Body Trim?

[epretot]

How do you remove this trim?

And do I need to?

I would like to remove the body panel. My mechanic believes it slides out to reveal some bolts that hold it on.

Thanks for any input.

[luvrbus]

The bolts are hard to see mine didn't slide you removed the 4 bolts inside the upper  body

[epretot]

The bolts are hard to see mine didn't slide you removed the 4 bolts inside the upper  body

Are the bolts behind the trim I'm pointing to in the photo?

I can't figure out how to remove the trim.

[windtrader]

On my mc-8 there are visible screws, not going to help you, sorry

[epretot]

This photo shows a bunch of adhesive behind the panel.

[Glennman]

I don't know if I can add anything to the conversation, but I believe the way that trim works (I could be all wet on this) is that the trim strip is held on to the bus by the rubber gasket that you see on the top and bottom of the trim piece. I have an unused roll of that rubber in my shop. It has the flat area in the middle (about 2" wide), then the two outer edges have a groove that the trim strip pushes into as you install it. By virtue of the shape of the rubber, it holds the trim strip in place once it is snapped in. If you get a hold of one end and start pulling, I believe it will start to separate. Then once you have a good start, it should come all the way off the full length of it. The rubber piece is all one piece (not two pieces, as it would appear). I don't believe it will "slide out" as it would have way too far to slide. I believe it needs to pull straight out away from the body. There is probably a flat metal piece that holds the rubber in place, and that would have the bolts going through it and the panels into the framework, then the trim fits into the rubber edges to hold it in place. Due to the coats of paint, the rubber will probably not be able to be reused.

I'll be working on mine too (2002 MCI) before too long once I start on the exterior. I hope this helps.

[epretot]

Thanks Glen. I'll try to pull it out at the back of the bus. The panel between the rear bay and wheel needs replaced or customized. It was damaged pretty badly. 

I want to add a vent for the minisplit there.

[Glennman]

Thanks Glen. I'll try to pull it out at the back of the bus. The panel between the rear bay and wheel needs replaced or customized. It was damaged pretty badly. 

I want to add a vent for the minisplit there.

Not to hijack the thread, but do you plan to install a mini split in the rear bay between the bay door and the rear bay wall (just ahead of the duals)?

It looks like in your pictures that the damage is at that wall section between the rear bay door and the duals.

[epretot]

Well...I already did. Here is the best pic I have.

[Glennman]

Confirmed: Thread is hijacked! At any rate, that is very interesting because I want to install an additional mini split (the first 12k one is in the old A/C bay) but I was thinking I would need to hang it off the rear cap somehow. Do you run it only when parked and the bay doors are open? My second one will be a 9k unit.

[windtrader]

same thing. first one in the old AC bay, plenty of air circulation. Putting in a bay seems like it needs external venting. Does your design allow for flow outside the bay?


@Glen - how is the single mini working? Is it enough for the main section, assume you did that first, not the back?

[epretot]

Yes. I will be installing a ven in the fender. I may incase the unit in sheet metal and cut a hole in floor to let air in.

It works fine without a vent or the door open. However, that panel is pretty badly damaged allowing it to vent.

I told the HVAC guy that some "bus guys" were concerned about the flow. He said the worst case scenario is it would overheat and shutdown. But he thought that was unlikely.

And if it does, we will have our answer.

I have a 36k unit and it does pretty well. On really hot days we drop the shades.

[Glennman]

same thing. first one in the old AC bay, plenty of air circulation. Putting in a bay seems like it needs external venting. Does your design allow for flow outside the bay?


@Glen - how is the single mini working? Is it enough for the main section, assume you did that first, not the back?

The 12k unit above the front windshield (mainframe installed in old AC bay) works great. On a 105 degree day it'll keep the bus down to about 82 degrees (if I recall). So, the rear one will hang over the bed and will be 9k. My main thought is to only run one at a time, and kick the rear one on before going to bed. Or, if I'm connected to shore power, I suppose I could run them both. As much as we used the bus last year here in Central Washington (where it gets pretty hot, but is dry), the 12k unit kept it very tolerable. The 9k unit will be a bonus.

Now I'll be checking my options for installing it in a bay. I wish I had thought of that sooner. I have the main junction box at the rear of the rear bay, so it's not an option to install it there.

[Dave5Cs]

Does any maker , make one that lays down and if not why?

[epretot]

Does any maker , make one that lays down and if not why?

No. The oil would run out of the pump.

I asked the same question.

Seems like it would be easy for a manufacturer to rotate a pump for that application.

[Dave5Cs]

If they could figure that out they would sell a lot more of them to rvers.
 Maybe a squattier pump that pushed the oil to the top.

[Glennman]

How do you remove this trim?

And do I need to?

I would like to remove the body panel. My mechanic believes it slides out to reveal some bolts that hold it on.

Thanks for any input.

epretot, check out this video of Yvan Lacroix working on his MCI DL102. It doesn't actually show him removing the trim, but it shows it after it's removed. You might get some ideas...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vilwXGU7AA4

[epretot]

Thanks. I'll check it out