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Q. How are Liberty's electrical systems different from others?
- At Liberty we begin by starting from a base principle that we have perfected through over 30 years of experience. Each circuit has it's own dedicated ground wire that is run to a separate ground board. This virtually eliminates a "loose ground" problem that plagues many coaches. This process also doubles, in many cases, the amount of wire we run for an interior, about 2 - 3 miles worth total.
- All Liberty wiring utilizes marine-type stranded cable. There is NO solid wire used in the interior.
- We divide our systems into major zones and then into many circuits that are separately fused so one problem will not take the whole coach down.
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Q. Describe what makes Liberty's cabinetry so much better.
- In 1989, before some of today's convertors had even gone into business, we invested a substantial amount of capital into CAD/CAM automation. Kurt Konigseder initiated the development of our cabinet manufacturing process and still designs our cabinetry and floorplans. Each cabinet we build is drawn into parts and then all the parts are cut on a precision router which has tolerance of .001". This forces us to build as close to perfect as is possible.
- At Liberty Coach we consider our cabinetry to be fine furniture. Each piece is finished before installation. This means the door, drawer, hinge, latch, etc... are installed and fit before the cabinet is installed into the coach. Other companies use a "build as they go" process meaning you can look behind most cabinet walls and see dissimilar materials used. This indicates that when the cabinet was installed it was the wrong size or fit improperly and had to be changed in place. This does not happen at Liberty because all cabinetry, couches, countertops, and ceiling pieces are "dry fit" on our computer system and fit to the correct profile before they are built.
- We laminate our cabinetry in such a way as to protect our customers from any sharp edges. Instead of cabinet doors finished the bottom of an overhead cabinet, the cabinet has an additional bottom rail that is radiused or , with Vitricor, beveled down to give a smooth surface. This process is very time consuming and uses more material because it requires the finishing of many compound corners but it shows off our workmanship and provides a safer interior for the end-user.
- All our cabinet doors and drawers have positive latches instead of self-closing type hinges or slides. This means everything stays closed when moving down the road.
- Building cabinetry the way we do also provides the customer with a virtually squeak & rattle-free interior. By building the cabinetry as a module, the cabinet is attached directly to the beam work of the shell, not to the ceiling as virtually all other convertors do. This eliminates the flexing of large walls and cracking of laminate or mirrors, which also eliminates squeaks and rattles.
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Q. How does the Liberty Coach operate in extreme temperature environments?
- We primarily use Cruise-Air systems for air conditioning. Frank Konigseder, Sr. started with this system in 1970 and through the years both Liberty Coach and Marine Development have made some changes to the systems to provide the finest cooling system available. This is accomplished first and foremost, by proper installation of the equipment. We use only copper lines and no hose. There are no soldered joints or fittings. All runs are continuous thus eliminating hidden leaks. Most 45 foot coaches are built with 4 A/C systems and the 40 foot units are built with 3.
- Our heating system was designed by Liberty and tested at temperatures exceeding -65 degrees below zero. We utilize an 80,000 BTU Webasto furnace which heats and circulates main engine anti-freeze throughout the coach. Remote blowers are used to deliver the heat to the interior and bay areas. These blowers are controlled in zones by thermostats. At all times, the main engine is maintained at 158 degrees and your domestic water is also heated by this system. At any time you can start the coach in extremely cold climates because of the constant temperature of the engine/transmission package.
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Q. Explain your generator system installation and operation.
- In 1981, Frank Konigseder, Jr. designed the generator to be mounted on an air bag suspension carried on a roll-out. At this time the radiator was split off the generator unit and mounted in a separate compartment. The result was two-fold; the package produced a noise level of 58 decibels or less and was virtually vibration free. The second advantage was that we were able to cool the unit at much higher outside temperatures because the radiator had only outside ambient air instead of an increased temperature associated with the radiator being enclosed in the same compartment as the generator. Another advantage is that by circulating air around the generator end of the package, without the addition of engine temperature, allows the unit to produce power more efficiently. Virtually all convertors do this today, but we still have a few other advantages over their system that continues to make ours better.
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Q. What is different about your fresh water and holding systems?
- Liberty utilizes metal tanks. We use stainless steel for the fresh water and aluminum for the holding tank. We offer a stainless steel holding tank as an option. We manufacture our own metal tanks to keep the best control of quality. Because the tank is virtually smooth inside, this eliminates many odors people are accustomed to.
- We use 1/2" I.D. tubing throughout the coach which provides all areas with an equal amount of pressure and volume with no fluctuation in temperature. This system is as good or better than you experience in your home.
- Liberty also uses an elaborate filtration system to give you the purest water available to all outlets; toilet, shower, and faucets.
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Q. How does the conversion process begin for the customer?
