ADVICE PLEASE

You sure jumped in with both feet. Starting with the house power, since you have two batteries connected together if one is dead it will take out the second. Connected together you have to think of the two batteries as one. The batteries are the life blood of the house. Nothing will work if the batteries are dead. Fridge, A/C, heat (thermostats are DC), water pump, lights,,,,. You can get by using a car battery while you're getting the coach up to your standards but you will need a deep cycle battery(s) before heading out on the road. A car battery powering the house just won't last very long doing so.

Generator starting power can be either the engine or house batteries depending on how the builder wired the coach. I would guess the Coronado is wired to start off the house batteries which is why you can't get it to start.

The main and aux switches above the door are used to disconnect the house and engine batteries when you are not using the coach. Should be two maybe three big high current solenoids somewhere that the switches control but if the batteries are dead you don't have power to close the switches. Power flow is batteries - disconnect solenoids - fuse panel - loads. There could be a circuit breaker here and there but normally with DC fuses are use.

I don't know enough about your chassis to venture into it but there are many how do and will. Value is a difficult target to hit especially with older rigs. Demand will have an effect but prior owner maintenance is top of the list. What ends the useful life of a coach is water leaks, aka RV cancer. About the same as rust on a car but the problem is the damage is usually between the walls where you can't see it. If the past owners maintained it and stayed on top of keeping water out you should have a solid coach that will give you many years of adventures.

Get your batteries working before you try to figure out anything else.
If they're dead or weak, you can't diagnosis the other problems.

Start with making sure the terminals are clean and tight. Then see if they will take and hold a charge.

I have a 96 Southwind and if the terminals get a little corrosion (even if they look clean) it will cause electrical problems.

This may help you understand your electric system, The 12 Volt Side of Life.

Keep us updated on your progress.

X2 on the above post ,two new batteries then start fixing things one at a time.

Fatnjoe12, the value would be on the date that you bought it plus the trade/cash.

So, what did you trade for it? (we all want to know). :@ :@ :@

You might have a value of -$5,000 as you need to spend some money to getter-going!

Keep us posted on how of this pans out.

Good luck and safe travels,
MM.

Like everyone else said, fix the house batteries first. They also power the starter on the generator.

The Chevy chassis could have either disc or drums in the back depending on how big it is and how it's configured. My 30-footer has the bigger 19.5" wheels and 4-wheel discs. But some had drums, too. Smaller ones (under 30 feet) had 16" wheels and drums. You can easily see which you have through the holes in the wheels. Discs are easy, drums a bit harder. It's probably a P-30 chassis.

As far as value goes, it's all in the enjoyment you get out of it. You have a money pit now. If it needs tires, the value is close to zero.

Get a 12/120 volt Voltmeter.

I too believe that replacing batts will be first. As stated, if they are bad, 12v in general will not work.

Is there a boost for 12v to cross over from engine/chassis to house? This might get the gen started. You may need to disconnect the house bats, if bad. Is converter or inverter/charger working? If plugged in, and working, that would give you 12v (14+) to start and test genny.

Thank you everyone for the input. First I will be getting 2 new deep cycle batteries this weekend and go from there. To answer a few questions: it is a 33' and I knew I could tell which brakes it has by looking. I'm just a little over 2 hrs away from it now and I didn't know if there was a standard style brakes for this model. As for the trade I traded a 2000 F350 7.3 w/256,000 miles. Ran great but has pretty bad body rust. I think I got the better end of the deal even with the minor problems with the motor home. It has no water leaks at all and is very clean. Just has these small things which I hope with new batteries it will be fixed. Thanks everyone

Fatnjoe12 wrote:
2000 F350 7.3 w/256,000 miles. Ran great but has pretty bad body rust. I think I got the better end of the deal even with the minor problems with the motor home.

I'd say you did well. Obviously you traded one type of vehicle for something completely different, but if you're like me you'll come to love the RV even with their quirks. There's nothing like driving all the comforts of home from place to place. I love the self-contained aspect of them, too. Good luck!

Fatnjoe12, from your explanation, looks like you did very good. Now you can have some fun!

MM.