Cummins or Caterpillar ?

CJBROWN wrote:

ArchHoagland wrote:
Problems

More problems

Noticed these articles some time ago.

The comments are just as interesting. Man, those guys got the goose.

It sounds like DEF has been the greatest boon to the diesel engine market. DPF is what has been a lot of problems with Ford/Navistar as well. Overheating, frequent maintenance, poor fuel economy.

I keep hearing all over to stay away from Navistar. Then I heard Monaco had gone down that road...damn! The Knight was always a favorite of mine, 36 footer with a big block.

Anyway, the comment about all motors having issues is telling, however projected life at 750K so them being comfortable with half that should leave a motorhome owner with a lot of years before problems can start.

My sis has had several of the diesels, a couple of Tours and now a Entegra with the ISX - 600hp. They have mentioned overheating on all of them, climbing grades with a big toad. IMO that should not be happening. No permanent damage and no complete failure, but still. My 8.1 gas has had the******run out of it towing max weight on steep grades and never even a bump on the temp gauge.

The tendency for diesel pushers to run hotter than an OTR truck with the same diesel engine hauling more weight is partially due to the location of the power plant. DP's must pull air out the back (rear radiator rigs) or pull cool air in (side radiator rigs) for cooling. Neither of these configurations is as efficient as the front radiator OTR truck. Also, some of the coach manufacturers spec a cooling pack that is not always up the to the task to save money (talk to folks with some of the mid 2000's Winnebago Vectra's/Itasca Horizons on the Freightliner with Cummins ISL----Winne specified a sandwich cooling pack that was not big enough to keep them cool under heavy loads). Rear radiator DP's tend to dirty up the radiator and they need periodic cleaning.