Hi from Down Under

[Rod33]

Hi everyone,
a quick intro. I live in Melbourne, Australia and on a recent trip to the US in May, purchased a 40FT 1988 Monaco Crown Royale from a private seller in CA.

As an individual importing a Motorhome into Australia, we only have one option and that's to import the RV under a Government Scheme which only allows importation of Motorhomes built before January 1, 1989. Not only does the Motorhome have to be of this era, we also need to perform a number of modifications prior to being able to register and drive these on our roads, including Right Hand Drive, Electrical conversion from 110V to 240V, Propane conversion and a door inserted into the Left Hand Side of the RV.

My Monaco is still in Ontario, CA awaiting these conversions before being shipped to Australia. I think it will be a long wait of over 4 Months but hopefully well worth it.

Anyway, looking forward to learning a lot from you all and sharing ideas and suggestions on this great hobby/lifestyle/pastime.

Regards
Rod

[JohnRR]

[EngineerMike]

Right Hand drive conversion should be interesting.
240v should be easy
What's the story on propane conversion?

[Dr4Film]

Welcome to the iRV2.com forum and family. There are literally thousands of hours of reading available here that will address almost ANY problem.

I would think that the conversion from left to right-hand drive will be the most expensive and time consuming conversion on the coach.

The change from 120 VAC to 240 VAC would only require the installation of a Stepping Transformer although it probably needs to be more extensive than that since your personal appliances would be 240 VAC. I guess that conversion would be a costly one too now that I think about the entire electrical system.

Not sure what they would need to do for the LPG conversion. What are the laws and regulations concerning LPG in Australia?

The door into the left hand side would be the easiest of all of them. I would imagine that they would convert the driver's area for that requirement.

Good luck and safe travels once you have your coach down under.

Dr4Film ----- Richard

[SarahW]

Howdy and welcome to iRV2!

[Rod33]

Originally Posted by Dr4Film

Welcome to the iRV2.com forum and family. There are literally thousands of hours of reading available here that will address almost ANY problem.

I would think that the conversion from left to right-hand drive will be the most expensive and time consuming conversion on the coach.

The change from 120 VAC to 240 VAC would only require the installation of a Stepping Transformer although it probably needs to be more extensive than that since your personal appliances would be 240 VAC. I guess that conversion would be a costly one too now that I think about the entire electrical system.

Not sure what they would need to do for the LPG conversion. What are the laws and regulations concerning LPG in Australia?

The door into the left hand side would be the easiest of all of them. I would imagine that they would convert the driver's area for that requirement.

Good luck and safe travels once you have your coach down under.

Dr4Film ----- Richard

Thanks everyone,
Richard and Mike,
The electrical conversion does include a Step Down Transformer, to operate the onboard appliances but the Power Points need to be changed to Australian Style and the existing 110V wiring isn't Australian Standards approved so the Power Points also need to be re-cabled. There are also issues with the Inverter and Generator which currently output 110V. I've yet to determine whether these can be converted to output 240V.

Each Gas/Propane appliance needs to be re-plumbed using Copper pipe and shut-off valves installed before each Appliance. We also don't use the same type of tank as you guys, which is both Vapour & Liquid, so the actual main tank will also have to be replaced. I'll do this part when the Motorhome arrives back home.

Regarding the Left Hand Door, it certainly would have been easier for me to find a Coach with a Driver's door, like Hawkins or Country Coach as that would comply back here but with the limited number of suitable age Motorhomes available, in a condition I'd be happy to purchase and a price I'd be willing to pay, the one I chose, being the Monaco, unfortunately means having one cut in. We're actually going to do this in the Bedroom by removing one of the closets.

Along with other minor works including Tail Lights with Amber Indicators/Turn Signals, Headlight replacement so they dip to the other side, clearance lights which must be 2-colour on the sides and a possibility I may also have to route the Exhaust to the top of the Coach, there is a fair bit of work involved.
Having said that, comparable Motorhomes in Australia are well over the $100K mark, so it should still be a worth while exercise, with a little luck.

Regards
Rod

[SylviaCub]

Hi Rod:

Wow that sounds like a serious retrofit. I had no idea you all had to do that before importing them to Oz.

[Bruce C]

from NH. Good luck with your coach and hopefully it will be quicker than you expect and you can enjoy it. Good luck.

[SteveSkinner]

Originally Posted by Rod33

Thanks everyone,
Richard and Mike,
The electrical conversion does include a Step Down Transformer, to operate the onboard appliances but the Power Points need to be changed to Australian Style and the existing 110V wiring isn't Australian Standards approved so the Power Points also need to be re-cabled. There are also issues with the Inverter and Generator which currently output 110V. I've yet to determine whether these can be converted to output 240V.

