Chassis Maintenance & Oil Change Recommendation

[dcstein]

I am new to having a diesel pusher, mine is a 2008 Tiffin Phaeton tag, it is on a Spartan chassis, I have been told that I should once a year take it to a Spartan authorized dealer and have a complete going over the chassis plus change the oil and all filters both in the motorhome and the generator.

The generator has 1100 hrs on it and I have been told I should also change the belts. They are talking 800 to 1000 dollars for this and I just would like to know if members believe this is necessary, I only use the MH for about three months in the summer and this past year drove about 6000 miles. The engine now has 50,000 miles on it. I had it completely serviced Jan 15th 2015.

[OLDMARINE]

I would also say to do those maintenance Items . We have a 2010 Phaeton, although I do my own work ,so I really can't tell what

a shop would charge.But with 50K and 7-8year old Coach its a verry good Idea to change all belts. And if you are the original owner

and this has not been done before, then you are really running on borrowed time. But ask the shop to give you the old belts to keep

as a spare, just in case something would happen down the Road and parts where not available.

You might also look into getting your cooling system flushed and new coolant installed.

I have just done all my maintenance and our coach is 2-3Year newer . Hind sight is never a nice thing.

I hope this helps ,

Old Marine

[kingfr]

$800 to $1000 is not unreasonable at all for what you are talking about. You may need to have the Transmission fluid and differential oil changed also. We had an 08 Phaeton and had all of those items done. before the coach was six years old. I assume that the belts that you are referring to are the belts on the Cummins, and yes they need changing unless they have been changed earlier. Bay Diesel in Red Bay charged me around $1500 for all of that stuff, belts, Transmission and Diff oil, etc, several years ago.

[manholt]

For me it's time to bite the bullet. Belts, coolant, cleaning the CAC and fan. change oil and filters on generator! As far as engine oil is

concerned, I do it every 16,000 miles or once a year, whichever comes first.

Also, what is the age of your tires? Never mind the tread, go by DOT# and check for hair line cracks on sidewall. 6 to 8 years and you

need new tires!

You don't need to go to Spartan...I use Cummins Coach Care! Become a member of Cummins Power Club and save 10%.

Travel safe

Carl

[five]

Some maintenance items are easy to do by yourself...like the generator. Others not so much. Get the TranSynd tested annually, as long as the test is good, the trans fluid is good.

[wildebill308]

I am new to having a diesel pusher, mine is a 2008 Tiffin Phaeton tag, it is on a Spartan chassis, I have been told that I should once a year take it to a Spartan authorized dealer and have a complete going over the chassis plus change the oil and all filters both in the motorhome and the generator.

The generator has 1100 hrs on it and I have been told I should also change the belts. They are talking 800 to 1000 dollars for this and I just would like to know if members believe this is necessary, I only use the MH for about three months in the summer and this past year drove about 6000 miles. The engine now has 50,000 miles on it. I had it completely serviced Jan 15th 2015.

Welcome to the forum. I generally do all my yearly maintenance this time of year so I will be ready to go when the weather warms up. Some people who live up north will do all their maintenance in the fall before they store/winterize their coach. The next question is can/do you want to do some of the things on the list your self? Did you get any maintenance records with the coach? If you don't have any records it might be a good thing to do all the items you listed so you have a baseline. You might find a mobile mechanic that will do it for a cheaper price.

Here is a link that talks about some of the maintenance items. It may not apply directly to your coach but is informative.

http://www.rvtechmag.com/tech/43_chassissvc.php?pg=all

Bill

[dickandlois]

dcstein,

Welcome to the FMCA Forum!

I'm not real familiar with your coach, but in regards to the Genset repair: The Onan units have one belt that drives the water pump, that has a replacement scheduled at 1000 hrs. per there information.

Should your coach Generator be equipped with a slid out - that makes working on them much easier. If your generator not be mounted in this way, it must be removed for the coach to replace the water pump belt, or any other maintenance other then Oil changes, oil filter, fuel filters and the fuel pump.

The good thing is that the belts can last for 250 to 500 more hrs, but there is no way of knowing for sure. So if you depend on it more often if you dry camp more, then it would have a higher priority.

Bill, made many good points regarding the repairs if you do not have some good repair records that would establish a good base line of the condition of the coach chassis, engine, drive line and transmission.

Along with the condition and age of the tires !!!

Rich.

[tbutler]

I replaced the belt on the generator (7.5 KW Onan) at 1028 hours - and it was in shreds in places, probably only a few hours from failure! I tend to take manufacturers recommendations as the maximum and try to schedule things before their limits. Until the Cummins Coach Care facility asked about the belt for the generator I didn't even know it had one. I'm so glad that they asked.

[wildebill308]

One thing I forgot to mention. Pull oil samples from both the engine and transmission and have them analyzed BEFORE you change the oil. You want the report back before you change your oil. You want the ability to double check if you get a odd reading on your report. If the report is good you may only need to change the filters on the transmission.

Heare are a couple of oil sampling labs.

http://www.jglubricantservices.com/

http://www.blackstone-labs.com/free-test-kits.php

Bill

[manholt]

Bill, thank you for the links! Very informative and I learned a lot! Now my list has grown by leaps!

Carl

[wildebill308]

Here is one more "must be done right" item. Make sure the driveshaft u joints and slip shaft are properly lubricated. The drive shaft on your diesel pusher is short but takes a lot of stress. I think this is worth reviewing.

Apply the recommended grease at the grease fitting on the U-joint until the new grease purges from all of the journal cross bearing seals.

