Community Forums

VestaDave · 08-08-2012, 10:30 AM

Welcome to the site. We own the Vesta 32 and like it very much. Our slide sticks out a little at the bottom but 1.5 inches seems like a lot . Have you contacted customer service? They may be able to give you some guidance on this issue. The only problem we've had with slide was a rattle while going down the road. Thankfully it has gone away.
I'm curios, how is your fresh air vent working? The factory may have implemented some improvements on the later models; at least I hope so. Maybe yours is fine, ours wasn't.
Regarding depreciation, I think it's on par with the industry and should be expected. Complicating this for the Vesta is the fact that other makers are providing attractive products at lower prices. An additional issue may be Navistar's failure to get EPA approval on their Maxxforce 13 engine which in turn has caused a big drop in its stock value.

Delacroix · 08-08-2012, 01:47 PM

VestaDave: thanks for such a quick response. I'm not sure that I'm posting this correctly but I'm going to try. No they have not done anything about the fresh air intake. I actually had service department at Lazydays in Fl. Look at the air conditioning because I thought something was wrong. I could only get cold air on max ac and the vent air was warm. After reading this forum I think I'm going to have mine redirected. I did send pictures with a ruler showing the amount the slide was out to Monaco and then had service at Lazydays try to adjust it. No real luck. It's actually out so much I'm afraid water could get in coach if driving in heavy rain. I'm probably going to try to take it to Monaco in Wakarusa ,IN to see what they say. I actually think the rim on the coach that the slide gasket fits up against is starting to delaminate from the coach. This happened after Lazydays tried to adjust. I have had five coaches and my last was a country coach magna and I really like the Vesta. I really don't think it's how expensive one is but does it fix what u r doing. Thanks again for responding,

VestaDave · 08-08-2012, 06:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Delacroix

VestaDave: thanks for such a quick response. I'm not sure that I'm posting this correctly but I'm going to try. No they have not done anything about the fresh air intake. I actually had service department at Lazydays in Fl. Look at the air conditioning because I thought something was wrong. I could only get cold air on max ac and the vent air was warm. After reading this forum I think I'm going to have mine redirected. I did send pictures with a ruler showing the amount the slide was out to Monaco and then had service at Lazydays try to adjust it. No real luck. It's actually out so much I'm afraid water could get in coach if driving in heavy rain. I'm probably going to try to take it to Monaco in Wakarusa ,IN to see what they say. I actually think the rim on the coach that the slide gasket fits up against is starting to delaminate from the coach. This happened after Lazydays tried to adjust. I have had five coaches and my last was a country coach magna and I really like the Vesta. I really don't think it's how expensive one is but does it fix what u r doing. Thanks again for responding,

I'm sorry that they haven't yet fixed the fresh air vent issue. We owners just need to keep the pressure on Monaco to get it resolved for all of us. I'll tell you what, it won't get better without a specific fix.
I think it's a real good idea to take it to the factory to have them deal with your slide.
In your OP, you mentioned an issue with the regen process. What was that about?

Delacroix · 08-08-2012, 08:35 PM

The regen process is the only issue I have had traveling and luckily it happened within 10 miles of home and within 5 miles on navistar truck dealer. My coach lost about 75-80 % of its power. Regen light came on but I really did not understand process. I did not immediately request the coach to do its own regen. I limped into truck dealer and he put it on computer and could see it was about 90% blocked. The computer ran engine thru process for about 40 mins and then reported failure. Service guy ran it thru regen process again and it said it failed. He actually suggested I go ahead and drive it "as if I stole it". As hard as I could make it run. It has run fine since but I often have my regen light come on for 5-10sec while driving. I have about 9K miles on coach. Service guy said they were having lots of this problem in trucks with this engine. He told me that this engine should not sit and idle like a typical diesel. Stated that this is what they think is causing most of problem. Also the engine and exhaust need to b hot to burn the soot out. I could tell a little more but out of space.

Delacroix · 08-08-2012, 08:58 PM

Vesta Dave: probably not right way to do this but I felt I needed to give a little more info from my regen procedure. My coach flashes the first regen light quite often. Only during that (break down?) did it come on and stay on. I think my mistake was to turn engine off and restart without requesting coach to go thru regeneration. This turned the light off and then I could not get engine to go thru the regen process. What I really wanted to stress was fact that I was told to not allow the engine to idle any more than I have to. Again I really like the coach and have put about 350k miles on coaches I have owned so I have been thru most of experiences all the way back to the early 80's. I kind of have a gut feeling from bs ing with service guy that this is a process we need to understand and keep on top of if we don't want to break down on the road. I haven't taken the time yet but intend to fully educate myself about this regen process and preventive procedures. I hate breaking down on road with my wife and daughter asking "when will we get going dad".

