2016 THOR MOTOR COACH ACE — Problems, Recalls & Safety Data

THE DOOR LOCK MECHANISM BROKE. THE METAL BROKE RESULTING IN THE LOCK BECOMING UNUSABLE. DOOR NEEDED A FULL REPLACEMENT LOCK. NEW TRIMARK RV ENTRY DOOR LOCK 60-650 WAS REPLACED TO FIX THE ISSUE.

THE SLIDE MOTOR NEEDED REPLACING. IT WAS REPLACED ONCE UNDER WARRANTY AND THE SAME MOTOR REQUIRED REPLACEMENT AGAIN. SHORTLY OUT OF WARRANTY. OUT OF WARRANTY I WAS ABLE TO DETERMINE THAT WATER FROM THE ROOF WAS ABLE TO LEAK INTO THE MOTOR HOUSING AND WAS CAUSING THE MOTORS TO SHORT OUT. THE MOTORS REQUIRED REPLACING ARE LIPPERT HIGH TORQUE 500:1 MOTOR; IN-WALL SLIDE-OUT #287298

ON SEPTEMBER 22, 2018 I FOUND MYSELF TRAPPED INSIDE MY 2016 THOR ACE 30.1 MOTORHOME. THE DOOR LEVER THE DOOR, WHICH WAS NOT LOCKED, WOULD NOT OPEN. IT WAS OBVIOUS FROM THE WAY THE DOOR LEVEL PULLED THAT IT WAS NO LONGER CONNECTED TO THE LATCH. FORTUNATELY AT 73 YEARS OF AGE I AM STILL AGILE ENOUGH TO CLIMB OUT THE REAR ESCAPE WINDOW, SOMETHING THAT MY WIFE DUE TO SOME PHYSICAL LIMITATIONS COULD NEVER HAVE DONE. UPON TAKING THE MOTORHOME TO CAMPING WORLD THEIR TECHNICIAN HAD TO LITERALLY DRILL OUT THE MATERIAL AROUND THE DOOR LEVER TO GET TO THE LATCH SO IT COULD BE RETRACTED AND A NEW DOOR LATCH UNIT INSTALLED. THE TECHNICIAN INDICATED THIS WAS A COMMON PROBLEM DUE TO THE POOR QUALITY OF THE 'POT METAL' IN THE MECHANISM. BASED ON A QUICK INTERNET SEARCH I DISCOVERED NUMEROUS CASES OF OWNERS COMPLAINING OF SIMILAR EXPERIENCES. THE MOTORHOME, AT THIS TIME ONLY HAD 5,500 MILES THUS THE PROBLEM OBVIOUSLY WAS NOT RELATED TO AGE OR EXTENSIVE USE. THIS IS AN EXTREME SAFETY HAZARD DUE TO THE POOR QUALITY OF THIS COMPONENT. BASED ON THE TECHNICIANS COMMENT AND MY INTERNET SEARCH I AM SURE THOR KNOWS ABOUT THE SITUATION. SINCE THE REPLACEMENT DOOR LATCH MECHANISM APPEARS TO BE IDENTICAL TO THE ORIGINAL WE EXPERIENCE A HIGH LEVEL OF DISCOMFORT AS WE TRAVEL IN OUR THOR MOTORHOME. HOPEFULLY THIS SUB QUALITY COMPONENT DOES NOT FAIL AGAIN IN AN EMERGENCY SITUATION RESULTING IN A LIFE THREATENING SITUATION. SINCERELY, [XXX] AND [XXX] [XXX] HUNTLEY, IL [XXX] [XXX] *DT UPDATED 10/10/18*JB UPDATE 10/18/18 *DT PARTS OF THIS DOCUMENT HAVE BEEN REDACTED TO PROTECT PERSONALLY IDENTIFIABLE INFORMATION PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6). *JS

ON SEPTEMBER 22, 2018 I FOUND MYSELF TRAPPED INSIDE MY 2016 THOR ACE 30.1 MOTORHOME. THE DOOR LEVER THE DOOR, WHICH WAS NOT LOCKED, WOULD NOT OPEN. IT WAS OBVIOUS FROM THE WAY THE DOOR LEVEL PULLED THAT IT WAS NO LONGER CONNECTED TO THE LATCH. FORTUNATELY AT 73 YEARS OF AGE I AM STILL AGILE ENOUGH TO CLIMB OUT THE REAR ESCAPE WINDOW, SOMETHING THAT MY WIFE DUE TO SOME PHYSICAL LIMITATIONS COULD NEVER HAVE DONE. UPON TAKING THE MOTORHOME TO CAMPING WORLD THEIR TECHNICIAN HAD TO LITERALLY DRILL OUT THE MATERIAL AROUND THE DOOR LEVER TO GET TO THE LATCH SO IT COULD BE RETRACTED AND A NEW DOOR LATCH UNIT INSTALLED. THE TECHNICIAN INDICATED THIS WAS A COMMON PROBLEM DUE TO THE POOR QUALITY OF THE 'POT METAL' IN THE MECHANISM. BASED ON A QUICK INTERNET SEARCH I DISCOVERED NUMEROUS CASES OF OWNERS COMPLAINING OF SIMILAR EXPERIENCES. THE MOTORHOME, AT THIS TIME ONLY HAD 5,500 MILES THUS THE PROBLEM OBVIOUSLY WAS NOT RELATED TO AGE OR EXTENSIVE USE. THIS IS AN EXTREME SAFETY HAZARD DUE TO THE POOR QUALITY OF THIS COMPONENT. BASED ON THE TECHNICIANS COMMENT AND MY INTERNET SEARCH I AM SURE THOR KNOWS ABOUT THE SITUATION. SINCE THE REPLACEMENT DOOR LATCH MECHANISM APPEARS TO BE IDENTICAL TO THE ORIGINAL WE EXPERIENCE A HIGH LEVEL OF DISCOMFORT AS WE TRAVEL IN OUR THOR MOTORHOME. HOPEFULLY THIS SUB QUALITY COMPONENT DOES NOT FAIL AGAIN IN AN EMERGENCY SITUATION RESULTING IN A LIFE THREATENING SITUATION. SINCERELY, [XXX] AND [XXX] [XXX] HUNTLEY, IL [XXX] [XXX] *DT UPDATED 10/10/18*JB UPDATE 10/18/18 *DT PARTS OF THIS DOCUMENT HAVE BEEN REDACTED TO PROTECT PERSONALLY IDENTIFIABLE INFORMATION PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6). *JS

THE EXTERIOR DOOR LOCK MADE BY TRI-MARK BROKE TRAPPING ME AND MY FAMILY INSIDE. THE RV WAS PARKED AT THE TIME. THE DOOR LOCK HAD TO BE DISASSEMBLED FOR US TO BE ABLE TO OPEN THE DOOR. HAD THEIR BEEN A FIRE OR SOME OTHER EMERGENCY THIS WOULD HAVE CAUSED LOSS OF LIFE. THIS IS A WELL KNOWN ISSUE FOR MANY OF THEIR LOCKS.