Thor Magnitude SV34 problems problems problems

[Judge]

So here is another example of great quality and workmanship....


So I was on the phone half the morning helping a fellow RV Brother with a Magnitude troubleshoot a slide problem. His slide was only going in part way and then stopping at the front.

After I struck out and ran out of ideas I had him contact LCI Support. After they exhausted everything, he saw something strange with the front bearing block assembly. LCI had him take some measurements and the slide is out of square by 1/2". LCI Support said the tolerance is 1/8" so 1/2" is significant and will result in a failure.

He used the coach quite a bit until the slide finally failed on the first day of his trip. Fortunately he has a month or so of warranty left... but now he is trying to find a mobile tech to help him get the slide in manually. Then he is going to lose use of the coach for a couple months at best while he tries to get into Wakarusa.

This is not the first time I have heard about a slide box being out of square and causing the slide mechanism to eventually fail as a result.

I guess we need to measure the slide box tolerance as part of our PDI now???

Sorry.... that is just BS if that is what it takes to find a "solid" coach coming off the assmebly line.

[ducksface]

And here's another:
Except for a pinched wire 110v wire shorting out when the slide was fully open I haven't had a warranty claim.
I believe the same is true of Beau also, tiny claims, no consequence.
I don't know if I've read if dkoldman has had any.

Of course it's not all pdi. Your cap separation thing sucked and it was time alone that exposed it.
But
I fully admit how the slide you mention and your cap thing couldn't have been found.
Now let's all fully admit that 96%of the things people complain about on their rv COULD have been found had they bothered to check it as well as they check a bucket of chicken.

Two pounds of chicken takes 15 seconds to check.
12,000 pounds of rv should take 6,000 times longer.
No excuses. Certainly not 'we were in a hurry because we hadn't eaten'. I think we've read that one here a time or three.
It's.their.fault.they.took.delivery.without.the wipers.working.


Rv checklist.
Except for your cap and other very hidden obscure things, this app would pre-delivery find 98% of post purchase claims.

'Ac didn't work so I drove off in The RV because I had to be at my chiropractor in 30 minutes'
This does not sound sensical in any part of the world to anybody.

[Judge]

Originally Posted by ducksface

And here's another:
Except for a pinched wire 110v wire shorting out when the slide was fully open I haven't had a warranty claim.
I believe the same is true of Beau also, tiny claims, no consequence.

Of course it's not all pdi and your cap separation thing sucked.
But
I fully admit that the slide you mention and your cap thing couldn't have been found.
Now lets all fully admit that 96%of the things people complain about on their rv COULD have been found had they bothered to check it as well as they check a bucket of chicken.

Two pounds of chicken takes 15 seconds to check.
12,000 pounds of rv should take 6,000 times longer..


Rv checklist.
Except for your cap and other very hidden obscure things, this app would cure 98% of post purchase claims.

I dont think obscura is the call on a warranty claim because the wire nut on the ac came loose.

We’ll agree to disagree to some extent…..

I agree thay there are lots of coaches that come out with cery few issues…. but many come out that are not very good as well.

I spent several hours doing a PDI and caught several things to be fixed before I signed. So explain to me over the course of the next 12 months why I needed:

- Two trips to Wakarusa (they had the coach several weeks each time)

- One Trip to the dealer (they had the coach three weeks)

- Several repairs that I had to make myself where Thor sent me the parts (Thor Customer Service is excellent and in many cases I’d rather do my own repairs)


This is my second Thor coach and I have stuck with them because of their Customer Service offsets the quality issues to some extent (though it does not give them a pass).

My first Thor coach had a number of issues as well. While most were minor issues the dealer had to keep the coach a couple months to rebuild the floor in the bathroom. It was ok during the PDI but after a few uses the floor started to flex and sink. After they tore it apart they found missing supports.

I’m not saying every coach that comes off the line is bad. What I am saying is you have a better chance of getting a coach with issues than you do playing the lottery. As a result you have to become the company QC Officer and try to find every possible defect during the PDI before you sign the paperwork.

I just feel really bad for the guy that I tried to help today. He spent $160K+ on a new coach almost a year ago that appeared to only have minor issues the first 10 months. Then first day on a trip with his son and not only is the trip over but he loses the use of the coach for at least another 3 months or more because of a serious quality issue.

