So Glad Rid of Winnebagonogo

[tizzyfit]

There is something to be said for buying a used rig. You have absolutely no expectations that every system and every interior item will continue to work as it was suppose to but at least you didn't pay full retail sticker price. The more complex the item is, the greater the likelihood SOMETHING will either stop working or break. If you want to simplify your camping experience, get a tent! Not much can go wrong there.

[wstalker]

I bought a used Winnebago Vectra and we still have not really camped in it. There were numerous things that needed fixed, but we knew a lot of them when we bought it and learned a plethora of things on these forums, some helpful, some not so much. Seems to me that it is pretty well built and am looking forward to using it as well as doing upgrades. We are moving from Arizona to Florida this winter and will live in the MH while building a home. Sorry for all your troubles, understand your frustration. Don't know if I could deal with this kind of life if I was not somewhat mechanically inclined. You will find that most on the site are partial to the brand they bought, of course. Unfortunately these units are on the road bouncing around a lot. They all have their issues. Better luck on the next brand you try, but I would not expect a lot of "after warranty service" paid for by anyone besides yourself.

[mbridinger]

I had a brand new Ford truck in the 80s with issues. It was so bad I carried a motorcycle in the bed, so I could get home. Broke down 4 times in 1 week as I remember. The dealer could never find the problem(s). Was so happy the day I traded it in. I would be as frustrated as you are especially at that price point. You will never get back the time spent on that big turd. funny, I am driving a ford truck currently.

[Hit_the_Rhod]

Originally Posted by marjoa

Maybe I should make this a separate post but thought maybe it would be appropriate here.

We would really like to know more about this one subject you mentioned in your reply. We are preparing to semi-retire & FT travel in a few months and this—dehumidifying—issue has been discussed & researched by my wife & I some, but I don't think we truly understand how this occurs in the winter and what proper steps should be taken & equipment that should be used to prevent interior damage and to maintain a proper environment inside. Could you please elaborate some more on this subject so we can take proper precautions?

The interior volume of a motor home is much smaller when compared to a stick and brick house. Therefore the water vapor emitted from taking a shower, cooking, or just breathing is much more concentrated in the smaller volume than it is in a stick and brick. Soooo, you need to have a way to vent/remove the excess water vapor, especially if your coach is a better made, better sealed/insulated model.

One way is to constantly vent air and replace with fresh from outside, but that is inefficient in terms of using more electricity or propane to heat/cool the new incoming air.

In Summer, it isn't typically a problem because the air conditioners naturally act as dehumidifiers, removing the excess interior water vapor, hence the water dripping off of the top of the coach, or draining underneath from a condensate overflow line.

But WINTER, Ahhhh, Winter. There lies the rub. Since you are not using the airconditioning (Heh, it's cold outside) you are not removing the excess water vapor. It will condense on the inside of the windows. Even if you have dual pane windows (the real kind, with a gap between the panes), the front windshield is still solid (yes, it is two panes with a membrane between, but it still acts as a solid panel, and water condenses on it much more easily. Sooo, how to remove the water vapor without using the AC unit to cool the interior of the coach. Either turn on the exhaust fan . . . . nope, that draws in more COLD air from outside, so that's not the right answer. So you purchase and use a small portable dehumidifier. You can set it to a specific humidity, and let her rip. You can either keep emptying the condensate bucket, or hook up a hose to the fitting provided and drain it, either overboard through a tube installed through the floor, or just place it in the shower and the condensate will drain into the shower drain and into you grey tank. When traveling, we just use the condensate bucket. Empty once a day and we are good. For winter storage, we place it in the shower.

Questions?

[nothermark]

Pretty much what he said about a dehumidifier but I will add that "small" is relative. Two people will put something like 4-6 pints of water into the atmosphere a day. More if coming in wet or snowy. That puts you in the range of the small compressor based units not the tiny closet dryers or cans of damp rid. The idea is to keep the humidity down to where you are not getting dripping water off the windows as that indicates you are also getting similar moisture condensing in places like wall voids in the insulation.

