coach-net

[rip]

Had to use coach-net twice this week and not very happy with their service.
     On Wednesday I blew a tag axle tire and after waiting almost two hours they finally showed.First off he had to remove bicycles and lawn equipment just to get at his air compressor which took him several minutes to start.The compressor would not build up enough air to run his impact wrench to take the lug nuts off.He finally had to break them loose by hand and finished taking them off with a 3/8 impact.It took him over an hour to change one tire.And after all that he hinted he wanted a tip.
    The next day I'm driving through St.Louis when the drivers side of the coach lost air.I was pretty sure I didn't blow an air bag but not sure what happened.After calling coach-net they decide what was needed and a tow was called.After waiting an hour they called back and said the first wrecker canceled and would be another two hours for them to show.
     Once he got the bus up high enough the driver found the leveling valve pushed up 90 degrees.He said nothing was broke and just pulled it down to level and it was fine.The driver said this can happen on really rough road and has seen this before.
      I found out that if was was towed it would be towed to the closes repair shop with a waiting period  of seven days to get the coach looked at.I found a shop that would look at at the same day but I would had to pay the extra millage.I didn't have to be towed but I do not their policy.
    Don

[digesterman]

Was the leveling valve the problem?

[bigred]

Guy's You might want to check out Good Sam .I have them and have nothing but good things to say about them.Don't know what their policy is toward buses ,but I think as long as it is registered as an RV there is no problem.Now a day's ,it is hard to find any thing good to say about Camping World ,but their road service has been great for me.

[luvrbus]

That happens with all towing Co's they just call a tire guy in that area,tell Coachnet about the service and they won't call the guy out again.You don't have to use the closest shop they find next time that happens talk to the supervisor in charge they will tow you anywhere within your towing limits.
Coachnet and Good Sams call from the phone book AAA is the only one that has a pre approved list of towing co's and tire service but Coachnet is working on theirs to provide better service.Depending on your plan you can call for a mobile mechanic if he cannot repair it they will tow your vehicle,that was costly to Coachnet to send a wrecker for a leveling valve I would guess $500 to $700.00 but that is what you pay premiums for.
I have seen RV's here setting on the road with flats waiting on Good Sam for 3 hours and there is nothing Good Sam or Coachnet can do when all the tires shops are busy and out on other calls       

[blue_goose]

I have had Good Sams for a long long time.  They can't help how long it takes to get there.  The last time I called was in a snow storm on I-80.  They never did get there, but if I had called myself they more than likely wouldn't have gotten there for a flat.  The tire was trashed so I ended up driving to the next exit an d changed it myself.  The times that I have used them was good.  I can pay from now on and still be ahead.
Jack

[uncle ned]

Had a tree blow across the interstate 85 south of Greenville SC  on a Saturday night at close to mid nite.

Good SAM had someone there in about a hour with a new tire.

Great service man also. ever tried to pick up a 04 with a flat front tire.  the axle is with in inches of the ground and his jack would not go under.  thanks to a hydraulic leveling system but had to get high enough to let it swing down.

New Goodyear tire is 580 hundred at mid nite delivered but well worth it.

uncle Ned
ps the service man would not put the tire on with a air wrench and had me sigh a paper saying that he used a "tourkK wrench to tighten them

[luvrbus]

With Coachnet and Good Sam just like Jack said it depends on service personal available in that area at the time they cannot control that part 

[Dave5Cs]

Agree with Clifford, You have to call them and let them know otherwise someone else will get poor service also. Now Sometimes they have no choice so that's a good reason to carry a Torque wrench 1/2" drive and a Torque Multiplier (79.00 on line 65:1)on board. you could have been out of there in 20 minutes. A good on board compressor (150.00) and a air over 20 Ton low profile jack (HF 79.00) also makes life simpler or at lease a lot less time sitting on the road.
One thing I got off these boards is be prepared.
When we broke down in AZ We got on the boards and found out where a service guy Busnut was. Step one then After talking to him and figuring out what it might be I Ran a hose in through the window to under the dash where I have a NPT fitting that bypasses the Air dryer which we figured it was Step 2 then filled the system with air to 90 lbs dumped it and filled again to get it as high as we could 120PSI. Were able to release the brakes and drive 10 blocks to where we could work on it. 4 Hours later we were on our way. Step 3.
We have Coachnet also, did we think of calling them, Sure we did, but why we know there will be times and prepare for them. Just saying.

Dave5Cs

[rip]

I do carry all the stuff to change it myself that's what really got me mad with there service.I had my shoulder replaced recently so that was not an option.

