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lakings10 · 11-28-2013, 01:30 PM

We picked up our 14 36.1 about a month ago and just took it on our maden trip for turkey day. Our trip was Cailfornia to Georgia. We were about 300 miles into our trip and all the sudden all the gauges stopped working and about 15 seconds later the whole coach shut off while driving 65mph on the fwy. Engine dead electronics dead etc. I get over to the shoulder safely and try and start it back up and nothing. I then use the aux and fired the gen up and was able to get the coach fired up and was able to exit the fwy safely.

I go straight to the battery compartment and find it saturated in water. We had been driving in rain for quite a while. The battery compartment has gaps where the water just made its way in. So i wait for a while so everything can dry and i make it to a freightliner repair shop.

The mechanic said that with all the water in the battery compartment it shorted the battery disconect switch which is why the coach just quit all the sudden. The battery disconect no longer is working.

I know the battery compartments are supposed to keep water out right? Im so mad at thor right now im considering calling my laywer, and im not that type of person. Barely making it off the fwy with 18 wheelers blowing by me and putting my fam in jepordy makes me hot. Anyone have any advise on what i should do.

TK IV · 11-28-2013, 01:37 PM

I also have a 2014 36.1.... Guess I will see about sealing that compartment before leaving for Florida.

Patchy · 11-28-2013, 01:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lakings10

We picked up our 14 36.1 about a month ago and just took it on our maden trip for turkey day. Our trip was Cailfornia to Georgia. We were about 300 miles into our trip and all the sudden all the gauges stopped working and about 15 seconds later the whole coach shut off while driving 65mph on the fwy. Engine dead electronics dead etc. I get over to the shoulder safely and try and start it back up and nothing. I then use the aux and fired the gen up and was able to get the coach fired up and was able to exit the fwy safely.

I go straight to the battery compartment and find it saturated in water. We had been driving in rain for quite a while. The battery compartment has gaps where the water just made its way in. So i wait for a while so everything can dry and i make it to a freightliner repair shop.

The mechanic said that with all the water in the battery compartment it shorted the battery disconect switch which is why the coach just quit all the sudden. The battery disconect no longer is working.

I know the battery compartments are supposed to keep water out right? Im so mad at thor right now im considering calling my laywer, and im not that type of person. Barely making it off the fwy with 18 wheelers blowing by me and putting my fam in jepordy makes me hot. Anyone have any advise on what i should do.

If it was truly a short i would expect you would see a flash burn from the source of the short. Is there one? Did you see it and confirm the short? What does the Freightliner mechanic suggest??

The battery disconnect on my coach, and I presume yours, is a marine-type on-off switch that interrupts the power. Typically on marine applications the switch interrupts the positive feed....on auto it could be positive or negative. I don't remember what mine is hooked up to.

If you don't see a flash burn I would not think it to be a short.

The battery disconnect typically has no way to make contact with a grounding source by the nature of its construction. I would check to see if the disconnect switch has a loose wire connection or broken post.....

If you are still at freightliner (I kinda doubt that since it is thanksgiving) ask him to show you where it shorted out and fix that issue.

luck to ya
rich

Patchy · 11-28-2013, 02:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lakings10

We picked up our 14 36.1 about a month ago and just took it on our maden trip for turkey day. Our trip was Cailfornia to Georgia. We were about 300 miles into our trip and all the sudden all the gauges stopped working and about 15 seconds later the whole coach shut off

I know the battery compartments are supposed to keep water out right? Im so mad at thor right now im considering calling my laywer, and im not that type of person. Barely making it off the fwy with 18 wheelers blowing by me and putting my fam in jepordy makes me hot. Anyone have any advise on what i should do.

And........the battery compartment needs air to vent battery gasses.....my compartment has holes in the bottom that the battery strap-downs are connected to and is not watertight.......

sounds like something else at play than just water IMHO

rich

CampDaven · 11-28-2013, 02:08 PM

I do believe it was grandly horrifying.

On 2 of my MHs the battery bay was open to the elements under the rig. So I dont understand how that can short the switch.

bdickson · 11-28-2013, 02:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CampDaven

On 2 of my MHs the battery bay was open to the elements under the rig. So I dont understand how that can short the switch.

Same on my last 2 Thor Class A's. The battery compartment has to be open to vent hydrogen gas. Another thing, shouldn't you be able to disconnect the battery when an engine is running and the alternator will keep power to the electrics? It's been a while, but I think I remember starting clunkers by borrowing someone else's battery.

Batten54 · 11-28-2013, 04:13 PM

There are other problems there. Ours lost power and engine shut down on I40 coming back from Balloon Fiesta. Dry windy day, flat road with wide shoulder, out in the middle of nowhere NM! I coasted to the side and could not get it started right away. Running down the road on cruise about 2000 rpm...the temp gauge all of a sudden pegs...the info readout reads "engine hot"...and the engine dies. When I got it stopped I turned the switch off and thought "ok...what the hell now" and turned the switch back on. It was only 20-30 seconds and the temp gauge red normal! If it was really hot there is no way it would have read normal in 30 seconds or less.

