Okay here goes. Sorry but this is going to be rather lengthy. Six weeks ago my wife and I were camping at an RV park in the Adirondack Mountains in upstate New York. A thunderstorm rolled in and as we sat in the driver’s and passenger’s seats a bolt of lightening struck our 2016 Anthem in the right rear corner (my brother-in-law was camped right behind us and saw the bolt hit). Initially, we didn’t know we had been hit as we felt nothing, only saw the flash and heard the blast of thunder. The lights stayed on but we lost shore power (which happens in thunder storms). My BIL then called to ask why my tail lights were on. The next day we did a damage assessment:
Engine would not start or even crank
Window shades from living room back would not work
Aquahot would not work in either electric or diesel setting
Signal from direct TV would no longer work
Tail lights were permanently on (had to be shut off at chassis switch)
Transmission panel would only read “XX”
Generator would run and generate power but timer continued to tick off time even when not running
One bright headlight was out and one roof running light was out
Remote control for room extenders didn’t work
Energy Management control module that allows you to select 50-30-20 amps didn’t work
The 2800 watt invertor quit inverting
Verizon MI-FI was cooked
All other systems (TV’s, water pump, toilets, stove top, refer, microwave, lights, slideouts, radio/GPS) worked fine.
We were towed 72 miles to Cicero, New York to the closest place listed as a Spartan/Cummins facility only to find out that they did very little diesel engine motorhome work. They, however, stepped up and agreed to try to fix things. We had been dropped off by the tow truck on a Sunday where we were placed on the back of the lot with no water, sewer, and only 20 amp service. We were here for the next 3 weeks. I had to haul water from the shop in 5 gallon jugs and siphon them into the fresh water tank (thank goodness for the gravity fill port on the new Entegras), had to buy a “Honey Wagon” to drag our waste 100 feet to the dump station, and run the generator almost 24/7 since the weather was hot the entire time we were there. For the entire 3 weeks we were here, we would heat water on the stove top and pour it into a small garden sprinkling can for our showers.
Insurance, while slow at first, was very cooperative and repairs finally began after the first week. The crew at the repair facility was wonderful and did everything they could to fix things. Chassis modules had to be ordered one at a time for replacement to see what had to be replaced. All the repairs that this facility could make were finished and the engine would finally start. We still had many problems. We called Entegra to see if we could bring it in for repairs but they were unable to fit us in, however Joyce referred us to All Brand RV repair (Jerry and Corey Hyman) in Elkhart. They agreed to squeeze us in so we headed the 170 miles west without a speedometer, cruise control, and check engine light constantly on. We set up camp on their repair lot and were able to get one ac running at a time. They fixed the generator issue, shades, electric control module, lights, and remote control for slideouts. These are wonderful people and I can’t say enough about how great they were. If you ever need repairs and can’t get into the Entegra facility, this is the place to go.
We still had lots of engine details that needed to be worked on and fortunately last year we had signed up for the Spartan Chassis Training School for August. We drove to Charlotte, Michigan and they began to work their magic. I can’t say enough about this facility. By the time we left on Friday, everything on the coach was working 100%. From the teaching techs (Big Mike, John, Gary, Greg) to the mechanic (Andy), and a special thanks to PJ from Entegra for the amazing help by all of them. I also do not want to forget Joyce back in Middlebury. She went above and beyond to try and help us with whatever we needed.
Here is a picture of most of the modules that were replaced to get us back on the road;
The ECM, TCM, Chassis Control module, ABS module, shade control modules, remote slide module, and lights (inverter not pictured).
Finally, I want to thank everyone here on this forum (Brobox, Jestal, BUS4US and others) that have followed our saga and shown such genuine concern for our plight. And a big thank you to my wife, Madeline, for hanging in and being such a trooper through all of this. We absolutely needed each other to get through this ordeal and come out smiling in the end. We met a lot of amazing people on this journey that we will never forget and are actually grateful to have had this experience. We are currently in Oklahoma heading to home in California and should be there in a week.
In case you are interested, the total cost for repairs was about $20,000. It could have been much worse. A few years ago, Entegra had a brand new Cornerstone on their lot ready for delivery that was struck. It had a hole in the roof about the size of a 5 gallon bucket and fused wiring. It had to be totaled.
Consensus from those I spoke with feel if you are in an area with lightening you should bring up your jacks, lower your tv and satellite antennas, and unplug and stow your power cord.
Again thanks to everyone for your concern and I hope our experience will help some of you avoid a similar disaster,
Mallory and Madeline Willis
2016 Anthem 44B
Thanks for posting the final outcome and glad you are on the road and rolling with everything fixed! Certainly gives one a new appreciation for thunder storms! Hope our paths cross again soon!
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