Possible bent frame?

[Myles]

About a month ago, we drove our 2022 Thor Omni SV34 from Florida to New York. When we arrived we noticed a large gap on the front bumper passenger side.. 1 inch. There was no gap on the drivers side.

We also noticed that the molding between the cab and cabin (outside) had pulled away from the body. You can easily see about 3 screws that have pulled out of the wall.

We called dealer who assured us the unit was safe to drive back to Florida, and ît feels fine when driving, and we made an appointment for the first day we got back.

First night on trip back home, slide started opening crooked, and before I could stop it, it stopped itself and froze. After one hour on hold with thor, the tech walked me through the manual override.

Very difficult to get to clothes, bed is usable, but can't lie flat, we slept across it last night. Can't get to some food in fridge, can't wait for tonight!

Has anyone had similar issues? Opinions and comments appreciated.

[Pete'sMH]

Sorry you are having those problems! I think it is very unlikely that you have a bent frame unless there was an accident at some point. Much more likely is an assembly problem with the coach part (instead of the chassis). I’d study the situation very carefully to be sure I understood exactly what was going on. Suggest you write down the manual slide procedures while you still remember them. I’ve suggested many times that everyone should learn AND PRACTICE the procedure before you need it. Failure rarely happens at a convenient time and if you know what to do about it the delay is minimal. If you don’t - as you found out - the delay can be considerable. Good luck.

[EA37TS]

Did they have any issues when you had it aligned per Thor’s recommendation?

[Judge]

Originally Posted by Myles

About a month ago, we drove our 2022 Thor Omni SV34 from Florida to New York. When we arrived we noticed a large gap on the front bumper passenger side.. 1 inch. There was no gap on the drivers side.

We also noticed that the molding between the cab and cabin (outside) had pulled away from the body. You can easily see about 3 screws that have pulled out of the wall.

We called dealer who assured us the unit was safe to drive back to Florida, and ît feels fine when driving, and we made an appointment for the first day we got back.

First night on trip back home, slide started opening crooked, and before I could stop it, it stopped itself and froze. After one hour on hold with thor, the tech walked me through the manual override.

Very difficult to get to clothes, bed is usable, but can't lie flat, we slept across it last night. Can't get to some food in fridge, can't wait for tonight!

Has anyone had similar issues? Opinions and comments appreciated.

I believe you have 3 different issues... and none of them are due to a bent frame so ignore Dave's alignment snipe.

Here is what you are very likely dealing with:

1) I have a post and there are several other posts about problems with the front cap attachment to the house box and the top of the cab. This is a well known problem with the Thor Super C's. Do a search (Magnitude / Omni Front Cap) and you will find several threads.

Kwlot and PillBox repaired their own front caps but it is not for the faint of heart. I purchased one of the first Magnitude SV34's in October 2019. I had the front cap start to come apart after about 5000 miles or so and only a couple trips. I had the front cap on my 2020 SV34 fixed at the Thor Factory Service Center in Wakarusa.

The start of the problem is seeing screw heads pushing against the molding the runs up and down the driver and passenger side walls where the front cap and house mount to the cab. Eventually the molding can lift and you can see broken, loose or missing screws. You can also see gaps between the cap and the cab when leveling from the torque and twisting forces.

Using Auto-Level and also traveling rough roads can start the problem by twisting and torquing the chassis and front cap. Thor uses screws that are much too small and not enough screws up and down both sides, on the roof and also where the cap attaches to the roof of the cab. They also aren't using enough structural adhesive.

You do want to get this fixed ASAP because if the molding is lifting and you drive through rain, you will get water intrusion. I also personally would not trust 95% of the dealers out there to repair it properly. I would take it to the Thor Factory Service Center in Wakarusa to be repaired. Unless you have the same type of skills and equipment Kwplot and Pillbox. Kwplot did an outstanding job of fixing and upgrading his front cap.

I would estimate 80% of the Thor Super C's from the older Chateaus to the newer Omni / Magnitudes have this front cap attachment issue based on my experience and reading other owner reports of the same problem.

