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?

[calibrator]

Country Coach Intrigue with tag axle
370 isl, allison 3000
12304 miles
2002
air bag deflated while driving
smoke from right rear tire well
HWH computerized leveling system
outcome tba

Driving down I-5 south of Sacramento, Ca, saw smoke coming from right rear tire well. Pulled over and smoke stopped. Noticed on leaving RV that the right rear airbag light was on and drive light was off. Inspection of right rear tires disclosed that the airbags had deflated and that the outer tread on the outboard tread on the dual tire had been worn off 1/4 inch. Did the Good Sam thing, they know me by name these days. This occurred on 9/2/06. After 40 calls GS found a company that was willing to come to my aid. After numerous calls of my own to CC, GS tech support and my Salesman at Guaranty RV in Junction City we manually inflated the bags and crepped to the RV park we were headed to. The repair technician arrived at 7:30 at night and after an hour of trouble shooting decided that all the valves worked and that there were no leaks. Three hours later after working on his back in the dark with a flash light this saint and magician from HEERs Automotive and Diesel from Yuba City, Ca. figured out how to by pass the faulty controller and run lines from the left side controller. We were able to finish the week and drive home to Yuba City without incident. The gentleman from Heers drove over 130 miles one way, worked under our rig for fours hours in the dark with a flash light and was able to get us road able. It is too early to finish the story. I still have to get the rig to a service center. Will the extended warranty cover the fault, will Drive Ins cover the damage to the tire and unknown system damage..stay tuned.

[the_whip]

I just brought a fourwinds 34 ft Hurricane.
Last week took a trip from Fl to NJ.
first the backup monitor went out, then next day flat tire.
was on our way home and started to rain heavy and the wiper went flying off. The unit is at the dealer. I hope this is the last of this for awhile. I do like traveling.

[hnolen2000]

We have 2005 Travel Supreme Envoy at 16000 miles the u-joints went out . I had it repaired
and the same thing happened 1500 miles later this time it came loss and fell to the road, not a fun ride!! The rig is in the shop now getting repaired, I hope far the last time.

Got the motorhome back today 9-12-06 .The problem was some how the ride got out of adjustment which put the drive line in a bind.

[Xpltivdletd]

Castor wrote:
I could contribute to this thread weekly for my rv and daily for my brothers RV

Sounds like a good plan, to me. Chances are good your contributions will be read by somebody here who has been-there, done-that, and learned a few things about it (so you won't have to learn them all the hard way). Chances are also good, your contributions will be read by someone about to make a mistake you save him or her from making. That's the ORF at its finest.

[SuperXRAY]

Hm...can't say of any breakdowns at this point. 1984 Itasca 34ft. Windcruiser. Bought it used a couple months ago. Other than fixing the dash air and getting (still under diagnosis) the generator functioning correctly, I've had zero problems. It had the normal water leak on the roof, which I fixed just a few days ago. However, I've had it out twice now and simply loved it. Has a almost 75k on the odometer, rides like a dream and has plenty of juice. It's based on a Ford chassis with a 460 engine.

I haven't been traveling long distances with it yet, but my general trip has averaged a little over 10mpg...yes that's 10mpg! Last owner said he didn't get over 9 in it, but a new air filter, plugs, timing adjustment, etc...and she runs like a champ. Overhead air works wonderfully, both front and rear bedroom. However, I have NOT flushed the winterizer out of the water tanks, so I'm still in need of doing that. Last owner took decent care of the unit, so I'm assuming all is good. I'll let everyone know when it breaks down, if ever! 🙂

After hundreds of trips camping with my father, who is passed away, I decided to buy this to go back to my youth! Although it isn't the same without him, it helps me remember (and I'm not that old...) the good old days. We had a truck bed unit for years. It's great...

[TeeTime7am]

Looks like a great topic, We'll keep a close watch here, we are just starting to travel with our new rig

[Jim]

bratpenny wrote:
1994 Winnebago 454 motor chevy chasis problems starting put in new altenator, batteries and solenoid and still the only way it will start is husband crossing the solenoid with a screwdriver while I turn it over does anyone have a clue as to what may be wrong?

