My wife and I are from Florida and are currently visiting relatives in Texas. Yesterday we drove from Austin to Spring Branch. Just after getting onto IH-35 our coach started to have a vibration that I could feel through the pedals and steering column. Additionally it began making a noise that sounded almost identical to that heard when your wheels run onto the grooves at the edge of the road. The noise was intermittent but appears to happen mostly during deceleration. It continued throughout our trip. When we stopped at our destination in Spring Branch there was a definite smell of warm oil. I examined all that I could and there were no apparent signs of any problems with the wheels etc. Today I took it to Evergreen RV in New Braunfels and had them give it a once over. They found the drive line to be in good condition with some play in the drive line. The techs could not pinpoint anything that could be making the noise. I have decided to replace the u-joints in an attempt to eliminate the play. The Allison transmission is functioning very well and there are no diagnostic codes on the shifter panel. With the wheels and other suspect items checking out okay I drove it back to Spring Branch where we are staying.

Has anyone else had a similar problem or know of anyone who has? Does anyone have any pertinent information as to what could be causing the noise?

Any assistance would be greatly appreciated.

Do you notice any play in the steering? Does it tend to wander while driving? For my 1993 Regency I have used Fischer Diesel Services in Pasadena Texas (east side of Houston) and they are very comfortable with driveline and engine work. They have the only 4 wheel heavy truck/coach alignment machine in the region. Their number is (281) 487-7904. The Owner is Greg Fischer. They are not open on Saturday but you can call Monday after 7:30 am. Another Service center is Cummins South Plains on the North Loop 610, that handles Spartan and Cummins. They are also closed Saturdays. Their number is (713) 679-2220.
As for guesses: steering linkage or Pitman Arm; tie rod ends or bushings; or low oil in your hydraulic reservoir that drives the power steering and hydraulic fan.
I have written posts on the fan motor replacement for the side mounted radiators and they do strange things when they begin to leak. Vibration is one. A quick check is to look at your fan blades and see if they are cream colored or black. Black indicates leaking hydraulic fluid from bearing failures. I don't have any experience with the Spartan chassis however.

Don't know if this would apply, but see if your fan blades have any movement from front to back....twice in my life i have heard a strange little noise while running bulldozers and found that the fan bearing was going out. If they had let loose they would have taken out the radiator.

Does the noise go away or change when the engine is shut off, or the trans taken out of gear.

Does it change when going from cruising to coasting or accelerating?

There is no play beyond the little that has always been there. As far a wandering, driving has always been a slight back and forth affair. I'm not certain as to whether it is correct to call it wandering but the coach does not travel a pure straight line. I just checked the hydraulic fluid and it is at the very bottom, or "add", line. I will be picking up some fluid before I set out again. The fan blades while not black are not exactly creamy but they are very dry.

The fan blades and assembly is very sound.

The noise only happens while traveling and almost exclusively when decelerating. I noticed when returning from the RV center that when I let off of the gas the sound would start when I released the pedal but not fully. If I released it a little bit further the noise would stop. All of this could be coincidental but I was able to duplicate it. I'm certain that I've never heard it while accelerating.

Thanks for the help.

Does anyone know how to get to the power steering fluid filter? It is supposed to be in the large black can that holds the fluid. Without really studying it the can does not appear to have a removable top.

Also when getting the fluid level reading how far in does the plug/indicator have to be? It is practically impossible to push it in fully. It goes in about three quarters or so.

I mentioned that I checked the radiator fan but I just had a question. Should the fan rotate freely when the engine is shut down and cold? When I checked it the blades are all tight and it does rotate but not freely.

There is normally no filter to change and as far as filling this is a case of "close enough". Just fill to the line with the plug in its normal position. Sounds like you are at least a quart low so follow the outlet hose and look for leaks. The culprit could be the steering box or even the pump, but most likely a hose or connection. Use Dextron III and recheck for the noise after a few minutes on the road to remove any air from the system.

Do I use Dextron II or Dextron III?

From discussions with Spartan and threads on other RV sites I learned there is a filter inside the canister. Mine has two bolts holding on a two piece ring that holds the canister lid on.
Spartan said my filter is Nelson filter 87610A ( I think there may be an up-grade on this too-- don't have that info here at home). There is also a gasket available for the lid, from Spartan. Spartan number 1 800 722 3025.
Dex III is recommended.

Bud

To sum up:

Somewhere around Austin the arm on the height adjustment valve broke. My coach has only one such valve. As a result the coach was not riding at the proper height thereby putting great stress on the u-joints and drive shaft. When the joints were removed the stress was very apparent there was a great deal of galling. The grease had also gotten very hot and was running out of the joint.

Spartan Motors gave me the part numbers for the joints and valve with one error. They told me that both joints were the same but they are not. The front joint is held in place with four caps held on with two bolts each while the rear is held in with two screw on caps and two clamps. The part numbers are Spicer and are K5-279X (front) and K5-564X (rear). The height control valve part number is Haldex 90054007.

I got the u-joints at Holt Truck in San Antonio which is open 24/7. They are located at 3302 South W.W.White Rd. San Antonio, TX78222, Phone 210-648-8310. They are very friendly and extremely helpful. It was there service manager who led me to finding out about the valve problem.

I got the valve at Doggett Freightliner of South Texas in San Antonio. They are open 8:00 AM to Midnight M-F and 8:00 AM to 6:00 PM Sat and Sun. They are located at 8700 IH 10 East Converse, TX 78109, phone 888-460-3206. They are equally friendly and helpful. As an important note, do not use their address in your GPS to find the facility, it will not work. The people at Doggett say people get lost all the time by doing so. Call them for directions.

All parts were installed by Spring Branch RV, 14130 US Hwy 281 N, Spring Branch, TX 78070, phone 888-878-7218 or 830-228-5253. They were good at fitting me into a busy schedule and their labor rates beat the other choices.

We are now on the road and everything is working correctly. The wandering my coach was doing has also nearly disappeared. All is good..

Great news!