VestaDave · 08-08-2012, 09:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Delacroix

Vesta Dave: probably not right way to do this but I felt I needed to give a little more info from my regen procedure. My coach flashes the first regen light quite often. Only during that (break down?) did it come on and stay on. I think my mistake was to turn engine off and restart without requesting coach to go thru regeneration. This turned the light off and then I could not get engine to go thru the regen process. What I really wanted to stress was fact that I was told to not allow the engine to idle any more than I have to. Again I really like the coach and have put about 350k miles on coaches I have owned so I have been thru most of experiences all the way back to the early 80's. I kind of have a gut feeling from bs ing with service guy that this is a process we need to understand and keep on top of if we don't want to break down on the road. I haven't taken the time yet but intend to fully educate myself about this regen process and preventive procedures. I hate breaking down on road with my wife and daughter asking "when will we get going dad".

Thanks for this post. I think most of us a a little fuzzy on the regen process so this gives us a heads up to become a little more familiar with it. It kind of seems there is no preventative measure one can take to avoid the failure except drive it at speed. We have about 6000 mi on ours and have not yet had any problems. The yellow regen icon flashes every once in a while but not frequently, at least for now.
I'm with you , I hate breaking down on the road with my usually calm and understanding wife!

tjd · 08-09-2012, 01:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Delacroix

This is my first time to read or post. Great info. I really like the Vesta. Have owned more expensive coaches but this coach fits my needs and wants. I have the 2012 35 foot model. I purchased last november. Two vesta questions. 1. my front slide fits nice at top. The bottom sticks out at least 1 1/2 inches or maybe a little more. Is this true with everyone's coach? Any fix? I had at Lazydays and they said they adjusted as much as possible. I have the cable system. 2. Does anyone know why coach is depreciating so rapidly? Is there some impending problem I'm not aware of? Thanks for any info. I have 9K miles on mine and only real problem has been exhaust regeneration.

Do you have an issue with the rear bouncing. When I am driving I do not feel it but if you are in the back and an hit any kind of pump on the freeway. Usually at transitions when you drive over an overpass or bridge the rear bounces. My wife and son say if you are in the rear or in the restroom at one of these times you can be bounced 3 or 4 inches. My wife says once she was almost thrown off the toilet.

Issue we have with the bouncing is the first clothing rod in the clothes broke and this was within the first 100 miles of driving the coach. I first thought it was because my wife loaded to many clothes on the and it is a cheap think aluminum rod. So once I got to Salt Lake City I went to home depot and purchased a heavy duty rod and replaced the bent existing one.

Well the rod is fine but whenever we got to our destination all the clothes are bounced off the rod and are on the ground. We also have the valances around 2 the the rear windows have fallen off because of the bouncing.

I am just wondering if anyone else with a 35PDB have experienced this also.

Since we are back home now I have the Vesta at the dealership and they are looking into this issue but I have heard nothing from them yet.

We put on about 4500 miles this summer and besides the bouncing in the rear which I do not notices when I am driving. That is the only real issue we have had so far.

Also do you tow a vehicle? We do not but I am getting my truck setup so we can tow it.

Delacroix · 08-09-2012, 06:31 AM

Yes the coach bounces in the rear. I had the exact broken rod and then clothes coming off. I ended up using a large wood dowel as my rod and purchased hangers camper supply that spring(snap) over rod. Cured that clothes on the floor. Weight in rear does not help bounce. I had a 50gl water tank installed in rear closet area and with tank full still bounces. Probably has to do with not much weight in rear. I never noticed such a problem with a pusher. I do not pull a car. I am quite comfortable driving in small tight places with coach and yes breaking down camp to go out is a hassle but we don't set up for long stays anyplace. I didn't pull car even with 45' coach. I really like having the extra water. We usually dry camp at ball games and it's nice to not worry about water. I also had the washer/dryer removed from mine. My spare water tank runs across bottom of closet and bottom of this area. Lazydays did a great job building in the area and u wouldn't know there was a spare water tank there. It fills thru the orginal water hook ups but I do have a manual switch to turn to go from one tank to the other.

