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| Maintenance write up [message #256175] |
Tue, 22 July 2014 22:55  |
Tilerpep
Messages: 404
Registered: June 2013
Location: Raleigh, NC
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Senior Member |
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I have done a few maintenance things recently that might benefit some newer members to hear another version/compilation write up.
I bought my coach May of 2013. It had been sitting for eight years. Things like the cooling fan clutch I learned about here online, as I had nothing to compare it to when I bought it. Reading signs of a bad fan and understanding it are two different things. It has to "roar" when the engine starts. The whole bloomin' thing roared to my novice ears! Based on the oily shaft and two incidents of climbing temperature gauge, I put a Hayden 2747 fan on (after much reading, I didn't want the heavy duty fan). Now I know the "roar" and I didn't have it before. Now if I sit at a light it comes on, if I run the AC it transfers enough heat in that compartment the roar comes back. Haven't been on a real road trip with the new fan, but this should help with minor vapor lock I experienced, and keep that temp gauge steady. I was able to swap the fan without removing the shroud. [There was a metal sleeve/cylinder/spacer thing that came with the fan about half inch across and a little bit longer. I did not see where there was anything like it installed before, so I didn't use it. Comments on that decision are welcome, especially if I need it!] My reading showed various opinions on fan options and reliability, especially for the Haydens, but what I have now is better than what I had...
Adjusting front ride height was tackled this week. My front frame slots sat at twelve inches, a full inch too low. I borrowed torsion bar unloaders and figured out my driveway mechanic approach...jacked up the coach by the center of the main frame in front so the front wheels were off the ground, and less torsion on the bars. Jack stands to hold the weight, and another set for safety. folks had suggested I weigh each side, never figured out a way to do that, so i removed the adjuster bolts all the way, counting the rotations. They were even (14 turns each) and my coach was level prior, so i took that to mean balanced. I cleaned and greased the adjuster bolts, tightened the unloader, and put each bolt in to 19 turns. I had read six turns would yield about an inch. Got it cleaned up, on the ground, drove a few miles, measured it, and it only went to 12.2 inches (even side to side). Apparently the early turns yield less. So I set it all up again, added five turns to each side. Drove it again, and it's still not quite high enough, and passenger side is quarter inch lower than driver side. So will likely add one turn on driver side and two or three on passenger.
Changed the transmission fluid and filter while it was on stands, and book says 4 quarts for fluid, and 5 if you change filter. I put 6 in to get to the marks on the dipstick (running, warm, in park)(have more fluid on hand than the book says, I had to make another trip to store), and still need to check it a few times when it is hot to be certain it's right. Bozo moment goes to the attempt to add fluid to tranny while the engine was running - I topped it off last year. But remember that I just put a working fan on this year right? Ha! So I start to pour and...it is amazing how much area an ounce or two of red tranny fluid covers when blown by a working fan. aaarrrgh. ha.
All new coolant while it was up. (My house water heater hoses have been bypassed since the heater started leaking and I have not replaced it.)
Changed engine oil while it was up. (I put fresh oil in when I bought it, and probably put 1000 miles on this change.)
Tinkered with the three way switch on the light over the driver seat. On (up) works, middle position seems off, and third position some said was courtesy light with door, and some said could be switched on by the headlight switch. Mine never did either until today - an extra little tweak of the headlight switch rotating got it to light briefly.
My parking brake light worked twice today, making three total times in a year.
I bought some junkyard 2000 Honda Odyssey middle row seats to swap for driver and passenger, but apparently most of the write ups I had read did not quite match the actual mounting setup I discovered underneath. There must have been a change about 2001. Still might be able to use them, but I'll have to customize a little differently than what I read. I have the OEM seats that if I read the GMC manual correctly are from Flexsteel? There is a piece of Luan type thin wood inside the base of the seat between foam and springs that I don't know if it is original or was added when re-upholstered 15 years ago. Doesn't sit well for more than about 20 minutes.
I re-bedded my vent stack covers with some butyl tape.
Last year I put new TransForce tires on the 16.5's. Still not totally pleased with some wobble that feels like out of balance, despite the installer finding this year they balanced them wrong the first time. They improved but still not convinced whether its the wheels, tires, or more nuanced realities of drivetrain or bearings or something odd. Need to rotate and experiment some more.
Next will probably be the clearance lights. I know I have some leaking, and only half work. PO (previous owner) bought all new ones which he left with the coach, but between rust and short wires on the existing, I have not made any real progress on getting the new ones in place.
A long version of JWIWD. Comments, encouragement and feedback welcome!
1975 Glenbrook, 1978 Royale rear bath
Raleigh, NC
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