Still more Schwintek slideout woes

[mtnfan]

I'm heading back to Forest City in a couple weeks (for the second time) to have the factory address the slide issue again. Last visit, I was told that the tolerances for installation of the Schwinteck slide system was 3mm. That is, if the opening in the box is out of square by as little as 3mm, the slide will eventually fail. They "fixed" the problem by installing metal shims to "square up" the opening in the box. Well, that worked for a couple weeks, but we're back to a slide that does not work.

[bcbounders]

I'm so sorry to read about everyone's troubles with their slideouts... but you all may want to see about joining forces with the Thor owners who are also having problems with the Schwintek slides in their coaches (see this thread and this thread for examples).

Apparently this problem isn't uniquely a Winnebago issue... but perhaps a Lippert/Schwintek one.

There's power in numbers! (although probably not comfort, in this case).

Please keep us all posted... and best of luck! We're pulling for you!

[rreichar]

Originally Posted by univmd

I think I found my answer: In Wall Slide System - Power Gear

I was shopping the Forza/Solei back in April and posted the following:

http://www.irv2.com/forums/f101/new-...ei-242178.html

Our local dealer only has an early model Solei with the Schwintek system on the full wall slide. I will not buy one with a Schwintek system. I know many folks have not had issues but since Winnebago has dropped Schwintek I am not taking the chance.

[Clayobx]

Originally Posted by rreichar

I was shopping the Forza/Solei back in April and posted the following:

http://www.irv2.com/forums/f101/new-...ei-242178.html

Our local dealer only has an early model Solei with the Schwintek system on the full wall slide. I will not buy one with a Schwintek system. I know many folks have not had issues but since Winnebago has dropped Schwintek I am not taking the chance.

Very wise decesion

[peterson]

Originally Posted by Clayobx

Very wise decesion

Has Winnebago dropped [I]all[I] schwintek? Or just on full wall slides?

[indiana journey]

I believe that schwintec/lippert/power gear are all the same company. Lippert is the owner of all of them.
Good Luck,
Indiana Journey

[Birdie66b]

Thinking of buying a 2003-2005 Journey...do those models have Schwintek slides?
Thanks

[ed rzepka]

So what has Winnebago done to resolve the problem on future motorhomes particularly on their larger slides? Repairs on older ones -- do they install different or heavier/rugged slide out systems?

[two-niner]

ed: You asked the million dollar question!!

[rreichar]

I have not checked out the entire Winnebago lineup but I know that both the Forza/Solei and Tour/Ellipse dropped the Schwintek type slides as an ongoing upgrade in the middle of the 2015 model year runs. I thnk that the decision to make the change in mid-year is indicative of the issues they were having. Of course that doesn't help people who bought their coaches in good faith with the Schwintek slides. I imagine that retrofitting those would be extremely difficult and expensive.

[Duner]

Originally Posted by AZaficionado

Thinking of buying a 2003-2005 Journey...do those models have Schwintek slides?
Thanks

Those years are all HWH hydraulic slides & jacks like my 2004.

I'm not sure when they dropped HWH, but my guess is around 2010. Maybe someone can provide a more factual answer and not just a guess.

[Yellowboat]

I have a 2016 Sightseer 33C on order. I was curious about the slides on the Sightseer line. I looked at the operator's manual for the 2014, 2015, & the 2016 models. All of the manuals show a Power Gear control head.

Can I assume that the Sightseer line has the Power Gear slides?

I have delt with Power Gear when the control head to my Kwikee jacks failed. No control heads were available as Power Gear was redesigning the part. My contact at Power Gear kept me informed on progress and let my know when they shipped to WinnebagoParts.com.

[grtharris]

Yellowboat the Sightseer 33c was changed to Power Gear In-Wall slides on 09-22-2014 on the front left and rear. The right front is a under the floor, flat floor Power Gear unit.

