Update:
FINALLY got my unit back with profuse apologies from the service manager. He replaced the slide seals (inner and outer)with seals that are much more substantial, and showed me where the old seals had failed. If any of you have a slide unit, please spray water on it opened and closed while it is still under warranty!
I realize that it is difficult for readers to work through all the entries, but I am a little reluctant to stop the thread until a couple of more months pass by and I get about another five thousand miles on it.
Please let me know if it is useful to maintain the thread until I am confident all the manufacturing issues are resolved, then start a new one summarizing all the plusses and minuses covering about 18,000 miles of driving in the first year. I have noticed that though there have been no new entries in a while, there continue to be new looks at the thread.