Orphan Coaches

[Alek&Lucia]

Talk to me Alek - there are a couple of very interesting Royales out there...

Which ones ? Perhaps I know them,

Alek

[Jerry Winchester]

Alek,

I think that dog hair has you clogged. We need to quit jerking each other off here. Orphan coach is okay; supported coach is way better.

Having owned both, there is nother better than this;

JDUB - "Hello tech services, there is a clicking noise in the closet near relay #22"

Tech - "Go look under the passenger's seat and unplug the power wire labled 22"

JDUB - "Hey the clicking quit and I noticed the wire was bare and rubbing against the seat rail"

Tech - "Just tape or heat shrink it and that should fix it"

JDUB - "Great and would you send some sheep to the Krakman...."

However, this works too;

Truk4U - "Hello JDUB, there is a sheep sound in my (Marathon, Country Coach, Liberty) and my flashlight keeps shocking me."

JDUB - "WTF are you calling me while I am asleep in Libya?"

Truk4U - "I can't sleep cuz everytime I turn the lights off a mosquito starts buzzing."

JDUB - "It sucks to be you. Drink some more beer and call Jon."

Truk4U - "He won't take my calls anymore."

JDUB - "Call Sticky, his wife does the work on their bus, she'll help."

Truk4U - "JDUB, YOU DA MAN"

[Denny]

I have been very satisfied with my CC. All of the problems I have had, and there have not been many, are either Prevost or other vendors' products. As seen in the above posts, most CC owners are very happy with their buses while the non CC owners are the ones complaining about them.

I feel that with the large quantity of orphans in all brands and models of RVs, that there will be many small specialty service facilities opening in the future to provide service. The quality and ambitious techs will start their own shops to provide a living for themselves in the field they are most qualified in. We have seen a decline in manufacturers but not in total number of RVs. Those out there will still need service whether it be a pull behind or a Prevost.

[Alek&Lucia]

Talk to me Alek - there are a couple of very interesting Royales out there...

Alek,

I think that dog hair has you clogged. We need to quit jerking each other off here. Orphan coach is okay; supported coach is way better.

Jerry,

Royales have better support now than before thanks to Glen and Dan from www.RoyalePhoenix.com


Alek

[rbeecher]

Gordon,

Don't forget the Vogue built by Mitchell in Pryor,Oklahoma. These are a superbly built bus with any service you need able to be done with complete satisfaction at Parliament. Rick May knows these inside and out including all of the wiring.

You can also have the Vogue serviced by Tulsa RV if you are out west. Both Carl West and Jerry Nadine worked at the plant and know these coaches inside and out as well.

Richard Beecher
2002 Marathon XLII 45
1996 Vogue XL 40

[Jon Wehrenberg]

"I have been very satisfied with my CC. All of the problems I have had, and there have not been many, are either Prevost or other vendors' products. As seen in the above posts, most CC owners are very happy with their buses while the non CC owners are the ones complaining about them."

I have not been complaining about them, but I have been pointing out, and using CC as an example that there can be serious problems relating to the failure of some proprietary features. My only public comment about CC related to when they were in business and treated their customers like dirt. That was precipitated by the shabby treatment of Ray Davis but from the time we bought our first coach we saw first hand seriously pissed off CC owners who lacked support for their coaches. Insulting the company is not the same as insulting the product.

We can all acknowledge the chassis is well supported. The conversion however is another story. It cannot be supported by the converter if the converter does not exist or chooses to not be responsive. It is easy for me to target CC as the poster child for not supporting their product. I know CC owners do not like to hear that because it diminishes their value, but facts are facts. Ray Davis went through hell trying to get issues sorted out on his CC and that was when they were still operating. His final solution was to fly an expert to him, and compbined with two other CC owning POG members get a variety of issues on their coaches corrected.

Almost all of our coach conversions are 99% off the shelf components installed in the converter's cabinetry and interior decor. We don't need a converter to help us find a WW Grainger item. But for those of us that have as a central part of our coach operating system some proprietary devices or software we need a game plan in case that system has a glitch. My coach has proprietary programming for the PLCs that make all my internal switches function. If my converter goes away I have exactly the same problem CC owners have right now with the proprietary control boards.

Recognizing that potential problem is not damning the converter or the product, but is creating an awareness that in the future, if not now, someone, somewhere is going to have a failure, and when that occurs it has to be fixed. Getting it fixed may be as simple as finding the original vendor, locating a former converter tech, or reverse engineering the component. But acting like a coach working well today will continue to work well and ignoring the potential is dangerous. This group does have a high degree of expertise and those with CC conversions can form a coalition and gather what they need for the day when a problem occurs.

Those with coaches that do not use any proprietary devices or components only need to learn who made their widget and how to be able to buy that widget.

[GDeen]

Good stuff here fellas...

Good stuff from the CC owners on your coaches. Good to hear how satisfied you are - some very good looking CC's out there.

Jerry, excellent perspective on the difference in being able to call the builder and get a quick turnaround vs. spending time chasing a solution.

Jon, the proprietary interfaces is what concerns me most. Perhaps that is because I am intimidated by circuit boards etc (hard to fix properly with an 8 lb hammer).

Personally I would feel much more secure in having a coach I could call the convertor hotline 24/7 for troubleshooting. However, great looking highly featured "orphan" examples for real dollars less are what causes one to incur this type of review. Sometimes the best opportunities incur some risk eh?

[GDeen]

Alek, check out this 40' footer...

http://http://www.rvonline.com/single-ad.asp?Recnumber=43627&SearchMethod=1

And this XLII bunk coach...

http://www.prevost-stuff.com/2001_pr...terra_Bunk.htm

[JIM CHALOUPKA]

Gordon, You will know which bus is best only after you buy one

JIM

[GDeen]

Gordon, You will know which bus is best only after you buy one

JIM

Jim - so true! I am getting that distinct feeling.