Phil
We live in Naples and Nashville so we are only TOO familiar with
Monteagle. It's a 5 to 6 times a year trip. It''s the only part of
the trip I used to dread. But no more not even towing. And I have
changed very little on the coach.
For reference I originally owned a new 1977 Kingsley from 1977 till
1982. It had a 403 also and I lived in Boulder Colorado then. I took
the coach everywhere towing a 4WD Dodge Ram Charger which weighed
over 3500 lbs using a pair of used temporary Uhaul bumper hitches.
Remember those.
No tow brakes, no special final drives, and it did just fine as I
recall. I traveled regularly throughout the rockies. I did this year
round through snow and all. If the roads got so slick I couldn't make
it up grades I'd just pull over and wait for a sand truck to follow.
I always felt bullet proof as they say. Times DO change.
However, my 1978 Eleganza seemed to huff and puff at Monteagle. It is
probably age although I am not sure if it is the age of the coach or me.
Now if it rains I drop down to 50. And snow, well that's why we spend
winters in Naples. This coach will NEVER see snow if I can help it. It
sure won't be moving under its own power.
In my 78 I still have the orig 307 final drive and the orig stock 403
with close to 70000 miles. The coach cruises best at 65 or 70. We
cruise normally at 60 to 65. But Monteagle limit is 55 mph so my torque
is low. If I could take the hill at 65 I believe that it would go in
third without a tow vehicle but at 55 she won't hold in third. But I
can easily do 40 to 45 in second and I can pass if necessary. If I tow
I REALLY feel the difference. Second holds 40-45 but no passing power.
This used to bother me. I kept looking at headers, 3 inch exhausts,
higher final drives, fuel injection and talked to any owner who climbed
a hill taller than the coach. I generally got one of two common answers.
Get a higher final drive ratio or climb in second and quit worrying.
When I talked to several members in our club who have 321 to 355 final
drives and found out that they still climbed in second I decided to
leave well enough alone.
As to the 23 footers you can't compete with a 26 footer. They weigh a
lot less, and the older coaches had a lot more horsepower especially
the 73s and 74s with their higher compression ratios. So if I try to
compare performance with a 73 or 74 230 with my 78 260 I am going to
loose. But then if I had wanted a performance vehicle I would not
have chosen the GMC. Although some have really hopped them up but at
considerable cost.
As to mileage, our logs over the past 12000 miles averaged 10.5 mpg. But
we do live in Florida and cruise slow compared to some. All coaches AND
drivers are different. I drive for mileage. Slow starts, slow stops if
possible, and use cruise control whenever possible. When we first got
the coach we were averaging 8.5 to 9. I did the following
Complete Tuneup with ALL new parts and we are stock
All new E rated tires at 70 psi and ALL new bearings
ALL NEW brakes - poorly adjusted brakes can drag
ALL NEW suspension to tighten tracking and steering
I change my oil every 2500 miles and use Duralube
I use premium 97 oct fuel from the cheapest source
EVERYTHING is stock
Full 6 wheel alignment.
We keep our coach well waxed.
Laugh at wax but it works - as a pilot I could get 5 extra knots with
new wax.
Last 5000 miles we averaged 10.9
We run with Auto Air ON 100 percent of time
Cruise at 60 to 65
On long trips we only stop every 4 to 5 hours.
We use cruise control
We very seldom tow
It's just how it works, it's possible that nothing I do helps and we
just have an efficient coach. Being in Florida does help but 75 percent
of our milage is to go north.
My feeling is that if your coach runs well except for hills like
monteagle and second gear works there you are just like the rest of us.
As a note to climbing.
I do NOT have gauges other than stock. My temp in winter or up north at
just above the eighth mark. In summer its just below the quarter mark.
By the time I get to top of Monteagle the temp climbs about 10% to 15%
of where I started. It's a very slight movement but I can notice it. If
your temp increases dramatically climbing then I would have things
checked out.
