What do you have?

[lateapex911]

Originally posted by Tak:
I'm seriously considering a Toureg V10 TDI--VW claims 25-30 MPG unloaded. Has anyone driven one? They claim a 7700# trailer capacity!

Tak

That thing is pretty cool. BIG torque....IIRC, well over 400 or 500 ft lbs...I bet it gets 20+mpg all the time.



------------------
Jake Gulick
CarriageHouse Motorsports
ITA 57 RX-7
New England Region
[email protected]

[apr67]

Does the VW weigh enough to tow comfortably?

I really think it gets sketchy when you have similar weights between tow and toad. When the weights get close, you have to be much more careful with loading, and such.

On the other hand, pull a 10,000lbs trailer with a 20,000lbs RV and you just about can't misload the trailer.

Alan

[B Schley]

grega-
Thanks for the upadate. I would concur with everything you said. How many miles are on the van? I've found that since my Excursion has gotten over 40,000 the V-10 has really broken in and started performing better all the way around. I agree, I'd rather have the diesel. Keep me posted when you use the two car trailer.
Thanks,
Bill

[Richy Gonzalez]

I posted it before but here a pic.
01 Ford SuperCrew
Lowered 3/4 with BellTech kit
Air Bags in rear to assist in towing
20inch Enkei's in Charcoal (no bling here)



------------------
Richy Gonzalez
GB Racing - #24 ITA CRX
LAMIN-X Protective Films

[Quickshoe]

Originally posted by lateapex911:
Ahh....a Prevost! NOW were talkin'!

But I'd have to sell the house to get one!

At least you could sell your house to buy one! Even in so-cal where my home value has increased over 400% in the 15 years I have been carrying a mortgage. I couldn't sell it if I owned it free and clear and buy a new Prevost. Let's see $400K down, finance $600K at 5% for 30 years is +/- $4000/month.

[lateapex911]

Originally posted by Quickshoe:
At least you could sell your house to buy one! Even in so-cal where my home value has increased over 400% in the 15 years I have been carrying a mortgage. I couldn't sell it if I owned it free and clear and buy a new Prevost. Let's see $400K down, finance $600K at 5% for 30 years is +/- $4000/month.

Laughing....OK, I'd have to sell BOTh the houses, AND buy used! Very used!

Well, thats a bubble that's now burst forever!



------------------
Jake Gulick
CarriageHouse Motorsports
ITA 57 RX-7
New England Region
[email protected]

[Quickshoe]

Jake,

There is still hope. Here is a semi-fancy Prevost. Of course the reserve hasn't been met, you'll also have to make do with a 5 year old coach, no plasma TV, no granite countertops or heated marble floors, on top of that the cabinetry is laminate.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAP...&category=50056



------------------
Daryl DeArman

[RonInSD]

Originally posted by Quickshoe:
At least you could sell your house to buy one! Even in so-cal where my home value has increased over 400% in the 15 years I have been carrying a mortgage. I couldn't sell it if I owned it free and clear and buy a new Prevost. Let's see $400K down, finance $600K at 5% for 30 years is +/- $4000/month.

You don't have to purchase new you can build it yourself.

I purchased a '86 seated coach and I am currently building it out to my floor plan.

There are a couple site that talk about doing your own conversion.

http://www.busnut.com
http://www.busconversions.com

I have some older picture up on my web site at:

http://sio.midco.net/rleiferman/thebus.html

There is a link I at the bottom that show some progress shots.

I need to load some more picture up to the web site.

I am doing my own conversion because I did not like how most motorhome are already overloaded and they are bear to drive in a light wind. The coach handles great and I don't even know the car is back there. (I check the mirrors when turning just to make sure..)

Ron Leiferman
Sioux Falls, SD


http://sio.midco.net/rleiferman/thebus.html

[Dave Hardy]

Care to share costs on the bus conversion? I love the idea.

[RonInSD]

Originally posted by Dave Hardy:
Care to share costs on the bus conversion? I love the idea.

I have got around $30,000 invested so far. That includes bus, covering the windows, painting the outside, insulation, covering the inside, A/C, heater, 7.5Kw Onan diesel genset, toilet, shower, bathroom sink, and tanks. The bath room has yet to be installed.

I still have to purchase: refrigerator, stove, sink, kitchen cabinets, living rooms stuff and flooring.

