American Cruiser

[Straylight]

I'm going to assume your fridge is like mine, a Dometic something-or-other. Mine is three-way, which means it runs on 12V (aka, "runs when the car is running"), propane (also called LP, or liquid propane, and which you'd need to turn on first), and 120V ELEC (aka, "runs when you're plugged into shore power). Mine has a circular switch on the bottom right that alternates between OFF, ELEC, 12V, and LP. For my fridge-testing purposes, I hooked the rig up to my house for a while and clicked the switch over to ELEC; the fridge got cold after a few hours. The important thing that I found in the fridge manual was that you really need to wait a while; I found the best way to check the fridge was to put my hand on a piece of metal in the freezer area.

My rig has two vent fans, one above the shower that's pretty simple (two little buttons, one of which runs the fan and the other of which runs the shower lights) and one in the sleeping area. (I guess there's also a vent fan on the hood above the cooking range.) It took me a bit to figure out the sleeping area one. If yours has a dial with numbers, a dial with thermostat-style colors (blue to red), and a little four-pronged hand crank, then yours is like mine. Here's what I figured out:

I think you need to turn the little hand crank to open up the plastic vent above the fan before you can turn the fan on. After that, turn the numbered dial to something other than 0 and turn the colored dial around until it clicks. The fan should start up. I've been able to run the fan off the house battery when the rig is not plugged into shore power.

I'm not sure I have a "micro monitor." Can you post a picture? Here's my rig, for comparison: https://scontent-iad3-1.xx.fbcdn.net...79652404_o.jpg

(that's me with the grumpy sun-in-my-eyes, stop-taking-pictures-and-let-me-play-with-my-new-toy face!)

[Straylight]

In the spirit of giving back a bit to this forum, and because I found absolutely nothing about my American Cruiser on the 'net and I've had to labor through all of my repairs myself, I'm gonna keep this topic alive for a bit and offer my newfound knowledge.

I've got an American Cruiser built on a '97 Dodge Ram 3500 chassis. The previous owner kept all of the documentation, and I can provide copies of it to anyone who asks if you give me a day or two to get it scanned.

Most of the information I've found about Class B stuff in general has been relevant to the American Cruiser build I have, and all of the appliances I have are pretty standard for RVs, so the good news is that even though the company disappeared, you're probably going to be okay.

[Rahn]

Hi Straylight,

I have just bought a 1997 American Cruiser and cannot get the water system
to function correctly.
I would really appreciate if you can forward the user manual to my email at:
ron.kallus@gmail.com

Thanks,
Rahn

[rjf7g]

The owner's manual is not very helpful - I have a 1999 American Cruiser. Are you trying to get the fresh water tank to supply water or the city water connection?

[Rahn]

Hi,
My issue is with the on-board water tank.
Connecting the out side water source works fine.

Rahn

[rjf7g]

Does your pump work? My switch is located at the tank level indicator panel on the passenger side at the rear door. My pump is located under the dinette seat closest to the fridge. There are two drain valves in the bottom cabinet under the sink. Will you fresh water tank hold water or is it draining as you fill it?

Regardless, remember to sanitize the fresh water tank once you get everything working!

[Midwestsurfguy]

Hello,

I am new to the forum! I am trying to fix the leaky windows on my American Cruiser 2000. Where can I get new gaskets or seals? I found a place under the couch right behind the drivers seat that was moldy looking and had obviously been wet many times. I took a hose to it this past Saturday and found that the windows leak. When I ran water down the slider it gushed in side through the track and over flowed. I would liie to find a place to get gaskets. i am not sure how to get the windows out to replace the seals. Any help would be much appreciated!
Thanks
Guy

PS: I have quite a bit of documentation with it. Separate manuals for each appliance and feature if it help anyone.