Delacroix · 08-09-2012, 07:00 AM

TJD: sorry but I can't figure out how to put the quote of other post around my answer as most do. I wanted to add more to the last reply. I seem to think that the toilet in the coach uses a lot of water even on the low setting. I have adjusted the water level that goes into the toilet after each flush. My holding tanks have not needed dumped prior to running out of water. That's part of reason I think a lot is going to toilet. I wish the coach was a little quiter but it is a front engine. I think that my largest concern is the possible regeneration problem. If someone else has been thru this I would appreciate knowing anything u might have discovered in how to handle it. Does anyone know how to change wiring so people can watch tv from sofa while I drive? I told my wife and daughter they should b up front with seat belt on while I drive. They complained about not being able to watch television while riding. I thought it ok as long as driver did not see. I do believe this coach is a great value if u can consider a MH a value. Pretty nice finish levels and not to big or not to small.

tjd · 08-09-2012, 10:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Delacroix

Does anyone know how to change wiring so people can watch tv from sofa while I drive? I told my wife and daughter they should b up front with seat belt on while I drive. They complained about not being able to watch television while riding. I thought it ok as long as driver did not see. I do believe this coach is a great value if u can consider a MH a value. Pretty nice finish levels and not to big or not to small.

I wonder what is different from your coach from mine. All I need to do is turn on the inverter while we are driving down the road and they can watch TV. We have to be careful though. My son was playing on his PS3 while the TV was on and then my wife put something in the microwave and that popped the breaker on the inverter. So we have a rule. No PS3 and microwaving at the same time at least when both are plugged into the inverter.

We do not dry camp much at all. At most if we are trying to get somewhere fast I will pull over for an overnight at a Walmart or Rest Stop and one night. Never dry camp more then 2 nights in a row and the main reason is holding tanks get filled up fast. That is also why I do not like to camp without a sewer hook up. Otherwise every other day I need to unhook and go dump the tanks.

VestaDave · 08-09-2012, 02:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tjd

I wonder what is different from your coach from mine. All I need to do is turn on the inverter while we are driving down the road and they can watch TV. We have to be careful though. My son was playing on his PS3 while the TV was on and then my wife put something in the microwave and that popped the breaker on the inverter. So we have a rule. No PS3 and microwaving at the same time at least when both are plugged into the inverter.

We do not dry camp much at all. At most if we are trying to get somewhere fast I will pull over for an overnight at a Walmart or Rest Stop and one night. Never dry camp more then 2 nights in a row and the main reason is holding tanks get filled up fast. That is also why I do not like to camp without a sewer hook up. Otherwise every other day I need to unhook and go dump the tanks.

Well, I understand preferring to have full hookups but I think you may be underestimating your tank capacity. Do you really need to dump every other day? Maybe you are traveling with a large family? My wife and I can boondock for several days before needing to empty the tanks. Of course we have take short showers.

VestaDave · 08-09-2012, 03:32 PM

Hey guys, the earlier discussion about "regen" got me to thinking about the procedure/process when a regen is needed. My question is , has anyone successfully completed the procedure without being hauled to a service center?
I found a YouTube video describing what you do when etc. and even with the detailed description the process seemed sketchy. I haven't yet been faced with a forced regen but I assume it will happen at some point.
Just askin!

Delacroix · 08-09-2012, 07:48 PM

We also do short showers. Get wet, turn off water, wash, then turn water back on and rinse. Regen worries me as I was able to "limp" in to service. Topped hills on highway at about 15mph. I could not get coach to regen but I did turn off engine and then restarted and light was off. I tried to do the regen but I believe the light must b on solid. Again told to not idle coach unless absolutely have to.

Delacroix · 08-10-2012, 03:16 PM

I have now had my 2012 35 Vesta for about 9 months and 7.5K miles. I have had absolutely no problems with my engine. I posted about the regen process but that's not the engine. It gets great mileage( I do not tow but drive in the mountains) and has plenty of power. I would not win at a drag race but how does that matter. I had a 525 cat in my last and am just as happy with this engine. I find this coach to fit my families needs and love the size and ease of driving. I had a 45' tandem axle previously. If people have truly had engine problems I would like to know so I can b prepared. Thanks for any input.