Okay, last question for now (and then forty million more if I buy the coach... heh):
This is a 1996 U295, with the usual Allison transmission and retarder (Cummins 8.3 mechanical; Allison 3060 w/retarder). The owner told me about a problem that cropped up recently (within past year/8,000 miles). That is that when driving, a warning red light and bell come on, which apparently indicate an overheating transmission. (The regular gauge does not show overheating.) The owner is experienced in diesels and doesn't feel there is or was ever an actual overheating problem.
The warning may not come on for a thousand miles, or it may come on five times in a day (even within 1/4 mile of starting to drive, when it doesn't seem likely the transmission would be hot).
The owner took the coach to a local RV place and they could not fix the problem. They said they felt a wire was loose "inside" and that the transmission pan would have to be dropped to fix it (which they were not equipped to do). The owner then called Allison, and after running through some diagnostics (over the phone) they agreed that is likely the problem.
If I decide to buy the coach, then this is something I would need to look into further, but for now I'm wondering a few things:
1) Does this sound likely or familiar to you all? i.e. perhaps something that is a "known" thing?
2) If anyone has had this problem and had it repaired, if you would be willing to share a ballpark cost, I would be interested. As it stands I have no idea if it is a huge thing or a smaller one.
I don't know yet if there is an Allison shop nearby (Arizona). It looks like the transmission has been serviced and repaired at an Allison place near Houston for most of its life. I forget the name right now, but something like "Stevenson and ....." (Running low on computer battery or I would search it.)
Thanks for any insight.
Alex,
Best bet is to get it diagnosed by an Allison dealer. Certainly not an RV dealer.
Have you checked the transmission for Diagnostic codes using the shift pad?
Agreed. I have a feeling it's something the owner had just gotten used to, and then remembered and realized "Oop, better get that fixed now that it's for sale," and the local RV place was available.
I haven't (haven't got to the point of starting/driving yet), but I know the owner did run through something like that with Allison (there are notes with codes and scribbles). I will ask him for more detail. It's definitely something I would want to have repaired, but since there are a million factors right now (i.e. checking over the whole coach), and I'm pretty sure there is no Allison place nearby, I thought I would just see if it's something someone else had experienced.
Thanks for your input!
Here are some links, you probably need to make some phone calls...
Capable of major service on select Allison Transmissions:
http://www.allisontransmission.com/locator/bing/locationlist.jsp?country=US&street=&city=&state=AZ&zip=&services=O&radius=248 (http://www.allisontransmission.com/locator/bing/locationlist.jsp?country=US&street=&city=&state=AZ&zip=&services=O&radius=248)
Capable of Maintenance on select Allison Transmissions:
http://www.allisontransmission.com/locator/bing/locationlist.jsp?country=US&street=&city=&state=AZ&zip=&services=M&radius=248 (http://www.allisontransmission.com/locator/bing/locationlist.jsp?country=US&street=&city=&state=AZ&zip=&services=M&radius=248)
Hopefully that will help some.
Codes can be checked from the driver's seat without starting the engine. All you need is the ignition on and use of the shift pad. Good info on Allison website (above).
No, you won't get dirty or take longer than 3 minutes from the driver's seat. Check it on 100% of coaches I inspect. If Allison ECU says it is happy, it is generally happy!
I didn't know that...Thank you Brett! I thought it had to be running, and up to operation temp. This is good info to have.
To check fluid level it must be up to operating temperature. To check for codes, engine does not even need to be running.
Great info - good to know the codes can be read so easily. As with the bulkhead info, this will stand me in good stead for this or any other/future coach.
Thanks.
Here is a great writeup using the shift pad selector for the Allison code procedure from our own Barry Beam: Allison Transmission Codes Manual (http://beamalarm.com/Documents/allison_transmission_codes_manual.html)
Pierce