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ERNIEE · 04-01-2017, 08:18

Went to get the coach yesterday after they said it was completed. First thing I noticed was the coolant door flopping in the breeze. Second, since I have the riveted coach, that the driver access doors were not secured. Wonder what else they forgot? Well, aired the coach up and the tag bag fitting was really leaking. They fixed that. What next? The Schrader valve by the rear bumper was dumping air so fast that the coach came down with the key off in 5 minutes. Now, with the ringing in my 69 year old ears, you would think Prevost would be a bit more thorough than this. Guess I will have to check their "completion" myself from now on

davidbrady · (This post was last modified: 04-01-2017 15:53 by travelite.)

Sucks Ernie. I guess this is what they call the "red carpet" treatment. Hopefully they get it all resolved for you. Definitely worth filing a complaint with the service manager.

I guess not all Prevost Service Centers are created equally. I've heard great things about Jacksonville, I dread going to Nashville, they move at a snails pace and there're some techs there I try to avoid. The best I've experienced was Redmond, BC just outside of Vancouver, but that's a bit of a hike! Smile

I bought my bus in Kamloops, BC and after finalizing the deal I headed straight to the Redmond shop for fluids and filters and whatever else they could find. They were thorough, efficient, and had great senses of humor. Canadians are very proud of the Prevost bus as they should be.

***cmillsap*** · (04-01-2017)

There is no excuse for poor service and it goes without saying that the service is only as good as the willingness of the tech to be thorough.

I do not like to drop my coach off for service for several reasons. First off, given the complex nature of coach issues, it’s much easier to verbally get the Tech to understand the problem and what you want done other than to try to describe the issue on a written service order. If you have the time to spend, staying with your coach during the service procedure will usually produce a more comprehensive job by the Techs. I think that is true at Prevost service centers as well as any other service center you may visit.

I’ve found that both Prevost and Marathon don’t mind owner oversite during the service process. Sometimes when I have been under the bus with the Tech, he would even point out another issue he noticed that needed attention.

ERNIEE · 04-02-2017, 11:40

When I first dropped the coach off, I asked if I could look under it on the lifts. Since knowing quite a lot about Bluebirds and air systems, I didn't want to be replacing air bags just because the service writers wanted me to. The shop foreman was the fella that put all the jacks in place and raised the coach. The bags look fine- the push on fitting were suspect. I also noted that since the generator was replaced and a new muffler and exhaust pipe were installed, that the support fitting were bad and that there was bailing wire holding up the muffler and that was secured to a hydraulic fitting. That has since been fixed. Overall, their service and attitude was customer oriented.
I didn't stay there as they said the 2nd shift would be the ones working on it. That seemed odd to me.

ERNIEE · 04-03-2017, 18:58

Monday is a new day and a better one at that. Bim and I went to Prevost this am to get the belts so I can attend a rally Thursday. I met with Marcello as Jason was ill. He said Hello Mr Ernie, we have been expecting you. Ok. The branch manager walked up and introduced himself and asked what was going on. I told everyone that a belt shattered about a mile from my home and that I wanted to buy that and 3 more and go back and install them. Marcello said if the coach was here they would install them. I told them since it was the radiator fan belt that let go, I cannot drive the coach. The branch manager told Marcello that Prevost needs to go over to my home- about an hours drive and install the belts today.
I was shocked. Marcello said that the tech would call about an hour before he arrived- and he did. Dale showed up at my door and was very polite, answered any questions I had about the coach and showed me the procedure to change belts, if this ever happens again. He was very thorough and I was impressed with his demeanor. So today turned out to be an excellent day- till I found a coolant hose leak in my generator. Tuesday, I'll do surgery on that.

davidbrady · 04-03-2017, 20:31

Now that's how it's done and that's why we own a Prevost Mr. Ernie. Smile

Is there a trick to replacing those belts? I have yet to do that on my coach.

ERNIEE · (04-04-2017)

the only trick is the 60 serpentine. loosen a couple of nuts then the tensioner, that mechanism moves, slide it down, and belt slides off. the other belts are so loose without the air bag inflation, come right off
even an old geezer can do it

davidbrady · (This post was last modified: 04-04-2017 14:05 by davidbrady.)

Thanks Ernie,

While we're on the subject, assuming Prevost hasn't done it already, you may want to check your fan hub. I think Prevost's now on their third generation fan hub. With the tensioning air bags dumped, and the engine stop switch thrown in the engine compartment, spin the fan 360 deg in it's normal direction of travel. It should spin freely with no noise and no resistance. In my opinion, the fan drive system on a Prevost is far better than the hydraulic system we had in our Blue Birds, but we do need to keep an eye on the fan hub. Part of my pre-departure is to freewheel the fan looking for unimpeded motion. I had my hub replaced up in Redmond, BC when I bought the coach. If you have a fan hub mechanical failure you're SOL, but if you have an electrical failure you can lock the hub so the fan spins constantly. It's a temporary fix designed to get you to the next service center. On your year of XL I think the locking bolt is located in the center of the fan shaft on the engine side. Remove it and screw it into the locking plate on the clutch:

If you have a second generation fan hub like mine, the four red capped bolts in the attached pic are the locking bolts. In case of electrical failure remove the red bolts and screw them into the 4 threaded holes in the hub (two of the holes are shown):

The third generation has a stud, nut and plate. You unlock the plate and slide it over:

***cmillsap*** · (04-04-2017)

(04-03-2017 18:58)ERNIEE Wrote: Monday is a new day and a better one at that. Bim and I went to Prevost this am to get the belts so I can attend a rally Thursday. I met with Marcello as Jason was ill. He said Hello Mr Ernie, we have been expecting you. Ok. The branch manager walked up and introduced himself and asked what was going on. I told everyone that a belt shattered about a mile from my home and that I wanted to buy that and 3 more and go back and install them. Marcello said if the coach was here they would install them. I told them since it was the radiator fan belt that let go, I cannot drive the coach. The branch manager told Marcello that Prevost needs to go over to my home- about an hours drive and install the belts today.
I was shocked. Marcello said that the tech would call about an hour before he arrived- and he did. Dale showed up at my door and was very polite, answered any questions I had about the coach and showed me the procedure to change belts, if this ever happens again. He was very thorough and I was impressed with his demeanor. So today turned out to be an excellent day- till I found a coolant hose leak in my generator. Tuesday, I'll do surgery on that.

The “powers that be” such as the Branch Manager and the Service Manager and others that oversee the servicing of your bus highly depend upon their Techs to do the job properly. But time constraints and other demands make it an almost impossibility for them to check every detail of every job that their Techs do.

So, when you, as the customer, find the service on your bus to be less than acceptable, you should go see the Service Manager and politely express your concerns. Yes, I know that in a perfect world, you shouldn’t “have to” as you expected the job to be done right the first time. But sometimes it just isn’t.

Excellent customer service is a high priority at all the Prevost Service Centers that I have visited. They will appreciate you bringing to their attention any issue that negatively impacts their quality work and customer service.

Ernie’s post above detailing what the “powers that be” at Prevost Ft Worth did when they found that he had received less than proper service on his bus is a prime example of their dedication to doing the job right and providing excellent customer service.

ERNIEE · 04-04-2017, 19:54

David- when that belt was gone, I did spin the fan and noticed how nice and quiet it was. The tech who put the new belt on and then tested it by doing what he did in the above electrical cabinet- almost blew me past the doors of the engine compartment- what a rush of air.
Chuck, the service writer gave me a call this afternoon to see how things worked out. I told him, great, and have an appointment for OTR air check out on Monday