Trouble with ABS Controller.

[nailerman]

On a trip to Myrtle Beach last week, our ABS and Brake dash idiot lights as well as the warning buzzer came on. We were able to get it to reset by stopping, shutting down the engine and waiting a couple of minutes. Everything would go along for maybe 100 miles and do it again.

Bessie is at IH right now awaiting a new Controller from Arvin Mentor, the manufacturer of the Controller. Seems IH believes it shorted somewhere and it is being returned to Arvin, who is making this good under warranty.

My folks at IH told me they have had a rash of these controllers giving up the ghost. My man at IH was on the phone with someone on Thursday when I dropped Bessie off about the same problem with his truck.

Anyone else had the problem? :shock:

[Texas TC]

I believe Jimbob, one of the other members of our little group, just went through the exact same problem.

[JimBob]

My pal from the Republic of Texas is correct, had the exact same issue back in February-

We were heading back to Florida from South Carolina after visiting our granddaughter in St Judes in Memphis, when the warning lights and buzzer came on. We stopped, and it reset, but about a half hour later, on they came again. We pulled into a Wal Mart in beautiful Holly Springs, Mississippi, put a call into Coach Net, and they decided to err on the side of caution and ordered a free tow. We had to wait the night for the tow, and woke up the next morning to a four inch snowfall overnight-

Word of personal experience, Coach Net told me the closest dealer at the time, who was in Tupelo, Miss, about 45 miles away, wouldn't take the unit "because we were a motor home, and they didn't do motor homes." My pleas that I was in fact a bus chassis with a box attached fell on deaf ears, so we wound up being towed to a nice dealership in Columbus Mississippi, about 130 miles away.

They immediately diagnosed the problem as a failed brake controller unit, and they had one sent in UPS overnight and fixed it the next day, under full warranty. They stated that they had had lots of problems with the brake controller units in the local school bus fleet, and had replaced most of them in the fleet.

This was the second time, btw, that I have been told in no uncertain terms that International Dealers won't work on motor homes and have been refused service, despite my pleas.

Jim Bob
08 Super Nova Mailbu Chev toad
Currently in winter quarters, St Augustine, Fl
http://jimbobmissbetteandbuster.blogspot.com

[Georunner]

FYI, I had the same issue this past summer. We only have 11,000 miles so I was a bit surprised. Right now, our engine cooling fan drive has failed, (the fan stays on all the time) and we have been waiting for parts for quite some time.

This is our first RV, and I just wanted to remind those in my situation, to check the seals on the roof. I know Texas TC does this annually, and there have been a few posts about it, but if you haven't been on the roof in a while, check. I caught ours just in time, the front seal was getting quite bad. I put eterna bond tape on. Was a chore, but much better than water running down the walls.

[hayden964]

i just went through this 4 weeks ago . they warrantied the part but would not warranty the labor . My model is an 2008 i took delivery in 2007 only a 2 year warranty . The part was back ordered 3-5 weeks . It was fixed in three weeks tow plus labor was 1600.00 . How can u warranty a part that u know is failing and not warranty the labor

[hayden964]

There is also a service bulletin on the wiring harness to the controller but mine expired and i had to pay for the upgrade

[CraigH]

Well, add me to the list with the failed brake controller! Heading back from a diving meet with the kids two weeks ago at Univ of Tenn in Knoxville. About 30 minutes into the trip home and the lights and buzzer started. Thanks to everyone sharing their experiences here I had a clue what it was... was able to reset a couple of times as mentioned by Nailerman and made it home. Was at IH dealer here for two weeks and I picked it up today - good to go. Still under warranty so no charge (told me the controller is a $4000 part). They have also replaced the Fan Clutch for me and updated the computer - my experience so far with IH has been outstanding!

To be honest, even when I get frustrated with the silly things I think Gulfstream should have gotten right the first time I had NO PROBLEM under warranty with getting everything addressed. One time I had the dealer tell me Gulfstream declined some items so I called the service rep at the factory - he immediately told me to go ahead he had approved all... sometimes the dealer is the issue as much or more than Gulfstream.

