New owners of 2017 SunSeeker MBS 2400W!

[LoveLife7478]

Originally Posted by davec2

Just put sumos front and back on our 2017 2400w. The first thing I noticed was that violent sway when you take a driveway a little too fast is now gone. Ride is firmer. Feels good. We are going from Ohio to the Outer Banks this weekend so we will see how it goes. We have Heliwig as well. Also just did a rotation and balance at our local MB dealer. This also made a noticeable improvement.

OBX is great. We stay in Rodanthe at camp hatteras beautiful location and flat level concrete pads. Where do you stay there?
I have both front and rear sumo bump stops and getting ready to install the super springs helper springs and alignment. I have also installed Koni FSR shocks in rear. Better but not where I like it yet. Still a lot of sway.

[mijeus]

So, I am new to motorhomes, just recently brought home our 2018 Forest River Sunseeker 2400W MBS....AND new to forums.

I have seen some posts/comments where posts have not been put on the correct thread, but don't really see what constitutes a correct, or incorrect, thread. :e My disclaimer is that I don't know better.....:-)

So we took our MH out for a shakedown cruise, and quickly found out the cab heat and defrost do not work. Has anyone else had this problem? Something we should have discovered at PDI....but didn't.... :-(

In addition, the passenger window control on the passenger window doesn't work. Can roll the window up and down from the driver's side but not the passenger side. Hoping the dealer service center will fix.... but if the heat/defrost issue is something we could trouble shoot here....would love the input!

Several other issues we need help on, but THINK they belong on the Sunseeker section....

Thanks in advance!
Sue ;-)

[Mtnman64]

Cab and chassis goes back to Mercedes for repair.

[LoveLife7478]

Mercedes dealer has been the best to work with in my area. Local Forest River dealer was zero help to me since I did not buy from them. I found a very good small rv repair shop does great work in Downingtown PA even did warranty repairs for me on the FR items and never kept it long periods of time like I have heard.
Try your local MB dealer as long as they are a sprinter repair shop they will treat to well. If not MB has a very good review process.

[MNtraveler]

Originally Posted by mijeus

So, I am new to motorhomes, just recently brought home our 2018 Forest River Sunseeker 2400W MBS....AND new to forums.



I have seen some posts/comments where posts have not been put on the correct thread, but don't really see what constitutes a correct, or incorrect, thread. :e My disclaimer is that I don't know better.....:-)

***If a post relates specifically to the MBS chassis including engine and suspension, it goes in this forum. If it's on appliances or plumbing, for example, it goes in those forums.



So we took our MH out for a shakedown cruise, and quickly found out the cab heat and defrost do not work. Has anyone else had this problem? Something we should have discovered at PDI....but didn't.... :-(

***The MBS can put out a ton of heat and a ton of air conditioning, so that should not be a problem. (Seriously, it puts out a massive volume compared to a passenger car, enough to heat the living room too.) The controls are a little odd to get used to. Make sure you have the center round dial pointing up for defrost. If that isn't enough power, manually close the vent slots (or some) and that will force more air to the windshield. Lastly, make sure the two "top" vents (on top of the dashboard) are closed since those only blow cold air.



In addition, the passenger window control on the passenger window doesn't work. Can roll the window up and down from the driver's side but not the passenger side.

***From the owner's manual: see attached image.

Hoping the dealer service center will fix.... but if the heat/defrost issue is something we could trouble shoot here....would love the input!

***If either of those is broken, the MBS authorized dealer will handle them as warranty issues.



Several other issues we need help on, but THINK they belong on the Sunseeker section....



Thanks in advance!

Sue ;-)

Please see comments at *** marks above.

[mijeus]

Originally Posted by MNtraveler

Please see comments at *** marks above.

Thanks for the reply! We just can’t get hot air to blow out from any of the vents in the cab....no matter where we have the thermostat turned to. Only cold a/c air. We took off on our maiden voyage with air temp about 40-45,so heat would have been welcomed. The dials are quite intuitive, turn right to red for heat, left to blue for cold. No matter where the dial was set, only cold air. Taking unit in this Friday for help on the heat and the window. We did try the reset steps you provided, but they didn’t work. :-(. Thank you again.

[MNtraveler]

Ok, those need fixin'! Good luck.

[BluStreek]

Originally Posted by BluStreek

I expect firmer, as I'll take that over being unsteady in crosswinds and in maneuvering. I really don't know how to quantify "too firm" for other peoples tastes. But if my "commercial" springs loosen filings in normal driving I'll let folks know.

The other advantage as far as I can tell is that while you should not exceed gross weight limits, these springs do have a higher capacity, and I know that there is not a lot of spare capacity empty weight to maximum gross weight in our MBS2400WS. I know with a full (or nearly so) set of water, gray, and black water tanks (say about 30 gallons each) that's up to about 8 1/4 x 90 or 750 pounds right there, and without driver/passenger. So I'll have a margin of added safety while getting to a dump station. Yeah, have full water and full soil tanks is not an often likely situation, it may happen.