[ArtGill]

Last December on the way to Arcadia, I blew an inside dual.  Then I drove real slow to the next exit and found a safe place to stop at a El Cheapo gas station.  Called Coach Net and they called back and said it would be an hour.  I unhooked the jeep drove two doors down the street and got us a motel room.  When I got back to the bus, the service man was already there, had my coach jacked up, the wheel off, and ready to dismount the tire.  I carry a spare tire, but not a mounted.  So, in this case the service surpassed my expectations.

It has been my experience that Coach-net attempts to do a good job.  It just depends where you are, time of day, and phase of the moon.

Art

[Dave5Cs]

Well RIP that a horse of a different color eh. You didn't tell us about the shoulder. Ooch that had to hurt. Ya doing good now? hopefully!...

Dave5Cs

[belfert]

I don't consider two hours to be a big deal for a tire change.  The guy not having a professional setup and the right tools is a different issue.  None of the roadside assistance providers pay very well so you're not going to get the cream of the crop some of the time.  If a provider has cash customers wanting service the roadside assistance customers might have to wait.  Coach-Net seems to problems coming up with providers late at night, but no problem during the day.  I figure they don't pay enough to get someone out of bed if it isn't a true emergency.

I lost a tag axle wheel bearing in the middle of nowhere in Wyoming.  The provider Coach-Net selected called me and said he could tow it to the shop after removing the tag axle wheel.  I was like I'll just drive it to the shop if the wheel is taken off.  The provider did both the towing and had a shop to do the repairs.  He said he could send a mobile mechanic instead.  He decided to send a mechanic from another one of his shops that was like four hours away.  This guy was supposedly really good at fixing wheel end problems.  The mechanic arrived five or six hours later after getting parts, but he couldn't fix it due to scored spindle and removed the wheel and drum and chained up the axle.  We drove 1,000 miles home that way.  We aired up the drive axle tires fully and shifted some weight around.  We also stopped for fuel often to keep the tank light as it was directly in front of axles.

Coach-Net paid for the travel time.  I don't know if the shop got paid for the six hours of travel time or not.

[ake1994]

Just a few weekends ago I too had to call Coach-net. On Friday I blew the rear tire on a tandem axle trailer I was towing with the bus. I thought I had everything I needed to change the tire, but could not break the lug nuts loose. I was only able to get far enough over on the shoulder to get the trailer tires about 5 feet out of the traffic lane and cars were flying by at 75 MPH! I decided to make the call. I explained I just needed someone to install the spare that I had. It was 2:00 in the afternoon and I was just outside of Richmond. They called me back in 10 minutes and said service would be there within the hour. An hour later they called me back to see if the Service was there. They held me on the phone and called the guy. He said he was 5 minutes away. A few minutes later a Kia Sedan pulled up behind the bus. It looked like a 17 year old kid driving. At first I was concerned about who this was, there were no marking on the car. When he approached he asked for me by name and I realized this was the service guy. His battery powered impact gun wouldn't work and he had to pull a three foot breaker bar out of his trunk to break the lug nuts loose. But was able to change the tire in a few minutes. When I looked at the tire when he was done, I remember thinking that the spare wheel looked different, I thought they were all the same type of wheel. Right after he arrived Coach-net called again to ensure that he had arrived. In all I was on the side of the road about an hour and a half.

Sunday of the same weekend on the way back home, I blew the front tire on the same side of the trailer. Only this time I had no spare. This time I was not near a major city and needed a tire delivered and installed. It took about 30 minutes for Coach-net to call me back saying they found a Service out of Richmond that could be there with a tire in about an hour and a half. They also let me know what the tire would cost and got my approval of everything. Again they called me back after an hour and half and I told them the service had not yet arrived. Again they held me on the phone and called the guy, he was on his way about 30 minutes out. Considering I was no where close to anything on a Sunday afternoon, I didn't think two hours was unreasonable. Right after the guy arrived I got another call from Coach-Net checking to see if I was being taken care of. This guy was driving a professional service truck and installed the tire in 15 minutes. He also pointed out that the other tire had been installed inside-out and turned that tire around while he was there. Once I looked closer at the other tire it was obvious why the wheel looked different. 

As stated above I realized Coach-net finds out where you are and what you need, then looks for a suitable Service Provider in the area. I was impressed with the fact that they continually called me back following up to ensure I was being taken care of. These two service calls only cost me the cost of the tire I had to buy.

I received a survey by email a day later from Coach-Net. My only complaint was with the young guy installing my tire backwards. I was very pleased with every aspect of the service provided by Coach-net.

[Jim Eh.]

Sounds like another good reason to carry these ...
http://www.safetywhips.ca/images/%C2%A0Road_Hazard%20Kit_Triangles724.jpg

[belfert]

I have a full set of warning triangles in my bus and I consider it a bad trip if the warning triangles have to come out of storage.  I actually keep a reflective vest near the door of the bus in case I break down.  I want to be seen if I am walking around on the side of the road.