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Old 04-14-2017, 01:21 AM   #1
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Brand: Thor Motor Coach
Model: Challenger LX
State: Colorado
Posts: 122
THOR #3922
Challenger LX Slide fail

Pulled into camp today. Bedroom slide works fine. Main room slide? Not so much. Went out a few inches then stopped. Back in, tried again. Same thing. Went to electronic override. No bueno. Called Thor. Went through the same steps again. No bueno. Upon further investigation I see the front is coming out a few inches, but rear of the slideout is not moving. Standing in the bedroom, I can hear the rear motor, but no movement. Now, using a flashlight to look in between the bathroom wall and the slideout, I see what appears to be a streak of damage to the upper track. Thor is telling me it sounds to them like the single screw holding the rear motor has come lose, possible damaging the track. Can't get mobile support here until Monday. Ugh!

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Old 04-14-2017, 01:39 AM   #2
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Model: Challenger 37TB
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THOR #1020
j37genie - had a small problem a couple of years ago right after we first got the Challenger. Pulled into a park, leveled, put out rear slides and then dining room. Called Thor and described the problem. Easy fix for us. What was happening - the rubber side seals were inverting and locking up on the front of the slide. I took a butter knife and slide down and pulled the seal back out. Later during the daylight, I trimmed part of the seal. Never had the problem again.

Darnedest problem I'd ever seen. Hope your fix is that easy.
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Old 04-14-2017, 08:37 AM   #3
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THOR #4636
Miramar 33.4 slide fail

I had a super slide on my 2017 miramar 33.4. It was improperly manufactured with a 2 track system. They remanufactured into a 3trax - but have had continued problems and had to sent to Indiana ( for a 4th repair attemp).

RV came back still broken. I had to relinquish ownership and hire attorney for resolution.

I know this doesn't help your issue. But I have done much research and have found that the Lippert Schwintek electric motor slide system is a constant complaint among Thor owners. The super slides are just too large for such a system. They are destined to break.

Good luck with yours......
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Old 04-14-2017, 11:47 AM   #4
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In fairness to Schwintek, slides have been the subject of major owner complaints much before their system was introduced. Not that I'm defending their system or even want a slide at all (for various reasons), but if one researches this issue, we will find it's nothing new. Slides add failure risks.

I'm pretty sure part of the issue is that the Schwintek system is much lower in cost and also lighter than previous systems, so they are now being used to a greater degree. Before introduction of Schwintek slides it was possible to find some motorhomes without slides, but now most motorhomes have at least one.
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Old 04-14-2017, 12:28 PM   #5
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Model: Axis 24.4
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THOR #1150
Quote:
Originally Posted by Chance
I'm pretty sure part of the issue is that the Schwintek system is much lower in cost and also lighter than previous systems, so they are now being used to a greater degree. Before introduction of Schwintek slides it was possible to find some motorhomes without slides, but now most motorhomes have at least one.
It is also possible that the Schwintek system was advertised for uses it isn't capable of, or that Thor attempted to use it beyond its design recommendations.

I can't believe its used on those full wall slides given what I see in it on our tiny little one couch slide on our Axis.

Our old 5th wheel's couch+dinette slide had a pretty beefy worm gear setup under the coach to move it.
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Old 04-14-2017, 01:16 PM   #6
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Originally Posted by JamieGeek View Post
It is also possible that the Schwintek system was advertised for uses it isn't capable of, or that Thor attempted to use it beyond its design recommendations.

I can't believe its used on those full wall slides given what I see in it on our tiny little one couch slide on our Axis.

Our old 5th wheel's couch+dinette slide had a pretty beefy worm gear setup under the coach to move it.
From a mechanical engineering point of view, the Schwintek system "concept" for controlling slide-room motion is brilliant; but unfortunately I also see some significant deficiencies that are too difficult to describe here. As they say, the devil is in the details.

Full wall Schwintek slides I believe are not limited to Thor, so others are probably experiencing problems as well.

I'm just glad I prefer smaller and simpler coaches, so slides (of any size) are a very low priority.
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Old 04-14-2017, 02:08 PM   #7
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Originally Posted by Chance View Post
From a mechanical engineering point of view, the Schwintek system "concept" for controlling slide-room motion is brilliant; but unfortunately I also see some significant deficiencies that are too difficult to describe here. As they say, the devil is in the details.

Full wall Schwintek slides I believe are not limited to Thor, so others are probably experiencing problems as well.

