Community Forums

PacificaDen · 11-22-2021, 06:41 AM

HI.....New to me National Pacifica that I want to maintain and keep. Just got out of the shop with a total 60,000 mile check. The tech advised that the genset was full of black soot on the air filter; but the oil was clean. The differential was a sludge pit and was due MANY MILES AGO. Basically it got a good report with a new torsion bar and shocks needed and the engine running smooth...........

NOW, my question is for the ongoing.
1. How to get into the engine bay to check belts, filters, and the like??

2 . Where is the access to the oil dipstick. I lift up a grill in the rear of the
coach and there is a place to add oil but no dipstick that I can find.

I have the owner's manual for the coach, and the engine manual for the catepillar engine; but nothing on how or where to check maintenance items. Your help is totally appreciated..............Dennis

wolfe10 · 11-22-2021, 06:51 AM

Dennis,

Please tell us what chassis and engine you have.

PacificaDen · 11-22-2021, 11:59 AM

The National Pacifica, 2007, is on a Freightliner chassis with a Caterpillar 350 engine.......THANKS FOR THE HELP

TOM356C · 11-22-2021, 08:22 PM

On the passenger side of engine bay is a yellow cap for oil fill. Near that is where dipstick is unless it is missing.

Checking belts is another story, all is enclosed in a shroud. You can access a couple of things from the floor hatch in the bedroom but not much.
Be aware the Cat has a fan bearing that need service or replacement.

You say you have the owners manual. It may not be the one you need. Let me know what manual you have.
Tom 07 Pacifica

This is some info:
http://www.rv.net/forums/index.cfm/f...print/true.cfm

TOM356C · 11-22-2021, 08:31 PM

I can send you a pdf of the owners manual if you do not have it. File is too large to load here. If you do have owners manual, it is on page 50.Tom

PacificaDen · 11-23-2021, 07:54 AM

HEY TOM.........i am going to chec the hatch that I just discovered under the bed frame. A corner is covered but am gonna check it more when they have the mattress off because a new one is being delivered in an hour or so,
Also, am trying to find the dip stick that you mention and see what the name and such of the caterpillar manual that I have....

MUCH THANKS FOR THE HELP AND ADVICE............

wolfe10 · 11-23-2021, 08:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TOM356C

Be aware the Cat has a fan bearing that need service or replacement.

Very likely his 2007 is AFTER Caterpillar went from greasable to sealed fan hub bearings.

To conform, contact Caterpillar with your engine serial number.

Caterpillar Corp 877 777-3126.

TOM356C · 11-23-2021, 01:20 PM

The corner of the bed is removable. about 2-3foot square. Should also be a hatch ring to lift.

PacificaDen · 11-23-2021, 01:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TOM356C

The corner of the bed is removable. about 2-3foot square. Should also be a hatch ring to lift.

YES, i must get some hydraulic arm/lift things to hold up the mattress and bed stuff to be able to allow me to get to the square that is there. Am I going to be able to actually get to anything by doing this??? Where is the fan and bearing that folks talk about and if not under the hatch we are talking about, where would it be?????????????

Yes, I have some 1 X2 " by 30" or so to brace and hold up the bed.....no problem actually; but is it worth the trouble. Is anything actually down there?????

TOM356C · 11-23-2021, 02:39 PM

google Cat c7 bearing failure. Also find hatchlift.com for the bed struts. There is not a lot to see under the hatch. I looked.
If you are on East coast,go to Freightliner school in Gaffney,SC

TOM356C · 11-23-2021, 02:49 PM

Bearing schematic

PacificaDen · 11-24-2021, 08:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TOM356C

You say you have the owners manual. It may not be the one you need. Let me know what manual you have.
Tom 07 Pacifica

This is some info:
http://www.rv.net/forums/index.cfm/f...print/true.cfm

Hey Tom...........thanks for the help........I found the dipstick.....Golly that oil is cleaner than most new car engines I have. The oil was perhaps !/2" higher than the full mark but will check it later and not gonna worry about that measurement for now.

The manual I have is:

Injuneer · 11-24-2021, 01:17 PM

Make sure you're looking at the engine oil dipstick and not the transmission oil dipstick. Being over full and clean would make me double check, as every diesel I have ever owned or worked on, from small cars to large generators with more cylinders than you can count on 3 hands would show dark oil within a few hours' run time, and auto transmissions will always show very high when turned off.

PacificaDen · 11-27-2021, 02:20 PM

Hey.......I finally got around to taking a pic of the oil and transmission checking area........the picture needs to be rotated but the cap on the left is actually the top of the area with the oil checking cap on the right.

The oil cap is actually for filling the oil and does NOT have a "stick" to use for checking level. The transmission stick is really that as it has the typical red fluid that is ATF......The YELLOW cap is the oil that I am talking about. Clean and a bit overfilled......I agree that most diesel engines are black within an hour of running a diesel engine but this stuff is clean and not one bit of crud to pull out..............

Hope that helps and that I am checking the right cap and stick.....Actually, now after YOUR help I feel pretty good that I am checking the right thing and it is clean as grandma's laundry and am looking at the right thing............

THANKS GUYS...........Dennis