A million miles

[TriMoot]

Right, we’ve all heard that about Diesel engines, but if you were looking at two identical rigs (or very similar) and one had 90k miles and the other 45k or 50k, we’d all pick the lower mileage rig, right?

So there’s a nice looking rig nearby to us that sorta pushes our buttons but has over 94k miles. Should I dismiss it?

Just like most everyone, the ad says, “we’ll maintained”.

At 94k are there things that will or should be looked at or automatically replaced? Say like fuel injectors?

Thoughts please.

[saddlesore]

Depends.....

1) Has the unit received consistent maintenance?
2) As with any used unit...Does it pass an extended/in depth inspection(s)
3) NORMALLY You should not have major issues with the engine/drive train if it has been taken care of.

4) It may need tires/shocks/air bag replacements... this is to be expected at around 100k miles.. air bags run around $75 to $200 each.. replaced ours after 15 years..(tag axle every 7 years)

[MarylandRich]

My opinion I would want to see 5k miles a year minimum on a diesel coach, not being used is not good for the motor. My unit was 14 years old when I bought it and had 117,000 at the time, and was just getting broken in. 4 years later we are right at 140,000. Could it go 500,000 miles, no problem, 1,000,000 miles seem possible if the rest of the coach doesn’t fall apart first. If it was well maintained you should be fine.

[Rob_M]

How well a rig has been taken care of outweighs a 45k mileage difference in a large displacement diesel MH easily in my opinion.

[grindstone01]

Time/age is the worst enemy for vehicles. Mileage is all about the maintenance schedule.
My advice is to go with the newest rig and the best maintenance history.

[RS505]

What kind of engine? The trigger words for guessing what kind of trouble you might encounter include:

EGR
HEUI
DPF
SCR
DEF
Urea

I have a 35 year old ford diesel pickup that has over 500,000 miles on it and still runs great. I think the fact that none of these devices are installed on it is a big part of the reason why.

Our large (100+) fleet of modern diesel pickup trucks at work have all kinds of expensive problems that are directly related to the above list. Our old fleet of 7.3 diesels made it 200-300K miles before we would auction them off. Starting in about model year 2004, we rarely get over 100K before they have to go. This is about 18 months of use towing 10,000# trailers.

I'm looking at getting a different coach from the one I currently have. At the top of my list of features is Detroit series 60, or pre-egr Cummins engine under a coach that is nearly perfect otherwise. I'm not even thinking about miles.

[desertdd]

Originally Posted by RS505

What kind of engine? The trigger words for guessing what kind of trouble you might encounter include:

EGR
HEUI
DPF
SCR
DEF
Urea

I have a 35 year old ford diesel pickup that has over 500,000 miles on it and still runs great. I think the fact that none of these devices are installed on it is a big part of the reason why.

Our large (100+) fleet of modern diesel pickup trucks at work have all kinds of expensive problems that are directly related to the above list. Our old fleet of 7.3 diesels made it 200-300K miles before we would auction them off. Starting in about model year 2004, we rarely get over 100K before they have to go. This is about 18 months of use towing 10,000# trailers.

I'm looking at getting a different coach from the one I currently have. At the top of my list of features is Detroit series 60, or pre-egr Cummins engine under a coach that is nearly perfect otherwise. I'm not even thinking about miles.

Those 7.3 diesels had a HEUI injection pump.

[Triangle Drifter]

Maintenance is the key. Bought our truck with 16,000 miles on it. Only 6 months old. Last I looked it was 230,000 miles. It works hard but it is also pampered. Oil changes, synthetic, every 3000 miles. That is about double the frequency however for most of its miles it pulls an 11,000lb plus trailer.

Once a year it gets an almost open checkbook going over by a trusted small town garage as per manufacturer schedule & anything else that looks iffy. Preventative maintenance is much cheaper than being stranded at the side of a remote highway.


So, don't let mileage deter you. Get it surveyed by a trusted mechanic. Check the wear items & items that don't age well like hoses, suspension & steering bushings. Get the oil analyzed.

