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Old 10-27-2011, 12:18 PM   #1
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New To Us '03 Itasca, Questions

We are picking up our 2003 Itasca Horizon 32ft. DP on Saturday and I have some questions. I've downloaded the only Users Manual I could find from www.winnebagoind.com I'm assuming there was only one model of this coach that year, so I hope I have the right manual. I don't know the model number of my particular coach, but the manual is for a 32TD as well as others. The only 32ft. mentioned is the TD. There is a disclaimer that states not all described features and accessories are necessarily on a particular coach.

Our new coach has a door lock switch on the drivers left. The salesman says it also locks the storage compartments. The manual describes a remote control for this. If I have the switch, should a remote be included? If not, can I get one somewhere?

What size inverter shall I expect to find on this coach? The manual mentions 2000 watt, but I've seen other dealer supplied numbers that say 300 watt, 600 watt and 1,500 watt. These numbers were found on various general printouts the salesman showed me. I should have paid more attention, but as you know, it can be overwhelming when you are looking at a new coach to remember to do everything right.

The coach has 51,000 miles on it and appears in good condition. The four rear tires are one year old and they are replacing the front tires as part of the deal. I'm also having them replace the two starting batteries and the three coach batteries as they were all original equipment. Is three house batteries enough for a coach of this size? I'm used to four on my just sold 38 ft. Monaco Windsor.

I climbed the ladder and saw a solar panel near the rear drivers side. Is this just to maintain charge of the house batteries or what is it's purpose? I have read about half the manual, but I haven't run across this, yet.

Does this coach have a device (name escapes me at the moment) so that when you are plugged in or generator running, the charger charges both the coach and chassis batteries? I sure hope so, this is important to me.

I hope this isn't too many questions, but I'm sure I'll have more as time goes on and I get my hands on it a little more. This will be our fifth Class A coach, three gassers and two DP's. We needed a shorter coach so I can park it where I want instead of where it will fit. This coach is so small I think we will probably use it much more than the 38ft. which was a pain just to get in and out of the driveway. The wife always dreaded coming home because it meant backing down the 300 ft. long tree-lined driveway, sometimes in the dark!

Thanks for reading and any help you all can offer. I feel good about owning a Winnebago product, finally.

Phil
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Old 10-27-2011, 04:34 PM   #2
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It should be quite similar to my 03 Journey DL.

Inverter is either 300 or 1500 watt.

Door lock does not lock bins. I think that feature was only on the UA and UF.

Solar panel only charges coach batteries unless a Trik L Start is installed. They were not available from the factory in 03, but I'm glad that I added one. I've never felt the need for more batteries in 8 years.
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Old 10-28-2011, 06:48 PM   #3
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Phil, congratulations on your purchase. It is very important for you to know exactly which brand/model # engine you have and the many maintenance issues that need paying heed to. There are numerous posts on the CAT, CUMMINS forums categories that will answer most of your questions, but if you have any other questions, feel free to ask, there is always some of us out there that have your particular engine/tranny and have been thru every issue you may have in the future. We are here to help and glad to do it. I have only been a DP owner since May 10 and have learned a plethora of information applicable to our coach/chassis. Also, all this info has saved me $$$$$$ as I realized I can do most of this maintenace myself. Good luck to you, sir!
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Old 10-29-2011, 01:59 AM   #4
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We owned a 2003 Horizon 32TD for three years. Just loved the little tank. It could go anywhere, park anywhere, haul 5300 pounds of cargo, got over 11mpg, we had a blast vacationing, and learning about owning a Diesel Pusher.

Sure we had some issues, that was part of the learning curve. We learned about caulking the roof joints, getting the brake air dryer serviced, some other minor issues, all part of owning a rig.

Ours had room for three, but only had two coach batteries. Always had enough power. Our inverter was 300 watts, had no problem watching TV. The solar panel on the roof was a trickle charger for the house batteries.

Don't worry about the engine batteries, when running they get plenty of charge. And you can start the generator with the house batteres, hit the switch to tie all the batteries and generator current together to spin over that Cummins 300. Did that a few times during real cold weather. Works like a charm. Conversely, if the house batteries are low, you can start the engine, and get the generator running to charge the house batteries.

It was a short wheelbase, but handled very well, even in strong winds. On hot days the dash a/c kept us cool, but on cold days the dash heat worked, but was a little on the weak side. The heat-pump and a/c unit worked very well, never thought it was not enough. In cold below 25, the propane made it all toasty.

The heat exchanger from the engine always made sure we had hot water when we arrived at camp. And the power command center kept it all working whether we were on 30amp or 50amp.

