MarYJac04 Report post Posted May 26, 2013 I have been looking at a short Journey and ran across I nice 40 foot Monaco we really like. It is both larger and has a bigger engine than we have ever thought we would consider. The engine is a 400hp ISL9 and vehicle GVWR is 35000 lbs. Can anyone give me some idea of annual engine maintenance costs and what mileage I might expect; will be towing a CRV. I see oil changes are every 12 months and I am wondering if that is necessary when using synthetic oil, or can an oil analysis be used to determine change time? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
wolfe10 Report post Posted May 26, 2013 I will address the oil change question. All diesel manufacturers recommend annual oil changes regardless of mileage. Can you go longer using oil analysis without harming the engine-- perhaps. Depends on a lot of factors such as humidity and temperature where stored, highway vs short distance driving, number of miles etc. Disregarding manufacturer's written recommendations would be up to you. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
wayne77590 Report post Posted May 27, 2013 I believe Cummins is 15,000 miles or 1 year, whichever occurs first. Then there is the chassis maintenance schedule based on miles and the manufacture web site has the schedule. example: Freightliner chassis. I typically plan on 1000-1500 dollars each year if Freightliner does all the work. If you are able to do the oil/filter changes yourself and keep the receipts you can save money. Personally I prefer to have the experts do it because they can pick up little things that I may not notice. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MarYJac04 Report post Posted May 27, 2013 Thank you for the response, that is just about what I expected. I have heard concern about purchasing an "orphaned" coach and was wondering if that is a valid concern. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
huling Report post Posted May 27, 2013 You should change you oil at least once a year, so if you run less than than 15000 miles you can save a little money using a good brand name diesel oil ( sams club sells Shell Rotella T) and buying your filters online from someone like truckhelp.com Buy enough to get free shipping which by the time you get all you filters ( including generator ) and a spare set of fuel filters to carry with you, you should reach that . As far as mileage you should get somewhere between 8 and 9 mpg towing . It will tow your crv like its not even there. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MarYJac04 Report post Posted May 27, 2013 Thanks for the additional information. I have an additional question. I test drove the the Camelot yesterday and was not able to determine if or how much the air suspension hieght raised after starting the engine. After returning I watched for lowering the height off the ground when the engine was shut down or air dump switch was used. Should I be able to see this? How much difference in height should I expect? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
RSchleder Report post Posted May 31, 2013 Our 2 diesel pushers dropped down around 6" when I dumped the air. I'm sure it varies from coach to coach but my opinion is 4"-8" and YES, you definitely can tell the difference in height when the air is dumped. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
five Report post Posted June 15, 2013 We have a 400 HP ISL, MH GW is 34,600 and we tow a CRV. Overall MPG is around 8. A headwind hurts our mileage worse than anything else. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