Here is some light reading to help get you started:

https://www.thorforums.com/forums/f4...sue-22547.html

https://www.thorforums.com/forums/f4...ues-27773.html

https://www.thorforums.com/forums/f4...fix-28874.html



2) The bumper is a plastic cover and not well made and the alignment of it is not that great either. It is also only attached with a few small screws and some adhesive. There was also a post about someone else who's bumper was out of alignment from day one on his XG32 (Chunker).

Under the plastic you will find the stock chrome F-550 bumper that the plastic bumper cover is screwed into with adhesive holding the top of the plastic onto the chrome bumper. You will also see underneath the plastic where they cut off the tow hooks and left them bolted into the frame.... nice clean work by Thor.

The front fender flares are also not attached very well. There have been a few reports of people having issues with those as well.

I pulled off the plastic cover and the stock bumper and replaced it with a heavy duty bumper / cow catcher. I have a post on here with pictures of it.

Here you go.....

https://www.thorforums.com/forums/f2...ade-27248.html

https://www.thorforums.com/forums/f4...ons-26727.html



3) The crappy Schwintek Slide System requires 1/8" or less tolerance of the slide box during manufacturing. It's like playing the lottery when it comes to Thor assembly and how close they got it. Leveling must be near perfect (using manual level and not Auto-Level). Otherwise you can get twisting of the chassis that causes the slide to bind.

The 3Trax System is also marginal at best for a heavy, full-wall slide. The motors are also not well secured. They tend to move a little from the tremendous torque opening and closing the slide. It can sometimes cause a wire to pinch and then the motors get out of sync. They can also lift out of the bearing block if there is enough torque to bend or shear off the tiny screw that is supposed to secure the motor.

It is my opinion that the full-wall slide will eventually fail in some fashion if you use the slide a lot. Some people have been lucky and not had any issues but many have not been so lucky.

My slide failed a couple times and I know other Omni / Magnitude owners with the full-wall slide who had similar issues. I finally got tired of it and I had my Scwintek Slide Mechanism replaced with the Vroom Slide Mechanism last October. The performance and quality difference of the Vroom Slide System is night and day compared to the stock Schwintek Slide Mechanism. I also have a thread on this as well.

Here is info on the Vroom Slide System:

https://www.thorforums.com/forums/f2...v34-28659.html

https://www.thorforums.com/forums/f8...oom-29873.html


It's a shame that you purchase a coach north of $200K and have these types of issues but it is what it is in this industry.

After doing many of my own repairs and upgrades and after getting my front cap fixed by Thor and having the Vroom Slide System installed, my SV34 seems pretty solid.... but it took a couple years.... a lot of time and more money to get it done right.

Good Luck!

[chunker21]

Judge detailed things well and gave you some good references for reading. But there is only one real fix for the issues you face and will face. See this thread.


https://www.thorforums.com/forums/f4...xes-29412.html

Just a warning though, it's not a cheap fix but a satisfying one.

[EA37TS]

Originally Posted by Judge

I believe you have 3 different issues... and none of them are due to a bent frame so ignore Dave's alignment snipe.

Here is what you are very likely dealing with:

1) I have a post and there are several other posts about problems with the front cap attachment to the house box and the top of the cab. This is a well known problem with the Thor Super C's. Do a search (Magnitude / Omni Front Cap) and you will find several threads.

Kwlot and PillBox repaired their own front caps but it is not for the faint of heart. I purchased one of the first Magnitude SV34's in October 2019. I had the front cap start to come apart after about 5000 miles or so and only a couple trips. I had the front cap on my 2020 SV34 fixed at the Thor Factory Service Center in Wakarusa.

The start of the problem is seeing screw heads pushing against the molding the runs up and down the driver and passenger side walls where the front cap and house mount to the cab. Eventually the molding can lift and you can see broken, loose or missing screws. You can also see gaps between the cap and the cab when leveling from the torque and twisting forces.

Using Auto-Level and also traveling rough roads can start the problem by twisting and torquing the chassis and front cap. Thor uses screws that are much too small and not enough screws up and down both sides, on the roof and also where the cap attaches to the roof of the cab. They also aren't using enough structural adhesive.

