but the bus can still be viewed at

http://www.prevost-stuff.com/1997_li...evost_7053.htm

Here is some of what I know at this point:
The coach is 45' XL. Series 60 w/77k miles. Prevost OTR air, drivers air, 20 kW kohler gen, 24 volt computer logic electrical system, 4 cruiseairs 14k btu, 80,000 but webasto furnace, 2-2500 watt heart inverters, 4 8D gell cell batteries (house). Liberty says they rate the bus as a 9 in condition.

Thanks for the input.

[JIM KELLER]

Aggies09, Did you look at POG member Mike Anderson's 97 Liberty " For Sale ? " Another " 9 " Bus.

[truk4u]

Diddo what Jim said, contact Mango!

[Loc]

Aggies,

That is a nice looking bus. If you want to look at Mango's bus that Truk and Jim mentioned, here is the link:

http://www.rvonline.com/single-ad.asp?Recnumber=40304

Additionally, if you want to see more pictures, you can go to Mango's website:

http://www.prevoman.com/Pages/MGA97/mgapage1.html

If you click on the Next Page link you will see multiple exterior and interior pictures. Based on the rvonline.com listing the pricing looks pretty good at $249k for a 97 Liberty. I have a friend in Houston that just sold a 97 Royale (a nice bus, but not at the level of Mango's Liberty) for $235k and the Liberty conversions usually sell at a premium.

[aggies09]

Thanks for the posts and thoughts. I have looked at Mango's pictures and found the bus to be very nice. However, from what I have seen of the photos, I prefer the interior of the Liberty that I am to look at in a couple of weeks. I have read Jon's article and plan on taking a copy with me out there with highlighted portions so that I get all of the information that I can. I continue to appreciate any input. Thanks.

[Joe Cannarozzi]

You picked the right bus. It is the exact year and model that Jon and Di have.
He will be a tremendous help to you, he will know it blindfolded.