Foretravel Owners' Forum

VIN# 1F97D5406YN054902
FMCA# 14814

Let the forum know if you need Keith's contact info.  I don't believe he's a member here. 

There are a couple of other inspectors well-versed in Foretravels, but the typical RVIA inspector will not be one of them.  When we were selling our LTV, a buyer hired an RVIA inspector.  I actually had to demonstrate every single thing to the guy.  He had no idea how to operate anything (other than his camera to take pictures of the odometer and the tire dates.)

Buy it, Fix it, Drive it, Love it.  Nothing better than a Foretravel GV320!!!!

On Mon, Nov 18, 2024 at 9:55 PM Foretravel Fan 2024 via ForeForums <noreply@foreforums.com (noreply@foreforums.com)> wrote:

tires dated 2020....not 2000. Sorry about the typo and thank you for the replies.

What is their considerable dropped selling price? Not easy to price these, and always allow for some large additional costs.

No slides will reduce your unknown maintenance problems.

From the below nameplate, being made Dec 2098, I would think of this as a highly futuristic model.

Wonder when the coach was made ? Dec 2098?  Anyone know what that number stands for. . . 

Without slide could it be 1998?  Maybe they wanted to call it a 2000 model year by design, but messed up the 19 & 20.  But when it was made will indicate how long the coach has been on the road.

lots of things to break at first. Engine and transmission (outside the potential computer) usually run fine for much longer than 200,000 miles (if correctly maintained).
Plenty likely need repair and cost $$$ in the first year of ownership - airbags, aquahot, brakes, OEM Refrigerator and more. W/O a slide, budget $10-$12K in the first year, less if you can work on it yourself. No matter what you pay, you are buying a 24 year old coach that today would cost in excess of $1M.
Great news is it probably is at the lower point of its depreciation cycle, maybe do a bit of remodel and love it for a LONG time. check out all the storage space, and that mile high driving position! Also, you will need a Foretravel trained inspection, as there are some expensive potential issues that come with the foretravel custom chassis the average RV inspector would not know about. The coach either has the issues or does not have them. If it does, repairs need to be ascertained and factored into the purchase price. Keith Risch is the right man for the job.
Good luck, hope it all turns out, you will love that coach.
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On Mon, Nov 18, 2024 at 9:55 PM Foretravel Fan 2024 via ForeForums <noreply@foreforums.com (noreply@foreforums.com)> wrote:

From the below nameplate, being made Dec 2098, I would think of this as a highly futuristic model.

Wonder when the coach was made ? Dec 2098?  Anyone know what that number stands for. . . 

VIN# 1F97D5406YN054902

According to my 2008 Motorcade book the owner at that time was;  Vincent & Eva  Abate,  P.O. Box 6456 Lake Charles, LA  70606. Shows an Email -  abatesplumbing @aol.com

It looks clean. Don't fall for the computer replacement scheme. I have 250, 000 miles on my coach. Drive it away. Cheap price

This thread tickled my curiosity about the 2000 model GV320, so I poked around a bit in our Forum.

Found an old post by Barry Beam estimating that Foretravel built only 10 examples of the GV320 in model year 2000.

2000-2003 GV production numbers (https://www.foreforums.com/index.php?topic=15171.msg91192#msg91192)

I also located two other recently active Forum members who own 2000 model GV320 coaches.  Build numbers are 5712 and 5717.
They might be willing to answer any questions the OP has (that are specific to the GV320 model).

https://www.foreforums.com/index.php?action=profile;u=5611

https://www.foreforums.com/index.php?action=profile;u=8240

Thank you for the advice.  Will keep everyone updated.

Dropped by $11,000 or to $11,000 ? It makes a difference. I can't see how you could go wrong at $11,000

Be happy to answer any questions.  I was once told there were only 6 2000 GV320 ordered as it was only made to order?  I've put close to 100k miles on mine since I bought it in 2019.  It had sat unused since 2013.  Huge learning curve if you have never owned a diesel pusher or a Foretravel but you will have so much fun with it.

Cheers!

GV #5717 here...