I think I will have another $10,000 in costs before it is totally complete. That will be mostlikely spread over the next couple years unless the loto pays off.

I am using it while I am building it so it does not end up being a potato in the driveway. That has slowed down some of the work but it has give me things to work towards. Have it stipped by this event. Have the bed built by this event. Having A/C installed by this day, etc.

You can reduce your costs by purchasing a cheaper coach then a Prevost to start with but I liked the looks and Prevost have a full frame under them so they can tow a 20,000 lbs trailer without a problem.

Most coaches are 40 foot long and about 11 foot high so make sure you have the space to park them and work on them.

There are a number of cheap MCI 9's on the market right now that can be had for $10,000 to $15,000. Have it check over by a pro before buying and watch out for rust around the windows.

One of the biggest things I would say to anyone thinking about the idea of building a coach conversion is to spend a lot on of time looking around at different coaches and talking with other people even before you buy one.

Coaches are like a semi truck. The smallest part feels like it weights 30 lbs and you can't get it at NAPA so you have to really think about things. I spent a lot of time looking for a coach that had a rebuilt motor and trans so I did not have to worry about the major parts.

The one things I wish I would have done was spent more time looking at older band buses with the bunks. They can be found around the Nashvillie area at a good price and the power trains normailly have been taken care of very well. An they also have big genset sets already installed. They only lack big bathrooms and showers. You can pull out a stack of bunks and install a bathroom.

If you have any questions or would like to know more I can be reached at [email protected].

[OTLimit]

The Prevost project sounds a lot like our Freightliner odyssey, but the coach will probably be done sooner than ours (7 yrs and counting). The good news is that it might actually be usable by the Run Offs, as long as nothing nasty happens at MAM or Topeka. It might be barely licensed as an RV, but it will sure beat worrying about scales ever again.

------------------
Lesley Albin
Over The Limit Racing
Blazen Golden Retrievers

[lateapex911]

Man that Prevost project is COOL!

Good thing I can't fit my current 20 something foot trailer in my driveway as it is or I'd be jonesing for sure!

Keep the updates coming.

Any issues with your drivers lic or permits or other official crap?

------------------
Jake Gulick
CarriageHouse Motorsports
ITA 57 RX-7
New England Region
[email protected]

[RonInSD]

Originally posted by lateapex911:
Man that Prevost project is COOL!

Good thing I can't fit my current 20 something foot trailer in my driveway as it is or I'd be jonesing for sure!

Keep the updates coming.

Any issues with your drivers lic or permits or other official crap?

I did not have any problems getting it licensed. The bus dealer that I purchased it from changed the Title over to a motorhome type. That costed me $130 but when I got back to South Dakota all I had to do is go to the Pilot Truck stop and get a weight ticket.

It is insured with my State Farm agent. Progressive will also insure a bus conversion.

Since it is licensed as a motorhome you don't need a special license to drive it.
I do have a Class A CDL but it is not need for this unit. Since it is 40 foot long and a trailer behind it it help to have some experiance on driving long setup.

The funny part of driving a coach is that you sit in front of the steer tires so when you make a really tight turn go feel you body going sideways more then ahead.

[Ron Earp]

As the newbie here and trying to learn what this endeavour is going to cost me the tow rig is going to be much more than my car, at least initially.

I need a trailer, but want to get an aluminum one to keep weight down and keep my tow options broader. I'll be towing with a car for the first year, something that appears to be unheard of here, but that is the breaks.

The diesel Toureg would be a great car and maybe in a year or so my wife could be convienced to go for it since she could drive it as an everyday car.

------------------
Ron
http://www.gt40s.com
Lotus Turbo Esprit
BMW E36 M3
RF GT40 Replica
Jensen-Healey: IT prep progressing!

[mustanghammer]

"Anyone out there pulling with a Ford Triton V-10?"

Grega - we use a 2002 E350 15 passenger van with a V10 pulling a 16 foot open trailer. The van works great and was a real bargain at $16K with 27K miles on the clock when we bought it. I have a friend with an F350/V10 combo and he is really happy as well.

The Van offers all of the advantages that others have mentioned (space, place to sleep, escape weather etc) plus it is cheap! Last year there were 20-30 E350's in the KC area that ranged in price from 16-19K. We bought one with the towing package and got the factory hitch, wiring and extra cooling.

Scott