Thor Super C (Chateau/Four Winds) improvements and mods

[Sites]

Hey folks,

I purchased a 2014 Thor Chateau 33SW last August and right from the start I experienced the new RV owner blues. In short, after driving back to San Diego from where I flew out to purchase it in Texas, it spent its first 3 weeks in the shop with about a dozen issues, ranging from minor to major.

That said, aside from all of the issues, now that I've resolved most of them either through warranty or just fixing it myself after the local Thor service dealer either did a half-assed job fixing a problem, or just flat out didn't fix it after it sat in their shop for weeks, I like this motorhome. I wanted something fairly nice and that could reasonably tow 10k+ LBS, since I have a desert prerunner truck and several motorcycles to trailer out with the family. Dynamax's were nice, but out of the $$$ range I was willing to invest on a first MH. I also looked as used medium duty chassis Super C's (older Show Haulers, etc.) but anything close to $100k was too dated looking and generally VERY used. So I saw the F550 chassis based Thor 33SW and bit the bullet.

After owning it for about 7 months now, my impression is that Thor came up with a great layout and mated it to a good chassis, but as a result of both production line quality assurance issues and the general feeling that everything beneath the surface was designed to speed up build time, there are many improvements that can be made by owners to make this coach better. And frankly, should have been done at the factory before shipping off to the dealer! 🙂

The reason I'm starting this thread is because I've noticed a few other Thor Super C owners on here and other forums, that have all mentioned having similar issues (house water pump leaks, front fuel tank filling issues, front hydro jacks too low from the factory, poor house battery capacity, etc.) I've also noticed a few very cool modifications and improvements by others on here as well, such as relocating the house batteries to one of the storage compartments and switching to a bank of four 6v batts. I figured it would be useful to try and centralize the communication of issues encountered, how to resolve them and suggestions to improve the coach.

I've done a few already and will post one of them shortly. Hopefully other Thor Super C (33SW, 35sk, 35sg, Etc) will chime in as well.

[Sites]

I checked that tiny breaker while I was out camping after seeing your previous post about it, but it wasn't tripped. Its not stuck at 11.5v on the panel, but when the gen or engine was running, the panel would jump up to 13.x volts. Now it doesnt get above 12.2. Ill try the shore power hook up you suggested next

[RobbieH]

There is a breaker under the bed. It is TINY. It will pop and cause the issue you are describing.

If for some reason this does not work, there's another issue you need to know about. Sometimes the converter/inverter will hose up and get confused, and you'll never have more than 11.5 volts on the house batteries and on the display. If this happens, unplug from shore power, do not run generator, and turn off the inverter at the panel at the steps (the red button). Leave it like this for 15 minutes. When you plug it back in and power back on the inverter, it will charge. This threw me and I spent $400 on new house batteries with no idea there was nothing wrong with what I had. Thor was no help, but a call to Xantrex solved it.

Here is the location of that breaker under the bed. Such a bad design! Look for a little bitty red button on it.

[Sites]

About half-way through a camping trip this past weekend, I started having a house battery charging issue. When I run the generator, it powers all of the coach, but doesn't charge the house batteries. When I run the engine, it no longer charges the house batteries either. The Xantrex display panel voltage doesn't increase after the gen or engine are turned on.

Its currently pouring raining here, so I haven't tried plugging into shore power to see if that will charge them. I'll try that tomorrow.

Has anyone else had this happen? I've done some searches and it sounds like the battery isolator relay (bi-directional isolator relay or trombatta?) might be bad. That said, I have no idea where these are located on mine (2014 33SW).

Thanks,
Andy

[mbacfp30]

Someone here posted some pictures of a battery upgrade. I agree with Robbie about making sure it has the 3 track system...as that was the only reason I bought a 2015.

[papatyrrell]

I am looking as to how to add more battries to my thor 35sb super c. Photos shure would n
help. Thanks

[RobbieH]

Well, in one way I'd say you need to know how to work on things. They kind of slap them together. But, that said, this is true with just about any RV, even a top of the line one. Things are going to go wrong, and so you either deal with long delays at the dealership or you learn to fix them on your own. I got pretty handy in mine fixing things like cabinetry, shades, etc. I still miss it sometimes, it was fast, easy to drive, easy to park, had a residential fridge, towed great, etc. The main reason we traded it is because we are going full-time around April/May and we did not have enough room in it for me to be in all the time (I work from home), and we have two border collies too, so it would have been tight space-wise.

