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Here is the info I collected while redoing the brakes on all three axles. I will post the most important info and links first, and then more detailed info and pics relative to each axle. 

Key info. You can use this info to cross reference and utilize other sources. The parts are pretty common.

Front brakes
Knorr Bremse SB7 series. Pads are easily available with just that information. I got mine at NAPA. 
Front Rotor Meritor M44DII37415 Sourced at Find It Parts
Oil Seal Scotseal 46305 Plus Sourced at Prevost 

Drive Brakes are 16.5  diameter Q Plus, 7 inch wide. FMSI 4707Q. Again, bought at NAPA
Drive Drum.  Webb 66884.   NAPA
Oil Seal Meritor 1205 V 2492 Sourced at Prevost

Tag Disk Brake is Meritor ADB 1560
Pads were Carbomet MD268 sourced at anythingtruck.com EDIT: Although the brake pads fit, I found out after a few years that they had small but important machining differences in the way they fit. The correct pads are https://www.finditparts.com/products/395...kit15626pm

Tag rotors were fine and not replaced, although both the rotor and the pads are asymmetric leading me to believe they were severely worn before I read the manual. 

I was intimidated at finding the parts because I knew of other gurus who had paid dearly to have truck shops find the parts. My strategy, since I had the time, was to remove everything on one side to hopefully aid in identifying what I had, and finding the parts. I bought everything I could from NAPA so I could compare the old part to the new before paying. This stuff is heavy and freight back and forth will kill you if it’s not right. Tom, had also planted a seed some years ago when Leo had replaced one of his rotors. Leo said just like Prevost. That led down the path of sourcing from Prevost since they have a branch less than an hour from me, and a very helpful guy at the parts counter. 

First chuckle at my expense is that you must forgive my typing errors. Did you know that the tires are heavy enough to break your finger?

Hello All,

My wife, Deanna, and I purchased #1215 from the factory in August of 2018.  It's our first Newell but not our first motorhome.  We have been RV'ing for all of our 27 years married and set a goal long ago to work towards owning the best.  I found 1215 on the Newell website and knew It was the one for us.  There have been many bumps in the road but we are very hands on, "gearhead" minded people so we have learned quickly about many systems onboard.  This forum has been INVALUABLE to us as we have worked through our issues, small and large.  I thought it was time to quit lurking in the shadows and enjoy the forum as a member, actually a first in itself for me in any forum.  Who knows, maybe I can help someone, sometime down the road!  Glad to finally be aboard and an official thank you to all!

UPDATE (10/4/2025) CUT TO THE CHA$E!

We completed a trip to Breckenridge Colorado from Bentonville Arkansas and back. First big trip in two years.

The Newell climbed the Rockies without any trouble or overheating while towing a Jeep Gladiator.

What was different on this trip?

1) I modified the coolant system by adding a temperature sensor that controls the hydraulic manifold solenoid controlling the fan speed. At 212° the fan goes to high until the coolant temperature reaches approximately 204° and the system resets to fan low speed (normal ops).

2) I re-pitched the cooling fan to 25° for more airflow. This pitch is an intermediate pitch that improves airflow but is not enough for optimal performance. When I complete the hydraulic system modification with a dedicated hydraulic pump for the cooling circuit, I’ll re-pitch the fan to 30-35°. I need to move more air through the radiator and engine compartment.

3) New Radiator - Newell installed a new radiator last year. This made a significant improvement despite all of the work I did trying to clean the original unit.

4) New CAC - Newell installed a new Charge Air Cooler which was a game changer for the Caterpillar C-13 Compound Turbocharger system. I’m now seeing as high as 50 psi boost in some conditions.

5) Divorcing the transmission from the radiator - installing the stand alone transmission cooler was a game changer for my transmission. Fluid temperature is now rock steady at 194° F not being influenced by constantly changing coolant temperatures.

