For those of you who followed my thread regarding the tranny failure (Busted Tranny) on our 1995 36' U295...this is kind of a eulogy...as the coach makes its final trip tomorrow...behind a large wrecker truck...to the scrap heap. Freightliner (in Phoenix) threw a $16K estimate at us for the R&R of a remanufactured MD3060R transmission
She goes to the scrap yard with a 10-year-old Xtreme paint job...5-year-old Michelin tires, brand-new coach batteries (installed in March), and 6-month-old engine batteries.
She also goes with a LOT of memories.
Sad ending for an elegant lady.
Larry
I am so so sorry for your loss..... must have been a terrible decision you had to make to just let the coach go and lose your investment and your effort and patience....
:'( :'( :'( :'( So Sorry for You. That would have been a very difficult decision to make, to bad you couldn't have found cheap storage while you tried to recoup some of your investment. :'( :'( :'( :'(
That stinks. Any chance you can drag it somewhere and rent out as Air BnB?
I'm not that knowledgeable about R&Ring Allison transmissions but a quick look on EBay showed prices from $895.00 used to $3500.00 rebuilt and everything in between.
Even paying $5000.00 for one leaves $11,000.00 for labor, which is 73 man hours at $150.00 per hour.
Does that sound reasonable? There must be someone cheaper.
I also would be looking for a second opinion.. There must be another shop, and surely it is worth the cost to have another shop give an opinion. I personally am not a fan of franchise auto transmission repair facility. It is rare the transmission is shot... most times it is a single piece failure, ie pump, clutch pack, or simply a failed o ring... My two cents worth, please get an other opinion.
Safe Travels,
Dave
This guy isn't the cheapest, but $3-4k will get you a used transmission. It's probably 5-10 hours max to remove old and install it.
https://rvchassisparts.visonerv.com/cgi-bin/f/allisonautomatictransmissions.pl?
Something doesn't sound right for a 16k estimate. I don't even know if they cost that much new!
NOOOOOOOOOOOO...!!!!! dont do it offer it to your fellow FT owners...$16K wow...
Before you junk it put it in the for sale section. I bet someone will but it.
I would have the tow truck drop the FT off at a RV park and not the crusher. Living in it I would then hit the local bars, VFW's, American Legions, etc. until I located someone to perform the labor at a reasonable price.
I wouldn't make that big of decesion based off a blasted rob you blind Freightliner dealership or any other truck dealership. Not trying to ruff you up at a time like this but man get resourceful that's to much bus to scrap over a busted transmission. At least put it up for sale first. None of my business but dam.
I wonder how much the retarder adds to the cost of a remanufactured Allison
Post a figure on classifieds what you will take for it.
Replaced my MD3060R last year with a factory reman...just under 6Ks for the transmission, just over 6K labor, $12,200 total with tax, shop supplies, and all the other add on crap. I thought 6K was a tad rough for R&R...drop driveshaft, unplug 3 electrical connections, oil lines, and remove 12 bolts...but that is the way it was. :facepalm:
Ralph
96 U270
crusher
The Costs are all probably warranty related, the actual R&R shop costs X2. I would go to Goodwill get a set of bib overalls to wear and hit up the local mom and pops for a price. Or post in classifieds. But that's just me.
Total overhaul by Allison shop; Warranty. Out the door $7100.00 Parts readily available from various Alllison shops. Shop it around another day. Please.
jk
Sell it as-is.
At a mom and pop business, cash money for labor can significantly lower the labor and misc costs.
Sorry to hear about your coach. Hopefully, you'll find a more reasonable repair and won't have to scrap her.
But if you do, I understand there is an RV salvage yard in Phoenix (Arizona RV Salvage - Rv Parts, Rv Salvage (https://www.azrvsalvage.com/home.html)). Is that where it is going? I checked with them a while back to see if they had any Foretravels because I was looking for a used fan motor. They didn't have any Foretravels at that time.
