New to me 1995 Safari Sahara 5.9 Cummins Pusher

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CharlieDVI
Posts: 4
Joined: Sun Sep 19, 2021 1:56 pm

New to me 1995 Safari Sahara 5.9 Cummins Pusher

Post by CharlieDVI »

Hey all,
I’m so glad I found this forum, it has been a valuable resource these past couple months. In August, I bought a 1995 safari Sahara 5.9 Cummins diesel pusher with 110k miles from a dealership in Sacramento California called “El Dorado RV and Auto Sales.” Worst mistake I have ever made to trust these people. But it was my mistake - I had been looking for a class A RV for about a month and had seen good deals come and disappear in a matter of hours, so I felt I had to jump on this one.
What really sold me was the stack of maintenance and repair receipts that was meticulously kept by the previous owners. Unfortunately, what the Dealer did not tell me was that one of the owners had gotten sick and languished for about three years and then passed away, at which time his wife sold the RV to the dealer as-is for $1000. It had been sitting for three years without so much as the door opened. The dealer drove the RV home, cleaned it, vacuumed, and listed it on craigslist for $17,500, as a “needs nothing” vehicle. I bought it for that amount and planned to do a circuit of the country, having just been laid off and going through a divorce at the same time, I figured some new scenery would do me good.

I was excited for about an hour on the way home, until the Sahara started overheating. After much investigation, (with the help of this forum’s archives,) I diagnosed a cracked coolant overflow tank. When I called the dealer the first time it overheated asking him if he knew anything about it he right away accused me of driving up hills too fast, LOL. Since then this has been his MO, to deny responsibility and blame others.

Longer story short just about everything that could go wrong has gone wrong on this vehicle, which means I’ve gotten some practice and experience around this bus. I really love the safaris, I knew I wanted one when I first saw pictures of them. I have mixed feelings about this one, I put so much time and effort, blood sweat and tears into this thing I would almost like to set it on fire and just walk away.

Anyhow I am writing to ask for a little bit of help, the most recent issue is no power steering and brakes, which I believe I understand could be the power steering pump? Has anyone replaced this part? are they difficult do I need to get a mechanic to do it or can I do it myself?
Also looking under the front of the bus there’s a rubber gasket in a joint coming off the left wheel, that is about toast. Anyone know what this is? Including a pic.

Thanks in advance, and nice meeting you all. My name is Charlie.
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ProCycle
Posts: 135
Joined: Sat Oct 03, 2020 1:28 pm

Re: New to me 1995 Safari Sahara 5.9 Cummins Pusher

Post by ProCycle »

Hi Charlie, Welcome!
At $17K you did alright. If it really had "needed nothing" it would be worth at least $10K-$15K more than that. Even folks who drop $40K end up spending more money in repairs and updates.

Assuming your 95 Sahara is set up like my 97 Ivory the brakes and steering are powered by an electric pump back near the battery compartment. There should be a fluid reservoir in the rear of the engine maintenance compartment. Last outside compartment on the passenger side. That reservoir should be filled to the line with Dexron automatic transmission fluid. That's the first thing I'd do is check the fluid. That system also powers the leveling jacks.

The photo of the joint is the front end of the drag link. That is not difficult to replace. You may have to remove it and go to Napa or a truck parts house to match it up.

Also, while this site is great for researching information it isn't very active. If you are a Facebook user consider joining the Safari group over there. It's good for getting quick responses but not very good for searching out older info.
--> https://www.facebook.com/groups/165304860342760/
Jeff
1997 Ivory Edition 3740 Cat 3126 Allison
astrnmrtom
Posts: 167
Joined: Thu Oct 31, 2019 8:49 pm

Re: New to me 1995 Safari Sahara 5.9 Cummins Pusher

Post by astrnmrtom »

If the drag link isn't worn, you can probably get a new boot for it.

A cracked surge tank isn't unusual on these rigs. There's a recent thread on these tanks which has a link to a replacement made out of aluminum. viewtopic.php?f=7&t=40053

It's my opinion it's not uncommon for dealers to do as little testing and inspection as possible. Usually only what's required my law. When shopping for our rig I looked at so many used rigs on various dealer lots that looked like the previous owner just walk away from it, leaving everything dirty. Grease on the stoves, and heavy soap film in the tub. Some even had a lot of the cabinets full of junk. One I looked at had obvious roof leaks because you could smell the rot when you walked in the door, and spots on the floor were soft with tiles were pealing up. That one was for sale for more than what you paid.

