Community Forums

cbigham · 10-22-2013, 11:18 AM

Hey all,
Interested in a bus chassis older, pref. mechanical motorhome, so prev1998, thinking country coach or maybe Monaco if they made one?

Can you tell me th pluses and minuses of such a coach, knowing its an orphan? I see a couple around here with 120k plus on them with the Detroit 6v92 and an Allison 754 five speed. How are those numbers for longevity? I used to work on detroits mannnnnyyy years ago in the service. Are they still cheap to overhaul if needed, ESP. In a bus chassis? Know nothing about the Allison. I currently have a funmover 39c, cat c7 had it for 8 yrs. Momma is looking for a little more luxury and if momma isn't happy....

Any tips on what to look for would be great, suggestions on th engine, fuel mpg, etc would be great. I can do most minor repairs and sort of enjoy it, but don't want to pump $$ into it to find it needs a new engine, parts are not there, or the two stroke is being legislated out of existence. Some real nice older stuff out there, thanks,

Chuck

Ray,IN · 10-29-2013, 06:26 AM

If the MH manufacturer used a Spartan chassis, it's on a bus chassis.

RustyJC · 10-29-2013, 06:37 AM

There was a beautiful, pristine BlueBird Wanderlodge at PPL when we were there in early October. Might be worth a look to see if it's still there for sale.

Rusty

super_rep · 10-29-2013, 07:51 AM

Look at the early Beavers and Country Coaches. Both were buildt on 1,000,000 design Gillig transit bus chassis. Beaver and CC both started building their own chassis around 1997.

Papa_Jim · 10-29-2013, 07:53 PM

The Monaco Dynasty, Executive, and Signature coaches were built on Monaco's proprietary semi-monocoque OTR bus chassis which was made in their Roadmaster chassis division.

That will give you Cummins 8.3L and larger engines with the Allison 6 speed automatic transmission.

Jim

GlennLever · 10-29-2013, 10:03 PM

My 97 American Dream is built on a Gillig bus chassis I'm told my was the last year Gillig made chassis for RVs

deandec · 10-30-2013, 09:17 AM

We enjoy our 38' Country Coach on a Gillig Bus Chassis with the C8.3L Cummins and Allison tranny.

Frankly, the proprietary CC chassis that was built starting in 1997 and based on the Gillig is probably equally good or better than the Gillig for motor home travel.

Condition of the target rig will determine your follow-on repair expense more than the brand of coach or chassis under the coach you buy.

Quality of the house construction can be better in the higher priced models of each manufacturer through their use of more expensive materials.

The word Bus means different things to each reader. My interpretation of a Bus chassis would be Gillig, MCI, and Prevost as the three that leap to mind. Bluebird made both the chassis and house in their rigs.

Most MH manufacturers use either Spartan or Freightliner truck chassis for their Motorhomes but adapt them to the demands of the RV traveler.

I would be more concerned about the current condition of the target rig than whether it had a bus chassis. If you target a Prevost conversion, the Prevost chassis is in a completely separate category in my mind.