Coast Resorts Open Roads Forum: Class A Motorhomes: Monaco

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Topic: Monaco

Posted By: farmingdad on 03/29/17 09:23pm

Is Monaco still a good coach to buy and can you get parts for them ,

Posted By: doxiemom11 on 03/29/17 10:25pm

Don't know about newer ones, but we have a 2000 Monaco(gas) and have not had any problem getting any parts.

Posted By: DSDP Don on 03/29/17 10:33pm

I had a 2005 Monaco Diplomat and it's still the best coach I've ever had. If looking for used, I wouldn't buy anything older than 2009 when they went out of business. They were bought out by Navistar who installed Navistar engines and then sold the company again to the Fleetwood parent company. They pretty much built a new coach on a Freightliner chassis and called it a Monaco. What made Monaco a Monaco, was the Roadmaster custom chassis.

Don & Mary
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Posted By: William B on 03/30/17 04:10am

I think DSDP Don means don't buy newer than 2009, not older than. We are very pleased with our Monaco built coach and if we were looking for another coach, we would be looking in the same vintage as we have now, but not newer than 2009, maybe even 2008.

Full timing since 2004
2007 Holiday Rambler Navigator 45' DD Series 60
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Posted By: Ivylog on 03/30/17 04:30am

Ken/OP, since you recently bought a 08 Monaco Sig I'm confused by your question. If my memory serves me right, I think you used to own a Dynasty??? So, is your question about a new Monaco?
I do agree with what DSDP Dan said and if I had to replace my 04 it would be with another Dynasty or maybe a Exe and not newer than a 07.

This post is my opinion (free advice). It is not intended to influence anyone's judgment nor do I advocate anyone do what I propose.
Sold 04 Dynasty to our son after 14 great years.
Upgraded with a 08 HR Navigator 45’...

Posted By: moisheh on 03/30/17 05:16am

There is no truth to having special problems with an 08 coach! Our 08 has been a great coach. It is on 08 but was built in the fall of 07. Very few Dynasty's were built after mid 08. Actually early 07's still had problems with the rear frame area. Our 08 came with all the reinforced updates. The build quality is excellent. We have had minor issues. The same ones other Monaco owners of earlier years have encountered. Unless one has actually owned a problematic 08 or knows of hundreds of owners with problems this ugly rumour should be put to rest. Bragging about 04's is not such a great idea. Many of them had the fiberglass crazing problems as well as ISL rod problems.

Moisheh

Posted By: Sultan1966 on 03/30/17 06:41am

We got our 08 in October and love it. No problems and I had Alliance Coach in Wildwood, Fl go through it and do all of maintenance as I had no records but a carfax showing we were the 3rd owners. After coming from a 05 Cedar Creek 5th wheel and a Coachmen Encounter gasser I am spoiled now, especially with 10 airbag air suspension and tag axle. Whomever had it was in the "rust belt" sometime and I had to pull all 10 batteries out and sand, prime and the repaint 3 trays as they were bad. Basically I look for rust and try and take care of it so far. As for parts Alliance Coach still has some parts in inventory from when the place was East Coast Monaco facility and staff that used to work there when Monaco was there too.

2008 Monaco Dynasty Renaissance IV with Cummins 425hp ISL (Louie) with 2005 Chevrolet Silverado (Roscoe) with Golf Cart in back (Forrest Gump).
Wife, I and our two dogs are Full-Timers

Posted By: Ivylog on 03/30/17 06:54am

By agreeing with DSDP I agreed with buying up to 09... not just 04-07. Cummins rod problems is for engines built in 06 and the problem should have happened by now if it was going to happen. Even the black areas of my 04 do not have the crazing issue, and even if it did, it's a cosmetic issue on a 13 year old coach...not something I'd try to fix.

My 04-07 recommendation is more about less engine pollution components and less likely to have the multiplex control system. Most of the 07 Monaco coaches have 06 engines and 07 was the last year for the DD60 engine in the Exe... my dream coach. The multiplex system is great when it's working but a challenge to fix when it is not.

Even if I won the lottery... hard to do when you don't buy tickets, I would not spend 4X $$$$ to buy a new Monaco that's only a Monaco in name only... no RR10S chassis. Also, I may be full of it but I do not need a bath and half coach which is the norm today in 40+ rigs.

When Monaco first went under a group of Monaco owners started a Yahoo group "Monacoers" to list where to find parts and to help solve problems. Fortunately the Monaco customer support continues although it's recently been moved to IN from OR... new people and maybe not for older coaches.

Posted By: Playtime II on 03/30/17 07:02am

We see your question a lot on the forums. However, there is very little "Monaco" stuff on their coaches (same for most MH mfgrs). Monaco kept an inventory of parts but the parts are actually from other makers. It is sometimes difficult to ID the original part vendor as Monaco added their part number for their inventory. The best solution is to post a question here. You will most likely find someone who solved the issue and can point you to a part supplier (often at a discounted price). So, go for it.

Playtime IV
2006 HR Scepter 42DSQ

Posted By: becker on 03/30/17 07:34am

We have an 08 Monaco Dynasty..... one of the last north/south bedrooms they made.... we have been very happy with it.... no major problems, just minor stuff.... we go to every major RV show and look at the new coaches with all of the new features.... then we go home and hug our 08 paid for Dynasty.

2008 Monaco Dynasty, 42ft, 4 slides, 425hp clean air Cummins diesel
2013 Jeep Sahara 4-dr w/M&G Braking System
Roadmaster Blackhawk 2 All Terrain Towing System

Posted By: -Gramps- on 03/30/17 08:53am

Just so you know the Holiday Rambler Line was also built by Monaco, and in most cases it was the same coach, Knight=Neptune, LaPalma=Vacationeer, and I think Navigator or Imperial was the same or very close to a Dynasty or Sig. They baically had different paint jobs and interior colors. The HR line is still in production from Fleetwood, Monaco not so much.

