Looking at 36 g Journey

[EL_Carlson]

I have never owned a diesel is it more expensive to maintain and operate that a gas? The motorhome that we are looking at is 2005 Journey 36-G with a 350 engine. Very low miles and good condition inside. We like the floor plan, does anyone with experiance with this model have anything I should look at extra close at. Need to know the good and bad points with this model.

[ernieh]

There have been problems with the sealed fan bearing on the C7 and rust around the windshield frame, but neither would keep me away from it if you like the floorplan.

[munchie]

We have an 02 Journey DL 36G with a 3126 330hp cat. We have been fulltime now for 6 yrs. We've only had one problem and that was the heater core. Expense to fix was not that bad. We love ours. We have fulltime friends with 05 model and they have had no problems and also love their unit. Good luck.

[majfrizz]

the floorplan is what sold us on the 36G. we have the 300 Cummins and have not had any problems with it.

[smlranger]

We have that floor plan in a 2002 and really like the coach. The Journey's/Meridian's are pretty solid, good value, no frills coaches. As noted, a leaking heater core has been reported in a number of model years (my second core is now leaking) and it is not easy to replace them. Rust that forms on the metal windshield frame has been known to eventually cause the windshield to break (just replaced a w/s due to that problem). However, every coach of every make has some issues that seem to crop up.

Just make sure the required mechanical maintenance has been done. And yes, diesels are more expensive to maintain than gas motorhomes. For most folks, most routine items (oil, filter, fuel filter, generator service) is an annual occurance. You will buy 5 gallons of oil for your CAT, as opposed to 6 or 7 qts. for most gas rigs. DP's have things like air driers that need to be serviced and a few other things unique to diesels that do increase the overall cost of maintenance. Also, that CAT will need a valve lash adjustment by 40K miles or the 4th oil change....generally about $400 or so if you have the CAT guys do it. However, the ride, power, braking and quiet up front is a real plus. Many folks will say get a diesel if you plan to travel a lot. If you will only take few trips and put few miles per year on the coach, a gasser may be a better choice. For us, we love the DP and would not go back to a gas motorhome.

If the tires are original, they will soon be 7 yrs old and should be replaced no matter how good they look (probably about $2,700 - $3,000). MH tires age out well before they wear out.

Overall, the Journey on that Freightliner XC chassis with the Allison 6 sp tranny and the 350 CAT is a great combo.

If you have other specific questions don't hesitate to come back and ask. There are a bunch of Journey/Meridian owners here more than willing to help.

[MaverickBBD]

We (I should say I, as DW says it is MY motor home) '05 36G. We bought it used with 13k miles in Jan. '07. It now has over 51k miles on it. Last year we did a seven month 15k mile around the four corners of the U.S. Still in love with the thing like the day we got it. No major problems just some inconveniences. Have done several upgrades to the coach and chassis. Some things I would recommend are: Get as complete a maintenance record as you can. Especially on the Cat C-7 valve adjustments. Insist that the radiator and combustion air cooler are cleaned. Get the coach to Gaffney, S.C. as soon as possible for the M-3. Attend Camp Freightliner while you are there. Think about enclosing the "slobber" tube into a closed loop (my next mod.). Cat tells me I should have the top end work done at 60k but it is not a matter of life or death for the engine. I also went with a larger exhaust and a less restricted muffler. I also added a lifetime air filter. For the chassis: Put Koni FSD shocks on all the way around. Add a Safe-T-Plus steering stabilizer. Check the date of manufacture on the tires. They should be replaced if they are pushing 8 years. For the coach: Make sure the Norcold refrigerator is up to date with recalls. I replaced the satellite dish and front TV. Got rid of that big box over my head and all that weight. Check the front and rear end caps and looks for any signs of separation. Also redo the chalking in the rain gutters on both sides. Look for signs of fogging window glass. Check where the rain gutters end and meet the front cap on both sides. Make sure coach and engine batteries are decent. Look for carpet wear where the livingroom slide rides.