[Mike In NY]

I'm glad so many owners have not had problems with their rigs.
But that doesn't mean others haven't got a lemon.
The reasoning that things happen to RVs because they are "essentially houses moving down the hi-way at 60 mph, and things are bound to happen"
doesn't cut it with me.
Are they not designed and built to do just that.
That's like saying it's ok that the roof of my house blew off because the wind was gusting to 60mph.
Not logical.

[Mudfrog]

It's fine to post about problems, service, and/or that you think you got a lemon. These things can come about with just about anything we buy. But, we have to realize that encountering these problems doesn't necessarily mean the whole company is bad.

If i experienced the problems the OP had, then yes, i might be frustrated to the point where i wanted to tell the world. I wouldn't however, blame an entire company when i knew full well that i was the exception instead of the rule. There are thousands upon thousands of happy Winnebago owners out there, by far, many more than the dissatisfied.

To the OP, i wish you the best of luck with your next purchase. Just be prepared, it probably won't be perfect...

[RTegarini]

Originally Posted by mackspot1

For all of you "non-believers" who criticize our posting I am happy you don't deal with these issues.

I believe you... I have a 2005 bought new and it seems that almost every trip out, it comes back with something for me to deal with. Sometimes small, sometimes huge and a lot of the time I don't even post here because some people seem a little too sensitive when I criticize Winnebago and kind of go into attack-the-messenger mode.

My two favorite examples that seemed to bring out the worst in some people here is the denial of the Winnebago/Itasca rusted windshield frames and corresponding water leaks, and the ever-famous denial of the Workhorse brake problems that some members fought to the end, even AFTER Workhorse did a huge recall. Blamed 'user-error' and 'improper maintenance' for hundreds and maybe thousands of posts. But we all know that it was ultimately exposed as 'fake news', or Workhorse wouldn't have paid out ten's of thousands for repair claims and recalls.

I can't say that I've had a hundred problems, but then, I never bothered to count but certainly can say I'm sure the list is at least half of that. -RT

[marjoa]

Originally Posted by Hit_the_Rhod

But WINTER, Ahhhh, Winter. There lies the rub. Since you are not using the airconditioning (Heh, it's cold outside) you are not removing the excess water vapor. It will condense on the inside of the windows. Even if you have dual pane windows (the real kind, with a gap between the panes), the front windshield is still solid (yes, it is two panes with a membrane between, but it still acts as a solid panel, and water condenses on it much more easily. Sooo, how to remove the water vapor without using the AC unit to cool the interior of the coach. Either turn on the exhaust fan . . . . nope, that draws in more COLD air from outside, so that's not the right answer. So you purchase and use a small portable dehumidifier. You can set it to a specific humidity, and let her rip. You can either keep emptying the condensate bucket, or hook up a hose to the fitting provided and drain it, either overboard through a tube installed through the floor, or just place it in the shower and the condensate will drain into the shower drain and into you grey tank. When traveling, we just use the condensate bucket. Empty once a day and we are good. For winter storage, we place it in the shower.

Questions?

Thanks Scot. Ok, then I guess we did pretty much have a handle on understanding this problem after all. Yeah, WINTER and dealing with humidity was our question and you described it well. So with our size MH (see signature) what size unit do you think we need? There's just the 2 of us and our little Yorkie, and I'm not worried about money so don't be bashful. If I need a big unit, with certain humidity controls, auto shut off, maintain a certain amount of humidity or whatever, please we would appreciate your recommendations and even model#'s if you have them. We'll be staying in Southern Texas (Houston, Conroe, San Antonio, Austin area) during the winter months say from mid Nov. and pulling out again around mid March or so every year. We have several CG memberships and will mostly have access to shore power. We're not much into boon docking. DW needs some luxury items ya know!

We do have 3 follow up questions though:
1) As we said, we'll be FT traveling in about 6 months or so, so we'll be on the staying at each location 2-3 weeks at a time. We like the idea of the draining into the shower drain because that eliminates forgetting to dump the water basket daily. However, do these units have to be placed say...in the main living area so it can gather up all the extra moisture throughout the MH OR can it be placed in the back bathroom (we have 1 1/2 baths) in the shower and just drain there and it will pull out the moisture out of the whole MH while were in it during the winter? If this unit has to be in the living area, then I guess we would with the daily dump basket option because we wouldn't want a hose traveling back to the shower area. I'm also not interested in going through the floor either.

