$1600 1992 DD Oregon

Topic: $1600 1992 DD Oregon (Read 1648 times) previous topic - next topic

Re: $1600 1992 DD Oregon

Reply #25 – August 11, 2017, 02:57:05 pm

Excellent.

Put coach details in your signature, so when you ask questions we will know what coach you have.

Re: $1600 1992 DD Oregon

Reply #26 – August 11, 2017, 03:17:11 pm

Congratulations on your new to you home on wheels. Like the rest of the family here you will not regret buying her. Good luck and safe travels.

Re: $1600 1992 DD Oregon

Reply #27 – August 11, 2017, 03:25:19 pm

Paully Now that you have it some things you are going to need to do is get the correct oil if you don't have any extra. Detroit 2 strokes need a straight weight oil Chevron Delo 100 40 wt is what a lot of us use. DO NOT USE DELO 400 it is not the same! You will not find it in many places all the reason to carry it with you. I buy mine at O'reilly's Auto Parts. They have to order it but usually overnight.
P/N CHV 100-40-1 buy it by the case 3 gallons to a case. Check date codes on your tires make sure they are not a zillion years old.
Lots of Oil Information here
Tejas Coach Works Technical Data Page

Re: $1600 1992 DD Oregon

Reply #28 – August 11, 2017, 03:41:33 pm

My son bought a 1994 U 300 dd6V92 last year that had been stored 8 years. The refer needed a cooling and tires. Did a lof. Have just completed our 2nd trip to Alaska, very little problems. Hope you have equally as good travels.

Re: $1600 1992 DD Oregon

Reply #29 – August 11, 2017, 04:51:52 pm

Congratulations Pauly. How far do you have to drive to get it to its new home?
-Mike-

Re: $1600 1992 DD Oregon

Reply #30 – August 11, 2017, 05:01:09 pm

Quote from: Beowulf – August 11, 2017, 04:51:52 pm

Congratulations Pauly. How far do you have to drive to get it to its new home?
-Mike-

Only 40 white knuckle miles.

Re: $1600 1992 DD Oregon

Reply #31 – August 11, 2017, 05:24:46 pm

Make sure you have an extra set of belts before any trip. Especially the hydraulic belt. I would give you the part number but you will have the single fan model and may take a different belt. Read your air cleaner restriction gauge. Pull and check the cleaner if no gauge. Expensive but worth it. The Detroit runs a lot better if the restriction is within their recommendation. Check hydraulic hoses to make sure none are touching each other or the frame. Per Stump above, the coach takes 5.5 gallons of Delo 100 #40. Have a set of fuel filters with you. The frame has a hand fuel pump built in. Learn how to use it. Watch driving the tall U300 with it's blind spot just slightly in front on the passenger's side. The brakes take one stop before they become really effective. Keep the back tires about a foot from the centerline. You will easily clear anything on the right side. The tall coach usually means a new driver will travel down the right side of the lane. Don't cut corners to the right!!! Make sure you will clear everything before you start turns even if you have to hold up traffic. Use the Jake brake in the "both" position most of the time. It works great! Don't ride the brakes going downhill. Drop a gear or so and let the Jake do the work. If you have to use the service brakes, allow the rpm go go up to about 2000 rpm then brake to 1700 rpm and repeat as necessary. If you have to repeat this very often, drop another gear. If the engine gets warm in hot weather on long grades, downshift until you stabilize the temp without exceeding 200 degrees.

Good luck on your way home. Call with questions.

Pierce

Re: $1600 1992 DD Oregon

Reply #32 – August 11, 2017, 05:41:10 pm

Very sage advice, Pierce.

Re: $1600 1992 DD Oregon

Reply #33 – August 11, 2017, 06:20:13 pm

Quote from: wolfe10 – August 11, 2017, 05:41:10 pm

Very sage advice, Pierce.

Indeed. I have to read Pierce's posts half a dozen times.. packed with knowledge.

You aren't kidding about the right turns.. nearly took out my fence turning onto the driveway.

