Volta System problems Travato 59GL

[philbiss]

Good Morning,

Not sure this is the correct area but I'm a first time poster.

I purchased a new Travato 59GL from Campers Inn in Raynham, MA in January 2024 and picked it up the middle of February 2024. The first few weeks I owned it I discovered the Volta alternator was not charging
the batteries. I brought the RV back to the dealership on March 7 and it is now May 13th and I still don’t have the RV back and have no idea when it will be finished.

I have had to cancel trips I had planned due to the RV being gone. IT’S BEEN OVER 2 MONTHS!!!

I have spoke to the dealership a few times and they inform me that the phone calls they have made to Volta are not being returned. Contacted Volta and they say the dealer is not answering voicemails. Also contacted Winnebago and they can't get a hold of the dealership either.

Thanks and I hope you can give me ideas.

Phil

 

[Morich]

We are all seeing this more and more and I have stopped believing the excuses we get! The world did take a massive hit in the pandemic and it WILL takes decades to get over it but it is time to admit that things are in a mess and start to act like we still have problems!
I totally fault a dealer who has a customer waiting and uses the excuse that somebody doesn't return a phone call! A good business is supposed to find a way to make his business work! HE is in charge of taking care of things like this but too many look for an excuse instead of a solution!
If the generator is bad, take one off an RV in stock and get the customer back on the road!
Managers manage, dim bulb failures make excuses!
Any offices in your state to handle consumer complaints? Maybe you would find a friendly ear in one of those offices to give the dealer a jump start?

 

[creativepart]

Work with Volta. The dealer doesn't know a Volta from a Volvo. Winnebago makes these things, sends a bit of paperwork to the dealer to "train" them and moves on. The deal throws the "training" away or shares it with one tech who then quits and moves to a car dealership that pays more.

You need to get rid of the middle man. And be a squeaky wheel with both until it's corrected.

I know, it's a huge drag that this is the case. But... it is.

 

[Winterbagoal]

Get the vehicle back from the dealer, and take it to another WGO dealer in your area.
Or, contact Winnebago Owner Resources and ask them for further assitance.
[email protected] with your VIN and any other info you can provide.
Or, plan a roadtrip to Forest City, Iowa.
Contact Lichtsinn RV and/or Winnebago @thefactoryrepair and schedule diagnostics and a fix.

 

[madmartigan]

I've had an almost identical experience!

Bought a brand new 2023 Travato 59GL in December 2024. Not a month later I started experiencing intermittent charging issues with my Volta Pure3 system. There was also a slight vibration and rattling noise coming from under the hood. I brought the van to my local Camping World dealer for service, telling them that the lithium battery pack wasn't charging and told them about the under-hood issue.

They refused to even look under the hood because that's all "Dodge stuff, not Winnebago". After waiting in their waiting room for over 6 hours, they told me that the house batteries were charging just fine while the engine is running. I was incredulous and asked to see for myself. When they walked me back to the vehicle, the technician had a multimeter hooked up to the engine / chassis battery under the drivers side floor board and didn't even know that it was the engine battery and not the "house battery".

Needless to say, this left me feeling frustrated and hopeless...

After driving the vehicle a few more days, I noticed that the rattling and vibration was getting worse and worse so I ended up getting it up and jack stands and investigated things myself. I found that the electrical wiring connection attached to the secondary alternator was complete disconnected and burnt up.

Apparently the Camping World dealer that I bought it from had graciously performed a recall or service bulitine about re-routing theses exact wires from the secondary alternator to the lithium battery pack in the rear of the vehicle and failed to secure the connection when they finished.

The nuts and bolts that attached this electrical cable to the alternator had come loose and the connector had just been shorting out and arcing for some time. The electrical wires were completely burnt away. The Alternastor body has obvious melting of the metal. The nut that came loose was so hot when it feel off that it melted itself INTO the plastic body panel that runs under the egine. And various AC or coolant hoses and lines were charred and burnt.

I immediately brought the van back to the dealer and showed them everything. After talking with them and Winnebago customer service, it was deemed that the recall was not performed correctly and the process of a warranty repair began.

That was at the beginning or February 2025. It is now 4 months later and my van is still sitting at their service center. Camping World says that they are waiting on a replacement alternator from Winnebago. When I reached out to Winnebago to find out what was causing the delay, they told me that the alternator is back ordered from Volta power systems.

This has been one of the most frustrating experiences of my life and I STILL can't get any help from Camping World, Winnebago, or Volta.

 

[Pointyears]

Friends don't let friends do Camping World....