suitor
here
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Greetings,
I just bought a 1998 Bounder 30". Made by John Deer, a Ford chassis, 460 C.I. odometer shows 38,000 miles and it does have the 7 th digit.
I paid 9,000 with tax, as the unit is flawless. No fades inside or signs of wear, less the carpet.
I am having all fluids siphoned and replaced, belts, hoses, brakes, ET....
Are there any issues I can address now before driving to Ca.? Anything I am over looking, or I should replace even though it may be working fine now?
I was considering an overdrive gear installed. Unless someone recommends an alternative. or I find it cost prohibitive.
The coach got 6-MPG when I drove it home, about 175 miles. I used 93 octane @$3.13 a gallon.
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AZgl1500
Mesa, AZ
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Joined: 12/09/2007
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wickedinns wrote:To: AZGl1500: We are newbies and are planning on towing. We have a book describing how to use the transmission but do you have advice for us that may be better or a little more helpful???? Sometimes words from the wise is so much more useful....Thanks very much....
Wanda ![[emoticon]](http://www.coastresorts.com/sharedcontent/cfb/images/smile.gif "smile")
You probably have all you really need to know if you've been doing your due diligence.
IMO, the #1 thing to keep in mind is don't start down the grade at a speed faster than the minimum speed you will be needing to slow to.
For most of my TT/heavy loads I head down hill at 55 mph, or if the advisory sign mentions a lower speed, I slow to that speed and make sure the OD is 'off', and if necessary down shift to 2nd gear. It would be a rare hill to require 1st gear, but if that is what is needed, then I downshift to 1st gear.
My truck has an extremely tight, upgraded torque converter (97%) and even w/o a Jake/Exhaust brake, I experience very effective engine braking and don't often need to do more than just touch the foot brake occasionally.
An exhaust brake would be a nice touch, but not worth the expense for the rare times it would be appreciated.
I just redid my rear brakes and drums. I prepurchased the drums, but when the old ones were pulled off, there was not enough wear to warrant replacing them. I did anyway, #1 son only gets to work on my truck about every two years. So I called it preventive maintenance and went on. The truck has 136,000 miles currently with the OEM rear brakes on it at the time. Everything is shiny new now, front and back.
Signed in to learn the ropes. Retired 12/09... Ride a Honda Goldwing GL1500SE everyday as primary transportation. '98 Dodge CTD dually & '78 Avion 34' TT.
Looking for a Class A rv.
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adk563
Upstate NY
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Joined: 12/09/2010
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Thank you! This was very helpful to us as first time buyers and first time motor homers, and first time full timers. Our goal is to hit the road full time in about 2 years so we have enough time to choose what is a right fit and get the rest of our ducks in a row.
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Open Road Willie
Michigan
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Joined: 11/10/2010
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suitor wrote:Greetings,
I just bought a 1998 Bounder 30". Made by John Deer, a Ford chassis, 460 C.I. odometer shows 38,000 miles and it does have the 7 th digit.
I paid 9,000 with tax, as the unit is flawless. No fades inside or signs of wear, less the carpet.
I am having all fluids siphoned and replaced, belts, hoses, brakes, ET....
Are there any issues I can address now before driving to Ca.? Anything I am over looking, or I should replace even though it may be working fine now?
I was considering an overdrive gear installed. Unless someone recommends an alternative. or I find it cost prohibitive.
The coach got 6-MPG when I drove it home, about 175 miles. I used 93 octane @$3.13 a gallon.
Suiter, I owned a 1998 Southwind Storm for 9 years, put 60,000 miles on it and had it in all 48 states. It had the Ford 460 in it. I used synthetic oil and only used 87 octane, and it worked perfectly. I have been told that running a higher octane when not needed adds additional heat to the engine.
And for the first time buyer there are lots of nice 2000 and above motorhomes out there for sale that will not break the bank.
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melvonnar
clearwater florida
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Joined: 06/26/2009
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Open Road Willie wrote:suitor wrote:Greetings,
I just bought a 1998 Bounder 30". Made by John Deer, a Ford chassis, 460 C.I. odometer shows 38,000 miles and it does have the 7 th digit.
I paid 9,000 with tax, as the unit is flawless. No fades inside or signs of wear, less the carpet.
I am having all fluids siphoned and replaced, belts, hoses, brakes, ET....
Are there any issues I can address now before driving to Ca.? Anything I am over looking, or I should replace even though it may be working fine now?
