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Old 10-27-2014, 01:28 PM   #1
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Brand: Still Looking
Model: 2016 Newmar
State: Indiana
Posts: 323
THOR #1075
Axis First Trip

I purchased my new Axis 24.1 on Wednesday, packed it up Thursday evening and took off Friday morning. I spent ten days traveling through Indiana, Kentucky, Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia and West Virginia. Total miles—2,018.

I did not find the quality control issues that many new owners have had. The only problem that I have found so far was very small and just a leaking kitchen drain. I bought silicone seal and that took care of it. I will take it apart and fix it correctly this winter. I think the buyer will always be able to find an issue or two but hopefully they will be small like mine.

One of my first thoughts was to take the bathroom door down and replace it with a curtain. My wife quickly over ruled that as she likes the room separation and the mirrors are placed so she can see to put on her make-up and fix her hair.

I received 10.3 MPH during the entire trip. I drove very conservatively at first, keeping between 55 and 65 MPH. The last day, and on the way home I did keep at 70 MPH a lot of the way.

I found no issues through the mountains as it has plenty of power for climbing but I could tell by the gas receipts when I was going up and not down. One tank was 7.3 MPG going up the mountains in Virginia and West Virginia.

The unit is very comfortable and has plenty of space.

One thing that I did not like was the power steering. The unit seemed very light in front and seemed to dance around somewhat, even after I lowered the tire pressure. I would like to feel the road a little better and not drift.

I had just changed from an Airstream Interstate 3500 and that unit seemed to grab the road. I did notice the difference in the grey and black tanks. My older unit had very small tanks and had to be dumped almost daily. It took five days to need to dump in the unit.

I think my wife and I are both very happy that we made the change and that we bought the correct unit.

Another issue is with the large front window. The view is great but how do you get all the bugs off. Anyone with an idea of the best product, not including elbow grease top keep the window clean?

I’ll post more as I think of things, but, the unit is easy to drive, has plenty of room and looks great. So great, in fact, that we have given at least a dozen tours from people coming over wanting something smaller or slightly larger than their unit. If I had been a commissioned salesperson I could have paid for the trip.

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Old 10-27-2014, 01:37 PM   #2
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Brand: Thor Motor Coach
Model: Axis 24.4
State: Michigan
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One of the first things I picked up for ours was an extended squeegee:
Scrub-N Squeegee Windshield Washer - Carrand 9500 - Brushes and Poles - Camping World
I keep that in the rear storage and break it out while we're stopped for gas. (Trying to figure out how to Rain-X the whole front windshield.)

Did you get the front end aligned before heading out? I heeded all the warning stickers (one by the dash, in the owners manual, and our dealer stressed that we need to get it aligned) and found that it was over 1" out of alignment (the truck place I took it to also had us return for a check after a couple hundred miles to make sure it stayed).

Compared to our 45+ ft combo previously (31 ft 5th wheel + F-350 crew cab) I find the 24.1 a delight to drive around.

I'm hoping to take ours on a long road trip this winter...
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Old 10-27-2014, 02:08 PM   #3
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State: Georgia
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AA99z...Glad you folks had a pleasant first trip and all went well on your maiden voyage.
I picked up a retractable squeegee and bottle of Windex at our first Wal-Mart stop on our way home from picking our Axis up and it works pretty well with the bugs. That's really good gas mileage you're getting. I'm averaging about 9 mpg in ours. Went to the mountains this past weekend and averaged 11.3 pretty well loaded. I've not had mine aligned but have been watching the tire edges closely and at 2300 miles haven't noticed any wear. Plan to have it checked though at the 3,000 mile oil change interval just to be safe. Know what you mean about people everywhere inquiring about them. Had a couple at the campsite this past weekend asking questions and very interested in possibly purchasing one. Noticed them outside the window looking it over from front to back and invited them in for the 10 cent tour. we're loving ours as well and not regretting making the purchase. So far only a few minor mechanical issues to have a dealer look at.
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Old 10-27-2014, 02:09 PM   #4
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Sorry about missing your handle...Meant one "9" and two "Z"s.
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Old 10-27-2014, 02:30 PM   #5
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AA9ZZ...(got it right this time)...If you don't mind my asking, did you purchase your Axis from Total Value RV in Elkhart? Ivan by chance?
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Old 10-27-2014, 07:26 PM   #6
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Thanks for the info, Larry. AA9ZZ is my ham radio call.

