2018 Isata 3 - 1900 mile journey completed

[Mikemdd]

Hi All. We just completed a 1900+ mile journey in our new Isata 3. Drove from Chicago to our Lake House in N. Idaho. Took 5 days, including one rest day. Key statistics:
- Drove an average of 450 to 500 miles each day, other than the rest day
- Driving west, we had REALLY strong headwinds ALL THE WAY! Montana had rediculous headwinds that were around 30 mph. Averaged 54 miles per hour (driving), normally driving around 60 - 63 mph.
- Averaged 12.5 mpg. Without headwinds, we were getting around 13.7 mpg

Happy to say that the suspension mods worked great with almost zero lean in winds or when being passed by trucks. The wind definitely affected tracking and attention was needed all the time.

We had ZERO issues with anything. Everything worked perfectly....slide out, refrigerator, A/C, Convection oven, Heater, auto levelers, TV (when you could get over the air stations, which was not often), shower, water pump, hot water heater, head, etc. Went through some pretty violent storms...lots of wind and rain. Zero leaks. New tire monitoring system worked perfectly. Added metal valve stems (6") on the inner duels (Alcoa wheels). Starting pressures of 65 psi (61 spec on the door jam), going to around 72 psi when underway with temps all normal. Did not have a chance to weight but pretty sure I was AT the max weight.

The only thing of note was that the slide out does a lot of creaking and groaning when going slow entering parking lots and fueling stations, especially while turning. Not sure if anyone else has the same situation or if there is anything I can do to quiet it down.

My wife and I traded driving and I'm happy to say the new Isata 3 worked great. Happy to be at the Lake for the summer! Plan to take a few side trips when not on the Lake. Cheers!

[xgarys]

Originally Posted by Mikemdd

Hi All. We just completed a 1900+ mile journey in our new Isata 3. Drove from Chicago to our Lake House in N. Idaho. Took 5 days, including one rest day. Key statistics:

- Drove an average of 450 to 500 miles each day, other than the rest day

- Driving west, we had REALLY strong headwinds ALL THE WAY! Montana had rediculous headwinds that were around 30 mph. Averaged 54 miles per hour (driving), normally driving around 60 - 63 mph.

- Averaged 12.5 mpg. Without headwinds, we were getting around 13.7 mpg



Happy to say that the suspension mods worked great with almost zero lean in winds or when being passed by trucks. The wind definitely affected tracking and attention was needed all the time.



We had ZERO issues with anything. Everything worked perfectly....slide out, refrigerator, A/C, Convection oven, Heater, auto levelers, TV (when you could get over the air stations, which was not often), shower, water pump, hot water heater, head, etc. Went through some pretty violent storms...lots of wind and rain. Zero leaks. New tire monitoring system worked perfectly. Added metal valve stems (6") on the inner duels (Alcoa wheels). Starting pressures of 65 psi (61 spec on the door jam), going to around 72 psi when underway with temps all normal. Did not have a chance to weight but pretty sure I was AT the max weight.



The only thing of note was that the slide out does a lot of creaking and groaning when going slow entering parking lots and fueling stations, especially while turning. Not sure if anyone else has the same situation or if there is anything I can do to quiet it down.



My wife and I traded driving and I'm happy to say the new Isata 3 worked great. Happy to be at the Lake for the summer! Plan to take a few side trips when not on the Lake. Cheers!

Thank you and I’m very happy for you. After eight or so months on this forum reading about how terrible Isata 3s are (and every other RV ever produced) it is refreshing to hear that buying one is not the end of our retirement financial world. I’m glad that you had a trouble free trip and am looking forward to the same for us. Again, thanks for refreshing my perspective.

