I spoke too soon! - Page 2

Captain Bud · 05-30-2006, 12:27 PM

I am not bringing "distance" into play, and this is not a warranty issue as the MH is out of warranty, I'm talking about a known issue where the glue bonds have been coming loose as posted by some of our members, and now Freddy has to prove that the bond failed. I happen to have an Adventurer and I look at this setup with a jaundiced eye just waiting for it to fail. The whole hinge mechanism is a discombobulated (spelling?) mess. Personally I repair most things on my MH myself, and if this ever fails I will do it myself and do it the RIGHT WAY. We are not talking about a transmission failure, or an awning system not working properly, it is a poor design that is trying to bond a fiberglass surface to a metal surface that is being stressed each and every time the hatch is opened. The adjustment to make sure that the hatch is secure and is contacting the pressure points is darn near impossible without major mods. Please do a search and see how many times this subject has come up....

rebelsbeach · 05-30-2006, 12:54 PM

Bud, I'm well aware of the issue having been discussed many times on iRV2 and I must have missed the part where it was out of warranty.

Hopefully Fred can find an acceptable solution to his issue....

I think we've tossed this around enough that we all know each other's position...

Good luck Fred with whatever way you choose to resolve the issue.

Petro · 05-30-2006, 01:08 PM

Freddy;
I had the same thing happen to my 03 Chieftain. I went to an auto supply dealer and purchased some JB Weld. I applied the glue to the hinge and braced it on the inside for 24 hours. So far it has held OK. I watch it closely also.

Don

Captain Bud · 05-30-2006, 01:46 PM

Well, I guess this topic is finished, Good Luck Freddy I hope you come out ahead.....

Freddy · 05-30-2006, 01:54 PM

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Why does Winnebago need photos of a known problem. What are they looking for? Verify if the owner is telling the truth. I think they should respond with bring it right in and we'll fix it for you. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Amen!

I haven't yet mentioned that on my most recent trip I found the driver's side fender flapping in the wind! The glue holding the fender to a square vertical tube had failed. I was able to repair that using regular epoxy.

Seems like nearly everything on this coach is glued!

Freddy · 05-30-2006, 02:25 PM

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Captain Bud:
Well, I guess this topic is finished, Good Luck Freddy I hope you come out ahead..... </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

You dismiss too soon!

Some owners who have expressed an opinion on this subject got my point! Others have totally missed it.

My point was - and perhaps not well expressed for every level of understanding - is that the design of the hood bracket (among other things) is poor.

My coach is not the first of the thousands produced with this design that has failed! A reasonable person would suspect that Winnebago would have learned something from the very FIRST failure.

When I reported the failure, the tech should have immediately known that it had happened before, and that I am likely being truthful. Why would I report something like failed glue had I hit a tree? Seems logical to me that I would report instead to my insurance company?

Some of you guys aren't thinking!

I have saved Winnebago some amount of money by troubleshooting and repairing most of the early problems I had with this coach. Had I traveled back and forth to the dealer for all of the minor defects that manifested themselves in the first few months of ownership, I would have spent a lot of time at the dealership, drinking stale coffee and birddogging the shop foreman!

What some of you forget that it's not just a drive. If I have to leave the coach at the dealer I have to find a motel! Think Winnebago would reimburse me for that?!

For the lawyer: When one files suit in SCC, and the defendant doesn't show up, the plaintiff wins. If Winnebago wants to spend a couple of thousand bucks getting a battery of attorneys down here to defend a $200 charge, so be it.

Perhaps if more of us owners made a claim everytime we're inconvenienced by their incompetence, we'd get their attention!

Beabop · 05-30-2006, 02:30 PM

Considering how many of us have had that blasted door fall off, Winnie should fix it warranty or not. Ours was glued when 10 months old. Sometimes I wonder what the engineers were thinking(NOT) of when they glued that door on.

Freddy · 05-30-2006, 02:31 PM

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">
Wrong formula glue for aluminum bonded to fiberglass. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

The bracket that failed on my coach is steel. The side that was bonded to the fiberglass was painted, and presented a smooth surface. There is no anchor pattern for the glue to grab onto.

Captain Bud · 05-30-2006, 02:36 PM

Freddy, I am not dismissing you, I guess others feel that we are kicking a dead horse around, I believe you and your quest. As you can see I am sitting with a unit that may have similar problems. I restate my position in that I feel I have a good MH for the money, however there are things that should have been addressed and for what ever reason will not or have not. I hope that you are successful in your claim, and if you go to small claims court "Godspeed" and stick it to them.. Maybe someone would like to discuss the IP that Workhorse has put on the market. How about the RV radio that is a POS. How about the shock recall that was a total fiasco. How about the constant worry about the roof seal. How about the shower valves that have been crticized again and again.This is all IMHO...

Freddy · 05-30-2006, 04:05 PM

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Captain Bud:
Maybe someone would like to discuss the IP that Workhorse has put on the market. How about the RV radio that is a POS. How about the shock recall that was a total fiasco. How about the constant worry about the roof seal. How about the shower valves that have been crticized again and again.This is all IMHO... </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

I agree that those are all issues relating to poor quality and design! They go for the cheapest, and sell for the max. All manufacturers do that. It is only because I own a Winnebago that I feel free to be critical of the company.

I never called them and "demanded" anything. I called merely to report the glue problem, knowing that it was a common design defect.

I figured that they'd tell me to go get it fixed. Instead they tell me that I need pictures, and that mine are no good; the dealer has to communicate with them.

