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Old 12-24-2017, 05:01 PM   #1
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Brand: Thor Motor Coach
State: Oregon
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Leaky roof on Freedom Elite

The best thing about this brand new motor home is the fact that it doesn’t use any gas... when you can’t use it.


Went to check on it at the storage yard the other day and found water droplets on the TV. Further investigation revealed a wet spot On the area just below the TV. (The tv is located in the cab over bunk). There is no vent or window directly above the area, so I’m thinking there is a seam on the roof that’s failed.

We are only a month into the rainy season and there’s more to me had, the unit has been parked since the last time we took it in for warranty work.

Very disappointed in the QC at Thor. The unit isn’t even a year old.

And one else have these problems? How did you get them resolved? We are not happy with CW so we are tempted to take ours elsewhere for the repair.

How does one assure that the walls are dry when it’s got leaks like this?

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Old 12-24-2017, 06:16 PM   #2
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Only one leak? I have had several over the last year or two and they are not easy to find sometimes especially to fix during a hard rain.
If you can find a dealer other than CW that has a good reputation, I would take it there, especially if yours is still under warranty which if under a year most likely is unless you are the second owner.
Some repair shops pressurise the interior and look for roof leaks which usually shows most leaks.
Good luck.
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Old 12-24-2017, 07:56 PM   #3
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My 2017 FE seems to be leak free so far. And it’s been through rains that could scare Noah! Still, most leaks are not all that hard to find. If your model is like ours the tv antenna is in that area and it’s sealing is the first thing I’d check. Also the front cap to the roof membrane. Look carefully and you should be able to see the flaw. Just clean it well and re-seal with the appropriate self leveling RV roof sealant - not regular silicone. Good luck.
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Old 01-02-2018, 06:27 PM   #4
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Got off the phone with Thor No warranty on Roofs after 90 days! One would think that it would be longer than that. Personally I say Bull$(%&! Im not one to ge two angry about things like this, bu tIm not impressed with the whole process. If ever we wanted to reverse a purchase this is one I would do in a heart beat!

After 6 months we've only used it about 5 nights.

The QC from Thor and the Dealership is so poor, that I'm surprised there hasn't been lawsuits filed.
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Old 01-02-2018, 08:10 PM   #5
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Truly saddened that you are so dissatisfied. I pretty much gave up on the warranty during the PDI. It just seems much easier to fix things myself. These things are not rocket ships and my repairs (at least so far) have been pretty straightforward. Although I’ve not had any leaks on my current coach, I know from previous RVs that leaks are common yet pretty easy to track down and repair. BTW I think the 90 day roof warranty is because roof maintenance is required at about that frequency. They rarely tell you this when you buy but you should do it - for reasons you already know. It’s not difficult. Just go up and on your hands and knees inspect the entire roof very carefully. Any suspect areas should be treated to additional sealant. Use the correct self leveling RV roof product and not silicone or tape.

I’ve also noticed that most quality related problems are really assembly issues. Once they are corrected it’s likely that your coach will give many years of good service. Hope you come to enjoy the whole experience.
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Old 01-02-2018, 08:27 PM   #6
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Were you able to find where the leak is?
I'd hate to see the damage to the ceiling get any worse.
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Old 01-06-2018, 05:10 PM   #7
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Update

After going around with CW and Thor. I went ahead and inspected the roof and found a couple of issues that seem likely sources. I cleaned the areas in question and smeared some Dicor over them. It was cold so I heated the ares with my hot air gun to help its the adhesion. It rained last night so I am checking out my work today.
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Old 01-06-2018, 09:12 PM   #8
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Good for you! Let us know if you got it!!
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Old 01-06-2018, 10:05 PM   #9
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Our fingers are crossed for you...
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Old 01-11-2018, 09:51 PM   #10
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What’s the verdict??
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Old 01-11-2018, 11:29 PM   #11
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Most roof leaks will occur along seams where the front and rear caps are joined, and where appliances are mounted in the roof. Since those seams are weak spots, they need to be checked frequently, probably every six months or so, certainly annually.
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Old 01-13-2018, 04:19 PM   #12
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Originally Posted by Mtntom3005 View Post
Got off the phone with Thor No warranty on Roofs after 90 days! One would think that it would be longer than that. Personally I say Bull$(%&! Im not one to ge two angry about things like this, bu tIm not impressed with the whole process. If ever we wanted to reverse a purchase this is one I would do in a heart beat!

