'97 40' Continental, 106K miles - Quick Sale Priced at $15K

Just like the name says.
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IH_Guys
Posts: 44
Joined: Sun Oct 27, 2019 5:22 pm

'97 40' Continental, 106K miles - Quick Sale Priced at $15K

Post by IH_Guys »

Leo small.jpg
'97 40' Continental, 106K miles - Quick Sale Priced at $15K

We are down-sizing and need to find a good home for Leo (his portrait is on the back of the coach).

Mechanical Stuff - all in good enough shape to hit the road:
Complete maintenance records (since I owned it), and complete set of original manuals
Caterpillar 3126 - 330 HP (fresh Oil & filters) w/Allison 6 speed (8 to 10 mpg)
Onan 7.5 KW Diesel Generator (fresh oil & filters)
6 Goodyear G670 RV Tires w/less than 1000 miles on them (date codes 48-17), plus a mounted spare in the basement
New master cylinder, new front brake lines, new front brake calipers and pads
Rebuilt steering gear box (2017)
2 new chassis batteries, 2 new coach batteries (2 dead coach batteries)
New passenger side windshield, Drivers side is good with small pits no cracks
LED Marker Lights – Front & Rear

This coach is in good shape except for some water damaged wood on the curb side where the awning box leaked, and the outside paint is scratched in several areas.
The leak was repaired, but we never could decide how to remodel, so it never got done.
Aqua Hot with freshly rebuilt fuel pump - no leaks
All appliances work - 4 burner propane stove, side-by-side frig/freezer (110V/propane), separate Ice-maker, Splendide Washer/Drier (never used but was told they work)
Good Awnings on windows and Large Main Awning is Electric
Coach A/C's blow cold, regularly cleaned heat exchanger fins
2 New Fantastic fans, both with thermostats and one with reversing switch
Replaced front TV with a 32" LED
Some Interior Lights converted to LED's

Engine Monitor Silver-Leaf Cable included (software is a free download)
Blue Ox Tow bar included, freshly over-hauled.

The other bad stuff we know about:
Fuel gauge reads full until the tank gets down to about 20 gallons, then accurate
Dash A/C has a repairable leak in the condenser, otherwise it blows cold when filled
Several windows suffer from Gasket Creep
Windshield washer hose & fitting needs replaced

Motor home is located in the New Orleans area
More photos and information available upon request. (for some reason I could only upload 3 photos)

Contact Information:
Eric
botnicke@cox.net
Front with crv.jpg
P2140312 small.JPG
Robert K
Posts: 105
Joined: Mon Oct 28, 2019 2:27 am

Re: '97 40' Continental, 106K miles - Quick Sale Priced at $15K

Post by Robert K »

Looks very nice. At that price it should sell quick.
My brother would love it but he is getting out of rv ing at 78 years old. He is putting his 5er up for sale when he gets home from Fl.
Bob
96 Serengeti 37'
3126 Cat
6 speed Allison
2011 jeep wrangler towd
IH_Guys
Posts: 44
Joined: Sun Oct 27, 2019 5:22 pm

Re: '97 40' Continental, 106K miles - Quick Sale Priced at $15K

Post by IH_Guys »

Thanks Bob,
I hope it sells quickly because it is with a lot of regrets that I am selling & we could change our minds. As we empty it out and move the stuff to the new coach, we realize how much storage space this coach has. We are finding things we stuck in the kitchen in 2010 and forgot the space or stuff was there. And the basement storage on this rigs is amazing, I can throw 2 full size bikes in the back street-side compartment - not a clue where bikes will go in the new rig. I think we have to put them in the CRV. 78 and still RV'ing is good thing, I am hoping to be doing the same when i am that age.
TDJohn
Posts: 552
Joined: Sun Oct 27, 2019 11:34 pm

Re: '97 40' Continental, 106K miles - Quick Sale Priced at $15K

Post by TDJohn »

Eric,

Nice rig, and I can understand it being a difficult decision to sell it.
Can I ask what you are downsizing into?
John
'95 Serengeti, Cummins C8.3-300
Allison 6spd.
IH_Guys
Posts: 44
Joined: Sun Oct 27, 2019 5:22 pm

Re: '97 40' Continental, 106K miles - Quick Sale Priced at $15K

Post by IH_Guys »

I like the build quality in the Tiffin line and the company stands behind their product, reminds me of what Safari was in the mid to late 90's. Due to some neighborhood issues I need to get down to 32 to 34' to be able to get the rig out of my driveway and for my wife to be comfortable driving it.
So, the Allegro Open Road 32CA is a budget priced solution - gas puller, other than noise & 6 mpg no reliability issues. or The Allegro Breeze 32BR, also a nice size with many options - Diesel Pusher is good except the Maxforce 7 has some emission control system issues that could be expensive to repair. Thought about the Allegro Red 34QFA until we saw how poor the access was with all 4 slides retracted - no good for just spending an evening in a truck stop or Walmart parking lot.

Sorry about getting long winded - I wont even get started with our experience looking at the Wayfarer (24' C Class on the Mercedes Sprinter) I don't know how you go from a 40' Continental to a 24' C Class without having a garage sale to get rid of the stuff you can't take, and the only bed can't be used w/o extending a slide. We did like 16 to 18 mpg but the cost to kennel our 2 dogs made the fuel saving a wash.

BTW, we got Leo as our hurricane plan. After Katrina, it seemed like a smart idea to be able to take your house & important things with you for evacuation. It suited our needs at the time.
TDJohn
Posts: 552
Joined: Sun Oct 27, 2019 11:34 pm

Re: '97 40' Continental, 106K miles - Quick Sale Priced at $15K

Post by TDJohn »

Eric

Bad timing, about a moth ago a saw a real nice '96 Sahara 30 foot in amazing condition, and they were asking under $20K. It would have been a much less painful downsize then going with the modern coaches. I hate to say it, but with modern emissions, you are likely better off with a gas job. The new Ford 7.3L gas engine promises better fuel economy then the 6.8L V10 that they have been using for a while. It also seems to have a very robust design. Ford is coming out with some updates/improvements on their Ford RV chassis, so it might be worth waiting a bit longer if you are going to be buying a brand new gas coach.

Here are a couple of the shorter Saharas that are familiar/similar to your coach.

https://www.rvt.com/Safari-Sahara-3126- ... 6-UX327055

https://www.rvt.com/Safari-Sahara-35-DI ... 4-UX345408

Happy hunting!
John
'95 Serengeti, Cummins C8.3-300
Allison 6spd.
IH_Guys
Posts: 44
Joined: Sun Oct 27, 2019 5:22 pm

Re: '97 40' Continental, 106K miles - Quick Sale Priced at $15K

Post by IH_Guys »

This wonderful motorhome (Leo) has found a new home, still in Louisiana. I am hoping that Chris (the new owner) will join this group, you all have been a great help in the 10 years we have owned and tried to maintain Leo.
Save Travels,
Eric & Cathy
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