[mkguitar]

for rubber seals- check steele rubber products

the online catalog shows the dimensions in profile and once you have a match swapping is fairly simple using a string to remove the window and reinstall- check youtube

I use various of their products on a number of classic cars for windows, trunk, door etc

you could also try an auto glass shop- try your local Safelite, they might enjoy using your old van to train some of their techs

mike

[GWylie]

Has anyone added solar to their American Cruiser? Just purchased a 1999 model and I'm trying to determine solar viability.

[BBQ]

Originally Posted by GWylie

Has anyone added solar to their American Cruiser? Just purchased a 1999 model and I'm trying to determine solar viability.

Adding solar is easy (and inexpensive).

Lots of DIY turnkey solar kits on the market.

Check out AMSolar, Zamp, Renogy... they all have kits for RVs.

Lots of youtube instructional videos.

[GWylie]

Originally Posted by BBQ

Adding solar is easy (and inexpensive).

Lots of DIY turnkey solar kits on the market.

Check out AMSolar, Zamp, Renogy... they all have kits for RVs.

Lots of youtube instructional videos.

I understand. But the roof is somewhat constrained due to the shape. Looking for the maximum output with the roof.

[rjf7g]

My 1999 American Cruiser has a solar panel on the roof - not sure of specs.

[Lilliport]

I have a 1997 American Cruiser on a Ford Chassis, 19 feet, 55K miles. I am seeking any printed info available regarding the on board systems. I am a newbie, and I am having trouble understanding how things work. Would be happy to pay for documentation copies. Previous owner said he had them when I agreed to buy, but could not produce them when I picked the unit up. Begging for help. Thanks!

[rjf7g]

I posted some pages from my 1999 documentation at https://flic.kr/s/aHskSh62t5

[kmrotterdam]

Yes I installed solar on mine. I have a 100 watt panel in the front and then a 50 watt panel between the two vent fans, that's about all you can get up there. I used the thin flexible panels. I have a Grape Solar charge controller, and I have two 120 amp hour batteries in the battery bay.

[Midwestsurfguy]

Hello,
I have an America Cruiser built in 2000. The batteries for the RV side of things died. I got new ones today, I took a picture of the wiring before I disconnected the old batteries. When I was hooking up the new ones and I found a cable that was not connected to the batteries before. It is the same size as a regular car battery cable. I am not sure where it is supposed to go. But I am guessing that it is supposed to go on the positive side.I really don't want to guess a fry something. Can anyone send me a picture of their battery connections? If you have any kind of wiring diagram that would be really great.
Thanks
Guy

[Jimbo614]

I'll be looking for a new set of tires. Any recommendations?

Thanks,
Jim

[bmwhacker]

We recently purchased a 1996 American Cruiser on a Dodge 350 chassis / 318 cu. in. engine. Rig has 77k miles and has been lightly used. This model has a toilet, but no shower / hot water system. No owners manual / information was present so am looking for anything I can find. I've been an RV owner since the early 90's so have been able to figure out pretty much everything....this rig has a "4 gang - switch / circuit breaker" assembly overhead in the cab. I've found that one of them activates the 12v receptacles in the back (for TV / dvd player / etc.) ….the other 3 seem to have no function that I can find.(?) The LED "on" lights light up but cannot figure out what they control, if anything...

[kmrotterdam]

If you have Facebook, there is a group called American Cruiser with owners there, perhaps someone can help you with your question.

Originally Posted by bmwhacker

We recently purchased a 1996 American Cruiser on a Dodge 350 chassis / 318 cu. in. engine. Rig has 77k miles and has been lightly used. This model has a toilet, but no shower / hot water system. No owners manual / information was present so am looking for anything I can find. I've been an RV owner since the early 90's so have been able to figure out pretty much everything....this rig has a "4 gang - switch / circuit breaker" assembly overhead in the cab. I've found that one of them activates the 12v receptacles in the back (for TV / dvd player / etc.) ….the other 3 seem to have no function that I can find.(?) The LED "on" lights light up but cannot figure out what they control, if anything...

[DotComMom]

We are looking at one to buy. It is a 1997 with 113K miles. All original equipment. Everything supposed to work. New house batteries. What do you think it is worth?