Pricey repairs

[Tom Warner]

Wallace I have no idea what your standards are when selecting a
coach. I suppose it depends a lot on how much of the maintenance and
repair you are capable of doing. But I noticed that you said there
were far to many problems including tires and batteries. Those two
items would not bother me in the least however I would reduce the
price I would pay for the coach by the amount to replace both of
those items. Same with other things that Ralph found.

I would guess there are others on this forum that are either
considering upgrading to a newer Bluebird or becoming first time
buyers. I would not want them to get the impression that anything
should be a show stopper when considering a coach. In my case when
looking for a Bluebird I would not consider any coach that had rust
on the chassis or body panels unless it was something that my local
Bluebird school bus dealer could not repair at an attractive price.

Bottom line in my opinion is to get a coach that either has been
maintained to a high standard or is offered at a price where it can
be upgraded to that level.

tom
1982 FC35
Vernon Center,NY


At 09:29 PM 10/19/2005, you wrote:
>Mike, saw your post so thought I would add my 2 cents. We (Ralph &
>I) looked at the 91 today and decided to pass. Won't bore you with
>details, but far too many problems to correct including new tires
>and probably batteries. Will keep the ear open for other deals.
>Regards;
>Wallace & Faye Craig
>
>mbulriss <mbulriss@...> wrote:
>Winston,
>
>Now that we see this, no wonder that owner scared you with his tales
>of expensive repairs! Interesting sales strategy on his part!
>
>As Scott and Ralph pointed out, we all need to be educated consumers
>and shop around if a quote seems to peg our BS sniffer meter. I hope
>that first guy you ran into is still holding the rusty exhaust
>pipe also!>
>
>Buddy Gregg service..... that explains a lot. I'll let Ralph comment
>further on that when he gets back into town, but if there's a way to
>make it expensive, Buddy's guys can do it. I asked them to check for
>a suspected air bag leak in a specific bag. Their response was
>$4,500-5,000 to replace all the air bags. They "wouldn't just replace
>one bag". Of course they never bothered to evn look at it either!
>Ralph freed up the sticky air valve for me at a Lone Star
>Birds rally with a $3 can of PB Blaster (I think it was). An air
>dryer filter R&R at Buddy's was I think a $600 or 700 quote (3-4 hours
>labor plus $100+ parts); versus the $32 filter and the hour and a half
>I took to do it myself! I work slow.....
>
>Since the owner mentioned Cat, I will assume that the 91 in question
>was an SP model. Can't speak to that model specifically; maybe Hank
>or someone else can comment on the $1500 of labor to change an
>alternator. I still can't fathom having to R&R the bumper to get to
>the alternator, nor can I see it taking more than 2 hours total to get
>that done. Makes the PT Detroits seem much easier to work on now!
>
>The comment about the Caterpiller shop having to "fabricate tools
>because they do not generally work on Bluebirds and their tools don't
>work" cracked me up. That's hilarious! Now I know Harley's have some
>special "factory only" tools, but I've never found anything on the
>Bird that wasn't readily available in my own set of "non-professional"
>tools, much less at a professional repair facility or dealer shop.
>
>While the prior owner seems to have delighted in throwing money away,
>you *can* find "competent" service facilities for more reasonable
>prices. Some people only go to their auto dealers for oil changes.
>Some people enjoy bragging about how much things cost them as
>a badge of their affulence. Most folks on these forums are more
>concerned with doing things a little more economically, and having it
>done right the first time.
>
>As was stated by several other members, you just have to be a smart
>consumer and seek advice when you need it, before you throw yourself
>to the wolves. I think the responses that you are seeing here should
>indicate that there are other ways to be sure things are fixed
>properly without just throwing $$$ at it with no questions asked.
>Please don't be scared off by this one owner. I hope that you are
>seeing by the responses here that the situation you have here seems to
>be an anomoly rather than the rule.
>
>Also, before you buy, you might want to consider having someone that
>really knows what they are doing, thoroughly check out the prospective
>Bird for you so that there are no expensive surprises.
>
>Good luck with your hunt!
>
>Mike Bulriss
>83 PT40 "Stagecoach" - For Sale
>91 PT40 "Texas Minivan"
>San Antonio, Texas
>
>
>
>--- In WanderlodgeForum@yahoogroups.com, winston barrows
>
>wrote:
> >
> > >maybe 4 hours.>>
> > Hi, Ralph,
> > According to the owner, the book is three hours bumper off and three
>hours bumper on for six hours. This is what he writes:
> >
> > I took my unit to Buddy Gregg, in Knoxville TN for service. $115.00
>per hour. the cost of parts will not be the shock. The shock is
>getting something done, done right, and done to the high expectations
>that Bluebird owners possess. By way of example, shortly after
