Weld Problems

Here is a copy of an email I received from Fleetwood regarding the weld issue on some 1998 and prior year D's:

Thank you for sharing your information with us. We are dedicated to assuring our Discovery owners of the ongoing value and safety of their Discovery motor homes. Please forward any information from members regarding these or any Discovery concerns to our email address at [email protected]. Of course, we are always ready to assist our customers by calling one of our Owner Relations staff at 1-800-322-8216, open 7 days a week.

Let me address each issue you mentioned:
We are continuing our investigation of Discovery's for condition of under chassis components, primarily the frame to platform welds on 1996 - 1998 Discovery's. I participated in the Tucson rally and truly appreciate the warm reception we received from our Discovery friends and owners.

At the Tucson Rally, we inspected 122 coaches and have provided our reports to the Fleetwood Engineering Group for review. From those inspections, I requested 3 units be repaired by the exceptional service staff at Beaudry's RV. We repaired the three units due to broken welds that could have allowed movement of the platform to chassis if not repaired. All of the Discovery's we inspected, including the three repaired coaches, were and are structurally sound and safe to drive. The repairs were completed to prevent further movement from occurring.

As we continue our investigation, including the Reyne Rally, we will keep your members informed of our findings.

Mr. Myhre has provided Fleetwood copies of the photos of the lower slide brace and it's proximity to the under chassis tanks. We are evaluating this issue at the moment and do not have suggestions yet. We will provide a more complete reply once we have inspected this issue first hand.

I will be attending the Reyne Rally to be available to discuss these and any other concerns Discovery owners may have. We are very confident we can provide answers and resolution to any and all open issues at that time.

Please remind your Discovery Owner members to contact Fleetwood Owner Relations at 800-322-8216 if they have any concerns about their Discovery's. We are proud of the exceptional value, quality and durability of the Discovery motor home and want to provide any support to your members may need.

Respectfully,
George Weart

As we have come to expect, Fleetwood is very interested in our safety and concerns. Fleetwood advises that the weld problem does NOT affect the safety of the D. However, several members with weld problems that had their D fixed at the Tuscon rally advise that their coach handles significantly better.

Thursday, April 18 Update, Decatur, IN
Just talked to Adam at Decatur Plant 91. Fleetwood is still evaluating D coaches for possible weld defects and a general look-over to see how everything is holding up. There is NO RECALL as of now. Several DOAI members have requested that Fleetwood authorize their local dealer and this has been granted.

Also, some 2000 model coaches are having a possible weld problem, but this does not involve the PACO beam as on the 1997 and prior production coaches. This involves welding on the luggage bays, from what I understand.

You may still want to inspect your D for missing, poor or broken welds along the PACO beam, especially in back of the front and rear tires. Here is a picture from Denny that shows what to look for.



Although not confirmed by Fleetwood, it is believed that you should have a weld every 6 inches.

After you inspect your coach, it is very important that you send the following information to Denny at [email protected], and copy Bob Cook at [email protected]. Also, please let Fleetwood know if you find a weld problem. We ALSO need to hear from you if you do NOT find this problem!

Year of coach
VIN Number
Missing or defective welds? Yes / No
Comments (many missing welds, violent shaking when entering/exiting parking lot at an angle, visible radiator sag in rear, etc)