Pre Delivery Brake Adjustment

[patodonn]

Just picked up a new 3655FL last Sunday. Interesting info from a Service Manager. Montanas are towed, not "transported" from Goshen to the dealer. In our case that was about 1800+ miles. I asked the Service Manager to verify that they had performed the required maintenance brake adjustments after the first 200 miles it was towed, (per the owner's manual)or, at least as part of the pre delivery process. He told me that it wasn't done at the dealer's and that no one had ever even asked the question. Since this is a large dealership, handeling many different brands, it is very possible that he wasn't aware of this specific requirement for the Montana.

It is in both the Owner's manual and the brake/wheel/axle manual as required maintenance actions after the first 200 miles. Big "Warning" all around it. He said they would do it for us.

Interesting situation, and I can't believe no one had ever asked about it. This info might save someone the cost and time of an unnecessary brake adjustment job, since the dealer should have done it after it arrived at his location, and certainly before you even see the unit. To be done correctly, it actually is required to be accomplished after the first 200 miles of towing. I also wonder if the towing company accomplished the mandatory "every 50 miles for the first 200 miles" torque checks of the wheel bolts while they were towing it from Goshen to the dealer's. Any bets on that one? My dealer said that they do a wheel bolt torque check as part of the pre delivery process.

The verification of the required brake adjustment is something to think about asking during a pre delivery inspection. The FL did very well on the PDI, by the way. Beautiful unit.

For any Keystone Corp reader...doesn't Keystone give the dealers a mandatory pre delivery inspection checklist? Shouldn't the 200 mile brake adjustment be part of it if it was towed to the dealer's?

Hope this post helps someone avoid unnecessary costs in time and $. Should already be done before you see the unit.

PJ & Nan
3655FL
'99 Dodge Diesel 2500, BD auto trans, dialed, Pac brake.