Honest John (1 Viewer)

[4matt]

There was a letter in last weeks Honest John column that I found a little unsettling.

The basics of the letter are this; Man lays up his MH from October to April. He doesn't service it before lay up. Starts up MH in April and engine stalls then will not restart. Mechanic tell Man that the timing belt has slipped and that its gonna cost 3K to fix/ rebuild engine.

Honest Johns answer was; You should have serviced van before Lay up. That this is a common problem with vans that are not frequently used as condensation and oil impurities while laid up will cause to happen. Vans are meant to work hard for four years so are not built to do low mileage and used infrequently.

So my question is this, How many of the MHF community have had trouble like this? What are the lay up procedures you follow? How often do you run your engine if your laid up? Should I be bothered by this letter and his answer?

Ah that's not one question is it more like four...:Blush:

Your thought on the subject anyone?

 

[Snowbird]

Two alternatives here. Use the van all year round or buy a Mercedes with no silly rubber band to worry about.

 

[Jaws]

Or find a mechanic who does not talk out his bum........... :thumb:

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[paulmold]

Not the first time I've heard of this. There has been a thread on outandabout website on the same subject only that one was on a van only 11 months old.

 

[oldun]

So is it a likely problem or just another myth?

When I hear names like the "Democratic" Republic of East Germany, "Honest" John etc I am always terribly wary as to the meaning of such "words".

 

[Peter JohnsCross MH]

It does not do any vehicle any good to just leave it standing.

One should start it at least once a fortnight and if possible move it, check brakes and clutch and park it in a slightluy different wheel position.

Reasons, gets lubricants around engine, clears any rust from discs, frees off clutch, stops flat spots on tyres. Gives battery a burst.

Peter

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[Jaws]

Remember.. OP said it started ok then stalled

The only time a belt is likely to slip is if a pump seizes
If it was possible for a belt to slip ( unless it is completely banjaxed to start with ) for no other reason than it had stood for a while no vehicle would be safe !

I do agree with peter though.. It is good to start a vehicle at least once a month and run it until it has reached full working temperature ( sometimes difficult on a diesel I know, and difficult to take for a ride out if in storage and SORN'd )

 

[DuxDeluxe]

I've heard this before - not the first time it has happened. My Fiat has a chain, so no worries there

 

[WillH]

Use it! That's what motorhomes are for. The longest ours has been without a run is two months, even then I ran the engine fortnightly. Sometimes we'll just take her out for the day, or overnight in the local forest park, but we do use her.

Bill

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[MHVirgins]

Any mechanic/dealer that we have spoken to over the years has said the worst thing you can do with a motorhome is lay it up for months on end, especially over the winter.

To leave it parked up motionless for a long time is asking for trouble.......ours is now our sole vehicle so it's used every day.
Bill