Here is a message from Brett Howard about his purchase of the Wildwood Service Center in Florida. He spoke to a group of Beavers at the Lima Beaver County Fair Rally and we are excited that the deal has finally gone through.

Hello My Beaver Friends,
     I have a bit of good news I would like to share with you all first. Before I get started, I must say this would not have happened without all of your overwhelming support. Your encouragement is what gave me the courage to make this move. I passed up on several other sure things to make this step. Without the support, I am sure I would have never taken this step.
     Our last major road block was removed last Friday when the Bankruptcy Court approved our purchase of the Wildwood Facility. We will be closing on the transaction Friday of this week and will begin scheduling appointment for the week of September 28th.  We are going to start out with a fairly small crew, and will be adding as the work load increases. Our desire is to become the Best RV repair facility in the country. Our focus is going to be Service. We have also signed on as a Monaco RV towable dealer, and will be accepting consignments.
     As I mentioned, we are going to be starting with a very small core group of employee’s.  Many of you met my business partner Alan Shapiro, a fellow member of BAC, who has enabled us to make this happen. He will be actively working with us in the beginning stages of the business. If you have visited Wildwood, more than likely you met Caroline Champion. She is also an owner/partner. I will also mention a group that has already started and is helping clean and organize the facility. Former techs, Mike Hawkins, Todd Hensley, Brian Smith, Dave Becker, Mike Ferranti, and in parts Jodi Howard, and Allen Cockcroft.  We have been talking with many of the other former employees, and plan to continue to bring them back as we grow.
     We would appreciate the opportunity earn your business. We are working on several promotions with details to follow. We are also planning on having a Grand Opening Rally in early December. Several owners have volunteered to help us organize the event. Any one else interested in assisting please contact me directly.
     Our Labor rate is going to be $100.00. We are going to charge a facilities charge of $20 per overnight stay. Our techs are going to be working on a Hybrid Flat rate to insure efficient and Quality repairs.
     The best way to contact me is Brett.Howard@AllianceCoachOnline.com, if it is an emergency feel free to call me on my cell phone at 352-516-4144. Caroline can be contacted at Caroline.Champion@AllianceCoachOnline.com. If you would like to schedule an appointment please email Service@AllianceCoachOnline.com. Our phone should be back on in the next 2 weeks, and we will have the same numbers. Our main number will be 352-330-3800, but please keep in mind it will be about 2 weeks before it is in service.
     
Thanks Again!!!!
Brett Howard
Brett.Howard@AllianceCoachOnline.com
352-516-4144 cell

PS:  If you have not sent or given me your email address please send me an email with your contact information and I will get you added to our mailing lists.
BCH.

Goin in the 21 to the "Old Camp Monaco" now Alliance Coach. Will be two minor items but will report on how it goes. Mr Howard answered my e mails promptly and so far has made a good impression.

Picked up the coach today and feel they did a good repair (slide seals).   They quoted a "maximum" of 12 hours labor at $100 per hour and used them all according to the bill. So plan on paying for what you get done.

How many slides? and is that all they did?  

One slide on our 1997 Patriot replaced the side wipe and upper outside  seals and recaulked.  They used the old Monaco water tester to check there work. They did not do anything to the inner or bottom seal. My son just had a bedroom bottom slide seal done under warranty by South Trail in Ft Myers and their time was about the same along with labor rate.

They were having a "discussion" with someone with an extended warranty about authorizing up to two hours for diagnostic time to see if something was covered by the extended warranty. I do not know what it was for so do not know if the time was fair, just the coach owner thought it excessive.  

They do collision and body work as well and have been open about a month so do not have a track record yet but seem do do good work and had at least 20 coaches in bays and one (Beaver) in the camp area. Two couples were in the lobby area waiting for work to be done.

BALUSKI, Martin & Ellen's coach was there when we dropped ours off. Maybe we can get their experience also.  

Received this from Wildwood Service Center after I had e-mailed him>

Mike,
    Yes we are up to 18 employees and currently all but one are former Monaco employees.  Look forward to seeing you all soon.
Thanks
Brett Howard

Hello Friends of Alliance Coach,
    
    We are now open for business and taking appointments. Please call 352-330-3800 or email Service@AllianceCoachOnline.com to schedule.
Thanks Again for your support and we look forward to seeing you all very Soon.
Brett Howard
866-888-8941
352-330-3800

Note Alliance Coach is now a sponser of BAC. Located at the old "Camp Monaco" in Wildwood, FL. Labor rate is $100 per hour cpmpared to the Lazy Day rate of $120. Their add is a link to contact information.

