Maintenance Talk lacking

[BUonM22?]

On RV.net and IRV2 there is always tons of chat about tires, engine problems, insides falling apart etc. in class A's anyway. Since I just sold mine and am looking for a Truck Garagehome I'm wondering if these rigs just don't have the problems of Class A's or if people just don't spend any time talking about them.

Are there other sites where these discussions take place?

[Bob E]

IMHO,...truck conversions are "generally" built somewhat better than a typical motorhome (with some exceptions).
Keep in mind that most conversions use quite a few of the same components as a motorhome - water heater & pump, furnace, roof AC's, etc,...
As far as basic design goes, [most] conversions are built with a steel or aluminum square tube structure which is superior to the construction design of most motorhomes.
Truck chassis, by the nature of the beast, are designed to go down the road a couple million miles with a 90K lb load behind, which would far exceed the life of a motorhome.
So, all things considered, a truck conversion (if properly designed & built) will likely be less trouble than a typical motorhome. At least that is my thought & I'm sticking to it!

[Doc Weaver]

when we used to travel in motor coaches (buses) we used to get asked why we didn't use RVs. Here is the answer that works for this question too. RVs are meant to camp and Buses are meant to travel. Trucks use heavy duty drive trains, large wheels and tires that are positioned at the outer edges of the body. RVs are known for using smaller wheels that fit under the body. That makes them top heavy and unstable. In other words the RV has overworked mechanical parts and the truck conversion is not even working hard.

See, clear as mud.

Doc Weaver

[geofkaye]

.....I have never seen a RV with more than 125,000 miles that was still drivable and safe....most have less miles and are in such a condition as to be less than worthless.........if they hit the insurance companies usually total them out.......geofkaye

[BUonM22?]

Having seen a class A in the ditch in many many pieces, the safety has turned me in the truck direction. After crawling into little crevices to change hoses and alternator etc., the hood up mode seems far superior. They should last for K's of miles, but many sit for months with little use and wonder if at start up they'll encounter similar non use problems as other "campers"? The search is still on, and I appreciate all the info from this knowledgeable group.

[Radman]

BUonM22
Welcome...I completed my garage coach last year.

It would be good to hear more about the maintenance requirements of the HDT

I have been getting mixed reviews on oil change intervals. Since we do less than 20K per year it seems that the time the oil is in the truck more of an issue than the miles driven.

Our truck gets exercised about every 3 to 4 weeks during the summer and we have never had an issue getting it started. It stays plugged in and in “float mode” for chassis and house batteries year round and even inside for the winter months at my warehouse.

I will tell you one thing that is similar to owning a class A RV. That would be the shake down-cruse-time required to get past the previous owners practices and getting it to work right for your intended use. We build the coach from scratch on a used T2000 chassis and it took about a year of travel to work out all the anomalies, learn the truck and the HDT routines. Even stopping for fuel was an adventure at first.

We are on the home stretch and there is no going back to a tradition class A…On the road it cant be beat but don’t kid yourself, it’s a big rig and there is no getting around that. You can’t cheat physics when it comes to fitting in tight spaces but we get by.

Tell us more about how you will use the garage. Ours is used for modern / vintage motorcycle hauling during the racing season and touring bikes the rest of the year.

[BUonM22?]

Garage will probably be used for "stuff" and my wife is a basket weaver/chair caner and general crafter and always has "junk" around her. Between bicycles, tools etc. we'll probably fill it and use it like a work room when we're camped. Maybe one of those tent enclosures. Of course, I'd love to have it big enough to haul a vehicle, but might be a waste since flat towing isn't a big challenge.

My diesel tractor seems to always be ready to go even without running it for a month or so and I've had it for 25 years with no problems, but simple diesel compared to the modern machine. Filters are important, but oil changes seem to be more of an "hours run" thing than time, other than once a year.

We need to hear from the old timers.

Know what you mean by BIG. The darn turning radius alone has to make you good at backing and filling

[geofkaye]

....''Old TIMER" my azz youngin'... Truck engine oil change/once a year-grease job/twice a year...transmission and rears/ every 5 years...antifreeze/5 years....clutch fluid/5 years....power steering/5 years....add alcohol to resevour/when the thing gets empty. Trailer repack every 2 years or 24,000 miles lubricate drop door in rear every year.....windshield fluid each trip.....lube all latches/twice a year....spray rustproofing inside panels and under cab/5 years.....paint cab/5 years....paint DDRD/frame/bumpers/bed/wheels and mirror holders/once a year......wash the whole rig outside/once a years.....clean interior/before every trip.......geofkaye

[BUonM22?]

Long Timers, long timers, not old timers
Now that's what I'm talking about with the maintenance clues. Seems like in the so called Super C's they're always talking about "Upgrades" to steering, suspension, sway, load etc., I'm assuming there aren't any concerns in those areas. Is there an advantage/disadvantage to full air suspension vs. air in rear only, and springs in the front?

Thanx for tolerance of this new-be.

[Radman]

Long Timers...I like that.

BUonM22,

I have similar concerns about suspension more specifically “sway” that I had with my old P32 chassis but certainly not to the same extent. I realize that I am big and tall and heavy up high in the rear (the truck not me) so I will always have some sway. I have been looking into a few different solutions but I find the real OTR Truck People don’t seem to take me too seriously. Likely because they don’t understand or have the answers, so they just listen and nod.

I would like to hear some thoughts on this from the Long Timers or ones that have experience in this area.

Rad

[Doc Weaver]

The whole air vs spring interests me as well. After driving many MDTs, the best ride was an all spring Freightliner. That didn't make sense to me. I was told by truck mechanics that the long springs made the difference. That part made sense. What I still don't understand is the International with rear air ride shook my teeth lose? When I was traveling on converted buses, they might sway a little but they would ride much smoother. Hard bumps would be smoothed out to a slow bounce. Do the class 8 trucks react this way?

We need a long timer to answer all these questions.

Doc Weaver

[JG1199]

So what is the cost to rebuld a motor and/transmission?