You do want to get this fixed ASAP because if the molding is lifting and you drive through rain, you will get water intrusion. I also personally would not trust 95% of the dealers out there to repair it properly. I would take it to the Thor Factory Service Center in Wakarusa to be repaired. Unless you have the same type of skills and equipment Kwplot and Pillbox. Kwplot did an outstanding job of fixing and upgrading his front cap.

I would estimate 80% of the Thor Super C's from the older Chateaus to the newer Omni / Magnitudes have this front cap attachment issue based on my experience and reading other owner reports of the same problem.

Here is some light reading to help get you started:

https://www.thorforums.com/forums/f4...sue-22547.html

https://www.thorforums.com/forums/f4...ues-27773.html

https://www.thorforums.com/forums/f4...fix-28874.html



2) The bumper is a plastic cover and not well made and the alignment of it is not that great either. It is also only attached with a few small screws and some adhesive. There was also a post about someone else who's bumper was out of alignment from day one on his XG32 (Chunker).

Under the plastic you will find the stock chrome F-550 bumper that the plastic bumper cover is screwed into with adhesive holding the top of the plastic onto the chrome bumper. You will also see underneath the plastic where they cut off the tow hooks and left them bolted into the frame.... nice clean work by Thor.

The front fender flares are also not attached very well. There have been a few reports of people having issues with those as well.

I pulled off the plastic cover and the stock bumper and replaced it with a heavy duty bumper / cow catcher. I have a post on here with pictures of it.

Here you go.....

https://www.thorforums.com/forums/f2...ade-27248.html

https://www.thorforums.com/forums/f4...ons-26727.html



3) The crappy Schwintek Slide System requires 1/8" or less tolerance of the slide box during manufacturing. It's like playing the lottery when it comes to Thor assembly and how close they got it. Leveling must be near perfect (using manual level and not Auto-Level). Otherwise you can get twisting of the chassis that causes the slide to bind.

The 3Trax System is also marginal at best for a heavy, full-wall slide. The motors are also not well secured. They tend to move a little from the tremendous torque opening and closing the slide. It can sometimes cause a wire to pinch and then the motors get out of sync. They can also lift out of the bearing block if there is enough torque to bend or shear off the tiny screw that is supposed to secure the motor.

It is my opinion that the full-wall slide will eventually fail in some fashion if you use the slide a lot. Some people have been lucky and not had any issues but many have not been so lucky.

My slide failed a couple times and I know other Omni / Magnitude owners with the full-wall slide who had similar issues. I finally got tired of it and I had my Scwintek Slide Mechanism replaced with the Vroom Slide Mechanism last October. The performance and quality difference of the Vroom Slide System is night and day compared to the stock Schwintek Slide Mechanism. I also have a thread on this as well.

Here is info on the Vroom Slide System:

https://www.thorforums.com/forums/f2...v34-28659.html

https://www.thorforums.com/forums/f8...oom-29873.html


It's a shame that you purchase a coach north of $200K and have these types of issues but it is what it is in this industry.

After doing many of my own repairs and upgrades and after getting my front cap fixed by Thor and having the Vroom Slide System installed, my SV34 seems pretty solid.... but it took a couple years.... a lot of time and more money to get it done right.

Good Luck!

My question was not a snipe. It was a valid question based on Thor’s recommendation. If the frame was bent a qualified alignment shop would have found the problem.

[Judge]

Originally Posted by EA37TS

My question was not a snipe. It was a valid question based on Thor’s recommendation. If the frame was bent a qualified alignment shop would have found the problem.

Yes.... you do provide very good information but sometimes your initial replies come across as more of a dig than any help.

As a Mod, you should try to read deeper into peoples questions if you really want to try and help people..... especially all of the people new to RV'ing and new to Thor.

When I look at a thread I try to look beyond the simple questions.... especially because many times people don't know the right question to ask or how to describe it. And sometimes they don't provide nearly enough information when they ask for help.

When I saw the topic title for this thread I noticed three things.....


First.... the guy has had 13 posts.