◾Do not assume that bearing cavities have been filled with the new lubricant unless flow can be seen around all four bearing seals. If new grease does not purge at all four seals, loosen the bearing cap bolts and regrease until all four cups purge.
◾If new grease still does not purge, replace the U-joint.
◾If a different grease is being used, make sure it is compatible with the old grease and apply extra grease to purge out the old grease.

Splined Slip Yokes:
◾Apply grease gun to grease fitting until new grease appears at the pressure relief hole in welch plug at slip yoke end of spline.
◾Cover the pressure relief hole (so that grease can flow easily to the seal) and continue to apply grease until new grease appears at slip yoke seal.

These procedures should help prevent costly downtime and U-joint-related equipment failures.

Copyright © 1998 Chevron U.S.A. Inc. All rights reserved.

Bill

[manholt]

Bill.

You are so right about stress on U Joint and I would guess that 98% of DP owners don't even think about them being an integral part of the coach!

About 3 years ago at a SKP rally, we had a new member with his first coach, a DP 04' Dynasty and he made the comment that "he did not have a U Joint", Huh! Sad!

Carl

[five]

I get my coach lubed annually. However, every six months I get my trusty grease gun and do both ends of the drive shaft.

[jleamont]

I get my coach lubed annually. However, every six months I get my trusty grease gun and do both ends of the drive shaft.

Same here, and I clean off the splattered mess all around the drive shaft from fresh lube purging from the caps.

[rsbilledwards]

Bill, I hate to admit but I at 70 and in the auto repair/restoration business for 38 years I got a lot out of your post. I won't tell what because Porsches do not have drive shafts. Had you posted it last summer I might not have thrown the shaft out of my coach in spite of the fact that IT WAS ALWAYS greased. When it was all over I spent $4,000 getting it back together and I did half the work! Thanks

Bill

[hermanmullins]

Bill,

It has been said to you before, but "Welcome Aboard Shipmate"

Might you be coming to Perry? We are having a first ever "Meet and Great the Forum". Looking forward to meeting many 'Internet Friends' in person.

Herman

[wildebill308]

Bill,

It has been said to you before, but "Welcome Aboard Shipmate"

Might you be coming to Perry? We are having a first ever "Meet and Great the Forum". Looking forward to meeting many 'Internet Friends' in person.

Herman

Unfortunately We won't be able to make Perry this time. I expect to be back from "The West" in time to be at the 6 state in OK.

By the way I stopped in at the new PPL store in Cleburne TX and it is coming a long. They took over a big car dealership on 174 just before it crosses 67. I had to smile as it use to be a car dealership the space is more cut up. They have taken the separate offices where the salesmen use to take you to "Make The Deal" and turned them into "departments" Fresh water, towing, sewage, ect. They have plenty of room and already have some nice coaches to look at.

Bill

[hermanmullins]

Wildebill,

Sorry you won't be in Perry I am sure folks would have liked to meet you.

Thanks for the information on PPL.

When I made my last post I was welcoming' rsbilledwards,' but hey welcome to you also.

Herman

[huffypuff]

dcstein,

Welcome to the FMCA Forum!

I'm not real familiar with your coach, but in regards to the Genset repair: The Onan units have one belt that drives the water pump, that has a replacement scheduled at 1000 hrs. per there information.

Should your coach Generator be equipped with a slid out - that makes working on them much easier. If your generator not be mounted in this way, it must be removed for the coach to replace the water pump belt, or any other maintenance other then Oil changes, oil filter, fuel filters and the fuel pump.

The good thing is that the belts can last for 250 to 500 more hrs, but there is no way of knowing for sure. So if you depend on it more often if you dry camp more, then it would have a higher priority.

Bill, made many good points regarding the repairs if you do not have some good repair records that would establish a good base line of the condition of the coach chassis, engine, drive line and transmission.

Along with the condition and age of the tires !!!

Rich.

I had a 93 Southwind that had a diesel generator and to replace the belt I removed the radiator. It would of been a nightmare to remove that generator as the only access was through a small hood and underneath.

[wildebill308]

To many Bill's around. Yes It would have be fun to meet all the people.

Ray, I am a little jealous of those with the generator on a slid out, am probably going to have to drop mine to change the belt.

Bill

[jleamont]

To many Bill's around. Yes It would have be fun to meet all the people.

Ray, I am a little jealous of those with the generator on a slide out, am probably going to have to drop mine to change the belt.

Bill

Bill, that doesn't sound like fun!

Puff is the Ambassador on a hydraulic slide like the Imperial?

Great for access, looks expensive when it breaks.

[huffypuff]

No the Ambassador generator is on a manual slide. No big deal to side it out but now have covers all around to make it quiet.

[C-783533]

One thing I forgot to mention. Pull oil samples from both the engine and transmission and have them analyzed BEFORE you change the oil. You want the report back before you change your oil. You want the ability to double check if you get a odd reading on your report. If the report is good you may only need to change the filters on the transmission.

Heare are a couple of oil sampling labs.

http://www.jglubricantservices.com/

http://www.blackstone-labs.com/free-test-kits.php

Bill

Good advice. Condition monitoring can save significant cost without any more risk than replacement on a clock or calendar basis. I do it for belts, tires, oil and many other components. Replacing a perfectly functional part with new can also cause an infant mortality situation if/when the new part is defective. Some conditions can't be monitored and, if critical, should be replaced on a clock or calendar schedule or predictively. Components that can be monitored which are replaced this way is just throwing money away.

[jleamont]

No the Ambassador generator is on a manual slide. No big deal to side it out but now have covers all around to make it quiet.

Yep, those covers are the set back when it comes to completing a task quickly. My generator doesn't clear the front of the coach when its all the way out, so you have to twist your body around to reach the rear of it, not horrible but tricky.