I purchased mine at Tom Raper in Richmond, IN. We had already paid for the campsite at Myrtle Beach and then sold our Airstream Interstate 3500 on Wednesday, just three days before our trip. Tom Raper had two Axis' on the lot and we picked the Night Life just like JamieGeek has.

We were familiar with the prices many paid as noted in this dicussion group, made an offer and they accepted it. We brought it home, loaded it and took off on Friday.
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Old 10-27-2014, 08:01 PM   #7
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Thanks. Was just curious since we bought ours in Elkhart @ TV and noticed you're from IN. We have the Night Life exterior also. Wishing you continued safe RV traveling with good times and only routine maintenance issues.
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Old 10-28-2014, 02:41 PM   #8
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We picked up our 2015 Axis in August and so far we love it. The issues have been minor and all cabinetry related.
Averaged 10.2 mpg on 2500 miles thru varied terrain.
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Old 10-28-2014, 05:35 PM   #9
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bird strikes

We have taken our 2015 Axis out on three trips so far, 28 days and about 2000miles. Twice now we have had birds strike our windows while camped. The mirror finish on the side windows in both cases were reflecting the trees and confused the birds. Has anyone else had to deal with this issue? If so, any brilliant ideas on how to stop this?
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Old 10-28-2014, 09:28 PM   #10
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I'm glad that didn't happen on our trip. We were seaside and the birds would have been pelicans.
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Old 10-28-2014, 09:43 PM   #11
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cabin noise

As a first time owner I have no comparison. How have you all found the cabin noise to be? Is it louder than average? There was a thread in another forum where an Axis owner found voids in the front that he filled with spray foam. I mentioned this to the dealer and they just looked at me as if I had two heads.
What are your thoughts and if the noise level is worse than average have you taken any steps to try to lessen it?
Thx, bob
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Old 10-28-2014, 10:02 PM   #12
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My only comparison is the Airstream Interstate 3500 that I had until last week. That engine was quieter but then it was a diesel. I find the Axis to have a little more engine noise. But, I trade that with the generator being much, much, much more quiet in the Axis.
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Old 10-29-2014, 01:17 AM   #13
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Quote:
Originally Posted by aa9zz View Post
I purchased my new Axis 24.1 on Wednesday, packed it up Thursday evening and took off Friday morning. I spent ten days traveling through Indiana, Kentucky, Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia and West Virginia. Total miles—2,018.

I did not find the quality control issues that many new owners have had. The only problem that I have found so far was very small and just a leaking kitchen drain. I bought silicone seal and that took care of it. I will take it apart and fix it correctly this winter. I think the buyer will always be able to find an issue or two but hopefully they will be small like mine.

One of my first thoughts was to take the bathroom door down and replace it with a curtain. My wife quickly over ruled that as she likes the room separation and the mirrors are placed so she can see to put on her make-up and fix her hair.

I received 10.3 MPH during the entire trip. I drove very conservatively at first, keeping between 55 and 65 MPH. The last day, and on the way home I did keep at 70 MPH a lot of the way.

I found no issues through the mountains as it has plenty of power for climbing but I could tell by the gas receipts when I was going up and not down. One tank was 7.3 MPG going up the mountains in Virginia and West Virginia.

The unit is very comfortable and has plenty of space.

One thing that I did not like was the power steering. The unit seemed very light in front and seemed to dance around somewhat, even after I lowered the tire pressure. I would like to feel the road a little better and not drift.

I had just changed from an Airstream Interstate 3500 and that unit seemed to grab the road. I did notice the difference in the grey and black tanks. My older unit had very small tanks and had to be dumped almost daily. It took five days to need to dump in the unit.

I think my wife and I are both very happy that we made the change and that we bought the correct unit.

