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Old 01-31-2018, 08:06 PM   #1
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Luckily Covered Under Warranty!!!

Hi All,

I'm approaching my 3rd year with my DS4018 and it has been such a pleasure and mostly trouble free experience (knock on wood). That being said, my AC compressor seized recently and it left me stranded on the side of the road due to a broken main drive belt. Luckily the mobile tech provided by CoachNet was able to bypass my AC compressor with a shorter belt so that I could get back home.

This incident might have been a blessing in disguise because it forced me to make an appointment with my local Freightliner truck center. I thought I was just taking it in to replace the AC compressor and do my annual oil/filter change, but I was also having a slow coolant leak without any evidence of drip marks anywhere that I wanted them to check out. These are the items that they discovered while my DS was in the shop:

1) They found signs of coolant leak at trans cooler outlet, upper radiator hose at engine and hoses under air compressor area. They pressurized the cooling system and found coolant dripping from upper radiator hose and trans cooler. Found hose clamps barely snug...they tightened all 4 upper radiator hose clamps and tightened all 7 lower radiator hose clamps. All leaks were identified and stopped and is now holding pressure. Covered Under Warranty.

2) They found an oil leak at the fan drive. Rotational device for fan clutch has been rubbing on fan and was compromising the wiring. They removed the guard dog from the gear box. Removed drive line. Removed old Gear box. Removed and installed drive line yoke from old gear box onto the new gear box. Installed new gear box, installed fan back onto the new gear box. Installed new drive line. Removed and replaced fan clutch rotational device with new device. Covered Under Warranty.

3) Dyed engine oil and found the front cover leaking. Removed rear cap panel plate. Removed remote fuel filter. Removed main engine belt and fan drive belt. Removed balancer. Removed fan drive hub for access. Cleaned block mating surface. Removed seal carrier. Removed old silicone from cover and steam cleaned. Cleaned mounting fasteners. Installed cleaned gear cover with new silicone and torqued to spec. Installed fan drive hub. Installed belts, fuel filter, housing and rear panel cap. Steam cleaned engine. Covered Under Warranty.

4) Performed Freightliner Recall FL741A - Chassis Battery repair.

5) And finally, the real reason I was taking my DS4018 into the shop. Inspected AC system finding AC clutch bearing came apart and compressor seized. AC system empty of freon. Removed engine belts. Removed failed compressor and receiver dryer. Threads seized on the compressor fittings. Cut off old damaged 90 degrees fittings at compressor. Install new AC compressor. Installed new main engine belt. Installed fan drive belt. Installed new receiver dryer. Crimped new low and high side fittings onto AC lines. Covered Under Warranty

The reason that I'm sharing this information is that my chassis warranty is about to expire in 4 months. If the AC compressor didn't seize up, I might have waited till after the warranty expired (I wasn't keeping track) and this could have been an VERY expensive visit to the truck center for me. My lesson learned here is to keep track of your warranty expiration date and be proactive and have everything that you can checked out prior to that date.

The other reason that I wanted to share my experience is that you might want to have your mechanic check these items when you are doing your annual maintenance.

Just an fyi, my rv has 27,000 miles on it.

-Tom
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Old 01-31-2018, 08:13 PM   #2
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Didn't Dutch Star Don just have this issue?
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Old 01-31-2018, 08:13 PM   #3
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This is scary.
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Old 01-31-2018, 08:25 PM   #4
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Didn't Dutch Star Don just have this issue?
Sounds pretty much the same.
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Old 02-01-2018, 10:02 AM   #5
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A good example for Neal to see issues with FL chassis that many wouldn't have had with a Spartan chassis.
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Old 02-01-2018, 10:13 AM   #6
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A good example for Neal to see issues with FL chassis that many wouldn't have had with a Spartan chassis.
Good thing they legalized that stuff!
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Old 02-01-2018, 10:04 PM   #7
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Yes, just got home today from a 1000 mile, two week trip.. My clutch seized and broke the engine belt. I was able to find a shorter belt that worked. I asked Freightliner to open a case to see if they will help with the repair. My coach has lost Freon since new and was never correctly fixed by Freightliner. I'm hoping they might help with the parts or labor.
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Old 02-02-2018, 08:05 AM   #8
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Yes, just got home today from a 1000 mile, two week trip.. My clutch seized and broke the engine belt. I was able to find a shorter belt that worked. I asked Freightliner to open a case to see if they will help with the repair. My coach has lost Freon since new and was never correctly fixed by Freightliner. I'm hoping they might help with the parts or labor.

I've had AC issues since new also, but in my case, I could never turn the dash AC/Heater/Fan to the highest position. If I did, it would blow a fuse. I had a mechanic look at it, but they couldn't identify the problem. They were thinking it was blower related since the fuse would blow even without the AC on. I've lived with it for almost 3 years since I rarely have a need to set it to the high position. That being said, as soon as they replaced the defective compressor, everything is working perfectly.
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Old 02-02-2018, 11:08 AM   #9
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tomakat,

Care to share the location of the Freightliner truck center that you used to set things straight? Thanks in advance!


PM would be fine, also. -Paul
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Old 02-02-2018, 12:42 PM   #10
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tomakat,

Care to share the location of the Freightliner truck center that you used to set things straight? Thanks in advance!


PM would be fine, also. -Paul
It's quite a haul from where you are located: Rincon Truck Center, San Clemente, CA.


-Tom
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Old 02-02-2018, 04:02 PM   #11
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[QUOTE=tomakat;4019976]It's quite a haul from where you are located: Rincon Truck Center, San Clemente, CA.


-Tom

Soon we will be full timers and the west coast is on our list of destinations for autumn 2019. It might just work out for us.

Thank you for the information!-Paul
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Old 02-02-2018, 07:25 PM   #12
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tomakat,

Care to share the location of the Freightliner truck center that you used to set things straight? Thanks in advance!


PM would be fine, also. -Paul
Is this FL shop an Oasis RV repair shop? The one I go to in Wichita, Ks isn't but seems to do satisfactory work but since their prioity is trucks not RVs they are never in any hurry to meet my appointment time. When my appointment time is 7:30 AM it will usually be 11:30 to noon before I get in a stall. Work may only take 3-4 hours at most.

Dash AC not working now after being repaired the first summer we had the coach (2015 DS). Will be heading back to FL as soon as weather improved. What's wrong with these FL air conditioners?
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Old 02-03-2018, 10:59 AM   #13
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Is this FL shop an Oasis RV repair shop?
No they are not. They are an authorized service center for: volvo, john deere, cummins, freightliner, spartan, catepillar, and Fuso.
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