BTW, my county's recycling and waste center is kind enough to allow me to drive my RV onto their scales for a cross check of my "normally" stocked RV vs. M-B and Forest River stickers and my guesstimates. I will swing by a bit later this spring and see how close I am to limits with empty soil and full water tanks with my normal loading of personal goods. I do usually travel with about a third of the water tank filled for flushing and minor sink use. Do any of our owners have any direct experience with actual loaded weights?

My local garage finally had an open slot for me to do the installation (this is a towing outfit and they did a lot of business in Central NJ during March with nor'easter after nor'easter adding to the motor vehicle carnage)... I'll let everyone know tomorrow afternoon of my initial driving impressions. I'll also advise as to my cost to do this. Stay tuned!

[BluStreek]

Apologies... any formatting I try gets hosed over and turns my entry into a single paragraph. I started up the M-B diesel without a hitch yesterday, this after a sleep of over 3 to 4 months. Wonderful... dash readout says my local M-B dealer needs a cash donation in 30 days from me in the form of an annual service. Yeah, right... total miles just about 2900 miles of which 1300 was delivery from Indiana and undoubtedly some dealer demos/shows. Opinions on the calendar driven annual service requirements appreciated! Moving on to the house... opening up the door this afternoon... no step extension... oopsie... not a good sign! Master battery disconnect switch was off all since winterizing. I know the step and overhead light aren't on the master switch circuit. Inside house circuits are dead so the handy Schumacher battery charger went into play hopefully restoring life to the batteries. I had opened the house up for a few things back about 6 weeks ago. All was well then. I never felt comfortable with the M-B chassis charging the batteries while in use. How does one check functioning of that circuit? I understand that if it works it only kicks in when the house batteries are below a certain discharge level and the motor is running. While plugged into shore power, I presume there is a charge circuit. Yes? Anyone have similar experiences with dead/nearly so batts? Do you folks trickle charge the house batteries during storage? I may add that to my off season routine, but is seems like it wasn't called out anywhere. Or, are there other circuits that bleed the batteries to exhaustion that I missed? Any battery winterizing tips? Obviously the chassis battery came through with flying colors without any pampering! Oh, by the way, I've noticed a dangling blue or purple wire (looks like a one conductor connector on the end) under the area inboard of the step. Nothing obviously disconnected, but a closer look is called for. Trying to avoid a long and expensive (fuel/tolls) trip to the dealer for warranty service. May sneak under the rig while at the garage tomorrow for the SumoSpring rear axle bumpers/stabilizers installation. A early season shakedown cruise in April of a few nights about 200 miles out, and then two major outings in June (southwards for 2+ weeks) and July (midwest/north central/Rockies/Canada of 4 +weeks). The road beckons! Thanks in advance!

[namusmc]

I have the same dangling blue wire-to-nowhere under the step. Everything works so I just ignore it.
You might check your 7 pin trailer connection for corrosion. It created a battery drain for me until I cleaned it with Q tips and DW's little toothbrush.

[Dbrote]

The dangling wire under the steps allows you to hook your steps up to a porch light. Might be nice. My steps have stoped working in the retracted position. Darn. I’ve spent about 2 hours but to no avail. Can’t really get to the motor with the steps locked retracted. Just ordered a pig tail for troubleshooting. Any ideas? Check fuses and I know there is power because the light under the steps comes on. Anyone know where the ignition override fuse might be? Just another guess at this point.

[Mikegjax]

Have check the magnetic switch on the screen door?

[BluStreek]

Originally Posted by BluStreek

My local garage finally had an open slot for me to do the installation (this is a towing outfit and they did a lot of business in Central NJ during March with nor'easter after nor'easter adding to the motor vehicle carnage)... I'll let everyone know tomorrow afternoon of my initial driving impressions. I'll also advise as to my cost to do this. Stay tuned!

The installation was quick (under an hour start to finish with most of the time spent carefully blocking/jacking the RV) at Flynn's Towing and Repair in Eastampton/MtHolly NJ. Great folks and the mechanic, Tim, is wonderful to work with (working on a bus to RV/toy hauler conversion for himself). Cost was $110 plus tax.

Removing the original M-B rubber chassis to axle bumpers was a bit more fiddly than the installation of the Sumos. Rear tires were still kissing the pavement when he stopped jacking it up, and room was minimal but adequate.

The ride? Magnitude of sway is much reduced but not gone. This is because the rocking side to side is pretty much dampened out but the road surface still dips and bumps. Ride not noticeably harsher on my brief 5 mile return home. Some more road sensitivity to road undulations as the chassis is now loaded more by axle movement. Corners way flatter. Road expansion joint sensitivity not really tested, but the ones I crossed were not jarring in the least. Noise levels are not different, in my opinion.

My unit has a Helwig anti-sway bar factory installed, BTW.