We would have kept that RV, but we needed more space for living aboard full-time, so we traded it in for our new rig.
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Old 10-29-2011, 10:34 AM   #5
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Here's a link to the '03 Horizon Brochure which lists all of the features and options. If you go to this Service Parts List page and enter the last five digits of the Winnebago serial number (not the VIN) for your coach you can get the complete, as built, parts list for your particular coach.
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Old 10-30-2011, 12:45 PM   #6
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Really good info from all of you, thanks for taking the time to address my questions! We have the coach in our possession, now. Had a really great drive home, about 60 miles. The coach was clean, the sun was out, everything worked as it should. I was pleasantly surprised at how well the coach handles and the power that 300 Cummins has. Today, we are loading it and reading manuals, purifying the water tank, etc. It's raining, so not a lot of fun, but we can't wait to take it out on our maiden voyage.

One other question. My Monaco had a gauge for the turbo, this one does not. Does the 300 Cummins have a turbo? It did feel like it kicked in after a dead stop and then going about 3-5 mph.

OH, OK, one other question. The tech that gave us the walk-thru, and did a fantastic job, said to only go on the roof if absolutely necessary. He said it is very slick and that it may not be full thickness in places due to routing ductwork, etc. Do any of you have issues with going up there? It's kind of routine for me to get up on the roof of previous coaches just to have a look around and of course, for maintenance.

Thanks again,
Phil
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Old 10-30-2011, 01:31 PM   #7
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I wouldn't worry about anywhere on the roof but it could very well be slick. Probably should be if waxed and taken care of. You should go up there at least twice a year to check caulking.

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Originally Posted by Madrona View Post
OH, OK, one other question. The tech that gave us the walk-thru, and did a fantastic job, said to only go on the roof if absolutely necessary. He said it is very slick and that it may not be full thickness in places due to routing ductwork, etc. Do any of you have issues with going up there? It's kind of routine for me to get up on the roof of previous coaches just to have a look around and of course, for maintenance.
Thanks again,
Phil
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Old 10-31-2011, 02:23 AM   #8
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Yes, the 300 Cummins has a turbo, if you listen, as you rev it a bit, the turbo has a whine to it.

Roof can be slick, best to be up there only when dry. I tended to try to crawl more than walk around up there, depends upon how heavy you are.

Lots of folks recommend waxing roof, I just washed mine with a good large brush with an 'RV' wash'n wax soap. Seemed to do just fine. Inspect those front and rear cap joints, and those side joints once or twice a year. Using the right caulking keeps them sealed a long time. But the twisting movement from driving can open up some seams occasionally.
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Old 10-31-2011, 10:17 AM   #9
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Welcome to Winnebago Land. If joining groups or clubs is in your plans, consider jumping over to the Winnebago Itasca Traveler's site to see if it might fit into your scheme of things. WIT is a factory sponsored travel club, which hosts the Grand National Rally at the factory camp ground every July, gives you 10% discount on parts etc. has numerous rally's and caravans. It also has trickle down state clubs and local chapters. In my not so humble opinion a great way to meet people and keep the wheels rolling.

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Old 10-31-2011, 07:50 PM   #10
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I see you are form Bunney lake; I would suggest Joinning The Raineer Ramblers, Or the Evergreen Winnies , That is 2 Seattle Chapters of the Washabago Clubs . There are a lot of Horisons in those chapters, Tony life is good
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Old 10-31-2011, 08:27 PM   #11
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We have an 02 32TD, same as the 03 from what I can see. No problem with walking on the roof when dry, be careful when wet. Ours came with a 1500 watt inverter, which was replaced with a 2000 when the original died.
The 300 Cummins is a a stout little engine, but lack of big torque makes you work it on hills (we are usually pulling something). You can't possibly overload it with weight, it's reasonably easy to work on yourself and there is a heck of a lot of good information available on this and other forums to keep it running. Oh yeah, you can practically park it anywhere a dually pickup will fit.

Sounds like you made a great choice. Hope you get lots of fun out of it.

Dale and Sherry
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Old 11-02-2011, 06:35 AM   #12
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Any additional questions you have just call the Winnebago tech hot line and ask away they will have the answers or they will find out for you.
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Old 11-02-2011, 12:21 PM   #13
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Welcome to Winnebago Land. If joining groups or clubs is in your plans, consider jumping over to the Winnebago Itasca Traveler's site to see if it might fit into your scheme of things.
Don, WIT 70041
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I see you are form Bunney lake; I would suggest Joinning The Raineer Ramblers, Or the Evergreen Winnies , That is 2 Seattle Chapters of the Washabago Clubs . There are a lot of Horisons in those chapters, Tony life is good
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We have an 02 32TD, same as the 03 from what I can see. No problem with walking on the roof when dry, be careful when wet. Ours came with a 1500 watt inverter, which was replaced with a 2000 when the original died.
Oh yeah, you can practically park it anywhere a dually pickup will fit.