After 6 months we've only used it about 5 nights.

The QC from Thor and the Dealership is so poor, that I'm surprised there hasn't been lawsuits filed.
Any seals on the coach are 90 days. Falls under self maintenance and inspection.
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Old 01-18-2018, 03:29 PM   #13
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It seems to have held. I went back after a pretty heavy rain day or two with no signs of new drops of water.


Sorry it has taken me so long to get back to those watching the thread.
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Old 01-18-2018, 03:39 PM   #14
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Glad to hear that (so far!), the inside of your rig is staying drier than the outside...

Our fingers will remains crossed for you!
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Old 01-18-2018, 03:45 PM   #15
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It seems to have held. I went back after a pretty heavy rain day or two with no signs of new drops of water.


Sorry it has taken me so long to get back to those watching the thread.
Glad to hear you don't have the leak after the rain.

I just found another one last week after two days of driving rain. Water was coming out from under the frig. and cab. drawers under stove. Pulled out two large drawers to dry out and after rain, found the leak. It was the caulking on the outside tv flange leaking. It had cracked due to skimpy application of and or wrong caulk. Outside tv and compartment had a lot of water which I dried up. When I get a chance I am going to replace all the caulking on all the outside flanges as most of it does not look very reliable.
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Old 01-19-2018, 06:25 AM   #16
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We had a bad leak in the front bunk on the driver side, it of course leaked so bad that it got a lot of black mold. It took CW three times to fix it and it didn’t happen until I filed an complaint with the state attorney general. It had to be resealed but so much water was leaking in the you would see it poring out of the bottom of the bunk.
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Old 01-19-2018, 01:15 PM   #17
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So sorry to hear. After having leaks and mold in a previous MH I learned to do leak checks and repairs myself and I do so every few months now. It not difficult or time consuming and has (so far, fingers crossed) kept water out all around. They don’t tell you when you buy these things that this maintenance MUST be done frequently and they certainly don’t tell you how to do it. But when you think about the large and heavy components bouncing and swaying down the road - and the use of “lightweight” materials needed to stay within the GVWR - it actually is no surprise that seals and seams would need service. Even regular house windows can need recaulking every few years and they sit still.
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Old 01-19-2018, 03:02 PM   #18
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So sorry to hear. After having leaks and mold in a previous MH I learned to do leak checks and repairs myself and I do so every few months now. It not difficult or time consuming and has (so far, fingers crossed) kept water out all around. They don’t tell you when you buy these things that this maintenance MUST be done frequently and they certainly don’t tell you how to do it. But when you think about the large and heavy components bouncing and swaying down the road - and the use of “lightweight” materials needed to stay within the GVWR - it actually is no surprise that seals and seams would need service. Even regular house windows can need recaulking every few years and they sit still.


Do you have a special technique for these leak checks? Is it more than a meticulous visual inspection? What more than the obvious are you looking for?
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Old 01-19-2018, 04:25 PM   #19
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So sorry to hear. After having leaks and mold in a previous MH I learned to do leak checks and repairs myself and I do so every few months now. It not difficult or time consuming and has (so far, fingers crossed) kept water out all around. They don’t tell you when you buy these things that this maintenance MUST be done frequently and they certainly don’t tell you how to do it. But when you think about the large and heavy components bouncing and swaying down the road - and the use of “lightweight” materials needed to stay within the GVWR - it actually is no surprise that seals and seams would need service. Even regular house windows can need recaulking every few years and they sit still.
I think for us it wasn’t just that there were leaks, like you said it’s a house on wheels there are always going to be things to work on. For ours it was brand new off the lot. We bought ours last year in March and it was unusually cold and snowy so the problem wasn’t discovered until finally got warmer out and started raining. And then the hassle of getting it fixed, it was more the problem of CW blowing us off and saying they fixed it and they hadn’t.
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Old 01-19-2018, 08:15 PM   #20
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I just do a visual inspection, albeit a pretty detailed one. Most of the time and most of the areas don’t take much more than a quick look though (windows and sidewall penetrations especially). I typically go over the roof on my hands and knees and clean and fill any areas that look suspect. I probably “fix” things that don’t yet leak but it works for me. I wish I could say that I wash the roof every time I go up there but I don’t. I probably do that just once or twice a year. I use car wash detergent and a soft scrub brush. It makes quite a difference.
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