2020 Coachmen Leprechaun leak around slide out

[BT3927]

Hi everyone,
We just bought our first RV, a 2020 Leprechaun 319MB. We picked it up from the dealer about 2 weeks ago and drove it about 30 miles to a campground where we plan to store it. On the way there we ran through some torrential rains from a tropical system that had moved up from the Gulf of Mexico (we're in coastal SC). We planned to stay in it for a couple of days to try it out and punch list a few items. When we arrived at our spot we discovered dirty water droplets on the floor in the kitchen/living area. It appeared the water had come in from under the slide. Took it back to the dealer with our punch list items. The dealer addressed everything except the slide leak saying they couldn't reproduce the situation that caused the leak. Ok I thought, maybe it was just because of the torrential downpours. We picked it up this week from the dealer to take it back to the storage site and, wouldn't you know? It rained again though nowhere near as hard as before. When we got to the site we discovered more water on the floor near the slide out. Has anyone had similar situations like this with the Leprechaun or with slides in general? I'm going to take it back to the dealer but I'd like to have an idea myself of what to look for.

[GnS]

I have the earlier version of this model when it was the 319DS. Those water spots right in front of the fireplace seem to suggest that it might be the ceiling vent above that area where you are getting water in. If you look at how the slide is more or less protected while retracted going down the road, it just seems less likely to me that the front slide is the source of the leak.

[jonwisconsin]

I had this problem in mine when new. Took it to the dealer and fix it for the most part. However, if it rains a lot we get some drops once in a while.

[BT3927]

Thanks for the replies. I checked all the vents and windows and couldn't find anywhere above the floor that looked like it may have leaked. Nothing else was wet. The droplets on the floor ran the length of the front slide and nowhere else which led me to believe it was coming from underneath the slide itself. Like being splashed up from the road. In the bottom picture above you can see the lip of the slide in the retracted position.

[dmctlc]

Couple of questions: Sorry tough to tell from the pictures but when you arrive is the water closes to that slide only? If so when you move the slide out is the underside of the slide wet? Is the slide seated tightly when retracted, especially the bottom? Are any of the slides gasket deformed or ripped again look closely at the ones up the sides too because the may not be mounted properlyallowing water to come in and run down the sides pooling then running when in motion? I had a problem somewhat similar on My previous Class and found put the refrigerator drain wasn't attached correctly and when moving it leaked across the floor and ran down the slide. Anything running down the windows? Is the slide sides when extended look properly caulked and connected together tightly without gaps? Do you have access to a hose that you can spray some copious amount of water with it in while having someone inside to see if they notice the water. Another thing would be to put a layer of towels down while driving in another rainstorm perhaps having someone seated, if seat belts available and watch where it starts and filming it on their phone. I don't think they'd be any water lines or drains in there so I doubt its that. Check the underbelly if not enclosed see if any large gaps not caulked. In the end this unit is new and this is the second time if you can't determine it then I'd press the dealer to resolve it before the water causes damage and worse yet mold especially mold you might not see. Keep us up-to-date if you find the issue or the dealer does. Its could be helpful for others. Thanks

[BT3927]

Thanks for the info, much appreciated. It's supposed to rain this weekend and if it does my wife and I plan to take it out and drive around to see if we can see where it may be coming from. The water consists of small droplets underneath and in front of the large slide. It doesn't appear to have streamed from any where but looks like it may have been splashed in up under the slide. Perhaps from the road or a passing vehicle. I'll post back with what we find.

[Witch Doctor]

Originally Posted by BT3927

Thanks for the info, much appreciated. It's supposed to rain this weekend and if it does my wife and I plan to take it out and drive around to see if we can see where it may be coming from. The water consists of small droplets underneath and in front of the large slide. It doesn't appear to have streamed from any where but looks like it may have been splashed in up under the slide. Perhaps from the road or a passing vehicle. I'll post back with what we find.

You should have a bottom sweep seal on the slide, make sure it is sealing, also check the two bottom corners, once mine leaked because the water was being thrown up from the tire.

[BT3927]

Went to drive in the rain today but the rain stopped before we could go. We did notice light through the bottom front corner of the slide while it was fully retracted. We extended the slide a few inches and noticed the D seal gasket along the bottom inside edge of the slide doesn't extend all the way to the vertical D seal gasket along the front edge of the slide. It's about 3-4 inches short. This gap is where the light is coming from. I believe this is where the water is coming from when driving down the road. Water is splashed up from the road or passing vehicles and makes its way through this gap as a spray. Why would there be a gap in this gasket if this is supposed to be a seal? This makes no sense. We folded a rag into the gap and retracted the slide and drove a round for a while but the rain had ended so couldn't be absolutely certain. If this is indeed the source of the water then it's a prime example of sorry quality control and very disappointing.

