cbr046

I'm also a fan of running tires until they start having an issue, but last November I checked my 11 yr old Sumitomo's before leaving on a trip and when I got there, 200 miles later, I had this in my left steer.  This was after driving up to 70 mph down hills on 2 lane in rural Alabama.  I'm lucky, thanks be to God, to be alive . . . . NEVER drive faster than your guardian Angel(s) can fly.  They were with me that day.

I had a spare tire but no tools to remove the wheel, much less tire tools to unmount and mount a tire on the wheel.  There was a tire shop down the road the locals said could fix it, but he didn't open until Monday.  Nope, he didn't do big rig tires but he did recommend this guy about 10 miles away.

I didn't wait for "Blow Out Tire Company" to open but instead drove gingerly another 10 miles to a nearby (big name) interstate truck stop.  The sweet lad there removed the wheel, unmounted the tire and mounted my 20 yr old spare Michelin for $35 cash.  He was happy, I was happy.  What a deal.

I'd been keeping an eye on tires for months (years?).  I ordered new Sumitomos online from Simpletire.com while camping and had them on the coach on Wednesday. 

I chose Sumitomos as an alternative to the more expensive Toyos, which I would choose over Goodyear or Michelin.  This was my 2nd set of Sumis (first set ordered on a previous coach).

Good bet I won't stretch my tires 11 years again.  Ten maybe . . . .

- bob

Our sister ship Endeavor is 10 yrs older so design may have changed since then, but I have a relay in the rear run bay that connects chassis & house (operated by the dash Boost switch).  I doubt that's an issue.  There's a second relay inside the front run bay on the PC Board that connects chassis & house.  I'd start by disabling that relay, ALL terminals, and see what happens.  Then, with chassis side disconnected, see if the wire turns on that relay is activated.  There's also a bare wire (on mine) that serves a purpose, although I'm kinda clueless what the engineers were thinking with that bare wire, but make sure it's not touching something.

You might take that relay (if yours has it) and just remove the energizing wire.  Do dash instruments turn off?  Does that wire always have 12V?  What drives that wire?  I don't know . . . .

I (obviously) don't have a solution, just suggesting a troubleshooting path. 

- bob

1 minute ago, Bigdogracing said:

 I would think that the engine is controlled by the chassis batteries and not the house batteries, but when trying to shut it off, I turn off chassis battery power first, the engine stays running- it only shuts off when house battery shut off is engaged - is that odd?

I think you're on to something . . . .

- b

The induction cooktop and microwave are power hungry but for short periods.  Your fridge is a small load but runs 50% of the time all day.  Your 3 AC units are the real hogs.  I doubt they're even connected to the inverter, which is fed by chassis batteries which are recharged by solar.

If nothing else those panels shade your roof resulting in less air conditioning needed. 

Can you share the cost with the park owner for an external roof?

- bob

5 minutes ago, Ivylog said:

My engine not shutting off was caused by the BIRD back feeding power to the rear start board.

@Bigdogracing I know yours is a 2013 but according to an old 2004 print there's a remote start switch on some models (if you have remote start) . . . pull the switch out?  That will help you track down the source, like a back-feeding BIRD. 

Easy to disconnect the BIRD, but I don't see how it could be the source (unless it's shorting to trigger terminals internally).

- bob

I'd be tempted to pull the ignition relay with the engine running and see what happens.  Just tempted, mind you. . . . .

- bob

I Googled "cummins isc serpentine belt routing" and got lots of hits, but they weren't much help . . . . .

Crazy idea:  Take a string and route it like the serpentine belt with AC NOT tensioned by the tensioner.  Compare that length (A) with the length of the broken belt (B).  This gives a comparison of a "straight line measurement" with that of proper length belt.  Then route the string without routing around the AC.  We'll call this measurement (C).  Subtract C - (B-A).  That's my best guess approach to spec'ing a belt length without AC.  Make sure you have the right number of ribs and shape ('V' vs round, etc).  Good luck. 

- bob

Nice recovery, especially the monogrammed note book storage!

- b

Off and on like a blinking effect or like an intermittent / bad connection?

I have the same problem.  Last occurrence I beat on the dash, wiggled the harnesses under the dash and under the transmission selector, then wiggled every relay I could find in the Front Run Bay.  This was during daytime so I couldn't see which were having an effect, but now my headlights worked for the last two 1 hour drives.  

There are suggestions to look for a bad ground under the dash . . . . I never could find a common ground bus. 

I have oval 2x5" fog lights that I'd like to turn into driving lights for the next "emergency".  All I can find are these, and they're a mix of fog and driving lights.  Good chance I can't aim them without blinding oncoming traffic . . .

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07R7SMCZB/

- bob

11 hours ago, Larry T said:

I turns out that I have the CAP system and only one engine filter that's a fuel/water separator. The additional filter behind the condenser may have been stock or an upgrade. Either way, it's also a fuel/water seperator. The biggest take away is DO NOT believe the manual when it says don't prime the filters. I had a "no start" all morning even though I followed the procedures. Finally, I removed the filters, filled them with Deisal fuel, cycled the key twice and it started right up....LESSON LEARNED!

Your lift pump should have pulled fuel from the tank for 30 sec and filled the filters.  After 30 sec the lift pump shuts off.  Hence the multiple key on-key off sequences.  I can't imagine your lift pump not working, but . . . .

