Questions for all Solera M owners???

[butch50]

I presently have a Northern Lite slide in truck camper that my wife and I have decided is to hard for us old folks to use after over 2 months on the road, so we are looking to replace it a MH.

We really like the M model of the Solera but have seen a lot of comments on folks having trouble with the beds. I know that the only ones you hear about are the problem ones, well here is your chance if you have one with no problems to respond and let me know that you are prefectly happy with it and no problems.

I would like all M owners to respond if you have this model and have no problems please let me know?

If you are an owner and are/have had problems with the murphy bed please let me know? Also how serious was the problem and was the dealer able to fix it in a timely manner without you being without the camper for weeks/months? When you had the problem did it happen on the road and were you able to continue your trip or did you have to delay it while you wanted for repairs.

If the bed gets stuck in the down position are you able to manually raise it so you can get the slide in and get on down the road to a RV repair location???

Last but not least would you buy the M model again if you had the chance knowing what you know now?

If you are not having any problems please make sure you respond so I don't just get the bad info and that is all.

Thanks all for any and all responses,

Butch

[Taylorgso]

Hi, Butch:
We took delivery of our 24M in January. Noticed that lowering the bed, it would only move a foot or so at the time. Noticed problem after we got home. It still worked by haltingly. Took coach back to dealer for fix, plus some other problems and left it there overnight. Technician said motors were out of phase. He apparently "rephased" them and now works flawlessly. When raising/lowering the bed, I do try to take some of the weight off to relieve some of the stress on the motors.

I've been briefed on manual procedure. This involves removing headboard to access the motors. Disengage the motors to manually lift bed, then reconnect motors to keep it in stored position while traveling. Need tools for this (I think all RVers learned quickly to ALWAYS have a tool kit on board!

Would I buy the same coach again? Without a doubt. We downsized from a 38' DP to the Solera. Now rarely pull the toad, although the Solera is set up for it! We've had no fit/finish problems, and I've done several mods to make camping more enjoyable (See recent thread started by DebbieMH).

Best advice... remember you don't own it until you drive it off the dealer's lot, so do a thorough PDI and don't take delivery until EVERYTHING is working like it should. And don't accept any shortcuts during the PDI... make them demonstrate everything to make sure it works.

Hope this answers some of your concerns.

Ed

[aspengirl]

We purchased our Solera 24M a little over a year ago, and so far all is well. The bed works very well for us, no problems raising or lowering it, and yes, we would buy this model again!!

[sjudd]

Bought our 24MS in October 2012. Noticed clicking upon purchase but dealer said that it was normal. I have had it in the shop 5 times since then to repair/rebuild bed without success to date. Forest River is very accommodating, but it is very frustrating.

[Taylorgso]

Originally Posted by sjudd

Bought our 24MS in October 2012. Noticed clicking upon purchase but dealer said that it was normal. I have had it in the shop 5 times since then to repair/rebuild bed without success to date. Forest River is very accommodating, but it is very frustrating.

Dealer said it was normal, huh? Was that the salesman talking? or the Service Manager? Salesmen, knowing that it's not yours until you drive off the lot, and they don't get paid 'til you do, will tell you anything. This is not just true with RV salesmen - it's universal! Most Service managers - if they're not swamped with private pay business, will eagerly do warranty work; they may get paid less, but it's better than no work at all. And the service department is a BIG profit center.

Anyone considering a new RV: if something doesn't look right or sound right, STOP! Check out the same feature on another coach - if they don't have another, check with owners on the forums. If you're lucky enough to find one with no problems during PDI, you're indeed fortunate.

My $.02 worth - discounted this week for $.01

[Don Wills]

I had to have my lifter re-built after it stuck half way up (just enough to get the slide in). It had the clicking sound at delivery - dealer said that was normal. Bzzt. Not. Took it out of service for a couple of months while being repaired.

I really believe FR should just make the Murphy bed be manually operated. Cost would be less, it wouldn't break, and customer satisfaction would be much better.

[Taylorgso]

Originally Posted by Don Wills

I had to have my lifter re-built after it stuck half way up (just enough to get the slide in). It had the clicking sound at delivery - dealer said that was normal. Bzzt. Not. Took it out of service for a couple of months while being repaired.

I really believe FR should just make the Murphy bed be manually operated. Cost would be less, it wouldn't break, and customer satisfaction would be much better.

Interesting idea. Don't know how they would get it out of the well, though. Even if motor was needed to get it out of the well, it could be manual from that point on, with a set of really good pressure cylinders. Downside would be some people may not be strong enough/tall enough/agile enough to manage it. In this day and age, everyone wants everything to be automatic!

[bclemens]

We've looked at a manual option...problem being the bed drops down into that well like you said. Engineers are still looking at it. There are some really easy to use manual ones, but the bed may need to shorten up to use them.

We've working on a couple of different options as well. Just to keep things new and exciting. Hope to have more info in September.

[Petemoss]

My 24m in the shop 2 months today with no eta on parts. Buyer beware.

[bclemens]

PM me your VIN and dealer. Something doesn't sound right about that.

[bclemens]

Our warranty department had a request on June 25th to authorize the repair. We did that and have heard nothing since.