Need help with bed above driver seats.

[WearyTraveler]

Help! The first time we used the over seat bed it won’t go up evenly. Just 2 small children less than 130 pounds. It’s getting worse on the drivers side. I tried holding that side up and running it down but both sides still lower. We can’t lower all the way because the under bed cabinetry hits the RV dashboard.
2017 THOR Outlaw 38RE. We’re supposed to check out today. I’m going to see if the park mgmt have anyone that can help.
Im going to post this several places hoping for an answer. Thank you!

[crey0517]

Good Morning - we have the same model as you... do you have a shelf hanging off the passenger side of the bed hitting on the antenna controller? Also, the bed doesn't have much "umpf" when closing - we take everything out of the bed that would press on the ceiling when closing the bed - if not it will not close. As far as hitting the dash, ours is a hair's width from the dash when closed, but doesn't actually touch... Safe Travels -

[16ACE27]

Your motors are grossly out of sync. The sleeping bags on the mattress may not be helping. Whenever you raise or lower the bed you need to hold the switch for a good 5 seconds after it stops moving to keep the motors synchronized.

For now I would get an appropriate length 2x4 to use under the drivers side of the bed to stop downward movement and lower the bed until it stops. The passenger side motor should continue for a second or 2 after the driver side motor stops. You may have to go through several cycles to get the bed level. Once level you should be able to raise it fully.

If this doesn't work you may have a motor problem and may need to move the bed manually by disconnecting the motors from the controller.

[wrapped]

It looks like the track cover on driver side it popped out ,when lowering the bed they move down also, don't let them hit the driver passenger seat backs or flipped up arm rest,don't ask how I know.

[Raeburn2000]

As previous posts have said, the bunk motors stop with even a small amount of resistance. We had a thick comforter on the bed and that was enough to stop it. Once the mattress is clear, just press up and hold for an extra 5-10 seconds after it fully reaches the top. That should resync the alignment.

[WearyTraveler]

Thanks everyone for the help and suggestions! I put all the seats down and lowered the bed. It creaked and creaked, then stopped. Wouldn’t go up or down. I remembered about the reset 6 pushes and a 7th hold). Once I did that I was able to raise it. I raised and lowered a couple of times and it finally became straight! Woo who! Our trip was almost ruined!

During this cluster, I called FMCA to see about roadside assistance. Their response was that my policy doesn’t cover mobile mechanic! They’d tow me, but no mobile mechanic. That sucks! I’m going to have to call later and verify when I get home later.

Again - thanks all for the help and comments!

[EA37TS]

Originally Posted by WearyTraveler

Thanks everyone for the help and suggestions! I put all the seats down and lowered the bed. It creaked and creaked, then stopped. Wouldn’t go up or down. I remembered about the reset 6 pushes and a 7th hold). Once I did that I was able to raise it. I raised and lowered a couple of times and it finally became straight! Woo who! Our trip was almost ruined!

During this cluster, I called FMCA to see about roadside assistance. Their response was that my policy doesn’t cover mobile mechanic! They’d tow me, but no mobile mechanic. That sucks! I’m going to have to call later and verify when I get home later.

Again - thanks all for the help and comments!

One thing to keep in mind is the overhead bunk is not part of the chassis and wouldn't be covered by roadside assistance. Pretty sure you'll find that to be the case in all roadside assistance plans. Mobile techs and mechanics are generally covered under warranties or extended service agreements. Some warranties and ESA will allow a mobile tech and others won't.

[Blackbeard11]

Also remember to level your coach before using the bunk. Never driver without putting in the pins to hold it up. We have made both these mistakes. I thought we could quickly drive down to the dump site in the campground without putting the pins in and it slowly slid down unevenly and had to be resinked. Safe travels.

[valkosr]

Don't forget to insert the pins once it is all the way up. Otherwise, as I found out, it will slowly lower as you drive down the road.

[bevedfelker]

As Ted said in his post -- your motors were grossly out of sync. Now that you were able to get them in sync, here's some advice to keep them that way:

1 - Never, Ever, Ever -- lower the bunk part way. Always be sure when you operate the bunk make it go full travel and hold the switch for a few seconds after the bunk stops. Do the same thing when raising it. By keeping the switch depressed after the motors stop you ensure the motors stay in sync.

2 - When lowering the bunk, be sure that the seats are laid back because if they aren't the bunk will hit them and not go full travel. That will then increase the odds of the bunk motors going out of syn again.

3 - Do not leave sleeping bags, pillows, mattress pad, etc on the bunk when you raise. Compressing these items between the bunk and the roof will again limit the bunk going full travel when raising it.

4 - Be sure to put the safety pins in on both sides of the bunk when it is raised. The safety pins will keep the bunk from slipping down and again going out of full travel.

[Beau388]

Originally Posted by Blackbeard11

Also remember to level your coach before using the bunk. Never driver without putting in the pins to hold it up. We have made both these mistakes. I thought we could quickly drive down to the dump site in the campground without putting the pins in and it slowly slid down unevenly and had to be resinked. Safe travels.

[WearyTraveler]

Thank you all again for the help!

[WearyTraveler]

I wanted to thank you all again for the help. Here’s a picture of how bad it ended up!