Community Forums

SteveOGilroy · 09-20-2008, 09:34 PM

During the sales pitch and check out the Lippert leveling jacks were reviewed and worked. Earlier this week the motor home was delivered to our home and the leveling jacks retracted but the control panel is flashing and beeping. The jacks will not move (they remain retracted). The dealer's service rep indicated that he has seen this before and suggest using the manual over ride at the hydraulic valve manifold. We are about to leave on an eight week trip. Does anyone have experience with a problem like this and is it OK to use the manual override for the next eight weeks. BTW hydraulic fluid level is OK.

Thanks in advance.

SteveOGilroy · 09-20-2008, 09:34 PM

During the sales pitch and check out the Lippert leveling jacks were reviewed and worked. Earlier this week the motor home was delivered to our home and the leveling jacks retracted but the control panel is flashing and beeping. The jacks will not move (they remain retracted). The dealer's service rep indicated that he has seen this before and suggest using the manual over ride at the hydraulic valve manifold. We are about to leave on an eight week trip. Does anyone have experience with a problem like this and is it OK to use the manual override for the next eight weeks. BTW hydraulic fluid level is OK.

Thanks in advance.

Chuck Phillips · 09-21-2008, 01:31 AM

I had the same problem. Get out your owners manual. There is a section that refers to error conditions and how to clear. Your other solution is to call Lippert customer service. They are very helpful. Good luck.

Shellback1 · 09-21-2008, 02:47 AM

Steve I agree with Chuck to call Lippert they are very helpfull. I posted a response on Aug 1st with a link to the manual to reset the alarms.

Good luck,
Ron

JARS · 09-22-2008, 07:01 AM

We have a 2008 Astoria PE, under the front hood there is an electrical "breaker". If you are using the jacks with only battery power, chances are this breaker has "flipped". I either plug into shore power or have the generator running to avoid this issue. The location of the breaker may require a flashlight. It is located on the driver's side about 2 feet above the top deck of the generator.

Let us know if this was the problem?

SteveOGilroy · 09-22-2008, 04:58 PM

Hello Richard and Annie,
I took it to the dealer. He called Damon. They said "rest the breaker". You were spot on. However the pump does not shut off correctly and there is a fluid drip from the bottom of the pump. The Damon rep is overnighting a new sensor switch. The dealer's tech says it a pump problem. So here I sit, new Astoria, all packed for an eight week trip... waiting .... As long as this is the worst it gets it should be good.

How do you like your MH? Any concerns? This is our first MH, we have always had trailers.

Do you tow a car behind your Astoria. Is the 340HP engine enough power?

Thanks again for your help.

Steve of Gilroy (Ca - Garlic Capital)

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by JARS:
We have a 2008 Astoria PE, under the front hood there is an electrical "breaker". If you are using the jacks with only battery power, chances are this breaker has "flipped". I either plug into shore power or have the generator running to avoid this issue. The location of the breaker may require a flashlight. It is located on the driver's side about 2 feet above the top deck of the generator.

Let us know if this was the problem? </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

JARS · 09-23-2008, 04:29 AM

Steve, Glad to hear that they have isolated the problem. Unfortunately, the on-board batteries do not produce the proper current to run the hydraulic pump for the jacks. "Current" can be a strange issue. Some components need the "exact" juice to run or they will produce erratic behavior. A recent example is my Brake Buddy system for my tow behind. I have a 2008 Saturn Vue. The Brake Buddy simply gets its power from any 12v outlet to power it up. However in the 08' Vue it is not a true 12 volts. During our last 160 mile leg of our recent 15 state, 6000 + mile run (nine weeks), the Brake Buddy compressor failed. After speaking with the manufacturer, they sent me a 12v receptacle that I "hard" wired direct to the battery to insure a true 12 volts. Problem solved, and luckily under warranty. Other than that, the only other issue I have had since purchase (August of 08') was our windshield. Because of the sheer size of the unit, it is actually more like a body panel. When we were in NM, I was on the roof inspecting A/C's and general roof components and noticed the windshield had pulled from the rubber seal in the top corner on the driver's side. I'm sure it is just due to the motion of the Coach while turning in and out of parks and uneven roads in general. It was only about a 1/4 inch separation about 5-6 inches in length. Not enough to address on the road. I simply ran a bead of sealant to avoid any possible leak and headed back east to our final destination in FL. I've recently had it addressed by a glass shop and will be having them reseal the entire windshield two-piece rubber seal.

