[Flick]

So my new old rig has steps that are stuck slightly extended. Before I left Texas one of the guys looked underneath and said the electric motor was shot and it's easier to just replace the whole thing. True or have any of you done these before and just replaced the motor?

[encantotom]

it is a matter of the price of the parts and how worn the step itself is.

i took the single step out of my 1990 and had it welded to be superstrong and put it back up ok. but the motor was ok.

on my 2002, the motor gear stripped and it made a racket and wouldnt retract all the way. since my steps were somewhat worn i just went ahead and bought an entire unit from PPL motorhomes. my two step unit, series 32 was 355 bucks shipped.

the motor on most of them is from a car window motor and you can buy one if you can find the right one fairly cheaply. forest took his apart and turned the gear around and got it to work. it really depends on what is wrong with it. the motor itself or the gear.

the parts if you buy them are really pricey.

so a little investigative work is needed to determine what is wrong. the step itself is easy to remove and replace and the guts are easy to remove and replace on the step itself. i did the single step by myself. the double step one took me and another guy to hold up.

tom

[Brad Townsend]

On my coach it got stuck a few times which I finally released it with a bar then lubed it and it's been fine ever since.

[tuga]

PPL Motorhomes in Houston has a repair kit. Call them and give them the model # you have and they send you a motor and a control head for about $160 (may be more now). Those are the only 2 things that can go wrong (aside from the switch that is mounted in the doorway, Newell has those in stock.

It's not cheap but everything will be new and it should work for another 30 years (just kidding)!

[Scott]

Or you could run into the fun problem where someone bumped the wiring harness when putting folding chairs into the bay getting ready to leave. Then you feel pretty silly when you troubleshoot it for an hour just to have everything point at it being unplugged.

Tom had that issue when leaving Ohio, steps were stuck extended, pulled open the PDF specs on the step and starting probing the voltages.

Just pull out that voltmeter and double-check what it is before you start replacing stuff (trust, but verify!).

[encantotom]

scott is right, make sure all the connections are ok and it isnt just stuck or no voltage. there is a fuse for it as well.

btw, scott is my son....and a electrical engineer as well.

tom

[Flick]

Thanks guys.

[Flick]

Ok I determined the steps were not hooked to te motor. However they looked rough so I just bought a new replacement step and have now installed them. The electrical connections mated up but I don't know if they actually work as the batteries in the RV must all be disconnected with engine out as I have no power. So when they get things fired up I will have to see if they actually work or if I now will need to also fix the switching and wiring. If your a betting man and have been following all of my adventures you know you should bet against the house. I am the house BTW.

[encantotom]

do your new steps have the same controller hookups? there is a control module on the series 32 that is in my coach that will close the steps when the door is shut with the ignition on even if the overirde switch is on.

when i replaced the steps on my 02 they worked with no issues, but the magnetic door switch that detects when the door was closed did change polarities at some point so if the door operates backwards that is what it is.

tom

[Flick]

Good to know. I see a toggle switch just inside the door on the steps going into the rig that I have never figured out what it does. Wonder if thst is the switch you are tallking about

There is also a small light on the interior steps that could be run by this switch as well. They have never turned on so I assumed it was a bad bulb because the switch does not turn them on and no other switch does as well.

Tom if ithe steps do operate backwards how do I fix that?