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Message |
John Wardell
Unregistered guest
Posted From: 66.174.92.167
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, July 13, 2006 - 2:31 pm: | |
Hi All,
Left Tucson Sunday morning, all was well.
Ran errands in Phoenix, all was well.
Left Phoenix Sunday afetnoon, heading West on I-10, things got strange. Bus (MC8) didn't have as much get up and go. Temp guage kept climbing.
Stopped several times and let it idle down to normal indicated temp (160F).
Thought it might be the extreme heat during the day (108F), Waited for night (8pm). Overheated it after running only 20 miles.
I-10 in that area is a continuous gradual climb over long rolling hills. Nothing spectacular like Pike's Peak.
Spent the night at exit 98. Limbing it back to Phoenix, Sun Valley Towing. Tim the owner claims to be a ex-VP for Greyhound maintenance. He is knowledgeable, or at least knows the buzz words.
He says: dirty squirrel cages, worn gear mounts for blower, which may have caused the belt to slip, and a cracked right head. There were a few bubbles on the dipstick, but, the level seems right. $6 grand for an "in frame" and out the door in 4 days.
That was Monday, it's now Thursday, not a wrench turned. Come to find out he's 6 tow drivers short and has no mechanics.
Any help on getting a good diagnosis and recommendation for a reliable, in-expensive mechanic (the money tree died in this damn desert heat) would be really great.
Once I get a handle on this, we can talk about the dead frig, the non-contact $100 accident incident, and the shredded 35"x12.5" tire on the was soon to be toad.
And look it's only Thursday.
Thanks,
John |
Bob Greenwood
Unregistered guest
Posted From: 63.233.7.79
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, July 13, 2006 - 2:45 pm: | |
sounds like you need a head and not an inframe |
Tom Caffrey (Pvcces)
Registered Member
Username: Pvcces
Post Number: 955
Registered: 5-2001
Posted From: 65.74.70.16
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, July 13, 2006 - 9:38 pm: | |
John, I saw a recent post that said that the MC9, I believe, was not designed to live with that heat.
In any case, when there is significant loss of power from an overheating condition, it's possible to do an enormous amount of damage.
I would want to make sure that all cylinders were getting full fuel and air before I came to that conclusion.
If they were getting full fuel and air, the lost power turns into heat. If that heat is lost to the coolant, the engine will get very hot.
What I remember about that country when it gets hot is that a lot of the help disappears into the mountains, where it's cooler. If that's what's got him shorthanded, you will need to seriously think over your options.
And you're not likely to feel like it while it's hot. That's a problem.
Be careful and good luck!
Tom Caffrey PD4106-2576
Suncatcher
Ketchikan, Alaska
(Message edited by pvcces on July 13, 2006) |
Connel (Connel)
Registered Member
Username: Connel
Post Number: 15
Registered: 10-2004
Posted From: 68.91.131.249
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, July 13, 2006 - 11:21 pm: | |
John,
Some way to contact you would be helpful. My brother-in-law lives in Phoenix and owns a trucking company. Maybe could be of help if you gave someway to contact you. |
JW Smythe (Jwsmythe)
Registered Member
Username: Jwsmythe
Post Number: 243
Registered: 2-2006
Posted From: 70.126.251.160
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Friday, July 14, 2006 - 2:40 am: | |
Too bad I hadn't checked in here. I was heading East on I-10 through there earlier this week. I could have at least given you a cool place to sit, and a chase car at least for a day. I guess I should make an effort to post when I'm going on the road.
I didn't notice a bus stopped, so I guess you didn't happen to be on the side of the road when I was cruising through. I did notice a couple buses in N. Florida (a MCI and a Prevost) East bound, but they were crusing along very happily.
Maybe we should set up a little area on here somewhere with travel plans, just in case something happens. I lucked out and broken down about a mile from an auto parts store, who had my part in stock, and it was downhill the whole way.
I'll confirm it was toasty warm out there. I took a nap at a rest area somewhere in Arizona on Monday morning. I had a slight mechanical problem myself (broken belt on Sunday night), so I was nervous about sleeping in the car with the engine running. At around 10am after an hour long nap, I woke up drenched in sweat. |
Rick Burgess
Unregistered guest
Posted From: 70.73.19.91
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, July 17, 2006 - 2:32 am: | |
I have a MCI 5A 8V71 4speed and it is terrible on overheating in the extreme heat and rolling hills of south US. Reccomendation was to mist the rads with water. I get out the hose and wet down the rad when this happens. Easy to add the misters off the reg domestic water. Pump and ends. Gets hot here in Calgary alberta too. |
Marc Bourget
Unregistered guest
Posted From: 64.142.42.176
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Sunday, July 23, 2006 - 8:58 am: | |
YOU CAN'T FIX A OVERHEAT CONDITION CAUSED BY A CRACKED HEAD WITH MISTERS.
The report said bubbles in the oil. This probabaly means water "bubbles" as air bubbles won't stick to a dipstick (typically)
$6K is so reasonable for a commercial shop that I wonder if it's a "set up bid" Not to diss the owner, but it's so reasonable, could you be ignoring the explaination that the price is dependent on everything else being "RIGHT"???
Frequently, you get into a disassembled engine and discover other costly items that are penny wise and pound foolish to ignore at this time.
Proceed with caution backed by intelligent consideration of your position. You don't want to go thru DML's experience(s) |
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