Advice on purchase: Manadalay 40E and Monaco Dynasty???

dynasty.

Your observations and info are invaluable! The more, the better. We appreciate it all!

Mike, long replies are great when they contain great information. Thank you!

JetA, thank you very much for the wrist pin engine issue info. We will check the engine numbers on any coach we see! That is so critical!

Okay, I will jump on the Dynasty band wagon here as well. We have been quite pleased with our 03 Dynasty. I agree with the "best bang for the buck". We noticed this as we were looking and were actually able to get a 2003 for the similar price of a 1999-2000 Exec/Sig loaded very similar except with the ISL rather than either the M11 or the ISM (depending on years). The Exec and Sig. have the higher HP/torque engines with the Allison 4000 series transmission but also have a 4.30:1 gear ratio whereas the Dynasty has the 4.78:1 gear ratio. The mechanical advantage of the lower gear ratio on the smaller engine helps dramatically as the Dynasty is a heavy coach. I would compare the Dynasty to the other two upper models as having the same meat and potatoes and less of the frills or "fluff" as the Exec. and Sig. models. Nothing wrong with that, I like fluff but in our price range we wanted a solid coach and didn't need as much flash, nor afford the flash. Ours was loaded up with all of the options we wanted such as air leveling, Aqua-Hot, walnut interior, triple roof air units and a 10k watt Onan QD all in a 40' coach(didn't want to go to 42'). Almost unheard of in a 40' coach but the original/previous owners who ordered the coach must have been tapped into my mind when they ordered "our" coach for us.:)

That said, I would suggest looking closely at a couple of things when looking at coaches. The Aqua-Hot units built in 2002 and earlier had the domestic water line wrapped around the exterior of the boiler tank held on by a heat transferring paste. This was a good design but in these units I feel they did a poor job of brazing/silver soldering the copper neck onto the steel boiler tank. I think they used too little of solder and didn't flow it out well enough.

When we purchased ours we had a glycol leak that took me a bit to locate. Personally, I think the previous owners knew this and this is why they opted to trade it in on a new coach. I finally narrowed it down to the Aqua Hot unit itself as the leaking point but could not pinpoint it exactly due to access being somewhat limited. I removed the Aqua-Hot unit and set it up on the workbench so I could do some bench testing. Almost immediately I noticed that the tank would not hold a vacuum but it would hold pressure. I had two testers in which I was using to locate the leak. It was right where the neck and boiler tank met. Easy fix, unsoldered the connection, cleaned and re-soldered it. I also added a bit more solder around the seam as some "added insurance" so it wouldn't happen again.

About a year later my aunt/uncle's 1998 Beaver Marquis developed the same exact symptom and I walked right the issue. Later my cousin's 1998 Signature developed the same exact leak.

In late 2002/early 2003 according to Aqua-Hot (previously known as Vehicle Systems Inc.) they redesigned their domestic line/boiler tank. Now the domestic water line runs internally in the boiler tank. I have heard it is a better design, however, I am not convinced it is better, just different design is all I am going to say. Where the copper fittings go into the steel tank there is a possiblility of leaking at this point of intrusion.

Now on to the chassis, you will love the Roadmaster S-Series chassis. It is a semi-monocoque design and is probably one of the best in the industry. Actually the Country Coach Magna and Affinity on the Dynomax chassis are very similar only with IFS. There is a long debate on IFS vs. outboard mounted airbags but that would be almost a book and there are already multiple threads on the subject if you would like to search. Personally, I like the outboard mounted airbags and the stability that it provides. The ride of the dual outboard mounted airbags is a little more firm compared to the IFS which feels a bit more "cooshy" if that makes sense. The Newells and Prevost coaches use a similar chassis design only more of a full mononocoque design.