Second..... he has a 2022 coach that is obviously new to him.

Third.... being new to this particular coach and possibly even new to owning a coach, I could tell he was likely misdiagnosing the root cause of his issues.

I'm not perfect and I am not always right but 98% of the time I am trying to help someone.... especially the newer guys.

If the guy just follows your advice and takes the coach for an alignment... which is a reasonable thing to do with a new coach..... he is 0% closer to understanding what's wrong with his coach or having it addressed.

Now.... Chunker's response is not helpful and maybe a bit funny.... he is not off base. I don't care that Thor Motorcoach is an "entry" level motorhome. These types of significant problems should not happen with such regularity.

Yes... I know Thor is in business to make money. I can live with th crappy plastic front bumper cover but front caps failing on most of the Super C's going back 7 or 8 years is no acceptable. They also should be using a different slide mechanism for the heavy, full-wall slides.

[Gmthrust]

Originally Posted by chunker21

Judge detailed things well and gave you some good references for reading. But there is only one real fix for the issues you face and will face. See this thread.


https://www.thorforums.com/forums/f4...xes-29412.html

Just a warning though, it's not a cheap fix but a satisfying one.

A few more of these quips on Thor quality and you getting a new coach, may result in a few ugly gremlins rearing their ugly heads on your rig. After all, they all have issues. I don't wish any ill will toward you and your new set up. Not all of us can afford another 30-40K for a "better quality" coach. Cheers.

[Spensit]

Thank you Judge, Chunker et al for your honest appraisal of the Omni/Magnitude Super C. My wife and I have just retired and the LTV Unity twin Bed is just too small for the extended trips we wish to begin. But what to move up to has been a problem.

The Class C’s with the Ford 450 chassis is a non starter. My wife says she would prefer not to have to amputate one leg to fit into the tiny off-centre passenger foot space the doghouse leaves you. Besides, you need a refinery as a toad given the fuel economy of that mismatched V-10 engine.

We had a class A Monaco La Palma. The worse driving vehicle I have ever owned. And I haven’t found a Class A that is comfortable to drive. And the La Palma was an incredible lemon.

So I looked at a traditional Super C on a Freighliner Chassis. Well that’s what I got on the test drive; a ride straight out of the Mac truck (my wife was actually bounced out of her seat) and with a cabin roar that made conversations impossible. Otherwise it was great.

So we have been looking for a Super C “Lite” like the Omni/Magnitude XG32 or the Dynamax Isata 5 34DS. They are less Mac truck but are not overburdened burros like the Ford 450 Class Cs. They are quite quiet and ride well.

However, the Thor product seems so shoddily built I am reluctant to pay $200k for a vehicle where the slides don’t work, the A/C is undersized and the air ducting design is ridiculously poorly designed, the front cap falls off, the hot water system only works under certain flow conditions and the plumbing for winterizing seems to be non-existent.

I think I’ll pass thank you. After 10 years of trouble free LTV operation (except for the M-B POS emission control system) I am not ready for RV purgatory. I prefer not to have my RV live up to acronym (RV - Ruined Vacation).

Time to research the Isata 5 series. Or do you have any other suggestions?

[Judge]

Originally Posted by Spensit

Thank you Judge, Chunker et al for your honest appraisal of the Omni/Magnitude Super C. My wife and I have just retired and the LTV Unity twin Bed is just too small for the extended trips we wish to begin. But what to move up to has been a problem.

The Class C’s with the Ford 450 chassis is a non starter. My wife says she would prefer not to have to amputate one leg to fit into the tiny off-centre passenger foot space the doghouse leaves you. Besides, you need a refinery as a toad given the fuel economy of that mismatched V-10 engine.

We had a class A Monaco La Palma. The worse driving vehicle I have ever owned. And I haven’t found a Class A that is comfortable to drive. And the La Palma was an incredible lemon.

So I looked at a traditional Super C on a Freighliner Chassis. Well that’s what I got on the test drive; a ride straight out of the Mac truck (my wife was actually bounced out of her seat) and with a cabin roar that made conversations impossible. Otherwise it was great.