I thought that I checked out this coach years ago but it's got a different floorplan than I expected so I didn't...interesting to see some of the differences between my coach and this one.

Personally I'll suggest you probably won't miss the slide-i wouldn't...I also like the street side kitchen.

If it doesn't have any bulkhead issues this  looks to be a great deal! Basement looks super clean so it's probably a southern coach and I'd be optimistic it's good to go.

Be happy to answer any questions.  I was once told there were only 6 2000 GV320 ordered as it was only made to order?  I've put close to 100k miles on mine since I bought it in 2019.  It had sat unused since 2013.  Huge learning curve if you have never owned a diesel pusher or a Foretravel but you will have so much fun with it.

Cheers!

Thank you for the reply!  Fingers crossed on pending inspections.  Based on suggestions from this community, I believe we have the right team lined up to evaluate the coach, no later than next Tuesday.  Have a great night!

If I were 10 years younger I would have already bought that coach, a quick check of the bulkheads and off to the fuel station.
For that kind of money it's a steal.
IMHO

One question for the group.  The RV warranty company that PPL uses does not offer warranties on coaches over 20-years old. Is anyone familiar with a warranty company that might offer a warranty on a 2000 coach? Thanks so much in advance and have a great Friday and weekend.

One question for the group.  The RV warranty company that PPL uses does not offer warranties on coaches over 20-years old. Is anyone familiar with a warranty company that might offer a warranty on a 2000 coach? Thanks so much in advance and have a great Friday and weekend.

Ditto the "warranty" advice above.

You'd be surprised how many "problems" encountered with these great old coaches can be solved by DIY.  Initially, it's a steep learning curve, but we'll help you climb the slope.  Within this Forum you will have the benefit of the greatest single collection of Foretravel knowledge and expertise available anywhere in the known universe.  Questions?  We got answers.  Something breaks?  It has more than likely happened to another Forum member and the fix is documented in our archives.  Locating obscure parts for old systems?  We'll tell you our secret sources.

Paying for parts and repairs?  That's on you.  8)

We owe everyone that helped us with this process a great deal of gratitude. Thank you to everyone who made recommendations and otherwise replied to this post. A colleague of Keith's (info available upon request and with his permission) completed a thorough inspection on Monday, after the diesel shop inspection. He believes it to be a solid coach with modest repairs and maintenance needed.  He has been phenomenal and his decades of experience as a subject matter expert on these coaches was immediately apparent. We also were able to reach the prior owner of 16-years. He was extremely helpful and had invaluable insights to offer. The question on the coach's mileage was resolved...the explanation is strange, but bottom line, the coach and its original powertrain do have almost 215,000 miles. It runs and drives very well. 

Ultimately, we made an offer today, which accounted for planned immediate repairs/maintenance, and the dealer accepted. Thank you again for all of your advice and have a great Thanksgiving!

Ultimately, we made an offer today, which accounted for planned immediate repairs/maintenance, and the dealer accepted. Thank you again for all of your advice and have a great Thanksgiving!

Thank you all for the replies.  Update from Cummins shop - fluid analysis for engine, genset, and transmission looked good.  They were unable to read the error codes responsible for the check engine light, possibly due to previously mentioned computer issue.  They also believe there's a problem with the ABS system and will provide more detail on that this afternoon. Keith is not available for an inspection but he has a partner or colleague who is...inspection date pending, hopefully this weekend or early next week.

One question for the group.  The RV warranty company that PPL uses does not offer warranties on coaches over 20-years old. Is anyone familiar with a warranty company that might offer a warranty on a 2000 coach? Thanks so much in advance and have a great Friday and weekend.

Were they unable to read anything from the ECM, or were there no codes stored? There might not be an issue with it at all. My experience has been that the codes that the engine reports are not always clear exactly what is wrong with it, and it often interpreted wrong by the techs.
You may want to look into a device to read the codes and information from the ECMs for future troubleshooting. Some of the other members can chime in as to what works well. I have the tools for this from work, and a coach that is too old to support most of it. But if you need any help troubleshooting codes or ECM issues, I'm glad to help.

