Journey with Confidence RV GPS App RV Trip Planner RV LIFE Campground Reviews RV Maintenance Take a Speed Test Free 7 Day Trial ×
 


Reply
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread Display Modes
 
Old 08-02-2016, 07:10 PM   #1
Winnebago Owner
 
Floridakamper's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: Fleming Island, Fl
Posts: 124
2016 37F or 38Q or Pass on Both

At least once a year I consider purchasing a new motorhome. Something usually scares me off, usually price. I'm looking at a 37F and a 38Q both Suncruiser and Adventurer. I like both floor plans with the possible exception that the recliner right next to the TV does not look functional to "watch" TV. I'm concerned about slide problems with the Schwintek full wall slide. Is that a valid concern and should it be a disqualifier. I've read some are getting Power Gear. Is that any better? Both owned by Lippert. Are there any weight concerns. I see the rear axle on the 38Q is 2000 lbs greater than the 37F. Has anyone had a four point weigh and was all good? The 38Q has 4 AGM batteries and the 37F has only 2 marine deep cycle batteries. Seems like with a 2000 watt inverter and a residential fridge it ought to have 4. Any advice or comments might help me make sense out of the mental confusion I live with.
__________________
Bob, & Leah, USN Retired
2016 Itasca Suncruiser 38Q
2014 Chevy Equinox LTZ/Blue Ox Tow Bar
Floridakamper is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-03-2016, 06:07 AM   #2
Winnebago Owner
 
Floridakamper's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: Fleming Island, Fl
Posts: 124
Came across this website that has consumer complaints. I see 120 about Winnebago with only 1 resolved.

http://winnebago-industries.pissedconsumer.com/
__________________
Bob, & Leah, USN Retired
2016 Itasca Suncruiser 38Q
2014 Chevy Equinox LTZ/Blue Ox Tow Bar
Floridakamper is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-03-2016, 07:25 AM   #3
Winnebago Master
 
Join Date: Nov 2005
Posts: 1,080
Quote:
Originally Posted by Floridakamper View Post
Came across this website that has consumer complaints. I see 120 about Winnebago with only 1 resolved.

120 WINNEBAGO INDUSTRIES complaints and reviews @ Pissed Consumer
I went to the website and there are a number of valid complaints. However the 120 "complaints" cover a 3 year period. A large number of the complaints are about motorhomes several years old that the owners (and even renters) thought Winnebago should repair under warranty. Some were as foolish as complaining about having to be to a dealership before 10:00 AM to get a part ordered for same day delivery, or not being able to find a service provider locally that knew how to reset a check engine light.

By far the largest group of complaints dealt with chassis problems. I found only 2 problems related to slides. I might have missed some because the site only gives a short overview on the main page, and requires the reader to select "read more" to see the entire post.

In my opinion about 1/3 of the complaints were from people who didn't understand how to operate the systems they had issues with, or had expectations that anything that went wrong during ownership should be covered by warranty. Another third had chassis problems that should be addressed by the chassis manufacturer, and the final third were valid complaints that should be addressed by Winnebago industries

In any case the only slide problems I am aware of were those on coaches with the "full wall slide" While the 37F does have a full wall slide the 38Q doesn't. If you're truly interested in one of these coaches I would inspect them at either a dealer or take a trip to Forest City.
__________________
Hikerdogs
2013 Adventurer 32H
Hikerdogs is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-03-2016, 10:12 AM   #4
Winnebago Owner
 
Floridakamper's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: Fleming Island, Fl
Posts: 124
Hikerdogs, I agree that many of the complaints were not serious. And I'm not trying to bad mouth Winnebago. We had two before this Newmar. and loved them. I'm trying to perform the due diligence a buyer should accomplish before a major purchase. I was a little surprised that overall the complaints showed poor workmanship and customer service from Winnny. As well as the folks that had new motorhomes out of service at dealerships for the majority of the first year of ownership awaiting parts:cool Thank you for the advice to look closer at the 38Q because it does not have the full wall slide.
__________________
Bob, & Leah, USN Retired
2016 Itasca Suncruiser 38Q
2014 Chevy Equinox LTZ/Blue Ox Tow Bar
Floridakamper is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-03-2016, 11:56 AM   #5
Winnebago Master
 
Join Date: Nov 2005
Posts: 1,080
I was also surprised that there were issues with complaints about poor workmanship and service. We're on our second Adventurer and have had no issues with quality of workmanship or service. We haven't had to wait extended times for repairs to be completed, or had any workmanship problems on the original build, or from service work performed.