Another issue is with the large front window. The view is great but how do you get all the bugs off. Anyone with an idea of the best product, not including elbow grease top keep the window clean?

I’ll post more as I think of things, but, the unit is easy to drive, has plenty of room and looks great. So great, in fact, that we have given at least a dozen tours from people coming over wanting something smaller or slightly larger than their unit. If I had been a commissioned salesperson I could have paid for the trip.

Regarding the question about cleaning the windows: I'm not sure of the actual product name for the window cleaner, but i remember getting a rock hit fixed one time at a wind shield place. This guy pulls out a can of wind shield cleaner and sprays it all over the window and it cleaned like nothing i'd ever seen. It's a super industrial grade windex type of product although it isn't windex. He got it from a distributor, but you can probably find it at your local auto parts dealer. It's just that it's industrial grade window cleaner. I don't know if this helps or not. Probably would clean bugs a lot easier than your cheap windex stuff though.
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Old 10-31-2014, 04:10 PM   #14
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State: Virginia
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I have an issue with the passenger side seatbelt. At 1st we could move the attachment down the slide to the bottom. Had to take it apart and found that when Thor installed it, they had drilled the holes through the side so it couln't move. We fixed that, and it is now all the way down. Unfortunately it still it too high for me. It cuts across my face. I am 5'5" so not real short. Has anyone had that problem? I need a way to fasten it lower so the shoulder strap in not in my face. Thanks, Mama
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Old 10-31-2014, 04:15 PM   #15
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We ride his and her Harleys. We use a product called "Bug Slide" (BUGSLIDE™) on the bikes. Clean any surface, glass or painted.Put bug slide on and the bugs slide right off. It is awesome. We plan to keep our windshield and front bug free with it on the Axis.
Mama
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Old 10-31-2014, 04:16 PM   #16
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Any advice for getting the best gas mileage. Speed, RPMs, etc? Mama
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Old 10-31-2014, 04:46 PM   #17
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Model: Axis 24.4
State: Michigan
Posts: 9,837
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As with most vehicles: slower is better. In any RV you have quite a lot working against you: aerodynamically its a brick (even with that nicely shaped windshield it still is essentially a square brick going down the road), there is a ton of weight (we weighed ours and it came in at 11,500 lbs with full fuel, full propane, full water, empty waste tanks, and the 3 of us in it), and a mighty thirsty V-10 engine.
So far for our trips we've been getting around 9 mpg but I tend to go 70-75 mph and we have the generator running the overhead A/C. Going slower (65 or slower) and not running the genny I'd bet we may be able to push 11 mpg.

Even though this is our first motorhome it is our 3rd V-10 engine. Somewhere between 5,000 and 10,000 miles the V-10 will usually pick up 1 or 2 mpg as it loosens up. Which means a well-broken in Axis/Vegas with about 10,000 miles on it going 65mph down a level freeway with no wind should net you almost 12 mpg..if you're lucky.

(The best mileage I've ever got with the V-10 was with our last truck: an F-350, had a custom tune on it for mileage...I got 14 mpg.)

Speaking of tunes; I may put one on our Axis after it has a few miles on it. Even though its already pretty zippy; a tune make make it feel even more spright (given what the tune did for our F-350).
One of the best tuners available for the V-10 is from 5-Star:
http://www.5startuning.com/got-a-v10-rv/
(No affiliation with them other than a happy customer. The guys over at ford-trucks.com swear by them.)
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Old 10-31-2014, 06:01 PM   #18
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gas mileage

We have driven our Axis 2500 miles thru a varied terrain, flat, mountains and a few days of tough winds. Our average is 10.1 keeping the tach around 2000rpm and the speed at 60mph. I keep it at this speed mostly as I am comfortable driving there and it is a bonus to get the better mileage at that speed.

I found my tire pressure low as I assumed it would be right from the dealer but I don't think they checked it. So I did 1000 miles with underinflated tires.
My hope is that with the proper inflation and a fully broken in engine I can consistently get 11mpg. If gas prices continue to drop I will be less resistant to taking that side trip to sightsee!
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