Additionally, my Mother-In-Law just purchased a new Fleetwood motorhome and she is having the exact same kind of issues... so as many have said, unfortunately the problems are with all brands - not just Gulfstream. For me, I still really like the SuperNova and am overall pleased with the purchase.

[JimBob]

Craig, glad to read the Forum was of help when you experienced the problem.. the senior members who are owners swear by the forum as a means to keep
each other involved with our units, and for the most part, we are total cheerleaders!

I think in the case of brake controllers, the onus was clearly on International- I think they have a bad batch of controllers out there, and should have made the
manufacturer own up to it and do a national recall if it was proven to be bad, and have the manufacturer deal with the issue, as opposed to having we owners break
down in the middle of east japip and have to be towed, as I did, (and I might add, in a 5 inch snowstorm!" Thankfully, it was a warranty repair.

We're in the midst of our annual big trip, be at St Louis tomorrow-

Travel safely!

JIm Bob in St Augustine
http://jimbobmissbetteandbuster.blogspot.com

[Wildblue]

Uh oh... I picked up my new-to-me RV yesterday. As we were going through it and learning all the systems, I think we may have run into this same problem. We were not even driving at the time, just sitting and idling with the parking brake on. We didn't get a buzzer like you guys, so I don't know if the systems are different. But the dash started beeping at us, got the red "Brake Pressure" idiot light at the top middle of the dash, the yellow "ABS" light just to the right of it, and the yellow "Brake" light just to the right of the bottom center of the dash. (all in addition to the standard parking brake light that was on correctly)

Turned off and reset the RV many times with no effect. When turning on the ignition, the same first two lights would stay on, the ABS pump would make the clicking pumping sound for about 5 seconds and then stop, and then about 30 seconds later the final yellow "Brake" light would come on and start beeping at me.

Then maybe an hour later restarted again with no problem. The ABS kept pumping for about 20 seconds on startup and the brake pressure and ABS lights went out. Drove for 20 minutes to Wal Mart no problem, shut down, and then 20 minutes back just fine. Was late, so we went to bed. This morning, it started fine again, and I drove to the International service center, where I had an appointment anyway for a few minor items. They did a full electronic diagnostic, ($150!!!) which did show a problem with the ABS controller. So the service manager is calling the ABS company to find out about replacing the controller. Said he wasn't sure if it would be under warranty, but he thought it would.

So my question to you guys is, those of you that had this problem, was it under your standard Gulf Stream warranty? My coach is 3 years old, (and I'm not the original owner) so I don't have that warranty active. Is there a separate warranty for the international truck portion, though, and would I be covered under that? Any experience or info that I can pass on to my International service center on this issue so that I can get the best results here?

Thanks

[CraigH]

My understanding is that Meritor put a lifetime warranty on the controller. That's for parts - the labor is whatever the standard warranty is. Mine was about 1 year and 3 months and they covered it 100%. My International service manager said that part is $4000 if you had to buy it... Good luck - Hope you get the labor covered as well!

[schmittm]

Your International warranty is separate from Gulfstream, it covers all International parts. Depending on the item, the warranty is up to 5 years and 100,000 miles. My IH dealer has been great and has replaced gears in rear-end with lower gears, updated PCM version, replaced fan clutch, replaced turbo because of my complaints of turbo farting, replaced one injector that went bad. They can look up your VIN number by the last 6 digits and can tell what your warranty is, what is left and what it covers.

[nailerman]

Warranty happens to be a floating deal with RV's. In our case, IH, Allison, Goofstream, Merritor and on and on. I would give IH a B+ and Allison a B+. Goofstream I cannot come up with a grade.

Warranty is a consideration on a new RV we are looking at. Now that we have fixed and hardened everything including installing Air Ride, we are looking at a Tiffin Breeze. "Bessie" though drives well and is very comfortable but it to cumbersome for places we have to go on business and pleasure. The smaller RV would do us well. Hoping the change will be more reliable at the start.