So we have been looking for a Super C “Lite” like the Omni/Magnitude XG32 or the Dynamax Isata 5 34DS. They are less Mac truck but are not overburdened burros like the Ford 450 Class Cs. They are quite quiet and ride well.

However, the Thor product seems so shoddily built I am reluctant to pay $200k for a vehicle where the slides don’t work, the A/C is undersized and the air ducting design is ridiculously poorly designed, the front cap falls off, the hot water system only works under certain flow conditions and the plumbing for winterizing seems to be non-existent.

I think I’ll pass thank you. After 10 years of trouble free LTV operation (except for the M-B POS emission control system) I am not ready for RV purgatory. I prefer not to have my RV live up to acronym (RV - Ruined Vacation).

Time to research the Isata 5 series. Or do you have any other suggestions?

I don’t know what your budget is but there are some nice Renegade Super C’s and I am intrigued by the newer Dynamax Europa. There is only one floor plan for the Europa but another is forthcoming. I have not been an Isata fan but I do like the Dynamax Force HD.

All coaches have their issues but Renegade and Dynamax do seem to do a better job at building their coaches with a higher level of quality and workmanship.

Aftet 2 1/2 years…. countless hours of repairs abd upgrades on my own…. plus several thousands of extra dollars, I have my Magnitude where I am happy with it and more confident with its reliability. It will meet our needs for the next few years. It shouldn’t have to be this way but it is what it is.


Good luck!

[Spensit]

Thanks Judge for your comments. I agree the Renegade Verona VQB 34 is absolutely gorgeous, but a little too pricey. You get what you pay for though. Also, it would be a hard sell to get my wife back in an M2 chassis!

I am curious as to why you have issues with the Isata 5 units. I do not like the 30 FW, the bedroom is far too tight. And the 36 series has precious little CCC, but the 34DS is for the Goldilocks choice for me. The build quality from the owners forum seems relatively positive (except for the low voltage ubiquitous slide issue) so I would like to hear what concerns you have. On issues like this I am all ears and no pre-conceived opinions.

[Judge]

Originally Posted by Spensit

Thanks Judge for your comments. I agree the Renegade Verona VQB 34 is absolutely gorgeous, but a little too pricey. You get what you pay for though. Also, it would be a hard sell to get my wife back in an M2 chassis!

I am curious as to why you have issues with the Isata 5 units. I do not like the 30 FW, the bedroom is far too tight. And the 36 series has precious little CCC, but the 34DS is for the Goldilocks choice for me. The build quality from the owners forum seems relatively positive (except for the low voltage ubiquitous slide issue) so I would like to hear what concerns you have. On issues like this I am all ears and no pre-conceived opinions.

The Renegade Dynamax Force HD 34KD would be my choice in terms of size and floor plan.

I'm not a fan of the Isata5 for mostly personal reasons. To me it is a cheaped down Super C to compete with the Thor Super C's.... it's MSRP is under the Omni / Magnitude. I'm not a fan of its look and the front cap is too big for my liking now that I have had issues with a similar size front cap. That being said I would expect the quality and workmanship to be a little better than Thor.

Renegade makes the Veracruz on the F-550 Chassis but we prefer a King Size bed. The Verona 36VSB and the Valencia 35MB would be a consideration for me.

[EA37TS]

Originally Posted by Spensit

Thanks Judge for your comments. I agree the Renegade Verona VQB 34 is absolutely gorgeous, but a little too pricey. You get what you pay for though. Also, it would be a hard sell to get my wife back in an M2 chassis!

I am curious as to why you have issues with the Isata 5 units. I do not like the 30 FW, the bedroom is far too tight. And the 36 series has precious little CCC, but the 34DS is for the Goldilocks choice for me. The build quality from the owners forum seems relatively positive (except for the low voltage ubiquitous slide issue) so I would like to hear what concerns you have. On issues like this I am all ears and no pre-conceived opinions.

Do yourself a favor. If you test drive an Isata 5 take it across a CAT scale during the test drive. At one time the Isata 5 was close to max rear axle weight without cargo. Not sure what improvements if any Forest River made.