I am going to buy a diesel pusher motor home soon. Will be moving out to the country and now have a place to keep it and have a few questions.
1. What to look out for and what to run from?
2. I do not think I need slides, seems to me it just may be more places to squeak, rattle and leak?
What size motor do you recommend for towing?
3. I think I will also put the RV hookups at the new house. Anything I need to know about that?

Definitely will not be buying new I will be looking for a nice used one and may wait until around the New Year. I was told the prices are lower in the off season and I only have a few races left this year.

My main concerns here is heavy duty enough to tow long distances with heavy load. I had never considered one until recently so I do not know much about what works well for our needs and what does not. Thanks for all suggestions and advice.

don't touch a 5.9 Cummins--8.3 is good and even the 300HP one can be pumped up plenty. Allison world 6spd transmission is the only way to go. Cats are for bull dozers---seriously they are hard to get worked on. Try to get one that don't use DEF. I have 2 and the 20 year old Winnebago Luxor has been a good one that has faithfully taken me all over to race tracks, no slides. The Monaco has a full wall slide but I never put it out and still have plenty of room inside. I like the Winnebago better, basement heat pump will freeze you out and much more storage than the Monaco. Monaco has a 10,000 hitch which you should insist on. A 7500watt diesel generator, not propane. Check tire dates, not tread as you never wear them out, 7 years and done. Jake brake for sure. Be sure to look for signs of leaks around any roof penetrations. Probably a lot more

I guess slides are nice but I do not think I need them.
I had heard the Cummins are much better. I assumed the 5.9 would be too wimpy. How are the 8.3 hopped up?

Most DPs will have a slide or two.
The older ones without slides are just that , too old.
Also resale, it may not be a factor to you now, but that will be a factor if you need to sell.

I have owned one without slides, now own one with slides, I will take the slides.

330 HP Cummins is generally looked at as the minimum for heavy towing.

Good luck

NO propane generators. You are right that slides can be a pain in the rear. But usually not, and no slides are hard to sell. And slides are way nice too.
We use a 300 hp cat. No issues with 9k behind us. But I wouldn't recommend the CAT. More expensive to fix. Only reprogramming by CAT for the most part. Although there are exceptions. The 8.3's would be my choice, but I found them difficult to find when I was looking.
I have seen some American Eagles at the track that have no slides. Look like nice machines and people seem to take care of them. Monaco's always are nice. Friend has a Winni that he has had a few issues with over the years. But mostly pretty reliable I think...but Cat engine in that one.

5.9's from the late 90's - early 2000 had block issues...

Motorhome Checklist
•Freightliner Chassis; Spartan chassis' have front suspension issues; STAY AWAY FROM OSHKOSH CHASSIS
•Allison 6 Speed Trans
•22.5 Aluminum Alloy Wheels
+Full Air Suspension, Auto Leveling System
•Dual Pane Windows
•Back Up Camera

•Non-Smokers,
•Older coaches with slides have issues
•Dual roof air conditioners
•liquid cooled Diesel Generator,
•2000 watt inverter
•I've never used my Washer & Dryer
•Refrig. with ice maker(never used ice maker)
•Micro/Convection oven
•roll out storage tray's are nice
i would not get anything smaller than an Allison 8.3; 325 hp or more
stay away from Cat's...hard to find repair shops....Caterpillar does not build M/H motors anymore
i've got a 32 country coach....great bus.
monaco, country coach, beaver are all quality m/h's
I would look more at 2003's. If you can find a 2005 with a pre-egr motor, that would be a great find and would be worth a premium. EGR is a system they put on diesel engines in 2004 to meet emission standards. An EGR equipped engine visits the shop 3 times more often than a non-egr motor.
hope this helps!