I figured out after a call to dealer, in all the confusion I had not pushed the N button on the tran. I pushed it with the key on and it started. Never done that before or after. When I had it serviced after we got home I had Freightliner check it out. They could find nothing and said they called Cummins also without an answer.

What if it was in a city....at rush hour...? Could have been a BIG problem! I always wonder if it could happen again.

sizzler · 11-28-2013, 04:33 PM

[QUOTE=Patchy;1824951]If it was truly a short i would expect you would see a flash burn from the source of the short. Is there one?

Thought I would weigh in, if the short was caused by water you would not see any kind of burn marks, but for sure if there was a metal object you would get a burn. The issue is, it would take a heck of alot of water to short the system.

For me Thor has not been know for great quality control so you really have to check things out in your unit. You want to keep that air flow in where your batteries are for the gases as everyone has mentioned. Especially when you are equalizing your batteries if they are flood type. Look at the vent and see if it is a directional vent or if it has movement where you can redirect it. If it was installed in correctly it maybe acting like a scoop. If there really was tons of water in there, that would make sense. My concern is if it was just damp perhaps it was not water at all that created the problem. Seems like what Rich is thinking as well. It may have been some other sort of short. Normally your house batteries cannot kill your engine as they are mostly separate systems. I would look into the boost switch or for any other possible shorts or exposed gear relating to the engine. Batteries should be able to get fairly wet without issue, of course you do want them dry.

On another note, if your battery bank is getting quite wet, you could also purchase battery containers which have lids and venting, but will keep them dry and clean. I am in dusty areas a lot and use these to keep the batteries clean.

Good luck and sorry for the incident you and your family had to deal with. Not fun, especially with a brand new unit.

Butte64 · 11-28-2013, 04:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Batten54

There are other problems there. Ours lost power and engine shut down on I40 coming back from Balloon Fiesta. Dry windy day, flat road with wide shoulder, out in the middle of nowhere NM! I coasted to the side and could not get it started right away. Running down the road on cruise about 2000 rpm...the temp gauge all of a sudden pegs...the info readout reads "engine hot"...and the engine dies. When I got it stopped I turned the switch off and thought "ok...what the hell now" and turned the switch back on. It was only 20-30 seconds and the temp gauge red normal! If it was really hot there is no way it would have read normal in 30 seconds or less.

I figured out after a call to dealer, in all the confusion I had not pushed the N button on the tran. I pushed it with the key on and it started. Never done that before or after. When I had it serviced after we got home I had Freightliner check it out. They could find nothing and said they called Cummins also without an answer.

What if it was in a city....at rush hour...? Could have been a BIG problem! I always wonder if it could happen again.

Please clarify. When did you not push the N button on the transmission selector? Are you saying that was the probable cause of your situation?

Batten54 · 11-28-2013, 09:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Butte64

Please clarify. When did you not push the N button on the transmission selector? Are you saying that was the probable cause of your situation?

No.....when the engine quit and I was coasting down I40 watching for traffic...fighting the wind...looking for a safe spot to pull over...getting stopped and air brake on. During all that it did not dawn on me to put the trams. In neutral.

lakings10 · 11-29-2013, 04:06 PM

Batten54 glad to see that Im not the first owner this has happened to. Im just worried that nobody will be able to duplicate the problem and we'll never know what caused the problem.

The Freightliner mechanic said it was the battery disconnect switch that went bad and currently is not working.

It's just frustrating and when I call Thor when I get home, I'm hoping they don't blow me off.

Batten54 does Thor know about your situation? And if they do how did they handle it?

Thx for all the replies and suggestions guys!

wa8yxm · 11-29-2013, 04:24 PM

Some battery compartments are designed to keep things dry, On my Damon Intrudr (A Thor product) and many others the battery compartment is open to the elements.. Same on Tow Trucks and Semi's and other trucks I might add.

Batten54 · 12-01-2013, 08:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lakings10

Batten54 glad to see that Im not the first owner this has happened to. Im just worried that nobody will be able to duplicate the problem and we'll never know what caused the problem. The Freightliner mechanic said it was the battery disconnect switch that went bad and currently is not working. It's just frustrating and when I call Thor when I get home, I'm hoping they don't blow me off. Batten54 does Thor know about your situation? And if they do how did they handle it? Thx for all the replies and suggestions guys!

Told dealer when I took it in for latest slide problem...but it's a Freightliner problem, and they couldn't get it to do it again. They talked to Cummins and they didn't know what it was either. Headed for Port Aransas this week...hope for a trip with no problems!

TheArnolds · 12-02-2013, 04:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wa8yxm

Some battery compartments are designed to keep things dry, On my Damon Intrudr (A Thor product) and many others the battery compartment is open to the elements.. Same on Tow Trucks and Semi's and other trucks I might add.

Agree that water in the battery box should not be a problem. In September I was driving through central Texas in a bad rain storm, ditches overflowing and minor flooding in the streets. Once I arrived I checked all my underneath storage, including the battery compartment to see if any water go in. As expected the batteries and the compartment was very wet due to the vents in the bottom but everything worked normal.

If OP had a total power failure one would think that something else is going on. As for the power cutoff switch in the battery compartment it is designed for use on boats so if it was bad it was a factory defect and should of had nothing to do with the water.