From A-1's Experience

[BrianE]

Any coach as it ages develops "ghosts". A little used coach may have more issues than a coach that is used often, but the bottom line is if it is made of rubber there will come a time when it needs to be replaced, not because of wear or use, but because it has aged out. A perfect example is tires. The major tire manufacturers agree that when a tire has been in service for 6 years its life is just about over, and at 10 years from the date of manufacture they wash their hands of any warranty support on a tire.

From my experience air bags start to get checking and cracking at the point where they roll over the "piston". The suspension Norgren valves are likely to start leaking if they haven't already, brake chamber diaphragms may be getting prone to cracking or leaking, etc. If the coach has slides the seals may be getting brittle and likely to start leaking. But this has nothing to do with whether the coach was sitting or being used. This is what happens. Maintenance is an ongoing process and regular use somehow tends to prolong the life of some components, but it doesn't prevent the ravages of age. I think people that buy coaches with low mileage and the expectation that those low miles translate into a trouble free product get disappointed when they realize those low mileage coaches still require maintenance.

That coach may have issues with the bushings in the front suspension A frames or sway bars or shock absorbers. All of this is normal and if you budget to deal with these issues you could end up with a very good coach in new condition (mechanically).

If you are a do-it yourselfer, relatively speaking the cost to bring these above items up to date will take a week or so of your time and a few dollars relative to the cost of the coach. The thing to remember is a coach that was frequently used compared to one that has not been used much may still need to have every item listed above replaced. That is not to say the rarely used coach is not going to have some issues as a result of non use. Depending on where and how it was stored there could be corrosion inside the engine. The roof could be suffering from leaks due to aging of the seals around all openings, something that would have been maintained on a coach that was used often.

The above was posted today on a thread titled "What do you guys think". It seemed like a tailor made way to blame my current project on Jon "da man". Our '99 Royale is now 13 years old and we had no maintenance records that could confirm if any of the aging rubber components had been changed and I subsequently found they hadn't. So, since I had nothing better to do it seemed a good time to do a little updating. The first pic below is a pile of most of the rear end rubber components. Add to these the radius rod bushings (12), Norgren valves (8 in our bus), and shocks (8) and you'll get an idea of how much "stuff" gets old, brittle and cracked. A couple of additional pics show airbag checking, a stretched shock bushing, and a badly corroded Norgren valve. Incidentally, except for a year on Liberty's sales lot, this bus had always been garaged.

Last year I started the project with the replacement of the front end components. These included all of the front suspension bushings and the steering rod ends. We should all be aware that the steering rod grease boots can easily be ruined by an over zealous lube technician. Too much grease in any of the rod end zerk fittings will split these boots causing a colossal mess and exposing the steering rod ends to the weather. In our bus every one of them had been exploded from too much grease. The fix is to replace the entire rod end since the boot is integral to the part. Incidentally, according to the previous and only other owner of the bus, ALL of it's regular service had been accomplished at Prevost Service Centers.

Commercial truck parts suppliers can duplicate some Prevost parts. Brake Chambers and brake hoses, are examples. Air bags and Norgren valves might be available from other sources but they probably won't beat Prevost prices. Cross referencing part numbers can be confusing at best.

Had it not been for the encouragement of Jon and Kevin Erion along with Jon's terrific "information Sharing" articles, I would never have attempted this project. Jon's Prevost Maintenance Schedule and Replacement Parts were especially helpful. The appropriate Prevost Maintenance Manual should always be the major source for any maintenance operation. A review of proper jacking procedures in the Owner/Operators manual should be reviewed every time you need to crawl under the bus.



IMG_0295.JPGShock Bushing.JPGAirbag Checking.JPG3 Port Norgren.JPG

[truk4u]

Great job Mr E and remember, I have first right of refusal when Beverly is ready to upgrade!

[Jon Wehrenberg]

For those who are not aware A-1 is a contraction of a name hung on me by JDUB at POG I and means Anal One. I can no longer claim that name having been over shadowed by guys like Kevin and Brian whose attention to detail makes me look like a lazy slob.

But having said that we three and many others who tend to do our own work see stuff beneath our coaches that influences our maintenance cycles, such as pulling Norgrens or air bags before they create problems. I think because Brian (a real pilot) and me (a general aviation pilot) think about failures and how they are going to impact us. Speaking for myself I would rather prematurely replace components than risk having them fail or act up while on the road. We do that on our planes and that philosophy keep us safer than if we deferred maintenance.