Met a Beaver Patriot Thunder owner at Lazy Days Rally Park over the weekend and they were happy to hear Alliance and Brett Howard was open for business. A monaco owner a few spaces down was also pleased to hear it also. They both related good experiences with Brett Howard when Monaco still owned the service center.

Has anyone had any service work done lately here at Alliance Coach?  We just got back from a Monaco sponsored rally in Prattville, AL, where Alliance had brought in new coaches.  This was for the Navistar/Monaco sponsored LPGA event.  It was very nice and they were gracious enough to give us free gratis for all.
So, we need to have several issues addressed for our 1997 Beaver Marquis, such as a leak on side of Girard Awning, slide adjustment and seals looked at and paint issues on top front of coach.

So, would like input if anyone has had service work done of late.
Thanks,
Sharon Fischer

They replaced the slide seal on our 1997 Patriot, and we were satisfied with their work.  We would use them again, as they have a good reputation, and most of the technicians worked at there when it was the Monaco Service Center.  

I recently had my Beaver in there for several issues. This was the second time I have used the facility, and the first since Monaco declared bankruptcy. The work was done well and on-time. I highly recommend them.

Our 2000 Beaver Marquis is at Alliance Coach,Wildwood.FL for basement a/c repairs.  We were quoted over $4000 in labour alone to remove the SCS unit from the coach and   re install it; the repair was extra! We are wondering if Good Sam's will cover such   exorbitant billing.

Jeremy,
I am no expert on what Good Sam will pay for a repair, but I would say that the likelihood of them being willing to pay over $1000 an hour for a repair is 0%.

Gerald

Hi Gerald,
  Alliance Coach labour rate is $110 per hour. They reckon it will take 40 hours plus to remove and reinstall the SCS unit in my coach. The repair with an outside HVAC guy is extra.
I have to call Good Sam's Extended Service Plan tomorrow and find out what they will cover.

Jeremy,
I can R&R (remove and replace) your SCS unit in less than 4 hours. There is no way that anyone can justify a 40 hour estimate to R&R your basement A/C unit. They either have never done one before or they just do not want to work on it.

Roy Mueller removed the basement A/C unit in Lamar's Marquis one evening in the parking lot at SCS so that SCS could repair it the next day. Then he reinstalled it the next evening, so that they could leave the next morning. That was in a gravel parking lot with hand tools, not in a shop with air tools. A 40 hour estimate to just R&R is absurd.
  
Gerald

If Gerald can remove and replace the unit in 5-6 hours, you may consider paying his air fare to do the job for you and give him the $110 hourly rate, and pay all his expenses.  It would probably be less expensive.

Larry

Hi Larry and Gerald,
  Thank you both for your remarks.  I hope that the owners of Alliance Coach are reading this. If they continue to treat their  customers with such indifference, I doubt they will be around for long.
I would appreciate a rough step by step guide to the removal procedure.  I will photograph and document this job for anyone on http://forum.bacrallies.com/m-1253154654/s-new/#num15 to use .

Quoted from Jeremy Parrett

Hi Larry and Gerald,
  Thank you both for your remarks.  I hope that the owners of Alliance Coach are reading this. If they continue to treat their  customers with such indifference I doubt they will be around for long.
I would appreciate a rough step by step guide to the removal procedure.  I will photograph and document this job for anyone on http://forum.bacrallies.com/m-1253154654/s-new/#num15 to use .

Call and ask for Brett Howard.  It has been a couple of years since I spoke to him directly.  At the time he still worked for Monaco.  He impressed me as a very direct and honest person.  He helped us solve several issues on our coach.  I expect he will become personally involved in your issues.

Hi Bill,
   Alliance are working on the SCS unit removal as we speak. Someone named Mike called me saying they did not appreciate the bad press and   assured me he will do his very best to resolve this issue . They would like to keep us as a customer. When this issue is resolved I will make a final post .  With a more accurate estimate of hours and repairs involved Good Sam's will pick up the bill.  

The "Mike" you spoke of is Mike Hawkins, the shop foreman. He will do what he can to help resolve the problem. As already mentioned Brett Howard and /or Caroline Champion would be able to assist you. They are both reasonable people and want to see their customers satisfied.

Hi Louis,
  No word as to the progress at Alliance Coach. I was told this morning by the service rep, Pat Manning that once the unit is removed from the coach , Lee 's HVAC will be coming to work on it, possibly tomorrow.
Yes, it was Mike Hawkins who called me.    Thanks for your message.   jeremy

What ever the outcome please post your experience on http://www.rvservicereviews.com. We had some slide seal work done and was satisfied. But if they are going to rip people off will not reccomend them anymore.