Every time we've taken our motorhomes in for warranty work, service, or out of warranty repairs we've had excellent results and fair prices.

I have to say I was surprised when one complaint was that even though the motorhome was purchased from a dealer 50 miles from the owners home it was now too inconvenient to drive that same distance to the same dealer to get warranty work done.

Our closest selling dealer is over 250 miles from our home. It's almost an equal distance to the factory service center in Forest City. I have no problem taking the motorhome to Forest City knowing the repairs or service will be done correctly the first time, and will be completed as promised at the previously agreed upon price..
__________________
Hikerdogs
2013 Adventurer 32H
Hikerdogs is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-03-2016, 12:01 PM   #6
Winnebago Owner
 
Floridakamper's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: Fleming Island, Fl
Posts: 124
That's good news. Tomorrow we're looking at another 37F and a 38Q. I probably should try to sell my Newmar, private owner. Dealer's don't even want to give wholesale book on a trade.
__________________
Bob, & Leah, USN Retired
2016 Itasca Suncruiser 38Q
2014 Chevy Equinox LTZ/Blue Ox Tow Bar
Floridakamper is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-03-2016, 11:39 PM   #7
Winnie-Wise
 
SuperGewl's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Oregon
Posts: 477
Quote:
Originally Posted by Floridakamper View Post
That's good news. Tomorrow we're looking at another 37F and a 38Q. I probably should try to sell my Newmar, private owner. Dealer's don't even want to give wholesale book on a trade.

As far as the 37F if yo get the Residential Fridge you get 4 AGM batteries according to the SPECS.
Now about the slides, they have already switched the longer heavier slides to the Power Gear, the small bed slides may still run n Schwintek and that's OK.
I had a few small issues with mine when I bought it but can't complain, I got them all resolved and have been enjoying it. Find a good Dealer with a Great Service Department and go for it.
__________________
Retired Navy Submariner
2014 Itasca Sunstar 35F; 5 Star tuned; 2014 Jeep Cherokee TrailHawk
SuperGewl is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-04-2016, 04:26 AM   #8
Winnebago Owner
 
Floridakamper's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: Fleming Island, Fl
Posts: 124
Quote:
Originally Posted by SuperGewl View Post
As far as the 37F if yo get the Residential Fridge you get 4 AGM batteries according to the SPECS.
I'll put an eyeball on them this morning to be sure. If there are 4 AGM's that's a good thing.

Quote:
Originally Posted by SuperGewl View Post
Find a good Dealer with a Great Service Department and go for it.
Thanks Shipmate
__________________
Bob, & Leah, USN Retired
2016 Itasca Suncruiser 38Q
2014 Chevy Equinox LTZ/Blue Ox Tow Bar
Floridakamper is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-04-2016, 05:29 AM   #9
Winnebago Camper
 
Peteyboy's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2013
Posts: 24
We have the 37F and yes, it has the residential refrig and the 4 batteries. Went to Forest City in May and had the full wall slide mechanism replaced with the Power Gear system along with a few other items and all is good. The factory is the only place I would let anyone do any major fixes to the coach,,, the place is awesome. All said, we LOVE the coach as we have 12,000 miles on it and many campgrounds behind us. Heading up to the northeast in september then out west for the winter.
__________________
Pete and Sandy
2015 Suncruiser 37F
2011 CR-V
Peteyboy is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-04-2016, 05:34 AM   #10
Winnebago Owner
 
Floridakamper's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: Fleming Island, Fl
Posts: 124
Thanks Peteyboy. We're leaving towards the end of the month for the northeast also. Either in our Kountrystar or a Winny. We'll be staying in the York Pa. area and the Poconos.
__________________
Bob, & Leah, USN Retired
2016 Itasca Suncruiser 38Q
2014 Chevy Equinox LTZ/Blue Ox Tow Bar
Floridakamper is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-04-2016, 05:38 AM   #11
Winnebago Owner
 
Floridakamper's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: Fleming Island, Fl
Posts: 124
One quick question Peteyboy, did have full wall slide problems prior to the Power Gear fix or is Winny retrofitting the Schwintech's to Power Gear for all? I see a 2014 37F for sale at a reasonable price.
__________________
Bob, & Leah, USN Retired
2016 Itasca Suncruiser 38Q
2014 Chevy Equinox LTZ/Blue Ox Tow Bar
Floridakamper is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-04-2016, 10:17 AM   #12
Winnebago Camper
 