One thing that I would suggest looking at on the Roadmaster chassis is where the tag axle vertical supports are welded to the main frame rails. Under normal driving conditions this should never be an issue, however, if for some reason the coach is towed improperly, such as with a front wheel lift, this puts extreme pressures on the tag axle. Pressures and force which the axle was not designed to handle. I have seen these vertical supports break loose from the main frame rails on a couple of coaches and the owners didn't even know it. And yes they had recently been towed. This is why Monaco, as well as other manufacturers, ONLY recommend towing their tag axle coaches via a lowboy trailer, not a front wheel lift.

In approx. 2008 model year Roadmaster S-Series chassis, they added some rather large gussets on these vertical tag axle supports. I was lucky to have a great dealer who let me use one of the new coaches he had on his lot to make some patterns. I fabricated and welded these gussets onto my older 2003 Dynasty (built on a 2002 chassis).

Sorry for the lengthy description but I don't think you can go wrong with the mid-2000 era Dynasty coaches as far as quality and amenities for your money. Ours just turned over 95k miles and is still rock solid going down the highway.

Mike.

I second the Monaco. When I have the option, I choose it over the newer Itasca we have.

I think the '04-'06 Dynasty's are the best bang for your buck, of course I'm a bit biased. There was a wrist pin issue on some ISL motors built in those years. ESN's from 46543077 to 46603939, this is independent of MH manufacturer. I would stay away from those engines.

Look for Aqua Hot and Air leveling, there were a few ordered without them.

Good Luck!

Falconman, I would definitely pass on that Dynasty that you mentioned unless you can get it for a steal.

An '05 Dynasty is similar to our '08.

I've replaced my 'red hat' valve twice just getting the new one a couple of months ago. This valve is what allows you to put water in your fresh-water tank through the shore water hose. Both times, the valve stuck in the fresh water fill position. This time, I bought the valve myself and had it installed so it came with directions. They say to use it monthly to keep it from sticking (now I know).

Our coolant tank on the engine has been replaced twice and it looks like I'm going to have to get another one. The current one is one year old and passed its warranty. The recent repair on it didn't work, it is leaking at the top fittings. The JB weld that the Cummins shop put on it didn't take so now that I'm 2,000 miles away from the shop, I may as well get a new box and be done with it.

I try to keep on top of maintenance and repairs so there is never a long list. Whoever gets our coach will get a super well maintained unit (new tires and AGM batteries). You might find it at a consignment shop in about 8-10 months as we are thinking of trading up to our last coach.


One thing I can say about the Monaco line of coaches, is that they had beautiful woodwork and fit and finish. Especially in their upper end coaches.

MM.

Agree on the monaco. The 8 bag chassis models, kinght, diplomat, and HR ambasador and endeaver, are head and shoulders above the mandolay.
A Dynasty, that's not even on the same street.

Passin Thru wrote:
One thing to look for is that a lot of RV have wasted floor space down the center. All the furniture is against the walls so 4 ft xtra on each side is just hauling around another couple tons of air. There are quiet ones out there but even your silverware will rattle a little. Turn up the music!

As someone who carries 150 pounds of 2 dawgs, as well as 250 pounds of 2 teenagers, there is no wasted space down the cetner. ("wasted space" shared by all 3 and 4 slide motorhomes)

I would not trade the interior space of my 4 slide fortyfooter for anything

In my opinion you can not do better for the money than a well equipped mid-2000 Dynasty. The tag axel S Chassis is a very solid and stable platform. A real pleasure to drive and your observation is right... they have a very nice fit and finish with high end materials. The wood is exceptional. Be sure to look for high end options like the residential fridge and Aquahot when comparing. Dynasty's are commonly equipped with those and buying used you'll be getting them for a bargain. They are nice to have. Take your time... I own a '07 Dynasty and so I'm always looking to see what they're going for and I've seen some real eye opener deals over the years.

One thing to look for is that a lot of RV have wasted floor space down the center. All the furniture is against the walls so 4 ft xtra on each side is just hauling around another couple tons of air. There are quiet ones out there but even your silverware will rattle a little. Turn up the music!