Community Forums

CM Gregory · 08-23-2018, 02:08 PM

Hello to all members of this group. I am new here and I recently purchased a 1986 Winnebago Chieftain 22. It needs a ton of restoration work mostly to the chassis. Does anyone know where the fuel pump is located and weather it is mechanical or electric. I have no manual or any other paperwork for the chassis and drive train. It is a Chevy 454. Any pointers on where to locate a service manual would be welcome as well. Thanks in advance for any assistance you can offer.
Chuck and Judi

lexton · 08-23-2018, 04:24 PM

Congrats on the purchase. Welcome to the vintage forum!

pjburt · 08-23-2018, 05:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CM Gregory

Hello to all members of this group. I am new here and I recently purchased a 1986 Winnebago Chieftain 22. It needs a ton of restoration work mostly to the chassis. Does anyone know where the fuel pump is located and weather it is mechanical or electric. I have no manual or any other paperwork for the chassis and drive train. It is a Chevy 454. Any pointers on where to locate a service manual would be welcome as well. Thanks in advance for any assistance you can offer.
Chuck and Judi

Welcome, Winnebago has old manuals available for download.
Winnebago Industries Operator Manuals

Winnebago Industries

leadman · 08-24-2018, 10:46 AM

The second sticky from the top has some manuals that might help you.

Brob · 08-26-2018, 08:33 AM

You likely have 2 fuel pumps. The mechanical pump on the engine block, and an electric pump in or at the tank.

CM Gregory · 08-27-2018, 08:43 PM

Brob
Thanks for the reply. Are you sure about the pump in the tank? The RV is a 1985 chassis. I checked out a Chevy service manual for P 30 Chassis I found on line and it did not show a pump in the fuel tank. I am looking around for a local mechanic with RV experience who can help me out. I am starting to think I made a poor choice on buying an RV in the first place.
Chuck

Brob · 08-27-2018, 09:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CM Gregory

Brob
Thanks for the reply. Are you sure about the pump in the tank? The RV is a 1985 chassis. I checked out a Chevy service manual for P 30 Chassis I found on line and it did not show a pump in the fuel tank. I am looking around for a local mechanic with RV experience who can help me out. I am starting to think I made a poor choice on buying an RV in the first place.
Chuck

I have a 1987 Chevrolet P30 chassis under mine as well. The fuel tank I believe is not the stock chassis tank; but I can't say for certain on your rig. That varies depending on the coach builders I'm sure. My rig definitely has a pump in the tank that pushes the fuel the 30+ feet to the mechanical fuel pump on the engine.

The tank should be relatively easy to drop out of the rig, and I'd bet it wouldn't hurt to have a good cleaning anyway. The great thing about these older rigs is they are pretty simple to work on. You can find tons of YouTube videos on just about any repair or rebuild of any of the systems on the chassis.

The chassis systems are pretty straightforward. I'd do a very thorough assessment of the basics first. Are the brakes salvageable? Is the transmission in working order? Is the front end in good shape? Motorhomes are a beast, house and vehicle all wrapped up in one. The whole thing is over 40. You have to know that there will be things that require attention. Just take it one step at a time and try to focus on the most pressing matters first, then work your way backwards from there. How do you eat an elephant?
One bite at a time.

The biggest thing to be aware of involving the coach part of the motorcoach, is the roof. Is it leaking currently, or does it show signs of past leaking? That's the biggie with these older coaches. I am doing a gut to the skin remodel on my 1987, a little leaking can do a lot of damage.

CM Gregory · 08-28-2018, 06:54 PM

Brob
Thanks for the good advice. I am getting up there in age at 66 and I am not looking forward to dropping a fuel tank so I hope there is no pump in there. My major concern at this point is getting the engine up and running. I know from the previous owner the brake lines have issues and the pedal goes to the floor board. But I don't need brakes if I can get the rig moving in the first place.
The roof has a few small leaks but nothing major. I do intend to address those very soon but the no fuel issue must come first.
Thanks again for your generous assistance.
Chuck

eddndee · 08-30-2018, 05:46 PM

I loved the 22ft Winnebago A, I had the Itasca equivalent. My favorite M/H. It is easy to work on and very well built.

eddndee · 08-30-2018, 06:18 PM

Btw... my 22ft’r had a fuel filter halfway between the tank and motor that would gunk up sometimes. Also, as I had an ‘89, I had an electronic ignition type computer located in my distributor housing. It needed replacement infrequently.

CM Gregory · 08-31-2018, 03:42 AM

Thank EdD
Anything positive is welcome at this point. Can I ask why you got rid of it? Too costly to maintain due to age or just wanted something newer?

Brob · 08-31-2018, 08:16 AM

One thing that many people do who are looking to assess the situation with their engine, is use a temporary fuel tank (like a portable plastic tank for a boat or any container with a nipple). Disconnect the fuel line at the carburetor and let the tank gravity feed the carburetor from inside the rig. This way you can test the engine without having to check all the fuel lines, filters, etc.

I am pretty sure that there is a pump in or near the tank, and most likely there is a filter in line somewhere.

D Gardiner · 08-31-2018, 05:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CM Gregory

Brob
...from the previous owner the brake lines have issues and the pedal goes to the floor board.
Chuck

My RV has an "assist" fuel pump for the main fuel pump. Rig is 30' long.

When you narrow down the no fuel issue. Might I add checking the master cylinder. Our RV sat for 10+ years with only the engine being started in storage.
The master cylinder worked okay, but always felt soft, even after replacing all the rubber brake hoses and rebuilding the front and rear calipers. After bleeding three times I decided to check the master cylinder.
Removed and disassembled the master to discover rust inside. Replaced with a new unit and the brakes are firm after bleeding.

CM Gregory · 09-01-2018, 05:24 PM

Thank you all to ebbndee, Brob, and D Gardiner, for all the tips and suggestions. I will be checking all of them out in the future. You guys are awesome!

Chuck and Judi