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Topic: C8.3 with 4 speed (Read 741 times) previous topic - next topic

C8.3 with 4 speed

From what I can tell the 300 hp c8.3, still has more torque than 3208 cat. Coach in question is a 92 u280. Will the 4 speed leave me crawling up the Rockies. Did the 6 speed come out in 93?
Old Phart Phred, EIEIO
89 GV ored 36' #3405 300 hp cat 3208 ATAAC side radiator, mountain tamer exhaust brake

Re: C8.3 with 4 speed

Reply #1 –
   We live in the Rockies and as yet have not felt the need for more power or gears. The 4 speed and 3208 works well enough for a 30 yr old coach. The last trip we did before the winter was Golden Gate SP at 9,000'+ and had all the get up I required. A few years ago we came out of Red Lodge, MT up Beartooth pass the only thing that slowed the climb was the curves, could have gone a lot faster but had to slow for the curves.
    Start the new season next week with 110,000+ mls on the coach so don't sweat it........unless you feel the need for more power and that's always a personal choice.
88 Grand Villa 36' ORED 3208 (throwaway)Cat.
 Build # 3150
Happiness is the maximum agreement of reality and desire.

Re: C8.3 with 4 speed

Reply #2 –
It's all relative, speed wise.  300 hp will haul you and your toad over the Rockies just fine.  Will you be "crawling" as you state?  You will be pulling steep passes at 30-35 mph, truck speed. Saying you  a fast  coach is like saying you have a fast turtle.  There are no fast coaches.  The really big deal is the downhill side, easing down under complete control without touching the service brakes thanks to the marvelous retarder.

Seriously, pulling mountain passes is done by managing engine speed, torque and heat.  50% more horsepower might gain you a few mph uphill.
"Not so  long ago we were a nation of risk takers, riding five million pounds of  thrust straight into space."  Joe Gresh
Chuck Pearson
1996 U295
2018 Can Am X3 TurboRS

Re: C8.3 with 4 speed

Reply #3 –
We had a 92 U280 and had we kept it we would have another 100K in the bank (or would have blown it on something else.)

I definitely liked our 97 U295 with the Cummins better because of the 6 speed and retarder but for the money it's hard to go wrong with the 92 if it is well cared for.  Sitting in that pilot seat is like nothing else out there.
Rick & Rhonda
2003 U320 4220  Build #6199
Was
91 36' GV 300 Caterpillar, 92 40' U280 300 Cummins, 97 36' U295 300 Cummins, 2002
U320 450 Cummins
(Guess we're hooked)

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Re: C8.3 with 4 speed

Reply #4 –
Horsepower is like money, you can never have too much. Had a 300 hp 295, 35 mph up some hills. Had a 500 hp 320, 50 mph up the same hills. You can be 70 years old, and still be a "boy racer".
Jim C.
coachfree, previous 1997, 1999, 2000, and 2003 Foretravels.

Re: C8.3 with 4 speed

Reply #5 –
Quote from: Old phart phred –
Did the 6 speed come out in 93?
Yes.

Our '93 has the 6-speed Allison, but no retarder.  I can't comment on how the 4-speed would affect performance of the 300hp C8.3, because I've never driven one.  We've crossed the Rockies 4 times in the 4 years we've owned our coach, and I've never been embarrassed by the climbing performance of our coach.  Yes, I've encountered a some "4th gear at 40 mph" climbs, but they are few and far between.  95% of the time, our coach will run as fast as I would ever want to go, regardless of how much power I had, and that's good enough for me!
1993 U280 SE 40' WTBI, Build: 4359
C8.3 300hp, 6-Speed, Exhaust Brake
960 watts on the roof (6 x 160)
Sorento (or BOLT) on a Kar Kaddy SS
"Nature abhors a vacuum"

Re: C8.3 with 4 speed

Reply #6 –
I worried with my 93 280 36 about the 4 speed. No issue. I did have a leaky charge cooler that was limiting my boost to 13#. A new U320 cooler with cast ends and a Banks kit and it was ready to fly.
The selected media item is not currently available. Dave Head & Megan Westbrook
Titusville, FL - The Great Outdoors
'98 270 buying this month
Toad is a 2018 F150 XLT

Re: C8.3 with 4 speed

Reply #7 –
Thanks for all your inputs
Old Phart Phred, EIEIO
89 GV ored 36' #3405 300 hp cat 3208 ATAAC side radiator, mountain tamer exhaust brake

Re: C8.3 with 4 speed

Reply #8 –
Quote from: Olde English –
  A few years ago we came out of Red Lodge, MT up Beartooth pass the only thing that slowed the climb was the curves, could have gone a lot faster but had to slow for the curves.

If you could pull the Beartooth, you dun well with your coach! I pulled it at record speed because the DW has vertigo and was screaming bloody murder all the way.
1993 U-240 "La Villa Grande"..CAT 3116 w/ Pacbrake PRXB...Allison 3060 6-speed..
Previous: 1983 Airstream 310 turbo diesel, 1979 Airstream 280 turbo diesel
                                      Build # 4297
                                      PNW natives
                      Home base:  'Cactus Hug' (Ajo, Arizona)
                        DW Judy & Chet the wonder dog
                        Full-Timers 'Sailing the asphalt sea'

Re: C8.3 with 4 speed

Reply #9 –
The four speed is a good transmission but limited off the line by the relatively tall first gear and the freeway mileage is down slightly from a six speed. The biggest annoyance is being stuck without a good gear on long grades. Ours will go 57 mph in third but it would be nice to have another gear between third and fourth. If you keep it in fourth, it will "hunt" between third and forth with abrupt gear changes so best is to drop it to third and relax to the top of the grade.

This is not a deal killer but the six speed would be great.

Pierce
Pierce and Gaylie Stewart
'93 U300/36 WTBI
Detroit 6V-92TA Jake
1140 watts on the roof
SBFD (ret)

Re: C8.3 with 4 speed

Reply #10 –
Quote from: Pierce & Gaylie Stewart –
This is not a deal killer but the six speed would be great.
I'd never had a six-speed until this coach. Wow! She's a dragster off the line and rapidly finds a "comfort zone". We pull I-17 from Phoenix to Flagstaff often. With our old gearing, shift points were too far apart, could not pass big rigs. This dear senses that we need to go by, and does!  ^.^d
1993 U-240 "La Villa Grande"..CAT 3116 w/ Pacbrake PRXB...Allison 3060 6-speed..
Previous: 1983 Airstream 310 turbo diesel, 1979 Airstream 280 turbo diesel
                                      Build # 4297
                                      PNW natives
                      Home base:  'Cactus Hug' (Ajo, Arizona)
                        DW Judy & Chet the wonder dog
                        Full-Timers 'Sailing the asphalt sea'
 

Re: C8.3 with 4 speed

Reply #11 –
We like to boondock east of Miles City on the snow-mobile loading area, lots of room and NO signal of any kind. Problem is the road in is Beartooth or Chief Joe hwy out of Cody or 214 from Sheridan either way it's vertigo central for herself.SWMBO (She Who Must Be Obeyed) sits in the back until we get to the valley.
  b^.^d 
88 Grand Villa 36' ORED 3208 (throwaway)Cat.
 Build # 3150
Happiness is the maximum agreement of reality and desire.