Just a point of reference for you - hope it helps
Mike Finnicum
78 GMC Eleganza II
Naples, FL
Songtek Publishing (bmi)
Songtrek Publishing (ascap)
Nashville, TN
We live in Naples and Nashville so we are only TOO familiar with
Monteagle. It's a 5 to 6 times a year trip. It''s the only part of
the trip I used to dread. But no more not even towing. And I have
changed very little on the coach.
For reference I originally owned a new 1977 Kingsley from 1977 till
1982. It had a 403 also and I lived in Boulder Colorado then. I took
the coach everywhere towing a 4WD Dodge Ram Charger which weighed
over 3500 lbs using a pair of used temporary Uhaul bumper hitches.
Remember those.
No tow brakes, no special final drives, and it did just fine as I
recall. I traveled regularly throughout the rockies. I did this year
round through snow and all. If the roads got so slick I couldn't make
it up grades I'd just pull over and wait for a sand truck to follow.
I always felt bullet proof as they say. Times DO change.
However, my 1978 Eleganza seemed to huff and puff at Monteagle. It is
probably age although I am not sure if it is the age of the coach or me.
Now if it rains I drop down to 50. And snow, well that's why we spend
winters in Naples. This coach will NEVER see snow if I can help it. It
sure won't be moving under its own power.
In my 78 I still have the orig 307 final drive and the orig stock 403
with close to 70000 miles. The coach cruises best at 65 or 70. We
cruise normally at 60 to 65. But Monteagle limit is 55 mph so my torque
is low. If I could take the hill at 65 I believe that it would go in
third without a tow vehicle but at 55 she won't hold in third. But I
can easily do 40 to 45 in second and I can pass if necessary. If I tow
I REALLY feel the difference. Second holds 40-45 but no passing power.
This used to bother me. I kept looking at headers, 3 inch exhausts,
higher final drives, fuel injection and talked to any owner who climbed
a hill taller than the coach. I generally got one of two common answers.
Get a higher final drive ratio or climb in second and quit worrying.
When I talked to several members in our club who have 321 to 355 final
drives and found out that they still climbed in second I decided to
leave well enough alone.
As to the 23 footers you can't compete with a 26 footer. They weigh a
lot less, and the older coaches had a lot more horsepower especially
the 73s and 74s with their higher compression ratios. So if I try to
compare performance with a 73 or 74 230 with my 78 260 I am going to
loose. But then if I had wanted a performance vehicle I would not
have chosen the GMC. Although some have really hopped them up but at
considerable cost.
As to mileage, our logs over the past 12000 miles averaged 10.5 mpg. But
we do live in Florida and cruise slow compared to some. All coaches AND
drivers are different. I drive for mileage. Slow starts, slow stops if
possible, and use cruise control whenever possible. When we first got
the coach we were averaging 8.5 to 9. I did the following
Complete Tuneup with ALL new parts and we are stock
All new E rated tires at 70 psi and ALL new bearings
ALL NEW brakes - poorly adjusted brakes can drag
ALL NEW suspension to tighten tracking and steering
I change my oil every 2500 miles and use Duralube
I use premium 97 oct fuel from the cheapest source
EVERYTHING is stock
Full 6 wheel alignment.
We keep our coach well waxed.
Laugh at wax but it works - as a pilot I could get 5 extra knots with
new wax.
Last 5000 miles we averaged 10.9
We run with Auto Air ON 100 percent of time
Cruise at 60 to 65
On long trips we only stop every 4 to 5 hours.
We use cruise control
We very seldom tow
It's just how it works, it's possible that nothing I do helps and we
just have an efficient coach. Being in Florida does help but 75 percent
of our milage is to go north.
My feeling is that if your coach runs well except for hills like
monteagle and second gear works there you are just like the rest of us.
As a note to climbing.
I do NOT have gauges other than stock. My temp in winter or up north at
just above the eighth mark. In summer its just below the quarter mark.
By the time I get to top of Monteagle the temp climbs about 10% to 15%
of where I started. It's a very slight movement but I can notice it. If
your temp increases dramatically climbing then I would have things
checked out.
Just a point of reference for you - hope it helps
Mike Finnicum
78 GMC Eleganza II
Naples, FL
Songtek Publishing (bmi)
Songtrek Publishing (ascap)
Nashville, TN
