Foretravel Owners' Forum For owners and Fans of Foretravel Motorcoaches September 10, 2025 ...

Shop to Recommend in Northern Virginia

July 07, 2017, 02:30:47 pm

If you are traveling in the area of Washington, D.C. (Northern Virginia, DC, Southern Maryland) and need service I would recommend Western Branch Diesel on Balls Ford Road in Manassas, VA.

They are an over the road shop and also have a generator department.  They work on fire engines, transit busses, 18-wheelers, and all sorts of other stuff.  Clean shop with all the needed gear.  Instead of pits they have lifts that are used to raise vehicles.

We've used them several times and recently they finished installing a new radiator, charge air cooler, transmission cooler, gear pumps (radiator fan motors), remanufactured air dryer, fuel water separator, replaced all the fuel lines (including generator and Aqua Hot), and did a number of other things.

There is a Cummins factory shop just down the road from them, but I would not recommend them at this time.  The Cummins shop told me they won't touch Allison transmissions.  They will only work on the engine.

Chris

Quote Selected

Re: Shop to Recommend in Northern Virginia

Reply #1 – July 11, 2017, 07:45:47 am

That Cummins is fairly new but I have used WBD many times for my Allison.

Quote Selected

Re: Shop to Recommend in Northern Virginia

Reply #2 – July 12, 2017, 10:18:05 pm

Thank you both for the information and recommendations. We are in the process of buying a 1992 U225 and bringing her home to the Shenandoah Valley. This will be our first RV and first Diesel vehicle of any type, and it's good to know of a quality place close by to get her serviced.

Quote Selected

Re: Shop to Recommend in Northern Virginia

Reply #3 – July 13, 2017, 08:13:20 am

Jeff and Deb, Congratulations on your new coach. Be sure to join the Motorcade Club, I think it is still free for your first year. Just give Beverly Koonce a call at Foretravel, she can set you up. You will be in our Mid Atlantic Chapter. We are having a fall rally Oct 12-14 in Charleston, SC. So mark your calendar and come to the rally, we would love to have you join us. You will meet some real nice folks and probably learn a lot about your coach from the knowledge of the members.

Ben and Bonnie Harris
1999 U320 40' with Slide

Quote Selected

Re: Shop to Recommend in Northern Virginia

Reply #4 – July 13, 2017, 09:15:01 am

I would recommend buying a set of fuel filters and a bottle of algaecide treatment for the fuel---just in case. Also a catch basin and a filter wrench---just in case.
If you end up with a fuel delivery problem because of algae blockage somewhere along the way where far from service options at least you have the equipment to change filters.

Quote Selected

Re: Shop to Recommend in Northern Virginia

Reply #5 – July 13, 2017, 11:32:59 pm

Ben and Bonnie,

Appreciate the warm welcome. We will definitely contact Beverley and would love to join everyone in Charleston. Hope to have the chance to say "Howdy" in person.

nitehawk,

Great information. We make sure we have this items in hand before we start our maiden voyage. Thanks so much.

Quote Selected

Re: Shop to Recommend in Northern Virginia

Reply #6 – July 14, 2017, 10:31:46 am

Western Branch is excellent., Another shop I have used in the area is Equipment Works off I95 in Springfield. I had a blown airbag they replaced for me, and found a brake pad stuck and worn out while they were in there. I took an uber to the parts store Northern VA Supply right up the road and bought the brake pads which they had in stock and equipment works changed the pads and wire wheeled the slide pins for no extra charge over what they quoted me for the airbags. They let me back the RV into the shop and never set foot inside (its divided into two shops, the diesel shop and the suspension and spring shop. The spring shop did all my work, and it is a fairly dirty place with school buses, dump trucks, garbage trucks, fire trucks and ambulances everywhere) The employees are top notch and they knew exactly how to work on the air brakes. It was obviously not their first time. I recommended them to another forum member who reported they were also very happy with the work performed up in the diesel shop. Much more convienent to I95 than western branch, but I would make the trek out to Manassas if I needed Allison transmission or Detroit engine work.

Quote Selected