RV Repairs

Engine & Drivetrain Repairs

If you have a motor home, then you have two area's of maintainance to take into account, the engine and drive train and the living quarters and appliances. We will cover the drive train first so if you are towing a trailer skip this section and proceed to living quarters.

Tires:

Before you hit the road you should do a routine preventative maintainance inspection first, you do not want to be stuck on the side of the road 100 miles from nowhere with your large vehicle and living quarters waiting to be towed. Secondly, some problems could be dangerous and even fatal if not taken care of. This maintainance will vary depending on how much you drive and use your RV. Your tires for example can deteriorate and rot with age. The rubber of your wheels will dry rot from a lack of use, and if you only take your RV out once or twice per yer you run the risk of dry rot effecting the safety of your tires. Generally speaking it is said tires should not be used beyond the 6 year point, but a close examination may determine that they have aged sooner, especially depending on where you live and the weather and atmospheric conditions there. If you use your RV more frequently it is possible the tires can last longer as far as dry rotting goes, but may wear beyond a safe point, so be sure to inspect your tires very carefully, and if in doubt have an expert examine them for you.

You should also check your tire pressure and compare it to your manual.  Find a local public scale and weigh your RV loaded and determine the proper tire pressure and make sure your tires are inflated properly.

Engine:

There are some things everyone can do to help to insure roadside failures.  Some of the most common failures along the roads can be prevented by visual checking and common sense.  Look under the hood, examine your engines belts, radiator hoses, battery posts, (check for corrosion and build up), check your oil, water in the radiator, and give everything a thurough visual inspection.  It is not difficult to find many of the problems that can stop you down the road.  One example, we purchased a van a couple years back, the previous owner dropped the price because the air conditioner wasn't working.  I figured it just needed a freon charge.  When I got the van home, there was a plug from the air conditioning unit that was unplugged and hanging from the firewall right beside where it should have been plugged in.  I simply plugged this in, and we had air conditioning.

Change your belts and hoses at least every three years.  Although it is common for cars and trucks to use the same belts and hoses for several years, it is also common for failure of these items and it is cheap insurance to replace them on a regular schedule the same as it is a good maintainance to change your oil every 3 months or 5000 miles.

If you do not have confidence in yourself, take it to a mechanic you trust who is qualified to work on RV's and have him check it out thuroughly.  If your RV is running rough, get it checked before you take it out.  A good mechanic can test cylindar compression, the electronics, and more to determine the potential problem.  A rough running engine could be as simple as a bad exhaust sensor or it could be a bad head gasket, which if driven for any length of time could cause serious damage to the engine and cost a great deal to repair.

Drive train and suspension:

If you are capable of crawling underneath your motorhome, check for fresh oil leaks under the vehicle, from the oil pan back to the rear end, (if it is a front engine rear wheel drive).  If you have a grease gun, check all the steering linkage fittings for zert fittings and lube each one of them until you start to see excess oozing out around the joint itself.  Again, if you are uncomfortable about doing this, take it to a mechanic you trust.

Beware of roadside or on the road mechanics who are quick to point out problems with your car or RV.  I once stopped at a gas station in the desert of Nevada on my way from California to Utah, and after filling the gas tank and getting ready to pull out, a mechanic ran out and informed me that there was a puddle of oil underneath the rear end of my station wagon and said my rear end had a leak and I should get it fixed or I would get stuck in the middle of the desert.  I took a quick assessment of the surroundings and found that there were oil spots at every pump roughly where the rear end would be, and I saw a car on the hoist in their garage with the rear end taken apart.  I told him I thought my rear end was OK, and I would go down the road a way and see how it does.  Just a few miles down the road was an ice cream shop so I stopped for a cone, made sure I parked in a clean spot, and checked for further oil leaks when I was finished and also took a good look at me differential, (rear end), which was clean other than dust and dirt.  My wagon made it all the way to Utah, and from there I drove to Indiana, with absolutely no problems.  There are scammers out there, so learn to think for yourself on many issues and just like seeing a doctor, if possible, get a second opinion.

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