Coast Resorts Open Roads Forum: How many of us are there? Owners of Dodge based RV's?

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Topic: How many of us are there? Owners of Dodge based RV's?

Posted By: toedtoes on 04/16/15 07:37pm

71choptop wrote:

I have read numerous times about walking away from any water damage but...

It really depends on the full picture. With my clipper, there were a few signs of leakage (around the AC and the kitchen vent), but those are the only weak points in clippers. They're built with 5 molded fiberglass panels that do not lend to leaking. So, I chose to believe that they had been corrected early on. Since I bought it, I have resealed all the vents and windows and have not had any issues with prior leakage. Glad I didn't run away.

1975 American Clipper RV with Dodge 360 (photo in profile)
1998 American Clipper Fold n Roll Folding Trailer
Both born in Morgan Hill, CA to Irv Perch (Daddy of the Aristocrat trailers)

Posted By: 1977Monashee on 04/17/15 09:13am

Hey Guys and Girls!! I am really new to Rving, as I just bought my first RV last year!!

I bought a 1977 Monashee, on a dodge MB300 chasis. Class C. It has a V8 318, automatic transmission. I bought it in saskatchewan, and drove down to nashville and then back to ontario which is where I live. It has 104 669 kms on it right now. It ran great and only had minor problems. The spedometer sometimes "doesn't catch" once im at 60mph, it floats back and forth between 50-70 mph and makes a loud, annoying noise..... The rear main seal also has a slow leak which I think Im going to replace soon. I have done a little research and have never seen another Monashee model? The camper was made in Penticton BC, and the frame made at the warren factory.

Have any of you ever heard of the Monashee Model??? Any thoughts or comments are much appreciated!!

Regards,

1977Monashee

Posted By: Griff in Fairbanks on 04/17/15 04:11pm

1977Monashee wrote:

Pictures please.

Three components in the speedometer system: drive gear, cable, and instrument. The drive gear in the transmission is plastic but is probably okay. The cable may be worn, dry, or gummed up and should be cleaned and greased before thinking about replacement.

The instrument in the dash is a mechanical revolution counter that may be gummed up. They sometimes develop a "dead spot" at the vehicle speed most commonly driven. You could try cleaning and lubricating it. It's a non-electrical clockwork device so it's somewhat delicate.

The same mechanism was used on all Mopar vehicles for decades. The differences between various model is in the bezel and faceplate. (You can convert it from KPH to MPH and vice versa by just replacing the faceplate.) Chrysler parts departments may still have new ones available, as well as parts stores. You might also be able to find NOS speedometers on eBay. Otherwise, hunt the junkyards and craigslist for Dodge, Plymouth, Chrysler, Imperial, and Fargo vehicles being parted out.

I actually have five or six speedometers buried somewhere in my storage sheds. I know one has a damaged odometer due to being melted by sun heat. I'm holding on the rest to use the one in best shape in my current project. I probably could spare one but cannot attest to the condition of any of them. (i.e., it'd be best for you to find one locally.)

You probably have a 318-3. The -3 was an industrial engine, which had stronger components in the basic 273/318/340 block. (The 360 has larger mains so used a different casting and oil pan.) The most important part is a forged, rather than cast, crankshaft. Crankshafts gain strength with use and forged crankshafts start out stronger than cast or billet. Simply put, a used forge crankshaft is the best thing you can lay your hands on, which is why racers desire them and have made them hard to find.

The best way to determine if you have a -3 is look for "318-3" stamped into the front of the block on one bank just below the head. It may also be listed on a data plate under the hood or encoded into the VIN, assuming the engine wasn't replaced at some point. (It's not uncommon to find a -3 was replaced with an ordinary 318, although this is fairly uncommon in motorhomes.)

If you have the engine rebuilt, make sure the rebuilder keeps the same crankshaft during the rebuild.

Make sure the oil leak is from the engine and not the transmission. There is a dye you can put in the engine oil to find the source of the leak, using a special light and glasses. The kits sold in parts stores are usually used to detect coolant leaks, with different dyes sold separately for oil leaks.

The most common source of oil usage on 273/318/340/360 engines is disintegrated valve stem seals. Fortunately, these can be replaced without pulling the heads and should be tried before pulling the heads. (If you rebuild the heads, you should also re-ring the cylinders to avoid transferring the problem from the valves to the rings.)

Replacing the valve stem seals involve pulling the valve covers and using air pressure through a spark plug fitting to hold the valves in place.

