Well, we've gone and done it ! (1 Viewer)

Grapheneman

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Sep 3, 2019
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I'm a newbie
I've just found this BB and I'm really pleased as I'm learning from it.
My wife and I took delivery of a new Pilote 740FC Sensation Automatic on September 18th this year. It's our first ever motor home. It was our intention to get a couple of UK trips in then head to Spain and be back for January 31st. (We've got an elderly dog and we wanted to get back before that date due to Brexit / Pet Passport possible problems).
To cut a long story short we've had three trips away and suffered electrical power / battery / Xperience panel problems each time. We've decided therefor to forego the Winter visit and start planning for Spring.
Some of the problems have been with the MH but mostly our ignorance of the the complexities of the Xperience-Dashboard tablet-Truma control interface.
One of the more important thing we have learned is that after a habitation battery has been exhausted (or even just briefly disconnected) it will only charge (on mains) at about 0.3 amps. To overcome this the following procedure must be carried out to re-calibrate
Ensure there is at least some charge in the battery (either by mains and / or solar) as the procedure takes 3 hours.
Mains off
Engine off , ignition switch to "0"
Remove the two 50 Amp Motor and Habitation Battery Protection fuses.
Immediately disconnect and re-connect the 2 Amp IBS Protection Fuse. (On ours it comes directly off the negative terminal).
Leave for three hours.
Replace the 50 Amp Fuses.
Switch mains on.
Normal charging should then carry on.

Hope that helps someone.

We too have the reversing camera light on when "Auxilliary" is on. As I like to have the use of the camera as a "rear view mirror" I'll probably leave it as is unless Pilote come up with a fix.
BTW as well as losing radio and USB ports turning off AUX also turns off the cooker ignition but I'm not sure about the toilet cassette warning lights.

I didn't know about the isolator having to be off when on mains, and I never thought to use a mouse on the Xperience panel. Good info and with the mouse the panel seems much more user friendly / reliable. Thanks to you all.

I'm sure that when we master this technology we'll enjoy the Pilote, It's certainly warm and cosy even at this time of year.
 
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Geistguy
Jan 27, 2018
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DrunkenDuncan, good post Duncan but where / which is the Battery Sensor Fuse ?

Clive

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Grapheneman

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DrunkenDuncan,

It was mentioned in a post by Cheese Toastie on May the 23rd.

Edit
It was also mentioned by Dazzler on May 25th.
 
Last edited:
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Geistguy
Jan 27, 2018
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Darren, your post of Dec 3rd mentions advice from your dealer re battery sensor fuse, how do I find it ? Keep it simple please - I'm not very techy ?

Might be me but I can't find the links you refer to.

Cheers, Clive
 

Grapheneman

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Could the fuse Duncan refers to be the one Pilote call the IBS protection fuse? It's the grey 2 Amp fuse in the black fuseholder which is connected by a red wire to both terminals.
Pilote fuses_LI.jpg
 
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Geistguy
Jan 27, 2018
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Grapheneman - just re read your lost of last Thursday and along with the photo and Duncans advice I'm going to give it a go.

At the moment I'm just relying on the amps shown next to the battery symbol, this seems to be more reliable but it would be nice to get everything working correctly.

Thanks guys for all your help ?

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Jun 20, 2013
44
49
Kendal
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26,574
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Pilote P650GJ
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since 2000 (a couple of VW campervans and a low profile Dethleffs)
Yet again superb service from Dicksons, they have emailed instructions for the fix to my problem on my previous post. Apparently a small number of Pilote vans have had the radio connections wrongly wired, it's a simple matter of swapping over a wire. Dicksons have agreed that my local garage can do the work and they will pay the bill.

I've said it before but Dicksons of Perth really are brilliant !!
Hi Geistguy - it seems our van has this rear-light-on-when-Aux-is-on issue. Do you still have the instructions for the fix that was successfully used? Is it possible to still use the camera as a 'rear view mirror' after it was fixed?
Many thanks if you can help, Keith
 
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Geistguy
Jan 27, 2018
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Hi Keith, the problem is within the dash tablet wiring, I will have to delve through my old emails to see if I still have the instructions. With Dicksons approval the work was done by my usual garage, and it was a simple matter of changing two wires. Sadly after the remedial work you cannot use the camera a a rear view mirror. If I can't find the instructions it is a documented error by Pilote so your dealer should have the instructions as well.

I'll check later and let you know. Cheers Clive.

PS had a single GasIt cylinder fitted yesterday with a calor cylinder as backup. Filling stations are rare up here !

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Geistguy
Jan 27, 2018
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Hi Keith, had a good search through my old emails but without success I'm afraid. If your own dealer can't help I'm sure Dicksons would, their number is 01738 626287 and I think it's option 2 for servicing. It's a very simple fix and my garage did it while I waited, I think their charge, which Dicksons paid, was just over £30.