[rreichar]

I just looked at two 2011 Journeys that did not have Schwintek system. They had a 2012 Meridian that did have it. Hard to tell if the change was made with the model year though.

[ChrisKW]

I happen to be one of the owners that read every manual issued with both our 2012 Tour and our newest coach, a 2014 Ellipse. Like many owners, we always level the coach, operate slides with engine running, and used recommended lube procedures. Unlike the earlier Tour 42QD, which had power gear mechanisms on the large 28' driver slide and the passenger galley slide, our 2014 Ellipse 42QD has now had two repair kits installed on the Lippert/Schwintek large passenger slide-out. The repairs were accomplished by dealer service centers, using Lippert-trained service techs during the first 12 months of our ownership. The first failure (original hardware) came after only nine cycles. The cause was identified, and trust me we heard it, as being improperly installed hardware under the kitchen cabinets (aft end of the slide). Unfortunately, the first repair kit installation only lasted nine cycles as well. The second cause, which was not found during the first kit installation, was identified as the coach body opening not being square, clearly an assembly-line mistake. The second service team shimmed the rails/racks to ensure a square fit to the slide-out.

Over that first twelve month period, of which we were full-timers we lost the use of the failed slide for over three months waiting for schedule repairs and parts arrival, and we lost a total of one month while she was in the shop being repaired. I hate to think what another repair might cost, but fortunately we are currently under an extended warranty that covers slides (at least for now).

Although the second repair kit has been operating smoothly for twenty-four cycles to date, the reality is that these larger slides had previously been equipped with power glide systems (such as the Tour we previously owned) and Winnebago engineers switched the design to Lippert/Schwintek to save weight and add capacity in storage areas. Although the latter seemed at the time a good idea, it turns out to have been more of an engineering failure, of which has significantly added to repair costs to the manufacturer while coaches are under warranty, a cost which then shifts to the owners once out of warranty, and a possible liability to all owners at the point of trade-in or sale.

Again, to be clear about operating the slides, I always level the coach (making sure auto-level is actually level), and with the engine running I fully deploy/retract the slides, and then hold the switch an additional 5-6 seconds to ensure the motors are synchronized. I also lube with CRC power lube where Schwintek recommends per their video (see YouTube). And, I called the Winnebago Tech Advisor line (800-537-1885) and they shipped me Slide Locks, which in my case now prevents the 1" creep out issue on the passenger large slide's aft end while traveling.

In summary, I am glad for those that have been trouble free with their slides, but some of us sure have not been so fortunate. I as well expect to see a class-action lawsuit at some point.


Chris & Deb - North Venice, FL - 2014 Itasca Ellipse 42QD - Toad: 2014 Jeep Rubicon

[Robin6684]

I agree that we should start a class action. We have owned a 5th wheel made by Crossroads RV, Sunset Trail with 3 Schwintek slides that we have now, just this last trip, FAILED! We have owned for only year and half with all slides now failed and no longer under warranty. We have paid hard earned cash for this coach and love it...except for the slides. I think a class action is all that can be done at this time. Contact me if you are serious.

[ChrisKW]

Since my last entry in this post, we had the bedroom slide track system fail, of which required its first motor and track kit since new. The work was accomplished by Camping World of Raliegh a few months ago. Fortunately, the $3,200 repair was covered by the Extended Warranty except for $400 out of our pocket. The galley slide has had two repair kits, both having failed after about 14 deployments. Following last year's repair I had the Winnebago factory service center check it for operation, alignment and lubrication this last October after which she was stored through May of this year when we began our seasonal travel. There was an associated cost, but piece of mind was the goal, and they did install an additional lower roller under the aft end to better support the weight, of which was no charge. Cool!

