wolfe10

Several possible causes, including a leaking city water/tank fill valve and a bad check valve in the pump. With your "pump turns back on" after use on tank water, I would start with the pump check valve. What water pump do you have? Brett

Yes, check transmission fluid with the engine running. Also, look in your Ford chassis owners manual for correct transmission temperature range for testing. Most specify only checking fluid level with fluid hot which means after 25 or so miles of highway driving.

Welcome to the FMCA Forum. Be sure you are checking with the transmission at proper working temperature per your Ford owners manual. Cold will show lower than when the fluid is warm. And to add fluid, buy pre-made or make yourself a funnel and a couple of feet of clear plastic hose. After use, put it in a Ziplock and save for future ATF use. The hose needs to be long enough to go from mid-windshield level (funnel end) to well into the dip stick tube. BTW, the same concept (clearly different funnel and hose) works for brake master cylinder. Brett

Like Tom, we have the on-coach hitch. Much easier and lighter to use as most of the weight stays on the coach and you are only lifting individual arms. Also, the toad doesn't have to be burdened with the hitch on the front (which can be damaged by parallel parking, etc) when driving solo. We have a Roadmaster tow bar and brackets, but both brands are excellent. Brett

Be very careful using brake fluid or other really harsh cleaner. There are a lot milder dirt/grease cutters than brake fluid. A lot of the CAC's are aluminum. And with most sandwiched cooling systems (CAC if front of radiator) it is not really possible to clean from the back. You or someone else will have to clean from the front. Yes, I KNOW how awkward that is. The other option, which is a LOT more expensive is to pull the radiator so that you can "reverse flush" the CAC. Brett

Caterpillar does NOT recommend any such coolant additives. Yes, make sure your coolant is not out of date (most coolants have a three year life, ELC coolants a 6 year life) and if a regular/non ELC coolant that the SCA concentration is kept in the proper range. The vast, I mean vast majority of overheating on a diesel pusher is caused by debris being deposited on the front of the CAC (Charge Air Cooler) and blocking air flow to the CAC and the radiator that is behind the CAC. Also, be aware that Caterpillar recommends that thermostat(s) be changed every three years. Brett

First, welcome to the FMCA Forum. Let's look at the 50 amp shore power first: You have TWO 50 amp hots, so you have 100 amps total @ 120 VAC available. If you look closely at the breakers in both the CG outlet box and your coach main 120 VAC breaker panel, you will find two 50 amp breakers pinned together. A generator that has two 30 amp breakers can supply 30 amps PER LEG or 60 amps total. But 60 (generator) is indeed less than 100 (50 amp shore power). Brett

Roger, That does make sense only if they went to a smaller/lower load capacity tire that would put the tires at a high-risk for blowout OR such an oversize that other mechanical components would be adversely affected (gear ratio materially affected, inadequate dual spacing, interference with other front suspension components, etc.). If there is any way for you to follow up on this, would sure be of interest. Determine if the tires posed any of the issues I mention (or others you feel would warrant their decision). Also, the name of adjuster or company so they can be contacted for their reasoning or if they were just taking advantage of a loophole to keep from honoring the warranty. Thanks. Brett

Yes, since they are 12 VDC, there will be a fuse (or should be). Without knowing what system you have, its age, whether monitor works/camera doesn't, etc it is difficult to really assist. Once you have verified that you do have 12 VDC to the system, if it doesn't work, my suggestion is to contact: http://www.rvcams.com/Default.htm They are one of the few places in the country that diagnose and actually repair rear view systems (cameras and monitors).

Paul, The danger with any charcoal-based filter is that it removes chlorine-- and they do a good job of doing that. Removing chlorine is ONLY OK, repeat ONLY OK if you will be using the water immediately. Storing water from which you have removed the chlorine is asking for microorganisms to grow in your tank. Again, use a sediment only filter (I like/use the 5 micron sediment only filters) for water going into the tank. Use a charcoal filter coming out of the tank for drinking water/all water. If you NEVER use the on-board tank and it is disconnected from your fresh water supply, a charcoal filter for all water "in" is OK. Brett

Art, Ya, I would pick up the phone and call both Bilstein and Koni and discuss this with them: Bilstein 858-386-5900. Kevin O’Keefe Koni (859) 488-0339. Jim Ryan You can tell them I suggested you call them. Brett Wolfe

Another Corp park, though probably not relevant for whole season stay. Just 15 miles east of Ft Myers. http://www.saj.usace.army.mil/Divisions/Operations/Branches/SFOO/recreation_camping_wpfranklin.htmMy link We have never stayed there in our motorhome, but stayed there this last spring in the sailboat on our way from the Bahamas back to Texas. The slips accommodate 40' boats and are adjacent to the CG. You can watch boats locking through the Franklin Lock. Brett

Art, Welcome to the FMCA Forum. Even if shocks are only 18,000 miles old, they may not be the best shock for your application: They are likely NOT high end shocks such as Koni or Bilstein. They are likely NOT valved for your specific application (sounds like you need more dampening, particularly on rebound). I would contact Koni and Bilstein and see what they have to offer for your M-2 chassis and how it differs from the OE shocks you have (suggest you crawl under and determine exactly what front shocks you have before calling them). Brett

