Paseo owners - where are the coach batteries?

[Phoebe3]

We looked at a couple of Sprinter conversions and it looks like the batteries are underneath. I've contacted Coachmen about the Crossfit on the Transit chassis and the dealer said the battery (singular) was under the driver's seat. Since the Paseo is also on the Transit, I wondered how WGO handled the battery location.

[BBQ]

Originally Posted by Phoebe3

We looked at a couple of Sprinter conversions and it looks like the batteries are underneath. I've contacted Coachmen about the Crossfit on the Transit chassis and the dealer said the battery (singular) was under the driver's seat. Since the Paseo is also on the Transit, I wondered how WGO handled the battery location.

For Sprinters:
There are three places for batteries.

1. Chassis battery -- under the driver's seat.
2. House battery -- room for 2 AGM under the hood
3. House battery -- being rear wheel drive, the van has a high floor. ie. lots of space under the chassis

[Phoebe3]

So on Sprinters, they put the chassis battery in the house and the house batteries under the hood? That just seems soooo backwards to me.

I called a dealer about the Crossfit (Transit chassis) and asked where the coach (house) batteries were. He went out and looked and said there was only one coach battery and it was under the driver's seat. Now, the literature says there are two coach batteries so I figured something was off and based on what you just said about the Sprinter, I wonder if what he was looking at was the chassis battery.

He did say that if I wanted to swap it out for an AGM, I should contact Ford to see if it would void the warranty. I wondered why Ford would care, but now I see the problem...

[skagitstan]

Originally Posted by Phoebe3

So on Sprinters, they put the chassis battery in the house and the house batteries under the hood? That just seems soooo backwards to me.

I called a dealer about the Crossfit (Transit chassis) and asked where the coach (house) batteries were. He went out and looked and said there was only one coach battery and it was under the driver's seat. Now, the literature says there are two coach batteries so I figured something was off and based on what you just said about the Sprinter, I wonder if what he was looking at was the chassis battery.

He did say that if I wanted to swap it out for an AGM, I should contact Ford to see if it would void the warranty. I wondered why Ford would care, but now I see the problem...

Transit has a single and a 2 battery coach option. I've no idea which is in the Crossfit.
The 2 battery option comes along with a high output alternator, and the batteries are AGM. The single battery option is a flooded unit.

[Phoebe3]

Are the coach batteries under the hood, under the chassis, or under the driver's seat?

[BBQ]

For ProMaster:

The chassis battery is under the driver's seat.
There is a similar cavity under the passenger's seat. Some people use that for the house battery.

[skagitstan]

Originally Posted by Phoebe3

Are the coach batteries under the hood, under the chassis, or under the driver's seat?

Transit coach batteries are under the driver's seat.

[avanti]

Actually, the Sprinter chassis battery isn't under the driver's seat, it is beneath a hatch under the floor, down by the driver's feet. The driver's seat has electronics under it. There is a space for an optional OEM aux battery in the engine compartment. You could fit a battery under the passenger's seat if you like.

T1N Sprinters have the chassis battery in the engine compartment with the optional aux battery under the passenger's seat.

[BBQ]

.

Just checked the Winnebago Paseo manual.

you can download it here:
Winnebago Industries Operator Manuals


Chassis battery -- under driver's seat (inside the cab)
House batteries -- two, both are on the outside -- one under the driver's door, the other under the passenger's door.

.

[Phoebe3]

I'm going to call a service dept tomorrow and see what they tell me about the Transit coach battery placement. I'll report back - since it seems they could be anywhere!

[BBQ]

Originally Posted by Phoebe3

I'm going to call a service dept tomorrow and see what they tell me about the Transit coach battery placement. I'll report back - since it seems they could be anywhere!

Can you call Coachmen direct and speak to a customer support?

[Phoebe3]

Oh, yeah, that's where I started. Spoke with both the Sales Manager and Service Manager in ElkHart as well as the local West Coast Sales Rep. It is amazing what they didn't know about their product. Not only could they not tell me where the batteries were, they couldn't tell me how hard it would be to add additional panels to the solar system. It comes with 100Kw, optional 200Kw. I can't find any with 200Kw so I wanted to know how hard it would be to add the second panel after the fact. Nope, can't tell me.

In the process of writing this up, I contacted a service department at a dealer and despite the national Sales Manager telling me there were TWO wet cell batteries for the coach, the service department tells me there is only ONE deep cycle marine battery and it is under the driver's seat, class 24. (I called service because the sales guy said they may have done some work on one and might have actually seen the elusive, possibly mythical, battery.) Another service department tells me there are EIGHT! (Presumably it also has unicorns under the hood.) And another service department suggested I should talk to sales (i.e., where I started) because she didn't know how many batteries it had - at least she was honest.

Is this a problem? Seems like it is. Should I be surprised?

[BBQ]

Originally Posted by Phoebe3

Oh, yeah, that's where I started. Spoke with both the Sales Manager and Service Manager in ElkHart as well as the local West Coast Sales Rep. It is amazing what they didn't know about their product. Not only could they not tell me where the batteries were, they couldn't tell me how hard it would be to add additional panels to the solar system. It comes with 100Kw, optional 200Kw. I can't find any with 200Kw so I wanted to know how hard it would be to add the second panel after the fact. Nope, can't tell me.

In the process of writing this up, I contacted a service department at a dealer and despite the national Sales Manager telling me there were TWO wet cell batteries for the coach, the service department tells me there is only ONE deep cycle marine battery and it is under the driver's seat, class 24. (I called service because the sales guy said they may have done some work on one and might have actually seen the elusive, possibly mythical, battery.) Another service department tells me there are EIGHT! (Presumably it also has unicorns under the hood.) And another service department suggested I should talk to sales (i.e., where I started) because she didn't know how many batteries it had - at least she was honest.

Is this a problem? Seems like it is. Should I be surprised?

I would take my money and run.

I don't care how wonderful is their floor plan
and how good is their workmanship.

This company is destined for bankruptcy.

[AC Orange]

.
My 2017 PASEO manual says that there are 2 AGM type batteries under the drivers seat (top protective plate has been removed in this pic). Also pic showing the case which contains the 2 batteries :

[Phoebe3]

Thanks for the pictures! Those batteries under the seat are powering the Ford chassis, right? I understand the Winnebago Paseo coach batteries are suspended under the chassis.

The Ford Transit website says there could be either one or two batteries under the driver's seat for the chassis, depending on the option selected from Ford when building the Transit. So I wonder if the Coachmen Crossfit uses just one battery for the Transit chassis and then puts the Coachmen battery in the second slot.

Are you replacing your batteries? How difficult was it to remove the driver's seat?

[Monica998]

Originally Posted by BBQ

For Sprinters:
There are three places for batteries.

1. Chassis battery -- under the driver's seat.
2. House battery -- room for 2 AGM under the hood
3. House battery -- being rear wheel drive, the van has a high floor. ie. lots of space under the chassis

Most of the RVs' batteries have been placed in the above 3 places.