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Posted By: BigSkyBob on 03/30/17 10:23am

becker wrote:

I do the same thing to my 08 Camelot. Ordered this rig from the factory and got one of the last non DEF ISL 400's. If you own a Monaco product you have no need for parts lol. Yeah right. My rig has been pretty much problem free but I do have some crazing on the side facing the sun when home. I recently installed a Watts link on the front and it's so much better handling it can't over emphasize it. Best mod I've ever done to this rig.

2008 Monaco Camelot 40PDQ, 4 slides, 2016 Dodge Ram 1500 Hemi Quadcab 4x4. Blue Ox, Garmin 760 LRM GPS, Doran Pressure pro on all 10, M&G Brake, 50 amp SurgeGuard, FMCA, Coachnet.

Posted By: Executive45 on 03/30/17 01:46pm

If I were to ever have to get rid of my Monaco product, it would be to "upgrade" to a Prevost. Even at that, it wouldn't be much of an upgrade. I have over 90,000 relative trouble free miles on our coach...I sold my previous Dynasty with over 130,000 trouble free miles, so yeah! I'm pretty pleased with the Monaco line......Dennis

We can do more than we think we can, but most do less than we think we do
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Monaco Executive M-45PBQ Quad Slide
525HP Cummins ISM 6 Spd Allison
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Posted By: farmingdad on 03/30/17 07:22pm

Yea , I use to have a 04 dynasty great coach , I still haven't took possesion of the 08 sig , it's got a lot more bells and whistles on it than the dynasty , little bit imtimdating with all that stuff

Posted By: Mr.Mark on 03/31/17 06:18am

Sultan1966, your Dynasty is the same color combo that we had but our plan was the Diamond IV edition.

I really liked our Dynasty, good coach. Ours went on the production line in January of 2007, we bought it while in production and were able build it with our exact option selections taking delivery in April 2007.

It had teething pains like all new coaches but the drive-train ran smooth. No trouble with the regen system in almost 70,000 miles and 7.5 yrs. that we owned it. About a year and half before I sold it, I bought new Michelin tires, 8 new AGM batteries and had the battery trays repainted. AGM's were the best upgrade that we made (no sulfating like we had with the wet cell batteries).

We started to have 'checking' in the black stripes on the passenger side but you had to look very very close to see it.

Farmingdad... you will really enjoy that '08 Signature! What floor-plan does it have?

Safe travels,
MM.

Mr.Mark
2021.5 Pleasure Way Plateau FL Class-B on the Sprinter Chassis
2018 Mini Cooper Hardtop Coupe, 2 dr., 6-speed manual
(SOLD) 2015 Prevost Liberty Coach, 45 ft, 500 hp Volvo
(SOLD) 2008 Monaco Dynasty, 42 ft, 425 hp Cummins

Posted By: Ivylog on 03/31/17 08:04am

farmingdad wrote:

And the learning curve gets harder with age. After 13 years owning my 04 Dynasty I know it fairly well and that's one of the reasons I'd stick with something closer to its systems. Going to a 08 Sig would be a big jump in complexity and all the things you now do with a push of a button... Good luck and you need to join the Yahoo Monacoers group.

Posted By: farmingdad on 03/31/17 09:26pm

It has the fortress floor plan , it has been very well maintained still smells like new no shoes has ever been wore in it the owner told me , and been garaged kept . Muti plex scares me , he said something always wrong somewhere ,

Posted By: Mr.Mark on 04/01/17 06:53am

Farmingdad, we never had trouble with our Monaco Multi-plex system in the 7.5 yrs. ownership.

I'm sure you have the larger Aqua-Hot (two electric elements) like we had. Our friends who had a '07 Signature didn't and had to turn on the Aqua-Hot for long showers. With the larger system, you will be able to heat the interior with the 2 electric elements on 45-50 degree mornings.

Good luck,
MM.

Posted By: crasster on 04/01/17 07:08am

Yes, I think they are great coaches and yes, you can get spare parts for them.

4 whopping cylinders on Toyota RV's. Talk about great getting good MPG. Also I have a very light foot on the pedal. I followed some MPG advice on Livingpress.com and I now get 22 MPG! Not bad for a home on wheels.

Posted By: falconman on 04/06/17 09:36am

One of the Monaco only "no parts available" item is the Aladdin system. If there is a failure there are some used parts around, very expensive, but items like a simple joystick are nowhere to be found. Silverleaf makes a work around ranging in price from a few hundred dollars to a few thousand.

Posted By: JimM68 on 04/06/17 09:50am

-Gramps- wrote:

Just so you know the Holiday Rambler Line was also built by Monaco, and in most cases it was the same coach, Knight=Neptune.

Actually for what it's worth, Knight is equivalent to HR's Ambassador.

Neptune is equivalent to Monaco's Cayman, and all are RR4R chassis coaches.

Knight and Ambassador were originally built on the 4 air bag chassis.
Both were changed in 2005. Best as I can tell looking at floorplans, interiors, and color combo, an '05-09 Knight and Ambassador is a Diplomat/Endeavor, with a 360 HP ISC engine in place of the 400HP ISL, no other changes I can see.

We bought our 08 Knight in 2010, approaching 50k miles now.
If I ever get a different coach, it will be an 09 or older tag axle monico.

Jim M.
2008 Monaco Knight 40skq, moho #2
The "68"
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