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Topic: Repairs, Replacements and Upgrades for older U270,U295 and 320's (Read 2617 times) previous topic - next topic

Re: Repairs, Replacements and Upgrades for older U270,U295 and 320's

Reply #25 –
Don, Your roof list looked like mine, I spread out the work up there over two years.  Knowing that there will not be leaks makes me sleep better.
Al
Leisure Travel
Unity (MB)
2009 Smart Car

Re: Repairs, Replacements and Upgrades for older U270,U295 and 320's

Reply #26 –
Roger, I like your analogy of the house and the car.  Having faced the dilemma of doing a complete rebuild of a Mercedes 450SL worth 8K as is or putting 25K into it and then would be worth 12K, I then listened to my wife and donated it to a non-profit and took the donation. Having dumped more money into a house then it will sell for but is now a great home to live in. I find we make decisions based on what we want for our life style and creature comforts.  The same with the Foretravel, it allows us to go where we want, when we want with a degree of comfort that was unknown to our parents or grand parents (think wet tent in the rain at the lake).  The money we spend on our Foretravel that will never be recouped is just what  we need to spend to provided the level of comfort we want at this stage of our lives.  RV maintenance as either pay as it fails or before failure or a blend of the two is just the cost of this great lifestyle we get to enjoy       
Leisure Travel
Unity (MB)
2009 Smart Car

Re: Repairs, Replacements and Upgrades for older U270,U295 and 320's

Reply #27 –
Guys,
You misunderstood my math.  I didn't include the original purchase price in my cost total!  Everything else but fuel is in my my numbers.  I certainly didn't expect to ever recover the costs for FBP, interior remodeling, MCD shades, etc., etc.  Other things like new W/D, tires, fuel lines, Generator electrical side, batteries, alternators, etc.,etc. were essential costs.  I paid cash for my coach, so I could also include the lost investment gain from the original purchase price, but I didn't buy the coach as an investment.

It just goes to show that over time ownership costs add up to be a considerable sum.  We may think we may save money by buying an older coach, but if we compare apples and apples we may be kidding ourselves.

Now does that MOT IH marked down to $499K suddenly look more attractive?
Regards,
Brett

'99 42' Foretravel Xtreme
'14 Brown Motorsports Stacker
'05 Chevy SSR
'02 BMW R1150R

Re: Repairs, Replacements and Upgrades for older U270,U295 and 320's

Reply #28 –
Even the new IH at MOT is way out of my price range, so that is not an issue.

We all need to decide what upgrades, changes, repairs, replacements, etc we need vs want and what $$$ value we put on these.
Living full time in our coach I want it to be safe, dependable, and comfortable, so we can travel this great country.
Some things will only be done once, like refinishing our couch, and we will use it as long as we have the coach.  Tires, batteries, maintenance will be done as needed- part of owning a coach.  This year I will have our fuel lines replaced at a cost less than what we were paying for property taxes and HOA fees on our place 7 years ago.  Good trade off!!

Have fun and enjoy your adventures in your Foretravel.
Ted & Karen
2001 U270 36' - sold after 12 years full timing

Re: Repairs, Replacements and Upgrades for older U270,U295 and 320's

Reply #29 –
I stopped looking though I kept the records when I got over 100K on this coach.  It is still cheaper then a new coach when I looked at them.  I asked FT to build me a 42 foot Nimbus with IFS and a Phenix step and to remove one slide. They said no, if I remove a slide it will cost more and if I want IFS and the step, I needed to buy a phenix.  So I bought a 42 footer traded in and gutted it and redid the whole thing inside. I put on new AC units and just did the fuel lines and had to replace the radiator last summer.  The Aquahot will probably be the next thing I will need to replace but otherwise I am still well below the 748K they wanted on the new coach that was not what I wanted. 

