Engine maintenance

[Jim Skiff]

We're looking for a volunteer for this seminar hosted by Zimmerman Coach.

Zimmerman Coach, Systems Safety and Reliability This seminar will be led by Steve D'Antonio Passage Maker Magazine's Technical Editor and VP of operations of Zimmerman Coach of Mathews, Virginia.

If you (and your coach) would like to participate please let me know. First come first served.

Jim

[rbeecher]

Jon, Gary,

It is not my purpose here to condemn any converter, but I do very strongly agree that anyone of us out here - new, existing, or about to purchase, owner/buyer, have the right to know who they are working with and who to look to when purchasing or having service performed. The more we know, the better off we are and the better those in the business we work with will be to deal with, hopefully. There may be those in the business who prefer the opposite with the thinking we will have to come to them for everything. I don't subscribe to the later but some are more comfortable there and have the resources. Some, like myself, prefer to have a choice.

Gary, I do have the labels with date and miles on the intake pipe and generator guard but that is all. I absolutely agree that the dealer should know the bus if they are selling it. Selling a bus to someone who has never owned one is a big deal (pun intended) and should be taken very seriously.

As you suggest Jon, I am trying to get a handle on maintenance and to set up a schedule for what needs to be done when and that would have been easier (and less expensive) if I had the records for what was done in the past. There is a great deal to consume in the way of information in order to figure out what maintenance needs to be done in the first place, let alone when. I do alot of sportscar racing at tracks around the country. When we are at the track, we keep records on everything, which tires came off what corner of the car, tire temperatures when we come off the track, and, we keep track of how many hours we have on the engine so we know when it will need to have main bearings, etc. replaced. Those are just a very few of the items we have to pay attention to. WE KEEP WRITTEN RECORDS. Otherwise we might find ourselves in an unsafe car which usually happens at the most in opportune time.

I came to this forum seeking technical advice, an issue I had with the ABS System, brought me out of lurk mode. I now scour the forum archives for any information that will help me understand the Prevost world better and hopefully enjoy the bus more and avoid sitting beside the road. Above all, safety will be enhanced. There is a great deal to take in and I would suggest that if some in the know could put togetther a one? page list of what every owner needs to do in the way of maintenance and review it in a tech session at POG III, that would be outstanding. Maybe this was done at past rallys, I don't know.

Richard
96 Vogue 40 XL

[Ray Davis]

Richard,

Although there is not a specific maintenance tech session scheduled, there is a Q/A and BOF (birds of a feather - by converter) session scheduled on Friday afternoon.

That would be a wonderful time to bring up maintenance issues. I also believe that Jon has posted on another thread his maintenance schedule. It would be nice to try to come up with a full list of maintenance items and times.

[Jon Wehrenberg]

Actually as I am trying to refine my own maintenance schedule for my coach I find it is a blend of what Prevost Car has on their site and what I need for the house.

What works for me will not work for others, but when I get it where I want it to be for my particular coach I will post it for everyone.

What makes it so difficult is I am getting detailed. Prevost calls for lubing the chassis as an example. What is lacking there is the fact that I want to identify every single zerk fitting, but contrary to what Tom may say, I don't want to grease every one, every time. Specific examples there are the fittings in the steer compartment such as the U joint on the steering column. On the other hand I absolutely need to grease the kingpins, steering linkage, U joints on the drive shaft, etc.

But I also want to go beyond the information on the Prevost site and include the part numbers of filters, belts, etc. and create a schedule for changing things based on criteria other than the Prevost schedule. I will change bus batteries every five years for example. Ditto with tires. So my schedule somehow needs to reflect that.

I have been playing with this for a while and it seems like whenever I think I got it complete, I run across something I forgot, like the air filters on the Cruise Air units. Then someone like JPJ writes about the roof, so I will include that also.

[rbeecher]

Jon,

And this is all coming from you the seasoned veteran. I am not retired or even semi retired and have very little spare time and for that reason I know it is all the more important for me to understand the maintenence schedule, soon. I feel like I am going to miss something important if I don't get there any minute now. At least I know what most of the parts are that you guys talk about in all the posts. I'll bet I could be stumped at POGIII by several of you on many items though. Maybe a technical quiz will be in the works...

On the transmission side, I have learned some on this site have spoken to their respective converters about my posts, hoping I was not pointing a figure at their beloved service departments. I would do the same and I am pleased that a certain amount of attention has arisen from my predicament. I have had an encouraging conversation this afternoon and expect a decision by Monday or Tuesday. There is a very fine line between retaining a customer or not sometimes and I will say they are listening. I appreciate everyone standing by while I sort this out.