[Barch]

After doing the tour with Jared. I picked up my new Isata 3 FW in Grand Rapids on 5/19. Got off to a slow start. The power converter had been installed with the polarity reversed. All the fuses were blown. This was apparently missed by the factory inspection as well the PDI. Dealer reversed the wiring and replaced the fuses. Also, the Kenwood monitor system had been installed with the necessary USB dongles left behind the dash. The dealer had to tear out the dash and exposed the dongles so the unit could function. Other minor problems I won't go into. Overall experience with the Grand Rapids dealer was excellent.
Finally got on the road after a couple days delay. Drove a total of 2,600 miles home. Now the good news. We had a great trip. The coach handles very well. No significant sway whatsoever. Corners well without undo lean. Handles pot holes nicely. The only criticism I have of the suspension is that the rear wheels do not handle the small 'cross the road' expansion cracks that are either over or under filled with tar that occur every 20-30' and are on just about every secondary road in Michigan and Minnesota. The entire coach shutters over every crack. If there is a solution for this, I would gladly pay for it. Seems like the shocks are almost too stiff for the small stuff yet handle the larger pot holes fine. Any suggestions?
Other systems were all a go. I am sure we were at or near CCC. Averaged at or near 15mpg. Mostly driving 60-65. Slower over the "cracks".
The furnace, AC, hot water heater, slide and levelers all work as advertised. The three ceiling fans are the best fans I have ever seen.
Disappointments: The Mercedes cab is very generic. Lots of cubby holes but not very refined. No bells or whistles. Kind of like a UHaul Rental truck. The bedside outlets are not on the inverter. You have to run an extension cord from the TV to use CPAP. The sewer connection is a full 9" back under the coach. You have to get on your hands and knees to use it. The sewer pipe storage is only 40" long and 4" in diameter. Good luck using that.
Be glad to entertain any questions. Overall very happy with the unit except for the suspension road expansion crack issue which I hope to rectify.

[Mikemdd]

Originally Posted by Barch

After doing the tour with Jared. I picked up my new Isata 3 FW in Grand Rapids on 5/19. Got off to a slow start. The power converter had been installed with the polarity reversed. All the fuses were blown. This was apparently missed by the factory inspection as well the PDI. Dealer reversed the wiring and replaced the fuses. Also, the Kenwood monitor system had been installed with the necessary USB dongles left behind the dash. The dealer had to tear out the dash and exposed the dongles so the unit could function. Other minor problems I won't go into. Overall experience with the Grand Rapids dealer was excellent.
Finally got on the road after a couple days delay. Drove a total of 2,600 miles home. Now the good news. We had a great trip. The coach handles very well. No significant sway whatsoever. Corners well without undo lean. Handles pot holes nicely. The only criticism I have of the suspension is that the rear wheels do not handle the small 'cross the road' expansion cracks that are either over or under filled with tar that occur every 20-30' and are on just about every secondary road in Michigan and Minnesota. The entire coach shutters over every crack. If there is a solution for this, I would gladly pay for it. Seems like the shocks are almost too stiff for the small stuff yet handle the larger pot holes fine. Any suggestions?
Other systems were all a go. I am sure we were at or near CCC. Averaged at or near 15mpg. Mostly driving 60-65. Slower over the "cracks".
The furnace, AC, hot water heater, slide and levelers all work as advertised. The three ceiling fans are the best fans I have ever seen.
Disappointments: The Mercedes cab is very generic. Lots of cubby holes but not very refined. No bells or whistles. Kind of like a UHaul Rental truck. The bedside outlets are not on the inverter. You have to run an extension cord from the TV to use CPAP. The sewer connection is a full 9" back under the coach. You have to get on your hands and knees to use it. The sewer pipe storage is only 40" long and 4" in diameter. Good luck using that.
Be glad to entertain any questions. Overall very happy with the unit except for the suspension road expansion crack issue which I hope to rectify.

Your summary is spot on with my observations. I installed Sumo Springs and it really helped the ride quality over the stock suspension. On normal highway roads, it is like air suspension....zero rattles and quiet. However, the expansion joints are very harsh. I'm working to find a solution for that also. Just curious if you also experience some creaking and groaning of the slide out/body when slowly going over gutters at an angle, as when entering a gas station or parking lot. Not much if any lean, but kind of noisy until the rear wheels clear the gutter dip. I also agree with your description of the cab...VERY BASIC for sure.