I think the best deal is still the 98-03 coaches that can be redone for a bit more then the purchase price but you will have a coach that will last years.
2025 Wanderbox Outpost 32 on F600 Expedition Motorhome
2015 Born Free Royal Splendor on Ford 550 nonslide version  for sale
Former Coaches  covering. 360,000 miles
1999 34 U270
2000 36 U320
2001 42' double slide U320
2018 Jeep Rubicon

Re: Repairs, Replacements and Upgrades for older U270,U295 and 320's

Reply #30 –
This discussion started with a "maximum theoretical failure" model that collected all the possible or common repairs/upgrades. If you were looking at an older Foretravel as a Newbie, it would cause concern. Up until August of 2014, we were that Newbie. Drawing on our experience from the boating world and all we could absorb from this Forum, we managed to purchase a 1996 U295 with 60k miles. Our plan was simple: buy quality invest some bucks to ensure safety and reliability, then start with the pretty stuff.

To help those that may come after us, we thought some data points from an actual purchase by raw Newbies might be valuable information. An actual case study perhaps. We drove many shakedown trips and collected a list of repairs based upon actual usage. As of today, we have:

1. Done the usual full service of chassis and generator.
2. Replaced dessicant filter on air dryer.
3. Rebuilt the injector pump (failed).
4. Added third waste valve converting to more common size.
5. Replaced all back flow/check valves (leaky).
6. Tested LPG system and replaced alarm.
7. Added glass tile backsplash, toilet "box" and stairwell.
8. All new toilet valves and seals.
9. Installed reman turbo (cracked) and new turbo boot. PO had a hose on the boot which had the look of someone shooting ether for cold start - yep, that can of ether I found really did mean something.
10. Installed return springs on the throttle.
11. Inverter dead. Installed new Heart 2500 with remote.
12. Pre heat controller replaced, replaced solenoid on preheat system and reconnected broken wires. Should start easier when cold weather returns.
13. Installed remote pull for forward air tanks valves.
14. Replaced leaking air valves on retarder, entry step, front tank check valve and all three front pressure regulator valves (holds air all night with hardly noticeable drop on the gauge).
15. Found the electric switch on back of water heater was off. Hot water!
16. Installed a Blue Sea solenoid to replace the dreaded ignition solenoid that fails at the worst time!
17. Installed a TrikLStart on the isolator.
18. All new house and start batteries.
19. Replaced shore water house on existing reel.
20. Replaced shore power cord on existing reel (looked as if it had been run over a few times).
21. Replace Jack antenna.
22. LED bulbs in all interior lighting (sans fluorescent so far).
23. Replaced power watch indicator bulbs.
24. Replaced with rebuilt Dometic thermostat.
25. Replaced broken windshield wiper arm.
26. Replaced gas struts on interior cabinets and all large bus doors.

Running and driving like a dream. New tires next year. Start with the floor and upholstery sometime this summer in between trips. Parts costs to get "Rocinante" (there's a test for your classical literature trivia) up to road worthiness is right at $10k I paid others to do many things to accelerate the reaching of travel Nirvana so throw another $4k in labor costs.

The PO did full Xtreme body paint, leather and fluted valances, leaded glass cabinet doors, ice maker, basement reefer, headlight conversion, bus doors, etc, so we started with major expense already done. Based on boat experience, we budgeted 25% of purchase price for such things and updating. I don't think we will none far off by the time we put LVT and new carpet in the interior and Reupholster the sofa and capt/co-capt chairs.

I hope this real world case study is valuable info for those that have recently or are planning to buy. And, a really big thanks to the knowledge shared by this group!

Kindest regards,

Alan
Alan & Gerri Ortiz
1996 U295 36 ft.
"Rocinante"
Hartwell, Georgia
1999 Subaru Forester
Build No. 4957 Motorcader 17399

Re: Repairs, Replacements and Upgrades for older U270,U295 and 320's

Reply #31 –
"Based on boat experience, we budgeted 25% of purchase price for such things and updating. I don't think we will none far off"

Correction, budgeted $25k not 25%.
Fast fingers- too fast!