The Breeze has the same engine though not blown up so high in rating and a lot of other parts now on "Bessie." My guys at IH say no problem with there end. My Allison People are the same. But the closest dealer is like Goofstrem, over 100 miles. So in some ways will we be at square one doing most of the work ourselves.

[Wildblue]

The bad news is that not only was my ABS controller out of warranty, but the manufacturer has actually REDUCED the warranty. They've been having so many of these controllers failing, they decided that they don't want to pay for any more of them. So they cut the 5 year parts warranty to 3. (not cool)

The good news is that first, I was working with a good International dealer, and they did some great stuff for me. (Southland International in Montgomery, Alabama). But also, my Good Sam warranty covered almost all of the bill. I think the final bill was about $3,700 or so with parts, labor, tax, and supplies. Just the controller alone was $2600 or something.

But it's all fixed now, working great, and on the road.

[LabCab]

Well, I joined the club this week-end. Went camping about 100 mi's from home. Arrived Friday setup no problems, turned the coach on Saturday morning (can't even remember why I did) and zap ABS lites Buzzers and that Oh s..t feeling came over me.

Thanks to the forum at least I knew what it was. Called IH they say it could be driven.
Which I did checking the brakes OFTEN. 45 - 50mph home, Not many happy people driving behind us. Sort of a scarey experience. To add insult to injury, the dash air went out as well :evil:

So we drove home with a buzzing in our ears (my wife said I can't stand that buzzing noise---My reply What noise?) Hot air blowing on us.. The dogs had the coach air.

Off to IH this week. (at least I won't need to make 2 trips ABS & Air)

I'll let you all know how we make out.

[xtream1]

Well, 3 weeks ago I just went through the same thing (except for the buzzer). Fortunately mine was only the ABS sensor in the rear (5 dollar part but 150 labor for diagnosis and replacement at IH dealer). I have also been battling with the cab AC issue for the past three years. IH found that there were 2 'O' rings that were bad. Again, $2.50 parts and $150 labor. But, at least it's fixed--I hope. I'll know for sure in 6 months if the freon leaks out again. Hopefully the ABS controller won't be the issue as all warranties have long since expired for me.

[Blehutchie]

Here i sit, day 3 and the new to me supernova is at IH in tacoma, wa. Just got the new abs controller from las vegas and installed....only to find out there is no power to the back of this unit now. IH dealer is working to trace the problem in the electrical harness at 110/hr. My first trip in the grand hotel. Any suggestions?

[MEATHEAD Racing]

I lived through the beeping several times and was able to reset it on several trips. I finally gave in and had it fixed. It is no longer warrantied on mine. Cost was close to $2k.

[nailerman]

Ouch! It does not surprise me. On the International, I have found parts are very dear. I could not believe the AC Controlled on the dash is one unit with a circuit board. $600.00 just for the part. Early on all the trouble with the Goofstream was the coach, but IH is coming up strong. I have a loud tick in my Tach had a good local shop fix it. IH would have either sold me a new instrument cluster of sent it to Southern anyway. Guess what? it still ticks.

I have owned airplanes, cars, trucks and boats. Never have I had such an unreliable vehicle as this has been.

At least whoever gets Bessie when I trade it will get one that is fixed and rides on ACE Air Ride.

[nailerman]

Well it happened again. The ABS controller it seems went out again yesterday on the way home. Arvin built it and IH installed this piece of junk. Got an ABS light the smelled electrical burning in cab. Stopped and had a look see. Thank goodness nothing was burning that I could see. Unlike the last time this happened, I just drove on with no problems except an ABS light. Any :evil: one else having the same trouble?

[Texas TC]

As much as I loved my SuperNova, the International part was the biggest pain in the butt to me. Gulf Steam went out of their way to make me happy but the engine/chassis was always giving me fits. When I decided to go to my class A, I looked at two manufacturers. One was Winnebago, which I bought and the other was Monaco. As much as I liked the R8R eight air bag suspension on the Monaco, I stayed away from that coach because it is now owned by Navistar and they are using the International truck engines in the chassis. I hate that you guys are still having problems with your coaches. The SuperNova is such a great design idea if they had only used a Freightliner chassis. Jayco probably did it right with their class 6 truck chassis coach.