[dmctlc]

Originally Posted by BT3927

Went to drive in the rain today but the rain stopped before we could go. We did notice light through the bottom front corner of the slide while it was fully retracted. We extended the slide a few inches and noticed the D seal gasket along the bottom inside edge of the slide doesn't extend all the way to the vertical D seal gasket along the front edge of the slide. It's about 3-4 inches short. This gap is where the light is coming from. I believe this is where the water is coming from when driving down the road. Water is splashed up from the road or passing vehicles and makes its way through this gap as a spray. Why would there be a gap in this gasket if this is supposed to be a seal? This makes no sense. We folded a rag into the gap and retracted the slide and drove a round for a while but the rain had ended so couldn't be absolutely certain. If this is indeed the source of the water then it's a prime example of sorry quality control and very disappointing.

Yes I think you've found the source but still go over all the gaskets and sweeps and have the dealer fix that and any other problems you might have...

[Joe2020]

I have a 2020 319MB. Had the same water week on the floor when putting the slide out. I found the back seal on the large slide out rolled back. It had to be like this from new since a big ball of sealant was jammed in there. I pulled the seal out with a plastic hook so the didn't damage the seal.

[BT3927]

Update:
We took the Leprechaun back to the dealer on 11/12. Nice rainy day thanks to TS Eta and a cold front passing through. As expected, we had a good bit of water on the floor when we arrived so the service techs got a good look at it. He said he'd never seen this type of leak before. I had previously contacted Forest River/Coachmen Service about this and they responded that they would work closely with the dealer service department to fix the problem. We'll see. I'll post the results when we hear back from them.

[dmctlc]

Originally Posted by BT3927

Update:
We took the Leprechaun back to the dealer on 11/12. Nice rainy day thanks to TS Eta and a cold front passing through. As expected, we had a good bit of water on the floor when we arrived so the service techs got a good look at it. He said he'd never seen this type of leak before. I had previously contacted Forest River/Coachmen Service about this and they responded that they would work closely with the dealer service department to fix the problem. We'll see. I'll post the results when we hear back from them.

Thats the best scenario you could've had but I'd still document who you spoke to when even FR so down the road you'll have everything down with time and place , what was said and by who...I've always found this most helpful not only for myself but when they start denying who said what, claimed what and when and if you've already done it then great. Please let us know how you make out and thanks for the update.

[BT3927]

Update:
The dealer has had the RV for over a month now. They've been having trouble getting a warranty authorization from Coachmen. This dealership doesn't have an on-site warranty person so they've been working with an out of state warranty rep who is apparently swamped with requests. The dealer's service manager says they can't/won't order the parts until they get authorization from Coachmen. Then, they're not sure how long it may take to get the parts. We're thinking of just picking up the RV and waiting until we hear from the dealer that they have the authorization and the parts are in-house before taking it back.

This has been incredibly frustrating but to be fair it's largely due to COVID. Our dealer's front office is closed now due to everyone having to quarantine because a salesman tested positive.

[dmctlc]

Originally Posted by BT3927

Update:
The dealer has had the RV for over a month now. They've been having trouble getting a warranty authorization from Coachmen. This dealership doesn't have an on-site warranty person so they've been working with an out of state warranty rep who is apparently swamped with requests. The dealer's service manager says they can't/won't order the parts until they get authorization from Coachmen. Then, they're not sure how long it may take to get the parts. We're thinking of just picking up the RV and waiting until we hear from the dealer that they have the authorization and the parts are in-house before taking it back.

This has been incredibly frustrating but to be fair it's largely due to COVID. Our dealer's front office is closed now due to everyone having to quarantine because a salesman tested positive.

I'll agree that covid has had an impact but I recently had my DP in for recall and warranty work and though not Coachmen it required approval on everything but recall. They had no issues getting it. You had said earlier you had contacted Coachmen so I'd call them back tell them what the situation is and if they can't help ask for their manager or a POC that can. Also IMHO if you take it out this may cause you to "lose" your place in line and probably they're interest in getting approval. If you have no plans I would call Coachmen and them daily until its resolved. Remember "the squeaky wheel gets the oil"... and thanks for the update.

[bikendan]

Originally Posted by BT3927

Update:
The dealer has had the RV for over a month now. They've been having trouble getting a warranty authorization from Coachmen.

It's time for you to contact Coachmen personally and verify what the dealer is saying.
Can't count the number of times I've seen your story, only to find out the dealer had never filed the warranty request. Same for waiting for parts(of course, during Covid, this may be true).