Ya, without a stored code or other symptoms, they would be caching a ghost. If this happens again, be sure to check for other things (such as voltage) that go abnormal at the same time. With a phantom issue like this, it is always a good idea to check electrical connections at the engine for cleanliness/tightness. I have not worked on the MB engine, but can tell you that, for example, a loose ground connection for the engine computer can cause some VERY strange behavior from any electronically controlled engine. Brett

Did you have an MB truck engine dealer check for stored codes? Any other gauges read irregularly at the same time-- such as voltmeter? Brett

Bob, Welcome to the FMCA Forum. What brand jacks do you have?

John, Welcome to the FMCA Forum. There are lots of parasitic loads on the chassis batteries (engine computer, transmission computer, usually dash radio, etc). So, with no charging, it is not unusual for the batteries to discharge in three weeks. Are you storing it where you have access to a 120 VAC outlet? Brett

OK, a difficult one for us. We came to RV'ing from off-shore sailing yachts. Had three Pacific Seacrafts (http://www.pacificseacraft.com/html/ps37.html) (click on "galley and salon") over the last 25 years. Yes, dark, spectacular hand crafted interiors were our "home" for many thousands of off shore miles. We love the look, but also appreciate the lightness of the "light look". In fact Dianne and I just spent several hundred hours remodeling to our kitchen in the "stick home" including stripping and painting all 46 cabinet doors and framing in white! So, I guess my answer is "I have to see it to be able to express a considered opinion". Yes, our motorhome has a reasonably dark interior (solid walnut), but with lots of windows. That is not why we settled on it-- I wanted the mechanical "level of expertise" that I was not finding in many other coaches we looked at. Brett

Not sure I agree. 28,000 miles in 9 years says it may have sat for a long time/very long time without use. Far harder on machinery than, say 10,000 miles a year. Remember, we are talking about a diesel powered coach here.

Yes, that should leave you plenty of wires to set up a toad battery trickle charger from your coach charging system. To do it properly, you will need, on the coach end: Handy source of fused 12 VDC-- engine battery is a good source. The fuse should be right at the positive terminal. Than large gauge wire (for less voltage drop) should go to the "always not" side of a simple relay (Under $10 at auto parts houses). A 40 amp would be plenty. Use any "hot when ignition on" wire to activate the relay. That way the charge line is only hot when you are driving. Continue with large gauge wire from the relay "out side" to the coach end of the toad plug. On the toad, use large gauge wire from toad-end wiring loom to the battery positive post WITH ANOTHER FUSE AT THIS POST AS WELL. This second fuse is important, since both batteries are hot and could have a short were the wire to ever touch ground. The ground path needs to be a robust as the hot. Best coach chassis battery to toad battery if you have the wires in the plug to do it. Doing it yourself your parts costs should be under $25 to do it the right way. Brett

Mike, That sounds normal. It doesn't take many amp-hrs of drain to remove the surface charge and return a battery to its true fully charged level (about 12.7 VDC). Brett

Mike, Another common cause of the smell is from a battery with a bad cell. While it is fine to charge a 12 VDC battery at 13.5-14 VDC, if one cell is bad, the regulator/alternator will then try to charge a 10 VDC battery at 13.5-14 VDC. That will severely overcharge the remaining good cells. If these are wet cell batteries, use a battery hydrometer (under $10 at any auto parts house) to check SG (Specific Gravity). If a cell is bad, SG in that cell will be low and easy to identify. Your mention that the voltage drops from 14 to 12.7 when the engine is shut off brings this to mind. While 12.7 is the reading for a fully charged 12 volt battery, generally there is enough surface charge to hold the battery voltage at 13 or higher for awhile (until a few amp-hrs have been consumed). So, if this drop is the instant the engine is turned off, it is a red flag to check the batteries. Brett

Mike, When you say everything is normal, what voltage are you talking about? After they reach full charge, anything over about 13.5 VDC can overcharge a battery. Most alternators/regulators are temperature compensated so they start out at around 14 VDC, but taper off slightly as you drive. If the alternator stays at 14+, yes it can cause overchanging. It can show up as the sulfur (rotten egg) smell and/or excessive loss of water in the batteries. Are you having to add a lot of water? Another source of the rotten egg smell in a gas coach is the catalytic converter. Have you ruled that out? Brett

Denny, Hopefully you will get information on shops that can do the work for you in that area-- sorry, we are in Texas, so not familiar with the FL shops. But, I will ask, have you verified that your coach/axles/wheel positions have the reserve capacity to handle the marble floor? That normally adds a lot of weight to a coach. Brett

I do the same as Peter-- conventional oil in the diesel (Delo 400 15-40 in the motorhome, Shell Rotella T 15-40 in the boat since Shell is easier to find in the Bahamas). Synthetic in my gas vehicles (Mobil 1 5-20)