Onan Maintainance/Big Stuff

[zorry]

As my Onan 7500 turns 2 years old I thought I should revisit the owners manual to see what, if anything, I need to address.

I have 3200 plus hours. All I've done is routine air,fuel,and oil/oil filter changes.

And I cleaned the spark arrestor once.

Book says at 2 years, flush coolant and replace cap.
Seems reasonable.

Says once every 5 years or every 1000 hrs change belt, replace hoses and thermostats, and clean crankcase breather.
Since I'm at 3,000 hours I'm thinking of having it done.

Any comments from experienced Onan owners.

 

[fr8hlr521]

As my Onan 7500 turns 2 years old I thought I should revisit the owners manual to see what, if anything, I need to address.

I have 3200 plus hours. All I've done is routine air,fuel,and oil/oil filter changes.

And I cleaned the spark arrestor once.

Book says at 2 years, flush coolant and replace cap.
Seems reasonable.

Says once every 5 years or every 1000 hrs change belt, replace hoses and thermostats, and clean crankcase breather.
Since I'm at 3,000 hours I'm thinking of having it done.

Any comments from experienced Onan owners.

We did our 6.5 onan in December at 7,500 hours. also had to replace the plastic expansion tank since it had a crack and was losing coolant. ours is a 2008 and the tank problem was a design flaw maybe already addressed in your onan. Also replaced the water pump while they were at it. cost was about 2k, mostly labor as they had to remove the gen from the truck to get access. worth it? for us yes, but definitely not at 1,000 hours. the belt still looked pretty good, as did the hoses. had the work done at a reputable local shop, not cummins or freightliner. hope this helps!

Sent from my LG-E980 using EO Forums mobile app

 

[zorry]

Yes it does.
I guess the guidelines are based on units often getting only a few hundred hours per year.

I don't want to wait too long.
I like the 100% reliability.
I want to preserve that.

 

[paullud]

It sounds like Onan is better quality than the others on the market.

Sent from my SCH-I535 using EO Forums mobile app

 

[zorry]

I've been impressed.
I don't see any reason for an O/O that is willing to do the simple PMs to buy anything else.
Unless frame space is an issue. Like on a tractor.

 

[fr8hlr521]

I've been impressed.
I don't see any reason for an O/O that is willing to do the simple PMs to buy anything else.
Unless frame space is an issue. Like on a tractor.

agree completely. very quiet and dependable. I think the maintenance table was set up with the RV market in mind, where dry rot of the rubber is the most major concern!

Sent from my LG-E980 using EO Forums mobile app

 

[JoeS]

I love my Onan. Currently has 10,500 hours and not a lick of trouble. I generally follow the recommended maintenance intervals.
150 Hours: Oil and oil filter change.
300 Hours: Oil, oil filter and fuel filter change.
450 Hours: Oil, oil filter and air filter.
Repeat.
Since I'll be down for a few weeks, I'll have all the hoses, belts, and thermostat replaced.

 

[zorry]

How many times have the belts/thermostats/hoses been replaced ?
How old ( in years) is the unit ?

 

[JoeS]

How many times have the belts/thermostats/hoses been replaced ?
How old ( in years) is the unit ?

From what I know, once before. The unit is 4 years old.

 

[zorry]

Not many others will come on and say their ( insert APU brand here) has given them 10,000 plus hours " without a lick of trouble."

Unless they have an Onan, too.

 

[JoeS]

Not many others will come on and say their ( insert APU brand here) has given them 10,000 plus hours " without a lick of trouble."

Unless they have an Onan, too.

I agree with you 100%.
In all honesty, this unit shouldn't have that many hours on it. Instead of having the auto start kick in when the batteries got low and shutting down when they were topped off, it was just set to continuos run.