new Gemini and questions

[AJMike]

It is common to have cracks in the lap sealant at that interface; it is NOT common for a complete separation.

In your conversation with Thor you might ask if they's reimburse you for the supplies (I doubt they'll pay for YOUR labor). If they balk, tell them you want authorization for a mobile tech to repair it. They usually go for that.

Thank you for the suggestion. I will take some photos tomorrow to send to Thor if they wish and post them here as well. I do like the idea of a mobile tech because driving the RV the 60 miles with the partial separation is just going to cause more damage.

 

[AJMike]

Here are some photos that I took this morning. The separation is along a length of perhaps 8 inches to 1 foot. At first look it appears to be properly secured but when you look closely you can see that it has separated from the facia that is supposed to hold it down.

I am sure that when the RV is in motion the wind gets under the covering and lifts it up further, doing even more damage.

 

[A Smith]

We just completed the purchase of a new Gemini 24KB and went out on a shakedown cruise. I wanted to share some comments and ask some questions of other Gemini or Compass users (or anyone else who might know the answer) because some things puzzle me.

This Gemini, maybe all of them, is on a Ford Transit chassis (2024 in this case) with a 6 cylinder gas engine. It behaved very well during the drive to one of our favorite boon docking locations and we have just been enjoying our stop. This is our second Thor. The first was a Four Winds model which was the first RV that we bought, perhaps 22 or 23 years ago, and this is much, much nicer than that one was.

So far I really like this Gemini. The generator is remarkably quiet when running, the inside cabinets are pretty and plentiful, the ride is nice even though the gas mileage seems to be terrible. I have yet to fit it up but the info display is showing me about 10 mpg which seems pretty low for a B+ RV. Perhaps the display is wrong or perhaps it will improve with use.

The Transit has the large info display on the dash and the guy who took us through the orientation could not explain how to turn off the display. There is no power-off button that I can find and the manual says to press the "calm" button, but when I did this the screen did not shut down and only eventually timed out after perhaps 10 minutes. Is there a way to actually shut down the display?

Qw live in southern Arizona so air conditioning is essential from June through September (and sometimes October) and the dash air on the Transit worked just fine, but I have been unable to find any way to adjust the AC fan speed. I guess I should download the manual from Ford but perhaps someone can tell me how to adjust that until I can get to a place to do the download.

Thor Customer Support told me that the generator in the Gemini uses gasoline rather than propane, which is a shame as it drains fuel and effectively lowers our gas mileage, but I am puzzled by Thor's decision to install a large LP tank in an RV that apparently only uses propane for the 2 stovetop burners. I would think that a tank of propane might last several years if that is its only use. The generator is a 2 fuel version which can be set up to use either gasoline or propane and I do wonder if it can be changed over from gasoline to use propane by some competent repair shop.

Thanks for listening.

On our 2022 Vegas 24.3 with Ford Transit base: the large display randomly turns on with no reason when the vehicle is off. Strange and drains the batteries! Anyhow, we are able to TURN OFF THE DISPLAY by clicking on the time on the top left of the display and the option to power off is available.
I hope this helps you.

 

[AJMike]

On our 2022 Vegas 24.3 with Ford Transit base: the large display randomly turns on with no reason when the vehicle is off. Strange and drains the batteries! Anyhow, we are able to TURN OFF THE DISPLAY by clicking on the time on the top left of the display and the option to power off is available.
I hope this helps you.

Thank you. I will check that out.

 

[16ACE27]

On our 2022 Vegas 24.3 with Ford Transit base:

The Vegas is NOT built on a Transit chassis.

 

[AJMike]

The Vegas is NOT built on a Transit chassis.

Yes, but the software for the display may be the same. I don't know that it is, but it does seem worth checking out.

 

[16ACE27]

Yes, but the software for the display may be the same. I don't know that it is, but it does seem worth checking out.

You said you had the Ford OEM infotainment system.
A Vegas has no Ford OEM anything in the dash as it is a Class A on an E350/E450 chassis. The dash is all Thor built.
A Smith likely has an aftermarket Axerra radio system.

 

[AJMike]

You said you had the Ford OEM infotainment system.
A Vegas has no Ford OEM anything in the dash as it is a Class A on an E350/E450 chassis. The dash is all Thor built.
A Smith likely has an aftermarket Axerra radio system.

Yes. I have the Ford transit and I assume the info system is Ford as well. But isn't the E350/E450 chassis for the Axis/Vegas also Ford? Why would that display not also be from Ford?

I drove the Axis before we bought the Gemini and the displays both seemed to be the same to me. Granted I did not do a deep check on the Axis info system display but the hardware seemed the same and the display seemed to be the same as well.