The techniques mention in the two previous paragraph are described in detail in various books and websites so I won't go into detail here.

Advancing the timing a few degrees on your engine will improve your gas mileage, as long as it doesn't cause the engine to ping. Likewise, slowing to 50 or 55 mph will boost your mileage. (Both lessons learned on my '77 B-200 318, although I tended to ignore the speed recommendation.)

Ignore mileage for determining oil change frequency. Change the oil every three months when in use and just before putting your motorhome in storage. Unburned hydrocarbons collect in the oil and turn to acid when exposed to moisture. On highway travel, the engine warms up long enough to evaporate the hydrocarbons and moisture and expel them via the PCV system. Short (in-town) trips allow them to build up and, subsequently, corrode engine parts when not in use.

Elsewhere in this thread are lots of info on keeping your motorhome running well.

1970 Explorer Class A on a 1969 Dodge M300 chassis with 318 cu. in. (split year)
1972 Executive Class A on a Dodge M375 chassis with 413 cu. in.
1973 Explorer Class A on a Dodge RM350 (R4) chassis with 318 engine & tranny from 1970 Explorer Class A

Posted By: 1977Monashee on 04/20/15 07:50am

Hey Griff in Fairbanks, Thanks for the reply.

I will check out the spedometer and components most likely this weekend if I have time. I Have the haines manuel, but have little mechnical know-how so I will try and get one of my unlces to help out with some of the more complex stuff so I dont screw it up. I did an oil change, replaced the air filter, greased everything and serviced the hubs before my first road trip last fall, which is when I noticed the spedometer problem, its been sitting in storage all winter. I will put up pictures soon, I got a new phone so I dont have any pics available right now.

Thanks for the offer on the spedometer much appreciated, But I think I should be able to get one around my house. There is a classic car specialist part store not to far from me, who focuses on ford, chevy and mopar parts.

It's definitely engine oil, that is leaking, and I can see it drip out of the rear main seal after I get it going. The engine went through aproximately 5 litres of oil over 4000 miles on my last trip. I don't think I need an engine rebuild," yet", it runs great, and everyone I have shown has agreed.

Just a little nervous cause In ontario you have to pass a safety before you can register and insure it........

I didn't now about the 318-3 designation, I will have to take a look at it when I get it from storage. I hope it is! There is definitely Alot of valuable information in this thread, 617 pages of it! I'm super happy i stumbled upon this! Like I said I will post pictures of my girl soon [emoticon]

! Getting really excited for summer.

Thank again for the friendly reply !

Regards

1977Monashee

Posted By: Griff in Fairbanks on 04/20/15 03:52pm

1977Monashee -

Where in Ontario? I went to grade school in Int'l Falls, across the river from Fort Frances. The only TV station we could get was CBC, so I guess I'm a little bit Canadian. Also, during my USAF career five of my annual performance reports were signed by a Captain in the Canadian Forces. (With him as my supervisor, I was able to regularly buy a two-four of Blue through the Canadian Orderly Room.)

If that speciality parts store has a web site please post their URL. Being in Alaska, I often find it easier (and cheaper) to buy from Canadian (and Japanese!) sources than from the Lower 48. I buy my black water tanks direct from the manufacturer in Canada. (In one case, based on their shipping quote, I could swear the Lower 48 vendor was going to ship it up here via private jet courier.)

I agree regarding an engine rebuild. Most older motorhomes have very low mileage and yours could possibly go on for decades before needing a rebuild. When I opened up the 318-3 from my 1969 M300, I found very little wear and only a little corrosion due to inappropriate oil change frequency. I could conceivably just hone and re-ring the cylinders and be good to go. However on projects like this, I tend to do a complete rebuild using select aftermarket parts to wind up with a fresh engine that's better than new.

I cannot stress enough the issue with valve stem seals in Mopar LA small block engines like yours. In all probability, a major portion of your oil usage is probably due to disintegrated valve stem seals. The 318 in my '77 B200 was using oil like your engine. Unfortunately, I rebuilt the heads before I found out all I need was new valve stem seals. The re-seated valves increased cylinder pressure, causing ring blow-by.

What happens is the engine pumps oil into the valve covers (aka rocker arm covers) to lubricate the rocker arms. A little bit of that oil is intended to leak past the stem seals to lubricate valve stems. However, when the stem seals disintegrate a larger amount of oil collects around the valve stems. In turn, on the pistons down stroke this oil is sucked into the cylinders where it is burned with the gas and ejected through the exhaust. The oil is usually not enough to cause visibly blue exhaust but is enough the cause significant oil usage.

