Assistance Please with Severe Undercarriage Rust & Corrosion on New 2005 Coach

[bbk3]

Hello Everyone,

I was wondering if anyone could assist us with any personal ideas or information of their experiences with completely rusted and corroded undercarriages and resolutions of such. We purchased a brand-new 2005 Winnebago Vectra 40KD in March of this year from Lazydays in Florida and have been trying to resolve a SEVERE rust and corrosion problem (info and pictures at http://www.rvguides.com/2005). No one can tell us what caused it definitively, and no one will accept responsibility for it. Not surprisingly, we are now at an impasse with the dealer and manufacturer over this issue. If you would prefer, you can also contact me offline confidentially at vectra@rvguides.com.

Thank you all in advance for your help.

Bob

[bbk3]

Hello Everyone,

I was wondering if anyone could assist us with any personal ideas or information of their experiences with completely rusted and corroded undercarriages and resolutions of such. We purchased a brand-new 2005 Winnebago Vectra 40KD in March of this year from Lazydays in Florida and have been trying to resolve a SEVERE rust and corrosion problem (info and pictures at http://www.rvguides.com/2005). No one can tell us what caused it definitively, and no one will accept responsibility for it. Not surprisingly, we are now at an impasse with the dealer and manufacturer over this issue. If you would prefer, you can also contact me offline confidentially at vectra@rvguides.com.

Thank you all in advance for your help.

Bob

[N8XV]

Just looking at the dates you posted, the pictures and a guess. I would say the travel time from factory to dealer happened at a time of very wet, sloppy, salt laden roads. After arriving at the dealership the under carriage was not hosed off. Leaving a very heavy coverage of road salt, then along with the higher humidity in Florida it gave the damp salt a chance to work. One reason I say this is because at about the time your coach was headed for Florida so were we. We took 75 south and after we got to Florida our bikes on the rear were rusted and corroded, even the oily chain was rusted so bad I nearly had to replace it. Friends that took 65 south the same day had even more bad roads with salt. By spring that year before they headed home they noticed the under carriage of the RV was rusted and corroded. Not much doubt in my mind what caused it. Had it been delivered one day earlier or one day later to the dealer you might not have had this rust problem as bad. What to do about I have no idea except to wire brush, scrap and redo. My guess is the rust and corrosion look worst than any problem that will happen because of it.

["007"]

You do not say in profile or other where you are from. Living in the Northeast when ever we travel in winter first thing on getting home is wash down the under carriage of coach they use alot of salt around here in winter. I have to agree with Bill you have a bad case of salty highway travels Dealer or delivery guy didn't do there job an wash the under carriage. Did you look under coach on your PDI it must have looked bad than. Alot of sanding or sand blowing machine on rust, an scrapping then under coat may help but some metal looks like it has pin holes thru it. Salt also works from the inside out if it has gotten into frame tubing. "007"

[Wolf S]

I agree that this looks a lot worst than it really is. Ohter than some difficulty in removing some nuts and bolts down the road I doubt if this will result in anything.

Have you had the chassis pressure washed real well? It looks in some pictures like there is still salt present. Something as simple as WD40 goes a long way on exposed nuts and bolts. The surface rust on suspension parts and other heavy components just looks bad.

[MrTransistor]

Hi bbk3,
Go to this page, http://www.loctite.com/int_henkel/loctite_us/index.cfm?&pageid=19&layout=3 , and type in ˜Extend' into the first window then ˜go'. I have used this product and it does what it says. Power wash the underside first to get all the salt off, but leave the surface rust on. Works as good if not better than under-coating and weighs less. Makes for a nice looking black undercarriage. I think this or a similar product is available from other sources under other names as well.

[ottersea]

You try some brush on rust neutralizer and then recoat afterwards. I did this on my PU with good results. Metal Ready is what I used and it is made by Por15.

[fun time]

I truly "feel your pain" after reviewing your pics. Other than what has been offered by others as to the cause really does not solve your problem and I would think the dealer would offer some of the suggested solutions for free at the very least.
This really does bring up a question for the veterans on this forum. How many of you that travel in the winter months wash down the under-carrriage of your MHs? If you do, how? High pressure? Hose only? Do you use some kind of cleaners? We will be heading south and returning to the north during Dec and again in Jan. returning in Feb. I sure would not like to have the under-carrriage of my coach looking like these pics. Any advice from you veterans?

[TXiceman]

Are you sure it is rust? There are several steels now that are designed to purposely have an oxide (rust) coating that is a barrier to farther corrosion. If you scrape of this protective oxide layer, it will rust.

Ken

[Petro]

Bob;
Some years ago I purchased a used 90 Southwind that looked great on the outside and interior. The owner spent summers in WI and winters in MS Some time later when I was underneath I found the same problem your pictures show. On further checking I found the winters were spent at Ocean Springs, MS on the beach. The rust was caused by salt like Mark said. My service center wanted to pressure wash the underside to remove any loose rust abd then spray the whole ubderside with drain oil and let it drip off on his gravel lot. My wife said no to that being parked in our garage. So I spent the winter brushing off the loose rust and using a product similar to the Loctite Extend. I sprayed some in areas I could not get to and brushed it on the other areas. It is as good as Mark says it is and it stopped the rust and made it look good. I then sold it and the would be buyer had his mechanic look under it and he commented on how nice it looked. It is "gut wrenching" and requires a lot of work but it can be stopped and made to look a lot better.
Sorry for your problem and Good Luck.

Don

[Radarr]

bbk3,

So much to be said for Winnebago's Electro-deposition paint job, right? It's nothing but
Hog-wash and where is the factory undercoat they brag so much about? It doesn't look like your coach got any of either!

Thank you for bring this problem to the attention of this forum. Your not the only person to experience these kinds of problems with Winnebago and Lazy Days. It does us well to be informed of these situations so we don't get caught up in the same.

Your problems are very serious and will require that you take a very firm position with the aid of a legal firm that specializes in Motor Home issues.

Keep us up dated as to how things go for you and how you are being treated.

radarr

[tonigil]

My suggestion & opinion is that Before you start any legal intanglements, you contact the Mfg. But, you have to be nice but forceful. Tell them of you dissatisfaction and inform them that you are requesting help from other RVers on the RV internet forums. Make sure that they know that you are posting your problems. They will listen. You can also send them a link via email to your postings so that they may review what others have said. No Mfg. want a bad rap so they might try to help you on this.
Just my opinion.
Toni

[Hitchhiker]

If the OEM's don't resolve your concerns with this you might want to start planning on getting rid of the rig before it's 4 or 5 years old. I looked at your photo's and IMHO by that time you'll be have numerous rust and corrosion related problems.

Some of these problems may involve safety issues such as brake calipers not sliding properly. Others will be ongoing maintenance issues such as U-joints, spring bushings, steering components, exhaust systems, holding tank straps, etc.

[Tom N]

Undercoating is an option from Winnebago on the Frieghtliner and Workhorse chassis'and it only coast ~$200. I know it's too late for you but others purchasing a Winnebago on these chassis may want to consider this option.

Since you did not avail yourself of this option you may not have any legal recourse.

My opinion.