Replacing Minnie Winnie Cabover; 12/29 New Post With Photos

[mikeleblanc413]

Update: On December 29th, I posted an update at this forum with current photos. Look for it further down in this thread.

As most of you know, cabover leaks surface from time to time and one must be proactive in their management. Mine greeted me shortly after purchase in Janury 2012 and while it is under control, I still think that I'd like to replace the cabover and make it one fiberglass piece with no windows (I only have side windows) and short like a Class B. Has anyone done this? Has anyone thought out of the box on this approach? We love our Minnnie Winnie! I've traveled the midwest with a circus as educator for the children, and I've just completed a 6 month trip from the Rio Grande Valley to Glacier National Park, with 4 of the six months being a workcamper. I've visited 23 states and put over 20,000 miles on Winnie and we have plans for 2015. All comments, suggestions, ideas, input, etc. appreciated.

[pnichols]

I didn't say beyond the spirit of the law ... I said beyond the LETTER of the law.

By the way ... if the running lights on small Class C motorhomes are to indicate the width of the RV to other vehicles approaching from the front at night ... then what are the other three front running lights for? The two outside ones are enough. Also, why do many normal width pickup truck cabs have five front running lights on them ... does the letter of the law imply that they are too wide or imply that they are too tall?

Obey all the letters you want and do all the RV tinkering you think you have to do as a result. As for me, keeping my small Class C RV in tip-top leak-proof shape is time and money consuming enough as it is ... without adding more work/concerns/headaches by keeping the parts of it going that serve no usability purpose other than to bring water inside that you don't want.

By the way to many of you letter of the law hounds out there, if your RV is a widebody (around 101-102 inches wide) one, then be sure to do the due-diligence research to see what roads in the U.S. you can letter of the law illegally drive on ... so that you can plan your RV routes accordingly.

[IAMICHABOD]

pnichols wrote:


A ruined front cabover section from leaking lights is well worth the chance I'm taking of having to maybe someday service a "fix it" ticket.

Beyond the letter of the law ... what purpose do these lights serve on a small RV used a few times a year that never gets near loading dock roofs and never gets near too-low gas station pump roofs? Well, I guess cabover running lights would make it safer at night for myself and low-flying helicopters.

Nice attitude,Thinking only of your self and don't care what the law says. If it doesn't suite me then I can ignore it.....NICE Thing to pass on to others..

[Butch50]

Do as you please but please don't advocate that others follow your example. There are other ways of fixing them. I have had RVs for over 40 years and have yet to have one leak in this area but I have resealed the clearance light many times. You can pull them off and seal the holes where the wires run out (as you know the manufacturer drill a hole about 3 times larger than is needed) and then put sealant around the screw holes before screwing them in. I also have added some caulk around the outside of the lens. My new one has LED, just small dots and then they are sealed behind them.

I personally well keep mine working for other drivers on the road to know they are approaching a wider than normal vehicle coming towards them. I drive a lot when it is dark so I like to let them know about my size.

Each to their own. You asked what they are for and I think I answered that one, not for you but other drivers.

This is IMO

[DAS26miles]

I checked my cabover after seeing Mike's photos. I am still dry. Back a few years ago I read on the forum about using eternabond on the clearance lights. I built a scaffold to go over the hood so I could sit or stand and work on the cabover window and clearance lights. My lights are the twist on type and don't seem to have a direct drip way into the front cap. But they are sealed now regardless.
The underside filon in Mike's cabover damage photos looks good, Is it mike? I wonder if the underside is filon with luan thin plywood over styrofoam and then the rotted plywood over that?

[pnichols]

Butch50 wrote:
The lights are required by DOT. This tells oncoming vehicles that they are meeting a wider than a car vehicle and on the rear also for the same reason. Do you think that RV manufacturers are going to put them on just for the fun of it? If they can save a penny anywhere they are going to do it.

Here is a link that shows what lights are required and if you look all the way at the bottom it shows a class "C" MH.

I would suggest that you should maybe make yours work again before some officer looking to hand out a ticket gets you unless you never drive at night than you don't need to worry about it.

The regs shows they are required on any vehicle wider than 2032mm which is 80".

I'm well aware of all of that.

A ruined front cabover section from leaking lights is well worth the chance I'm taking of having to maybe someday service a "fix it" ticket.

Beyond the letter of the law ... what purpose do these lights serve on a small RV used a few times a year that never gets near loading dock roofs and never gets near too-low gas station pump roofs? Well, I guess cabover running lights would make it safer at night for myself and low-flying helicopters.

I'm pretty convinced that cabover running lights leaking might be a major cause of rotted cabover wood in RVs.