Make sure it already has the 3Trax upgrade. If you are ever around Dallas, I have a spare one I'll give you, too. They sent me two sets of upgrade kits when Thor came down.

The 3Trax has two sets of rails at the top like this:



I'd get full paint, too.

[bhplumber]

So all in all would you recommend one of these RVs to someone you liked or would you lean them towards passing on then

[RobbieH]

I told them it would sell fast.

[bhplumber]

sold last week,

[RobbieH]

Mine is in Texas and is full paint, Black Magic. For some reason, its not showing in their inventory, but I talked to them a week or so ago and they still had it.
http://www.themotorcoachoutlet.com/

I think they also have a Jayco Seneca Super C there too.

I have nothing to make from this, it's their coach now. Mine was upgraded to the 3Trax system by the Thor factory, and has worked flawlessly since they did the work.

Call them and speak to Chris, I'm kind of curious to know if they still have it.

Between me and you, I think you might be able to talk them down to $80k-ish, maybe even a little less if you push hard. It only has 12,000 miles on it, and we took very good care of it, all maintenance done at Ford dealership on specified intervals, etc. I also did a lot of upgrades to it, but I won't go into all that unless you find they still have it and you are interested.

That Powerstroke is really strong, even with a 7,000 lb trailer behind it.

[bhplumber]

There is 2 of them in Texas both cream generic color and one in Illinois that is cream but it full paint. Eldorado RV and marine has one, the other one is private seller on the. There is also. 2015 35sk n craiglist in Phoenix. Any advise or suggestions would be great, I am leaning toward a old Seneca after hearing all the issues with Thor.

[RobbieH]

bhplumber wrote:
Please let me know your thoughts good and bad either way. Hearing from someone who has experienced it first hand seems to be the best research a guy can do.

Where did you find the used one? If it's the one I traded in, I can tell you all about it.

[bhplumber]

I am new to this site and have been reading as much as possible about the 33sw. I have had all types of campers, trailers, and motorhomes and am looking at buying a used 2014 33sw. We have just sold our 04 DP which was great but way more then what we needed for the type of "camping" we do. So after all Ive read I am having second thoughts. I was original looking at Senecas on the Kodiak chassis but I really like the powerstroke and the size of the 33sw. I can get a 06-08 Seneca 37' for mid $60's so it is a bit cheaper but older and bigger, A 2014 33sw will run me mid $80's. I'm not sure I want spend an extra $20K for a lot of head aches. Please let me know your thoughts good and bad either way. Hearing from someone who has experienced it first hand seems to be the best research a guy can do.

[SamKVA]

wog099 wrote:
I appreciate the responses to my battery life question. I will not be doing a lot of boondocking, but want the capability of staying out maybe two nights without power. So I think the generator will meet my needs. (I have never had a generator with my 5th wheels). Most of the time we have power.

Can anyone tell me what I should expect to actually pay for a new 2016 or 2017 FourWinds? If you have one, what did you actually pay for it?

The only other RV I'm looking at is the Jayco Seneca. Anyone have any comments between the FourWinds and Seneca?
I want a simple, reliable motorhome to travel this great country. I want to see it, and it's just my wife and I traveling.
Thanks,
Wade

Wade,

We bought a new 2016 Thor Chateau Super-C 35SF (ordered at the end of 2015). With the exception of very minor QC issues, it's been a great motorhome. Only camped one season so far and the wife and I still work full time so we've only racked up about 3K miles. Same as you, it's just my wife and I so we opted for the 50" TV/entertainment center in place of the over-cab bed. I looked at the Seneca but for the price, I didn't think the "extras" were worth the cost. I thought the Seneca interior was a bit fancier but nothing had the floor plan of a 35SF with full wall slide on driver's side and an opposite bedroom slide. Also, the F-550 is lower to the ground which allows the cab-over section to be higher allowing more room for TV or bed if that's your choice. I suspect there are advantages of the Freightliner chassis but I didn't think air brakes were a necessity at this weight. That being said, the rear air suspension of the Seneca likely provides a much nicer ride; the 35SF can be a bit bouncy and noisy in the back.

We've had several campers over the years with 3 of them being Thor products. Other than the awesome Sunnybrook travel trailer we owned for 10+ years, the others all had the QC issues you read about on these forums.

Our plan is similar to yours, travel this great country in our new (last) RV with few troubles.

As far as price, I think you should do your best to negotiate 20-25% off MSRP but it's not always easy to get real MSRP on line.

Good Luck!
Sam

[RE_Todd]

Robbie, what's a "Dull Kitchen" ?