Our Dometic / A&E Oasis Elite power door awning died recently… in the closed position, with no obvious way to get into it. Crowbarring it open would have led to a huge replacement bill. Even if you can’t salvage your motor like we did, you can save a ton… if you know the dirty little secret about this common point of failure.
The Oasis Elite is surely one of the most ubiquitous RV door awnings out there. When we bought our rig in 2005, it seemed like just about every mid-to-high-level motorhome came with one. A version of it is still widely used today.
With so many of these units out there, there’s a common failure, which we experienced recently: motor seizure due to moisture penetration. If you’re lucky enough to have the motor fail with the awning in the extended position, you can easily remove the entire unit for diagnosis and repair. If it fails while closed, like ours did, you’ll need to know the hidden trick to opening it without using force, potentially damaging or ruining it, which we demonstrate in the video. (just to clarify that statement… we focus on the “without using force” technique. The “damaging or ruining” part… not so much.) ;-)
The secret about these awnings is that they’re not actually made by Dometic. They’re made by a company called Fiamma. And the dirtiest secret of all is that you can buy a replacement motor directly from Fiamma… for less than one third of what you’ll pay for a “Dometic” motor!
That’s right, as of this writing, the typical price we found for a “Dometic” replacement motor for our awning was $688. You read that right. Six Hundred And Eighty-Eight Gen-u-ine United States George Washingtons. For a little 12-volt motor. If that sounds like a lot, it will REALLY sound outrageous when you learn that by simply ordering direct from Fiamma, that same part is only $215. How’s that for mark-up?! That kind of profit margin would land your company a deal on Shark Tank.
Watch the video for details on how we were able to get away with a total freebie on this repair, because you might be able to as well. If your motor does need to be replaced, not only do Fiamma’s prices kick butt, but their customer service puts Dometic’s to shame too. Their assistance was key in our learning how to do this job… and we didn’t even buy a motor in the end.
Our motor, the “Motor Kit F45 Oasis Left Fully Automatic Polar White” part number 04834A01 is the last part listed on this page: http://fiammausa.com/products/awnings.asp?Fam=A1
And if your awnings or slide toppers are getting a little threadbare, Tough Top Awnings makes excellent replacement fabric for the most common types of RV awnings and slide toppers, plus they offer a discount to RVgeeks viewers.
Visit www.ToughTopAwnings.com and use the discount code “RVGEEKSROCK“ when you check out to receive a 5% discount on your entire order.
Related Videos:
- How To Replace the Fabric on an RV Patio Awning
- How to Install a Dometic RV Window Awning
- Everything awning & slide-topper related…
Featured & Related Products:
- Tough Top Awnings (Get a 5% Discount when you use code “RVGEEKSROCK“)
- Pop Rivet Tool
- Pop Rivets
- Folding 7′ Step Ladder
- Dewalt Cordless Drill
- Tape Measure
- Silicone Spray
- Utility Knife
- Cable Ties – 11″
- 8″ Wire Cutters
- 10″ Flat File
- Torx Bit Set
- Locking Oil Filter Wrench
Ron Wiley
Friday 11th of August 2023
I'm going to replace my awning motor as you show in your elite door awning video and I need to know about getting around the stop limiter switch. Can you help?
TheRVgeeks
Friday 11th of August 2023
Hi Ron! When you ask about "getting around" the stop limiter switch... do you mean the correct way to wire it? Or is it blocking something you need to access? Do you have a Newmar, and are the stop limiter wires cut and unused, the same way ours is?
Billy Burke
Friday 6th of August 2021
Hello, im looking for an awning motor for my Dometic power awning. Dometic part # 3316605.017. It’s a Dometic 9200. Can you help? This site is full of great info and I thank you....
TheRVgeeks
Friday 6th of August 2021
Hey Billy! We're sorry you're having trouble locating the part. Doing some searching online ourselves, it looks like it's out of stock everywhere. With the explosion in demand for new RVs (combined with supply chain issues still lingering from the worst of the pandemic), manufacturers seem to be having a hard time keeping parts in stock! We'd suggest getting in touch with some of the bigger online parts places... like PPL Motorhomes, the RV Upgrade Store, Dyer's Online, or Tweety's to see if they can locate one for you. They may not list it in stock online, but if you call and speak to someone, they may be able to order it for you direct from Dometic.
If that fails (or if you've already done that without any luck), another thing we could suggest for you would be to try RV salvage suppliers. There's a list of a couple of big ones at this site: https://www.lichtsinn.com/rv-parts/rv-salvage-companies.
Barring that... we'd try contacting Dometic directly. They may be able to help you locate a dealer/distributor in their system who has the part in stock.
Sorry we can't be of more help, but hope you locate what you need!
Andres
Friday 14th of September 2018
The door awning on my 2005 Winnebago Journey 39K stopped working and after looking at your video (which is very well and professionally done), I was able to remove and clean the motor and "VOILA", it's ALIVEEEEEE!!!! (~_*)
I bought the Motorhome 2 months ago and consider myself mechanically inclined (enough to get myself in trouble), so always looking for helpful DIY information. My goal is to start the Full Time RVing journey before the end of 2018. I'm learning a lot from your videos. Awesome job!!!
Thanks and MUCH appreciated!!!!!!!!
TheRVgeeks
Friday 14th of September 2018
So great to hear, Andres! We're thrilled that this vide was able to help you tackle this on your own and get it fixed! Great feeling, isn't it?! Hope you're enjoying the journey on your way to full timing! Safe travels... and hope to see you out on the road!
James
Monday 23rd of April 2018
I just did the repair I found on IRV2 http://www.irv2.com/forums/f101/one-lucky-fix-a-and-e-oasis-electric-entry-door-awning-for-30-cents-model-974-a-349014.html Painted to match coach Before I went to reinstall I bench tested it The shaft rotates just fine But the F45 i awing wont retract . Does it have to be pre wound ? Or has the clutch mechanism coincidently failed also
TheRVgeeks
Monday 23rd of April 2018
Hi James! Sorry to hear your Oasis is giving you trouble. It's been a while since we've had ours apart, so we're having a bit of trouble following along with the repair you linked to over on iRV2... but if your awning still isn't retracting, it's certainly possible that the clutch mechanism has failed. Unlike slide-toppers, these door awnings are sprung so they naturally extend... and the motor pulls them back in (where slide toppers are sprung so they roll up as the slide is retracted). From what we understand, that clutch failure is not an uncommon issue on these awnings (knocking on wood to help keep ours working, LOL!).
Fiamma USA (http://fiammausa.com) is back up and running again... so you may want to try giving them a call to see if they can help out with diagnosis and parts.
Sorry we can't be of more help... but let us know how you make out!
Nell Poole
Monday 16th of October 2017
I see from the comments Fiamma has closed. I need the replacement motor for my Oasis Elite Door Awning. Where else can this be purchased ??
TheRVgeeks
Monday 16th of October 2017
Hi Nell. Apparently you're in luck. We just called Fiamma's main number, and confirmed that they have re-opened and are back in business after the terrible tragedy they experienced. You can find parts on their website: http://fiammausa.com and if your door awning is identical to ours, the part number for the motor should be 04834A01 - "Motor Kit F45 Oasis Left Fully Automatic Polar White." The price of $255 is about 1/4 what Dometic/A&E charges. In case you need it, Fimma's phone number is (407) 672-0091. Hope this helps. Please let us know how you make out.