Good luck with solutions to your issues.

TxTC

[nailerman]

Good to hear from you, TC. Your are right, the failures of the IH Chassis parts have been beyond believe. IH used to have such a good reputation, but I have my doubts now. All of the smaller Class A's that we are looking at have the same Max Force Engine (VT 365) just not pumped up as much. One we really like is the Tiffin Breeze 28. It is just right for the two of us. But it has the Max force engine. I am working with Tiffin to learn how many IH parts they are using. I have talked to a few owners who swear by the Breese 28. One fellow up in Fredericksburg, VA has taken his to Alaska and back with any hiccups at all.

Anyway, when Bessie is running, it is great and drives like a dream. We have had it on two small runs in the last month and low and behold, the ABS problem again. IH has it now. We plan on going to Nashville and Memphis later this month, but Bessie's being fickle is getting old. Wish someone would own up and make a trade with me.

Glad you are enjoying you new RV. I do not have your email so I cannot communicate directly. Will be running down to both Dallas and Houston this summer. I would like to catch up with you. Sandy

[Georunner]

Our ABS light came on yesterday as well. Second time for us. First time was the ABS controller.

[nailerman]

It was not the controller this time but a sensor on the driver rear. By the time it was said and done, out $700.00. They did fine that a side wall on the same tire set pulled away. $888.00 for two new tires. Been a fun day. :?

[Gemini John]

My Brake controller gave up the ghost in May. My local international dealer dealt with the manufacturer and all I had to pay was the labor ($600) So I said OK. But then 2 weeks later a shutoff problem came up. No codes that would make sense, and sometimes the crank and cam sensor codes would come up. international stepped up to the plate after it sat at the dealer for a week and renewed the IDS injector driver. Suddenly I had an extra year of warranty and they covered it complete!!!!!!!! Wow, there are good dealers out there. i feel kind of snake bit considering the low miles but both parts were suspect according to this forum. Lots of entire vehicle re-flashes along the way too. I think it has a little less power now but everywhere I go it's way too hot and thin air ain't good to no diesel motor. But I still LOVE how this thing drives so away I go. The ACE airride 810 was worth all the money and it's a motorhome. Kind of a cross between a boat and a hooker you know. Gives you lots of luxury and fun, but always wants a little more momey.............. HJ :oops:

[Kimbo]

Our 2008 6372 Supernova gave out during our spring break trip return trip from Florida to Maryland. The same symptoms everyone experienced with idiot lights and buzzer indicating a problem. We would pull over and shutoff the engine for 10 - 15 minutes and restart the coach. No lights or buzzers. Off we would go until the lights and buzzer kicked in - we limped back into Maryland for a very long drive back.

The coach was repaired by a local International repair shop - Capitol Cities International - good place by Annapolis, MD and they swapped out the controller unit with a rebuilt unit. Good Sam's covered most of the cost of this repair. I haven't had any problems since this repair but now I won't be suprised when if it happens again. :(

[Jim&Karin]

My 2008 is now at International and looks like it will need its third ABS Controller. I am getting about 5000 miles on each controller. Pretty awful. In addition to these controllers, I had to replace two calipers because they were dragging and wheel sensors because brakes overheated and melted the abs wheel sensors. I always had small problems with previous motor homes, but this motor home takes the prize for ruining trips.