2) Whatever Dehumidifier unit we end up with, is it still a good idea to have a couple of roof vents cracked to bring in fresh air?

3) Are this units noisy when running and do you run them 24/7?

comments...?

Thanks again Scot.

[Pusherman]

Originally Posted by RTegarini

I believe you... I have a 2005 bought new and it seems that almost every trip out, it comes back with something for me to deal with. Sometimes small, sometimes huge and a lot of the time I don't even post here because some people seem a little too sensitive when I criticize Winnebago and kind of go into attack-the-messenger mode.

My two favorite examples that seemed to bring out the worst in some people here is the denial of the Winnebago/Itasca rusted windshield frames and corresponding water leaks, and the ever-famous denial of the Workhorse brake problems that some members fought to the end, even AFTER Workhorse did a huge recall. Blamed 'user-error' and 'improper maintenance' for hundreds and maybe thousands of posts. But we all know that it was ultimately exposed as 'fake news', or Workhorse wouldn't have paid out ten's of thousands for repair claims and recalls.

I can't say that I've had a hundred problems, but then, I never bothered to count but certainly can say I'm sure the list is at least half of that. -RT

RT, you have posted many times regarding the dreaded Winnebago rusted windshield frame. Like many others, I too posted acknowledging this design issue with Winnies. I pulled both of my windshields several years ago and fixed the rust issue. The repair held, as I had the unfortunate opportunity to replace one of the windshields a year or so ago due to a truck throwing a rock and cracking the windshield. Guess what -- the repair done about 3 years earlier held.

I still think Winnebago is as good or a better brand than many others out there. My 07 has been, and continues to be a good coach.

I can't personally comment on the Workhorse brake issues, though I know folks who have had issues. Luckily, mine's on a Freightliner.

[Honwing]

Bought a new 2013 Itasca Navion IQ and only had one wheel sensor issue which was fixed by Mercedes very quickly. Parts we're in stock. Last May we traded for a 2016 Vista LX 27N. Needed more room and really like the floor plan. 8,000 miles later we headed back to Forest City April 5th for the second time since last June. 11 items we're repaired taking a full week and motel costs due to pets not allowed in service area on our first visit. Been to Camping World twice for repair including replacement of Power Gear Slide motors and Column, reglue Hood bracket that fell on the ground while Camping at the Tampa RV Show, and fixing flaking full body paint for the second time which is a known Winnebago problem and not covered under warranty. On April 5th I have the factory checking the work done on the full wall slide that I have no faith in after warranty runs out May 27th. Also the PowerGear Dining slide is banging and jumping when in motion just like other one did. Leveling Jacks that leak down both when down and up and a kichen faucet that has very low pressure since new. We use this RV at least 8 months of the year between Seattle and Carrabelle Florida and have lost confidence in the brand. Most likely will be leaving Seattle with a better quality brand this fall. Already looking.

[motohomo]

Love all 3 of my winnebago class a motorhomes that i have had. Some problems here and there. Nothing that i would bash the entire company for. Good luck all. Sorry to hear about all these problems.

[RTegarini]

Originally Posted by Pusherman

RT, you have posted many times regarding the dreaded Winnebago rusted windshield frame. Like many others, I too posted acknowledging this design issue with Winnies. I pulled both of my windshields several years ago and fixed the rust issue. The repair held, as I had the unfortunate opportunity to replace one of the windshields a year or so ago due to a truck throwing a rock and cracking the windshield. Guess what -- the repair done about 3 years earlier held.

I still think Winnebago is as good or a better brand than many others out there. My 07 has been, and continues to be a good coach.

I can't personally comment on the Workhorse brake issues, though I know folks who have had issues. Luckily, mine's on a Freightliner.

