Sprintervanmom
Chattanooga, TN
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Has anyone heard of this issue with a Midwest Patriot by American coach (Mercedes sprinter 2017 body) ? I only had 5000 miles in it when I purchased it.
When you turn on the generator and the AC, the battery gradually loses power (I can watch the voltage dropping) and then the inverter starts giving e1 and e5 error messages and then the voltage drops low enough to shut of the thermostat to the AC. I’ve tried calling Midwest with no return call.
My Rv tech tried to install a piece that would at least allow the engine battery to charge the cabin battery but once he opened everything up he was baffled by the wiring in the Mercedes and didn’t want to risk messing anything up.
hate to put in a new generator or inverter and it seems this a manufacturing defect that the system is under powered. I should be under warranty to but can get no help from Midwest after leaving messages (should I be calling someone else?) any help would be appreciated!
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dougrainer
Carrolton, Texas
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1. You have NO warranty from Midwest. Midwest warranty is to first owner ONLY. You do have Mercedes warranty on the chassis if under the 3 years. The Mercedes warranty is 36/36. Powertrain goes to 100k. Your problem is a Midwest installed appliance problem
2. The genset has NO charger
3. The Inverter/Charger IS the charger and when 120 volts is supplied from the Genset, SHOULD charge the Coach batteries. If NOT and you do have 120 volts TO the Inverter/Charger(you need to verify this) then the charger section of the Inverter/Charger is bad and either fix or replace the Inverter/Charger. Usually cheaper to replace the Inverter/Charger. Doug(Midwest Dealer Technician)
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dougrainer
Carrolton, Texas
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Will the Genset START with the Sprinter engine OFF and NO KEY in the Ignition? Doug
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DancinCampers
Louisiana
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As a temp measure I would try running the engine to recharge the house battery when it got low.
My inverter/charger with remote panel allows me to put charger into standby mode, not sure about yours.
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Sprintervanmom
Chattanooga, TN
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This is helpful @douggrainer! . Is it worth it to reach out to American coach about this issue or is it only a Midwest issue and I have no warranty with them so will just have to deal with this myself? Is this an issue you have head of occurring with this model? Weird that it is so new and already having an issue. do you think I have an inverter issue? I will ask my RV tech…I think he said I do have 120 volts from the generator but will verify.
dougrainer wrote:1. You have NO warranty from Midwest. Midwest warranty is to first owner ONLY. You do have Mercedes warranty on the chassis if under the 3 years. The Mercedes warranty is 36/36. Powertrain goes to 100k. Your problem is a Midwest installed appliance problem
2. The genset has NO charger
3. The Inverter/Charger IS the charger and when 120 volts is supplied from the Genset, SHOULD charge the Coach batteries. If NOT and you do have 120 volts TO the Inverter/Charger(you need to verify this) then the charger section of the Inverter/Charger is bad and either fix or replace the Inverter/Charger. Usually cheaper to replace the Inverter/Charger. Doug(Midwest Dealer Technician)
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Sprintervanmom
Chattanooga, TN
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Running the engine does not charge the house battery unfortunately. That is the part my tech guy wanted to install (an isolator) but needs to do more research about how to do so with the Mercedes wiring. It wouldn’t solve my problem though when I am dry camping/boondocking.
DancinCampers wrote:As a temp measure I would try running the engine to recharge the house battery when it got low.
My inverter/charger with remote panel allows me to put charger into standby mode, not sure about yours. the
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Sprintervanmom
Chattanooga, TN
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dougrainer wrote:Will the Genset START with the Sprinter engine OFF and NO KEY in the Ignition? Doug
Yes, no problem starting the generator. Thanks for puzzling over my problem!
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dougrainer
Carrolton, Texas
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Your Midwest does charge both battery banks from the Diesel engine. IF NOT, then there is either a fuse blown or the charge solenoid is bad. You can call Midwest, but they do not give 2nd owners any warranty help. AS to your problem, if you do not have anybody in your area experianced on Midwest products you need to call Midwest and ask for the closest Midwest authorized center. The way Midwest installs and wires their Motorhomes can be very difficult for someone that does not work on them regularly. Doug
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Grit dog
Black Diamond, WA
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Sprintervanmom wrote:
When you turn on the generator and the AC, the battery gradually loses power (I can watch the voltage dropping) and then the inverter starts giving e1 and e5 error messages and then the voltage drops low enough to shut of the thermostat to the AC.
While not an expert on your particular rv, I have yet to see a RV that the engine alternator does not charge the house batteries underway.
So that's weird, but not your real issue.
The generator should power the Air Con and all other AC outlets/appliances like your microwave as well as charge your house batteries through the converter.
You mention inverter. I doubt your inverter is wired to power a AC (it could be though), but the genny should be the primary source of power.
Do all your other AC appurtenances work?
Oh, and your tech could simply pull a charge lead off your start battery or another power center on the vehicle, through an ACR (auto charging relay) straight to the house batteries. No fooling with electrical systems needed.
If you actually mean inverter, sounds like it IS doing its best to run the AC and battery dies quickly (expected) and your generator isn't working.
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Sprintervanmom
Chattanooga, TN
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Thanks DougRainer! This is immensely helpful.
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