2014 Palazzo - observations after 5000 miles

[HeavyH2O]

Originally Posted by 2LT

HeavyH20 -
The Cummins 300HP is the ISB 6.7

Yes, typo

[HeavyH2O]

I think I must have had the ISB history on the brain to bring up the 5.9. Used to be a 5.9 but went to 6.7 for emissions, etc. I even have a nice badge on the side of my coach that contantly reminds me that it is 6.7 on the Cummins logo. Must have brainfarted while I was typing!

[Billinwoodla]

Originally Posted by HeavyH2O

I think I must have had the ISB history on the brain to bring up the 5.9. Used to be a 5.9 but went to 6.7 for emissions, etc. I even have a nice badge on the side of my coach that contantly reminds me that it is 6.7 on the Cummins logo. Must have brainfarted while I was typing!

Heavy,
How heavy is your toad? Can you comment on how the 300 HP diesel handled the towing? How about going up a grade?

[HeavyH2O]

Originally Posted by Billinwoodla

Heavy,
How heavy is your toad? Can you comment on how the 300 HP diesel handled the towing? How about going up a grade?

It is a 4200 pound car on a 1300 pound trailer. So, 5500 pounds. Towed up and down 6% grade without issue.

[Butte64]

Dave,
Thanks for the great report.

On the other hand maybe I should not be thanking you for making my list of things to do longer!

[tcopeland]

Originally Posted by Billinwoodla

Heavy,
How heavy is your toad? Can you comment on how the 300 HP diesel handled the towing? How about going up a grade?

Great towing. Don't even know my Jeep is back there without looking in the camera.

[HeavyH2O]

Originally Posted by Butte64

Dave,
Thanks for the great report.

On the other hand maybe I should not be thanking you for making my list of things to do longer!

Glad to help. I am sure VISA and MasterCard are grateful, as well

A quick note on the towing, I use an all aluminum trailer with load distribution and sway control arms in place. It actually makes the coach a bit more tame to drive than without the trailer, oddly enough. I use an electric brake controller, as well. The trailer is used to haul my car on vacations as well as to the track for race weekends. I only notice the weight when I am accelerating since the pick up is a bit slower.

And, here is my constant reminder that it is a 6.7 ISB. Still not sure how I noted 5.9 as the size.

[StevieD]

Has anyone had any wear of the piping on the front of the drivers seat? Has anyone had any dealings with David or anyone else at Villa International in Elkhart, the upholster of the seats. We have not quite 8,000 miles on our Palazzo 33.2 and have wear on the piping. David claims it was probably damaged. They want to re-upholster, however I am afraid that the same thing will happen and it will be an eternal problem. Let me know if you see the same wear or wear in any other areas of the seat.

We love our coach!!!

[tcopeland]

Originally Posted by StevieD

Has anyone had any wear of the piping on the front of the drivers seat? Has anyone had any dealings with David or anyone else at Villa International in Elkhart, the upholster of the seats. We have not quite 8,000 miles on our Palazzo 33.2 and have wear on the piping. David claims it was probably damaged. They want to re-upholster, however I am afraid that the same thing will happen and it will be an eternal problem. Let me know if you see the same wear or wear in any other areas of the seat.

We love our coach!!!

Have not noticed any wear on the seats. I do use a cleaner/conditioner after every trip.

[StevieD]

We treat everything also.

[Butte64]

Originally Posted by StevieD

Has anyone had any wear of the piping on the front of the drivers seat? Has anyone had any dealings with David or anyone else at Villa International in Elkhart, the upholster of the seats. We have not quite 8,000 miles on our Palazzo 33.2 and have wear on the piping. David claims it was probably damaged. They want to re-upholster, however I am afraid that the same thing will happen and it will be an eternal problem. Let me know if you see the same wear or wear in any other areas of the seat.

We love our coach!!!

I have just over 5K miles so not enough to be a good judge. Also a lot of those miles have been wearing shorts which I think means less abrasion to the piping than jeans. But now being forewarned I will watch more closely and think about a cover. Might also help of I lost some weight.

[TheArnolds]

Originally Posted by StevieD

Has anyone had any wear of the piping on the front of the drivers seat? Has anyone had any dealings with David or anyone else at Villa International in Elkhart, the upholster of the seats. We have not quite 8,000 miles on our Palazzo 33.2 and have wear on the piping. David claims it was probably damaged. They want to re-upholster, however I am afraid that the same thing will happen and it will be an eternal problem. Let me know if you see the same wear or wear in any other areas of the seat.

We love our coach!!!

We are nearing 8K and do not see any wear on the piping. I do not turn it around and use it as an easy chair, only used for driving. I will keep an eye on it and report if it starts to wear.

[HeavyH2O]

Seats are a bit different in the 2014 so there is no piping.

As a note, I did do a couple of other items.

- secured stair wiring using a price of large wire loom. Screwed that the bottom of the chassis and zip tied the low hanging wiring. The thought was to prevent any catching or pinching that could occur.

- the on water heater door assembly, the pull pin that spins and locks into place was simply metal from the lock pin which rested right on the paint. I put some protective transparent protection around this. Also found that the door mounts on the bottom were loose and that the door wobbled/rattled. I would not want this at 65 MPH. Put rubber mounts around the door to create some pressure and keep it from impacting the body paint. I then removed, correctly bent and remounted the door hinges followed by silicone to hold in place. The loose hinges were due to the door which can open without restraint straining the assembly. Adding a small chain loop to hold the door parallel to the ground when opened for service and reduces chances for damage.

- replaced all of the bulbs in the lower compartments with LED lights. Keep the energy drain down (if left on) and are a little brighter to boot.

Pics to follow (raining out right now) of the wiring on the steps.

[HeavyH2O]

Here is the wiring bundling for the power step.



A quick and easy adjustment to the water heater door.



To protect the paint on the door.