Massive Windshield Leak 2016 Adventurer 38Q

Americanrascal · 09-22-2016, 09:38 AM

So much for Winnebago's touting their quality control for water leakage. We have a 6 month old 2016 Adventurer 38Q . It's had problems that are more than I can now bear. The list is endless.

Our home base has been in drought since we bought the unit several months ago, and the rig rests in a relatively sheltered parking spot. The week we first picked up the motorhome we drove to Panama City beach and got caught in a deluge (sitting still in a camp site). The windshield leaked profusely around the passenger "A"post in that storm. We took it to the dealer for a myriad of problems, the leak being one of them- and they could not replicate the leak.

Today we are in Utah in quite a rainstorm. In addition to a failed ram on the large slide which failed and has impacted our travels, we now have a major flood in the windshield area. The dashboard is a pool of water from one end to the other. Water is pooled in the dead area between the top front cabinets and the windshield.

Simply put it is virtually impossible for Winnebago to have done any leak detection testing on this motorhome. The magnitude of water is just too significant and over a widespread area.

6 months into this with failure after failure on this rig and I am at wits end. The dealer is pretty responsive , but they didn't build the rig- Winnebago did. There is no way this unit could have gone through any level of quality control given the quantity of serious problems. Winnebago is virtually silent and non responsive.

This was to be our last motorhome of the 8 RV's we owned. We wanted it as our dream motorhome- and our last one to enjoy through our retirement years. The layout was perfect for us and what we always wanted.

We had great experience with out 2014 Itasca, but something has changed at WBGO. I really thought highly of the company and their product until now.

While I'd like this motorhome to somehow have all its issues resolved- I have a gut feeling it just is not going to happen-- there are just too many failures that occur to frequently.

I'm a big boy and after 8 RV's I know things can kick up a glitch every now and then - especially on a new rig. I don't mind that. But we have gone beyond ridiculous with this one.

So frustrated and have to do something.

lwasouth · 09-22-2016, 10:27 AM

Your windshield leak may not be the windshield. I had an occasion where the yellow clearance light above the windshield was the source of the leak. in testing the windshield with a water hose, no one sprayed the water high enough to enter the light. When water was sprayed on the roof above that light the water poured in. It was a simple fix.
Good Luck

With regard to your stalled slide. Remove the panel where the control button is. On the back is another button that changes the function of the buttons for in and out. Now press either in of out and one end of the slide will move. Press the other button and the other end of the slide will move, Now by pressing both buttons carefully you can get the slide to come in straight and re-syncronize the motors.

Gordon Dewald · 09-22-2016, 10:39 AM

We had an issue with our large slide. The connection to the back motor was the issue and had come apart. Snapped the connector together and works like a charm. Needed a long arm to reach to the back where the connection is.

Americanrascal · 09-22-2016, 10:44 AM

Thanks for your thoughts Iwasouth. The windshield leak seems to be more than the clearance lights, the amount of water is quite massive and very widespread, although they too can be contributing.

The ram failure is the second ram failure in 6 months. This time the pinion gear teeth on the ram rack and pinion assembly were sheared off and luckily we were able to get enough bite to erratically retract and lock the slide in place and continue on our journey with 1/2 a motorhome until repairs can be made. But 2 ram failures in 6 months is ridiculous anyway you cut it. Something far greater than broken pinion gear is going on with this slide and controller.

TomandGloria · 09-22-2016, 10:58 AM

Sorry to hear about your continuous quality issues. We had an issue with the roof/cap/sidewall leaking where all three joined. Perhaps this is a potential area to check? Water was coming in at the top corner of the window.
Hope it works out.

Americanrascal · 09-22-2016, 12:14 PM

Certainly possible on the roof Tom and Gloria. I did a visible caulk/sealant check of that joint system before I left on this trip and all was well. But will have to see .

bzny · 09-22-2016, 02:53 PM

I have a 2104 37F Adventurer and thought I had a windshield leak. Showed up during a heavy downpour. It could not be duplicated at the dealer. I duplicated it by putting my garden hose nozzle under the top rubber seal. Between the glass and rubber. The water poured down the inside of the windshield. I pulled the rubber seal off and recaulked the cap to windshield. I used the urethane recommended for the roof to side wall seal. So far so good. My repair passed the garden hose test. If it fails again I will take it to a dealer who has a SealTech system. SealTech Manufacturing USA | Industry Standard for RV Leak Detection When I pulled the rubber seal off I could visually seal that actual windshield was sealed.

Bill

TomandGloria · 09-22-2016, 07:33 PM

The Sealtech test is how we found my leak at the roof/front cap/sidewall. Several tries with the garden hose and no luck. Once we had the Sealtech, no problem identifying the leak.

Americanrascal · 10-19-2016, 07:46 AM

Got it back from the shop. They did the Seal tech test. Turned out it was the marker lights even though I could not duplicate it with a hose.

Hopefully all well now.
Thanks all for your ear and advice.
Joe

cpoo · 10-22-2016, 09:19 AM

I have a 38Q 2016. Fifth Winnebago. I too plan on this being the last. I too love the layout. More little things than any before when it came from factory. Now have one side of big slide that wouldn't move. Going to dealer in a week for repair. I appreciate your posts and followup. I too will followup.

TomandGloria · 10-22-2016, 11:12 AM

Joe, glad you had the SealTech test done to find the leak. I think it was the best $$ I spent chasing an intermittent leak.