George
Is the coach worth more than 16k fixed? You are throwing away money. Unless $16k is hard to raise right now
Heck no, don't do that! Contact me before you think about doing that!, send me a Personal Message and certainly never a Foretravel to Arizona RV Salvage, that place is for cheapo Elkhart made RV's that are refrigerator fire victims, not a coach like this. I'd hate to see you do that
Thats my thought. You cannot buy a used canvas side pop up for 16k. Fix it enjoy it. Remember buying a coach is not an investment it is an expense. It is a price you pay to have fun!
You have 2 better choices,shop around more for repair options and estimates,or sell to a forum member,selling to a member will
get you more then a junkyard for sure.
I know when motor homes break down away from home that options a person has are reduced but a class 8 truck dealership shop management has the conscience of a drunk congressman. I've been in more of them than the average joe and feel safer wandering into a camp of Columbian Rebels hiking in Columbia.
Or at least give it to someone who will fix it themselves, It's a shame to just junk it.
If cash flow is an issue salvage yard transmission are available. So is shopping around for an independent mechanic.
Once upon a time, when I was young a friend was showing me the accumulated repair invoices for his 1949 Oldsmobile 88 convertible, and he was complaining about having to replace wear parts for the second time. That's what happens when you use something.
You know the condition of the rest of the coach. My not so humble opinion, my two cents worth, is to rent storage space at a storage facility for a month or two and pay to have your coach towed there. This is too big a decision to make without getting some distance from the gut blow and catching your wind.
Reading OP's previous posts shows he has already bought a 2002 42' U320 with slides. Probably has no interest in the coach at this time. If the salvage money plus the repair cost is more than the coach is worth I could see his point.
Several Allison shops across the border in Mexico. One member had their Allison overhauled at a factory shop for just over $4000. Think it was in Hermosillo. Less at local truck shops. Nice coach so take a deep breath before writing it off. Lots of ways to get things done.
Link to Allison shops here. Click on locations to see what transmissions they service and overhaul. One shop in TJ another big shop here where they do all service, overhaul, new transmissions:
D Diesel Servicios Y Refacciones
ALLISON DEALER
Ferrocarrileros No. 178
Hermosillo, Sonora 83290
662 312 4169
Map for ALL Allison locations here: Sales + Service Locator (https://www.allisontransmission.com/sales-service-locator)
Pierce
A local International/Allison dealer in Houston just billed $8500 to completely replace the transmission in a late-model Freightliner. I know it's not the same as yours, but that's just a point of reference.
Chris
I paid $8347.00 out the door for I State Truck (Allison dealer)in Missoula Mt to R/R a remanufactured transmission in my U295. This included diagnosis. $16 thousand is high.
Sad state of affairs: curious WHAT exactly went wrong? :facepalm:
I remember reading about part of the problem but not the whole story. There is a lesson to be learned from it...
Busted Tranny Housing (https://www.foreforums.com/index.php?topic=36567.0)
Larry, Hope you are not trying to punish Freightliner.
Why not have your tow truck take your precious hurting Foretravel to Allison's ONLY distributor in Phoenix, for a free estimate on replacing the end of the transmission bearing assembly or whatever.
At least you would have good information before shooting your coach in the foot...
Looks like you were fighting an uphill battle by first going to an RV dealer with a transmission problem and then to Freightliner who specializes in Freightliner chassis and has no love for an RV manufacturer that did not build your coach on a Freightliner chassis.
Why not turn around and gently slide down the other side of your uphill to Williams on 19th Ave. Understand that time may be one of the triggers for your giving up, but this deserves the time to follow a healing path.
Phoenix's only Allison Distributor:
The W.W. Williams Company
2602 S. 19th Ave.
Phoenix, AZ 85009
602-257-0561
We wish you better luck in the future. . .
If the coach is in decent shape, sell it for $5000 and let someone replace the transmission, don't just dump it.
Think I read it had a full paint job which makes me think it was looked after.
Just saying.
