We routinely have our generator serviced between trips. When we set out on our last trip it would not start and had an error code. When we returned home we took it in for a delayed front end AC repair and to have the generator checked out. Per the mechanic he has tried several things and cannot get it to work. He thinks it needs to be replaced.
Problem per him and Camping world - they are hard to get.
DH is checking with the mechanic to find out how long it will take to get a replacement. Otherwise, we are considering upending our trip and visiting Elkhart at the start of the trip. If it is something that can be replaced there.
Any recent Thor ACE owners faced with the same issue?
Take a deep breath. You came to this forum for a reason. Follow your instinct, listen to what it is being said, don't assume your mechanic or Camping World is right.
Not to agitate, but the questions are to get more insight, the better the information the better your answers. Think being at Doctor's office to diagnose pain in a shoulder, the number of question may seem irrelevant to you, but for the experts all the answers helps with a better diagnosis.
When I 1st read your thread, I wondered why you would routinely have your generator serviced in between trips? What type of service was done in between these trips?
The 2nd thing is you did not say what model Onan, how old is it, and how many hours?
The 3rd thing was when it was being serviced, have you been using different mechanics each time? 4 Chefs are asked to make a Lemon Frosted Chocolate cake and you get 4 different ways of baking the cake.
My comments and views.
A properly serviced Onan will never have any issues. Other than brand new they only need service once ever 150 hours of usage. I service mine once a year, but that is on a convenient schedule for me.
Onan extended my warranty out additional 2 years just because I had an Onan Authorized Dealer install my Onan EC-30 AGS. I have spoken with Onan Engineering and they insist the #1 issue or cause of failures in Onan Generator is lack of use. I run mine for every possible thing I can think of and still can only get about 120 hours / year. i.e. in the summer I drive with my Genny running.
Please follow the advice above. Call Onan directly, tell them your story, they will direct you to Authorized dealer.
I for one would love to know what Onan says. I can almost guarantee you that they will NOT say it needs to replaced if it has been properly serviced as you suggest. They make the things, and would love for you to buy another one, but your genny is an Engineering wonder. They will run test to find out exactly why it does not start and get that fixed.
When fixed you can take the $8k - $9k that you may save and buy something else that you and your family would enjoy.