Update - We have our 2000 GV320 at the Cummins shop right now. It appears that the alternator (Wilson 90-01-4721N) and battery isolator (Cole Hersee Co. 48160 isolator for heavy duty applications, 12-36VDC 200A) were recently replaced. The tech informed us that the isolator is a 3-stud solid state isolator which should be connected only to a solid state alternator. The current alternator is a 180A variable alternator with an internal voltage regulator. Per the isolator manufacturer, this alternator is incorrect for the model and can cause issues. With the isolator in place, alternator voltage was low. When the isolator was bypassed, the alternator voltage was normal. The tech believes the alternator is functional and the isolator has failed. He recommended replacing the failed isolator with another Cole Hersee Co. model (48162), which he believes be configured to work with the current alternator.

The tech is correct when he recommends the 48162 isolator, but I think he is incorrect in saying the 48160 isolator has "failed".  It didn't fail - it was just improperly paired with the Wilson alternator.  The Wilaon 90-01-4721 alternator is a clone (or rebuilt) version of a Delco 28Si alternator.  The 28Si will not turn on unless it sees 12V on the B+ output terminal.  If this model alternator is connected directly to a battery (like when you bypassed the isolator) then it works fine.  BUT, when it is connected to the center post on the isolator, it can't see any 12V signal, because the isolator diodes prevent voltage from the battery posts getting to the center post.  So, the alternator will not turn on.  The solution, in this case, is to use a isolator that includes a separate "ignition terminal".  You connect a wire to this terminal that is hot only with ignition switch in ON position.  The "ignition terminal" on the isolator supplies the required 12V signal to the isolator alternator post, which will then tell the alternator to turn on.

I can't tell (from my search) if the Wilson 90-01-4721 alternator has a "sense" terminal.  If it DOES NOT have a sense terminal, then it will still not work correctly on your coach, even if they replace the isolator.  If it DOES have a sense terminal, then it will work.  The sense terminal on the alternator should be connected to a 12V source that is HOT all the time.

If the Wilson alternator does NOT have a "sense" terminal, then I would recommend a different replacement isolator.  The Victron ArgoFET 200-2AC has the requisite "ignition" terminal AND in contrast to diode isolators has virtually zero voltage drop between the alternator post and the battery posts.

https://www.amazon.com/Victron-Energy-Argofet-200-2-Batteries/dp/B00NT9MTMQ

https://www.amazon.com/Cole-Hersee-48162-Battery-Isolator/dp/B07BYH6Q9M

https://www.truckspring.com/products/Alternator-Wilson-180-Amp-New-28SI-Type__90-01-4721N.aspx

Thank you for the reply.  The tech's summary included this statement "the model 48162 is a 12-36 VDC 200A with a 4th leg. We would need to make and connect to an ignition circuit on the unit for proper operation with the installed alternator. "  Excuse my ignorance, but does it sound like he is referencing the sense terminal that must be connected to 12V source that must be HOT all of the time? Thanks in advance!

The way I interpret the tech's statement is he is talking about the "ignition" terminal on the 48162 isolator, saying it must be connected to a "hot with ignition ON" voltage source.  So he is correct in that statement.  However, he is not addressing the question about whether or not your Wilson alternator has a "sense" terminal.  You should ask them about this.

The reason a diode isolator will not work in the absence of a "sense" terminal on the alternator is because, with a DIODE based isolator, there is a voltage drop of approximately 0.8 volts between the center alternator post and the two battery posts.  The batteries will not receive sufficient voltage to achieve full charge.  This problem can be overcome by either using an alternator with a "sense" terminal, OR by using an isolator that does not suffer the voltage drop between the posts.  The Victron ArgoFET meets this requirement.

I want to thank everyone for all of the advice leading up to and since our purchase in November. We spent several months sorting things out, and thanks to Bob, Gary, Keith, and Virginia in Nacogdoches (and nearby), our coach is running great. We had the bulkhead repair completed and a dozen other smaller repairs/replacements. We couldn't be happier with the Grand Villa and so appreciate both the people here and in Texas. Have a great week.