Bottom line… new components and adjustments/modifications were necessary to getting closer to having a fully functioning and normal performing coach.

$$$$$$money$$$$$money$$$$$money$$$$$

Back to the original post….?

Good afternoon Newell owners,

We’ve got the Cat-13 ACERT in our rig. On our last trip we experienced fluctuations in our cooling temps. The cooling temp increased when we were pulling Colorado mountains more than I liked. Thanks to Newell’ Mike E, Richard, and their expertise we were able to manage our situation. 

Now I’m entering the question and answer game with our 15 year old cooling system. So many variables to look at in this scenario. 

I have no idea how many rigs have the C13 engines, my guess is not many. If you have one or had one I’d be interested in hearing how yours behaves. Before we left on our trip I added a PDI Big Boss Tune. I have no idea if it’s a contributing factor good or bad. I’ve been told by a C-15 owner with the tune he notices no difference. IDK...

My immediate questions:

After warm up, in normal operating conditions, what’s your coolant temp run? Does it fluctuate +-20*?

How does your hydraulic cooling fan behave? Slow, med, high speeds? Is it idle at times? If you unplug the fan solenoid does your fan blow your hat off?

How often have you had to change the engine thermostat? Sensors? Modifications in general?

How does the coach climb a grade in high altitudes? Hot temperatures? Heavy? What speed to you climb a grade at... usually? Any special techniques used? Manual shifting? Maintaining a specific RPM band? 80% throttle?

Have you ever had scale buildup in your radiator reservoir, radiator, plumbing, engine? (Loaded question because you have to take stuff apart to find out and that’s not fun. I have some scale buildup in the throat of the reservoir. Soon I’ll drain it and borescope it to investigate more but possibly someone has had work done that could help me understand what could happen to the inside of a radiator). 

I know Caterpillar makes a great engine.  They’ve been around for a long time and moved dirt around the world. I’m still learning all I can about these big Diesel engines and in some cases more than I wanted but that’s part of playing with the big boys... 

I’ll appreciate any info anyone has about how’s these machines behave when traveling around this great country. This topic is cooling...  When I’m done solving this issue I certainly hope it helps others understand a little more about the machine that follows us around all of the time... 

In normal operating conditions I’m seeing the coolant temp fluctuations anywhere from 165* to 185*. Pulling a grade, high, hot and heavy, we’re seeing above 215* at the toughest times. When we pulled over the temps decreased to normal range in less than two minutes. 
JK

https://www.rvuniverse.com/listing/for-s...motorhomes

82.5k  dollars    looks to be coach 441?

tom

Unfortunately I'm selling my '81 classic.  I've come to the realization that I cannot take care of 2 Newells at the same time.  
Length: 36'
Engine: Cummins VT903
Trans: MT 643 5 speed Allison
224 gallon main diesel tank and 56 gallon aux. tank
116 gallon water tank and 119 holding tank
49 gallon propane tank

