1989 Ford Coachman - adding a generator?

[steveclv]

I have a 1989 Coachman B on a Ford E250 base and some of them were fitted with an Onan 2.8 Microlite generator - mine wasn't!

So I have purchased a used generator and am going to install it into the compartment but I'm wondering if anyone has any photos of the factory install that I can copy.

I'm kinda stumped with the following - I can work out ways to do it but if I knew what the factory did it would help!

1. Fuel feed - the engine is fuel injected and so I can't tap into it's fuel lines so which tank does the generator pull from and where is the feed line located for it?

2. Where did the factory route the wiring for the 12V feed and what gauge did they use?

3. Where did the exhaust exit and was there any additional muffler used apart from the big square one on the Onan?

4. What additional holes were cut in the floor of the unit for air flow?

Thanks for any info - I've looked for a brochure or other info about this unit and can't find anything, not even on the Coachman web site.

[markopolo]

Re: question #1

They probably inserted a fuel pickup line into the gas tank. My guess would be from the top of the tank. The tube would not go in much deeper than 1/2 way into the tank. That way you can't run the vehicle gas tank dry when you are running the generator and become stranded.

With "generator ready" Roadtreks that fuel pickup was installed in the tank even if the RT was not ordered with a generator. The tube was capped off but easy enough to find on the tank ready to be connected to a generator.

[steveclv]

Aha, I found a capped off pipe on top of the rear tank - I tried blowing down it (yeuchh) but couldn't feel that it was open, so I'll drop the tank today and see where it goes - luckily I ran that tank almost dry.

Thanks!

[markopolo]

Maybe attach a longer clean hose and try to suck gas out of the un-capped pipe before dropping the tank.

[steveclv]

I dropped the tank (which also gave me a chance to repair the fuel sender LOL) and found that the capped pipe was part of the CA emissions system - some sort of valve arrangement plugged into the top of the tank - oh well.

Anyway, I found a length of thin metal pipe and drilled a hole into the fuel sender base plate and pushed the pipe into that so that it goes down to about the 1/4 full level - am now in the process of waiting for the JB weld to cure before I reassemble everything.

[Mike]

Hi Steve. Can't help much with the technical questions, although you and marko are probably on
the right track with tapping the fuel tank to feed the generator.

As for manuals, have you tried contacting any current owners on the internet? I see some ads
for Coachmen for sale. Some of those who haven't sold their units yet might be willing to copy
any manuals they might have, and sell the copies to you. Might be worth a google?

Alternately, you could try searching for and contacting or joining an owners club, if you can
find one. They also might be willing to share specific info and possibly copy/sell/send you
any manuals they have.

As a last resort, you could try asking about the subtleties of generator installations at a Camping
World or other class B RV service/repair shop near you. They might be willing to give some ideas,
or may have actually worked on the same types of unit you have.
CumminsOnan might also be able to give you some hints about "how to" do things, if they were to
do it themselves. I have a Cummins Onan service place near me, but I'd be more likely to take it
to an RV shop in Kitchener that can service Roadtreks and Onans blindfolded.
They're about 50 miles away, but worth the drive.

[tismark]

I have a '94 Coachmen with some of the manuals, etc. I think I remember seeing on the original bill of sale from the previous owner that the generator was added by the dealer so it's not really a factory install as such. Amongst the manuals is an Onan Install Manual, and I think that's really what you want here. There seem to be manuals downloadable from their website. I think a more specific search with the model you have would locate it. Coachmen might have something their techs would have used in the way of documentation, but the manual provided for customers is practically useless.

I haven't poked around under there enough to even begin to offer advice as to getting fuel which you seem to have a bead on anyway. Our vehicles are a bit different - just one fuel tank in mine. As for holes, etc. The Generator on mine is in a floor level compartment on the rear passenger side. The only holes in the floor are for wiring, fuel line, exhaust and the oil change plug. Apparently the door grating provides enough ventilation. It's wired to the coach battery (passenger side under hood) for staring power and I although I have never followed the lines, I presume the 120 volt goes to the transfer switch in the cabinet with the furnace, convertor, etc. I do know the transfer switch is there at any rate.

Hope that helps a little.

[tismark]

A little more searching and I think this is the manual you would need - it matches the one I have anyway.

Look for the link on this page that says "ONAN KVC Installation Manual"