Peteyboy's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2013
Posts: 24
Yep,,, did start to have issues with the full wall slide. The new system is like an industrial press running, with authority. The new system has 2 very narrow rails that replaced the Schwintek gear set along with 800 to one motors. If looking at the 2014 rig, make sure it has the updated system.
__________________
Pete and Sandy
2015 Suncruiser 37F
2011 CR-V
Peteyboy is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-04-2016, 06:27 PM   #13
Winnie-Wise
 
Americanrascal's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2013
Location: West Georgia
Posts: 424
2016 38q

Let me begin by saying we've come to love our 38 Q that we've had about 5 months. But we've had a rough start with it. We started with a major slide failure on the large forward drivers slide. The weakness and failure was in the bolts connecting the slide to the side ram. The dealer fixed it handily but it took about a week or so to get a new ram in for an install.

The scariest failure was the refrigerator falling over out of its slot and taking out the door on the microwave. Apparently they missed the anchor position for the tie down strap when building the rig. It took some millwork, a new fridge and microwave to get that mess cleaned up.

We had some quirks with the PCM on the Ford engine. It had to be reprogrammed- a fast and easy fix- but getting it done was a bit frustrating. The folks at the Winne factory managed to punch a screw on the dog house into a radiator hose. Another easy fix but again a bit of a pain.

We've had a lot of small quirks and glitches. I enjoy working on the rig so most all repairs other than the big ones I've handled myself. Winnebago and the dealer have been responsive and stood with me throughout. For the past 2 months things have been very stable and we've been racking up the miles on the unit. We thoroughly enjoy its ride and comfort.

Compared to the 16K Itasca 31 KE ,this 26000 lb chassis with the new 6 speed on the 38Q is so sweet!

We traded to this unit from a 2014 Itasca Sunstar 31KE. We had not one single Winnebago related problem on that rig and it never went in the shop with 25000 miles on it in the 18 months we owned it (and one heck of a rough trip to Alaska).

We're pretty happy with the 38q now that things are settling down and we look forward to some real enjoyment with it as we move around the country
__________________
Joe a/k/a "Americanrascal"
2016 Winnebago Adventurer 38Q +tow dolly
8th RV to sit in our driveway in 50 years
Americanrascal is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-05-2016, 06:55 AM   #14
Winnebago Camper
 
Peteyboy's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2013
Posts: 24
Friends of ours also bought the 38Q and have had a number of problems but all different than ours. Oops,,, except for the A/C coming apart. That seemed to be common with a lot of the a/c units on a lot of these rigs. I like the fireplace in the Q, and the huge sofa, but miss the extra space you get with the full wall slide on the F. Also really like the bath and a half on the F. His Q had a surge protector built in where I had to add one to my F. I don't care for how his awning is set up either,, as it is attached to the slide and when the slide is out the awning is WAY out there. Lots of other differences but it's all in what you like.
__________________
Pete and Sandy
2015 Suncruiser 37F
2011 CR-V
Peteyboy is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-08-2016, 09:24 AM   #15
Winnebago Owner
 
Floridakamper's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: Fleming Island, Fl
Posts: 124
Quote:
Originally Posted by Peteyboy View Post
His Q had a surge protector built in where I had to add one to my F.
Peteboy, I just looked over the electrical specs on the 38Q. I don't see that a factory installed surge protector is standard or an option. I presently use a portable surge but one built in would be nice. Am I missing something in the specs. If it was part of the energy management system, I'd think it was on the "F" also. Bob
__________________
Bob, & Leah, USN Retired
2016 Itasca Suncruiser 38Q
2014 Chevy Equinox LTZ/Blue Ox Tow Bar
Floridakamper is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-08-2016, 09:52 AM   #16
Winnebago Owner
 
jrpend's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2015
Posts: 95
Greetings!!

I have a 2015 37F and absolutely love it. It does have the Schwintek on the whole wall slide which I don't love - we have already had issues with it (been fixed once).

If the one you are looking at is like mine, you have hydraulics on the living room slide and Scwinteks on the whole wall and the bedroom slide.

Our sense is the bedroom slide is ok with the Schwinteks. It's small enough that it is within the capability of the drive. The whole wall slide is, IMHO, marginal. My wife and I have decided that if that slide fails again, we will brace it shut and schedule a run to Winnebago in Iowa and have it replaced with the power gear.

