New Member needing info on Marathon Coaches1990-2002

[B&RBergstrom]

Thanks Gil I have seen some of the orphan coaches not really sure who is still operating. Really liked a Vision was set up electricity and propane.. i like the Vision,Country Coach I have seen went to Tampa last year that helped some just trying to absorb as much as I can

[Matt_in_AZ]

@Gil - I hope that you and other POGers did not take offense to the use of the word "orphaned" in the context of coaches which have survived the death of their "parent" converters. I have seen that term used frequently throughout these forums and endeavored to use similar vernacular.

Gil brings up good points. If you search for any length of time on this forum you will find that he is one of the many members here that is very mechanically inclined and capable of self-performing a great deal of work on his coach. I include myself in that same category. Once an owner learns his/her coach and assuming he/she has the aptitude/ability to maintain, upgrade, or otherwise turn a wrench on his/her coach the importance of the factory being in business today is less important. Keep in mind that there are plenty of owners who rely heavily on the factory or other authorized service facility to take care of even basic items like changing bulbs. Only you can decide in which category you belong. You should also plan to buy a set of tools to leave in the bus to take care of all the little items that need to be adjusted while enjoying the use of your coach. Like a permanent home, these require regular maintenance and upkeep.

I have only seen one coach (a Vision being sold over in CA) which has propane on board. Unless you really feel the need to utilize a gas cooktop in lieu of an electric cooktop I would steer clear of propane. I have seen what a propane explosion looks like and it isn't pretty. However, it is a staple for most RVs and the risk of a problem is statistically insignificant. I wouldn't want to lose the bin space or have to deal with filling propane. If you are a gourmet chef who needs propane I would suggest you could probably have it added to almost any coach you like because finding one with it included would be like finding the proverbial needle in a haystack.

Ask more questions...

[Gil_J]

Matt, no offense taken.

My recommendation to prospective buyers when it comes to orphans is don't close the door on these coaches until you've looked at them. Some orphans have a better support network than some of the coaches from production companies. Furthermore, the owners of some orphan conversion companies are still in business today as service companies. Although some might disagree, some orphan coaches are easier to maintain than some production company conversions because the orphan company provided detailed documentation. It may be hard to believe, but at least one converter doesn't even provide fuse and circuit breaker identification or they didn't in their 2006 models.

I've seen 3 Visions. All three were converted entertainer chassis that are 3-4" taller than motorhome chassis. Just another tidbit on the different XL models that use to be available. The ones I looked at seem well done with what little time I spent in them.

There was a time when propane was installed in conversions as a way to meet electrical code requirements, not because the buyers wanted propane. There was a time when Oregon didn't make any electrical distinctions between a motorhome and a mobile home. One of there requirements was to energize all electrical systems to make sure the commercial power feed could handle the load. There were two ways converters got around this requirement. One way was to use a propane cooktop and hot water heater. The other way was to install a second shore power feed. FWIW, I've only seen a propane cooktop in one post 2010 conversion and that was at the customer's request. It can certainly be done and it wouldn't be that hard to install a compliant system, if you can't live without gas cooking. A better idea may be to install an outdoor gourmet kitchen so you will quickly meet your neighbors at dinner time.

[B&RBergstrom]

Great info Matt,Between you and Gil learning and thinking about options.

[B&RBergstrom]

Gil,
Thanks for all the info. you and Matt are so helpful. Like the idea of outdoor kitchen.You have both given me a class in Coaches. The only reason for Propane would be for dry camping.. I was thinking it would extend the time we could be off grid..would still want to run the Coach a 20kw should handle everything right?
Thinking about portable solar charging for batteries as well or would that even be necessary. We will mainly be west of the Mississippi and in dryer climates.Cool Summer's no humidity. Southwest /California winter.
The Vision I saw on line was very nice.. We saw a Newell went to see it .. Only to find it in deplorable condition..
Tends to make me feel unsure of dealing with some. Seems I have a lot to learn.

[Gil_J]

Propane would be good for extending your dry camping time IF you don't want to run your generator. Personally, I would run the generator at cooking times to support the stove and oven while charging the batteries.

Prevost conversion generators all exceed the power we get from our 50A shore power connection. 50A 120/240 is 12.5Kw.

[Matt_in_AZ]

The one bit of advice I have heard over and over again from Prevost owners, dealers, and mechanics regarding the generators is to "Run them, run them, and run them." I was actually worried about my 20 year old generator when I thought the hours were a mere 364 hours and then I found the documentation showing the hour meter had been replaced at 2,514 hours (for a total of nearly 2,900 hours). There is a reason mission-critical generators at data centers, call centers, and hospitals are set to run on a regular maintenance cycle (e.g. weekly) to ensure they will be there for you when you need them most. I have heard of well-maintained generators like those in our Prevost lasting 30,000+ hours. In my first days of ownership I admit I was "frugal" with running mine, but realized in short time that the draw on the diesel is measured in fractions of a gallon per hour under average load. Plus the noise abatement in the bay makes it very difficult to hear one running. My coach has airbags under the generator frame. I learned after my first trip that I needed to use the on-board air hose to fill them to the proper PSI in order to absorb vibration. What a difference a few PSI of air makes. As a side note, did you know that underneath the driver in the side exterior compartment there will typically be an air hose and a quick connect coupling for filling your tires? There is a second connection on mine on the passenger side engine bay compartment too. I didn't know this until after I owned mine. Lots of "Easter eggs" to find.

