Cracked Windshields In Beaver Coaches

[angieandrickblanshan]

We have a 1998 Beaver Patriot that has had 2 cracked windshields on the passenger side and then we had it looked at by Kaiser Brake in Eugene and they put a shim on the drivers side to make it totally level when all the air is released.  Now we have major cracking on the drivers side.  We are told that this is a problem that the Patriot has because the front cab is all fiberglass.  Beaver told us that they have not heard of this problem for a long time.

 Does anyone have any suggestions or know anything about what we should do.  We bought this 40 ft. just a little over 2 years ago and cannot afford to be replacing windshields ever time we go out.  Does almost all of the cracking when we are sitting at home on level ground with all the air released. No jacks down and no pressure anywhere.  

We could really use some advise/help here.  

We love our coach but don't know if it is time to part ways and look for something else.

[tbutler]

I'm curious about the shim, where was the shim inserted?  If this moved the cracking from one side of the coach to the other, they may be on to something but maybe overdid it.  Maybe if this occurs with all air released you should keep the coach aired up rather than releasing all the air.  It will slowly deflate but can be aired up periodically by running the engine or with an external air pump using the input that a towing company uses to tow the coach. 

When you park the coach, is the windshield exposed to the heat of direct sunlight?  Perhaps minimizing the heat of direct sunlight might help.  When you say "almost all of the cracking happens ... sitting at home," where else does cracking occur?  If what you have is a small crack from a rock impact or cracking that has occurred while on the road, that crack will grow larger due to stress or heat.

[jleamont]

That is a two piece windshield correct? What Chassis in under the coach?

[desertdeals69]

I had my passenger side windshield crack when the air was empty and the front was on the stops and I raised the back on one side to change a tire.  I now raise the front  when I tilt the back.  Maybe the clearance between the fiberglass and the windshield should be increased so it won't bind.

[obedb]

You called Beaver? What do I know?  Thought they were long gone? Replacing large windshields on some RVs can be easy. Others I think not. With the apparently less than rigid front end of your coach, maybe it takes someone that really knows the process to install one or both sides. A tech that is more knowledgeable than average? I do feel your pain. Had the driver's side on our 2003 Phaeton replaced and I shelled out around $1200. I paid it. Not State Farm. Recently had a total loss when a tree fell on our Toad. Don't think that I will file a small claim any time soon. 

Tom Butler had a good idea for the short run. Hook a compressor up to the system if you have power. In my case, it would be in the compartment  below the driver's  side in front of the steer tire. It would be a time bomb though. You would always wonder, unless you found the installer that knows what to do.

You bought a very well thought of coach and you are thinking about selling it. Bummer! Make sure that it is not the glass installers fault before you take the hit. Talk to others in the area or further away that might solve your problem. 

Good luck to you!

[rsbilledwards]

Nearly all the coaches of that time frame had fiberglass caps as on my Safari coaches built at the same time as the Beavers. My Zanzibar has 44k on it and no problems.

Bill Edwards

[tbutler]

Beaver and Safari were bought out by Monaco in the mid-00's.  They manufactured select models up until the '08 RV crash.  They have all the records that existed at the time the company was purchased by Monaco and have provided support for all Safari, Beaver, Holiday Rambler and Monaco coaches through the Navistar years and I believe this continues today.  After Navistar sold Monaco to ASV, they restructured and are resuming manufacturing of Monaco coaches.  There are currently two models of the Monaco line being manufactured, Dynasty and Diplomat.  At the time of the ASV takeover the management of Monaco planned to bring back models slowly as the market recovered.  They expressed plans to bring back some Holiday Rambler models.  Now ASV has restructured and Monaco is under a division known as REV International.  They manufacture a wide variety of specialty vehicles.  Through it all, the phone number in my owners manual remains the contact number for Monaco and the Monaco line of products including Beaver, Safari and Holiday Rambler.  If you need support, technical, service, parts, factory service centers call 877-466-6226 (they are now also listing 800-509-3417) for customer service.  There are factory service centers in Oregon and Indiana and there may be several more in the works.  REV also owns Fleetwood and American Coach (they also list Holiday Rambler as a separate line from Monaco but there is no mention of Beaver or Safari) lines of motor homes.  Their manufacturing center is in Decatur, IN where all their coaches are manufactured along with many of their other vehicles.

We spent four days at the factory service center in Oregon several years ago and the service was the best I've ever had.  I had a laundry list of items that needed attention and they worked through the entire list, consulting me as they went.  When I left, there was a hefty bill but I was delighted to get all those things fixed and given what was done, I was surprised the bill wasn't higher.

[angieandrickblanshan]

21 hours ago, jleamont said:

That is a two piece windshield correct? What Chassis in under the coach?

Magnum Chassis and yes, 2 piece windshield.

 

[hermanmullins]

Angie and Rick

Welcome to the Forum.

