Wet PTO Conversion

[Wobster]

While having a pre-purchase inspection done on a 2005 Affinity the inspector found that it had not had a wet PTO conversion once he got under the coach to look. I was also told that the 2005 Affinity was not part of the recall which was likely why it was not converted. Being ever cautious I did some research myself and indeed this is true, it was only 2006-2008 models (the recall is below). Was there a design change for 2006 that made it a problem for 2006 and not in 2005 or is this something I will be looking at doing down the road (literally) or is 2005 Model year OK as it came from the factory?
Thanks
Dave

2006 Country Coach Affinity Steering Recall 08V484000

Action Number: N/A
Service Bulletin Number: 08V484000
Report Date: Sep 22, 2008 Component: Steering
Potential Units Affected: 238
Manufacturer: Country Coach Inc
Summary: Country coach is recalling 238 my 2006-2008 affinity and magna motor homes. Loss of power steering assist can occur in these motor homes.
Consequence: Loss of power steering assist can create an unsafe driving condition which could result in a crash.
Remedy: Dealers will replace the fan drive hydraulic pump and the transmission mounted dry spline power take-off with a wet spline power take-off and relocate the engine power steering pump to the engine power steering mechanical drive pad. Owners will be notified about this recall beginning on september 28, 2008, with instructions that should they experience loss of power steering or a severe reduction in the ability to steer the motor home that they should immediately contact the country coach service center. The parts necessary for this recall will not be available until mid-november 2008, at which time the owners will be notified to bring in their vehicle for repair. Owners may contact country coach at 1-800-547-8015.
Notes: Customers may contact the national highway traffic safety administration's vehicle safety hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (tty: 1-800-424-9153); or go to http://www. Safercar. Gov.

[JohnFreyja]

My 2005 Inspire needed the "Wet Kit".
Do a search on the (https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/...sations/topics) web.

[IASM]

It really comes down to maintenance. With a wet kit the pump spline is lubricated continuously. Without the kit the pump needs to be unbolted and pulled back to manually apply spline lube. Its good for several hours running but cant be ignored. Once the lube breaks down and gets spun off the pto and spline start showing wear. Takes about 1/2 hour to lube in most cases.

[mike brez]

Originally Posted by IASM

It really comes down to maintenance. With a wet kit the pump spline is lubricated continuously. Without the kit the pump needs to be unbolted and pulled back to manually apply spline lube. Its good for several hours running but cant be ignored. Once the lube breaks down and gets spun off the pto and spline start showing wear. Takes about 1/2 hour to lube in most cases.

Several hours? My 1998 has the kit.

[Wobster]

What's the consensus on a 2006 with 54,000 miles that has no wet kit but the owner is willing to install? Has damage likely been done already?

[Mr_D]

There was nothing really wrong with the dry setup, other than owners didn't do the required maintenance. As to possible damage: I think it needs a close inspection before the wet kit is added.
Luckily the ISX's came with the wet kit already.

[Peralko]

Our friend with a 2005 Allure had the splines on the PTO inspected and lubricated. The mechanic was even irritated he made him do this "unnecessary" work. Six months later his splines were severely worn, and he had to get the wet kit installed. There is no way I would recommend driving with the old dry-lubricated PTO.

[IASM]

The pto wet kit comes with a new pto output shaft so you only need to look at the pump shaft.

[Mr_D]

Originally Posted by Peralko

Our friend with a 2005 Allure had the splines on the PTO inspected and lubricated. The mechanic was even irritated he made him do this "unnecessary" work. Six months later his splines were severely worn, and he had to get the wet kit installed. There is no way I would recommend driving with the old dry-lubricated PTO.

6 months and 100,000 miles or 6 months and 1,000 miles?

[Peralko]

Originally Posted by Mr_D

6 months and 100,000 miles or 6 months and 1,000 miles?

Probably around 6,000 miles. He doesn't drive anywhere close to 100,000 miles a year!

[CarlAda]

My PTO failed. Expensive repair. Address the issue!

[Wobster]

Thanks Carl! How hard was it to steer when it failed?

[2 Stroker]

I had the wet PTO installed when we got the coach at 17k miles, everything looked good, just one less thing to think about.
2 stroker

[CarlAda]

Originally Posted by Wobster

Thanks Carl! How hard was it to steer when it failed?

I was fortunate to be where I was when it failed. I was on a fairly straight section of the highway. Another 10 miles and I would have been in the curvy and hilly portion of the pass on I5 in Oregon. It took all I had to take the exit and get off the road. Manageable at slower speeds, but would have been fatal at traveling speeds in the turns.

In addition to the PTO spline being destroyed, the Sauer Danfoss pump that was damaged had to be shipped from England. Apparently, after the 2008 demise of the market, the distributors of this pump in the US went out of business (or just stopped carrying the product) and the only place it could be found was at the original manufacturer in England. My mechanic worked with the good people in Eugene to locate the pump and/or the necessary parts to replace the damaged shaft of the pump to no avail. The price of the pump alone was $2500 and because we were on a time constraint, the shipping was another $250. Total cost of repair was $4600 with $3500 of that being in parts alone. I did see the damaged parts of the PTO and the pump and it was not a pretty sight.