I was considering an overdrive gear installed. Unless someone recommends an alternative. or I find it cost prohibitive.
The coach got 6-MPG when I drove it home, about 175 miles. I used 93 octane @$3.13 a gallon.
Suiter, I owned a 1998 Southwind Storm for 9 years, put 60,000 miles on it and had it in all 48 states. It had the Ford 460 in it. I used synthetic oil and only used 87 octane, and it worked perfectly. I have been told that running a higher octane when not needed adds additional heat to the engine.
And for the first time buyer there are lots of nice 2000 and above motorhomes out there for sale that will not break the bank.
For the 2000 and above motorhomes, you will need $20,000 and above to buy one of these.
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CountryCoachrv
Niceville, Fl
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Joined: 10/20/2003
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suitor wrote:Greetings,
I just bought a 1998 Bounder 30". Made by John Deer, a Ford chassis, 460 C.I. odometer shows 38,000 miles and it does have the 7 th digit.
I paid 9,000 with tax, as the unit is flawless. No fades inside or signs of wear, less the carpet.
I am having all fluids siphoned and replaced, belts, hoses, brakes, ET....
Are there any issues I can address now before driving to Ca.? Anything I am over looking, or I should replace even though it may be working fine now?
I was considering an overdrive gear installed. Unless someone recommends an alternative. or I find it cost prohibitive.
The coach got 6-MPG when I drove it home, about 175 miles. I used 93 octane @$3.13 a gallon.
You will want to check the age of the tires, if they are older than 6 years old, it is time to replace them before a long trip. Even if they don't have a lot of tread wear, older tires are not safe.
Ray
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setraveler
SE usa
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Joined: 02/10/2007
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You might want to check what will survive cold weather and what will not, as winter can make a RV not best place to be if systems not ready of designed for it.
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cvbdsl
Winchester, ON
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Joined: 01/31/2011
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First off, great advice on this forum from serious members.
As a first time MH buyer I'm seriously looking at 1999 Nemar Dutchstar DP with around 41000 miles on it- Frieghtliner chassis and Allison transmission as a first choice.
Anybody have any comments on the brand (good or bad). I'm pretty sure that I will get an intial oil/filter change etc just to be sure it's done.
The alternatives in my price range that may come into play are a 99 32Ft Fleetwood Southwind and a 2000 35Ft Fleetwood Bounder, both with the Trition V10
Anthing to watch out for on any of these?
Looking to retire and be on the road as often as possible. Any other tips would be appreciated, for example I'm pretty sure my 2009 Sante Fe can't be towed but if you know different, please let me know.
Thanks
Chris
2008 Holiday Rambler Scepter 42 PDQ
2018 Ford Edge SEL- Ready Brute Elite Tow Bar/Blue Ox Base plate/Patriot Brake System
Retired Canadian Army WO (1971-2000)
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iluvmyelement
United States
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Joined: 07/06/2010
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cvbdsl wrote:First off, great advice on this forum from serious members.
As a first time MH buyer I'm seriously looking at 1999 Nemar Dutchstar DP with around 41000 miles on it- Frieghtliner chassis and Allison transmission as a first choice.
Anybody have any comments on the brand (good or bad). I'm pretty sure that I will get an intial oil/filter change etc just to be sure it's done.
The alternatives in my price range that may come into play are a 99 32Ft Fleetwood Southwind and a 2000 35Ft Fleetwood Bounder, both with the Trition V10
Anthing to watch out for on any of these?
Looking to retire and be on the road as often as possible. Any other tips would be appreciated, for example I'm pretty sure my 2009 Sante Fe can't be towed but if you know different, please let me know.
Thanks
Chris
There's no comparison there - the Newmar is a far superior coach compared to any Fleetwood product. Second - there's no comparison between a diesel pusher and gasser - if you do a good amount of driving you'll want the diesel for sure!
I would take the two Fleetwoods out of consideration and spend a couple hundred dollars for a good RV mechanic to do an inspection on the Newmar before you buy it.
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rcouch
jackson, mo
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Joined: 07/08/2009
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Thanks!!!. We went from class C to Class A in four months. Wish we would have had this at the time. But.....
We are looking for a newer model and kmow a little more of what we need than before. Your post gave me more insight and things to think about a head of time before next purchase.
Thank you so much.
I would also get this printed in magazines and to dealers who would allow customer to use while they decide on what they want. (If you can find any dealers who would)
Rose
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