2018 Freedom Elite - Curious

[susanlm]

I bought my 2018 Freedom Elite 26HE in November of 2017. I've loved it from the beginning and feel very fortunate to be able to enjoy RVing. Wondering if any other owners of this same make/model have had problems with a leaking pinion seal and problems with the planetary gears. My first 10,000 miles were worry and problem free. During the 10,000 mile service at the Ford dealership, the service tech showed me where the pinion seal was leaking. Because I travel quite a bit and go long distances at a time, I had them replaced the seal. It was covered under the Ford Chassis warranty. Now, at less than 20,000 miles, my RV is waiting for repair at a Ford service center 7 hours away from home after leaving me stranded while on a road trip. Initial diagnosis is the planetary gear has come apart; I am waiting to hear the final diagnosis. Thankfully, whatever needs to be fixed is covered under warranty. But I am less thrilled with my RV than I used to be! Can't help but worry and wonder what next! It could have been worse - the noise that I heard coming from the underside of my RV was horrible, so common sense and a bit of mechanical knowledge told me to park it. And the folks that came to my rescue were awesome. My dogs and I made it home safely, repairs to the RV will be made, and I will figure out how to get my RV home from so far away. But I am very curious if anyone else has had these type of issues with this model, which is on a 2017 Ford E-350 Chassis. Would appreciate helpful feedback. I also have one more concern: the awning looks like it has retracted unevenly. The forward brace collapses like it should at first, but after traveling awhile, it comes out away from the bracket about an inch, while the rear brace stays seated. Before the events of yesterday, I planned to extend the awning and try to retrain it as someone helped with the retract button. Curious if anyone has thoughts on this, too.

[Pete'sMH]

Any vehicle can have a mechanical problem but I’d say yours is pretty unusual. I expect there is an actual defect of some sort and that is exactly what the warranty is for! If the repair is being done by a Ford truck center I would ask them to explain why it failed but I would trust the repair to be good as new. I had your model for a while and liked it a lot. Very few problems with it. On the awning I would make sure the two sides are adjusted equally (the tilt angle of the awning when it’s extended) and lube all of the pivot points and see if it doesn’t straighten itself out. There’s only the one motor so the roller has to be going in equally on both ends. Good luck getting your machine home and keep on enjoying it.

[susanlm]

Thank you so much, PetesMH, for your response. The initial diagnosis was made at a Camping World service center, based on how my RV sounded when driven and the fact that some fluid was leaking at the area of the rear differential. After it was towed to the Ford truck service center, the Service Manager said nearly the same thing you said about it being unusual if it is the planetary gear. But anything is possible! He did mention a couple of other scenarios. I appreciate the advice about the awning, and will do the things you mention once my RV is back home. Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours!

[Bob Denman]

Welcome to our Campsite!
It sounds as if it leaked itself down to a situation where it overheated and failed...
This is a pretty rare issue, and really has nothing to do with Thot anyway...

So hang in there: things will get better!

[susanlm]

Thank you for your interesting comments, Bob. Definitely a Ford issue, but a Ford issue attached to my Thor (Thot?) camper! RV is parked on concrete when not in use, hadn't seen evidence of any leaking. Final analysis will be interesting. Cheers and Happy Thanksgiving.