I was at DD in Miami this afternoon and the rebuild is underway as the parts arrived this morning. The other good news is the engine has received a very clean bill of health.

Thanks to everyone for all the "cards and letters". I will have a favourable update soon I trust.

Richard Beecher
96 Vogue 40 XL

[Jon Wehrenberg]

Richard,

This is perhaps good news, bad news. We have been driving a Prevost coach since 1990, and I have assumed virtually 100% responsibility for my maintenance and repairs since around 1994. I have learned an awful lot. The good news is I think I am doing a whole lot that is right. The bad news is that I am still learning and still overlook things.

I don't intend for that to scare you. I do want to emphasize however that there is a lot to these coaches and nobody, not Prevost, not the converter, and not the owner can be expected to ever catch everything. So when you are attempting to orchestrate the maintenance program on your coach make sure the stuff that will really bite you in the butt gets your attention. With the engine and generator make sure they have clean oil and filters. With the transmission make sure it has clean oil and filters. Keep it lubed. Pay attention to the oil level in the hubs and differential. Change your coolant as required and keep the chemistry right between changes. Don't let hoses or belts age to the point where they might fail.

All that is good solid basic stuff. There are other fluid levels such as power steering and AC compressor oil.

When on a trip you need to monitor tire pressures.

All the above deals with the stuff that is going to get expensive if ignored.

But as I am learning, as I try to create a schedule we also have AC coils to clean, filters to clean or replace, and fans to lube. Just when you think you are covering it all you realize the refrigerator coils also need cleaning. And the house water filters need replacing, and the air dryer needs to be serviced.

You can see where I am going.

Try not to let it appear overwhelming. It is not and I can assure you that all that I am going to end up with on my list probably represents a couple of days work for me, or if you choose to have others do it the same amount of time. Once everything is done the first time, then the tasks begin to spread out so while you may lube the coach and change oil every 5000 miles (or two or three times a year) you may only have to change coolant every two years or transmission fluid every four years.

Since everybody uses their coach differently a maintenance schedule becomes a personal thing. I think DD calls for oil changes on a Series 60 every 30,000 miles. I use every 5000 miles and you may wish to do it every 15000 miles. We all have to decide based on how we use the coaches.

Just keep after it and things will work out. But also keep in mind that nobody is as likely to catch what needs to be done as much as you will.

[truk4u]

Richard,

Hang in there, you have been dealt a bad hand, but it will get better and you'll know your bus inside and out in no time. It's really not overwelming. Once you get to a good maintenance starting point, then things will fall into place as you move forward. I won't add to any of the suggestions already written, they are all good. A good place to look for a schedule is at Prevost at this site: http://www.prevostcar.com/DB/service...20Schedule.pdf. There's also a good one on the Stuff Site.

You have everyones support on this board and can talk to most of us anytime by phone. Don't hesitate to ask for a phone number if you need moral support or help. We have to help JPJ all the time!

Keep us up to date and keep the posts coming... You'll be smiling like JDUB at a Taco Stand in no time while driving that bus.

[rbeecher]

Jon, Tom,

Not to worry guys, I'm in it for the long haul. As long as overwhelming is heading toward underwhelming, which it is with all the great resources in this group, it will be an enjoyable ride.

Everything happens for a reason and so far I see nothing but good coming from this experience.

Thanks for all the great pointers and the link.

Richard
96 Vogue 40 XL

[bill&jody]

i had a valve adjust done at the middletown, ct, DD last fall. there wasn't anything pointing to a need for it other than the poor mileage (read, yardage) - i guess i just thought 25 degrees diff in pyrometers was normal. the mileage then was about 127k.

in the process, the tech found that two of the jake controllers, one on each side, had disconnected wires - just broke or fell off. now i have much improved engine braking and a noticable diff in git-up-n-go. just for comparison sake, the cost was about 550. seems like a lot, but then.........

altho the prev owner had a stack of jacksonville prevost maint receipts, i couldn't find one spec'ly pointing to top end, so i just did it. i think i'm glad i did.

wmm

[rbeecher]

That's interesting Bill.

I just had a call from DD and they confirmed a similar finding on my Jake which I run on the low position when I have the trailer along. I had thought a couple of weeks ago that it wasn't doing as much and they found the connection has an issue which is being taken care of today.

I asked them to check it after reading your message yesterday, they had already found the problem by the time I called.

Richard Beecher
96 Vogue XL 40
07 Suburban