General Maintenance -
Guy - 11-12-2016
Gurus,
I have some general questions that I should know the answers to, but I don't ...
4 speed Allison transmission. Do I check fluid level as I would in a car? Warm transmission, engine running, trans in neutral?
Time to add some coolant, Its 2 " below the sight glass when cold. Has a bright green color to it. Was last serviced by the Detroit Diesel dealer in Sioux Falls, S.D.
Service receipt does not say what coolant was used. What should I add? Might be 2 gallons low. No evidence of a leak. Appears to have a new radiator cap.
Coach has 11R 24.5 tires. Have been running 100 lbs front, 95 rear. Is this ok?
I made quite a mess trying to add oil to the crankcase from the oil reservoir. This was the first oil needed in 2600 miles. I had opened the air pressure inlet, and opened the air " breather" thinking it was the outlet to to engine. I had not discovered the trigger valve releasing the oil to the engine. Needles to say, I made oil soup and blew about 2 quarts of it on me and the engine compartment. I'm sure I will not forget how to add oil in the future. How do you handle engine bay housekeeping? So far it's been paper towels and citrus based cleaner, but the results not as clean as I would like it. I have a pressure washer but am hesitant to use it in the engine compartment
RE: General Maintenance -
77newell - 11-13-2016
Guy:
Transmission, you got it.
Coolant:
http://wanderlodgegurus.com/attachment.php?aid=101
Color means nothing, you need a Coolant with SCA's, TMC-329 certified.
Tire pressures: pressures are determined by the weight the tires are carrying. Determine the weight on the tires and then use the tire manufacturer's chart to determine pressure. There is no standard tire pressure for our coaches. Based on weight my 77 coach required 85psi and my 93 coach requires 110/115psi for front/rear.
RE: General Maintenance -
folivier - 11-13-2016
Simple green works great for cleaning up your engine. Don't forget to clean your radiator also. Just take care not to bend the fins.
RE: General Maintenance -
Richard - 11-13-2016
If you use simple green or any other caustic based degreaser, rinse, rinse, rinse, and rinse some more. The caustic attacks aluminum.
RE: General Maintenance -
whatsnewell - 11-13-2016
Read the label......they will usually tell you if it is okay for aluminum, or not. I used to use Simple Green before I found out about the aluminum issue. Even though I rinse and rinse and rinse, I do like to let whatever I am using sit for a few minutes to work before rinsing it and the gunk it has loosened off. Usually I can find some sort of citrus based cleaner of which most seem to be okay for aluminum applications (Napa, Autozone, O'Reilley's, etc.).
On coolant I do use the Detroit Diesel product, Power Cool which happens to be reddish i color.