[atberger1]

I thought I joined the club for having to replace the ABS Controller. A few weeks back the warning buzzer came on, low break fluid light and low break pressure light came on when slowing coming to a toll. Right away I remembered reading on this forum about the ABS module problem happening around 30,000 miles. I had about 30,500 on my 2008 Super Nova 6400. I pulled over and checked the brake fluid reservoir which was full. I also had full break pressure when pressing the brake peddle. I was about 35 miles from home so I decided to drive on. After re-starting the engine, the alarm and warning lights went off. About 5 miles later they came on and stayed on for the remainder of the drive. It took two weeks to get an appointment at my local International dealer. After about a week I got a call from them asking me if I have ever replaced the starter batteries. I had not. They said that when they ran the computer check on the module it was coming up with low voltage. I knew the batteries were nearing their end so I said replace them. Sure enough that fixed the problem. The International dealer said they checked with Meritor, the maker of the module and they said that it is usually low batteries or a bad ground that causes the module to appear to be faulty and in most cases it does not need replaced. In my case they appear to be right as I have not had the issue come up in my last two trips for a couple hundred miles :D . Just wanted to share my experience as many have had this issue and had an expensive replacement bill.

Tom

[Jim&Karin]

Tom,

Thanks for the info on low battery voltage. Hope you have only good fortune and many happy miles with your motorhome.

Jim

[38Chevy454]

My story - not quite a brake controller, but related. I had brakes dragging and causing the brake pressure and ABS lights to come on. I unplugged the big ABS fuse thinking it was an ABS actuation problem. Maybe it seemed to help some, but of course that made a beeping alarm that is about enough to drive you crazy. Even tried wrapping alarm with a paper napkin to dull the sound. Can't wrap it fully as it is enclosed in a sealed area.

Long story short, I ended up melting a couple ABS sensors, and overheated brakes all around. The official diagnosis was a master cylinder holding pressure. Of course this all happened when on a trip, so bend over at the dealer. New master cyl, new calipers all four corners, new pads all four corners, new rotors all four corners, and four new ABS sensors. Approx $6000 of repair costs. :evil: :shock:

I tried to get Meritor to cover as it only had 24K miles. They would not since age was over warranty. Took three days at dealer in Denver waiting to get repairs done. Needless to say it ruined that trip.

To compound the issue I talked with Meritor rep and determined the brakes are not bled properly by dealer. It has to have a computer hooked up to get all air out of the brake controller unit;requiring the computer program to pulse the controller while it is pressure bled. I was at dealer and saw it was just normal pedal pump bled. So I still have some air in the system which causes excessive times to pump up the controller to full pressure after not running MH for a while.

The Gulfstream part of MH has been fine, it is the International chassis part that has problems for me!

[Jim&Karin]

My 2008 motorhome had both rear brake calipers replaced. Passenger rear under warranty with less than 10000 miles and the driver side rear one about a year after the first at about 12000. The dragging was just like the recall which affected many motorhome on workhorse chassis. I hope I had had my fill of brake problems. I agree that rest of coach seems to be holding up ok. Only little problems.
Jim

[LJ4174]

Well, 3 weeks ago I just went through the same thing (except for the buzzer). Fortunately mine was only the ABS sensor in the rear (5 dollar part but 150 labor for diagnosis and replacement at IH dealer).

So resurrecting an old thread here... Just picked up a new to us 2008 Endura built on the International 4200 chassis with the VT365 engine, with 42,000 miles. This happened on our maiden trip, just the yellow ABS light, no buzzing, etc. Do you remember what sensor they replaced? We are currently out of town in the RV and I'm a bit concerned driving it home. I've called a few places and they can't seem to get me in for a week, etc. I tested the wheel sensors. Where is the ABS module and/or relay?

Thanks...

LJ

[Restorium]

So resurrecting an old thread here... Just picked up a new to us 2008 Endura built on the International 4200 chassis with the VT365 engine, with 42,000 miles. This happened on our maiden trip, just the yellow ABS light, no buzzing, etc. Do you remember what sensor they replaced? We are currently out of town in the RV and I'm a bit concerned driving it home. I've called a few places and they can't seem to get me in for a week, etc. I tested the wheel sensors. Where is the ABS module and/or relay?

Thanks...

LJ
Did you have the code read? They do it for free at some auto parts stores.

[LJ4174]

Did you have the code read? They do it for free at some auto parts stores.

