Breakdown Information

[Badeye]

Moderators Note: This thread is intending to report a problem and its resolution. If you are seeking help or information to help you resolve a problem you would best be served by initiating a thread on the class A forum proper

After some conversation with Diesel-Lover and others on this forum I thought I would try to start a thread concerning breakdowns on the road. We try to prevent this by good maintenance and driving reasonably but it can still happen. As I observed in a previous post, on a roughly 350 mile northbound drive on I-75 I saw 4 class A MH broken down. All were southbound.

If we should have a breakdown and would post the following information on this thread it could be a resource and reminder for others.

RV particulars:
Driveline (Engine, Transmission):
Miles:
Year:
Break Down Description: (You can add any description of the problem here that you think would help others in understanding the situation and problem.)
Symptoms:
Effect:
Cause:
Outcome:

This is the type of information that is recorded in the aircraft industry and other maintenance activities to track failure trends. It will take a while before we see a lot of value in this. If it continues for a time and sufficient data is available, I will analyze the data and put it into a form that I can send by email to any interested parties. I would suspect that an initial report could be done in about three months or when we have about 100 to 150 cases.

What do you think?

[retirednp]

1995 Newmar Mountainaire, Spartan Chassis
19000 miles at purchase on Feb o4
300 Cummins, 6 speed Allison
1998 Dodge Grand Caravan Toad
Problem sudden loss of all electrical on the Chassis
Solution: replaced the Battery Disconnect Selenoid (continuous duty selenoid) for the ignition
Cost $17.95 and lots of gray hair and bad nerves
I am new to this forum thing but just saw the post you made about loss of electrical on your rig. It first started out like the ac/heater fan was drawing too much voltage.This gradually became more common eventhough the selenoid tested ok, it would get hot and shut off for a few minutes until one day it would not start again. It was very unnerving to say the least in that it left us in the road twice.

[Dave_Bowers]

I had a loose rivet on the 12v fuse strip so I lost all 12v until I had it fixed. I spent 1/2 trying to start my coach until I found that I had left it in park when we arrived. I also have had a broken alternator belt. I will always have Coach Net ERS service. They sent a guy who fixed the belt on the road.

[Billdh435]

I had a similar experience on our 1987 Pace Arrow. I ended up doing the same thing with the indicator light.

However, in my case, it wasn't the fuse causing the bad connection. It was the relay that picks up when the oil pressure switch closes. The main contacts on this relay are what actually supply the voltage to the fuel pump motor. When I checked the operation of the relay by measuring the resistance across the contacts, it was not real obvious that it was the problem. There was continuity through the contacts but there was some small amount of resistance there. I forget the actual numbers now, but it was not enough that it really convinced me that the relay was bad. But I swapped it out with a new one and have never had the problem again. I also replaced the oil pressure switch because it seemed a little suspect at the time too. So I can't actually say for certain exactly which of the two components was the actual culprit in my case. But what ever I did, fixed the problem so I am happy.

[tedshark]

My breakdown the guy I bought my MH from told me about problems with fuel filter so that was my breakdown I had extra filters and replaced them on the road and when that did not help I ended up messing around with the fuses and finaly got it to go it ends up that corosion of the electrical system is a little problem the fuse that supplies power to the electric fuel pump does not have good contact so I installed an alarm indicator light from the fuel pump power wire so that when the light goes out I know I have lost power to the fuel pump and it has come into use.

[JimReling]

This happened to a member of our RV club. After a stay of 7 days at a park in Calif his RV would not start. Removed the engine cover to find rats had moved in and chewed up all the wireing. I know lots of people that have had rats damage their RV.

[1_2_Canadian]

Havin Fun-
Sooner or later the major(s) will happen, in spite of everything we try to do preventively. My majors have never been from something I keep maintained like tires or fluids (except for the time I ran out of gas in the middle of Hwy 101 - I thought I still had 10 gals.:o), they've all been caused by something unforseen and seemingly built to fail.
Like a bad in-line starter relay 6 mechanics in 6 shops didn't know existed and was artfully hidden from view by General Motors, then replaced by a hardy solenoid on the production line in a timely fashion 2 weeks after my chassis was built. Burned up 4 starters and got me towed across Montana and Wyoming several times before I investigated and found the 1984 Chev shop bulletin and fixed it myself :p.
Or like the bundle of wires that Fleetwood Riverside had routed through a torched and jagged frame hole and over a muffler; lucky my coach didn't burn up on that one - my at-the-ready smoke smeller was on the job :E.
And the countless near-misses; disasters prevented by either routine inspections or inadvertant discovery. They point up the need for constant vigilance, esp. on older rigs that have worn or corroded from years of service. I regularly crawl under (and over) my Pace Arrow looking for potential problems, and inevitably end up refastening or resecuring nuts, bolts or wires, sometimes painting or coating or retapeing or replacing old parts. But you can never catch the one that Murphy's Law leaves for you, so when it comes to old Murph I walk softly and carry a big wrench :W.

[havin_fun]

here is a good one

symptom : motor just quit

effect : nothing would work no starter .no gauges nothin .but it would start on the coach batteries and run as long as i held the switch down .made it to a exit ramp.

cause : the battery disconnect blade switch broke off and disconnected. hooked all the cables direct to the battery and shazam it worked .

outcome : put a new switch on it hopes this works . it is scarry to be far from home and something happen . mine was a quick fix. i can't amagine what is is like to have something majior happen .

[SpaceCowboy]

454 four barrel, three speed auto tranny with gear splitter
47,000 miles
1987 34 foot Bounder
Front Passenger sid brake locked up. There had been a intermitant tight pulling to that side for about three thousand miles. When a mechanic had inspected it, he believed it was a low tire and a low air assist bag.