Right now, Winnebago is reportedly being very good about fixing out-of-warranty Schwintek problems - I don't know if that will continue in the future. I think Winnebago is little redfaced over the whole Schwintek issue - after all fully 50% of Schwintek owners have not reported problems with their slides.

In general, however, RV Techs that I have talked to, will tell you Winnebago quality is much higher than some other brands. Even though I am constantly fixing small issues in my coach, I am very pleased with workmanship over all. The factory support through the [email protected] is awesome and makes me very glad I bought an Itasca (Winnebago). I have dealt with other manufactures factory support.

The Ford F-53 is a good chassis and V10 is a good engine.

My advice (which is free and worth every cent you paid for it) is that if you find a 37F you like, go for it - the Schwinteks are just one of those things you have to deal with.
__________________
Jerald and Claire Pendleton
And Ginger 1/4 Chi, 1/4 Rat Terrier, 1/2 Pure Mutt / 2013 Smart Car Toad
2015 Itasca Suncruiser 37F / citizensoftheroad.blogspot.com
jrpend is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-08-2016, 10:16 AM   #17
Winnebago Owner
 
Floridakamper's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: Fleming Island, Fl
Posts: 124
Quote:
Originally Posted by jrpend View Post
My advice (which is free and worth every cent you paid for it) is that if you find a 37F you like, go for it - the Schwinteks are just one of those things you have to deal with.
jrpend, thanks for the info. Quickly approaching the point of no return. I've made a deposit on a new 2016 Suncruiser 38Q. I'm still concerned about the slides but I took an earlier posters comment to heart that the smaller slides in the Q would be less of an issue. The salesman tells me the slides on my unit are all Power Gear. I'll verify that in a few days. I appreciate the help I've gotten from Winny owners. We had two Winnebago's before our current Newmar and our Kountry Star has been basically problem free except for the dash AC (replaced twice), step failure (twice) and a cracked exhaust manifold.
__________________
Bob, & Leah, USN Retired
2016 Itasca Suncruiser 38Q
2014 Chevy Equinox LTZ/Blue Ox Tow Bar
Floridakamper is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-08-2016, 10:26 AM   #18
Winnebago Camper
 
Peteyboy's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2013
Posts: 24
Quote:
Originally Posted by Floridakamper View Post
Peteboy, I just looked over the electrical specs on the 38Q. I don't see that a factory installed surge protector is standard or an option. I presently use a portable surge but one built in would be nice. Am I missing something in the specs. If it was part of the energy management system, I'd think it was on the "F" also. Bob
I saw the surge protector in his rig,,,, maybe it was only on the 15's or the dealer installed it. I know for sure mine didn't have one as a surge fried our transfer switch and I installed one myself.
__________________
Pete and Sandy
2015 Suncruiser 37F
2011 CR-V
Peteyboy is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-08-2016, 10:32 AM   #19
Winnebago Owner
 
Floridakamper's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: Fleming Island, Fl
Posts: 124
Thanks Peteyboy. Using the portable isn't a problem for me. A small benefit to a portable is, if it gets fried, you can just stop using it until it gets fixed or replaced.
__________________
Bob, & Leah, USN Retired
2016 Itasca Suncruiser 38Q
2014 Chevy Equinox LTZ/Blue Ox Tow Bar
Floridakamper is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-08-2016, 11:11 AM   #20
Winnebago Master
 
Join Date: Nov 2005
Posts: 1,080
Quote:
Originally Posted by Peteyboy View Post
I saw the surge protector in his rig,,,, maybe it was only on the 15's or the dealer installed it. I know for sure mine didn't have one as a surge fried our transfer switch and I installed one myself.
Some of the newest models have a surge protector built into the transfer switch. I'm not sure which ones.

Here's a link to a publication from Winnebago explaining the functions of the TRC surge protectors used on diesel coaches in 2012.
http://winnebagoind.com/resources/se...r%20Switch.pdf

I don't know if this one or something similar is still used.
__________________
Hikerdogs
2013 Adventurer 32H
Hikerdogs is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply


Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off


Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
2016 38Q Residential Fridge Winterizing? rk911 Heating, Cooling and Appliances 10 11-14-2015 08:54 AM

» Featured Campgrounds

Reviews provided by

Disclaimer:

This website is not affiliated with or endorsed by Winnebago Industries or any of its affiliates. This is an independent, unofficial site.


All times are GMT -6. The time now is 03:49 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.8 Beta 1
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.