- After the decision is made to have Liberty Coach build your interior, you visit our facility in North Chicago to work with our designers to choose your coach interior and to design your exterior paint scheme.
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Q. Why does Liberty Coach typically cost more than anybody else?
- That question is related to all of the items described in the previous discussions. Beyond all that, we build and design virtually every aspect of the interior. This involves many more man hours per coach than any other conversion, as many as 9000 hours on some complex units. We are probably the most efficient custom builder in the industry because of our machinery, utilization of available space, and most importantly the hands-on involvement by the owners of Liberty Coach who won't settle for anything done halfway or that they wouldn't be proud to own themselves.
- Our hardware components are of the highest quality. The fit, finish, and feel of the completed unit immediately gives you the sense that you have purchased a coach of unmatched quality.
- We look at it this way, if a jeweler were showing you diamonds to purchase and brought out 5 of the same size they would not all be the same price because the cost differs by quality. Liberty Coach is the flawless quality and D color, in diamond terms, of the conversion industry. A standard by which all others are measured, to which many aspire, but few will ever achieve.
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Q. Who are the owners of Liberty Coach and how are they involved?
- The company has always been owned by the Konigseder family. Frank, Sr. and Jeanne started the company in 1969. Their son's, Frank, Jr. and Kurt, now run the day-to-day operations, as they have since graduating from college. They have been involved in some capacity with their parents coach building and attending F.M.C.A. functions since they were 7 & 5 years old, respectively. Kurt's wife, Kim, does our interior design and has been with us since 1990. Frank's wife, Carolyn, joined the company in 1988. She designs the exterior paint schemes and serves as our marketing coordinator and customer liaison. Kurt designs our innovative layouts, trendsetting floorplans and cabinet styles. He also oversees our production and handles the financial aspects of the business. Frank, Jr., a mechanical engineer, is responsible for engineering our coach systems and implementing new equipment. Frank, Jr. also handles many of the coach sales and the after-sales support.
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Q. Does Liberty Coach offer factory service?
- Liberty Coach continually strives to be a one-stop service provider. We have a more complete knowledge of the Prevost shell and all other components, other than the power train, than any other conversion company. We do not send you off to the suppliers of coach components when you have a problem. We will take care of the "whole" coach. When you see the Liberty name on the coach, you can feel confident we will be there to assist you in any way possible.
- At the Liberty factory we have 6 bays dedicated to coach service. There are 2 Buddy Gregg Facilities; Knoxville, TN and Lewisville, TX that are staffed with people trained to perform Liberty service. We can also recommend a multitude of facilities in other areas of the country that we have worked with through the years that can help with service. When problems arise, our goal is to get you back on the road enjoying your coach as quickly as possible.
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Q. Do the owners of Liberty Coach have a coach?
- The Konigseder family keeps a coach of their own and use it when attending the major rallies and functions. We have always done this in one aspect or another from our beginning in a 4-man tent and then a truck camper finally graduating to a production motorhome before finally building our first conversion in 1968. This family has many years of hands-on experience that no other company has to drawn on to ultimately build the finest, most reliable coach available.
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Q. Where is Liberty Coach located?
- Our modern, state-of-the-art facility is located 45 minutes north of Chicago and about 45 minutes south of Milwaukee, WI. We are about 1 mile west of Lake Michigan in the town of North Chicago. We are conveniently situated 3 miles east of I-94 and can be reached by using the Rt. 137 (Buckley Rd.) exit and heading east.
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Q. How many coaches does Liberty build per year?
- By the end of 2001 we will have produced just over 525 coaches since we began in 1969. We have always believed that quality is more important than quanity. In 2002 we will produce 34 coaches. The highly skilled employees needed to create a coach that meets our standards must be well trained and gain hands-on experience in the specifics of the industry to ensure that the quality remains constant.
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Q. What are you doing to meet Prevost weight restrictions on slide-out coaches?
- Liberty Coach is the only converter that has been able to build an interior in a 45 foot Prevost XLII slide-out, with over-the-road air conditioning, and still maintain the weight characteristics specified by Prevost Car, while leaving ample allowances for the owners storage needs.
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Q. Where is Liberty Coach of Florida located?
- Liberty Coach of Florida is located about 45 minutes north of West Palm Beach on Florida's East Coast in Stuart. You can reach the facility by exiting the Florida Turnpike at exit 133, Monterey Rd and proceeding east. If you are traveling south on Interstate 95 you can exit at Hwy 70 in Ft. Pierce and go west about ½ mile to the Florida Turnpike. Proceed south on the Turnpike to exit 133 and proceed east on Monterey Rd.
Our physical address is 635 S.E. Monterey Road - Stuart, FL 34994. Our phone number is 800-554-9877 and our fax number is 561-463-2705. We are a Prevost Factory-Authorized Service Center.
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