I know there are times when a component I replaced could have worked properly for years. I know from posts on this forum that owners have buses 17 years old or more and they are still on the original air bags. Ditto with brake chambers. Ditto with all the other things we have mentioned as aging. I think every owner has to establish a maintenance schedule to match his or her comfort level and tolerance for risk. I recently read the maintenance history of a 95 Prevost entertainer coach that is listed on Craig's list. It has 800,000 miles and based on the list of items repaired or replaced the owner only replaces components when they fail. Clearly despite that coach requiring a greater reliability than we might require, in that coach's 16 years of life the two front and one tag air bag are all that have ever been replaced. The point being only you as an owner can determine what level of preventative maintenance makes you comfortable. From my limited experience my maintenance schedule was set up to put high reliability ahead of cost and I am sure it is overkill. But it makes me comfortable knowing I am less likely to experience an issue and for that I am OK with what it costs.

[phorner]

But it makes me comfortable knowing I am less likely to experience an issue and for that I am OK with what it costs.

Well said, Jon.

When components fail, they usually do so when at the least convenient place and time.

Whenever I can choose the time and place to make a repair, I am grateful. Doing so in a parking lot, rest area, or worse yet, the shoulder of a road is not pleasant.

I wholeheartedly agree with Jon that preventive maintenance makes bus ownership a much more pleasant experience.

You will likely still have enough on-the-road "challenges" to satisfy you anyway

[Jerry Winchester]

Nice job Brian showing all the weathered components. I'm also sure there was a great sense of satisfaction pulling that job off in your own shop. I'm sure it gets the "A-1" seal of approval. But just to clarify Jon's point, if Kevin had his coach opened up to the same point Brian does, he would have steam cleaned the suspension and all related parts, taken his pneumatic wire brush and removed any remaining crud, rust, FOD and then repainted the area with several coats of high end paint while polishing anything that might be paint resistant. Kevin firmly believes that anything worth overdoing is an opportunity to make Jon look like a slacker.

Now, I know A-1 has some of that in him as I think at the Spearfish rally, I got up to pee around 5:30 am and looked out the window to see Jon washing his bus. He was also laughing (no one else around), but I think that had more to do with some nocturnal coach enhancements rather than his joy at being up at the Krakman of dawn exorcizing his anal cleaning demons.

But Kevin and Jon make Brian almost seem normal.

[bill lambrecht]

BRIAN,My name is BILL LAMBRECHT and I have a similar coach(99 VOGUE XLV 45).I am planning to do what you did.Would it be too much trouble fo you to give me PREVOST part numbers and prices for the air bags and shocks.My coach has IFS .I suppose yours did too.My coach has 120000 k mi. THANKS BILL

[Jon Wehrenberg]

Now, I know A-1 has some of that in him as I think at the Spearfish rally, I got up to pee around 5:30 am and looked out the window to see Jon washing his bus. He was also laughing (no one else around), but I think that had more to do with some nocturnal coach enhancements rather than his joy at being up at the Krakman of dawn exorcizing his anal cleaning demons.

Just to prevent someone from thinking because I am all alone laughing to myself that I am about to go bonkers what JDUB failed to elaborate on was my next door neighbor in Spearfish was none other than Truk. What I found humorous was he had no less than nine sheep hanging on his coach, no doubt the result of a midnight raid in an otherwise quiet RV park.

As to the time, I'm an early bird and my usual wake up time is around 5:30 to 6:00 eastern so at that hour in Spearfish I already had my coffee and was at work.

Brian ain't normal. I understand he raises moles. The type that burrow under your lawn.

[Jerry Winchester]

Point granted. Nothing attracts sheep like the Krakmobile. And the only thing better is when the Trukster ninjas out on a sheep run only to get back to find the Krakwagon covered in those dudes.

[Kevin Erion]

I see things the same as a guy who flys, but we live life at 200 MPH on a motorcycle. We don't want or need thing to fail, VERY BAD!

[truk4u]

Trust me, A-1 DOES walk around the bus at 5:30 AM smiling and mumbling something about his Droid and I witnessed it at TGO this past February. I know because my remote alarm went off and when I looked out, he was peeing behind the bus.

As for the Spearfish sheep, the turd boy's got the wrong bus, they were looking for a Liberty!

Kevin and Brian, you guys are doing it right...