Well, today after only 42 or so deployments it failed, again. The upper-aft gear (nearest the drive motor) ate the track, and it required two people to assist pushing it closed. Slide locks are now installed (those we use from the factory to prevent upward creep during driving) to continue our trip tomorrow, and we are looking for an authorized service center to order parts and make the third repair. Hope the extended warranty company agrees to cover this again. The frustrations are three-fold, one of the frustration and inconvenience in loosing use of that slide (especially when we have house guests), another is in incurring downtime while service is performed on a five month trip, and third is the fact that we follow all of the recommended procedures to deploy and stow these slides, and yet they fail.

The cost to owners, the manufacturer and the warranty companies must be huge across the spectrum of RV products and manufactures, and don't I wish there was a class-action lawsuit. Pulling my hair out in Northern California into Oregon.


Chris & Deb - North Venice, FL - 2014 Itasca Ellipse 42QD - Toad: 2014 Jeep Rubicon

[Tom-NC]

Hi,


I have had problems with my full wall slide and when the local dealer couldn't fix it I went to Forest City. Yes we waited a week as I didn't have an appointment but that was no big deal as I was able to talk to a lot of owners with the same problem with the full wall slide.
Finally I was into the shop and that afternoon when I got it back it was fixed and has been working fine, knock on wood.
The way the tech explained it to me was that they had to put shims so that the gears on the on the motor and shaft were in contact with the track tightly. Apparently While bouncing down these beautiful roads in the US the gear looses contact with the track and jumps a tooth thereby causing a problem. Also there is no brake on the motor to stop the slide from creeping out hence the bars to hold it in.
I had an idea and that would be for them to eliminate the shaft that goes along the side of the slide out which is driven by one motor but has 2 gears on it and put 2 motors with gears on them and sync them. Well enough of that.
I did hear that Winnebago is changing the Schwintek system to Power Gear.
Lastly at least Winebago is helping those with problems as if they are in warranty.

[alank]

I'm going to throw my opinion on the slide subject. I'm on my third coach with all Schwintec slides and haven't had any trouble with any of them.
Some of the posters here say they have been told by company techs that the openings in the side of the coach needs to be square. I don't agree and anyone making that statement is showing his lack of knowledge of the operation of the slide. The squareness of the slide opening (within reason) has no affect on the operation of the slide. The coach wall and opening are stationary and do not move.
The slide is the item that needs to be as perfectly square as possible. I read somewhere that the slide system would tolerate 3/8" variance. I don't know if that was each individual slide, or it was in total for the entire slide size. If I measure my 15' slide just inside the flange that seals against the coach, it is 144 9/16". If I measure it up against the coach wall, it's 144 5/16". I don't know which end isn't square, or if it's a little off on both ends, but I do know the Schwintec slide system sees a slide that gets bigger as it is retracted, or smaller as it is extended. I can also see where the gib's move in the bearing blocks when the slide is moved. There is a hook on the bearing block that fits in the rack. This is what keeps the pinion gear meshed in the gear rack. That track needs to be lubricated to prevent wear but was not mentioned in their video.
The old style hydraulic or under slide systems was not affected by out-of-square slides, as long as the slide fit in the hole, everything was fine.
As one poster here said, I also think the Schwintec system is a good system. If I were going to lay any liability, it would be on the coach builders for stepping up their build quality to match what was needed for the Schwintec system.
I also think the new Power Gear design is better, but has many of the same problems trying to deal with out-of-square slides and will also be plagued with problems with slides that are just too out-of-square. The solution would be to put in a new slide that was square and true.

[audvid1]

We had our Large kitchen slide fail for the 3rd time and made an appointment at Forest City. They replaced with the retrofit Power gear system last week and so far we are happy with it. It goes in and out a little noisier, but once it is in, it is solid, no more squeaking and creaking going down the road.

I was a little worried as when i was in line checking in, there were 2 people in line that had the new power gear installed at the factory and one had failed after 1st use and another had failed after a couple of uses with the new power gear system, but so far i am very happy about it.

We are 2 years out of warranty but the extended warranty paid for it. The only hold up is it takes 48 hours to get an inspector out there to approve the repair.