Hey Gang....

Just had another dose of motorhome maintenance, new brakes, rotors, etc...8 new tires, new batteries, and an oil change! $3,500 Smack-a-roos

Since I am as handy as a paper clip....I reached into my tool box (also known as "The Check Book") clarified the company's name and closed the deal!

Said to the wife and kids we are definitely going on a long trip once school lets out. I can hardly wait!

I really have no way of explaining it but I find no matter what I have had to do to fix or maintain this coach......it all fades from my memory when I turn over that engine. It must be that feeling that you can really go just about anywhere, anytime, at your speed that hooks us all.

That I guess is the real beauty of being a Barth Motorhome owner.

Hope all is well!

Chuck M

B.O.A.T. stands for break out another thousand
B.A.R.T.H must stand for Be Aware Rving Takes Hundreds?
could not work out the letters to equate with the proper number of decimals editing invited.

You got a hell of a deal! 8 tires for the Regency would cost me $400 each (I have 6) so the brakes and rotors had to be really cheap. Not to be comparable but my last maintenance involved replacing the driveshaft universals (after reading the horror story here); new torque arm bushings and alignment involving welding adjustment plates to correct alignment (Bill NY may be able to explain that); curing electrical woes with the bumper mounted backup lights and backup safety buzzer, lube, change all fluids and get the oil and water lab diagnosis; service the generator; change the air dryer; and replace all the heater hoses from the engine through the entire coach; and change all filters etc - $7,000. But it has 117,000 and was all original and now the steering, ride and reliability is well worth it. BTW a new friend had similar things done to his Prevost and spent $18,000 (but he did get tires).

Gee, and I think my $300 gas tank repair is bad
Jim

That actually does sound like a good deal!!

When working on the other toy (Porsche) all my friends have figured out that it sounds cheaper to revise the units – we came to the determination that a “Porsche Unit” = $2,000 (for some reason those folks that take their car to the dealer/shop always get bills in $2,000 multiples). I work on my own…but it still seems to round out to $2k per project.

So maybe we should make a “Barth Unit” $1,000….that means the repair/maintenance that you had done only cost 3.5 Barth Units….sounds better already!

quote:

So maybe we should make a “Barth Unit” $1,000….that means the repair/maintenance that you had done only cost 3.5 Barth Units….sounds better already!

I second the motion!

Chuck,
You did get a deal, plus it was (I assume) professionally done. If I had a blown 502 under my cover, I would be going through brakes and tires once a year ! ! ! Nothing ammuses the masses like a motorhome burn-out !

"300 dollar gas tank repair"... is that code for " Fill'er up" ?

I just did a project on my bus where the parts for it cost $56. By the time i got done i had spent another $1200 on other things that i discovered needed fixing.

How about driving 100 miles round trip to buy a $480 fan clutch, install it, then pay $180 to a mechanic for a 50 cent fuse that was the real problem. Or replacing two thermostats for $900 (oh I got $350 back after complaining) then to find out it was the waterpump (for $725).
FIX IT UNTIL IT BREAKS.

How about paying a couple-hundred bucks, & losing a day's travel to replace a perfectly good water pump that appeared to be bad because the pulley was full of antifreeze, then finding the problem was actually a pinhole leak in a heater hose that was peeing directly into the back of the water pump pulley.

Stuff happens, to paraphrase a popular 1980s bumper sticker.

$300 is the cost for cleaning and relining the 40 gallon rear tank on the Regal. Of course, I'll also get a new sending unit, new filler hose, replace the hose to the generator, replace the hose to the main engine, replace all filters, etc. Still, that's cheaper than $7000. I know why I don't have a diesel. I can't afford one. But I sure would like to.
Jim

quote:

Originally posted by Jim and Tere:
$300 is the cost for cleaning and relining the 40 gallon rear tank on the Regal.

Jim, why is the tank being cleaned?

What are they using to clean it?

What are they using to coat it? Be sure it is alcohol-proof. Higher alcohol percentages are in the future.

quote:

Of course, I'll also get a new sending unit, new filler hose, replace the hose to the generator, replace the hose to the main engine, replace all filters, etc.

See if you can get them to use steel tubing as much as possible. The less rubber tubing you have, the fewer opportunities there are for deterioration and failure. I have been driven crazy by an intermittent air-sucking pore. Have them use fuel injection line. The extra cost is worth it. I also like Corbin clamps because they are self-tightening as the hose ages and shrinks. I wrap self stick silicone rubber tape around any rubber fuel line, just to add another layer of protection.

quote:

I know why I don't have a diesel. I can't afford one. But I sure would like to.
Jim

I'm a little mixed on a diesel. Aside from the expense and my lack of diesel knowledge, there is parts availability and the off-roading we do. Right now, we are sunk in about half way to the rim edges. A Regency would be way deeper, I think.

well ive bought an alternator! i guess im lucky! maintance wise ! now the upgraded tvs to lcd and the nonessential essentials are another story hahah..

and batteries which wasnt so bad