A full wall slide repair like this one will be a pretty major project. The Thor Service Center is the only place you can trust for this job. Before COVID it usually took 2 or 3 months to get in there. Who knows how long now.

I’d also consider an RV Restoration shop but since it is under warranty… and this is structural as far as I’m concerned so he really has this covered for 4 more years.

I praise Thor’s customer service and the techs in Wakarusa but I won’t give them…. or the industry as a whole a pass on quality.

You shouldn’t spend 6 figures and have to spend hours trying to find quality issues before you write the check and / or lose months of use to have them fixed after driving it off the lot. That’s all I’m saying…..

[ducksface]

I can explain it all in three words: Thor ain't Newell.

Decisions were made.
We own a 24.1 for only two reasons.
It saved me from scratch building a 4x4 autocar super duper c because 24.1 met all of our needs, plus.
The slide needn't be extended if we don't want it to. We would likely have passed if it did need extended. I dont care about brands or teams. It was thor because no one else makes one.

A full wall slide is a HEAVY HEAVY consideration to those who, indeed, consider. Upon my first time pushing that button I'd have seen 30 ways it could fail. Only the faithless have true faith.
There were lots of other builders with full slide rv's. He chose Thor. I knew mine was cardboard and self tappers.

l too feel bad for him.
If he's broke down near the Grand Canyon I can get that slide in for him.

[Judge]

True….. and that’s fair to some extent.

But what’s the financial threshold where it’s ok to expect a coach “will” work as designed and without major quality issues at a 95% degree of certainty?

[Bob Denman]

That... is the $64,000 question.

[ducksface]

Used.
That's the threshold.


When your slide friend is disgusted and dumps that Thor, someone will get full advantage of him getting it sorted and that slide repaired.

Used is the threshold IF you do a thorough pdi. Let someone else sort it all out.
Anyone with web access can know, at the push of slight few keys, what a Thor is.
Truly truly truly, fifteen minutes,TOPS, to make an informed decision as to quality vs dollars.

I recently acquired something I am totally unfamiliar with.
Within 10 minutes of having spare time I typed in
Piston powered products super saw.
And in 10 more minutes knew almost all I needed to know.

Same with the 24.1. Before buying it I knew, within 10 minutes of even considering one: of the windshield wiper problems, of the cardboard, Vegas vs Axis, vinyl woes, that there was no aftermarket support of the v10, and.found.this.forum....

It's why I take no excuses for
dinner date trumps black tank falling out...so I drove it home.

[Beau388]

If the dealer won't let you spend 36 to 48 hours in living in the coach before you agree to leave the delivery bay, find another dealer. Ask to see the Thor Dealer's delivery checklist for the coach, and note that all items listed were preformed (tire pressure, de-wintericing, plumbing leak checked, paint and fiberglass damage, etc). Remember you are buying a house, not a vehicle and the house that has to stand up to the equivalent of a 6.0 earthquake and a category 2 (Saffir-Simpson Scale) hurricane without damage.


In 6 years three things have been fixed in my coach: the electric part of the water failed (MHSRV fixed it while on a trip from TX to KY), LEDs in patio awning stated failing (Youngbloods RV replaced them while we waited in the coach) and the latching relay failed (Youngploods RV replaced it while we waited in the waiting room). Yes, we have changed many things to make the coach ours but none of the changes were because of shoddy construction or item failures.
There are great well built Thor MC coaches out there, and I am very happy to state I own one.

[Judge]

I just heard from the guy with the stuck slide. The RV Mobile Techs can’t get it back in because its so jacked up.

He is trying to find a way back home and will have to have it towed on a flat bed with the slide stuck out. Plus he’ll have to pay for the time it sits at the campground.

He is throwing in the towel and selling it. He is going to see if the dealer will buy it back as-is sibce dealers are desperate for inventory….. unless Thor will pay to have it towed from Florida to Wakarusa. No way will he trust a dealer to fix this type of problem… nor would I.

He’s also not sure if he can trust it once it’s repaired. I know how he feels because I won’t know if my front cap is fixed permanently until we take our long trip later this summer.

How would you like to be the unsuspecting person buying this used coach?