Yours is not the first Beaver to have a windshield problem. A friend of ours had a 1999 Beaver Patriot Thunder that the passengers windshield continued to pop out on the upper outside corner. They had it to the factory many times. Beaver even replaced the front cap at one time. The problem continued until Monaco glued it in. However when they sold it 4 years ago it was cracked but there was no sign of a rock chip anywhere near the crack. There has to be a design flaw in the body to the chassis. I am afraid no one has come up with a solution. Good luck and let us know your outcome.

Herman 

[rsbilledwards]

Actually, there was or is a solution and Safari made several repairs to their chassis of that time frame under warranty. The problem was and still is that time we do not always drive the coaches far enough for the issue to expose itself in the warranty period.  Both Beaver and Safari used the same or similar chassis that Magnum produced, which was owned by Matt Perlot, Safari founder, who ultimately bought Beaver and put it under the Safari umbrella. I recently bought a 1999 Safari Panther and being aware of this problem looked for a coach that had been repaired.  I looked at a Safari Panther recently in Yuma, Arizona to see what had been done to strengthen the front framing since it was an early coach built in 1999.and I believe built after mine. What I found is, at least for me, not conclusive as to what was done since it looked just as mine does, unless mine has been modified as well. The Yuma coach has 126K on it without any issues, This problem purportedly occurred in the coaches that were side entry as opposed to front entry so, can you please confirm that your coach is a side entry or not.

 It is interesting in that the reinforcement of the front structure must occur below the windshield yet there are no diagonal braces in that area of the Yuma coach, nor on mine. There is however, a substantial amount of additional structuring that appears to have been done after the cap was installed. This though is difficult to determine since I have not looked at enough coaches as of this point in time. I have another friend near Yakima, Washington, with a Continental that has had the lower corner, drivers side pop out as opposed to cracking. Would it be possible for you to take some pictures looking up into the cap either side below  the windshield corners. Obviously there would be no bracing in the w/s area  and there is minimal area for bracing above. I do know, that what was done to the Yuma coach, required a new cap that was 3 inches longer to accommodate the changes.  

Please post them here I will send you a PM Thanks for helping in advance.

 

Bill Edwards  

[obedb]

So what will it cost Angie and Rick to repair their Beaver and where can it be done?

[angieandrickblanshan]

11 hours ago, rsbilledwards said:

Actually, there was or is a solution and Safari made several repairs to their chassis of that time frame under warranty. The problem was and still is that time we do not always drive the coaches far enough for the issue to expose itself in the warranty period.  Both Beaver and Safari used the same or similar chassis that Magnum produced, which was owned by Matt Perlot, Safari founder, who ultimately bought Beaver and put it under the Safari umbrella. I recently bought a 1999 Safari Panther and being aware of this problem looked for a coach that had been repaired.  I looked at a Safari Panther recently in Yuma, Arizona to see what had been done to strengthen the front framing since it was an early coach built in 1999.and I believe built after mine. What I found is, at least for me, not conclusive as to what was done since it looked just as mine does, unless mine has been modified as well. The Yuma coach has 126K on it without any issues, This problem purportedly occurred in the coaches that were side entry as opposed to front entry so, can you please confirm that your coach is a side entry or not.

 It is interesting in that the reinforcement of the front structure must occur below the windshield yet there are no diagonal braces in that area of the Yuma coach, nor on mine. There is however, a substantial amount of additional structuring that appears to have been done after the cap was installed. This though is difficult to determine since I have not looked at enough coaches as of this point in time. I have another friend near Yakima, Washington, with a Continental that has had the lower corner, drivers side pop out as opposed to cracking. Would it be possible for you to take some pictures looking up into the cap either side below  the windshield corners. Obviously there would be no bracing in the w/s area  and there is minimal area for bracing above. I do know, that what was done to the Yuma coach, required a new cap that was 3 inches longer to accommodate the changes.  

Please post them here I will send you a PM Thanks for helping in advance.

 

Bill Edwards  

8 airbags

 

[rsbilledwards]

If you are asking me what it will cost and where to have it done, I haven't the foggiest idea. The most likely location of an appropriate repair would be in Bend Oregon through Beaver coach Sales and service. A number of the fellas there are old Beaver people. The other suggestion is to find the Beaver owners club web site and post the question there. This site is to generic for this issue. 800 382 2597   541 322 2184

Please keep us apprise as to what happens

Thanks

Bill Edwards

 

[bunlacken]

On 5/18/2016 at 10:23 AM, hermanmullins said:

Angie and Rick

Welcome to the Forum.

Yours is not the first Beaver to have a windshield problem. A friend of ours had a 1999 Beaver Patriot Thunder that the passengers windshield continued to pop out on the upper outside corner. They had it to the factory many times. Beaver even replaced the front cap at one time. The problem continued until Monaco glued it in. However when they sold it 4 years ago it was cracked but there was no sign of a rock chip anywhere near the crack. There has to be a design flaw in the body to the chassis. I am afraid no one has come up with a solution. Good luck and let us know your outcome.

Herman 

In my experience all front single jack's have to be raised a few inches to allow it to hinge so no pressure on the windshield, helps prevent cracking.