I'm glad your windshield repair has held up. I did just post an update in another thread, and unfortunately, mine only held up for about 18 months or so. I took the cheap route this time and used 4" black electrical tape across the top of the windshield, going from the front-end cap, over the Reveal molding, and down to the glass. Looks good since the Reveal molding is black too. Since I posted in 'windshield' threads long ago, I won't go into how Winnebago, back then and to-date, pretends their is no design flaw or rusted windshield / molding issues. I'm supposed to believe that my motorhome is the only one is the US with this problem. Oh, and I guess my father-in-laws Winnebago too! -RT

[Wayne M]

Originally Posted by Honwing

Bought a new 2013 Itasca Navion IQ and only had one wheel sensor issue which was fixed by Mercedes very quickly. Parts we're in stock. Last May we traded for a 2016 Vista LX 27N. Needed more room and really like the floor plan. 8,000 miles later we headed back to Forest City April 5th for the second time since last June. 11 items we're repaired taking a full week and motel costs due to pets not allowed in service area on our first visit. Been to Camping World twice for repair including replacement of Power Gear Slide motors and Column, reglue Hood bracket that fell on the ground while Camping at the Tampa RV Show, and fixing flaking full body paint for the second time which is a known Winnebago problem and not covered under warranty. On April 5th I have the factory checking the work done on the full wall slide that I have no faith in after warranty runs out May 27th. Also the PowerGear Dining slide is banging and jumping when in motion just like other one did. Leveling Jacks that leak down both when down and up and a kichen faucet that has very low pressure since new. We use this RV at least 8 months of the year between Seattle and Carrabelle Florida and have lost confidence in the brand. Most likely will be leaving Seattle with a better quality brand this fall. Already looking.

My Winni is a 2008 Destination. Bought new, first year they made the Destination. 2009 was the last year. I can understand why. Same as Honwing. We love the floor plan.

2010 the jack down alarm started coming on when going down the highway. Quite a thrill to hear that at 60 mph. Pull over and less than 1/2 inch of piston showing on one jack. Went to factory service center in Forest City. Had it there 10 days, in and out each day. Last day was a Friday and was told it was fixed. Went with the service writer to the MH. Fired it up and put the jacks down and the "Out of Stroke" light came on. That had never happened before. The incline was less than 1 degree and they stated that it was because of the incline. I asked to move to a more level place and we did. Same thing but this time when I retracted the jacks the alarm stayed on. By this time there were 3 technicians and the service writer..

The Kwikee system has a port for testing the high pressure and it should be 1500 psi. I asked if they had tested for the 1500 psi at the port. The service writer looked at the technician sitting on the ground, the technician looked up and said, "We don't have a gauge." Come on! This is the factory service center.

At another point a technician said to use the ACC position and the alarm would not come on. I just had to ask and said, "Can you tell me how I can go down the road in the ACC position." End of all communications as I stated I was out of there.

Dealer was most obliging when I returned home. The service manager and a technician made 2 to 3 trips a week to my storage unit to try and figure out what was wrong and they did this for a couple months.

I put a switch in to cut the power off to the control unit and it silences the alarm. Kwikee support said to pull the power cable but that was a pain taking the control panel off every time we wanted to go somewhere.

The jacks started leaking down on one front side. New repair facility close to home. Replaced hydraulic pump, solenoids, flushed system and replaced 3 jacks - no relief, the still leak down. Alarm still sounds and this has been ongoing since 2010.

Other things have happened but I don't want to write a book. I think you get the idea. I, as the original poster, will never purchase another Winnebago product.

To make sure that we are politically correct, DW named the coach, "Citrus."

Don't be harsh on the OP. Things do happen, not to all but to some of us and it gives us a bad taste. Those wishing to purchase a motorhome just need to read all the pro's and con's and then decide for themselves which way to go. It's called selective choice.

On another note, a friend purchased a brand new Thor. Driving in the rain water was pouring in from the top of the windshield. Under warranty but the problem was that the factory never sealed the entire top of the windshield. Same coach, water pump didn't work. Friend reached in and tightened the fitting on the water pump and it worked. Ice maker would not work. Friend fond water valve turned off but over an electrical box. Moved it, turned it on and the fitting blew off spurting water all over the place. Easy fix, but came out of the factory that way.

Don't be to quick to judge why someone will not purchase a specific product.

Sorry for the book.

[ArmandV]

Originally Posted by tizzyfit

The more complex the item is, the greater the likelihood SOMETHING will either stop working or break.

Just a few words: Space Shuttle and International Space Station.

