Not a Happy Camper '18 27bhss Minnie plus

Mbski · 03-24-2018, 06:47 AM

Hello

Well here we go!!

I purchased a 2018 27bhss Minnie plus

I have owned it for 8 days

My two front cargo doors leak
The outside kitchen door leaks
And I have a major leak somewhere by the fridge
The water ruined some if the cabinetry

I towed it from the dealer to my house
Haven't even used it yet!!

I know leaks and travel trailers are not a good mix!!

Also while looking for the leak on the roof
I wasn't to impressed with the fit and finish on the roof

Any advice would be helpful
Thanks
John

Lv2Roam2 · 03-24-2018, 07:42 AM

Throw a tarp over it until you can get it back to the dealer. Start taking notes and pics now to document what's happening, all conversations with the dealer, etc. When you get it to the dealer work with them to keep it under cover as you politely inform them that existing and any add'l damage will be fixed by them.

kone · 03-24-2018, 01:14 PM

Wow. I know how I am and if it were me with these issues I’d be raising the roof demanding my $ back (on a busy nice weather Saturday if I had to).

Good luck.

CampingGator · 03-24-2018, 03:55 PM

Do you have lemon laws in your state?

kone · 03-24-2018, 04:53 PM

I had the 26RBSS at the top of my list. I know one bad apple don’t spoil the whole bunch (baaby!) but this has me maybe moving it down a notch or two.

Badlands Bob · 03-24-2018, 04:57 PM

By chance is this leak below the TV antenna. On mine, I had a slow drip that was following the coax cable and dripping off of the TV antenna crank handle. I caulked up the rubber coax boot on the roof and solved the problem.

You may also have a slide leak. Make sure your slide gaskets meet up with the side of your camper when the slide is in. You'll have to get up on the roof or get a ladder to check the top gasket. (most likely culpret)

Good luck. You caught it quickly so it can be fixed before causing a bunch of damage.

Mbski · 03-24-2018, 07:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kone

I had the 26RBSS at the top of my list. I know one bad apple don’t spoil the whole bunch (baaby!) but this has me maybe moving it down a notch or two.

I wouldn't count it out
The quality in Winnebago Is there compared to the rest

I guess mine was built on an off day

It will all work out
I still like our new trailer

Badlands Bob · 03-24-2018, 08:09 PM

Sometimes it just takes a few trips back to the dealer to get the bugs worked out. Hopefully this will be an easy fix and you will enjoy your new camper for many years. With all the different systems in a travel trailer, it's pretty common to find something that needs fixing after you start using it.

Mbski · 03-24-2018, 09:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Badlands Bob

Sometimes it just takes a few trips back to the dealer to get the bugs worked out. Hopefully this will be an easy fix and you will enjoy your new camper for many years. With all the different systems in a travel trailer, it's pretty common to find something that needs fixing after you start using it.

I understand there may be some issues
But a bad leak in any camper is no good at all
I haven't even used the camper

From the dealer to the house
One rain storm and cabinet is damaged
What else has water damage

Mbski · 04-28-2018, 10:14 PM

It has so many issues winnebago wants it back

MainelyScott · 04-29-2018, 06:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mbski

It has so many issues winnebago wants it back

That's good news! While its unfortunate to have an experience this bad, its also good to know that Winnebago has responded responsibly. Congratulations, hopefully your next one will be done 100% top notch!

Jcolang · 05-06-2018, 11:10 AM

Hello John,

My name is John also. I live up in Seattle. I also have a brand new 26rbss Minnie Plus and also had MAJOR leaks and damaged storage compartment doors. I have found out that Winnebago is very slow and very reluctant to stand by their defective units. Mine has been at the dealer now for 7 weeks total. There is a known defect in the way they seam the roof on to the side of the trailer. I am really disappointed. Otherwise, I like the trailer. My leak was over the bedroom, it ruined our mattress and destroyed the two bedside tables. We've only used our unit three times and it's not even paid for and it's already water damaged and has mold growing in it.
I'll keep you posted on my journey with the dealer and with Winnebago.
Would be glad to speak to you on the phone anytime.

John C

GNester1 · 05-06-2018, 11:45 AM

Hi my name is Greg Nester I purchased a used 2008 tour I’m am so disappointed in Winnebago that I have discouraged everyone that I know to not buy a Winnebago product. I know that this motorhome is almost 10 years old but before I bought it it was barn kept I have had it in Florida for about 8 months when it rains I find a new leak they are all in the slide outs everyone has leaked it is not a little leak either all slides have toppers I’m installing
New slide toppers and I’m going to put rubber roofs on all slides I have brought this to Winnebago attention but all I got was it’s ten years old well I had a fifthwheel for 15 years and never had a leak and it didn’t cost 1/2 million dollars when it was new just to let everyone know that I will never buy anything that is built by winnebago again this unit only has 30000 miles on it. I have 4 friends that are look for class a motorhome but they are not looking at Winnebago

Thanks

Gregory Nester

Bueller · 05-08-2018, 08:32 PM

I bought a 2018 26RBSS last October. I towed it home (50 miles) and found the entire bedroom door and track assembly had come apart from the furring strip that screws into the wall, damaging the door opening trim and walls in the process. Worse yet, the door got wedged behind the closed slide, which prevented me from opening the slide to fix the door! A couple hours later I finally had the slide open and the door assembly apart on the living room floor. I found the assembly had been mounted to the furring strip with straight staples (no barbs) that promptly let go over the course of a few bumps. I screwed it together and we went on our planned camping trip.