>purchase, the fuel gauge went to "empty" even though it was clearly
>full. Buddy Gregg traced the repair to the sensor located at the top
>of the fuel tank. This is accessed through a door on the floor of the
>coach, which was overlayed with 3/4 inch plywood and the marble floor.
>the estimate to fix? $6-700, plus the $10.00 sending unit, but they
>could not replace the marble they would have to chisel out of the
>floor. Everything in a Bluebird is like that. I asked them to look at
>the alternator/battery system because the green dash light sometimes
>came on (which I now know is normal). They replaced the alternator.
>Cost of alternator (which I now do not believe had any problems) $350;
>Cost of labor to replace alternator?
> > $1,500. why so expensive? because they had to take the bumper off,
>and then take off all the belts and hoses in the engine. three hours
>off, and three hours on ( that is just the labor for the bumper). You
>don't even want to know what Caterpiller charges to look at Bluebirds.
>Caterpiller likes dealing with businesses that own tractors. Hell if
>you bill your tractor out for 2 or three hundred per hour, you can
>afford thousands to have a GED trained technician tell you you need a
>fuel filter, and then hand you a bill for $2,000, (labor at $130 per
>hour) plus materials (a $75.00 filter which should have been what was
>checked within the first hour). Of course, they have to bill 2 to
>three hours to put paper on the floor of the coach so they don't track
>in sludge, and then fabricate tools because they do not generally work
>on Bluebirds and their tools don't work.
> >
> > The original price you pay for a Bluebird doesn't really matter
>much. It is the beginning of a process that is akin to placing a
>vacuum cleaner on you wallet and watching the money dissapear. End of
>owner email text.
> > It seems to me that part of the responsibility of this forum should
>be to educate folks on the scale of economy of Wanderlodge ownership.
>A lot of people think Buddy Gregg is a reputable dealership and I'm
>not saying they aren't (especially since I've had no experience with
>them). So my logic is if such a competent repair shop costs so much,
>then what's it going to cost to go to the guy you'll educate?
> >
> > "Ralph L. Fullenwider" wrote:
> > Hello Winston:
> >
> > Mike B gave you some pretty good answers to your question. And yes,
>some
> > repairs can be costly, no question there. Blow a 12R 22.5 tire and
>wheel
> > wells along with various other damage can occur.
> >
> > As to the pricey alternator job, I agree it was pricey but
>necessary? Even
> > removing the bumper the un install and re install is maybe 4 hours.
>Perhaps
> > something else happened, like a broken bolt that had to be drilled out.
> > More than likely they 2 tech's on the job and charged for each
>tech.? That
> > is not right either, in my book. It would be interesting to have
>seen that
> > bill and what the write up was. No I am not defending that shop, in
>fact I
> > would be dubious of it.
> >
> > Part of what this and other Forums were started for was to help one
>another
> > as we can and also to list the "known" good shops around the Country to
> > take the birds to and then on the other hand, to know what shops not to
> > take them to. This Forum is intended to be a clearing house of seeking
> > answers to problems and so forth. Even if your not doing the repair
>work <
> > which, as Mike pointed out, will save one some money> one can come
>to the
> > forum's to try to get a better idea of what to expect when taking a
>Coach
> > to a shop. Information among us, is a powerful tool, and one that
>can help
> > you recognize if that shop or repair facility is running high on costs.
> >
> > Repairs on Birds, Prevost, Newell or any high line Coach will
>usually run
> > higher in some respects as they are far advanced machines with more
> > amenities than most others. With that advancement, comes the fact
>that a
> > tech has spent many an hour just learning the how the systems work and
> > those systems change almost daily at times. So yes, shops do ask for a
> > higher wage and get it because we are way past bailing wire and stickum.
> >
> > In my shop, I charge the $75.00 per hour plus parts rate and I work on
> > Birds. Though, as Mike told you, I have worked on Vectra's and
>bounders and
> > Fleetwood products at the same price. I am also one tech that
>prefers the
> > customer to be with me, if he/she so chooses as I am working on
>their coach.
> >
> > Bottom line is, information, data, questions and answers on the
>forum gives
> > anyone a powerful tool, and most of us have learned to use it along
>with
> > learning to do some things by our on hand. And in truth, most of
>those that
> > do some of the work, learns the systems in them, end up having a
>greater
> > sense of Ownership and the resultant pride that goes with. There is
>nothing
> > wrong with Birds and you won't find a better coach for not only fun
>but
> > safety out on the road.
> >
> > Safe travels,
> >
> > Ralph and Charolette Fullenwider
> > Ralph's RV Solutions, Duncan, Oklahoma
> >
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> >