Have an auction on the Forum,make Nitehawk the auctioneer.
Well, there does come a time, when one just has to cut your losses. Sorry for the problems that you have had. Faced with having to R&R a transmission, I would not replace the retarder. It's nice to have but Foretravels are about the only coaches with them. Talking to a Allison factory tech, he said the retarder does cause a small loss in MPG.
I still wonder what caused the destruction of the transmission? Bulkhead, axle bolts, and so on. Still seems like a shame to just scrap it.
Quote" Heading west on I-10, our coach (U295) wouldn't move after spending the night at a truck stop about 30 miles east of Los Cruces, NM. After checking things over and finding the tranny roughly one gallon low of fluid, we resumed west. By the time we reached Tucson, we had added about 6 more gallons in order to keep limping along. By the time we reached Phoenix, the transmission gave it up."
Unfortunately, this gentleman drove his coach over 400 miles further than it should have been driven.
Wondering if the $16K included a lot more than just the tranny?
PIerce
Without having had hands and eyes on the situation, the simplest reasons are bad or broken motor mounts. Next in order would be backing the engine into something solid. But this is all speculation. My opinion however is that the quoted repair price is a "We really don't want to do this, but if you pay us this much money we will grudgingly undertake the task."
I wrote this on his other post,the "motor mounts" are long bolts with big rubber washers,they are not like a car,maybe a weld could
crack,if one of those bolts ever came loose or broke I don't think you would get very far and a leaking trans would be the least of your problems.
Someone with a better memory than me, was there not a coach about four weeks ago that the owners decided to scrap, they were having numerous problems, it was drivable,
Would it be possible their thread could be found and the transmission from this one that was going to be junked be used in this one that is on its way to be junked.
Someone else may remember who that was, I think they were going to buy another coach, anyone remember who they were?
I inquired about a coach NE of the Denver area and that coach had a very similar failure and a 15k repair bill prior to the owner deciding to selling it. I passed on that one.
Most motor mounts have retainers, so be if they fail the motor doesn't keep working or fall out but they can severely missalign other components..
I know someone that took out his transmission on his Foretravel going over the railroad tracks and his insurance covered it.
John M.
Anyone ever have a motor/engine mount failure that could not feel the metal to metal vibrations instantly?
Pierce
That's what I'm trying to say,there is no part called a motor mount they are fine thread shoulder bolts with the retaining nuts using
large rubber discs made by a company called Lord.If that breaks you will not get 4 miles let alone 400.
what happened to OP?
Last active 5-1
Hope he did'nt scrap the coach,someone on the forum would be overjoyed to have it,would have been better off not even telling us the plan.
Let's not give up. Hope springs eternal.
jor
Very sorry to hear about your tranny problem.
You say the tranny is "busted" and I am wondering if you cracked the case or the transmission just does not work?
Are you sure that the problem isn't a failed touch pad?
I do not trust
I agree with many others that you should not tow it to a graveyard as it is most likely worth WAY more than you think.
I believe there are still a lot of buyers out there for a coach of "promise".
Put it in storage if you have to do it. Think it all out. Ask questions, place ads, and other creative things..
Is the coach your fulltime residence?
Get an annual price for a RV park space and put it there til you REALLY DECIDE WHAT YOU SHOULD BE DOING.
There are a LOT OF PEOPLE ON THIS FORUM who will be glad to heip you think it all through. Take advantage of it.
Regards,
Folks,
Since we don't have facts from the OP, we are all speculating.
We don't know the root cause of the failure-- major separation of the rear bulkhead along with the transmission would change the equation.
Overall condition of the coach? Accumulated preventive maintenance needed (tires, air bags, shocks, fuel lines, etc) that, if OE may be at the end of their useful life.
The coach could be a gem waiting for a new owner, or it could be ready for retirement. We really don't know.
With FACTS, we can certainly help the OP with viable options.
One fact that we do have is he said this was happening and did not hint at optional suggestions,and we have'nt heard from him
in 3 days.