Changes/modifications that I have made:
2014: Replaced all interior mirrors and replaced all light bulbs with LED
7/2014:  Added fire suppression systems for main engine and generator
9/2014:  Replaced shifter cable (Stewart and Stevenson)
2014: Installed camera system (driver and passenger side view and backup cameras)
11/2014:  Replaced curtains with blinds (motorized in bedroom)
12/2014:  Painted mid section of coach (Iron Horse RV) (Sherwin-Williams paint with several clear coats)
                   Replaced water heater (Suburban 6gal propane/electric)
                   Replaced broken windows, tinted all windows
11/2015:  Replaced driver and passenger chairs (Flexsteel Deluxe Pillowtop with motorized footrest on         passenger chair)
4/2016:  Replaced all air bags and shocks (Koni adjustable)
4/2016:  Replaced genset (Engine Power Source 12KW – Kubota 4 cylinder 1.5 liter diesel), with a    dedicated starting battery – does not use house         batteries.  Genset has about 500 hrs on it.  The original hr meter stopped working at about 350 hrs and I replaced it.
              Replaced slack adjusters, brake chambers and hoses (Krause Bus Sales)
5/2016:  New tires all around
9/2016: Replaced majority of dash wiring with soldered connectors and added fuse to protect dash circuit.
10/2016:  Replaced oven (Dometic CU-434 stainless steel 3 burner cooktop/oven)
10/2016:  Replaced electric heaters (Cadet) and added Olympian Wave 8 catalytic heater to living area.
11/2016:  Replaced middle propane furnace (Suburban NT16)
11/2016:  Replaced bath and shower fans
12/2016:  Replaced headlights with halogens
2/2017:  Checked/adjusted valves (Cummins)
10/2017:  Replaced refrigerator with 12V/120V Novacool RFU9000: 9.5 cu ft only uses 5.2amps when   sealed Danforth compressor is running.  Added dedicated circuit directly from house batteries.
1/2018:  Replaced fan and alternator belts (Cummins)
2/2018:  Replaced house batteries with Lifeline AGMs
3/2018:  Replaced kitchen sink and faucet
3/2018:  Installed Magnum Inverter/Converter and replaced all house battery cables (Inverter not hooked up to 120V yet, used only as a converter at this time)
6/2018:  Replaced windshields
7/2018: Replaced toilet with Dometic 320
8/2018:  Replaced starter and solenoid
7/2019:  Replaced front AC unit with Coleman Mach 15
4/2020:  Replaced dash water temp gauge
6/2020: Replaced starting batteries
9/2020: Refurbished pass through bay


This has been a labor of love.  The wet bay still needs a little more love.  But this coach is ready to be lived and traveled in!  
She's been to the Indy 500 a couple times and we've taken her on many TX state park adventures.  We drive her on a regular basis and run the generator at least once per month and usually weekly.
We live around Floresville, TX.
Price - $28,000
See My Gallery for more photos.
                                       

 

All,
A while back Richard, posted rebuilding of his TRW steering gearbox.  In the process he found an obscure grease fitting on the back side and midway up from the bottom of the unit.  As installed, that fitting has about 2" of clearance between it and the L1 steel compartment.  Since Richard's post I have tried everything to get it greased.  The biggest problem is getting my hand and grease gun in that tight space. 

My solution was to use a step drill to drill a 3/4" hole vertically inline with the fitting through the L1 steel compartment.  It was not an exact lateral alignment so I took a 90 degree grease gun nozzle apart and reassembled it to an offset fitting using an 1/8 brass street elbow.  Fishing it through the hole and snapping it onto the TRW nipple provided an easy lubing.

Newell 515

Not mine, just an FYI.

It looks like someone on here had a discussion about this coach back in 2018 when it was up for sale before. I’ll try and find that link as well.

Previous discussion on it. http://newellgurus.com/showthread.php?tid=4505

An old link I found when it was for sale last. https://www.rvusa.com/1999-newell-515-class-a-2469817

                Our coach has a water hose in the mid bay area.I think it serves as a hot water loop. It seems to be a splitter, where 3/4 heater hoses join up from the cab heater, engine heat for pre heating the water heater water when under way, and also serve hot water up to the bedroom under bed hot water room heater. It began leaking last winter, and I had it replaced by Interstate Power in Sioux Falls. Today I noticed a 3/4 heater hose loop from this manifold , looping on top of the water heater, and returning to the mainfold. The hose is beginning to weep. 

I don't understand what the purpose of this loop. but I do need to replace the hose, with a much shorter loop. What can I be missing here. Anyone know what the purpose of this hose was? 

Also I notice that the hoses replaced by the Interstate Power are silicone. Should I do this bypass in silicone?

Ebay 

https://www.ebay.com/itm/2001-Newell-Coa...SwNkhfdiod

There's a pretty darker blue over lighter blue early 2000's 2 slide parked at Affordable Printing here in Gonzales, LA.
Anyone here?