Many converters have installed an auto-start system on the generator. Mine is labeled "Auto-Gen Enable" on the dash panel and bedroom electrical panel to allow the generator to automatically start and shut down to maintain the batteries while dry camping and using the house power. You get up and go hiking in the morning while it is off and when the A/C cycling on/off throughout the day draws down the batteries to a preset level, the inverters (measuring the house batteries) send a signal to the generator auto start system to indicate it should automatically start and run (until the batteries are charged to a preset level). You may return later and not even realize the generator was working in your absence. The point is - it is "hands free" and "worry free". Some coaches I looked at did not have this feature. I am glad mine does. This is a perfect example of what I consider a "must have" feature with my Prevost mission that I never knew to look for until someone pointed it out.

A 20kW generator produces 167 Amps of electricity at 120V. There are some older homes with a mere 100 Amp service feeding them (most today have 200 Amps minimum). That should put it in perspective. Fire up everything on the bus including your leaf blower connected to the outside convenience receptacle and you should still have headroom on power. Just don't run the leaf blower next to me at 6:00AM.

I thought about solar and still continue to do so on occasion (for full disclosure my other vehicle is an electric car). If you think about the average output of a commercial solar panel being about 10-12 watts per square feet (good rule of thumb) and a 45' Prevost having 382.5 square feet of roof (ignoring all of the roof penetrations, dish, antenna, horns, etc.) you may be able to generate a theoretical maximum output of about 4,500-4,600 Watts of power during mid-day sun (or did you pick that nice spot under the shade trees?). In reality you might have room for about 2,000-2,500 Watts of generation from the RV focused solar panels during six to eight hours of the day. If you were dry camping in an area not requiring your A/C (in cooling or heat pump mode) to be ran and you wanted to run silent you could probably keep the batteries topped off enough to run your refrigerator, some interior lighting (better upgrade to LED pucks) and your LED TV long enough to watch Jimmy Fallon at night. Or you could just run your generator and buy several years worth of fuel for what the solar system might cost you. In other words, it doesn't make financial sense - yet.

You should be thinking about your freshwater consumption and waste water storage being the limiting factor rather than electricity. My coach was customized with an added 90 gallon freshwater tank giving me a total of 218 gallons of water which lasts me personally a long time. A family of four like mine with kids who don't know how to take a short shower can consume water at a scary fast rate. Don't forget that the dishwasher and clothes washer are both water hogs too.

All good questions. By the way - do you have a first name to call you by other than your avatar?

[B&RBergstrom]

Yes I'm Rita.
My husband has felt all along that the Generator should run us with no problem. Had a sales person tell us we couldn't .
I have been looking at tank sizes. Dishwasher not an issue,not something I need in a coach. Washer and dryer definitely. Full loads only. Short showers easy.Bottled water too.
I have noticed tank sizes vary. Hope to find a large fresh water tank or be able to customize
I notice your coach is a 1997 Marathon, so no slides? I seem to have to get into 2000-up to find single or double slides.
We are not sure we need them.Would depend on set up inside of Coach.
Would def switch to LEDs have read this can be an expensive under taking... But worth the cost I think.
I see what your saying as far as Solar.
Thanks Rita

[Matt_in_AZ]

Hello Rita,

Our coach had a washer and dryer in it when the original owner purchased it; however, one of the post-purchase/pre-delivery requests was to remove it. At first I found this to be a surprise. I know mine is pre-plumbed with hot/cold water, electricity, and vent making it an easy item to add. My wife and I have put 12,000 miles on our coach in just the first few months of ownership and are still undecided about the need for a washer/dryer. I know several owners who have said they don't use their washer/dryer for the reasons below:

1) Very small size of load requiring 4-5 small loads to equate to a normal washer/dryer capacity
2) Uses a great deal of water
3) Uses a great deal of time/electricity to dry
4) The combination units are neither a good washer or good dryer (too many compromises)

I know someone who managed one of the largest service centers for motor coaches in the western states and he told that his team pulled them out of coaches far more than he installed new ones.

If you are at an RV park with full hook-ups you probably don't mind the water and/or electrical use, but the value of your time is worth consideration.

In our trips thus far staying at RV parks we have taken all of our laundry for the week to the laundry room when none of the washers/dryers were in use and did all of our laundry in one wash and dry cycle (two hours maximum).

On the other hand my kids were soaked and sand covered from a stop at a beach one afternoon and we would have liked the opportunity to toss swimming suits in the washer/dryer just for the convenience of not having wet/sandy clothes floating around the coach (sand gets everywhere).

There is better than a 30% probability that I will add one in the spot designated for a washer/dryer because of the ease of installation, but it will be for those times when a small load of laundry must be done rather than relying on it for bulk laundry.

Slides are polarizing. Some feel they are must haves. Others wouldn't want them for any amount of money. My price point didn't include slides so it wasn't an option. My local motor coach service center had one in the shop in June with the slide removed. It was a non-Prevost slide. It had been in the shop for 6 months being repaired ($$$). They told me that in the best cases slides are a convenience worthy of the purchase for many owners' missions but require routine maintenance. In the worst cases they can be the source of expensive repairs. At the end of the conversation I was told that only the Prevost factory slides or the Valid brand of third party slides should be considered as they have the best track record. As you will learn, several third party vendors were adding slides of varying levels of quality. The popularity of slides led Prevost to eventually introduce factory slides but they took time to integrate them into the design of the coaches to optimize functionality and reliability.

Parked long-term in any location the slides make the interior much larger. If you travel across land more than you stop like we do the slides aren't really a factor in our enjoyment. Make sure you see a coach with the slides retracted to see how much room is available to move about the coach when driving down the highway. Some require a degree of gymnastics ability to move around while traveling. Just food for thought.

[B&RBergstrom]

Matt,
Thanks for all the good info. Do you have experience with Marathons Certified Used Coaches?
You mentioned to make sure we get a PPI.I know this is an inspection but not familiar with aspects of this inspection.
And should I have Marathon do it. Or say I find one at another converter or through a personal transaction. Would any Prevost sales/service/Converter be able to do inspection?
Thanks Rita