Each Gas/Propane appliance needs to be re-plumbed using Copper pipe and shut-off valves installed before each Appliance. We also don't use the same type of tank as you guys, which is both Vapour & Liquid, so the actual main tank will also have to be replaced. I'll do this part when the Motorhome arrives back home.

Regarding the Left Hand Door, it certainly would have been easier for me to find a Coach with a Driver's door, like Hawkins or Country Coach as that would comply back here but with the limited number of suitable age Motorhomes available, in a condition I'd be happy to purchase and a price I'd be willing to pay, the one I chose, being the Monaco, unfortunately means having one cut in. We're actually going to do this in the Bedroom by removing one of the closets.

Along with other minor works including Tail Lights with Amber Indicators/Turn Signals, Headlight replacement so they dip to the other side, clearance lights which must be 2-colour on the sides and a possibility I may also have to route the Exhaust to the top of the Coach, there is a fair bit of work involved.
Having said that, comparable Motorhomes in Australia are well over the $100K mark, so it should still be a worth while exercise, with a little luck.

Regards
Rod

Hi Rod,
One of my truck drivers was traveling to USA buying 1,2 or 3 motorhomes of that vintage, bringing them back to Queensland, doing the conversion s and making a killing.
So much so he left me to do it full time.
I've also thought about it.
I'd love to bring back my Monaco Signature 05 after i've finished touring USA but I suspect its a tad big, wide etc. You never know.
Me, I'd be leaving the coach at 110 volts.
We had to buy 110 v appliances that we leave in our coach in the states.
Do you have to convert to RHD?
I thought if it was pretty 89 you could leave it LHD. But you would know.
Maybe ill never finish visiting places like Yellowstone, Jasper, Niagara Falls, outer banks.
I can't even make it to Nova Scotia till next year or the year after. So much to see there and I'm 60 yrs old FaST RUNNING OUT OF TIME

[Medico]

Welcome and glad to meet you!

[John H...]

Welcome and congrats on your purchase...

[MSHappyCampers]

Hi Rod! Welcome to IRV2! We're really glad you joined the gang!

Congrats on the new MH! WOW, that's a lot of work and expense to be able to import an RV! Hope you enjoy the new rig and also the forum!

Good luck, happy trails, and God bless!

[Dr4Film]

Originally Posted by Rod33

Thanks everyone,
Richard and Mike,

There are also issues with the Inverter and Generator which currently output 110V. I've yet to determine whether these can be converted to output 240V.

Regards
Rod

Rod,

I believe the larger Onan QD Generators like the 12.5 KW output 120/240 Volt Single Phase. Possibly that could be wired for 240 VAC only.

Here is a link to a 5000 Watt 240 VAC Inverter.

5000 Watt Power Inverter 12Vdc to 240Vac 60Hz by AIMS Power

Good luck!

Dr4Film ----- Richard

[Rod33]

Originally Posted by SteveSkinner

Hi Rod,
One of my truck drivers was traveling to USA buying 1,2 or 3 motorhomes of that vintage, bringing them back to Queensland, doing the conversion s and making a killing.
So much so he left me to do it full time.
I've also thought about it.
I'd love to bring back my Monaco Signature 05 after i've finished touring USA but I suspect its a tad big, wide etc. You never know.
Me, I'd be leaving the coach at 110 volts.
We had to buy 110 v appliances that we leave in our coach in the states.
Do you have to convert to RHD?
I thought if it was pretty 89 you could leave it LHD. But you would know.
Maybe ill never finish visiting places like Yellowstone, Jasper, Niagara Falls, outer banks.
I can't even make it to Nova Scotia till next year or the year after. So much to see there and I'm 60 yrs old FaST RUNNING OUT OF TIME

Hi Steve,
if you've owned your Monaco, in the US, for 12 Months, you can bring it back under a personal import, regardless of age. You will still need to comply with other requirements like overhang, width, etc. Max width for our roads is 96 inches so if you've got a wide body, I think you're out of luck.
Even though people are bringing in cars these days, which don't have to be converted to RHD, anything over 4500KGs still has to be RHD, so Motorhomes obviously need to be converted.
For possible re-sale, I'm trying to have everything converted to Aussie specs, including 240V outlets. It may get messy with the Generator and Inverter but we'll see once it gets here.

Mate, sounds like you still have heaps of time to visit all those places and more.....
Regards
Rod