I'm looking for an opinion here on a grandvilla with gas engine. I have seen them advertised as a late 80's model with the 460 gas and regular spring suspension.
My personal objection against gas engine is usually because of it being a front gas and it is noisy while driving. Rear gas, as offered on the Oshkosh chassis is probably much quieter. Also having a regular 460 gas, the maintenance part is much easier and parts for the engine are less expensive.
My question here would be about reliability of a gas, as well as drivability . Not having air assisted brakes I believe might have an impact as well...
Any thoughts ?
Sold them. Rv'ed in them. Custom built them. A few of the ford 460's front engine john Deere chassis would be of interest.
The diesel bought carefully is a better package IMO. Yes the bills are higher. So is the satisfaction.
Almost bought a trade in 29 foot sbi john Deere grand villa with 10k miles on it. A gem. Cute little critter.
I helped develop the OREG and if the speeds were never exceeded they worked ok.
Don't.
Bob
For me, the gas engines just dont have the torque that I like to climb hills well and pull a vehicle. As far as maintenance on the engine, it is really hard to beat the older mechanical diesel engines. Not many moving parts and for the most part are tougher than a boiled boot. For me, I would stay away from the gassers. On front engine models, there is always the long drive line issues and sometimes access to the driver's chair is awkward. It is all so personal tho, so do your homework, as you seem to be doing, and do what seems right for you. Have a great day ---- Fritz
I am aware of some loss of torque on the gas, but having a rear 460 gas, I believe they are pretty powerful . And once they are wore out, an easy swap is possible with a 6bt cummins.
Just a thought as I try to educate myself some more.
Btw, any real fuel mileage info on the 36ft grandvilla with the rear gas?
Sold dozens. 5-6mpg? Second time. Don't. The engines heated up past 60mph. The rear fan slipped its drive belts past that
I have had many medium and heavy vehicles in fleets with both gas and diesel engines. The gas engine will wear out long before the diesel will. Fuel milage will be pretty dismal as well. Because of the difference in torque curves the diesel will pull from much lower revs and top out at lower revs. All other things being equal the engine that makes more revolutions will wear out first and the gas will be it.
Stick with the diesel preferably the all mechanical ones like was suggested above.
Keith
Thanks guys,
I knew I can alway good advice here... :-)
I will keep on looking and take my time of finding the right coach for us.
search the forum for "OREG", and you will see my comments - WONDERFUL coach, awful engine when buried in rear, rear radiator, (hard to work on) - underpowered, marginal cooling, awful mileage. If you are OK with 55 MPH and maybe a 2200 lb toad you might be OK. Oshkosh chassis have poor parts availability and non existent manufacturer support,
No if you were very mechanically capable, there may be diesel options that would mate up to the current transmission. But if you didn't get a good deal on the used diesel and paid someone else to do the work the economics wouldn't make sense.
You didn't say what your budget is, but there are a LOT of nice Diesel Pushers out there for under $35,000.
I am sure others will feel differently, that is what is great about the Forum
A Ford/Navistar 7.3 turbo mechanical should bolt right up. I put one in my old Southwind. Glow timer mounted on engine with one one other wire needed plus normal gauge and alternator wiring. Got to use a 7.3 not 6.9 because of larger head bolts.
Doubled the fuel mileage over the 440 Dodge.
Should be able to pick up a nice dead gas Ford powered for $5K.
Pierce
Would you need to regear the rear end?
Probably. Need to workout revs, torque and HP curves to do it right.
Keith
I have mine mated to a Getrag 5 speed manual. Only 195 HP but lots of torque. Always in 5th before I'm even on the freeway. Never shift either way over Donner Pass on I-80. Would have good performance installed with stock rear ratio but would give up high speed cruise and lose a little fuel mileage on flat ground. Changing rear ratio with removable third member is cheap and fast plus easy DIY work.
Pierce
The rear gas engines would heat up too. Cooling package better on the diesel versions. I would look early 90s if you want it to be inexpensive. It is not the initial price but the upkeep.
Besides the engine being low powered, how is the standard Oshkosh chassis in regards to drive ability with not having air suspension ?
Are there any known issues with the front axle or any premature ball joint failure ? I would assume the rear axles are straight with spring .. So I do not see any problems on those myself, besides i would imagine it would have to have helper springs or overload airbags, if someone would swap the engine for a heavier diesel?