I don't really know so I am not making some claim, but I don't see the harm in checking.

 

[Scubawise]

3RD PARTY ADD-ONS

Our Gemini came with only a single AGM battery, a single 100 watt solar panel and no inverter and I plan to upgrade all of that. I am getting estimates for 400 watts of solar, 200AH-300AH of lithium batteries and a 2000 watt inverter but I would like all of the added stuff to show up in the control panel like it would if it were all installed by Thor.

Has anyone added any of these things to their Gemini/Compass after purchase? And, if so, was there anything special that had to be done to get the add-ons to show up in the tablet control panel? While I trust the people who will be doing this to know what they are doing that does not mean that they are knowledgeable enough about the Gemini/Compass setup to insure that all of the new stuff will show up in the control display.

What has been people's experience when doing this kind of thing? Is there anything special to be done?

Since you have 1 battery:
Sold my 2 AGM in 1 day
Right now 300 ah lithium $328.
10 year warranty with battery display
Fast delivery

 

[AJMike]

How did you sell your AGM? Online? Locally? And does your new battery show up properly in the tablet display?

I did see similar batteries on Amazon and almost ordered the Redodo large capacity battery, but instead I ordered 2 140AH group 31 batteries since I did not want to mount a single large battery in the back storage area. I worried about other stuff stored there moving around and smacking into and damaging the battery and I also worried a bit about how hot it would get back there. Perhaps those are unnecessary concerns but living in southern Arizona means that the inside of those outside storage compartments gets very, very hot.

These 2 group 31 batteries should fit directly into the battery compartment under the stairs and I hope that the exposure to the air will keep them relatively cool when the vehicle is in motion.

 

[16ACE27]

A Vegas has no Ford OEM anything in the dash as it is a Class A on an E350/E450 chassis. The dash is all Thor built.

Why would that display not also be from Ford?

Already answered.

You have a Class C. The cab was built by Ford. It's a Transit Van
The Axis/Vegas is a Class A. The cab is built by Thor on am E350/450 CHASSIS.

But isn't the E350/E450 chassis for the Axis/Vegas also Ford?

So are F series trucks but they are not even built in the same location.

 

[John & Diane]

ROOF SEPARATION?

I climbed up on to the roof today to change the SIM in the Winegard to my carrier and found that the roof covering (which feels like plastic) had separated from the metal above the top center of the windshield. So driving it is allowing wind to get under the small separated section which I assume will just cause a wider separation. I should have taken a photo to post but forgot to do so.

Is this common? And what is the best solution for it? The coach is less than 2 weeks old so this is surely covered by the warranty but the dealer's service department is 60 miles away and the drive there will just make it worse.

It seems easy to just put down a 12 inch piece of duct tape to prevent any further damage until it is fixed but I assume taking the tape off will cause further damage to the covering and I can just hear the service people talking about how I just voided the roof warranty. There are local service places nearby that could probably also fix this but I have no idea of the cost if I don't take it in for warranty work.

Any suggestions?

Your 2026 should be covered by the warranty. Let Thor fix it!

 

[AJMike]

Your 2026 should be covered by the warranty. Let Thor fix it!

Yes, but the problem is that the dealer's service shop is 60 miles away and driving with the roofing material separated from the wooden roof is just going to cause more damage.

I have asked Thor to authorize a local shop to do the work.

 

[AJMike]

In your conversation with Thor you might ask if they's reimburse you for the supplies (I doubt they'll pay for YOUR labor). If they balk, tell them you want authorization for a mobile tech to repair it. They usually go for that.

Just wanted to mention that I took your advice. Took some photos and sent them to Thor for review. While it took quite some time they finally approved my having the work done locally and reimbursing me, so thank you for the suggestion.

 

[16ACE27]

Just wanted to mention that I took your advice. Took some photos and sent them to Thor for review. While it took quite some time they finally approved my having the work done locally and reimbursing me, so thank you for the suggestion.

 

[roy stone]

Regarding the use of propane, what, if not propane, is used for fuel for your furnace?

 

[16ACE27]

Regarding the use of propane, what, if not propane, is used for fuel for your furnace?

Some diesel RVs have systems that use diesel for the furnace and water heater systems. Otherwise we use an electric heater to supplement the furnace if plugged into SP.

 

[roy stone]

The response was to the comment Why have a propane tank for a two-burner stove

 

[16ACE27]

The response was to the comment Why have a propane tank for a two-burner stove

Then why did you ask about a FURNACE?

 

[roy stone]

I didn't ask about a furnace. The comment was to the person who wanted to know why a large propane tank when it would only be used to supply fuel to a two burner stove. My question was to him, what did the furnace in his RV use for fuel?