Re: $1600 1992 DD Oregon

Reply #34 – August 11, 2017, 06:28:14 pm

Quote from: Paully – August 11, 2017, 06:20:13 pm

You aren't kidding about the right turns.. nearly took out my fence turning onto the driveway.

Square corners. Drive almost to the middle of the street before turning. Look at how the long wheelbase trucks do it. You are no different.

Re: $1600 1992 DD Oregon

Reply #35 – August 11, 2017, 06:57:52 pm

Quote from: Paully – August 11, 2017, 06:20:13 pm

You aren't kidding about the right turns.. nearly took out my fence turning onto the driveway.

Everyone has to go through it so don't feel badly. Just take it slow. Best to avoid night driving until you have it down. At night, you can't see back nearly as well when you make a turn so get your hours in the daylight.

Pierce

Re: $1600 1992 DD Oregon

Reply #36 – August 12, 2017, 05:22:30 pm

I have started a list... once the house sells, I will be racking up some coach bucks. First order of business (when I get money) will be fluids and filters, tires, and buying some basics like power cord and poop shoot.

I prefer to do the stuff myself. With some periodic help from you guys... I'm not worried. I have found some bulkhead rust in the battery bay, so at some point I will assess it deeper and decide whether this is my first foretravel or my forever foretravel... but I have no regrets. Having something to move into is worth some suprises.

I was amazed at how well it drove despite my ability to drive it. Smooth sailing at 65 is a 60 while turning 1600 rpms... dangerous!

Re: $1600 1992 DD Oregon

Reply #37 – August 12, 2017, 06:10:41 pm

Mine seems to have a sweet spot about 1725 RPM . Don't lug 2 strokes. I was told to slam your hand in the door and drive the thing like you stole it! Use the right oil and it will last you about forever.

Re: $1600 1992 DD Oregon

Reply #38 – August 12, 2017, 07:22:17 pm

Paul,

You probably noticed it shifts 4 times like a 5 speed. It goes into lockup about half way through second gear and then takes off. The Allison won't let you make a mistake with the engine. You can't get into direct (4th) until 48 mph. 1600 rpm is a good for seeing the country but not wasting time. If you have a really steep decent to make, I like to stop at the top, shift to first and then start down, upshifting as necessary. The Jake works best at higher rpm. Watch your air pressure pretty often. The parking brake is just that. It's not an emergency brake and only works on the rear brakes and should be used on flat ground or just a slight incline. Blocking the wheels is always a good thing.

In case you lose a hydraulic belt, you will probably not notice the temperature gauge until the DDEC ECU goes into partial power at about 230 degrees. That good for about 30 seconds and then the engine shuts down. There is an override switch on the dash. DON'T use it. Several Detroits have been fried this way. One owner lost a belt going into a tunnel. He didn't want to block traffic so he kept using the override. That destroyed the engine. While our engines have replaceable liners, severe overheating will crack the heads and distort the block so the engine has to be replaced not overhauled. You can store the HF chocks in the space where the steps retract. Spend 5 minutes to check the hydraulic belt alignment. See old posts on how to do it. Belt should last for years after that.

All Foretravel Detroit 2 cycles have the block heater in the wrong location and not even on the block. When you get some change, install the proper one under the AC compressor mount. It will work in a couple of hours, not overnight like necessary now. Check the outlet box where the block heater cord plugs in. Ours was half melted from the high draw.

Don't idle the engine for more than 5 minutes. The DDEC has a 5 minute shutdown setting but it's turned off. After a medium to hard run, fast idle the engine at 1000 rpm in neutral to cool both the coolant and oil. This prevents oil coking and early turbo replacement.

The DDEC and the Allison have made the coach almost idiot proof...almost.

Pierce

Re: $1600 1992 DD Oregon

Reply #39 – August 12, 2017, 07:33:01 pm

Pierce, ty ty

Pretty sure I have a retarder and no jake. First I have to find the hydraulic belt. I always block wheels.. manual override to system failure.

