Leaking compartment

flapwing · 02-21-2019, 12:41 AM

I would like to bring to light an ongoing issue we've had with our Vista since new. The 2016 27N was purchased new from a large dealer in British Columbia (which will remain nameless) in November 2016. When we started traveling in it in the spring and encountered the first wet weather we noticed the the compartment aft of the rear wheels passenger side was getting wet inside. We took it back to our dealer for repair. They had apparently attempted a resealing of where they thought it was leaking. Well two years and four return service appointments later... it still was leaking. This was after the assurances each time that they had found, repaired and tested the compartment. Now a new issue appeared in the deterioration (rusting) of the top of the compartment (see photos). I was done with my Canadian dealer and took it to a Winnebago dealer two hours away in Marysville WA. Within a day they had found where the problem really was. Unfortunately because that the repair had not been done correctly water had, over time, compromised the top of the compartment. This now requires a trip back to the Winnebago factory as the repair is beyond the capability of a dealer (structure affected). Thanks to excellent way I was looked after by the WA dealer and Winnebago Customer Service I will have the issue resolved.... all under warranty. The guys in WA I will name.... Roy Robinson RV. PM me for the name of my dealer in BC.

PennBruce · 02-21-2019, 01:36 AM

Tell us, where was the water getting in?

Bruce

danhannah · 02-21-2019, 03:20 AM

If you put strong work lights - multiple if you got em - inside the compartment, and wait until dark, you will see light leaks all over on most of the compartments in the 27N.

Mine were all leaking, maybe other rigs are this bad, I'm not sure.

Once you see all the light streaming out, it is easy to seal them up with a black rubber goop in a caulking gun. I used two tubes!

If the leaks are around the rubber seals, then you can tighten the latches for a better seal.

Best of luck.

flapwing · 02-21-2019, 02:14 PM

Yes ... That is what Winnebago Customer Service explained they do at the end of the production line. I guess both Winnebago as well as my dealer missed that....

flapwing · 02-21-2019, 02:19 PM

Apparently it was not through the obvious places like the door seal or the seams of the "box".... the water was entering from behind the compartment "box" under the chassis where de lamination occurred between bonded layers of the material that made up the top of the compartment....

blueridge-fl · 02-22-2019, 05:42 AM

We have a leak in the same compartment in our 32YE that only occurs while driving in a hard rain. I am thinking that it is from water thrown up by the rear wheel but have not been able to find any gaps in the bottom of the compartment. I have never heard of the light trick before so I'll have to give that a try. Thanks!

flapwing · 02-23-2019, 01:07 AM

Keep a close eye on water entering from the back.... we now have structure damage (de-lamination and "rotted" plywood material that will be cut out and repaired at Winnebago factory...

danhannah · 02-24-2019, 01:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by flapwing

Keep a close eye on water entering from the back.... we now have structure damage (de-lamination and "rotted" plywood material that will be cut out and repaired at Winnebago factory...

Can you say where the water came in the back, and what to check?

flapwing · 02-25-2019, 01:19 AM

picking up the unit next weekend.... will get a better understanding then... to be shown the area of concern... will post

Rossi6998 · 02-27-2019, 09:50 PM

danhannah · 02-27-2019, 11:32 PM

The damage in your photo is so high up that it is hard to think it got wet from anything to do with the roadway or spray from the wheels.

If you have the outdoor TV directly above it, that compartment door may have leaked.

Did the water pump and plumbing spray that area?

Moving to possibilities on the inside, only the dresser is above and a window is above that.

Its a mystery, for sure.

Please let us know the results!

ogre · 02-28-2019, 07:03 AM

My big rearmost compartment on 2016 Minnie w. was
falling out onto roadway. Lots of water getting in before discovered when rained too.
Found outermost side of floor was extremely poorly attached to the outside wall. Just 7 screws through the floors’ flange, thro the thin plastic fascia & into the styrofoam wall. No metal or wood in the wall!
The weight of contents in this storage area caused the screws to pull out & nearly all ended up on roadway.
If they are all constructed this poorly, I’m surprised we don’t find more baggage on the road.!

I have made my own repairs underway by supporting the floor from the outside with a longitudinal bar along the outer edge .

JoeC · 02-28-2019, 07:58 AM

Reading their sales brochure, you'd never think that these things are so poorly built, but they are. My 2015 Itasca Spirit (Minnie Winnie) has leaks in two of the rear-most passenger-side storage compartments. So frustrating! If (big IF!) I buy another RV, it won't be a Winnebago.

blueridge-fl · 03-01-2019, 07:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JoeC

Reading their sales brochure, you'd never think that these things are so poorly built, but they are. My 2015 Itasca Spirit (Minnie Winnie) has leaks in two of the rear-most passenger-side storage compartments. So frustrating! If (big IF!) I buy another RV, it won't be a Winnebago.

All RVs have problems. They are rolling DIY projects. When I was shopping for my Class A, I looked at a Newmar that I really liked and wanted to take for a test drive. Unfortunately, the Newmar refused to be shifted our of park. They had a service tech come look at it and after waiting around a while with no resolution, I left.

flapwing · 03-25-2019, 01:13 AM

Ok sorry it took so long to update... We arrived at Roy Robinson Winnebago (Marysville, WA) to pick up the Vista after repair of the leak. Jack Burnside was my service contact and I cannot give enough praise for his looking after us. Underneath he showed me where the de-lamination had occurred and the resealing they had done (pic attached looking up from a garage crawler, part of the leaf spring visible bottom). This he had gotten authorized from Winnebago under warranty (unit was 2 1/2 yrs old but the original problem occurred within the initial 1 yr warranty and the attempted repairs by my Canadian dealer were well documented with 34 phone calls at Winnebago). The compromised compartment top could not be repaired at the dealer level so again through work on Jack's part we were given an appointment at Winnebago's Junction City service center in Oregon (former Country Coach factory which Winnebago acquired in 2015.) Monday morning we were very well looked after by the Winnie tech, Nick, who completed the repair and was ready Tuesday afternoon. The door and frame had to be removed and the water tank taken out to access the damage. The cost of this work was "goodwilled" to us and we departed happy campers once more. Again high praise for Jack at Roy Robinson and Nick at Winnebago.