wolfe10

No, Mike. I have only researched the technical end of this. The company that makes the "strong" style replacement arms (see my post above) would certainly have a price on the parts and what amount of labor is involved. They may also have the name of shops in your area that have already done the replacements. Brett Wolfe

I was just talking with the Chief Designer for Roadmaster Suspension Solutions yesterday to answer another suspension-related question. He related a story of one of these trailing arms that broke as an owner was driving up to to his home. The rear axle skewed so much when the trailing arm broke that it broke an air bag and could have lead to his total loss of control. PLEASE, if your coach has these defective REAR TRAILING ARMS-- REPLACE THEM N O W! Brett Wolfe

What aftermarket dash HVAC (including fan) do you have?

Any Ford dealer should be able to get you a wiring schematic for your dash HVAC fan. Armed with that, troubleshooting will be a lot easier. Brett Wolfe

Caterpillar RV Engine Owners Club Update: We have just received confirmation from Caterpillar Corporation that Cat RV Club members will receive "10% off all genuine Caterpillar parts for your RV at authorized Caterpillar dealers" for 2010! As in the past, Caterpillar will issue the discount cards in December to Club members who are current on their dues. Per Club bylaws, dues are due November 1 for the following year. The Club has worked very hard to make renewal quick and easy using PayPal. Click on: http://catrvclub.org/renew_membership.htm. Of course you can mail it in as well: Click on http://catrvclub.org/membership.htm. Select "Renewal Form-Mail Check". Have a Caterpillar engine in your RV and want more information? Find out more on the Club Website: http://catrvclub.org/ Hope to see you at a Caterpillar RV Club Rally this year. Dianne and I plan to attend both Amarillo and Newport. We will have in depth RV Maintenance Seminars as well as a great time. Brett Wolfe

To bring everyone up to speed on this, here is my post on this SAFETY RECALL over on the FMCA Forum-- Class A: http://community.fmca.com/index.php?showtopic=569 Here is some information that I have pieced together after combing multiple sources. I will update this post as additional information becomes available and post updated date at the bottom. DISCLAIMER: Though I have spent a couple of hours researching this, I by no means hold myself out to be an expert on this. If you have one of the following chassis, it behooves you to follow up! Look forward to more information being posted on this subject! According to my information, there are THREE different suspensions under the R4R and RR4R chassis over the years. ONLY ONE IS AFFECTED. The recall affects Rear Suspension Trailing Arms ONLY ON THE R4R and RR4R CHASSIS with the "Monaco Gold" or sometimes referred to as "R-Way" suspension. It is an in-house copy of the Neway suspension. It does NOT include any suspension systems made by Neway or Reyco. The recalled R-Way arm goes UNDER the rear axle and is made of 3" square tubing. They are on either side in the rear. The rear air bag is bolted to the rear/back end of the trailing arm. The center of the trailing arm is bolted to the rear axle with a large u-bolt and plates and the front is bolted to the frame. The cracks happen on the upper or lower portion of the center of the trailing arm where the u-bolt holds it to the axle. You can identify the Reyco rear suspension (NOT AFFECTED BY THE RECALL) by the trailing arms that go over the axle rather than under. If you have the FOUR air bag suspension and your trailing arm goes OVER the AXLE= Reyco= no problem. If you have the FOUR air bag suspension and your trailing arm goes UNDER the AXLE= Neway OR R-Way= MAY, repeat MAY. BE SUBJECT TO THE RECALL/problem. If the trailing arm is 3" square tubing, it is R-Way and is part of the recall. The Neway was used basically from 2000 thru 2002 and those arms are identified by the fabricated weldments using multiple pieces of plate welded into a box assembly (Not tube) and is NOT part of the recall-- there are no problems with this design Monaco had a previous recall on the trailing arms because of bad welds. IT IS IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT THE ARMS REPLACED UNDER THIS EARLIER CAMPAIGN ARE STILL THE OLD DESIGN THAT ARE SUBJECT TO BREAKING-- I.E. THEY ARE THE 3" SQUARE TUBE DESIGN. They need to be upgraded just like the original trailing arms. The trailing arm allows the rear axle to move up and down using the air bag to cushion and limit the movement. A lot of stress is placed on the pivot point at the arm on the axle. The recall essentially includes any R4R or RR4R Monaco Roadmaster chassis produced after the 2002 model year. This change was made as a running change and it is possible that some very late 2002 models could be effected. Monaco Knight 2002 - 2004 Monaco Cayman 2002 - 2009 Holiday Rambler Ambassador 2002 - 2004 Holiday Rambler Neptune 2002 - 2009 Safari Cheetah 2002 - 2007 Safari Simba RD All Years Safari Zanzibar 2002 -2005 2002, 2003 and some 2004 Monaco Knight, Cayman, HR Ambassador, Neptune, Safari Cheetah, Sahara and Zanzibar. NHSTA didn't think they could do anything because Monaco is out of business and the "new" Monaco appears to be under no legal obligation to accept responsibility. The arm's crack, allowing excessive rear suspension movement AND CAN BE DANGEROUS, as the arm holds the axle in place front to rear. Monaco doesn't supply the parts any more. The new supplier is: Source Manufacturing in Portland: 541-935-0308 . They say their arms are 3 to 4 times stronger than the original. Brett Wolfe Updated 10/14/09