Thinking back, that is probably the main reason for my rant! Their attitude ticked me off!

FlashG · 05-30-2006, 04:53 PM

I think the manufacturers often times require photos to document repair for a variety of reasons. My previous RV was a Keystone FW and they required photos of items that needed repair/replacement at the time of PDI. Kind of made me CROSS. In retrospect the factory needs proof to show: foreman/factory workers, vendor of failed components and even in-house accountants. After all not all dealers are honest (big surprise). Bogus claims can be made and paid without a lot of oversight. I was told that assembly workers are given bonuses when quotas are exceeded and deducted when rigs are returned for repair due to poor assembly. Just my nickels worth.

"007" · 05-30-2006, 07:39 PM

bubba871, welcome to the forum

We need to calm down, like I said before and Capt. Bud said stainless steel bolts or screws will fix the problem Freddy is having.

We just have to convince the Winnie Dealer of this fact.

Freddy · 05-31-2006, 07:52 AM

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by "007":
bubba871, Capt. Bud said stainless steel bolts or screws will fix the problem Freddy is having.

We just have to convince the Winnie Dealer of this fact.

</div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Might take some fairly large washers to spread out the stresses over the area around the hole for those bolts.

"007" · 05-31-2006, 09:01 AM

Fred, you may if your fiber-glass is that thin, I have flat head stainless screws on my hinges. They do put a block in the fiber-glass where the screws screw into. You could do the same just for more anchorage.

Gary N. · 05-31-2006, 02:44 PM

Seems to me that if this problem is that prevalent that maybe there should be a "re-call". Pretty serious problem to have hoods flying down the interstate.
I haven't had any issues with my hood coming unglued but I did have a very poor fit and had to do some serious surgery on the adjustment slots in order to get it to fit right. I could put my hand between the hood and the rubber gasket at the top. Can't imagine how much rain went in there before I fixed it.
I did however, have an aluminium structural member near the bottom of the hood opening come unglued. At first I thought it was attached with two sided tape but on closer inspection I found that it was attached with the same glue as the hood hinge brackets. I've yet to repair it or figure out what it actually does although someone did suggest that it might be there in case of some kind of harmonics that might cause a stress crack or something. That sounds like as good an explanation as any.
Anyway thanks for this thread. I'll keep a close eye on mine now. I may even do a little preventative repair using fibreglass cloth right over the brackets and out on to the hood panel in a few key spots.

Freddy · 06-02-2006, 04:41 AM

I removed the hood, scoured the old "glue" off from inside the front cover, then scoured the bracket to remove the paint. Both scourings established an anchor pattern for the glue to bond to. I used my Dremel to do the scouring.

After cleaning off all the dust, and wetting down both components, I liberally applied Gorilla glue to both surfaces, and held them in place overnight with C clamps.

After about 24 hours, the Gorilla glue had set, and the bond between the bracket and the fiberglass was strong.

I reattached and adjusted the hood, and except for a few scratches on the paint caused when the hood dropped, no one can tell that I had a problem. The scratches are on the surface covered by the bottom of the hood, so they aren't visible.

During all of this I discovered an inspection tag, indicating that the assembly had been OK'd by someone named RON, DON, or BON. Difficult to read.

While washing the coach this morning I noticed that the awning over the big slide is tearing.

Later, I'll post a pix or two of the "paint crazing" problem that I wrote about earlier.

ISLAPP · 06-02-2006, 05:14 AM

Regarding the awning tearing, I think this was mentioned in some recent post on that subject. A&E warrants it one year. But they have some kind of deal thru Winnebago that it is warranted two years. I dont believe that covers labor though. Just thought I would pass that on to ya.
Mike

Captain Bud · 06-16-2006, 08:24 AM

Well I went out this AM, and checked my battery water levels and decided to take another look at my hood mechanism and see if I couldn't adjust everything to fit better. I accomplished it with a lot of patience and just sitting back and studying the design. I still cant believe that this is the best setup that the engineers could design. I found out that the strikers, (The pockets that the catches fit into) control most of the pressure that holds the hood against the vehicle, they are only held in place by two sheet metal screws, zEverytime you open and close the hood the strain is placed against these screws. I hope this makes sense...

starchy · 06-16-2006, 01:28 PM

Freddy:

I can emphatize with your frustration, however this may be a quick solution to your engine cover problem. Go to any Marine /Boat store and ask for a small bottle of "Marine Tex". IThe last time i bought it costs about $8.99 for a small bottle. Follow the direction on the bottle. If this doesn"t hold, then nothing will. I had a front cover come loose from the frame, I tried everything to no avail until Marine Tex. Works great and never came loose. It is used to mend fiberglass, metal, alum, etc. etc.

Freddy · 06-17-2006, 02:33 PM

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Captain Bud:
Well I went out this AM, and checked my battery water levels and decided to take another look at my hood mechanism and see if I couldn't adjust everything to fit better. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Cap'n Bud,

My Gorilla glue repair failed, so I got some Weld Bond, and that seems to be working better. The salesman where I bought the Weld Bond said that after it cured it would be strong enough to drill and tap.

Anyway, I've adjusted the mounting brackets, and the up/down adjustment on the hood cover itself a number of times. If I make it fit the strikers, it gaps at the top. If I make it fit at the top, it misses the strikers. I got the decals lined up across the front, and still have a terrible gap at the top.

Any suggestions on how to close up the gap?