In my opinion the Winnebago is the one for full timing. It has the slide where you need it most, in the living quarters. It most likely is built on a workhorse chassis and has an Allison 540 series tranny. It is not a pusher. For what you want to spend, you should expect to have some problems with whatever you buy.


good luck



Tim

 

My 1995 Fleetwood American Dream 39AF had the big block CUmmins 8.3 with the 6speed Allison auto/trans. Cooling was side radiatior. Had plenty of power and I was happy with the set up.
In the price range you are looking at, this set-up will be pretty common. Detroit pretty much left the rv business in the 80's except for what you found in the Prevost type conversions. The series 60 of today is an awesome engine, but not to be found in anything less than the most expensive of coaches.
I think you'd be best off to look for the 8.3 Cummins with side radiator. Just my opinion and based on my eperience with 2 pushers.
Good luck. I'm sure if you are patient, you will find a "perfect" coach. PCM

Here is an example of something to keep an eye out for:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Fleet...QQcmdZViewItem

 

I agree that you should only settle for an 8.3 pusher. Pushers are also much quieter. It took me about three years to find my 94 Safari, but it was worth the wait. I like the Safari brand because it has metal sides and won't delaminate like some of the plastic ones do. Plus they are much lighter.

 

Yeah, I have been thinking of that. And what PCM mentioned about patience being required to find that perfect coach. I have been looking at the prices of Class B and Class C RVs and am shocked how much RV just a few grand buys these days. I am almost thinking I should buy a cheap, smaller RV to get me by while I search for the perfect unit. Plus, it will give me good practice, as I find all the things I hate about it I'll know what to look for in the next one.

My plan is to sell my condo and put up a garage w/ parking pad and hookups on a piece of investment property I have in eastern Oklahoma. I was going to build a house there but I decided against that when a contractor for BP came around and wanted to drill on my property. I own 50% of the rights, so between royalties and surface damage payments that was too good of a deal to pass up. Plus, I went and had it logged and now it just doesn't look the same with an oil road cutting up the side of the mountain and alot of the trees gone. I can always find another piece of property elsewhere to build on. Still a good piece of property for timber investment, the pine will grow back and I can log again after prices shoot up due to a hurricane.

If I spend less on RV, I can put more into the garage. Can always get another RV later, as its a sure thing that by eliminating my mortgage payment, HOA fees, utility bills, parking permit and all the other expense of that place and replacing that with an RV that I own and the need to buy a couple of hundred worth of fuel a month I'll have alot more money freed up and no real obligations other than taxes. So maybe I'll go up another level in class or just take the plunge and buy a brand new one in a few years.

I actually dislike the fact that it has a slide in it. I am a big guy and I have heard the slides cause alot of problems and are a real pain in the behind to fix when something takes a vacation. How much room can one person need, when you consider the fact that all my stuff is going to be in the barn? Cant be that much.

So the 8.3 seems to be where its at? I have heard that a few times now.

Yeah, but I cannot be patient. I want to have this show on the road by the spring. Hence why I am thinking of going the "starter RV" route discussed above.

Dads was a GMC bus (I think) from the 60s or 70s. A real old thing, but it was built like a tank and the engine was a beast and had a ton of raw power. That bus probably would have outlasted me and him both.

OK, you have me confused here. I want a 8.3 or a 5.9 with the P pump? Or did the P pump come on both? This setup you are speaking of is the equivalent of a 2nd generation dodge P/U engine then, right?

 

My (diesel mechanic) nephew was working primarily on DPs in those days and I'm almost sure he told me the fuel system on the 5.9 and 8.3s in RVs followed suit with the Dodge CTD 5.9 second gens. They (rv 5.9 and 8.3s) had the P pump from 94-98.4 or close to those dates. And then when the Dodge CTD 5.9 went to 24v electronic in 98.5, so did the rv 5.9 and 8.3s. Craig

 

If your planning to full time, you better have lots of room in the coach, or plan to spend a lot of time out doors, if you have a Misses!!!(2 years living in a 5'er 37ft. 5 slides, pulling w/08 dully,6.7)

 

Ah, OK. And the 24V would be 3rd gen? Also, is the whole chassis 24V or just the pump? Not sure I'd like that. Alot of RV stuff is 12V. Whats the verdict on those? I don't know anything about 3rd Gens, I tend to shun new stuff. I'm not much of a fan of ODB-II, OnStar, computerized EMS, etc. Nice to have something I can work on without a whole dealership full of computerized diagnostic equipment.