[Boerne RV]

There are several ways to get slides in.

Apply 12 volts, positive and ground to the black and red wires.

Either at the motor or the control box.

Remove the one screw that holds the motor in place and pop up the motor and push it in

a mobile RV tech should know how to get slides in.

[Boerne RV]

Worst case would be when you have a single gear rack at the top and there should be two on a full wall slide. And the rollers positions are not correct. And its a kitchen slide.

But unless there’s one of the plates that the roller should be under lodged up into the slide room floor, or down into the RV’s floor you should be able to get it in one way or another

[Judge]

Originally Posted by Boerne RV

There are several ways to get slides in.

Apply 12 volts, positive and ground to the black and red wires.

Either at the motor or the control box.

Remove the one screw that holds the motor in place and pop up the motor and push it in

a mobile RV tech should know how to get slides in.

LCI had him go through all of that but with a slide box 1/2” out of square something has failed and jammed the slide to the point they can’t use the motors while pushing it to get it in.

I’m assuming the RV Tech tried removing the motors as well.

They spent the entire day trying to get it in. A full wall slide is going to be a nightmare when something catastrophic happens.

[EA37TS]

That 4x4 option really helps with the slide doesn't it?

People will keep buying a POS because it is 4x4 and cool.

I've followed Thor's full wall slide issues, which are very well documented all over the internet for well over 7 years. Refused to buy a number of Class A models because of it and wouldn't buy a Magnitude because the full wall slide was the number 1 and overriding negative.

[Bob Denman]

I agree: a slide that problematic is a deal-killer.

[ducksface]

Originally Posted by Boerne RV

Worst case would be when you have a single gear rack at the top and there should be two on a full wall slide. And the rollers positions are not correct. And its a kitchen slide.

But unless there’s one of the plates that the roller should be under lodged up into the slide room floor, or down into the RV’s floor you should be able to get it in one way or another

Brilliant write-up.
Thanks for the effort and pictures.

[Bob Denman]

Kitchen slides mean plumbing connections that are another source of issues...

[kwplot34]

This is exactly why on our last 2 coaches I refuse to buy one with a full wall slide, the DW wanted a coach with a full wall slide in 2016 when we purchased a new one and I said NOPE not happening, and when we were looking at the Omni/Magnatude last year she wanted the full slide again and again I said not happening that's why we have the XG32. Now the kitchen on the XG32 is on a slide but one of the first things I did was gain access to all the wiring and plumbing in that slide to make sure nothing was binding, I did find under the dinette booth where the plumbing comes in that with the slide out the water pipes being pulled tight against frame work for the booth and cabinet, I promptly took care of that issue.
Still not happy that the kitchen is on the slide, but I do have to give into the wife a little bit on what she wants.

[Judge]

So i have some more information after talking with him again yesterday.......

The RV Mobile Tech was a very experienced guy and after hours he could not get the slide in past a certain point either. He even got on the phone to talk to some colleagues. They even tried lifting / jacking up the slide on side on one side to offset the binding. They spent hours on it until they finally had to give up.

When he woke up in the morning he decided to use the levelers to get the coach in such a position that it would change the way the weight and force was on the slide but actually moving the coach out of a level position. The first attempt he was unsucessful. When he readjsuted the position of the coach again so one side was signifciantly higher than the other he was able to get the slide past the bnding point and closed.

As we talked for a bit and we dicussed some of the poor design choices and whether he was going to have the coach fixed and keeping using it or sell it we started talkig about the front cap and cab-over.

I had him check his front cap and gave him the signs of the problem..... signs that screw heads were pushing again the molding, movement or gaps of the molding and missing or broken screws under the molding.

Unforutnately, his front cap and cab-over is failing like mine did as well. He has screw heads pushing through and the molding has broken free and there are gaps and signs of screw issues.

Here is the real kick in the groin in this story....... the guy's wife is terminally ill. He bought the coach last year so they could make some memories...... good ones and aggrevating ones. He doesn't have months of time to wait to get the coach into Wakarusa and fixed. If he wants to try and travel with her while she can, he has to cut his loses and sell it and move on.

It's a shame because we both agreed the Magnitude checked off almost every box to meet each our needs and it is a great looking coach.

