Opinions on the SP36

[erniecarpet@...]

Scott- a couple years ago, Ralph, Bim and I did one of our first PDI's on
and SP. this required us to do a test drive. The SP, in my opinion, drives and
performs great.

Ernie Ekberg
83 PT40
Livingston, Montana



[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

[dspithaler@...]

Scott I have owned a 89 SP for three years & am very satisfied with it.
It gets about 7 miles to the gallon & rides really well. I was a little leery
about the ZF myself but I wanted the Cat engine as I had a forward control
cat before it. Now I think it is a strong tranny.The services centers aren't
as plentiful as the Alison. The ZF is a tranny that is used in heavy
equipment, cranes, City Transit Busses & now a going to be used in the 07
BlueBirds. I
think the Cat is a little cheaper to maintain than the Detroit although I
never owned one.
Don
89 SP 36'
Butler, PA

Hello all,

I am considering moving up to a newer 'Bird, and have seen a few nice
SP's for sale. What is everyone's opinion of this model vs. the PT's?
Is the Detroit driveline superior to the Cat/ZF set-up? Are there any
SP "quirks" I need to be aware of?

SP's appeal to me because I prefer a middle entry door.

Thanks for the advice in advance





[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

[Scott Forman]

Hello all,

I am considering moving up to a newer 'Bird, and have seen a few nice
SP's for sale. What is everyone's opinion of this model vs. the PT's?
Is the Detroit driveline superior to the Cat/ZF set-up? Are there any
SP "quirks" I need to be aware of?

SP's appeal to me because I prefer a middle entry door.

Thanks for the advice in advance

Scott Forman
82 FC35RB
Memphis

[Tom Seitz]

Scott, I could tell you what I know about SP's but I would be a bit
biased. I have an SP for sale. would maybe be interested in a trade.
If interested contact me. Tom 90 SP36 Alpharetta GA (For Sale)

--- In WanderlodgeForum@yahoogroups.com, "Scott Forman"
<sforman@...> wrote:
>
> Hello all,
>
> I am considering moving up to a newer 'Bird, and have seen a few
nice
> SP's for sale. What is everyone's opinion of this model vs. the
PT's?
> Is the Detroit driveline superior to the Cat/ZF set-up? Are there
any
> SP "quirks" I need to be aware of?
>
> SP's appeal to me because I prefer a middle entry door.
>
> Thanks for the advice in advance
>
> Scott Forman
> 82 FC35RB
> Memphis
>

[Wilhelmus Schreurs]

Scott:
Just look up on the search for the ZF transmission and make up your own mind.
Don't know nothing about them, but having only a handful of dealers to fix the
transmission, hmmmm well I would certainly not go that way.
My 2 cents worth.

Bill 84 FC 35 SB "$quanderlodge"
Terrace, B.C. Canada


----- Original Message ----
From: Tom Seitz
To: WanderlodgeForum@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Wednesday, November 15, 2006 5:52:29 PM
Subject: [WanderlodgeForum] Re: Opinions on the SP36













Scott, I could tell you what I know about SP's but I would be a bit

biased. I have an SP for sale. would maybe be interested in a trade.

If interested contact me. Tom 90 SP36 Alpharetta GA (For Sale)



--- In WanderlodgeForum@ yahoogroups. com, "Scott Forman"

<sforman@... > wrote:

>

> Hello all,

>

> I am considering moving up to a newer 'Bird, and have seen a few

nice

> SP's for sale. What is everyone's opinion of this model vs. the

PT's?

> Is the Detroit driveline superior to the Cat/ZF set-up? Are there

any

> SP "quirks" I need to be aware of?

>

> SP's appeal to me because I prefer a middle entry door.

>

> Thanks for the advice in advance

>

> Scott Forman

> 82 FC35RB

> Memphis

>














<!--

#ygrp-mlmsg {font-size:13px;font-family:arial,helvetica,clean,sans-serif;}
#ygrp-mlmsg table {font-size:inherit;font:100%;}
#ygrp-mlmsg select, input, textarea {font:99% arial,helvetica,clean,sans-serif;}
#ygrp-mlmsg pre, code {font:115% monospace;}
#ygrp-mlmsg * {line-height:1.22em;}
#ygrp-text{
font-family:Georgia;
}
#ygrp-text p{
margin:0 0 1em 0;
}
#ygrp-tpmsgs{
font-family:Arial;
clear:both;
}
#ygrp-vitnav{
padding-top:10px;
font-family:Verdana;
font-size:77%;
margin:0;
}
#ygrp-vitnav a{
padding:0 1px;
}
#ygrp-actbar{
clear:both;
margin:25px 0;
white-space:nowrap;
color:#666;
text-align:right;
}
#ygrp-actbar .left{
float:left;
white-space:nowrap;
}
.bld{font-weight:bold;}
#ygrp-grft{
font-family:Verdana;
font-size:77%;
padding:15px 0;
}
#ygrp-ft{
font-family:verdana;
font-size:77%;
border-top:1px solid #666;
padding:5px 0;
}
#ygrp-mlmsg #logo{
padding-bottom:10px;
}