I went to a diesel shop and had it read. It's the rear sensor that I suspected... I called Advanced Auto and they said they could only read ODB2 connectors??? I don't "think" my RV has one...

[SlimTim]

I went to a diesel shop and had it read. It's the rear sensor that I suspected... I called Advanced Auto and they said they could only read ODB2 connectors??? I don't "think" my RV has one...

You are correct, the International trucks do not have an ODB2 diagnostic port. You need a special scanner used on large trucks to read the engine and body codes on an international.

If you are interested, I think LTC_R has a Scangauge Display in his 6400 that will display codes. You can do a search for Scangauge to find the posting.

[LJ4174]

You are correct, the International trucks do not have an ODB2 diagnostic port. You need a special scanner used on large trucks to read the engine and body codes on an international.

If you are interested, I think LTC_R has a Scangauge Display in his 6400 that will display codes. You can do a search for Scangauge to find the posting.

Thanks... I couldn't find anything specific from LTC-R - but, I got some info, seems legit... :)

[Stevejo]

well I guess I am part of this ABS, BS myself with my 2008 Endura. I have had the abs, low brake pressure and low brake fluid pressure lights randomly coming on. I read where somebody had this issue and it was determined to have weak chassis batteries.I checked my batteries and they appear to the original batteries. I cant believe they lasted this long. I am not sure if it has anything to do with the ABS system but I will replace the batteries and see what happens.

[Rvguy]

Abs brake module. Has anyone changed it if so what's the part number?

My pal from the Republic of Texas is correct, had the exact same issue back in February-

We were heading back to Florida from South Carolina after visiting our granddaughter in St Judes in Memphis, when the warning lights and buzzer came on. We stopped, and it reset, but about a half hour later, on they came again. We pulled into a Wal Mart in beautiful Holly Springs, Mississippi, put a call into Coach Net, and they decided to err on the side of caution and ordered a free tow. We had to wait the night for the tow, and woke up the next morning to a four inch snowfall overnight-

Word of personal experience, Coach Net told me the closest dealer at the time, who was in Tupelo, Miss, about 45 miles away, wouldn't take the unit "because we were a motor home, and they didn't do motor homes." My pleas that I was in fact a bus chassis with a box attached fell on deaf ears, so we wound up being towed to a nice dealership in Columbus Mississippi, about 130 miles away.

They immediately diagnosed the problem as a failed brake controller unit, and they had one sent in UPS overnight and fixed it the next day, under full warranty. They stated that they had had lots of problems with the brake controller units in the local school bus fleet, and had replaced most of them in the fleet.

This was the second time, btw, that I have been told in no uncertain terms that International Dealers won't work on motor homes and have been refused service, despite my pleas.

Jim Bob
08 Super Nova Mailbu Chev toad
Currently in winter quarters, St Augustine, Fl
http://jimbobmissbetteandbuster.blogspot.com

[Rvguy]

Had any one replaced the abs controller unit, and if so what was the part number

[rld63]

I had mine just changed at the IH Dealer. I tried to find the part number but no luck.

Will say, it is nice not having the ABS and Brake lights and alarms going off, and it stops much better.

Roy.

[rld63]

I just recently had my brake controller replaced by IH.

The parts list was:
101N/2598668C96 -- Control, Kit EHCU L/PRK BRK HEB $5,153,53
Core for controller was $1350.00


Hope this helps.

[SupernovaJulie]

Anyone know if there is a fuse that will silence the beeping until we can get the controller replaced?

[pwerwagn]

You can pull the instrument cluster and unplug the chime. It’s really easy.

Pop the trim piece off around the cluster. Then there are 4 torx fasteners, T20 if I remember right. Pull the cluster away from the dash. On the drivers side of the cluster towards the bottom (directly behind the trans temp gauge basically) you will see a little round chime. If you put your finger over it it will silence it. Right next to it is a black connector. Use a flat screwdriver or knife or something to gently unplug that connector. It doesn’t plug in straight back, you have to slide it down.

It only takes about 5 min to do.

Jeff