[Electra 225]

The sad thing is, the inconsistency of quality can cause a lot of trouble. It goes up and down for all manufacturers from time to time. I've said before, finding the sweet spot and keeping it there is the challenge for a company. For example, the point in time when the most efficient crew exists, turnover is lowest, skill is highest, etc. When you're buying, where do you fall as a new owner, in that which I described? It'll drive you crazy trying to figure that out.
Winnebago has good designs with quality materials and technology in manufacturing. The problem as of recent times I believe is, (it's my home base area, so I know the area).....the demand and growth increase has taxed the available workforce to the max, population being a key. Which brings me to the CC aquisition in Oregon. As far as I have heard, all diesel manufacturing is moving there. I think that, (I have hopes for this), and logic would suggest, this will be good for Winnebago Ind. The pressure is lessened on Big Bertha plant in Forest City, and the Oregon craftsmanship is at work on the diesels.
I hear they have produced a few Tours out there and are up to four per week last I read here. I'd like to see those coaches, as well as the new gassers out of Forest City as of late. I have to believe consistent quality will be on the rise barring any more 3rd party component disasters like Schwintek happening. That one caused a lot of grief for several manufacturers. I hope it's fixed.
I enjoy my Ellipse, had a few fixes but I was treated well, and all is well....it's a good solid strong coach, and big bang for the buck.
I'm rootin' for things to get consistently better for WBGO due to more evened out pressures. Hope I'm right.

W.D.

[guardrail53]

I have never bought a new MH, always bought used! That said, i have bought my share of new car's and trucks!
Last one is a 2016 Ford Everest 7 Pass. diesel, 6 speed auto. It is fully loaded with all the stuff, and the first trip of any distance, stopped for fuel, went to leave, transmission would not go into gear! Called the Ford hot line, they sent a roll off, and took us to the nearest dealer. two hours of testing, all computer programming, and they informed us, sorry, but we have to tear it apart! They stepped up, rented us transportation to our destination, and back to pick it up, after our trip was finished, they also extended our warranty for one year. And this is in Thailand!
That said, when the owners of the new MH's have a problem, and they sit in the shop for months, or waiting to get in the shop for months, and do not have the use of said MH for that time period, Do the manufactures step up and extend their warranty for the "loss of use" time period? Not that i have ever heard of?
Do they compensate them for "The loss of use" in any way? NO!

So i can understand the the anger and frustration of the OP!

I also have on my insurance policy on my 21 year old Monaco, from Progressive Ins. that i have trip insurance, and they will pay up to 50,000 dls. for "Vacation Liability" ,and, "Emergency Expense" 2000.00 dls.!
I think everyone should ask about this coverage with their insurance provider, when they are buying!

Again, these are "just my honest opinions"! JMHO! Rail!

[Electra 225]

Hey Rail! I have the same insurance as you. It's a good policy.

I agree with you and you have a good point. BTW Ford did good by you.
I'm a Ford man myself.
Regards,
W.D.

[GoneToTheDog]

Gosh, I'm feeling very fortunate. Our new 2017 Winnebago has not been back to the dealer once. We currently have about 6,500 miles on it. Everything has performed flawlessly. No complaints whatsoever. Oh, sure...there we a couple of initial minor cosmetic issues discovered, and a minor plumbing leak that I took care of myself. No surprise, and no big deal at all.
Anymore, it seems you either get a good one, or a not so good one. We kept our pre-purchase wish list to very basic with nothing fancy, no bling, no glitz. It makes traveling by motorhome fun and easy. I'm happy to say we think we got a good one, and really enjoy using it. If anything happened to it, I would buy another one.

[JAT3]

New to the RV world. Just purchased a 07 Journey 36G and love it but it has developed a intermittent problme when I hit a hard bump in the road......lose all dash electronics...rdo, speedo, tac, headlights, dash lights, cruse control etc. Its only momentary but unsettling. I had the freightliner dealer look at it and after 3 hours of trouble shooting came up dry. on the way home it did it about a dozen times. I need to do the troubleshooting myself. I contacted the freightliner HQ in SC and they told me to find the ground by the steering column connectors to axle and another near the generator. I will do that this weekend. Any suggestions from you more experienced owners. I lke my winne and want to get this fixed as we are going a trip to PA in April and would like to enjoy it rather than worry the whole way that it will fail permanently. Any help appreciated.