92 Coachmen Ram Van resuscitation project...

I've been away from Sam and motor homes for about ten years, but now I'm back with a great project van. My last projects were a 70 Winnie Chief and then a 92 Coachmen prestige 5th wheeler. This time around, I'm mostly Boon docking now so its a whole different type of RVing for us.

We found a well used but serviceable 92' Coachmen built B van with a 3500 series extended chassis in need of, well, a lot..

my wife trying to hide... :)

mechanical engine work so far-
• Full major tune up
• R134a conversion
• new heater core
• new exhaust
• new Oil/ speedo sensors, probably need a speedo
• coolant exchange
• still needs exhaust manifold gaskets, valve cover gaskets

Mechanical Coach-
• replaced coach 12v breakers (2) and Coils (2)
• Waste valves (2 needed , 1 to go)
• upgraded to LED house lighting
• Furnace repaired and updated thermostat (to "auto" fan model)
• Flushed and sterilized fresh water tank
• Replaced rear door assembly (dented, wouldn't close properly)
• Will replace dented side door
• Eventually a new paint job outside, not a priority
• add small Honda 2k generator or equivalent

the above was enough to get us on the road and we went on a 500 mile round trip with two nights and three days camping. Not everything worked as it should, but I was able to wither improvise or rig up solutions (mostly power related) that got us through the trip fairly comfortably.

and the "new" door...these are hard to find!

we also made another to do list, and luckily most all items in are already my garage or on their way, just need the time to install:
• replace all carpet and add insulation/sound deadener (Obtained commercial indoor/outdoor grade Remnant cheap)
• sand and paint interior cabinets (special laminate paint)
• Add interior cabinet lighting
• Add water filtration system (ordered basic under counter particulate)
• Add Solar Panels (ordered 50w system to start)
• Add Strip lighting
• Repair leaky Hot Water dispenser faucet
• Add Propane hot water heater and outdoor shower (Ordered)
• repair on jack knife couch bracket (complete, sort of)
• Add 120v inverter
• Add Video system and back up camera
• Add parking sensors

The biggest issue I'm having at the moment is getting the 12v system to work on its own. I have to jump out the house battery coil, even after replacing both coils and breakers. the 12v switch does nothing, so I'm tracing out those lines and looking for additional fuses or a line break. The fridge heats up on the coil side, but does not cool, so that will come out and get stood on its head for a few days and well cross our fingers...

will add pictures soon..

Class B

16 Replies

924guy
Explorer
Apr 28, 2015
I built the solar kit from parts i collected off of ebay over time. after doing some research i decided to bolt the panel to the ac shroud and also use the a/c wire routing for the panel wires, worked out well. I had the new electric refrigerator running on high , off the battery for the past two days with only the panel to recharge it (in partial sun.) The voltage dropped to 11.8, a >2v drop is not bad for a 24 hr a day draw. with other accessories running, I may need more power so ill likely install another panel, well see how it goes.
jjrai
Explorer
Apr 28, 2015
Nice van. Where did you get your solar setup? Do you like how it wires one?
924guy
Explorer
Apr 26, 2015
Spending to much time making a living lately, but we have started to cross a few items off the list.

I installed a 50w solar panel to maintain the house battery, which i also replaced and upgraded to a 110AH rated everstart, so its probably a 80 ah. But, thats okay, the price was good and i have plans to add a second panel and battery as we camp in places without power and have to make our own. the first panel went on top of the ac housing, which I reinforced and needed to repair anyhow.

We replaced the 6" broken vanair roof vent with a new, almost identical model, but this one has an exhaust fan (caught a sale on amazon and saved $20 buck!) Luckily, I was able to tap into the interior light circuit and didnt have to run any wire. downside is that that the lighting circuit has to be energized for it work. no big deal. Im still scraping the duct tape of my hands that was covering the old vent..

and today's BIG job was replacing the fridge. After trying every thing i could think of, and some things i couldnt, I decided the existing fridge was simply not going work again without a coil flush and r717 recharge. Not something i am able to do, and couldn't find any r717, A new cooling unit was close to $500 so i went for replacement. I found one that was larger, and snatched it up since it was an great deal, only to find that its too deep to work. And i was all ready to sacrifice our wardrobe closet too.. oh well. I then found a marine norcold 12/24v -115v unit, no gas but also a good deal and works great. 2.5 " wider doesn't seem like much, until you try and fit the unit in. basically i needed to rip out the entire existing cabinet facing, drawers, supports etc.. and build a new frame around the new fridge. The finish work isnt complete yet as i ran out of time and wanted to make sure it was at least enclosed before our trip next week, but the unit is in, and working great.

weve also replaced all the interior lightbulbs with LED units, got the 12v tap water heater working, installed a drinking water tap and filter (and flushed/sterilized the water tank) and some other things. not bad for working on it one day a month.. more to follow...
Snowman9000
Explorer
Jan 31, 2015
Nice project, I like it. All those things are fixable in DIY mode, which is great.
Traveler7
Explorer
Jan 28, 2015
Great Pics amd project, funny, many of your punch list and repair items are identical to mine- Thanks for sharing!!!!
azrving
Explorer
Jan 28, 2015
I dont know your electrical experience so excuse me if you already understand this. People often times are used to systems that use a frame ground and dont realize that rv type stuff goes off of 2 wires. Yes the negative is the ground but there is a lot more territory for that ground to be lost. Often times it's still basic connection problems, not breaks in the wire midstream. When you say coil I assume you mean solenoid? If it has 2 wires and not grounded at the solenoid, check for a good negative as well as a positive. People often focus on the positive only in 2 wire systems.

If you dont know when they were last replaced it may be good to replace all the hoses and belts. The chain is only as strong as the weakest link so small heater hose and bypass type hose need to be replaced too.

You mentioned a 2000 watt generator. So you want to power the ac? A 2000 watt Honda will power some ac units and the one on your rig would seem to be on the small side but check into it first. Some have a hard time starting ac. I remember seeing a van with a cage built on the back door to secure a Honda. It was a nice set up and very quiet. If you do something like that come up with a way to have multiple levels of security. A pad lock can be easily snipped and the generator easily lifted out and gone. For example find a way to bolt it in then and another way to bolt a bracket around it then lock the ventilated cage. Every system can be defeated but the simple cable or lock snips are the quick easy ones. You cant make it impossible but dont make it easy. People have had generators stolen in the day time buy snatch and run artists.

What are you using for battery power? A good up grade is 2 6 volt deep cycles. As far as charging, come up with a good battery charger that can hit 15.5 volts and you will cut down on your generator run time and be able to equalize. If you have a converter, depending on what the charging voltage is it may take many hours or days to fully charge.

Post pics of wiring or solenoid/relay/switch problems and someone in here will help. Enjoy your camper.

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92 Coachmen Ram Van resuscitation project...

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