New Axis 25.6 impressions

[vealessi]

Hello everybody, I am new here and hopefully posting in the correct place

I picked up a new Axis 25.6 from Terry's RV in Chicago in early Feb and did a 3000 mile trip east / south / and then back to CA; hopefully enough miles to break it in. Having had prior RVs, and having read quality reports on the Axis, I fully expected some things to rattle loose, and I did have some of that - my assumption is that what I experienced was about normal but would love to hear feedback. There are also some things I would like to immediately upgrade, and am hoping to get some experienced feedback:

- within the first hour of taking delivery, the stereo head unit rattled loose and fell into the dash. A nut appeared on the floor below. After inspection, it appears that nothing secures the head-unit in the rear. There's just a metal sleeve that needs to have some tabs bent out so that t doesn't fall into dash (they weren't). once I did that, stereo slides in and just kind of balances there. I plan to have this looked at on an upcoming warranty visit

- after driving a few days, the passenger windshield wiper stopped working. There's a mechanical arm that had come un-attached because a nut rattled loose - nut that fell out under the dash fit perfectly and fixed that

- turn-signal / backup camera video is intermittent. BIG problem when I go to back up and can't get this video; haven't diagnosed yet

- 'Raise' brings the stabilizer down and 'Lower' brings them up - is this normal, or did a wire get reversed?

- entire passenger side cup holder/speaker/outlet box separated from the wall. It looks like only a couple wood screws hold it in. Need to re-attached somehow

Those are the big items - nothing kept me from getting home, so thankful. Here's the 'needs improvement list':

- Dealer told me that house batteries are not charged by alternator when driving - is that really true? If so, can it be changed?

- Refrigerator installed is electric only; no propane option which I thought was standard. Dealer said this is the way they're going, but I also know that the fridge deliveries were short due to Covid and this pushed by delivery out a month - did they maybe switch just to deliver? Do I want the propane option?

- House batteries don't even last a night. Need to upgrade with AGM or Lion as I don't like being quite so dependent on the generator - what's the best option?

- Front headlights are VERY dim... hard to see at night. Is there a good headlight upgrade option?

- Really rough ride at 70mph with those tiny wheels... is there a good shock / suspension upgrade?

- bath sink drains into back tank vs grey... is this normal?

THANK YOU for reading if you got this far. In general, I love the rig (the full wall slideout is pure magic). Would LOVE to hear others impressions of these repairs / needed improvements!

Vic

[DavidEM]

I have had my new Axis 24.1 for a bit more than a month but we haven't camped any where yet. I do have some answers to your questions based on my experience/knowledge of the 24.1:

Chassis alternator charging

Yes despite what the dealer told you the coach batteries will be charged by the chassis alternator while driving. There is a Precision Circuits BIM 160 that connects or disconnects the coach battery from the chassis alternator based on voltage. When the chassis alternator is putting out 13.5 or so volts and the coach batteries have dropped to about 12.5 volts they connect and charge the coach batteries.

Compressor Fridge

The refrigerator is a whole story in itself. I got a propane fridge but I had to weasel it from the dealer. Apparently sometime in late December/early January Thor started delivering compressor fridges which are DC powered only. I don't know if it was due to a supplier issue or Thor just did it. Most MHs are switching to DC fridges.

Batteries Discharging Overnight

Assuming you were running the fridge that is why the batteries were discharged overnight. The Axis comes with two Group 24 or 27 batteries of about 160 amp hours total. The fridge will draw about 75 amp hours daily. The parasitic loads (those that can't be turned off except by turning off the battery switch) draws about 20 amp hours daily. In addition you have your discretionary loads like lights, water pump, device charging, slides, awning etc. These can draw from 15 amp hours upwards each day. So it is not surprising that your batteries were dead overnight.

The only solution particularly for dry camping without hookups is Li batteries and more solar. You can replace the two existing FLA batteries with two Group 31 Lithiums that will fit underneath the steps. If you want more and you may need it you will have to install two more in the adjacent compartment. I would definitely want four Li batteries with a compressor fridge.