The CAPS pump is a high dollar item, and it sucks fuel all the way from the tank.  You don't want it to fail.  For that reason several of us installed an auxiliary fuel pump such as Air Dog or FASS.  The Air Dog is less expensive while the FASS pre-filters the fuel and cycles it through the fuel tank at 65 gal/min (aka fuel polishing).  The fuel to the CAPS pump is now pressurized which eliminates any possible air bubbles (another really bad thing) and increases the longevity of the CAPS.  I used the kit for the RAM pickup.  There's still some custom work but the kit has many handy pieces.  Something to consider . . . . .

Good luck,

- bob

50 minutes ago, ktloah said:

Ok thanks...my Cruise works intermittently...hoping replacing these will solve my problem....thanks again

When my cruise control was acting up it turned out to be the primary fuel filter clogging.   Strange but true.   Is it time?

- bob

Congrats on the new fridge.  I noticed "Cyclopentane" on one of the panels.  I was curious, so . . . .

21 minutes ago, saflyer said:

My present problem is the headlight are inop. One service center advised taking it to Freightliner. Does that make sense?

So basically they don't have a clue and want to pass the buck.  I doubt Freightliner will touch it.  IMO they'll point the finger at the coach manufacturer and not want to get into it either.  Now, if you can find a tech that will dig into wiring diagrams and actually chase wires . . . . Bonus if they have Gumby flexibility, too. 

And when you finally do find your gremlin let us know.  My headlights have been cutting out and I've yet to find the magic.  The last two 1 hour trips they worked perfectly.  Of course, they were daytime trips.  🤐

- bob

10 hours ago, 1nolaguy said:

I you change the oil in your own DP this might be a hack to make the job much easier.

Although you still have to go in through the bedroom hatch I found this to be very neat and easy:  Lisle 19802 Threaded Oil/Transmission Funnel.  It threads directly into the cap on top of the Cummins ISC valve cover and is extremely stable, and it's tall enough to tip a 1 gal jug without spillage.  You only need the top half, not the skinny bottom section.  It dumps oil in as fast as you can pour it out of the jug. 

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000P0VTC8/

- bob

On 2/24/2024 at 1:44 PM, saflyer said:

I wish I had a cup holder in the left side console. The one in the drawer in the center console is a stretch while driving.

There are different versions of these.  I picked this one to hold my drink bottle.  The OEM holder on the left side with the transmission selector works good for take-out coffee cups but not bottles.  If I *DO* end up with a McDonalds / Love's / Pilot cup of coffee I simply pop the OEM one back in.  Best of both worlds.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08NFTFQ8M/

- bob

Mine is bent and I thought about driving over the plate with a car . . . between 2x12's is even better.  There will still be bends but (I believe) that would get most of it.

- bob

Again, driving home on I-20 last night the lights went out in Georgia. #$&%@!!!

Pulled in a truck stop, wiggled all the harnesses & connectors on the pc board in the FRB, wiggled all the relays and connections I could find, went inside and wiggled the harnesses under the transmission, beat HARD on the dash, turned on the lights and they WORKED!  Then I repeated all that wiggling and pounding with the lights on and couldn't get them to fail.  Drove an hour today lights on and couldn't get them to fail.  Oh, and my on-off-on Warning Light went out and stayed out after dumping the black & grey tanks.  It had been on since leaving Friday. 

Never a dull moment.

- bob

This might help.  Just ignore the colors.

7 minutes ago, saflyer said:

Success. Got the light switch out. Now to test it. 

You can take it apart, too.  Bend the two tabs on sides and everything comes apart.  *AND* (the best part) it'll go back together again!

- bob

1 hour ago, Dr4Film said:

Steve's Ambassador has only one toilet. No choice.

But there IS a choice!  I use porta-johns mostly, just so I don't have to find a place to dump my tank! 

- bob

AFTER our $1650 tow bill we joined CoachNet (sigh), but at $250 / yr for 10 yrs we're still ahead of the game. 

Last fall I had a gash in a sidewall.  I had a used tire but "Changing of your vehicle's flat tire, delivery of a comparable tire for towing of your vehicle to a repair facility".  I'm not sure what that means.  Another service said they would change a mounted tire but they wouldn't mount a tire onto a wheel.  In that instance I was able to drive (cautiously) to a truck stop and have the tire replaced . . . to a 22 yr old tire!  That got me home, then 6 new tires a few days later. 

Haven't contacted CoachNet yet.  Maybe I should retract my vote . . . ?

- bob

6 minutes ago, saflyer said:

Thanks. Very useful. Mine is slightly different as to the nut that holds it to the dash. Shouldn’t be a problem. I’ll go back out and try to locate the button again.

Oh yeah, the headlight knob MUST in the fully extended position (lights on).  I used a coin under my finger/thumb to keep from poking into said digit.  You still have to fiddle with shaft and button. 

- b

35 minutes ago, saflyer said:

So that brings up the subject of how to remove the switch. I can access the back of the switch by removing the cover of the dash but need to remove the knob to remove the switch. How is this accomplished.

Headlight switch knob removal -

In my case it wasn't the switch, but after fiddling with several harnesses the lights mysteriously started working.  I couldn't find any suspect connections . . . .

Or in your case maybe it is the switch . . .

- bob

It may not be the hinges that are rusting but the screws holding the hinges on (and beltline screws).  On my 2003 the hinges are stainless and don't rust.  The screws on mine actually disintegrated and I had to remove the beltline to fix the problem.  There's a video on the Monacoer's video channel that describes the process.

https://www.youtube.com/@Monacoers-kx1zb/videos and go to the 'Videos' tab

- bob

43 minutes ago, 96 EVO said:

No tire shops where I live can spin balance 22.5's.

I had good luck with tire beads when I "re-tired" last Fall. 

- bob