Alan & Gerri Ortiz
1996 U295 36 ft.
"Rocinante"
Hartwell, Georgia
1999 Subaru Forester
Build No. 4957 Motorcader 17399

Re: Repairs, Replacements and Upgrades for older U270,U295 and 320's

Reply #32 –
I would think priority of these repairs are a opportunity and a curse. Pride of owning a FT makes many of these repairs a non issue.  My biggest concern is the cost of some of these repairs coupled with having to repay for the same repair.
The collective knowledge of the forum members is what means the most to me. Without the great people on this forum. I would be lost.
John
1998 U270 34'

Re: Repairs, Replacements and Upgrades for older U270,U295 and 320's

Reply #33 –
Quote from: John/Pat –
...coupled with having to repay for the same repair...

I just spent decent coin at Bernd's shop for repairing what a Cummins "Coach Care" facility screwed up - big time/big bucks.  I cannot emphasize enough to all the new folks that it is extremely important to find a reliable/knowledgeable diesel shop and stick with them.     
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Mark & Mary Benko
Former coach: 2005 U295 3823
Jeep Cherokee, Honda Fit

Re: Repairs, Replacements and Upgrades for older U270,U295 and 320's

Reply #34 –
Mark well said. I too had a Cummins shop set the valves and then had to pay Bern'd to redo it. 2of the cylinders that were wrong. That is what really hurts. I wish there was a Foretravel shop in the midwest as I hate driving to Nacogdoches for work
John
1998 U270 34'

Re: Repairs, Replacements and Upgrades for older U270,U295 and 320's

Reply #35 –
Owning an older coach that is almost fully depreciated but having some maintenance costs can only be called "expensive" if your yearly maintenance costs are MORE than the yearly depreciation on a newer coach + maintenance (because even a 3year old coach requires stuff that has to be fixed...many of it on the original list).

For somebody to say a newer coach doesn't require maintenance is silly. Many things on an old vehicle have to be replaced on a new one too (brakes, tires, oil changes, etc, etc). But I would be much more annoyed if I had to fix stuff on a 5 year old coach vs my 17yr old one that I paid about 1/5 he original price for.

All machines need to be fixed. What is the worst annoyance/danger is being stranded on the side of the road. I see brand new RV's on the side of the road all the time.
1998 U270 34'

Re: Repairs, Replacements and Upgrades for older U270,U295 and 320's

Reply #36 –
A few years back while delivering a 1.5 million provost conversion from Florida to cal, broke down in El Paso. Idler pulley bearing froze
.. 3 days back on the road. This was a brand new unit.
George Ray 1992 U280 40'

Re: Repairs, Replacements and Upgrades for older U270,U295 and 320's

Reply #37 –
Alan,  "Rocinante", I like that, although I am sure the ride will be much smoother than Don Quixote's steed.
Gary B

Re: Repairs, Replacements and Upgrades for older U270,U295 and 320's

Reply #38 –
I am lucky,  most everything had been done by careful previous owners.  Since I have had the coach (2011) I have not had anything break other than a tail light.

At first I was wondering if the list was a bit paranoid but then you mentioned that you were in aircraft maintenance.  I was in vehicles and equipment.  Different view point.  When my stuff broke it stayed where it was.  Yours does not.  Careful, regular inspection and repair and replace only as needed will make a huge difference in maintenance costs.

Keith
Keith, Joyce & Smokey the Australian Cattle Dog
1995 U320 SE Extreme 40' WTBI Build # 4780, with a Honda CR-V hopefully still following behind.
Motorcade # 17030
FMCA # F422159

Re: Repairs, Replacements and Upgrades for older U270,U295 and 320's

Reply #39 –
Glad I do my own work (most of  the time.) 
If I had to pay todays fee's, I'd have to get rid of the Hans (& that ain't gonna happen.)
90% of the OP list has been done or is an ongoing project.. nice thing to know,
I'm headed down the stretch until something else comes up. 

Now, if I could just get the cruise working.  pc
S/W Houston 95" U320C SE/40' 
Build #4778  Cummins M11
Repairs & Covered RV Parking (BAO)
PPL is close..