Forgot that---I have never used my washer/dryer or ice maker either and my slide out storage trays are to die for. My Winnebago has a lot of stuff my Monaco don't like a central vac system and the 2 stage shades on the Winnie are dark and keep out ALL the light, not so on the Monaco. Its also the one with the sliding trays in the storage bays, and has entertainment center in bedroom and basement. Winnie also has a refrigerator/ freezer on slides in the basement. It also has a basement heat pump which will freeze you out of there and for some reason much more storage than the Monaco. If you are buying used don't waste time with the entry level coaches, they are just that, entry level. Beaver, Monaco, top of the line Winnebago, those are the good ones. Also don't forget the 10,000lb hitch and pay attention to the distance from the back wheel to the end of the coach--shorter is better. I'll probably think of more

Wow! Lots of good information there. Thanks

Some things to watch for:

Hours on genset and maintenance?
Hot water heaters need replacement as they rust out.
Tire replacement can be costly, make price adjustment if it needs tires
Most older coaches that lived outside will have leaked in the roof
Climb up on roof and inspect, a coach with roof leaks especially let go will be a problem
Look on ceilings and interior walls for water marks
330 horse or bigger
Less slides are better on the older units
Go get your class A non CDL to avoid issues down the road

JMO

The diesel pushers frim the late 90’s to maybe 2000-2001 might have a LP powered front mount old style Onan generator. They work fine when all is ok but burn a lot of LP and some MH’s had 2 separate propane tanks because of that issue. Propane is not cheap and the unit is derated compared to gas or diesel. The early Onan diesel 7.5’s from that era could easily need a big dollar repair. I’ve seen 20 year old MH’s with next to no hours on the gensets. They deteriorate from age and lack of use. Lots of owners never use them as they plug in at campgrounds. Just because it’s low hours, doesn’t mean it’s in good shape. No real way to tell unfortunately. The 7.5’s have a rotor with epoxied magnets and they can and do come loose. Big repair or replace the unit. Not a low cost deal either way. I have fixed a number of them. Great machines if in good shape and can go thousands of hours. I feel like they are better off if used regularly and taken care of. Uses a Kubota engine....

SC my Winnebago has over 4000hrs on the Onan 7500. I run it all the time and it gets regular service. I don't remember it ever having any trouble. The Monaco 7500 don't have any way to tell how many hours are on it that I know of. Is there a way to check?

I agree with low hours not necessarily being a good thing. With any generator, motor or anything I think it is a good idea to start it up at least once a month and run it for a few minutes to lubricate the cylinder walls and keep carb from gumming up.

I prefer the generator to be diesel and ran off main tank to eliminate the propane and that hassle.
On the tires yes it is a good idea to look at age and mileage.
As for no slides being hard to sell is a huge reason I am considering one with no slides. I am looking for best value and there will usually only be me and maybe girlfriend once in a while. Do not need much room. But I do need good towing capacity.

Thanks for all the tips and warnings what to look for.

Fern some have Hour meters right by the switch on the machine. I’m surprised you don’t have an hour meter inside the coach by the remote switch. Some have more than one remote start stop switches and an hour meter at one of those switches. No other way to tell hours on a machine. The same Kubota engine is used in a lot of diesel welders. They run at higher rpm and get worked pretty hard compared to in an Onan generator. They usually last at least 5000 hours. I have one in my shop right now that has well over 6000hrs and still runs decent. The added rpm shortens their life span in those welders.

side radiator
hyd fan

Side radiator is a good one Mr Rusty!

SC there are 3 places inside to start the generator but don't have any hour meter inside. I'll check outside today but Winny has meter Monaco don't. I was going to mention side radiator, got treed. I had to replace the rear radiator in the Winnebago and it cost over $2000.

DO NOT GET A COACH WITH A RUBBER ROOF....nothing but a maintenance nightmare

Fern,

Every Onan diesel I have ever owned, has had an hour meter right near the start switch.

How have you known when to change the oil, if you had no hour meter?

I have a 02 Journey with a 300HP 5.9 Cummings and it tows fine. I don't remember the block number, think 054 or 056 are the bad blocks. I will say this though, if you tow a heavy trailer and deal with lots of big hills then I'd say get a bigger motor but for what I do the 5.9 is good.