Hope you have finally worked all the bigs out now!
Tom

Floridakamper · 10-22-2016, 11:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cpoo

I have a 38Q 2016. Fifth Winnebago. I too plan on this being the last. I too love the layout. More little things than any before when it came from factory.

Sounds like there are a lot of previous Winnebago owners that are surprised by current quality control and customer service. I too have a 38Q. It is our 4th motorhome and 3rd Winnnebago. I tried to make an appointment at our local Winnebago dealer (CW St. Augustine) and the earliest I could get in was 6 weeks. I've got a significant list to be worked on including two slides and ineffective operation of the front heat pump. I've fixed a half dozen other issues myself. I'm trying hard not to feel I got taken with this latest purchase and hope once I get these current items fixed, I'll learn to love this coach but I have concerns it will continue to be a problem. If I was Winnebago I'd be moving heaven and earth to make a newly purchased motorhome fully functional and the customer someone that would speak highly of Winnebago and recommend Winnebago products to others. Maybe Winnebago's current level of customer support is sufficient to maintain sales?

TomandGloria · 10-22-2016, 11:33 AM

I had my Suncruiser in a local RV repair shop (does not sell any RV's, just parts and repair) and the Tech told me to hang on to it as long ad I can. Said it was built during the quality years, not like what's being produced today.

Now that's really disappointing to hear. But my thought is Winnebago is no longer being run by a RV person. It's really about the bottom line. I think I read they have moved their corporate executives out of Forest City because new President didn't want to up root his family.

Really an American icon that I hope gets it together or this is the last one I'll own.

Americanrascal · 10-22-2016, 06:56 PM

We had been really happy with our 2014 Itasca. Not one glitch that needed service in the nearly 2 years we owned it. It was awesome. Yes I sweated out the Schwintek slides on the 2014, but thankfully mine held up well. We ran the 2014 hard and for many miles crossing the corners of the continent from Florida to Alaska and back--- and nothing of any significance was ever a problem. That's why when we went shopping for an upgrade we set out looking specifically at Winnebagos. Yes- the Itasca was a lot less complicated as compared to our 38Q , but it was a well built unit.

But what I see on this 38Q all but appears to be a total lack of quality control and deficient production. Two full typed pages of failures (and I did not include them all). WBGO rails about how they water test for leaks . Mine leaked intermittently like Niagara Falls from the week we picked it up.And then to find out it was the marker lights leaking 6 months later? That must have been some test in the factory! Two slide ram failures. A refrigerator that FELL over out of its slot because it had not been anchored properly!You've got to be kidding!

We love the design of the unit and this was to be the last RV for us in this lifetime. Our dream second home. It hurts us to see what we have paid so dearly for.

But we're going to get past this and hope that maybe--- just maybe --the bad stuff is behind us and we can get on enjoying the 38Q without any further major problems.

I just don't understand how a company that we had faith in could have created two such different outcomes for their products in such a short period of time.

While the situation with the rig has been quite an emotional drain on us, I was lucky to have a service repair shop that has so far been responsive and able to get us back up and going quickly. We are really worried about the future with this motorhome though and where we will be with its condition in few years.

Sorry for the vent

hfbundy · 10-23-2016, 12:07 PM

Joe, I agree with your concern about Winnebago quality control. I continue to believe that their design, engineering, and materials are superior to most. However, I pointed out what I thought was a pattern of the dealers to either having to complete assembly or rebuild the coaches a while back. My advice to potential buyers is that if you do not have confidence that your dealer can complete construction, do not buy one. I have a 2016 Vista 30T for which the 1 year warranty has expired and I have my fingers crossed. I only had about a half dozen deficiencies on my punch list, but one was serious. I saw significant gaps in the seals for all 3 slides. My dealer spent a day resetting all the slides. I am planning on the 30T being my last coach. We love the design and performance. I hope that your dealer has satisfactorily rebuilt your coach and that you can enjoy it for many years.

Americanrascal · 10-23-2016, 01:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hfbundy

Joe, I agree with your concern about Winnebago quality control. I continue to believe that their design, engineering, and materials are superior to most. However, I pointed out what I thought was a pattern of the dealers to either having to complete assembly or rebuild the coaches a while back. My advice to potential buyers is that if you do not have confidence that your dealer can complete construction, do not buy one. I have a 2016 Vista 30T for which the 1 year warranty has expired and I have my fingers crossed. I only had about a half dozen deficiencies on my punch list, but one was serious. I saw significant gaps in the seals for all 3 slides. My dealer spent a day resetting all the slides. I am planning on the 30T being my last coach. We love the design and performance. I hope that your dealer has satisfactorily rebuilt your coach and that you can enjoy it for many years.

You make a very good point. I have been fortunate with my dealer- but unfortunately it keeps on breaking LOL. My case was a bit different- in both slide ram failures the incidents were sudden catastrophic failures. One occurred the first week of ownership without any visual manifestation, the second after about 6 months- also with no visual indication of impending failure. Both turned out to be poor quality ram component material issues.

You are soooo right about design! We love the design and it is our dream coach. I think we are fortunate that we live in an era when computer assisted design can allow designers to get it all but perfect on a computer before the build. Thats wonderful and WBGO does a good job on that front.

Wishing you the very vest with your 2016 Vista!!!
Joe