I'd say this particular set of blocks are okay, but the medium Sumo "blues" are probably almost as effective and may be best for most people that value ride comfort over handling. I think these blocks are a bit better in some ways at higher GVW loading (near recommended limits) like I'm running dampening some bounce. I "intentionally" hugged left side of the left lane near the oncoming traffic (no deathwish!) as a semi blew by at ~60mph and I was doing at least 50. Just a shudder at a 100+ mph rate of closure and the RV tracked without any disturbance.

So far, I'm impressed. Total cost near $400, but the white knuckling windy/high bridge crossings are going to be a bit less stressful. I'd hope that the RV manufacturers would take note and just put these in at the factory! (cheaper/easier)

Will update the thread if any changes in my use experience merit revisions.

[BluStreek]

[QUOTE=Dbrote;1772307]The dangling wire under the steps allows you to hook your steps up to a porch light. Might be nice. QUOTE]

Good to know & good luck with the troubleshooting!

[BluStreek]

Originally Posted by BluStreek

Apologies... any formatting I try gets hosed over and turns my entry into a single paragraph. I started up the M-B diesel without a hitch yesterday, this after a sleep of over 3 to 4 months. Wonderful... dash readout says my local M-B dealer needs a cash donation in 30 days from me in the form of an annual service. Yeah, right... total miles just about 2900 miles of which 1300 was delivery from Indiana and undoubtedly some dealer demos/shows. Opinions on the calendar driven annual service requirements appreciated! Moving on to the house... opening up the door this afternoon... no step extension... oopsie... not a good sign! Master battery disconnect switch was off all since winterizing. I know the step and overhead light aren't on the master switch circuit. Inside house circuits are dead so the handy Schumacher battery charger went into play hopefully restoring life to the batteries. I had opened the house up for a few things back about 6 weeks ago. All was well then. I never felt comfortable with the M-B chassis charging the batteries while in use. How does one check functioning of that circuit? I understand that if it works it only kicks in when the house batteries are below a certain discharge level and the motor is running. While plugged into shore power, I presume there is a charge circuit. Yes? Anyone have similar experiences with dead/nearly so batts? Do you folks trickle charge the house batteries during storage? I may add that to my off season routine, but is seems like it wasn't called out anywhere. Or, are there other circuits that bleed the batteries to exhaustion that I missed? Any battery winterizing tips? Obviously the chassis battery came through with flying colors without any pampering! Oh, by the way, I've noticed a dangling blue or purple wire (looks like a one conductor connector on the end) under the area inboard of the step. Nothing obviously disconnected, but a closer look is called for. Trying to avoid a long and expensive (fuel/tolls) trip to the dealer for warranty service. May sneak under the rig while at the garage tomorrow for the SumoSpring rear axle bumpers/stabilizers installation. A early season shakedown cruise in April of a few nights about 200 miles out, and then two major outings in June (southwards for 2+ weeks) and July (midwest/north central/Rockies/Canada of 4 +weeks). The road beckons! Thanks in advance!

Ten miles of driving with a few minutes of idling added to the charge level of my house batteries. So that's a worry resolved. BUT (!!!) why the discharge over winter storage with battery disconnect in the disconnected position? Self discharge by the batteries? Will test out for any external drains (with step light & motor/overhead interior entry light "off") using a current probe on my DVM. It may be a winter trickle charge is needed at least every now and then.

[Mikegjax]

Originally Posted by BluStreek

Ten miles of driving with a few minutes of idling added to the charge level of my house batteries. So that's a worry resolved. BUT (!!!) why the discharge over winter storage with battery disconnect in the disconnected position? Self discharge by the batteries? Will test out for any external drains (with step light & motor/overhead interior entry light "off") using a current probe on my DVM. It may be a winter trickle charge is needed at least every now and then.

Even with the master battery switch off there are still small power drains. One example is the gas detector. To completely isolate your battery's you must disconnect either positive or negative lead at the battery. If you have the option you can connect the battery's to a Battery Tender and that would keep them charged. I don't recommend a trickle charger.

[psgrandpa1]

Removed booth. Added love seat. Ea side reclines. Ea side has USB ports
I wanted to add pics but can’t find the insert photo option

[gmccullers]

Originally Posted by psgrandpa1

Removed booth. Added love seat. Ea side reclines. Ea side has USB ports
I wanted to add pics but can’t find the insert photo option

Definitely would like to see pictures and info on the love seat...

[FFred]

"Self discharge by the batteries?"

You bet !

A brand new bat will loose about 1/2 % per day just sitting, terminals disconnected.

1%per day is more common after 6 months or so of use. When the "end is near" 3% per day is common.

Battery charging in storage or take em out and bring em home is required .

Cold helps slow the discharge rate , but too low and the batt simply freezes .

[Mikegjax]

Originally Posted by psgrandpa1

Removed booth. Added love seat. Ea side reclines. Ea side has USB ports
I wanted to add pics but can’t find the insert photo option

When drafting your post, scroll down the screen until you see a box labeled "Manage Attachments". Select that box and then in the popup box select "Browse". Go to where your photos are located on your computer and upload/attach to your post.