I'm just glad I prefer smaller and simpler coaches, so slides (of any size) are a very low priority.
Coming from a 5th wheel background, I found that the Schwintek systems were not as common. The two Keystone Montana models I owned did not use them and one of my models had a super slide. A friend had a different brand and his super slide with the Schwintek system failed twice. It always seemed to me that to use that system on a long slide, especially a heavy slide with major appliances in it, was a mistake.

When we were shopping for a MH we passed up several gently used late model units due to them having heavy super slides with the Schwintek system. I think if you level before using and maintain them they will do okay, as long as they are not in a long heavy super slide.
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Old 04-14-2017, 02:42 PM   #8
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THOR #2121
I agree that mechanical deficiencies are magnified with size and weight. But it doesn't take an engineer to figure that out.
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Old 04-14-2017, 02:48 PM   #9
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THOR #3922
As a follow-up, I've pulled away the top part of the rubber seal so I can see what's going on in there. When comparing the rear motor to the front motor, I noticed the front motor is tightly mounted, but the rear motor is wobbly. I then ran the slide for a second to see what's going on. The rear motor housing is turning. I'm now pretty much convinced the screw that's supposed to hold the motor worked its way loose and fell into the slide track. I'm pretty much done at this point, and will wait for the mobile RV folks to get here on Monday.
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Old 04-15-2017, 10:10 PM   #10
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Resolution

I took the plunge. Reaching in from the inside of the coach, I removed the motor. Next step was to manually push out the rear of the slide, while using the remote to extend the front. I removed the three screws at the top of the slide (outside), and pulled down the rubber strip. There is a hole drilled for the motor setscrew, but it's obvious from the imprint on the rubber strip that there has never been a setscrew in that spot. The motor has been in place only due to the four 1/2" screws that extend from the bottom on the motor, that slide into four corresponding holes. In short, the motor has just been sitting there loose, so this failure was eventually going to happen. I replaced the motor, aligning the four base screws while also aligning the motor shaft. I used a #8 1/2" setscrew to secure the motor, and reinstalled the rubber seals. Now up and running. Wifey and doggie are now happy campers.
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Old 04-17-2017, 11:54 AM   #11
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Nice job j37genie. Great followup!! Thank you.
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Old 04-17-2017, 01:49 PM   #12
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When these types of failures happen it is very upsetting. Especially when you start digging into it and figure out it was defective from the factory. But as discouraging as it is to experience one of these types of malfunctions, it is certainly a good feeling to be able to fix it correctly yourself so it doesn't happen again.

Job well done! Like someone else said, thanks for updating and sharing.
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Old 04-17-2017, 02:47 PM   #13
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We really love our Challenger 37TB. However the slide system is horrible and rarely works as it should.
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Old 04-17-2017, 03:35 PM   #14
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Model: Challenger 37TB
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THOR #4486
37TB bunk slide fail

On our way home from Florida, we had an issue with the bunk slide on our 37TB. Right side moved but not the left. Was able to move the left side manually but would not lock in place for travel. Fortunately, Camping World in Statesville, NC, 3 miles from our KOA. Stopped in after calling and they determined that the left slide motor was missing the set screw, came loose and skipped track. When the coach was at Camping World Harrisburg they fixed an issue with this slide, seal binding, same left side. They also replaced the seal that the set screw would have penetrated. Apparently, according to Statesville Camping World, Harrisburg forgot to install the set screw, see pics. After several hours, Statesville CW fixed the issue and worked with CW Harrisburg for repair payment and I was on my way. Kudos to CW Statesville for fixing it right and working with CW Harrisburg for recourse.
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Old 04-17-2017, 03:51 PM   #15
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Quote:
Originally Posted by j37genie View Post
I took the plunge. Reaching in from the inside of the coach, I removed the motor. Next step was to manually push out the rear of the slide, while using the remote to extend the front. I removed the three screws at the top of the slide (outside), and pulled down the rubber strip. There is a hole drilled for the motor setscrew, but it's obvious from the imprint on the rubber strip that there has never been a setscrew in that spot. The motor has been in place only due to the four 1/2" screws that extend from the bottom on the motor, that slide into four corresponding holes. In short, the motor has just been sitting there loose, so this failure was eventually going to happen. I replaced the motor, aligning the four base screws while also aligning the motor shaft. I used a #8 1/2" setscrew to secure the motor, and reinstalled the rubber seals. Now up and running. Wifey and doggie are now happy campers.
Great job! I had the same issue with my front motor hold screw falling out the first week. Of course I was in the middle of nowhere and had to figure it out with Thor. Pretty much did the same thing. I am slowly replacing all the painted screws with stainless steal screws and using thread locker so hopefully it doesn't happen again. Sorry I didn't see this post earlier and post my experience. Either way, we know what to do now.
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