Is a 5.9 2nd Gen PU engine the exact same engine as a 5.9 2nd Gen RV engine? Could I transplant them if I so desired? I would think the RV engines would be bigger.

I am a one man show. My misses are on demand, if you know what I mean. They wont be staying longer than needed. I haven't made THAT mistake yet.

Part of the reason of getting a smaller one is to force me to shed some of my stuff. I have alot of crap, alot of its not needed. Best way to shed it is to make it so it wont fit.

 

The different Dodge P/U generations refer to the body style - 94-2002 was the 2nd gen but they began in 94 with a 12valve (also the first year for the inline Bosch P pump) and ended in 2002 with a 24 valve electronic system. They went to 24v/electronic in 98.5 to meet emissions. They were all 12v up thru 98.4. So 94-98.4 was the period with the all-mechanical P pump. Firetrucks and RVs got the highest hp engines for road service and I think marine got the absolute highest of all. For example, the hotrodders ran 370hp marine injectors in the 12v 5.9s. and 275hp rv injectors were the ticket in the 98.5-2002 24v 5.9s. I don't recall any factory injectors higher than 275 for the 98.5-2002 24v. The higher hp RV and FT engines had some differences internally (I think mostly different pistons/bowl design/compression ratio) to take the power but the P/U hotrodders didn't care about those minor details! Great concept... misses on demand! Craig

 

Ha! yea he is gonna sell it! But I think because its too big vs the problems with the fan belts.

 

Kieth,all r/v's have pretty much the same stuff inside them.So,on that note when I was looking,my list was,quality of construction-glued and screwed,not staple gunned.Lots of storage,in and below,preferred aluminum skin,no delamination problems,must be solid,no flexing,My list became much shorter,Older Revcon,Wanderlodge,Barth,Prevost.I finally found what I wanted a 30ft.Barth with all the goodies Spartan Chassis,Allison trans,Dana 80 rear end and Cummins Diesel.All well cared for and kept in indoor storage.I would much rather buy an older well built coach than a newer one which is problematic.Do a search on "rv.net",Barthmobile,Wanderlodge site,or even evil bay for older Prevost's.
Just my .002 worth.

 

If you're going to full time and park it I would suggest a 5th wheel or a park model bumper pull. Why pay for another engine you won't use?

A motorhome will need a dinghy (toad) to make your grocery run or drive thru at the bank.

On the B versus a C engine. Yes, both 12 valves used the Bosch P-pump. The p-pump was introduced in the early 90's so you need to look at the engine. Motorhomes did not change to the ISC at 98.5 as the pickups. They were under a different emissions standards and depends if the mfg used banking.
ISC used the Cummins Accumulator Pump System (CAPS) injection pump not the Bosch VP series. The early CAPS were pretty much labeled CrAPS by everyone that used them. Make sure any ISC has an updated CAPS.

I still have a copy of the "Weekend Wedding License". Some GFs did not think it was funny.

 

I thought about trailers but decided against that right off. I don't plan on using campgrounds much. Flying J and many rest areas have RV dumps to fill and flush the tanks, generators will power me and the only thing I'll be running is the laptop computer so for the most part I should be able to fire the generators and charge the batteries once every couple of days and be fine.

I plan on making extensive use of Wal-Mart, Rest Areas and Truck Stops. Dropped trailers are an invite for thieves, ticket happy cops, jerk security guards, jackbutt station owners and desperate tow truck drivers, plus, they advertise that no one is around (cause there is no truck hooked up to them when they are dropped cause you took the truck to the bank or whatever) and dropped trailers in lots not belonging to you and rest areas are generally frowned upon. I prefer not to come back and find my house impounded, nor do I plan to be in one place for more than a few nights at the most.

Like I said, I am going to travel and the engine will get plenty of exercise so it wont have a chance to deteriorate like alot of them do from non-use which can be just as damaging as heavy use, maybe even moreso. Grandpa always said the worst thing you could do to anything with a motor was park it somewhere for a while.

Plus, if its raining outside, who wants to get out and walk around to the trailer entrance?

 

Ahh
You plan to full time on the road. Much different impression I got from your previous posts.

Can you get by without a toad?

 

I am thinking about leaving the first gen in tha garage and giving it a try. If I decide to do some sight-seeing or whatever I can always rent a car for a day or two.

 

Hey Keith,saw this on evil-bay.Don't know how close to you for an inspection?Hawkins is supposed to have a pretty fair rep.so I am told.
95 Hawkins Hawk diesel pusher Item number: 320330131170