Off hand I pretty much think I exhausted my first pass at suggestions. If I can be of any help, feel free to p.m. me. Good luck and hope you get as good a rig as I did.

[majfrizz]

i see in the classified section on here there is a 2007 Meridan 36G for sage

[FlyFish]

We are pleased with our '06 Journey with 30,000. Have had minimum repairs. Look at slides/.jacks, are they operating normally, mine are starting to slow down. TV connections have always been a problem. No problems with 350 C7, still gets almost 8 at 70 mph pulling 5,600#. Get all my maintaince at Gaffney, worth the extra effort.

[Pusherman]

Quote:

Originally Posted by MaverickBBD We (I should say I, as DW says it is MY motor home) '05 36G. We bought it used with 13k miles in Jan. '07. It now has over 51k miles on it. Last year we did a seven month 15k mile around the four corners of the U.S. Still in love with the thing like the day we got it. No major problems just some inconveniences. Have done several upgrades to the coach and chassis. Some things I would recommend are: Get as complete a maintenance record as you can. Especially on the Cat C-7 valve adjustments. Insist that the radiator and combustion air cooler are cleaned. Get the coach to Gaffney, S.C. as soon as possible for the M-3. Attend Camp Freightliner while you are there. Think about enclosing the "slobber" tube into a closed loop (my next mod.). Cat tells me I should have the top end work done at 60k but it is not a matter of life or death for the engine. I also went with a larger exhaust and a less restricted muffler. I also added a lifetime air filter. For the chassis: Put Koni FSD shocks on all the way around. Add a Safe-T-Plus steering stabilizer. Check the date of manufacture on the tires. They should be replaced if they are pushing 8 years. For the coach: Make sure the Norcold refrigerator is up to date with recalls. I replaced the satellite dish and front TV. Got rid of that big box over my head and all that weight. Check the front and rear end caps and looks for any signs of separation. Also redo the chalking in the rain gutters on both sides. Look for signs of fogging window glass. Check where the rain gutters end and meet the front cap on both sides. Make sure coach and engine batteries are decent. Look for carpet wear where the livingroom slide rides. Off hand I pretty much think I exhausted my first pass at suggestions. If I can be of any help, feel free to p.m. me. Good luck and hope you get as good a rig as I did.

Excellent advice. I love my '07 Journey. There are always minor maintenance issues, but Maverick has the majority of the issues covered.

[EL_Carlson]

Thank you everyone for all the information, this is going to help me make a more informed decision, plus help when I deal with the sales people.

[Suncircles]

MaverickBBD and others hit just about all the highlights that I could think of looking for. One important addition I would like to make is the recommendation to add a Trik-L-Start to the coach if it doesn't have one already installed. Starting in 2006, the Journey 36Gs have such a system installed to preserve the charge of the chassis batteries when parked for an extended period of time. The 2005s do not come with a factory installed unit and (from experience) the chassis batteries will run down if parked more than several weeks at one location.

Suncircles
2005 Journey 36g with 2006 CRV Toad

[MaverickBBD]

Good catch Suncircles. I forgot that was the very first thing I did. Went to restart it after just having it home two weeks and deader then the proverbial. Memory must be going.

[ernieh]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Suncircles MaverickBBD and others hit just about all the highlights that I could think of looking for. One important addition I would like to make is the recommendation to add a Trik-L-Start to the coach if it doesn't have one already installed. Starting in 2006, the Journey 36Gs have such a system installed to preserve the charge of the chassis batteries when parked for an extended period of time. The 2005s do not come with a factory installed unit and (from experience) the chassis batteries will run down if parked more than several weeks at one location. Suncircles 2005 Journey 36g with 2006 CRV Toad

X2. That era coach had major problems with drain on the chassis (starting) batteries. If you don't have the TrikLStart and starting battery disconnect, they should be added.

[boomer49]

Hi, I believe I have to replace the dash heater blower motor but have no clue how to get to it. I'm in the process of replacing the blower motor resistor(only high speed). It makes a loud nosie but not all of the time. Maybe bearings?

Thanks