CC XL45 with 2 slides

[maxbeer]

Looking at a Country Coach bus with 2 aftermarket slides. The bus is a '99 but I need some hand holding about the 2 slides. Any and all input on the slides and
on electric zip Dee awnings?

The bus is clean, low miles [a plus and a negative] and I already hate the slide side bay doors. They hinge at the bottom.

Thanks from a newbee for all your input in advance.

Larry

[Just Plain Jeff]

Have you got a link?

As a general remark, if there is something that you already HATE, i'd listen to that. What slides are they?

Hmmmm.

[truk4u]

Larry,

Welcome to the Forum, you have come to the right place for info. I'm not a slide fan, but I would really dig into the conversion and learn as much as possible. The aftermarket stuff can sometimes bite you in the butt. We do have folks here with slides and maybe they will jump in. Gary?

[merle&louise]

Larry,

Welcome to the POG forum, the opinions here are varied but the concern is genuine.

I like slides, I would not have a coach without them. That being said, I would shy away from after market slides. But that's just me. I am not mechanically inclined, and I tend to shy away from trying to repair things that I am not familiar with (like slides).

Let me say that in my opinion, Country Coach makes a fine conversion. Serveral of the POG members own CC, and they are very well satisfied. That being said, I would like to ask you a few questions.

Did Country Coach install the slides, or were they installed by an after market company? It is important to have someone solid to fall back on it you have a problem. Who built the slide rooms, HWH, Valid, or someone else? Are they hydraulic or electric? The electric slides are considered to be better than the hydraulic because in the event of a failure they can be pushed in, by hand, easier than hydraulic.

I have hydraulic slides in my Newell, and after 9 years the only repairs needed have been to change 2 hydraulic solenoids (about $460 installed). I would prefer to have electric slides, but since they were installed in later model year coaches, the cost is higher.

If you dislike the way the bay doors are hinged, then I would pass on this coach. Buy a coach that you are 100% in love with! If everything is not right, or can be made right with minimal expense (carpet, fabric, etc.), then I would just pass on it if I were you. After all, you are going to be spending a great deal of money, get what you want - no compromises! Someone said, the quality remains long after the price is forgotten, and I believe that is true.

Hope that I have been helpful to you. Please PM or email me with any other questions.

[maxbeer]

Thanks for the reply. I should have said that these slides are Rouge/HWH electric slides for Country Coach. NOW, they work fine. I didn't see any sort of slide topper to shield away debris except for two Zip Dee electric awnings that operate separately from the slides and would not do a very good job. I haven't been able to chat with the current owner [a consignment bus] and I can't find anyone that has experience with these slides.

As for the bay doors, why couldn't they be mounted hinge forward [at a cost of course].

The Zip Dee electric awning are an unknown as well. I have and like the manual ZD but have no knowledge of the performance or reliability of the electric units.

Probably should pass on the bus, but I would hate to pass if there is a chance that with some homework I would find that there is nothing wrong with the slides.

Thanks for the help, Larry

[JIM CHALOUPKA]

Larry, If you have not already read them, do a [search posts] for: golf bags. You are asking about a CC and we were discussing a Marathon but the concerns were similar. My $.02 there are enough buses out there that don't have to be modified to make you happy. JIM

DOES: maxbeer=MASCERVASA?
[spell check]

[garyde]

Hi Larry. The thing about slides is, if you have a Bus that was enginered to have two large openings in the side of the Bus and not have structural failure, you would be right in purchasing a Prevost with Slides.
When a manufacturer alters the skeletal structure to create two large openings, they have in effect voided the engineering .

Now if Country Coach has endorsement from Prevost , and engineering drawings or specs ,then you are on a more sure basis to evaluate the Bus.

The Slide engineering which Prevost has developed belongs to Prevost. It sounds like what the Country Coach has is not Prevost,and is not Country Coach but a third Manufacturer.
Can CC stand behind not only the work they did but also the integrity of the Prevost frame?
Finally, the value of these Buses ( retro slides)has shown to be a negative in terms of resale. Gary

[JIM KELLER]

Larry,

Welcome to the forum. I have a 99 Country Coach 45XL that I am very happy with. With granite tile floors and other misc inventory and tools I am at the GVWR without slides. I think a valid concern for you is the weight of that coach without your personal belongings on board. I think the after market slides add a lot of weight to a chassis that might not have been designed for the slides.

[Jon Wehrenberg]

Larry,

This is a case where you need to be a doubter. Jim makes and excellent point about weight, and if you are serious about pursuing this coach have it weighed, not only front to rear, but side to side. Converters arrange the components in the bays to offset the added structure with slides. Unless this coach had slides fitted before the conversion it may have a problem, and even if the conversion was done after there still may be a problem.

I know nothing about how the slides were engineered, but I do know that since Prevost introduced their first slide about 7 years ago (or less) they have modified the design three times. A little voice in the back of my head suggests that if Prevost is struggling with the design of slides, the engineering challenge is not going to be easily addressed by a small company that doesn't have access to all of the Prevost know-how.

I believe the company that built the slides has gone through some changes, and its successor is now located in Angola, IN. I would find out what kind of support they offer.

Do you suspect the collective opinion here is to tread slowly and carefully on this? You will be taking a very big risk.

[Just Plain Jeff]

There is something rattling around in the back of my memory, which I wouldn't trust all that much on this topic.

When the first aftermarket slides were being marketed prior to the Prevost slides being installed at manufacture, the issue of whether or not the Prevost shell warranty would be violated came up. As I recall, PCC deferred the issue because they were coming out with their own slides at the time which were in fact warranteed.

As others have posted, PCC has gone through 3 iterations of slides since the introduction of the first pin-activated slide. The one they showed at the latest Tampa Super Show is very different than the first PCC-issued slide; miles apart from the various aftermarket slides.

Probably the quickest answer to your question would be to pick u the phone and call Country Coach and ask them about the coach, especially if you have the slide converter's name.

Pretty tough to beat the system here, especially with slides. If it is too good to be true, it usually is.