Tom.
If you remember the Spearfish Rally, we had a weigh-in with our 2000 Marathon H3-45, which Steve B has for sale in Costa Mesa. The coach total weight with full water, and our stuff which really isn’t that much in the scheme of things, weighed in at 51,200. For our model year of shell, 1999, there was a gross weight of 16,600 front axle on the placard for the 315/80/22.5 Michelin Pilotes that came on it, Load Range J, (8270 lbs). The new tires we placed on her were Load Range “L” 9,090 lbs. So with original tires, the pair carrying 16,540, and a rating of 16,660, we were close. However, with no change other than tires, we upped our capacity to 18,180. The next placard rating was 17,250 with the Load Range L tires.Our drivers weighed in a 21,000 lbs. Our tag weighed in at 13,200
This coach weighed, a non slide H3-45, weighed as much as the coach it replaced which was a 2002 Marathon XLII one slide.
This coach had the Canadian Heat Pkg with 4 cruise airs to cool/heat that were ducted thru the window sill OTR ductwork. Two cruise airs were behind the front bumper, and the other two were driverside mid body bay four where the OTR would have been if it hadn’t be removed.
Our genset and house air compressor were bay one driver side. The fuel tank is 235 gallons The house batteries were over the curb side tires behind the removeable fender, and the Webasto was driver side tag door ahead of the radiator. We had a fixed forehead TV, not the problematic swing down one like our XLII had. We thought about the 365’s on the front of our H, but a friend who owned a Marathon Coach similar to ours, an ’02 “H” Marathon had difficulty turning the steer wheel with the bus not moving since it didn’t have the added “slave cylinder to the drag link on steering the newer ones had as we were told. Dont know if it actually was a problem or it was the bus operator’s head.
We had Koni shocks up front and Monroe in the back on ours , and the coach was smoooooth.
By the time Steve delivered it to the new owners in Las Vegas fall of 2009, the DDEC info screen was saying 8.2 mpg towing Steve’s Beemer
Next coach, we will have another H, 2004 or older, since we don’t want to mess with anything newer motorwise, than the 12.7 liter DD motor
Jim n Chris
2000-01 Featherlite XL45 dbl slide w/Rivets (Current)
Past Busses
2000 Marathon XL 40 (0593)
1992 Beaver XL 40 (Bus #34)
2000 Marathon H3-45 (0586)
2002 Marathon XLII (0740) Panel delam was a mystery back then
2001 Country Coach 2 slide (60449) 1st one
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