With four 100 Ah lithum batteries you probably want to upgrade your converter and increase the wire size to a Progressive Dynamics 9180AL to charge faster. You may also need to limit current from the chassis alternator. An upgrade to the Precision Circuits BIM L 225 may help.

Adding more solar panels

Your coach was probably prewired for solar or it came with one or more panels. Mine came with one. You probably need at least 400 watts of panels to cover the loads during mostly sunny days. If it is cloudy for a while you will have to run the generator to keep them up or drive to another campsite so the chassis alternator will recharge them.

To add 3 or 4 panels, wire them in series parallel to minimize the voltage drop. Replace the crappy Go Power !0A controller with a 30A Renogy, Victron, or Epever MPPT controller and upgrade the wire size from the controller to the batteries to 6 gauge from the existing 10 gauge.

Doing all of that won't be cheap, at least $8,000 for a professional installation or maybe half of that for four Lithiums and 400 watts of panels if you DIY. But that should give you decent dry camping time. As you can tell an absorption fridge is much preferred for dry campers.

Can your replace the compressor with an absorption fridge

Maybe. First you will have to check dimensions to see if you can get the old one out and the new one in through the door. Then you will have to cut a vent in the side and put a vent on the top and hook it up to the propane system. Several thousand for professional swap out.

Ride

I am a little surprised that you found the ride rough but you have the E450 chassis and mine is based on the E350 one. Lots of aftermarket suspension upgrades available but most deal with sway and wandering, not rough ride. Maybe upgraded Bilstein shocks will help.

Sinks Draining to Black

This somewhat is dependent on the coach layout but many do this to keep from filling the grey water tank too fast. The black never gets full on my RVs, always the grey first

David

[twovillagers]

The bathroom sink drains into the blackwater tank to provide more water to dissolve toilet paper, etc.

[coachray]

Sorry you've had all those problems but welcome to the forum.

[Scubawise]

Welcome to the forum. All suggestions above are great !
Enjoy your new fun home on wheels!

[sportcoupe]

Originally Posted by DavidEM

.....Doing all of that won't be cheap, at least $8,000 for a professional installation or maybe half of that for four Lithiums and 400 watts of panels if you DIY.. .....

David

Pardon me, where are you going to get four lithium batteries and 400 watts of solar panels for a DIY $4000?

[DavidEM]

Well, it probably can be done for even less than $4,000 DIY. I would use 4 SOK lithiums which are highly rated by Will Prowse at $570 each. Then four 100 watt HQST panels for $85 each and a $120 Renogy 40A MPPT controller. The main parts add up to $2,700 plus a few hundred for brackets and wire. Add $1,000 or so for Battleborns.

But you probably also want to upgrade the converter to a Progressive Dynamics 9180 ALV and swap out the BIM for a BIM-Li 225, all for about $500.

David

[sportcoupe]

Not a great sign when a products isn't available all the time. The SOK's are not in stock, sold by SOK on amazon.

https://www.amazon.com/SOK-Battery-A.../dp/B087BP1Z63

Battleborns are $900 each, so there is almost $4k already in just batteries.

[Bob Denman]

Sorry to read that you had this many issues crop up.
But they didn't stop you!
Welcome aboard!

[hacock@satx.rr.com]

Did you look for the dipstick on the new V8, I have a 2021 Vegas with the new V8 and as far as I can tell the dipstick is covered by the fresh air intake hoses.
Also we had no converter power, no hot water, and had to buy a battery charger to keep the coach batteries up when camped and hooked up to shore power.

[robertconley]

I installed these after someone posted them in our forum. They suggested them and are great. plug and play for installation.
Really bright white light great high beams

Trueland 9007 HB5 LED Headlight Bulbs with Upgraded Canbus Resistor Anti-flicker Harness Decoder High Low Beam Bulbs Conversion Kit 6000K 10000 Lumens 2 Pack

$70.00 on Amazon