The guy with the 330k mile DD told me about the warning. That's why his coach has 330k. I hope I remember about the block heater when I get to Colorado. My friend at work said after running her for a while... let it idle for 3 min to allow the turbo to wind down with lubrication. I trust him... and you guys.

Re: $1600 1992 DD Oregon

Reply #40 – August 12, 2017, 07:39:10 pm

Paul,

EXTREMELY unlikely you have a transmission retarder. Much more likely you have a Jake brake.

Most the transmission model number and you will KNOW.

Re: $1600 1992 DD Oregon

Reply #41 – August 12, 2017, 07:45:24 pm

Quote from: wolfe10 – August 12, 2017, 07:39:10 pm

Paul,
EXTREMELY unlikely you have a transmission retarder. Much more likely you have a Jake brake.
Most the transmission model number and you will KNOW.

Don't be fooled by the "retarder" rocker switch on the dash. Foretravel must have never make switches that say Jake. Here is the spec sheet for your coach. It lists HT 746 Allison transmission and a Jake brake. (Jake or Jacobs brake is the same guy that invented the Jacobs chuck we all use on electric drills) 1992 Foretravel U300 GV Specifications

Pierce

Re: $1600 1992 DD Oregon

Reply #42 – August 12, 2017, 07:54:00 pm

Indeed. The switch says retarder... but it's a jake.
The 1991 I looked at was retarder.

So, when I head out of here... I'm come visit and you can shorten my learning curve even further! Lol.

They put new batteries in since I looked at it. Pretty sure they knew that last ones were bad. Tires look new.. date stamp is '03, but I knew that going in.

Re: $1600 1992 DD Oregon

Reply #43 – August 12, 2017, 08:07:23 pm

Quote from: Paully – August 12, 2017, 07:54:00 pm

Indeed. The switch says retarder... but it's a jake.
The 1991 I looked at was retarder.

So, when I head out of here... I'm come visit and you can shorten my learning curve even further! Lol.

They put new batteries in since I looked at it. Pretty sure they knew that last ones were bad. Tires look new.. date stamp is '03, but I knew that going in.

Our tires age out before they wear out. We manage our tires carefully and plan to replace every 5-6 years. That is what we are comfortable with. There are lots of opinions on how old is too old but 14 years is a safe bet for replacement.

Re: $1600 1992 DD Oregon

Reply #44 – August 12, 2017, 08:17:04 pm

I suspect Large Marge has been sitting for the last several years.. inside- by the look of the tires, unless they put new looking old tires on, which is highly probable. But you can't fake batteries.

But from the odometer, the interior, and the spare parts that survived the auction... it was a second home for an Oklahoma oil man who went back and forth from Oregon and Oklahoma.

Re: $1600 1992 DD Oregon

Reply #45 – August 12, 2017, 11:12:47 pm

Original unihome 300's had trans retarders, impressive high speed braking demo. No jakes. Retarder is much stronger

Re: $1600 1992 DD Oregon

Reply #46 – August 13, 2017, 12:06:58 am

Paul,

Yes, lots of changes between the 1991 and 1992 models. They went to 102" and 350 hp over the 300 hp in the previous year. Nothing more than a firmware in the ECU but the MTB 648 Allison would not handle the torque increase so the HT 746 was fitted. I don't think any 746 Allisons ever had a retarders. The increased hp is mostly used up by the hydraulic pump/motors/fans in the 1992. Horsepower in the Detroit is nothing more than leaving the injectors spraying fuel for a few more milliseconds.

We live in the hills so I leave it switched on all the time. It's not overpowering so it works well in snow and foul weather. You will love it.

Pierce

Re: $1600 1992 DD Oregon

Reply #47 – August 20, 2017, 10:36:26 pm

I'm looking at new batteries and tires. And probably 2cb worth of odds and ends..

But. I have a signed contract on the house. Will be full time soon. Very excited and mildly scared.

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