My slide out opens while driving!

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   I recently finished a 6 week maiden voyage from MD through the west. On our last day driving east, as we left the campground I experienced a scary malfunction -the slide out came out while i was driving. First time I thought human error (I did not see it coming out), but within 10 minutes it came out again. I pulled the slide motor fuse out to get home. 
Recently I tracked the problem to the switch. I removed the switch face plate screws and pulled it slightly out so it could wiggle when thumped, then I observed my slide out start out/in just by thumbing the side of the switch with my finger nail -That is I was thumping the plastic face plate an inch or more away from the actual button!
The good news is installing a new switch is a relatively easy fix, the bad news is what this says about quality (of a brand new 2015 179) to discover such a potentially catastrophic  failure (think of on coming traffic). I would have expected this switch to be bullet proof in terms of activating the slide out while your bouncing down the road. 

I was at least lucky this occurred on the last day of a long trip.

Has this happened to anyone else? Is this kind of malfunction to be expected in some units,  -is my frustration here an issue of unrealistic newbie expectations about quality?

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Jay in Maryland Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 28 Feb 2015 Location: MD Online Status: Offline Posts: 30	Topic: My slide out opens while driving! Posted: 10 Aug 2015 at 12:02pm
	I recently finished a 6 week maiden voyage from MD through the west. On our last day driving east, as we left the campground I experienced a scary malfunction -the slide out came out while i was driving. First time I thought human error (I did not see it coming out), but within 10 minutes it came out again. I pulled the slide motor fuse out to get home. Recently I tracked the problem to the switch. I removed the switch face plate screws and pulled it slightly out so it could wiggle when thumped, then I observed my slide out start out/in just by thumbing the side of the switch with my finger nail -That is I was thumping the plastic face plate an inch or more away from the actual button! The good news is installing a new switch is a relatively easy fix, the bad news is what this says about quality (of a brand new 2015 179) to discover such a potentially catastrophic failure (think of on coming traffic). I would have expected this switch to be bullet proof in terms of activating the slide out while your bouncing down the road. I was at least lucky this occurred on the last day of a long trip. Has this happened to anyone else? Is this kind of malfunction to be expected in some units, -is my frustration here an issue of unrealistic newbie expectations about quality?
	Jay r-pod179 05 Tacoma PreRunner

JohnBG Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Senior Member Joined: 14 Apr 2015 Location: Deltona, FL Online Status: Offline Posts: 190	Posted: 10 Aug 2015 at 12:13pm
	Yikes! That aint good...
	2010 R-Pod RP-171 2010 Honda Ridgeline TV

CoastalCal Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Groupie Joined: 23 May 2015 Online Status: Offline Posts: 43	Posted: 10 Aug 2015 at 12:25pm
	Wow! Now I have one more thing to worry about! (Not a fan of towing anything, but after 23 years I'm getting slightly less nervous, or I was!) FYI....I'm not driving!
	2015 178 R-Pod Ford F-250 4x4 Diesel 2014 Indian Vintage 2010 HD Ultra Classic

Don Halas Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Senior Member Joined: 01 Jul 2015 Location: Connecticut Online Status: Offline Posts: 190	Posted: 10 Aug 2015 at 12:39pm
	How did you access the fuse?

Jay in Maryland Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 28 Feb 2015 Location: MD Online Status: Offline Posts: 30	Posted: 10 Aug 2015 at 12:43pm
	In my 179 the 12V 30Amp fuse dedicated to the slide out motor is in the lowest 12V fuse position when you open the cover of the r-pod electrical panel/converter located just inside the door (under the pantry cabinet) and it is labelled along with the other fuses.
	Jay r-pod179 05 Tacoma PreRunner

Don Halas Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Senior Member Joined: 01 Jul 2015 Location: Connecticut Online Status: Offline Posts: 190	Posted: 10 Aug 2015 at 12:45pm
	Great. Thank you that is good to know. I'd wondered about the potential of that happening and am suprised that there is no latch or lock to avoid this type of thing.

Don Halas Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Senior Member Joined: 01 Jul 2015 Location: Connecticut Online Status: Offline Posts: 190	Posted: 10 Aug 2015 at 2:20pm
	I'm thinking, it wouldn't be a big deal to cut a 2x4 and wedge it in the top of the slider when travelling. Of course I'd have to be sure to remove it when it came time to open the slide. I wonder if anyone else has taken that or a similar precaution.

SNO4ME Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Senior Member Joined: 28 Sep 2013 Location: NW Wis Online Status: Offline Posts: 122	Posted: 10 Aug 2015 at 2:32pm
	That would might burn out a motor or a gear case...........Or just pop a fuse/breaker. Removing/cutting the power would be better.
	Bruce & Donna in the Sno Pod (and Brewer too) 2011 RP 177

Don Halas Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Senior Member Joined: 01 Jul 2015 Location: Connecticut Online Status: Offline Posts: 190	Posted: 10 Aug 2015 at 3:13pm
	Yes it might burn the motor but it would keep the slide from opening. Otherwise you're essentially putting a switch on a switch.

techntrek Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Admin Group - pHp Joined: 29 Jul 2009 Location: MD Online Status: Offline Posts: 9059	Posted: 10 Aug 2015 at 3:32pm
	I would expect a small percentage of failure of any given part. I've never heard of a failure of a slide-out switch so I think yours qualifies as that small percentage. I agree that you should not put a wedge in there. The mechanism is designed to lock it in place - the problem is the faulty switch. Once you replace that I wouldn't worry about it.
	Doug ~ '10 171 (2009-2015) ~ 2008 Salem ~ Pod instruction manual