Community Forums

steined · 06-10-2015, 10:30 PM

Hello All,

My wife and I looked at a 38FT HR Ambassador 38PDT today and we were pretty impressed with the price and maintenance history. Not a fan of the flooring or the dinette. Has the upgraded ISC, and a "value package" with some nicer appointments like vinyl roof, etc. Has the Onan 7.5kw QD with 2600 hours on it and the coach has 48K miles or so.

1.) How hard is it to replace the flooring in a 38ft coach like this? What price range would I be looking at for a typical not super expensive pergo type floor to be installed end to end? $1000? $1500?

2.) Is removing a dinette hard work? I had visions of a custom made 2 work station credenza/dining table being created. Is there some place that does custom work like this? Is it silly to spend custom money on a 15 yr old coach?

Problems I noticed:

1.) Some water intrusion history in the rear slide that has been addressed and fixed.

2.) Some water intrusion history (pretty minor) in the front slide that has been addressed and fixed.

2.) Tires are from 2005, but look to be in good shape. 255/70 - 22.5 Goodyears

3.) House Batteries had corrosion on the terminals, looked like some leakage around the base, and the case of one was bulged, so I think these are toast.

The owner inherited it from his father, it had sat for a year, he took it to a Cummins shop and spent $9000 on end to end service in 2013, everything from engine oil to coolant, to diff oil, to air dryer service, new pistons, new engine fan (not cheap!) etc etc etc... He has all the paperwork for that service and it's exactly what I would have had done on a used coach.

He took it on 2 long trips and, as they say life happened and he has no ability to use the coach.

Asking price is in the Mid-Upper 30's and he seemed willing to bring it down for the tires and potentially the batteries.

Any thoughts? Too much? Decent deal?

Thanks in advance.

deSanford · 06-10-2015, 11:05 PM

Why would a diesel with less then 50,000 miles need new pistons? Sanford PS the other items are normal maintenance, and making the inside the way you want it can be done by lots of shops around the country.

steined · 06-11-2015, 12:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by deSanford

Why would a diesel with less then 50,000 miles need new pistons? Sanford PS the other items are normal maintenance, and making the inside the way you want it can be done by lots of shops around the country.

Calipers, not piston.sorry about that

Mr_D · 06-11-2015, 12:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by steined

Calipers, not piston.sorry about that

So, it has air disk brakes? That would be very unusual.

adamfolger · 06-11-2015, 12:34 AM

The only thing that sounds right is the price and I also question pistons with less than 50,000 mi. Must have been ran hard and put up wet...$9,000 is a hefty service tab for a rig with that mileage. New tires and batteries and might need new shocks for sure. Have you drove it yet ? Goes everything else work ?

jacwjames · 06-11-2015, 07:00 AM

I would also question the need for engine work, why. I would get a copy of the receipt and go to the shop and ask. The service alone, if they did all recommended service could cost ~$1500 (Cummins ain't cheap). That means the engine repair was ~$7500, need to know what parts and why. There could be a reasonable explanation.

The tires will have to be replaced even if they look good, 10 years is about max you can run.

At this point I would recommend a professional inspection and request oil analysis for engine and transmission and also a coolant analysis. These 3 things can identify potential problems unseen by the eye.

jpweber · 06-11-2015, 07:31 AM

I have a 2000 Ambassador very similar to this and like many owners of these Ambassadors I have had problems with the Bosch disc brakes getting hot and most of the time burning up the ABS sensors. The brake calipers have been replaced many times, on the average of once a year, and the shops tell me with the latest revision but soon have same problem. To my knowledge there has not been a real fix to the problem so I suggest to enquire about this.
j. P. Weber
200 H.R. Ambassador

steined · 06-11-2015, 08:45 AM

From what I recall in that service:

Brakes
Radiator Fan replaced
ABS Sensors
Trans fluid change
Engine Oil change
Diff Fluid change
Air dryer changed
The radiator may have been replaced as well, I can't recall 100%, I'm getting a copy of the invoice. It was a large service and seemed to have addressed most things that could have gone wrong other than the ISC exhaust manifolds, which I'll have checked.

And to reiterate, not engine pistons were changed, but brake calipers were rebuilt or replaced. It has air over hydraulic brakes as I understand it.

garbonz · 06-11-2015, 08:58 AM

What the heck, go for it. At 30K you gots ALOT ofdiscount over a new one, BUT you will have all the problems that 15 years brings to all the systems, regardless of the milage. If you are handy and ENJOY working on stuff it will be a good experiance, if not, not so much. The expected life of ALL major systems are not more than 15 years so you will get to oppurtunity to enjoy working on much of it. I would put aside about 20K per year for maintenance and if you don't spend it, then more's the better. The furnace, AC, refrig, Hot Water, all electronics, etc. could go at any minute.

jacwjames · 06-11-2015, 11:35 AM

Here's a good deal if that's what the goal is.

1998 Monaco Windsor Class A Diesel Motorhome

But look at the mileage, the coach must have been well maintain to get this far and from the pictures is looks pretty good.

TMan59 · 06-11-2015, 09:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by garbonz

What the heck, go for it. At 30K you gots ALOT ofdiscount over a new one, BUT you will have all the problems that 15 years brings to all the systems, regardless of the milage. If you are handy and ENJOY working on stuff it will be a good experiance, if not, not so much. The expected life of ALL major systems are not more than 15 years so you will get to oppurtunity to enjoy working on much of it. I would put aside about 20K per year for maintenance and if you don't spend it, then more's the better. The furnace, AC, refrig, Hot Water, all electronics, etc. could go at any minute.

Man do I feel lucky!
Fixing a few little things now and again but nothing like that.

steined · 06-12-2015, 07:09 AM

Can anyone tell me if these are the trailing arms affected by the recall or not?

Thanks in advance.

Sorry that photo is upside down. I'll try to fix it.

garbonz · 06-12-2015, 07:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TMan59

Man do I feel lucky!
Fixing a few little things now and again but nothing like that.

Many are lucky, but plenty report problems with the multiple systems that our complex RV's have, and all the additional stress (temperature swings, vibration etc.) that they are under. AND the considerable bills that accrue when you have to take them in to get fixed, if you can't do it yourself.

It is sad to see folks who get a 10 year old or more coach that looks good and is well maintained and think it will be maintenance free and not have enough reserve available to fix things. Many of the big ticket items ARE the propulsion components and that is a good place to focus, but the rest of the systems ain't cheap either.

My 10 YO truck camper was little used, and I have had very few issue's also, but was prepared to see some suprizes..

steined · 06-12-2015, 07:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by garbonz

Many are lucky, but plenty report problems with the multiple systems that our complex RV's have, and all the additional stress (temperature swings, vibration etc.) that they are under. AND the considerable bills that accrue when you have to take them in to get fixed, if you can't do it yourself.

It is sad to see folks who get a 10 year old or more coach that looks good and is well maintained and think it will be maintenance free and not have enough reserve available to fix things. Many of the big ticket items ARE the propulsion components and that is a good place to focus, but the rest of the systems ain't cheap either.

My 10 YO truck camper was little used, and I have had very few issue's also, but was prepared to see some suprizes..

Yeah I plan on things going wrong. But to me it doesn't make sense to spend more on a coach knowing the modifications we want to make to it and the fact that we'll likely make mistakes with out first coach. We went the "well used first" approach with our first boat, bought pretty used, learned how to fix/maintain on my own, and dropped 10% of the purchase price on an outdrive right after purchase. I know "stuff" happens! Just trying to minimize the costly stuff off the bat. I also know I drug the outdrive, got dock rash, and made other mistakes I don't make on the new boat!