#ygrp-vital{
background-color:#e0ecee;
margin-bottom:20px;
padding:2px 0 8px 8px;
}
#ygrp-vital #vithd{
font-size:77%;
font-family:Verdana;
font-weight:bold;
color:#333;
text-transform:uppercase;
}
#ygrp-vital ul{
padding:0;
margin:2px 0;
}
#ygrp-vital ul li{
list-style-type:none;
clear:both;
border:1px solid #e0ecee;
}
#ygrp-vital ul li .ct{
font-weight:bold;
color:#ff7900;
float:right;
width:2em;
text-align:right;
padding-right:.5em;
}
#ygrp-vital ul li .cat{
font-weight:bold;
}
#ygrp-vital a {
text-decoration:none;
}

#ygrp-vital a:hover{
text-decoration:underline;
}

#ygrp-sponsor #hd{
color:#999;
font-size:77%;
}
#ygrp-sponsor #ov{
padding:6px 13px;
background-color:#e0ecee;
margin-bottom:20px;
}
#ygrp-sponsor #ov ul{
padding:0 0 0 8px;
margin:0;
}
#ygrp-sponsor #ov li{
list-style-type:square;
padding:6px 0;
font-size:77%;
}
#ygrp-sponsor #ov li a{
text-decoration:none;
font-size:130%;
}
#ygrp-sponsor #nc {
background-color:#eee;
margin-bottom:20px;
padding:0 8px;
}
#ygrp-sponsor .ad{
padding:8px 0;
}
#ygrp-sponsor .ad #hd1{
font-family:Arial;
font-weight:bold;
color:#628c2a;
font-size:100%;
line-height:122%;
}
#ygrp-sponsor .ad a{
text-decoration:none;
}
#ygrp-sponsor .ad a:hover{
text-decoration:underline;
}
#ygrp-sponsor .ad p{
margin:0;
}
o {font-size:0;}
.MsoNormal {
margin:0 0 0 0;
}
#ygrp-text tt{
font-size:120%;
}
blockquote{margin:0 0 0 4px;}
.replbq {margin:4;}
-->









[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

[birdshill123]

Doing a search of this and other BB forums will bring up mostly praise
for the ZF transmission. They did have some voltage problems that are
easily fixed. Major repairs can be accomplished by having a bus/truck
shop remove the tranny and send it to a ZF facility. No big deal. My
thoughts are that the 300 HP Cat that goes with the ZF more than makes
up for any tranny shortcomings.

Bruce 1988 FC 35

[Juergen]

--- In WanderlodgeForum@yahoogroups.com, "Scott Forman" <sforman@...>
wrote:
>
> Hello all,
>
> I am considering moving up to a newer 'Bird, and have seen a few nice
> SP's for sale. What is everyone's opinion of this model vs. the PT's?
> Is the Detroit driveline superior to the Cat/ZF set-up? Are there any
> SP "quirks" I need to be aware of?
>
> SP's appeal to me because I prefer a middle entry door.
>
> Thanks for the advice in advance
>
> Scott Forman
> 82 FC35RB
> Memphis
>
Scott
I've owned an SP36 for 11 years now. Like all the other posts said,
its a good maschine. Perfect? No, but who is perfect anywhere. I have
had a lot of good trips without problems, and some trips with
problems, but none were major things. The biggest draw back of owning
and operating this rig is A LACK OF KNOWLEDGE. I had a couple of on
the road breakdowns.
Once, the engine just quit at a restspot. Would not start. Problem? A
plugged Racor fuel filter. Aclean filter fixed that. Had to get towed
once due to the ZF not engaging any gear. Caused by a low voltage to
the thing. Cure was a 2 foot wire to feed the ECM with 12Volts, not
8.9Volts. Coach leaned once during driving. right side just leaned
down, no air in the right side. Cause was a height adjustment rod
broke off the axle, it just rusted off. This all in a course of 11
years. Had I known before what I know now, this would have all been
prevented.
However, the coach keeps on teaching me and if I actually pay
attention to what it is telling me, life would be good. No breakdowns.
So, it is a great coach, ZF is VERY reliable, thats why there are so
FEW repair stations around in the US, Jeff Miller put my SP35 Handbook
on the website somewhere, it explains the coach and what I learned.
If you have questions, just holler, I'll be happy to try to answer you.
Juergen in PA
1991 SP36

[Dan Weaver]

Hi Scott,

I read the replies on the SP. I also considered one, and think they
are a fine coach. Have you also looked at the BB BMC 37' coach,
1994 to 1996? Cummins 300 HP 4 stroke, Allison 6 speed, still a
steel coach except for front and rear cap.
http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/BlueBirdBMCowners/

Dan
94 BB BMC 37'

--- In WanderlodgeForum@yahoogroups.com, "Scott Forman"
<sforman@...> wrote:
>
> Hello all,
>
> I am considering moving up to a newer 'Bird, and have seen a few
nice
> SP's for sale. What is everyone's opinion of this model vs. the
PT's?
> Is the Detroit driveline superior to the Cat/ZF set-up? Are there
any
> SP "quirks" I need to be aware of?
>
> SP's appeal to me because I prefer a middle entry door.
>
> Thanks for the advice in advance
>
> Scott Forman
> 82 FC35RB
> Memphis
>