Opinions wanted on 1997 Monaco Windsor

[Wren]

We are considering the purchase of a 1997 Monaco Windsor and I was hoping that this community might have some advice, experience, or opinions on it.

The motorhome is a 1997 Monaco Windsor with 57,000 miles. It has the cummins 275 engine in it. There is no slide out.

We are looking at this to take to the racetrack, the trips will vary between 250 and 1000 miles between 6 and 8 times per year. The comforts will be nice, but they will not be our highest priority. What we are really looking for is reliability

I would like to hear what anyone here has to say about this model. We will be getting some kind of pre purchase inspection at a maintenance facility and would also like to know if there are any issues that we should play close attention to.

Thanks in advance for any help.

[Jim Stewart]

Do not have any experience, just bumping your thread to keep it active from yesterday. Hope you get some response.

[walt2137]

Wren the 275 hp engine I think will be a 8.3 Cummins and if so this is a good engine (of course the 275 ISB is good also) also the Windsor should have a Allison 6 speed trans. Just be aware if this is your first Diesel coach that there is a good bit of maintenance that has to be keep up with and if you are not handy it can get expensive.

Walt

[Phil R]

New member here, usually just lurking around to gather information and thought it's about time to jump onboard. We have a 97 windsor that has been very depenable. We got lucky because it was pampered by the fist owner. Walt hit the nail on the head in speaking of the maintenance. A coach this old will tend to nikel and dime you BUT if kept up you can take it anywere.

Phil

[MonacoMama]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Phil R New member here, usually just lurking around to gather information and thought it's about time to jump onboard. We have a 97 Windsor that has been very dependable. We got lucky because it was pampered by the fist owner. Walt hit the nail on the head in speaking of the maintenance. A coach this old will tend to nickel and dime you BUT if kept up you can take it anywhere. Phil

Phil - welcome to iRV2 and the Monaco Forum! We are glad you came out of the lurking mode to share your information and experience! We hope you continue to visit & post often.

[tom49]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Phil R New member here, usually just lurking around to gather information and thought it's about time to jump onboard. We have a 97 windsor that has been very depenable. We got lucky because it was pampered by the fist owner. Walt hit the nail on the head in speaking of the maintenance. A coach this old will tend to nikel and dime you BUT if kept up you can take it anywere. Phil

We purchased a 1997 Dynasty about a year ago with 68k on the odometer which was well maintained. We drove it 2800 miles home and this summer we put 5500 mile during a trip to Yellowstone with no problems.
We took it to a Monaco dealer just before the Yellowstone trip to have it given a good check out and they only had to do the routine maintenance plus a few adjustments.

We would not hesitate to pickup and go for 1000 mile trip in it.

[csp]

I also have the Monaco Dynasty. I love it and would trust it to take any where. I do think that if it is a 275hp coach it would be a 5.9 and not a 8.3. The 8.3 was rated at 300hp or 325hp in that year. If it seems to be under powered if it is a 5.9 it can be modified cheap and easy. You can modify the 8.3 just the same. Just make sure you use gauges if you modify very much. Please correct me if I am wrong. Hopefully you have as much fun as my family and I have with ours.
Good Luck
Chris

[Darryl]

I think the Windsor is the Monaco variant of my Holiday Rambler Endeavor, although I'm not sure. If it is on a Freightliner XC chassis, it is the same chassis as mine. The only difference is I have the Cat engine. If you do have the Freightliner chassis, I can't say enough good things about it. I have been extremely pleased with mine. I've also had several shop people tell me they rarely see problems on this chassis.

Just make sure the maintenance is up to date and you will have a very reliable coach. As with any used coach, either know what was done (and when) or have it done yourself. Initially, this might not be cheap if you have limited or no maintenance records. But, it will pay off big time and help prevent many unknowns from happening on the road. Things that you need to have done on a coach this age (if they haven't been done already) are:

change all belts
change all engine hoses
change coolant
change air filter
change transmission fluid & filters
change diff fluid
check tire age -- if over 5 years, get them off soon

Also, normal maintenance like engine service and chassis lube need to be current or have them done yourself so that you know they are.

On my Cat, the valves need to be run on the engine at this mileage. I don't know about the Cummins though. If yours is a rear radiator, you need to make sure the radiator is not covered with oil/dirt on the side closest to the fan. The crankcase ventilation hose had a tendency to blow out excess oil if it was overfilled and it would be caught by the engine fan and blown into the radiator. Dust and dirt would also be picked up by the fan and after a while, your radiator is covered and clogged. On a long hill, it can cause the engine to overheat. Most of us have extended the hose to behind the radiator (under the bumper) to remedy this problem. There are many threads about how to clean it on this forum. I'm assuming this was a problem on the Cummings engine too. It definitely was on the Cat.

Welcome to the forum and enjoy your new coach.