Note that running lights on commercial trucks may leak, when they leak, mostly straight down and stay totally within the walls and drip out the bottom and not rot anything or not even be noticed for years. Commercial truck walls probably don't have much wood in them to ever rot, anyway, and who is going to notice or care about any mildew/mold smell in a truck trailer even if there were something inside the walls to mildew/mold.

[jillhop]

Here in Massachusetts, they check for working running lights at the yearly inspection, and you'll get a "failed" sticker if they don't all work. I know this because when I purchased mine this past summer, I had a couple of bulbs out and they HAD to be replaced for the vehicle to be street-legal.

[Butch50]

pnichols wrote:

j-d wrote:
You're saying your Winnebago has a partial "cap", a foot or so down the front surface. I call that feature a "Tiara" and only realized recently how helpful that feature actually is.

That's also what my 2005 Itasca Spirit has. This molded fiberglass piece is thick material (like a boat hull) that laps at least 9 inches over and all along the crowned roof's forward facing edge - following the heavy crown of the roof perfectly. This molded fiberglass piece also overlaps about the same distant downward to cover all along the top edge of the front fiberglass flat wall piece.

By the way, I think I fixed any leak potential from my cabover lights long ago. I put a round piece of Eternabond over all five holes and then screwed the lights back into place. They don't light up now but they're visually "there", with no wires leading into the wall cavity to provide a leak route for water to follow -> especially when traveling down the road in rain that is hitting the motorhome horizontally. I'm not quite sure what purpose these lights serve on a Class C motorhome, anyway, other than providing a great water path.

The lights are required by DOT. This tells oncoming vehicles that they are meeting a wider than a car vehicle and on the rear also for the same reason. Do you think that RV manufacturers are going to put them on just for the fun of it? If they can save a penny anywhere they are going to do it.

Here is a link that shows what lights are required and if you look all the way at the bottom it shows a class "C" MH.

I would suggest that you should maybe make yours work again before some officer looking to hand out a ticket gets you unless you never drive at night than you don't need to worry about it.

The regs shows they are required on any vehicle wider than 2032mm which is 80".

[IAMICHABOD]

pnichols wrote:
I'm not quite sure what purpose these lights serve on a Class C motorhome, anyway, other than providing a great water path.

They are required by law,both here and Canada and they must work at all times.

FMVSS/CMVSS 108

Here is the one for Class C FMVSS/CMVSS 108

[Snowman9000]

I used to feel the same way about running lights, "why are they needed?". They tell an oncoming driver at night that a wide vehicle is coming at them. That is the actual reason they are required. On hauling trailers, there are lights at the front corners. If you've ever met one oncoming at night without said lights, it can be quite unsettling. Now imagine you are also driving a wide vehicle, and it's a narrow road, it is even more unsettling.

[pnichols]

j-d wrote:
You're saying your Winnebago has a partial "cap", a foot or so down the front surface. I call that feature a "Tiara" and only realized recently how helpful that feature actually is.

That's also what my 2005 Itasca Spirit has. This molded fiberglass piece is thick material (like a boat hull) that laps at least 9 inches over and all along the crowned roof's forward facing edge - following the heavy crown of the roof perfectly. This molded fiberglass piece also overlaps about the same distant downward to cover all along the top edge of the front fiberglass flat wall piece.

By the way, I think I fixed any leak potential from my cabover lights long ago. I put a round piece of Eternabond over all five holes and then screwed the lights back into place. They don't light up now but they're visually "there", with no wires leading into the wall cavity to provide a leak route for water to follow -> especially when traveling down the road in rain that is hitting the motorhome horizontally. I'm not quite sure what purpose these lights serve on a Class C motorhome, anyway, other than providing a great water path.

[mikeleblanc413]

THANK YOU so much Dave! Happy New Year!!!!!

[DAS26miles]

Mike here is the link
MobilityRV
Click on parts documentation, then click your year on the left and then your model.
Once in you can find wiring diagrams.
For a more thorough parts listing of every nut, bolt and screw put into your MH click the Service parts List on the screen with the years listed.
If you need parts specific to Winnebago, you can check Mobility RV, Litchsinn RV. Suggest getting the part number from the list and do a Google search. Call around as prices vary as do shipping cost.

[mikeleblanc413]

Dave,

Do not know of what you speak. Can you send me the link? THANKS!

[DAS26miles]

Mike, you know about Mobility RV where you can access parts diocumentation and diagrams of your MH? I just looked up yours and the clearance light wiring looks like it goes to the rear of the front cabover and not along the edge trim as I thought it may have.
Dave

[mikeleblanc413]

Thanks DAS26miles. This is our first motorhome. Had a large 5th wheel before. I love Winnie and as best I can determine, she is mechanically sound. She's almost paid for (6 months) and I don't see buying another and having a bigger can of worms. At least Winnie and I are getting to know each other! Thanks for your input. Happy New Year!