I phoned Alliance Coach this morning. They have removed the SCS Basement a/c unit. It took 4 hours !!   The HVAC service tech will come today or tomorrow to fix the leak and maybe replace the start capacitors etc. The initial diagnostic charge should be 1 hour,so we are up to 5 hours already at $110 per hour.

Sounds like they are being fair if you use Gerald Farris and his time estimate.

Hi Richard and Babs,
Yes I agree.  It is a pity I had to sling mud to make this happen !!   I know many of our members are watching this episode, including Alliance Coach.  Now I am sure Good Sam's will be happy to pick up this bill.
I used to go to Lazy Days.  Moving to Alliance Coach seemed like a good decision; time will tell.

Jeremy,
Four hours is not to bad for removal, if it is the first time that you have pulled one.  However after you have done it a time or two, a good mechanic can cut that in half, but that time reduction is where the top mechanics make more money than the average ones.

You will probably end up with about an eight hour charge for the R&R (remove and replace) of the unit, and that is reasonable. It is also a lot better than the 40 plus hour estimate.  That would have been a 500% overcharge.

Gerald

Hi Gerald,
   I agree with you; next time Alliance pulls one of these units they may  save the customer some money. I don't think it will  take 4 hours to re install it......maybe 3 !!
   As a matter of interest, this unit has never worked well enough to cool the coach when the temps rose above 85 deg F.  We are hoping it will now freeze us !!  
Does yours provide sufficient cooling when the temps rise over 90 degF ???
We have been using a portable unit to augment the SCS unit.  If it is still under par, we will install one 15,000btu roof unit in place of the kitchen Fantastic fan.

wildwood charged me 1200.00 dollars to pull my fuel tank  replacefuel lines to aquahot
  they screwed it up and pinched the fuel lines puting the tank back up and had to do it over
again they screwed it up and pinch the fuel line again  they had the tank out three timed and still didnt get it correct  i went west to coburg  they pulled the tank replaced the fuel lines a second time and had tank back up in 4 hours  with all fuel lines clear  
  i will say wildwood was fair in that they paid the bill at colburg    dave

Hi Dave,
  that is good to know. I am going to suggest  they bill   the hours it would have taken an experienced crew to do this job. Otherwise they may have trouble convincing Good Sam's the bill is fair.  
I was told this morning that my basement a/c unit is only the second one they have pulled in 2 years.
Hopefully we will be up and running by Friday so Jane and I can get over to the east coast for the Shuttle Launch.

Maybe you can use the Good Sam advocate to get it done. I know the wait is a pain Good Luck.

The Good Sam's tech came yesterday.  Now we have to wait for the approval.  

The actual removal took 4 hours helped I am sure by Gerald's instructions. The HVAC tech Alliance brought in said the copper tubes had "blown off" the compressors because the evaporator coils were dirty !!  They are not that dirty.
Pics are under topic  heading 2000 Beaver Marquis Amethyst basement air conditioning   http://forum.bacrallies.com/m-1280444594/
Opinions on this website disagree  with the HVAC tech at Alliance Coach and offer the explanation that SCS discovered a design flaw 5 to 6 years ago with the rigid copper tubing fracturing and started installing flexible tubing instead.  
The issue now rests with Good Sam's Extended warranty Gold Plan which I have.

Jeramy,

It is true that gas pressure can increase significantly with temperature and these are balanced systems in a sense. They rely on air flow to keep the pressure in check. The condenser, evaporator, and fan air flow are designed to work within the limits of the compressor capability and tolerances of the rest of the components. As air flow is restricted, either by dirt or bent fins, in the condensor, you work the system much harder with higher pressures and also reduce the overall cooling performance. There is a comb tool that the HVAC folks have that can straighten the condenser fins. While he has it out the fins should be straightened and you should be sure that the condenser has been cleaned. From what I saw in your photos the dirt level did not obscure the tubes so my guess is there should have been reasonable air flow. I have to assume that the other side of the condenser was similar in appearance but maybe not given that looks to be the side air flow eminates from.

