1992 Bounder Diesel Pusher motor seized. Buy and fix?

[desertratt1]

Guy i know has a 1992 Bounder has 69k miles on it body is great. He installed new frig cost 2400.00 and new a/c unit , tires are 3 years old and batteries also. The engine overheated and it seized. He said would sell for 3k. Question is it worth it? Also has 7.5 onan diesel generator. Thoughts...Thx

[barvoyager37]

Buy and sell parts. Will make enough money to buy a good RV.

[desertratt1]

Yes,
The engine is toast seized and he doesnt have the head or radiator so swap is the way to go...i think i will part out the coachman it has a 7000 marquis onan generator 364 hours very quiet and its gas not propane which is overall better i think. frig ,pac man air brake , air brakes spartan chassis, 2 a/c units ,stove new heater suburban in the box , new toilet, chrome rims , 19.5 , leveling system etc lots parts that could pay for the bounder. any ideas on value of generator?

thanks for the post!

[MrWizard]

westernrvparkowner wrote:

MrWizard wrote:
I already have an RV that costs me more than it's worth, and it was running perfectly when I got it in 2010
You never know when you will lose a radiator, or turbo, or injection pump, etc
And everything on a diesel engine is a big expense
He could spend $25,000 or $100,000 on another RV and blow something in a few months
He could put this all together and get another ten years or more use,
You just don't know

Agree he could send $25,000 or $100,000 and it could fail, but he wouldn't pay $35,000 for that $25,000 rig or $125,000 for that $100,000 rig. Paying in excess of $15,000 plus putting in many hours of labor for a 1992 Bounder is overpaying in my opinion.

Yes if he were buying the engine
That was the point of his posting, he has an RV with a good engine and bad body delamination
All he has to invest is $3000 to buy the BOUNDER
And the use his existing engine
Besides labor his transplant costs should be relatively minor

All this talk about engine repair was a detour from the main topic of engine transplant

Or he could just sell the running RV he now has
And use that money to help finance an engine repair

It's not like he's starting from scratch, buying salvage and doing a rebuild

[BigRabbitMan]

desertratt1 wrote:
appreciate your comments all good advice..i have a friend who builds engines races etc he is willing to help me do this so that is a hugh plus..

I did a gas to diesel swap which is much more complicated than a diesel to diesel swap. I would not hesitate to do the engine/tranny swap. The 5.9 is a good solid engine and you can get into a good usable RV much cheaper than buying something newer that could also have problems later.

Follow the link in my signature to see what I did. I have put 18,000 miles on it in the last year+ since the swap was completed and love it.

[Tinstar]

Since you already have the engine and the 'mechanic' friend that's willing to help, you will not be out a lot (other than your time). A few years ago, I wouldn't have been afraid to tackle it I don't think I would now. My brother-in-law burned up his 5.9 Cummine and he bought a NEW engine for it (close to $15K). His chassis and everything else was in good shape so it was worth it for him.

[Dale_Traveling]

Difficult decision. I would go after the rebuild. As mentioned anything could happen even with a new off the lot coach. If you break the project into smaller manageable steps with reasonable timelines it really isn't as hard as it looks.
Day 1. Mark, photograph and document all plumbing, wiring, and other aspects of the engine compartment.
Day 2. Drain ALL fluids and document amount drained.
Day 3. Disconnect all cooling and fuel system lines and remove as necessary for clearance,,,,
Hardest part will probably be keeping the A/C system intact so you don't have to recharge it considering the age and expense of the older feon. And when the day comes that you turn the key and the new engine comes to like your head will explode with pride of doing something few would attempt.

Go for it. Document everything as it occurs and post up dates so we can follow.

[Heisenberg]

6 of one is half a dozen of the other!

[westernrvparkow]

MrWizard wrote:
I already have an RV that costs me more than it's worth, and it was running perfectly when I got it in 2010
You never know when you will lose a radiator, or turbo, or injection pump, etc
And everything on a diesel engine is a big expense
He could spend $25,000 or $100,000 on another RV and blow something in a few months
He could put this all together and get another ten years or more use,
You just don't know

Agree he could send $25,000 or $100,000 and it could fail, but he wouldn't pay $35,000 for that $25,000 rig or $125,000 for that $100,000 rig. Paying in excess of $15,000 plus putting in many hours of labor for a 1992 Bounder is overpaying in my opinion.

[desertratt1]

appreciate your comments all good advice..i have a friend who builds engines races etc he is willing to help me do this so that is a hugh plus..

[MrWizard]

I already have an RV that costs me more than it's worth, and it was running perfectly when I got it in 2010
You never know when you will lose a radiator, or turbo, or injection pump, etc
And everything on a diesel engine is a big expense
He could spend $25,000 or $100,000 on another RV and blow something in a few months
He could put this all together and get another ten years or more use,
You just don't know

[westernrvparkow]

Remember, after you spend that $15,000+ (purchase price plus engine, plus who knows what else) you still have a 25 year old RV. Things like the electronics are going to be very dated. Plumbing is reaching the end of it's life. Carpeting, upholstery and the other fixtures will be dated and probably prone to failure. Might be a project you will enjoy, but you will almost assuredly end up with a rig that cost more than it is worth.

[desertratt1]

anyone familiar with at500 allison transmission vs AT542? the coachman has AT542 and Bounder has AT500. Thanks for all the post lots thinging going on haha..

[Two_Jayhawks]

I had a 1995 Bounder Diesel and loved it, solid coach. It had an Allison 6 speed & diesel genny. In 95 the little 5.9L was rated at 230 HP & I believe 640 torque. That coach was also capable of 10 mpg.

[2BNOT2B]

lj2654 wrote:
go here: http://rvparts.visonerv.com and look for a used engine to put in it...save you lots of $$$$ if they have one for it!

^^^^ X2 they are in KY.