Wanted to warn any potential buyers of W lithium Travato -
Had 2020 lithium Travato that autostart feature would never work reliably - dealers refused to touch it. Said was chassis because involved the engine starting and the dash electronics . W was useless as was Volta . Volta particularly bad as ghosted me after their feeble efforts failed to fix the problem . Any of these conversion vans are fraught with danger; if its not a simple problem the dealers just tell you to shove off . I tried 4 dealers and none would even look at it- said chassis issue - which clearly it was not as RAM did not install the autostart feature for the coach battery .
My solution was to dump the van after futile struggling with W, Volta, and 4 dealers over about 7 months. I was totally amazed at the indifference by all parties involved- I learned quickly that the RV world and the automotive world are like night and day in terms of service. . It is difficult to comprehend how these vans can be sold for such high prices and then have dealers refuse to fix them . Apparently if a dealer sells them that does not mean they are a full service service facility . W said I could bring it to their factory repair center - but the first appointment was in 6 months and I would have had to drive it there and wait in a motel for them to evaluate it and attempt a repair . Ultimately, the headache of not having service support proved too much for me and I just wholesaled the van .
Wanted to warn any potential buyers of W lithium Travato -
Had 2020 lithium Travato that autostart feature would never work reliably - dealers refused to touch it. Said was chassis because involved the engine starting and the dash electronics . W was useless as was Volta . Volta particularly bad as ghosted me after their feeble efforts failed to fix the problem . Any of these conversion vans are fraught with danger; if its not a simple problem the dealers just tell you to shove off . I tried 4 dealers and none would even look at it- said chassis issue - which clearly it was not as RAM did not install the autostart feature for the coach battery .
Sorry to hear of your problems. I love new technology only if it works like it is suppose to! I have read of lots of problems with Volta but also heard lots of compliments from trouble free users. The technology is expensive. Unfortunately, not totally trouble free. I think when the tech becomes problematic, there does not exist any profit for dealers to try and fix them. Most of the money is made in sales? I would have thought a good repair department would keep the customers inhouse returning so sales would have opportunity for selling newer units?
Service could be a significant revenue and profit engine for any RV dealer. I'm always saddened to see how many RV dealers don't seem to know this or have a clue how to make it happen. Any good car dealer out there with a competent service manager could tell them how to pull it off.
That said, I'd never trust an auto-start feature in any RV today, whether it's for an on-board generator or the chassis engine. It's too complex for the average RV manufacturer to pull off successfully, and it's well beyond the skills of most RV Service departments to debug and resolve. I'd frankly prefer not to have that feature so I don't have to pay to try and fix it, and then hit the same wall you did.
Ultimately, it was not just the autostart feature not working that led me to abandon the van . It became apparent in talking to 4 large RV dealers that they would not support the second alternator that W had installed in the engine to charge the coach battery . Neither would they support any electronics installed in the dash or any wiring connecting these areas to the coach battery . I heard over and over that they only fixed the coach - nothing In the engine or dash even if W had installed the components . The lemon law applies only to the chassis . A lawsuit would have been expensive and time consuming . The best part was when I asked the dealer I purchased from if they would take it on trade or give me a wholesale cash price and the manager said ,” I dont want it cause then I would have to fix it “.
Lithium Travato autostart problem
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