On our current rig, there were things wrong but I caught them and had the seller make the repairs before handing over the check. So, far, after 6 years and 8000+ miles, I haven't had any major issues. Yes, I've had to fix things, but I expect that with any rig, especially one that's over 20 years old. I've talked to people who have had lots of troubles with brand new rigs.

Congratulations on your purchase.
Tom and Pris Masterson, w/ Buddy the 18 year old Siamese cat.
1998 Serengeti 3706
300hp Cat 3126, Allison 3060
900 Watts of Solar
17cf, Fisher & Paykel residential Refrigerator
Dragging four telescopes around the US seeking dark skies.
TDJohn
Posts: 552
Joined: Sun Oct 27, 2019 11:34 pm

Re: New to me 1995 Safari Sahara 5.9 Cummins Pusher

Post by TDJohn »

ProCycle wrote: Wed Dec 08, 2021 3:44 pm Hi Charlie, Welcome!
At $17K you did alright. If it really had "needed nothing" it would be worth at least $10K-$15K more than that. Even folks who drop $40K end up spending more money in repairs and updates.

Assuming your 95 Sahara is set up like my 97 Ivory the brakes and steering are powered by an electric pump back near the battery compartment. There should be a fluid reservoir in the rear of the engine maintenance compartment. Last outside compartment on the passenger side. That reservoir should be filled to the line with Dexron automatic transmission fluid. That's the first thing I'd do is check the fluid. That system also powers the leveling jacks.

The photo of the joint is the front end of the drag link. That is not difficult to replace. You may have to remove it and go to Napa or a truck parts house to match it up.

Also, while this site is great for researching information it isn't very active. If you are a Facebook user consider joining the Safari group over there. It's good for getting quick responses but not very good for searching out older info.
--> https://www.facebook.com/groups/165304860342760/
Welcome Charlie!

Jeff,

Please don't take offense, but a few things need correction as to not create more confusion.

There are two separate hydraulic systems on our coaches. The first and most important one is the hydraulic system that operates the power steering and hydraulic brake assist. This hydraulic system is operated by and engine driven mechanical hydraulic pump. The brand is commonly a Vickers pump. As an additional safety measure the hydraulic brake assist system (HydroMax) has a small electro-hydraulic pump mounted on the HydroMax to provide limited hydraulic brake assist if the mechanical hydraulic pump fails. This is maybe where the confusion is coming from. The mechanical, engine driven pump is usually gear driven. These pumps rarely fail. I had one fail on my previous coach that had a 5.9L cummins engine, and the failure was actually the gear splines and the pump and gear stripped. I don't know if that was a Cummins defect, but at that time the Cummins gear pulley was on nation wide back order.
The location of the hydraulic reservoir is correct. It is located in the service bay, white semi transparent square box with a black cap on it. The original hydraulic fluid was Dextron III ATF. I would caution against using any synthetic ATF in the system, as it can and does change the viscosity of the fluid and can cause erratic operation of the hydraulic brake assist (ask me how I know). Usually O'reilly's and STP brands labeled DEX/MERC are non synthetic fluids and if I remember correctly, Walmart's brand MERCON V is also non synthetic and compatible.

The second hydraulic system that the coach has is for the RVA leveling system and for the coaches that have hydraulic slides, the share the leveling system hydraulics too. This leveling system is operated by an electric motor that runs a hydraulic pump. The motor, pump and reservoir are all one cylindrical assembly, located by the battery tray. This system takes the same Dextron ATF and the same precautions about synthetic fluid apply, if you don't want your jacks to start settling.

As for the Pitman Arm joint, not only is the rubber missing (could be replaced), but from the photo, it looks like the joint is not tightened all the way in. If that is the case, then it is a safety issue. If it is just an optical illusion from the photo, then replacing the rubber protector should suffice, as long as there is not slop/play in the joint.

Charlie,

If you have anymore question, don't be shy, ask away and we will do our best to help. Also, if you could give us a summary of other issues or repairs that it has needed since you purchased the rig.
Don't despair, it sounds like you have not corrected most of the issues and will be able to travel soon. As most Safari owners, I think you will really enjoy your coach once you get past this rough patch.
John
'95 Serengeti, Cummins C8.3-300
Allison 6spd.
ProCycle
Posts: 135
Joined: Sat Oct 03, 2020 1:28 pm

Re: New to me 1995 Safari Sahara 5.9 Cummins Pusher

Post by ProCycle »

Hey John,

I will never be offended by someone posting better information.
Jeff
1997 Ivory Edition 3740 Cat 3126 Allison
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