[BT3927]

Thanks dmctlc and bikendan for your feedback. I contacted Forest River Customer Service yesterday. I had tried calling before but only got voicemail and no follow up. Well yesterday someone answered the phone and we had a very interesting conversation. When I described the leak the Forest River rep immediately said it wasn't the slide seals leaking but improperly sealed wheel wells. He said water was being thrown up from the tires underneath the slide and hence spraying out on the floor. He said it was common and had seen it enough before to recognize the problem from my description. I also discovered while talking to him that our dealer had never registered the warranty with Forest River. Our dealer here in coastal SC had arranged a transfer of our unit from an affiliated dealer in Alabama when we purchased it. But, they never completed the transactions to let Forest River know the unit had been sold and was now in SC. As of yesterday Forest River still thought our RV was on a dealer's lot in Alabama. The Forest River rep was going to reach out to our dealer to get our warranty registered and to help them with the leak problem.

Begin rant:
Right now I am so dismayed and annoyed that I just want to go get it from this dealer and take it somewhere else. Unfortunately there isn't anyone else nearby in my area to do Coachmen warranty work. I don't know what the problem is in the RV industry but I read about things like this way too often.
End rant:

[dmctlc]

Originally Posted by BT3927

Thanks dmctlc and bikendan for your feedback. I contacted Forest River Customer Service yesterday. I had tried calling before but only got voicemail and no follow up. Well yesterday someone answered the phone and we had a very interesting conversation. When I described the leak the Forest River rep immediately said it wasn't the slide seals leaking but improperly sealed wheel wells. He said water was being thrown up from the tires underneath the slide and hence spraying out on the floor. He said it was common and had seen it enough before to recognize the problem from my description. I also discovered while talking to him that our dealer had never registered the warranty with Forest River. Our dealer here in coastal SC had arranged a transfer of our unit from an affiliated dealer in Alabama when we purchased it. But, they never completed the transactions to let Forest River know the unit had been sold and was now in SC. As of yesterday Forest River still thought our RV was on a dealer's lot in Alabama. The Forest River rep was going to reach out to our dealer to get our warranty registered and to help them with the leak problem.

Begin rant:
Right now I am so dismayed and annoyed that I just want to go get it from this dealer and take it somewhere else. Unfortunately there isn't anyone else nearby in my area to do Coachmen warranty work. I don't know what the problem is in the RV industry but I read about things like this way too often.
End rant:

Your welcome but unfortunately on and off this forum you'll hear similar issues with servicing your RV for warranty. I, for one had both great service currently where I bought my current DP. As well as not so good, where I bought my gasser Class A up in New Hampshire though let me say the service up north got better over time but that took several years and a change out of the Service Manager. Anyway sounds like you're on the right track and like I said keep detail records of everyone you talk to, what was said including time and date. Also don't let up, my approach has always been not to cast blame but rather be stern but insistent though patient. Expect things will take time. Don't just get phone numbers but email addresses and after a conversation follow up with an email to assure clarity and understanding of your expectations. It might not work every time so work things up the management chain and tell them you feel they need direction because there night be priority confusion. Let us know what happens and thanks for the updates.

[BT3927]

Update 12/30:
We picked up the Leprechaun from the dealer on 12/23 after having been there over 6 weeks. The Forest River/Coachmen Customer Service rep did contact our service tech and told him what he needed to do to seal the rear wheel well. We were also able to finally get the warranty registered.

After looking it over it does appear to be the source of the water. We haven't driven in the rain yet so we'll have to wait and see. I've attached some pictures showing the proximity of the wheel to the slide out and some showing the inside of the well and the caulking sealant that was added. One image clearly shows what appears to be water staining.

One thing I find curious is Coachmen's definition of "wheel well". I was expecting to see a liner of some sort similar to what you might see in a car or truck well. The top of the well looks like the plywood of the flooring with no protection at all. How is this not expected to rot in time? I'm thinking of putting something like Magic Seal tape and spray over the joints and the exposed wood or perhaps just some spray-on undercoating. Would that be a good idea? Has anyone else ever done something like this?

[jonwisconsin]

Interesting understanding on their part. I would try some sealing tape, perhaps eternabond, and then some undercoating. I will look at mine to see how it is.

[Kerryk]

Hi BT3927
Could you please provide the phone number that you used to contact Forest River? I have a 2017 Leprechaun MB319 (purchased 2019, new) that pools massive amounts of water while driving through the rain, by the fridge, at the step to the bedroom. My dealer claims that they were unable to reproduce the problem in their wet bay, but never drove it during a rainstorm. They have caulked and replaced all the outside garage doors and re-sealed the garage bays themselves. The water still comes in while driving in the rain and they say that I have to pay now for any repairs, due to the 1 year warranty period being over. I have an extended warranty, but it won't cover this type of service work. The dealer is now looking at the seals on the forward slide, but the water collects on the kitchen side, so the wheel wells being unsealed sounds extremely plausible, even though I asked them to check that. So I really need to speak with someone at Forest River about covering this pretty serious issue. Any help would be appreciated.