Effect: About a thousand miles into a vacation trip, when we came to a stop, the caliper locked up. Once it cooled, the brakes worked again, allowing us to limp into Wendover, Utah.

Cause: After replacing the caliper, the brake continued to lock up. Following the brake line up, we discovered that the rubber hose to the caliper was cut off. After some inspection, the head mechanic concluded that water had gotten between the metal clamp (that holds the line about halfway down) and the rubber hose, that rust had unsued, and between the swelling of the rust and the hardening of the rubber, the hose was crushed. Since the repairs were rushed and temporary, upon getting home to California, I went to the parts store for new lines for both sides and to pull the rotor and have it determined whether it needs to be replaced or just turned. The counterman told me he'd seen this before, and that he had concluded that someone at the MH factory had, for many years, done something with the brakes in the process of 'building the house on top of the frame', where they ended up crushing that metal clamp, problems showing up many years later. The mechanic in Utah had never seen anything like it. I wonder if its something unique to the coast area. The rig I bought had been used extensively down at the beach, spending weeks there during the summer. It had also been somewhat 'neglected' over those years.

Outcome: I have replaced both rubber lines on the front, and am going to inspect the rear brakes as well.

[FOXFLYER]

"03 Aerbus 3550 triton V 10, 10000 mi. On a trip from the Oregon coast last month the vehicle started losing power particilarly on hills and the problem increased to the point that we were unable to maintain any speed beyond a walk, we made it to a clear area on the shoulder and called Good Sam ERS , we received the correct help fast and was towed, including a 14' trailer to the ford dealer in Grants Pass , where we spent the night at their new facility, they even offered to let us plug in to external power The problem acted similar to a plugged fuel filter or perhaps a defective catalytic converter.

The problem was,a bee made its way through a small hole in the air filter and shorted across the mass air sensor which aparently told the computer that the engine was too rich and so it reduced the fuel flow to a near idle condition, the sensor was cleaned and the filter replaced and we were on our way. agreat job by Grants Pass towing, Good Sam ERS and Mock Ford.

[ScottnSherrie]

RV particulars: 34 foot Gulfstream
Driveline (Engine, Transmission):460 Ford, 4 spd auto, John Deere chassis
Miles:~80,000
Year:1988

Break Down Description: On maiden voyage home, after paying Perry, FL Ford dealership over $2K to get her running, broken power steering belt.
Symptoms:Loud pop under engine and immediate lose of power steering. I had heard squealing prior to this but did thought this was just 'how it sounded' since this was maiden voyage. I probably should have known better.
Effect:Very difficult to turn MH
Cause:Power steering pump belt was loose and wore through
Outcome: Broke down at a good place and was able to get MH into a truck stop off a 'country road' exit 1/2 mile up I-75. Trail vehicle used to shuttle the 1 mile back to the 'city' exit and get parts and tools from Walmart and auto store. Back on road in 3-4 hours. Made it home before dark.

[APR1967]

8/1/04

State Road 54 near Land-o-Lakes Florida.

Just picked up RV (1990 Fleetwood Pace Arrow, 454TBI, 30') and after 10 miles I noticed the voltage drop on the voltmeter. Shredded alternator belt (a single wide-flat belt, is it still called a serpentine belt?) Pulled into DAP, bought belt, and la volia.

Spare belt carried now also :).

Damn that engine compartment gets hot!

[Rapid_Ray]

1990 Southwind 27'
bought used in 1999 with 15K miles
current miles 58K
454 Chev
1. Near Pedelton Or., blown outside rear tire- looked good but old, live and learn--Replaced all tires. ('99)
2. On 60 frway in Diamond Bar Ca., lost power steering and brakes, heat gauge went up.-- Fan belt broke and took another one with it, these were brand new, installed 2 days b4 in commerical shop. ('00)
3.At home on the street, wouldn't start, no power to starter, power relay in electrical cabinet failed 2 make contact--replaced relay. ('01).
4. Dallas Tx. check engine lite came on and stays on, made Chevy dealer in Longview Tx, great service-- replace Oxy sensor in exhaust. ('01)
5.Bringinham Ga., started morning drive with lack of power at high end or when trying to pass. Trouble lite would come and go off. 1st truck shop in La. couldn't find the problem with smog equipment check, no charge, tried another in Tyler Tx., to busy, no room in chevy dealer in Athens Tx., made sisters in Dallas. One chevy dealer does RV's in Dallas and they found a fuel filter blocked--replaced fuel filter and charge for scope usage. ('02)
6. Going down hill into Albuegerque Nm.,40 frway, Engine quits running. Determined no gas through throttle body-- Blown fues but why not determined, running fine since. ('03)

Hope this adds data for your study.

[Eric_Elliott]

To some extent, this effort duplicates information available from RV.org. Your effort is good & we could well use a Consumer Reports type database for RV performance & reliability. If we could buy such information from WallyWorld for $8, the RV industry would have to improve rapidly.
RV.org has well served me in selection of a safe reliable motorhome for fulltime use. The price of access to their database was well spent.
Sadly, most people do not want to study enough to make an informed purchase.

[Suljer]

Can you tell me how much of the $5K Goodsam paid and how much was out of your pocket? Also, can you tell me if you had any special coverage with Goodsam?

[tuanton]

Workhorse 8.1 L. Allison transmission
448 miles
Year 2004
After driving 300 miles on mountain roads of Yosemite, engine suddenly lost power, check engine light on, and came to a stop. Coach limping downhill to campground. Unable to restart after dumping. Towed to Fresno Paul Everts service dept after one night staying at dump station.
Cause: defective tachometer module and injection pump malfunction.
It took 10 days to fix and parts ordered.
Outcome: Traded in this coach for a new DP.