I think that the only thing left is either a dirty/misaligned/unplugged connector or the start switch itself. You should probably have an electrical shop debug it, or if you have one, use a voltmeter on it and trace out the starting voltage from the strart switch on...where does it stop?

Also, check the fuses under the dash, you might have a blown start fuse (they can weaken with age or whatever).

[bratpenny]

1994 Winnebago 454 motor chevy chasis problems starting put in new altenator, batteries and solenoid and still nothing not even a clicking noise when you turn the key just dead silence, checked all the fuses and connections and still the only way it will start is husband crossing the solenoid with a screwdriver while I turn it over does anyone have a clue as to what may be wrong?

[Dynopeg]

New member, just bought first motorhome, still have to go pick it up in Atlanta. Did alot of research on web first, really wanted Workhorse chassis 2001 or newer with 22.5 wheels, but could not find one with features we wanted within our budget. After "settling" for a Ford V10 chassis, I came across this thread. Had also considered older diesel, but because I have had no experience with them and not wanting to go through hassle of getting air brake endorsement on my licence, decided to stick with gas for now.
49 odd posts so far and very few posts on V10 problems, other than minor issues like shroud air intake to counteract heavy rain! Workhorse complaints abound! I'm feeling I may have made the right decision. Was worried about V10 because of horror stories about spitting out spark plugs.Lots of these complaints documented, but what are the real #'s? If 200,000 of these engines have been built, (have no idea how many manufactured between 98-04)did 200 have this problem? I'm sure atleast some are caused by improper r and r.
I'm willing to take the gamble. Plugs will probably be the least of my worries!

Best of luck to all

[Castor]

I could contribute to this thread weekly for my rv and daily for my brothers RV

[winbarrows]

Ours was a fuel line fitting/washer combination into the injector pump on a 8.3 liter 300-hp Cummins, Alison 6 in a 1999 Newmar DutchStar with 58,000 mi. We stopped for fuel and a fellow (who works for Cat) pulled up and said we were spraying fuel out the back. We got towed to Diesel Injection Service in Windsor, WI who said the problem is a documented one with this pump/engine and there is an upgrade fitting/washer combination. Parts were less than $100 but the labor (it was tough to get to) and the steam cleaning was another $600. Incidentally, that fitting/washer is a one-time use. Remove it and replace the same one and it leaks twice as bad!

[englishmick]

These ground wires/cables seem to be a problem.

Can nobody come up with a foolproof solution to this problem,other than the obvious?

ie;weld the groundwire permanently to the chassis.
or....have a special non corroding form of connection.
or............is this already out there & nobodies told me yet!!!!;)

[ddwillis]

Decided to take our 1990 Winn from South Carolina to Iowa on a trip. Did what you are supposed to do: tune-up, check-up and had roadside assistance. 2nd day I was in the corn fields of Iowa when started backfiring and stopped. Called roadside assistance and was told that I was too far for them to respond. Had to find my own tow. Found out that the problem was that when I had the tune-up they left out the ground wire. Finished the trip. Actually the wife and I had a good time...lots to talk about.

[englishmick]

I'm new to Rving,& to the USA,so after being here for 2 months(relocated to 'Vegas from Chester/England) I decided to buy a motorhome.
I started looking at under $10k motorhomes,but they were pretty tacky,so we upped our budget to $20k(I've gotta be careful with my money 'till it starts "working" for me!)& still they weren't very acceptable to us.
We then went up to $26k & looked at mainly class "A"s in 'Vegas,still not happy with what some owners recon that good conditioncan mean cupboard doors hanging off,generators not kicking in when you go to view,& one had such bad steering/brakes,it shouldn't have even been on the road!
Well after a month of looking in the 'Vegas classifieds,& travelling what seemed like hundreds of miles across the city,Dawn was going to a friends house not more than 5 miles from where we live in NW LV,& she saw a nice looking m/home with a for sale sign on it,& a price tag of $15k!!!!!!
So we went around to view it,the owner was a very nice guy called Tony who used to work at K-Mart,& was the 2nd owner from new.
It's a '93 Frontier Flyer by Damon with 46k mls on the clock,perfect interior,everything works,& the Chevy V8 sounds as sweet as a nut.