When we got back I dropped it off at the dealer with a laundry list of things to fix. Most of the plumbing drain side connections had been loose (I tightened them), there was a torn screen, all of the damage from the fallen door, and a couple other things. Three months later I got it back. They fixed *most* of the things I had on the list. We took it on the 2nd trip and the bathroom door started coming apart like the bedroom door did. I saw it happening before it came all the way apart and I screwed it all together. I also found both compartment doors leaking and have adjusted them myself, cleaning up the water before it had a chance to do any appreciable damage. I have also noticed the thermostat placement is very poor which causes frequent cycling of the fan on & off. I have a dometic remote temperature sensor kit on order so I can remedy that issue. Also on the list is the poor placement of the smoke detector, which blares every time the stove is used. I will move it to the bathroom side of the trailer and probably install the remote temperature sensor where the smoke detector used to be. Then I’ll add a 2nd detector in the bedroom.

I love the floor plan but overall have been disappointed in the quality. I shouldn’t have to work on a new unit this much. The trailer quality is not up to the standards of our previous RV, which was a 2007 View. I’m hoping once we have these “teething problems” dealt with it will be a good trailer. Time will tell...

Jcolang · 05-09-2018, 09:30 PM

Hello Bueller,

Thanks for your posting, I will look out for those doors and make sure ours are secured properly (when we finally get it back).

How did you fix the leaking compartment doors? Ours leaked also, we had standing water in our underbelly storage compartment. Was it the seals that were defective?

I really like the floorplan of our unit and hope we can get all of the bugs worked out. The major issue you need to watch for is the faulty sealant they used in the factory to join the roof to the sides of the trailer. I hope they publish a service bulletin but I will pass on all the information to you as soon as I have it.

I think this was the first or second year that they made the Minnie Plus with the curved roof. This may explain why they had issues with the sealant since it was a new roof design. I would write to Winnebago and let them know about the door coming loose so they can change the process steps in the factory.

Thanks very much for your helpful descriptions of your repairs. I may pick your brain further in regard to how you secured your doors.

Thanks!
John

Bueller · 05-10-2018, 06:29 AM

Hi John,

The compartment seals were just fine. The problem on mine was two fold. The first problem was the latches were coming loose. I snugged them up. Be careful doing this, as it would be very easy to crush the backside of the door as the nut is tightened. The second issue was the door frame itself. The metal lip that the seal is attached to is not very strong. As we loaded items into and out of the compartment we have apparently caught that metal lip a few times on both doors and bent it. I have bent it back into place, and even pushed it out just a bit further to ensure the seal is contacting (but not getting crushed by) the door.

One other thing I forgot to mention. There is a plastic check valve in the hose connection. When we went on our first trip I filled the water tank about 2/3, only to find it had dropped significantly at a stop a couple of hours later for gas. I also noticed water dripping out of the front left corner of the trailer. When I opened the compartment I found water running out of the hose connector and the compartment was flooded. I drained the water tank, took apart the hose connector, and found the O-ring was dislodged from the check valve. I installed the O-ring correctly, cleaned up all of the water, and haven't had an issue since.

Completely unrelated - last night I found one of the side window valances in the slide out was loose. I checked it only to find the screws were stripped out in the wall. I took it all apart and repaired it, and checked all of the other valances. The idiot at the factory stripped out about half of the screws, but the valances that are mounted to the slide out ceiling are secure.

I have not had any roof leaks to date. Mine is a 2018, so maybe they corrected the sealant concerns between the building of yours and mine.

The floor plan and design of this trailer is awesome. The look is elegant. There is plenty of room and CCC. 90% + of the problems are not design issues, they are caused by some ham-fisted idiots on the assembly line who obviously don't care about the quality of their work. We *almost* bought an airstream, but loved the extra room we got with the super slide in this floor plan. I'm not regretful, but I told my fiancee that short of anything major I am going to perform my own repairs so I can know they have been done correctly.

Jcolang · 05-13-2018, 02:14 PM

Just so you know, I am an owner of a 26rbss Minnie Plus and I had the same leaking roof issues but in a different spot. It's going on 8 weeks at the dealership to repair. It's a great floorplan but Winnebago has very poor quality control at the factory (it seems). I cannot recommend it at this time. I'd steer clear of this model until they find the quality error and fix it.

Red2455 · 05-15-2018, 01:55 PM

Hi John,

Just curious what dealership you went through. I'm here in Seattle too and I'm taking delivery of a new trailer on Saturday.

Jcolang · 05-16-2018, 12:15 PM

First I took it to Roy Roberson RV in Marysville (not where I originally purchased the unit) and they tried to help me but they said they had three units that had leaked in line before me and said it would be May until they could get to it (this was back in Feb). Then they said it was better to return it to where I purchased it (Awesome RV in Chehalis). Winnebago was not willing to pay for the amount of warranty work Roy Roberson said it would take to fix it. I was very disappointed in Winnebago's warranty department. I wasn't aware that you had to return the trailer to the Dealership where it was purchased. That begs the question......what happens to people who buy in one area of the country and then move or RV full time in other parts of the USA?
At any rate, I would make sure you ask the Dealership about the leaking seams in these units before you pick up the unit. The repair tech told me there was defective sealant in all four corners of the unit. There were other trailers in for the same repair so you would think Winnebago would know about the issue by now and would alert consumers.
Good luck. Feel free to reach you to me privately if you like and we can exchange phone numbers.
Happy Travels! Don't be disappointed, there are worse things in life than a leaking RV roof, it's just annoying. Hopefully your unit will not have this problem.

John in Redmond

Red2455 · 05-16-2018, 02:43 PM

Excellent info John. Thank you. I will certainly ask about the seams. I was there to look at it initially during a good rain storm and didn't notice any water damage anywhere. It's been sitting outside for months so I would think there would be signs of water somewhere after the winter we had. What month was your unit manufactured? I think mine is December 2017, but can't quite remember.