I really feel bad for the guy..... the whole thing made me very sad...... and angry. I still stand by my earlier comment in this thread and several others and I don't care how others try to rationalize its ok because this is just the what the industry is.... and a good PDI is the be all - end all to not having problems.

Me and this guy are fine doing dozens of general repairs, maintenance and upgrades. We like to tinker and know that some number of repairs and maintenance go with the territory. Personally I like the satisfaction of doing it myself and my workmanship is better than any dealer or Thor 99% of the time.

What is unacceptable is major system / component failures due to quality and workmanship issues. I asked the question earlier how much do you have to spend until you can stop looking over your shoulder waiting for a major failure. I'm sorry but if you spend anything over 6 figures you should be able to use the coach and not worry about it failing...... or losing use of the coach for 3 months or more (plenty of stories of people losing their new coach for ~9 months waiting on repairs).

Before the posts start flying against me..... I know.... I know.... there are plenty of people who buy a coach and have no issues or the only thing wrong was one loose screw. Yes.... this is true.

But is is also true that plenty of people have had major issues. It's not even the 80 / 20 rule in terms of quality. Buying a solid coach for $150K - $200K should not be like playing Russian Roulette.... sorry just my opinion.

[Judge]

Here is my advise to anyone with an Omni / Magnitude or looking to prurchase a used Omni / Magnitude.... for what its worth.

Be sure to inspect the front cap molding on the driver and passenger side regularly. Look for the following signs that your coach has an issue with how the front cap was mounted during the assembly process:

- Look for signs that screw heads are pushing against the molding causing it to buldge in places.

- Look for signs the molding sealant has broken.

- Look for signs the molding is lifting in places or has moved (you will see the unpainted surface the molding was covering).

- While leveling the coach, have someone watch the driver and passenger side moding to make sure it is not lifting or moving when the coach is being leveled when the body is flexing.

- If the molding is loose or moving, look for broken screws or holes indicating screws are missing.

If you see any of these issues, I would report them to Thor and have the coach inspected by Thor and not the dealer. I would also have the Service Center in Wakarusa do the repairs; unless Thor sends one of their techs to your dealer to do the repair.

From my perspective this is a structural issue so the repair should be covered by the 5-Year Structural Warranty for the 2020's and the 12-Year Structural Warranty for the 2021 and newer coaches.

If you are purchasing a used Omni / Magnitude, I would ask the dealer to put it in writing that any front cap mounting issues as I described will be covered under the Thor structural warranty. If they won't verify that in writing, I would walk away from then deal.

Several people I have talked to with the Omni / Magnitude now have seen signs of this problem as well as some people who had the Chauteau Super C. I'm not saying you are guaranteed to experience this issue but you should keep a watchful eye on it in case it does happen.

[ducksface]

I typed most of this yesterday and then decided to erase it. All I've added today is what addesses the fix that fixed it.

The guy with the full slide problem is traveling with an uninitiated son(I THINK read that, but no matter, anyone could make the mistake). Closing that slide onto a chair, a garbage can, or without something folded up that should have been, could have absolutely positively cause this problem. Just thought we'd look at a different side of it.
It's still a full slide.
I still wouldn't have a full slide but this could very very very easily have been operator error by a novice.

Just a consideration.

And
Some people are self employed because no one else will have them. The 'mobile expert' who missed the obvious seems to be one of these.


The above was yesterday, below is today.



Lets get a bit of life experience involved:
If upon trying to install/reinstall a window screen frame on your house or chicken coop or rv you find it is racked, the first thing you do is UNRACK IT.
ANYONE would apply this to that slide situation.

So much for that
'Thor built it 1/2 inch out of square'
Theory.

He putting the slide out/in on an unleveled coach
Or some variation
Could also have done it.
We ALL know this.

Many prior operations of the slide kinda negates the whole:
1/2"
Thor is crap
caused this
reasoning.

Think rationally
No emotionally.

Experience says your guy goofed up. Him unracking the slide with the levelers is a high percentage of proof.
But
There is no excuse for that cap.
Except
You couldn't GIVE me a cut and paste class c if I had to use it.
How the whole world doesn't see them as the HUGE compromise to cost they are...I do not know.
It's screws and glue to VERY dissimilar materials. It is literally, nothing else.