NOW,here comes the bit you've all been waiting for!
Off we go to Utah,Bryce Canyon to be precise,all the way there,no problems,all thro' Bryce,great!,then we park up down a real long lonely track at Red Canyon,& settle down for the night.

So I think I'll start the generator so we can watch a bit of TV(or "telly" as we call it in England!)
Now we have had the genny running before,so we didn't forsee a problem,& as you will later read,it wasn't the gennies fault.

Just as I press the genny starter button,there's a slight "pop" from the dashboard/engine area,& all the lights go out!

Nothing,nada,nowt!!!!!!

Bloody hell,what're we gonna do now?

Start the engine & get back to civilisation!(it's 8pm on a Saturday night)

Will the engine start.......................NO!!!!!!!!

There's NO power anywhere to anything!!!!!!!

Oh dear,break out the candles.

I checked everything I could find,fuses,trips,cables from battery to battery,I wiggled,poked & prodded things..........still nothing!

Oh well,good job we joined the GOOD SAMS BREAKDOWN SERVICE 2 days ago,we'll give 'em a call in the morning.

Along comes a nice guy from Bryce Canyon Towing,has a look,says there's nothing he can do,& puts us on the back of his truck,& takes us back to the garage,& places us by a 110volts mains supply.
"There'll be no-one to look at it 'till Monday mornin'" he says.

So we plugged in,put on the air con,& phoned around to tell people we'd be a day or so late gettin' back to 'Vegas.

Well,our next door neighbour(English spelling!)John says he'll just pop up(250mls)& have a look for us(he used to own a garage in Cal;)

So he gets up there 4hrs later & we talk things thro',& he says well lets listen to if there's any clicking from the battery(flat batt; symptom)................


Guess what,IT STARTED!!!!!!!!!

He was somewhat dismayed at this as you can imagine,as he had not only travelled all that way,but he wanted to find a fault & repair it.

So we both go to fill up at a gas station just in front of the garage,& when I come to start it again......IT WON"T...start that is!

So he now has a chance to put his mechanical skills to the test,& within 5 minutes he's found it.........


...........A FAULTY GROUND.......................


It seems it only started before because it had just come of a mains supply & that had 'warmed it up' a bit,but as soon as there was a hint of a load on the system,nothing!

So he used his jump leads not only to test the battery output to the starter solenoid etc;,but also as a temporary ground lead to get us back to sunny 'Vegas.

1st of all many many thanks to the best neighbor(Yank spelling)in the world,but also to Sams Club Breakdown Services.

& the last word to you all out there is...................

..........maintain your vehicle,I know there's always the unexpected(fuel pumps etc;),but if I'd been more aware of my new vehicle,maybe I would have spent a bit more time gettin' a bit of dirt under my fingernails!

Happy & safe RVing you guys!

Mick'n'Dawn Moores.

[dualsport]

RV particulars: Fleetwood Flair
Driveline (Engine, Transmission):GM 8.1 not Allison Trans
Miles:22K
Year:2002
Break Down Description: Auto Park Brake applied while driving

Symptoms:Auto Park Brake warning light came on to indicate the resevour was low. Brake warning light came on when hydraulic pressure dropped.
Effect:Auto Park Brake, at rear of transmission, was applied.
Cause:Leak in body of valve that supplies pressur to Auto Park Brake.

Outcome: Stopped along side of the road for 21 hours until I could get towed. Had to remove drive shaft to tow. The first dealer disconnected the linkage so I could drive to Workhorse dealer 100+ miles away. Workhorse dealer found leaking valve (pin hole in valve body) and I had to wait two days for part to arrive.