Sounds like you made a great choice. Hope you get lots of fun out of it.

Dale and Sherry
Quote:
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Any additional questions you have just call the Winnebago tech hot line and ask away they will have the answers or they will find out for you.
Wow, lots more great suggestions, info and links!
We aren't really "joiners" though that might change when we do more travelling. One reason we have the coach is so we don't have to associate with people. We are loaners for the most part. We both work with lots of people all day and just enjoy each others company when we have the chance. We like people, just not social situations.

I have found the inverter is a 1,500 watt, which makes me happy. We almost never hook-up so everything helps. I have been up on the roof and found it to be solid and well-cared for. All the joints are caulked and in good shape. I guess it must have had a manual dish on it because the base is still attached, but it has been replaced with a King Dome satelite. We probably won't subscribe to dish services for now, maybe someday.

I have had one issue since bringing the coach home. I lowered the jacks which went fine, but they would not retract. This is our 5th class A and I'm pretty familiar with most systems. Still, I got out the HWH manual and went through the instructions, step by step. Still wouldn't retract. I called the selling dealer and he had me do what I had already done, only, of course, this time it worked! I once again leveled and retracted while still on the phone with him and everything worked as it should. He thought maybe it's the switch button for Store. I will take a look at it when I get the chance. I feel like I can do that if necessary while travelling. I'll take it in when I go in for a couple other agreed upon fixes in a couple weeks. Is this a common problem with HWH manual controls?

In any event, we really like the coach and are surprised at the amount of room in such a short footprint. Can't wait to get on the road with it, soon!

Thank you again for all your wonderful help, ideas, links and encouragement!
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Old 11-02-2011, 12:29 PM   #14
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Best of luck Phil with your new toy. If you don't mind the asking which dealer did you buy your rig from.
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Old 11-02-2011, 05:22 PM   #15
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Best of luck Phil with your new toy. If you don't mind the asking which dealer did you buy your rig from.
I don't mind. In fact, this was such a good experience I was going to do a new post just about that!

We purchased from Roy Robinson in Marysville, WA. We are seniors, so are used to, wary of, many dealers and their tactics. From the time I sent an e-mail inquiring about a gas Bounder they had on their site, to the reply by Malcolm that it was still available but they also had the coach we ended up buying, to now, the purchase experience has been trouble-free and pleasant.

We met up with Malcolm on Saturday the 22nd of October. He spent the entire day with us. We looked at the Bounder, a Safari Simba and the Itasca we ended up buying. Oh, they also had what can only be described as a "Rock Star Bus" on the lot and Malcolm graciously showed us through that. Truly amazing quality and tons of bells and whistles.

We test drove the Safari. It has been awhile since we had a front engine gasser. I had to ask, "what is that noise!?" Of course, it was the engine under our feet. I have nothing against gas engine Class A's, but once you have a DP, it's hard to go back. Also, on a hill-climb, the Safari just crapped out. The Itasca, on the same hill, just pulled it with no problem, and quietly, I might add.

We did the usual paperwork at the end of the day and Malcolm asked if we wanted to make a downpayment to hold the coach. We hadn't eaten all day and were very tired. I said we would let him know. After we ate, I wondered aloud what was the problem? We had found a coach we liked, we should have pulled the trigger. I e-mailed Malcolm the next day and we handled the rest of the sale electronically. There were a few items to be addressed and we would pick up the coach on the next Saturday.

When we arrived, Malcolm introduced us to Bill, the tech that would do our walk-thru. Man, he covered everything. He told us in addition to the items we wanted addressed, it was his job to go over every system to ensure it worked. He found a few items and had repaired them. Nice guy, very thorough.

There was no pressure from anyone, Sales, Service, Finance department where you sign at the end of it all. Just smiles and a "what can we do for you" attitude. We will definitely return there when it's time for an upgrade.
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Old 11-05-2011, 06:10 PM   #16
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A few more items not fully explained. I had a 2003 Horizon 36ft and your would be virtually the same.
There was a remote for the door locks but not for the compartments. I could never get the door remote to work reliably.
With 3 batteries I never ran out of power.
I considered the solar panel a good thought but not big enough. With the coach sitting outside in the sunlight the panel could not keep up with the drain on the batteries. Eventually, they will run down if you are dry camping.
The only time your engine batteries are being charged is when the engine is running. Winnebago did not offer pedestal charging until 04 or 05. The fix is to install a Trik-L-Start. They are inexpensive and fool proof. Information about installing the device can be found on this and other forums.
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