The life expectancy of OEM valve stem seals is such that I can almost guarantee the seals need replacing on any LA engine that's more than a decade old, regardless of mileage.

Sometimes, what appears to be a main seal leak is actually a leaking torque converter seal on the transmission. This seal is actually easier to replace than the engine's main seal. The dye and detection kit I mentioned is relatively inexpensive, especially when compared to the cost of throwing parts at a problem that's actually elsewhere. (Transmission fluid is reddish colored, unless the tranny fluid is old, which sometimes helps identify to source of the leak.)

Bottom line: Identify the source of your problem before you start throwing parts at it.

Posted By: Wolf_n_Kat on 04/28/15 03:35pm

Following Griff's advice, I very definitely identified a problem before I started throwing parts at it, and came up with a new problem.

I had a saggy emergency brake cable and gave it a tug to see how much I was going to have to adjust. That was when I learned that said brake cable (front, from handle to adjuster) was in two pieces, not the one piece it's supposed to be.

Checked at a local car parts dealership, but the cable they gave me was too short - something in the neighborhood of 70" too short! After calling and explaining the problem, the longest cable they could find was 130" or so, and what I need is in the neighborhood of 171".

Anybody got any ideas where a body could dig up a front emergency brake cable for a '74 Eldorado (Class C)?

Posted By: Griff in Fairbanks on 04/28/15 04:07pm

Wolf_n_Kat wrote:

Yes, Lokar. You'll probably have to work with them to have a custom cable made and I would guess the price will be about triple the cost of a standard cable. I would point out to them that revival/restoration of older Dodge motorhomes is a growing segment among motor vehicle enthusiasts and they will have a market for additional cables identical to what you're doing. (A decade and a half ago, when I started my current activities, I was a strange, lone-wolf maverick.)

There are other companies making cables for older vehicles but Lokar is probably the largest and most capable. One company, that I don't have at my fingertips, is making replacement cables for early pushbutton Powerflite and Torqueflite (A727) transmission. They also make other cables for 50's and early 60's Mopar vehicles.

Also, consider the possibility a PO modified the emergency brake system, possibly moving the adjuster bracket to the rear to use shorter available cables from the adjuster to rear drums. (Part of the "adventure" of older vehicles is trying to figure out what's there versus what was originally there.)

* This post was edited 04/28/15 04:14pm by Griff in Fairbanks *

Posted By: Wolf_n_Kat on 04/28/15 04:25pm

Thanks Griff! I'm looking over Lokar's website now and you're right, it looks like I'll need to have it special ordered. I'm glad to see that there are companies that are working with us mavericks! ;-)

That's good to hear about the early pushbuttons too. I wish I knew what happened to it, but my grandfather used to have a truck (nicknamed "The Old Goat" for it's ability to go darn near anywhere) with a pushbutton transmission.

Posted By: Griff in Fairbanks on 04/28/15 05:36pm

Wolf_n_Kat wrote:

If it was two-speed, it was a PowerFlite transmission, a heavy, iron case beast with extreme durability. If three-speed, prior to 1960, it was the very rare iron case TorqueFlite. The aluminum case TorqueFlite came out in 1960/61 (I'd have to look up the exact model year), still in pushbutton configuration. The pushbutton lasted until 1964/65, with the final year being a bastardize configuration that was used as a stepping stone to lever shift transmissions. The basic A727 still exists today in the form of the overdrive A518.

The drivers' education programs basically forced Mother Mopar to change to lever shift transmissions by refusing to use vehicles with pushbutton transmission.

Interestingly, in recent years Dodge has returned to pushbutton shifting in some of its vehicles.

The Old Goat probably had an early big block like the 350 or 361 B block. More likely, it had an A block, called the polysphere or "semi-Hemi". It could also have had the early slant 6, which was know to have a lot of torque and power but no top end in standard production. (The earliest Dodge motorhomes had slant 6 engine that worked well but couldn't get up over 50 mph.)

P.S. It looks like I threw away some of the website bookmarks when my daughter pissed me off. (The one I mention was bookmarked as a source for her '59 Plymouth Savoy project.)

Posted By: Mykedynamics on 05/02/15 01:18am

Has anyone replaced their front seats with updated seats? Suggestion. Maybe pick and pull later model van seat?

Thanks everyone!

Ps...Dazy is still kickin butt! 12 states and 6,500 miles so far on a rv with less than $1000 including cost of the RV! These old Vans are the greatest!

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