[Barch]

I didn't specifically notice the slide making any noise when the coach was rocking, but I will listen for it. Tire pressure. I started out at 65 psi. I dropped to the recommended 61psi to hopefully mitigate the expansion crack issue. No appreciable change so I dropped to 56 psi for the last half of the trip. Maybe slightly better, but every expansion crack was still felt way more than it should be. It seems that when the road curves and the rear tires cross the cracks at slightly different times it is better, but when all four tires hit the crack at once, BOOM!

[Mikemdd]

I'm thinking the creaking and groaning from the slide out may be the body twisting and the rollers on the bottom needing some lubrication. With regards to tire pressure, I would suggest some caution lowering below the recommended 61 psi. I run mine around 65 cold. We are near the CCC so you enter a danger zone for under inflated tires below that. Tire pressures are really important to me, so I would suggest making sure all valve stems are metal followed by adding a TPMS system. I have Alocoa's that have metal valve stems, but the inner duels are steel with rubber. I check pressures and temperatures every few hours and first thing in the morning when driving.

[Barch]

Let me know if you come up with a solution for the expansion joint issue. What about adjustable Bilstein's or air bags? I don't know what model of Bilstein's come with the Isata 3. Thanks.

[Barch]

Here are the measurements:

[ferrisjc]

Haven't taken the long journey yet. A shakedown plus a few other close by ventures but nothing farther than a 100 miles away from home station. We plan on a trip from AZ to Minneapolis later this summer. A few things though have been bothersome (minor things won't mention either) but the leak under refrigerator when kitchen sink drains from washing dishes is going into shop tomorrow. Another pain but this maybe a head space problem on my side. I have to pull then reset the satellite fuse #3 to get the satellite antenna to start up and find signal whenever power is removed from the rig. The only way I can workaround this is to keep the Inverter running all the time with the satellite panel switches on. I have heard that Dynamax installers occasionally mess up the wiring to white panel Satellite on/off switch. So I will have the shop look this over as well. They initially didn't even have the fuse in the spare mount so it must have gone through a rigorous factory and dealer inspection.



Why they didn't put rubber protectors on the slide out panel below the theater seats (on my rv) I will never know because that needs to get fixed as well. Our pet Lhasa Apso can even scuff the paint off without effort when jumping up to the theater seats.


I agree on the creaking noise when pulling into a gas station or other slow turn requirement. I keep the PSI at 66lbs and can't help but notice the louder than desired noise when going over those expansion glides or large cracks in road. Try driving Oracle road in Tucson near the mall if you want a bread truck experience. Diesel mpg has been good say 13.9 to 14.4 average but it has been lower here in AZ based on elevation certainly at times.



Still after what I have mentioned I am very happy with the 2018 Dynamax Isata 3 FM. I purchased it with nearly every option that Dynamax offers. The options I went with have been fantastic.



I keep a rubber mat in the outside shower storage to put the flex tube on when getting down on hands and knees. I agree with others on that. One thing that Dynamax definitely needs to listen too from folks is the 1990's flex tube holder they have installed. Replace with something that can handle the five inch lock down sleeves.



Once returned from shop I hope to take a few more shakedowns prior to Minnesota but will let you know.



Thanks for sharing!!!


2018 Dynamax Isata 3//April 2018

[caswelld]

Has anyone found a good place to mount the TPMS receiver in the cab? My mounting bracket sticks out nearly 4”.

[Mikemdd]

Originally Posted by caswelld

Has anyone found a good place to mount the TPMS receiver in the cab? My mounting bracket sticks out nearly 4”.

I put velcro on mine and mounted it on a flat spot on the front of the dash. USB charger plugs in for full time charging. Out of the way but you can always see it.

[caswelld]

Originally Posted by Mikemdd

I put velcro on mine and mounted it on a flat spot on the front of the dash. USB charger plugs in for full time charging. Out of the way but you can always see it.

Velcro....good idea! Thanks.

[Mikemdd]

Originally Posted by caswelld

Velcro....good idea! Thanks.

Here is a picture of what I did.