As Tom said, this is highly dependent on what transmission you have. Some transmissions (like Allison 1000, 2000, 3000 and 4000 series) lock their torque converter in 2,3,4,5 and 6th gear, even at full throttle. Others unlock the torque converter under high load conditions which materially adds to the heat load. And some older transmissions don't even have locking converters. Using synthetic fluid (such as Allison Transynd) ups the safe temperature range of the fluid. DO as Tom suggests and get information that pertains to YOUR transmission. Brett Wolfe

Welcome to the FMCA Forum. What brand and model converter do you have? How long has this symptom been occurring? If turning off the 120 VAC breaker for the converter "cures" the flickering, I would leave it off and tomorrow call the converter manufacturer to discuss the symptoms, their causes and fixes. Brett Wolfe

John, Welcome to the FMCA Forum. What brand is the steering box? Some are adjustable, others are not. I know our Sheppard M100 has no external adjustements. I would contact the steering box manufacturer for their advice. Brett Wolfe

Wayne, IF you have shore power where you store your coach and your converter maintains (once FLOAT LEVEL is reached)battery voltage between 13.0 and 13.5 VDC, just leave it plugged in. If higher, it will probably over-charge the batteries-- a symptom is the use of excessive water in the batteries. And if both battery banks are charged from the converter (as was suggested), why fit the Battery Minder at all.? If your converter maintains voltage higher than that, another option while on shore power is to buy a HD timer from Lowes/Home Depot. Plug the converter into it and let it run for an hour or so a day. Brett Wolfe

Wayne, A VERY strange response from the Winnebago group to low battery reading after starting-- heating spark plugs??? Some systems DO have a delay before cutting on the alternator to allow the engine to start and run for a short time before loading it with the alternator. You could check with your chassis maker to see if this is the cause of the short-term low voltage reading on your coach. And I suggest you follow Winnebago's "secret sauce receipt" for what needs to happen for your converter to charge both battery banks. Then, after 3-4 days, VERIFY IT. Just check voltage at the batteries with a digital voltmeter. House and Chassis should be the same and 13.0-13.5 VDC. Brett Wolfe

Seajay, That is such a well-told story, I hate to throw in a slight correction, but want readers to understand the use of the hydrometer. What it measures with a HYDROMETER is not volts or amps, but SPECIFIC GRAVITY of the battery. To test, make sure batteries are FULLY CHARGED. Turn off the charger and turn on a small 12 VDC load (couple of lights) for a few minutes-- long enough to deplete the surface charge. This allows you to check the specific gravity of the battery cells fully charged, but with surface charge (anything over about 12.7 VDC is surface charge) removed. You are looking for both absolute reading and max variation between cells. The instructions that come with the hydrometers go over this. And, this test is for regular wet-cell batteries, not AGM or Gel batteries. Brett Wolfe

Many follow the same practice-- leave gray open to drain and only drain black when 3/4 or more full. A slight improvement IF gray and black share the same sewer hose is to leave both valves closed. Drain black first. Then raise the sewer hose (now empty) to tank level and with the black valve still open, open the gray valve. What you are doing is sending a massive rush of water from gray to black. That helps dislodge any solids. As soon as you hear the rush of water subside, just lower the hose and let it drain as always. And always put a couple of gallons of water through the toilet with the valves open and then after closed a couple more gallons. Obviously, if you are going through a lot of gray (wash machine, etc) leave the gray open. Brett Wolfe

No refrigerator is harmed if out of level if kept within 3 degrees, some allow up to 6 degrees out of level in one plane. With that said, the floor of your motorhome makes the best place to put a large carpenter's level and "calibrate" the jack or air leveling system sensor. Yes, this assumes that the floor of the coach and platform upon which the refrigerator is mounted are parallel with each other. If mounted in a slide and not parallel with the floor (and most mounted in slides ARE parallel), then, perhaps tweak the sensor to slightly favor the refrigerator plane. So refrigerators are sensitive to being run well out of level, but this is not something to get carried away with. And they can be stored (refrigerator OFF) well out of level-- just level before you turn it on. Brett Wolfe

Walt, I like a lot of the way you do it, but am concerned that the wait time, particularly if the CAC and radiator may be warm. This may allow the soap to dry on the metal. I would strongly recommend against doing that. Now, if you continue to keep it wet, but not with so much water that you rinse out the soap, that is great. And as you have found, with a SANDWICHED CAC/RADIATOR, you have to clean from the front (where the majority of the dirt is) and the back, since you don't want to use high enough water pressure to clean both from one direction as PSI high enough to go through the radiator, air gap and CAC would result in a high likelihood of bending the fins. Brett Wolfe