For what its worth we love our ORED. Granted it has some issues but they are mostly related to age but it is our first ever motorhome after 15+ years of pulling a TT. The PO of my coach did it all the right way for the 21 years he owned it. Maintenance was top notch on the mechanics (if a hose clamp needed replacing he replaced the hose as well kind of stuff). Past 5 years though had been rough (they had some heath issues) but mostly cleaning and polishing. I have had it for about 9 months now and put about $2000 into it. Maintenance, new temp sensor, updating lamps, remodel bath, new tire and now this summer I'll update the cruise control to a King Control (the Bendix system stopped working and there are no longer parts available one of the down falls of an older coach).
With that said my CAT 3208T side radiator purrs going down the road and I'm getting about 10MPG. I would however prefer a Unihome for bare minimum the outside storage. We have a storage box on the roof with extra hoses, belts, filters, oil, tools as with a older coach you never know. As much as we love the ride and handling of our ORED after reading more here the Unihome is another step up. You might want to make a trip to GA and check out Gary's before that one disappears.
Just my 2 cents worth...
Jeff
Sorry my reference to Gary's is.........Gary Bouland he has a 1995 U280 36' for sale here on the Forum
I drove mine at 60 - 65 pulling a 2000 pound mitsubishi Toad, 4 - 5 is what I saw - and they belts were an issue (I got pretty good at changing them - Lots of heat - small rear (vs. side) radiator. LOVED that coach, but really, unless you are a mechanic in your real life and want to mess with that suspension (I had mine 11 years ago and parts/support was non - existent for the Oshkosh bits)
I think you will be disappointed. But we do want you in the FT family, good luck on your search.
BTW, if you are looking at a particular coach and it has Motorcade numbers on the front and tea, you might be able to find a prior owner (PO)
That would be tempting if you can get a big enough radiator and do it yourself. But when it's all said and done and you put $ 7 - 8K into the conversation (and what if there is a gas vs propane generator - you might have too much $$ in it and be close to a 91 - 93 diesel FT in price
A friend has an OREG (Oshkosh Rear Engine Gas) Foretravel and he finds it drives and stops ok.. Great looking interior. Not a lot of outside storage. He runs the California mountains all right. Working on the engine us usually done with bed lifted up for access.
I can only comment on how perfectly our Cummins M11 (400 Hp @ 1600 RPM; 1350 lb-ft @ 1200 RPM) performs for us. While it really disturbs me to pay (at times) as much as $1.00 more per gallon for diesel than I would for gasoline, I would never want to go back to a gasoline engine for a large coach. I would definitely agree with those who suggest staying away from a gasoline-powered rear-engine Foretravel.
There is an 89 OREG for sale in Co9nyers, GA, has been setting for at least five years and is in poor shape. 3 years ago he wanted 10 K for it and it is not worth that. It does have a near new Ford 460 and many radiator and cooling mods.
Gary B
I have a GV Foretravel with the Ford 460. Granted it's the smallest GV made, but it forefills my needs. Best of all it's a Foretravel and serves as my home. It's a real hotrod when you put you put the petal to the metal.
I would not mind a bigger Foretravel, but this one is paid for and that makes it the best kind to own.
There is some good information on the web on how to improve the heat problem with the gas pusher. Starting with changing the radiator fan from a puller to a pusher.
I was working for Foretravel in Tampa as a mechanic when the rear engine gas models first came out. I changed out quite a few engines, and did mods to help with the cooling issues. Those coaches were 55 mph coaches. I would for sure look for a diesel coach before I would consider one of these rear engine gas jobs. The front axle does not have ball joints, but is a straight axle with kings so should not be an issue
29 foot and front engine way good vs 36 foot rear engine
AMEN!!!!
My fault as I had Oshkosh change the noisy fan to a quiet one. More steps to the process but the Oshkosh salesman lee pogue has become a personal buddy and our store outsold the factory store so I had some influence. Original was the pusher but was noisy.
415-2359150 was Oshkosh's phone number. I called them so many times I memorized the number.
Foretravel trusted me and let me order the quantity of chassis in the models I needed in my store to sell. Some were ca smog only so not usuable in the other stores.
Nice of texas to trust me. 59 new coaches in 1988 beat Nac by one. Fun times.
Cm thanked me as the extra money from our store was put into the unihome program.
Really funny for me to now own one . 25 years later. My DW and I both said then that someday we would own one. We constantly went rving in the trade ins. Guess its someday.
Different experience for me versus all of you as you can see.
Lots of stories from those days....
Bob
I bought a Winnebago new in 1987, it was built on a John Deere chassis. Had it for 20 years.
The cooling system was replaced and updated while under warranty. Cooling was never a problem.
More than enough power to climb hills toadless at good speed.
Very good brakes, all disc and oversized. Plus electric powered power brakes for when the engine wasn't running.
Main problem was narrow track with inboard leaf springs. Didn't want to stay in one lane and swayed side to side.
Got 6mpg on the 31 footer no matter what.