We love our Damon, and have done several upgrades to make it fit our needs and taste. The Cummins engine is fine for myself, I drive at 60-65 mph unlike those that wish to do 75+ and feel they need the 500HP CAT. We averaged 9.5 MPG the entire trip in 100 deg heat, towing our 4000 lb Saturn from Florida to Northern Arizona and back. How can you not like that? Like any Motor Coach, you will not be without repairs or maintenance; it's just part of the equation. This forum is a great place to lend help to those that need a sounding board to run issues by, either prior to or after seeing the local RV doctor. Because like life in general, people still run this world, not computers!

Enjoy your trip, and safe travels!

Feel free to Private Message me if you desire.

Richard

PS: my wife started crying when we were about 100 miles from home after our recent trip. She didn't want our journey to end!

JARS · 09-23-2008, 04:32 AM

correction to above, purchased our unit a year ago in August of 07'

DDinCincy · 09-24-2008, 06:34 PM

Let us know about the fix to your pump, our pump will try to keep running and will also dump some fluid; that stuff eats through ashphalt VERY quickly!

SteveOGilroy · 09-24-2008, 08:44 PM

I'm tracking the overnight delivery from the plant to us on the west coast. Pump should be here tomorrow and I'll report the results to you. The local Tech indicated that he has seen this problem with another 2008 model. A new pump solved the other problem. The fluid is bad on ashphalt and stains cement.

Regards,
Steve of Gilroy

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by DDinCincy:
Let us know about the fix to your pump, our pump will try to keep running and will also dump some fluid; that stuff eats through ashphalt VERY quickly! </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

doc · 09-25-2008, 04:18 PM

We had the same problem about a day after we got the new Essence home. There was a hail storm on radar headed our way, jacks down and would not retract Ms Carol called dealer in a panic and he told us to push all the buttons on the pad at one time. I recalled something about the breaker under the hood, but could not find it. My son drove up about that time and said, 'ya'll better get that thing under the shelter, weather says a hail storm head this way'. Thanks son!! Now help me find this darn breaker!! I am inside pushing buttons on the pad and all of a sudden the jacks retract. Thought I hit a home run - my son said, 'all you had to do was push that thing back up' - he found the breaker about the same time as I started pushing buttons.
Coach under shed, no hail (thank goodness!) Ms Carol is once again smiling.

SteveOGilroy · 10-07-2008, 05:28 AM

The dealer replaced a switch and that did not fix the problem. The dealer replaced the pump and the leveling system is perfect. We now have 3000 miles on the RV and are enjoying it. Fuel milage is much better than I was planning on. The trip average is just over 10MPG. For one day I kept the speed at 55MPG and we averaged 11.4MPG for the entire 600 mile day. The day before at 75MPH the mileage was at 9.2MPG.

Love this RV.

Steve of Gilroy

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Steve of Gilroy:
During the sales pitch and check out the Lippert leveling jacks were reviewed and worked. Earlier this week the motor home was delivered to our home and the leveling jacks retracted but the control panel is flashing and beeping. The jacks will not move (they remain retracted). The dealer's service rep indicated that he has seen this before and suggest using the manual over ride at the hydraulic valve manifold. We are about to leave on an eight week trip. Does anyone have experience with a problem like this and is it OK to use the manual override for the next eight weeks. BTW hydraulic fluid level is OK.

Thanks in advance. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

apgarmd · 04-24-2009, 05:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JARS

We have a 2008 Astoria PE, under the front hood there is an electrical "breaker". If you are using the jacks with only battery power, chances are this breaker has "flipped". I either plug into shore power or have the generator running to avoid this issue. The location of the breaker may require a flashlight. It is located on the driver's side about 2 feet above the top deck of the generator.

Let us know if this was the problem?

Thank you for posting this!! I left my RV with a friend who ran into this problem and about killed himself for four days trying to fix it. I came back, googled "damon jacks down" and found your post. Fixed inside 5 minutes!

powerboatr · 04-24-2009, 10:13 PM

in our manual it bolds the statement to have the engine running when using the leveling jacks for the very reason you folks found low voltage/amps

thanks to this post i went out and eyeballed the reset breaker