From a failure analysis point of view, what one would expect if this was a pressure fail, is that the weakest pressure component in the system would fail. Usually in a HVAc system there is a means of excessive pressure relief, sometimes a metal plug in the dessicant container. If your weakest pressure point was the copper, it would have produced bulging and thinning walls at first, followed by the thinnest point giving way, blowing outward.  I see none of that indication here in your photos. This looks like a metal fatigue fail due to the vibration of the compressor causing the metal to fatigue and fracture. Soft thick wall copper would be better a better choice and perhaps some means of tubing support at some distance above the compressor, to dampen the copper pipe amount of vibration would help. The photos show a tall vertical run of unsuspended copper tubing left to oscillate which can accelerate the metal fatigue fail. The compressor is the vibration generator but the moment arm of unsuspended piping can actually be the root cause. Hope this helps.

later Ed

Hi Ed,
  I am sure you are right.  There is no evidence of a bulging or  explosion; rather a fatigue fracture  and not one but two !!   It remains to be seen whether Good Sams  will go with the  Alliance Coach outside techs report  or the evidence in the pics!!  
Alliance Coach are asking for a new RVP 27,000 btu  unit to be installed.
We are hoping to be mobile by next weekend.

Good Sam's (Gold Extended Warranty Plan) approved the claim to include installation of a new RVP 46515-811 $3257 a/c unit and a maximum of 8 hours labour.  The diagnosis was not included.  We have 3/4 hour in hand .
The RVP unit is a different size from the SCS unit.  More hours are needed to configure the filter housing, cold air output, 120 VAC connections, thermostat, etc.  I am assured Alliance Coach will work with us on the final bill, as they want us to leave happy.

Alliance Coach is going to reconfigure the 24,000btu RVP # 46515-811 $3257 unit to fit, which Good Sams approved as a replacement. The 27,000 btu unit was far too large to fit without severe modifications.
They have used almost all of the 8 hours Good Sam allowed for this job.
We are assured, they will work with with us on the hours billed, as they want us to be happy with the final outcome. Pics of this job are under 2000 Beaver Marquis Amethyst basement air conditioning.....
It was decided, rebuilding the old SCS unit was not a viable  option.
I have since been told that Beaver Coach Sales, rebuilds old SCS units for $3000, using your unit as a core.  However, it is obvious the New RVP unit is far superior in performance, even though it will cost to install.

Thursday June 2nd.
  Alliance Coach has removed the forward wall/bulkhead that supports the tray  to allow the RVP a/c unit to swivel into position. They now have to fabricate a thinner support bulkhead as the RVP unit is longer than the old SCS unit. Once the bulkhead is installed, they will hook up the modified RVP unit to the old ducting, connect the 2 110v ac power supplies and install the new RVP thermostat.  

Wednesday June 8th. 2011. Day 9 .
  Alliance Coach has told me the following:  " The a/c is ducted, wired and running; it is really cold; in a 1/2 hour while it was 95 degrees outside the coach was cooled down to 65 degrees. They also said the RVP unit is very quiet.
This might interest some of us who have to let the SCS unit run all day and night, to keep the coach at 80 deg F plus when its over 95 deg F outside.
   They could not reposition the thermostat for a faster installation, as the Hurricane Furnace wiring runs inside the slide wall to the same location, which meant they had to remove the wall to run the new thermostat wiring.  The Technician has to reinstall the wall, after installing the thermostat and button things up .
It  is quite possible he will be done today .

Friday June 10th 2011.
Job was completed this  morning. We will pick up the coach Monday 13th !!

Thursday 23rd June 2011.
  After 57 hours work, not including the 8 hours Good Sam allowed for R&R of the old SCS unit, the new RVP 24,000 BTU basement air conditioner is installed and running.
The main problems were, having to alter the units cold air output and the return air inlet from the coach. After the RVP was installed,  Alliance had to  R&R  the unit to add bracing to the cold air blower squirrel cage, to stop the blower wheel from touching the side of the housing.  This was done at no cost, under the 30 day warranty, after consultations with Coleman.
It meant a return visit to Alliance Coach  for 3 days.  
We are now in Clayton. NY, and the unit is running amazingly well.
Alliance Coach was very good to us as far as the final bill was concerned.  We settled for just under $3000, which included the $500 deductible for Good Sam, who picked up the bill for the new unit and the initial 8  hours labor,for diagnosis and removal of the old SCS unit.  
Alliance Coach is well aware many of us are watching this site and might find ourselves needing this upgrade in the future.
Now they have this experience under their belt, I would recommend anyone needing this upgrade, go to Alliance Coach.  Just be aware some coaches are different from our Beaver Marquis Amethyst, and might require slightly different configuration.
Overall, a very frustrating experience, but the outcome is well worth it.
The new Coleman RVP 24,000 btu unit is way more efficient than the old 27,000 btu SCS unit.  It cools the coach down after a hot days run in less than 10 minutes.  At 95 deg outside temps, it keeps us cool at   77 degF.or lower.
It is much quieter than the SCS unit, inside and outside. Parked next to another RV, we no longer blow them off their site or drown out their conversations.
If anyone wants further info, please email me at: svpelican1@hot mail.com