[jacwjames]

I was in mining for ~30 years and managed several mines, responsible for maintenance. We tracked everything on hours, putting on ~15-18 hrs per day running 250 days a year then to a 24/7/365 schedule. We did do predictive/preventive maintenance including oil analysis. The newer equipment would always see the highest usage. We did have a an engine rebuild program and would track $/hr both on new engines vs rebuilt. If we had a strong running engine we'd make a decision not to rebuild but run it until it fails. We had one engine that ran +14000 hours. So at ~50 mph it would have been 700,000 miles. Not quite a million miles but pretty good.



So when I bought my 2002 rig in late 2008 it had 57K miles. It looked good, and ran good and I could not find a problem with it. After purchase I took it to Cummins for a service and inspection and it passed with flying colors. I've put another 50K miles on it since, most of it in 6 years, haven't used it much in the last 5 years but hoping to hit the road soon.



So if I found a really nice rig with a little high miles but appeared it had been taken care of would I buy it, heck ya.

[RS505]

Originally Posted by desertdd

Those 7.3 diesels had a HEUI injection pump.

They did, and our guys would drive them until they were so low on oil, they would quit running because the injectors lost pressure. They still made it 250K miles.

They tried that with the 6 liter trucks too. Didn't turn out the same way lol

Those old powerstrokes were something else

[vito.a]

Regardless of our opinions, an RV dealer will severely reduce the amount they will offer you for a 100k mile or more diesel coach.
If I was considering purchasing a diesel coach with 100k plus miles, the price would need to be seriously reduced.

[MarylandRich]

Originally Posted by RS505

What kind of engine? The trigger words for guessing what kind of trouble you might encounter include:

EGR
HEUI
DPF
SCR
DEF
Urea

I have a 35 year old ford diesel pickup that has over 500,000 miles on it and still runs great. I think the fact that none of these devices are installed on it is a big part of the reason why.

Our large (100+) fleet of modern diesel pickup trucks at work have all kinds of expensive problems that are directly related to the above list. Our old fleet of 7.3 diesels made it 200-300K miles before we would auction them off. Starting in about model year 2004, we rarely get over 100K before they have to go. This is about 18 months of use towing 10,000# trailers.

I'm looking at getting a different coach from the one I currently have. At the top of my list of features is Detroit series 60, or pre-egr Cummins engine under a coach that is nearly perfect otherwise. I'm not even thinking about miles.

I would have to agree. I own over 15 diesel trucks ( tractors, box, pickups and vans) 4 are newer then 2007, and I have more problems with those 4 then all the others combined dating back to 2005. Many have well in excess of 300,000 miles. Not passing judgment on anyone else, or there coach choice, but I would not own a coach with an engine newer then 2007, and frankly my 2002 is even better (no egr).

[TonyDi]

I consider myself a good RV owner. I have all the scheduled and non scheduled work done when needed. I keep EVERY maintenance record for my coach. I even keep a log on work that I've done on it. When I decide to sell it, the new owner will get a copy of all my records. I want them to know what they're buying. Maybe the unit you're looking at can have similar records. If not have it inspected. Which is not a bad idea anyway.

[tropical36]

Engine, Engine, Engine is all you hear when it comes to Diesels. Thing is there's a lot more to a Motorhome than just the engine. I'll take a low mileage unit any day and if has some lot rot, then we'll fix it. And no one is forced to choose between a poorly kept low mileage rig vs a well kept high mileage rig anyway, so how about a well kept low mileage Coach and be done with it. That's what we did and even got what we wanted in the color we wanted and for the floor plan we wanted, as well. Did I mention the price we we're willing to pay? Took a whole week for finding it, within a 100miles, but that was probably a stroke of luck. There was another or two, not that far away, but then I don't know what I could have made a deal for, either.
Just saying that they're around if you look hard enough. Maybe a little more scarce since the Pandemic, so..............