chin_k wrote: April 16th, 2020, 9:20 am
On the genset, one quick thing you should check is to make sure there are sufficient gas in the tank for it to fire up. You need at least 1/4 (mine is closer to 1/3) for the fuel pickup tube to get the gas and pump to the carb. You may need to crank it 3 or 4 times for it to work, unless it has a priming mechanism (my 2000 rig does not seem to have it). Go take a look at the manual. If it works, you are in luck. If it does not, then I would say you are looking at paying a few hundred dollars in repair. BTW, how many hours is on the genset?
For the leak, check under the overhead shelf under the TV antenna to make sure there is no rot or mold. The main reason I got the Concourse is because Chinook is just much better when it come to having a leak at all compare to other RV. If it *does* leak, I would definitely take a closer look, since it can be a real pain to fix, if it got neglected for too long. It can be a heartbreaking experience.
Good stuff- yes, I did watch a video which suggested that the first two things to check are fuel level and to try priming it. I instructed the son-in-law to give those a shot. The genset has 225 hrs on it. I'm fairly mechanically adept, so could probably figure it out unless it's a rebuild. I doubt that that's it. I also saw steps that 3 and 4 are fuel filter and spark plug. Then carb.
The leak- will do. Sounds fairly accessible. Same for the front top vent? That was resealed as well. Am I going to have to take anything apart to get to either?
Flame wrote: April 16th, 2020, 10:14 am
Just for reference...we purchased our 1998 Concourse with only 30,000 miles. It was in like new condition. They were asking $22,500 I believe.This was from the second owners of the vehicle. We offered $18,000 and they said $18,500. I argued with them when they said that was the lowest they would go. I almost walked away but my wife said we're already here...lets get it. After owning it now for 2 years and 25,000 miles later I realize how close I was to making a STUPID decision back then by walking from the deal!! WE LOVE OUR CHINOOK!!………..Things we ended up needing...tires looked great but were 6 years old so we replaced them. But I sold the used set for $200!! Cruise control quit and costs $300 to get replaced. Front brakes locked up on a trip to Florida. So complete front brake job with bearings,lines and rotors. $1000. Rebuilt complete front end with new parts and 4 new shocks and alignment to get a bad "pull" out. Another $1000. In the cab heater "door" went bad so heater would not work with vaccume like it should. $200. I have just recently done other improvements but not the fault of the Chinook. I just did upgrades. I did purchase 2 new batteries for $82 each at Wal-mart. Total everything up at around $3,000. That ain't bad considering...this thing is 22 YEARS OLD!!! Things are going to dry up and deteriate from non use!! We are VERY HAPPY CAMPERS!! Good luck on your purchase!! The people on this forum are GREAT and will save you a lot of time and money on everything Chinook!!
Wow, that sounds like a steal! I would take that deal in a heartbeat. I haven't seen any that low priced. That's kinda why I'm wondering what I should offer on this one, assuming everything checks out on my deeper inspection this weekend. Again, listed for $32k. I asked if there was anyone hot and heavy on it, and they just said there was a guy who looked at it, but would be buying it for a dealership. Said he lowballed them. Not sure how low that offer was. What do you all think a dealer would have offered, considering the generator didn't start and it has the water stains? Everything else looked VERY well taken care of.
SMan wrote: April 16th, 2020, 8:12 am
Just a word on Cummings and generators.................
I decided to order a carb off Amazon and changed it in about 15 minutes. Been running great since.
And this:
deppstein wrote: April 15th, 2020, 12:03 pm
Only other advice I can offer is that if you really want it, don’t walk away on account of a couple thousand bucks. If you know you want a used rig this size, Chinook with good bones is as good as it gets in my humble opinion.
David
On my 2000 Concourse you prime the Onan generator by pressing the start button backwards for a few seconds (3-4 is usually enough), then press it forwards to start (it is a rocker switch and goes both directions). I think this was in my Concourse manual, but might have been the Onan manual (I believe it has the same type button on the generator, itself).
My generator was dying once in a while and not starting other times. $500 at Cummins and nothing, they said it worked fine. They were not using the Concourse interior switches or the fuel from the tank, hooking it up separately themselves in their shop. After another back and forth with an RV place and no results, I finally just replaced the entire hose from the E350 fuel tank to the generator and that fixed the issue. The hose looked okay but was probably getting dry rot and sometimes sucking air (it spent the first 14 years of its life in MN with rough winters and road salt, including just sitting for 2 years before I bought it). A couple years after that I had to pay for new brakes, as the brake hoses went bad and caused damage. I would consider changing any original hoses, as no rubber lasts forever.
I think 32k is priced to perfection. I realize it's a low mileage unit, so that warrants a premium. What also warrants a premium is the dwindling supply the further away we get from the Chinook sweet spot. We're twenty to 30 years in now.
Most of us Chinook buyers expect to spend on maintenance and upgrades. I'm somewhat of a Chinook enthusiast. I'm now on my fourth Chinook and I consistently spend about 3k on them after I get them.
The three early 2000's units in the northwest for sale right now, and the two older units in the southwest are all overpriced in my opinion.
Just to fully disclose, my current unit is a 1987 with a 6.9 IDI international diesel. The chassis has 90k miles on it. I've spent 3 grand getting all the mechanical done, which included a transmission, vacuum pump, fuel gauge, window motor, radiator flush, thermostat, valve cover gaskets, oil change, 2 new batteries and heater blower. We looked everything over and gave it what it needed. It had recent injectors and glow plugs, and return lines and filters. The running gear is now fantastic.
I'm in it 10k. Interior needs completely redone. I actually wanted a unit I could completely redo the interior and still be "in it" right.
I haven't posted any of that remodel because we're building a house and shop this year and I won't be able to get to it till 2021. I'm making this one my keeper.
FatBuoy, We can't wait to hear if you purchased the Chinook you have been telling us about!! These are exciting times for you. Please keep us updated as we are here for you if we can help! Good luck!
I think $32k is a bit high with known issues.... it is difficult to give a price for item that does not have a lot of supply. I kind of brought mine out of feeling that it will work for me, and I was kind of getting a bit disappointed by how difficult it is to find one that works perfectly. I did not drive away feeling like a bandit, but that is alright.
2000 Concourse dinette, on 1999 6.8L Ford E350 Triton V-10 Chassis
Sigh...no. Someone swooped in while I over analyzed. Sigh. Not sure if they got the generator going first or not, but someone popped a deposit on it and drove up from Houston. It went for $30k. The search continues.