Gary, Welcome to the FMCA Forum. Have you tried putting 2"X6" boards over the lower part of the ramp (probably have to bolt them in place with wing nuts so they stay in place while you drive up)? Depending on where you place them and how long they are, they will change your approach angle. And if 2" doesn't give you enough change, what about two of them? Brett Wolfe

If you truly do not use the gray tank (no showers or dish washing), then you may have some options based on how your gray and black tanks combine at the drain AND IF BOTH TANKS ARE AT THE SAME LEVEL IN THE COACH. If both have tank valves are plumbed into a single sewer hose bib, it may be that you could install another valve downstream of the black and gray valves but upstream of where the sewer hose attaches. Leave this new valve closed. Open the two upstream valves. Now both tanks share in your "usable capacity" of 35 plus 35 gallons. Most actually use more shower plus kitchen sink than toilet plus head sink, but it really doesn't matter. If another arrangement works better for you, GO FOR IT. Again, your coach's tank placement (side by side vs one on top of the other) and valve arrangement will determine if this could work for you. Brett Wolfe

In my "crawl around" I noticed that the wires from the Allison input side speed sensor were very close to the exhaust pipe on the Cummins C engine. Because the sensor wires were not tightly secured, their jacket had melted from contact with the exhaust pipe. Much more driving WOULD have melted the sensor wires together and led to a transmission fault. Just a heads up -- check transmission external wiring BEFORE concluding you have some big or expensive issue. Brett Wolfe

Again, I am a little surprised that the toilet plus bathroom sink fills its 45 gallon tank faster than the shower and kitchen sink fill their 45 gallon tank. Normally that small a gray tank fills very quickly. For comparison, our coach has 88 gallons potable, 40 black and 85 gray. Black is toilet only. It means that I KNOW I will not overflow black or gray while dry camping before running out of potable water. Said another way, with those small black and gray tanks, the toilet plus bathroom sink on one and shower and kitchen sink on the other is better balanced than toilet alone on black and everything else on the other. If this becomes an issue for you, see if you have room for a larger tank. Brett Wolfe

So, what size are your GRAY and BLACK tanks? A couple of days to fill a black tank, even including sink, is REALLY fast. Brett Wolfe

Actually, there IS some merit to the sink draining into the black tank. Certainly it was done to simplify plumbing. And most of us fill the gray tank a LOT faster than the black. So you could actually dry camp longer with that arrangement unless the black tank is a lot smaller. It also doesn't hurt to add more water (vs solids) to the black tank-- makes draining easier. How long did it take you to fill the black tank? Brett Wolfe

Good advice, Wayne. Brett Wolfe

I will add that in addition to just changing the oil and filter, you need to have the chassis lubed (greased), SCA level in coolant tested, etc. Your chassis manual is your best source for what needs to be done. BEST answer is to have your own grease gun (so same grease is used each time). AND, make 10 copies of your chassis grease zerk location diagram. Hand one to the tech actually doing the job, not the service adviser. Make sure he knows that this is his copy to take under there and get dirty and throw away when he is finished. Showing him the diagram in your manual DOES NOT WORK. He is not likely to take it under the coach and take a chance on getting it dirty! Brett Wolfe

No, the Allison ECU can not sense grades, only RPM (both output and engine /input) and throttle position. So at the same throttle position it SHOULD hold that gear down to the same RPM each time with that RPM being different in regular vs economy mode. BUT, if you were at, say 85% throttle vs 100% throttle, it SHOULD be different. Brett Wolfe

First, with a full tank, the amount of air in the tank will be limited. Will it help to replace that air in the tank with DRY air-- well it sure won't hurt. BUT, remember with temperature swings every day, the air "changes itself". Each day as the temperatures rise, the air expands. Since it is "trapped" in the tank, it flows out the tank vent (unlike gasoline tanks, diesel tanks ARE vented). Each night as temperatures fall outside air is drawn back into the tank. So like it or not, the air is constantly "changing". The temperature swing dictates how much moves in and out each "day cycle". You can do this experiment to see how this works. Take a gallon plastic milk jug. Cap it tightly. Put it in the freezer. After a couple of hours take it out and remove the lid. It will suck IN air-- just like your tank. If made of thin plastic, the sides of the jug may even be sucked in when you remove it from the freezer. You could also place it in the freezer with the lid off. Cap it. Remove it and place in sink of warm water. Remove the lid and feel the OUT-RUSH of air. Kind of takes you back to Mr Wizard doesn't it! This is the main reason for storing with full fuel tank-- to minimize the air exchange. Why-- because the air that is sucked back into the tank on cold nights is often at the DEW POINT and it introduces moisture to the tank. Bottom line, "changing the air" in the tank sure doesn't hurt anything, but I suspect it is more of a "feel good" than significant improvement. Now, if the tank were only 1/2 full, introducing "dry air" would be more of an advantage. But, none of us do that DO WE?!!! Brett Wolfe