Best of luck
 
Jun 20, 2013
44
49
Kendal
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26,574
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Pilote P650GJ
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since 2000 (a couple of VW campervans and a low profile Dethleffs)
Thanks for all that, Clive. Maybe I'll just choose to put up with the light being on then - I'm very reluctant to forgo the rear view mirror-camera, in spite of driving lots of big awkward vehicles all my life. I find it useful and I think my wife does too, even though as a retired teacher she has been used to driving minibuses full of screaming kids! I'll phone the dealer and see what they say.
Yes, we have a Gasit system, but with other options ready to connect up if we weren't able to get to an LPG filling station - there are a few more around here, but Kendal Calor Centre won't let me fill up, as it isn't a tank plumbed in with fixed pipes - flexible hoses do not meet their requirements...
 
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Geistguy
Jan 27, 2018
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Keith, that's a bit of a quandary then, the absence of a rear view mirror doesn't bother me, it's been so long since we've had one I've learned to live without it. What bothered me was the light being on when you have "auxiliary" on in the Xperience tablet, turning "auxiliary" turns the light off but you lose the radio and USB points power. Most of our camping is done off site and the light being on was a nuisance and battery drain, this wouldnt6be a pro6of course on hook up. I never explored if a clever auto electrician could give solution so you have the best of both worlds.

Calor seem to be a law unto themselves, they just want to sell their very expensive bottles. At the moment Morrisons seem very obliging and cheap, unfortunately we have none up here that sell gas. Best of luck, Clive.

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Jun 20, 2013
44
49
Kendal
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26,574
MH
Pilote P650GJ
Exp
since 2000 (a couple of VW campervans and a low profile Dethleffs)
A further update on our new van - still haven't actually used it yet; were due to be away on the weekend of Storm Dennis but thought better of it - the right decision.

Battery charge condition seems to be an issue. When on EHU it charges, albeit more slowly than I would expect, given that it has a 16A charger integrated into the Schieber Energy Management Box (full manual here). I did the recalibration procedure, removing the big fuses and smaller one etc - which worked, ish. It still took several days to fully charge it up to 100% as indicated on the Xperience tablet. Then (and here is the biggest issue we have) with everything switched off, it dropped by over 30% in just 4 days. There seems to be a "parasitic draw" or similar, which I've measured at around 0.5A.

I've tracked it down to fuse 3, which according to the EMB manual is for "Car radio permanent." I wonder if this is associated with the connection error/issue that others have experienced? Given that with "Aux" chosen on the tablet you can use the radio when parked, drawing power from the leisure battery, I reckon it may be connected (if you pardon the pun!)

I suppose I should talk to the dealer, but they are a 2+ hour drive away... Any ideas / wisdom??
 

Dazzler1969

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Jul 10, 2018
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Check to see if the light around the reversing camera is on at night, mine stayed on when parked up and the 12v supply was selected on aux. Need to have the power supply swapped at back of the head unit, common wiring fault apparently.
Darren
 
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Geistguy
Jan 27, 2018
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Hi guys, I had an identical problem that I outlined on another post. To start I will admit to being very non technical so if I ramble please forgive.

My battery symbol was taking ages to reach 100% on hook up, I had the battery tested, spoke to the very helpful dealer but all to no solution. A local technician said the battery was showing the correct amps as it should, shown on the same screen as the battery symbol, and also on his test equipment. His advice was to use the shown amperage as a guide and not the symbol.

On our last trip in January I noticed that the battery symbol seemed to be "topping up" more quickly during driving and on returning home it soon reached 100% on hook up.

The only thing that i had done differently was to turn off the "aux" setting on the tablet, this of course may be pure coincidence. The aux setting does seem to be connected to the radio so this may be the problem / cause. But honestly I have no idea.

Our van goes in for its first service early April so I will get the technicians to test everything, in the meantime I'm not worrying about it at all.

We had the rear camera light problem but had it fixed, again I've covered this in other posts.

Best of luck and hope you can use your van soon Keith.

Clive.

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Geistguy
Jan 27, 2018
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I've just found the instructions to stop the reversing light coming on when parked up, thought they may be useful. My dealer allowed my local garage to do this work which only took 30 minutes.
 

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Jun 20, 2013
44
49
Kendal
Funster No
26,574
MH
Pilote P650GJ
Exp
since 2000 (a couple of VW campervans and a low profile Dethleffs)
I've just found the instructions to stop the reversing light coming on when parked up, thought they may be useful. My dealer allowed my local garage to do this work which only took 30 minutes.
Thanks for that, Clive - really useful.
 
Feb 21, 2016
4,910
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C class
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Since 2017
A further update on our new van - still haven't actually used it yet; were due to be away on the weekend of Storm Dennis but thought better of it - the right decision.

Battery charge condition seems to be an issue. When on EHU it charges, albeit more slowly than I would expect, given that it has a 16A charger integrated into the Schieber Energy Management Box (full manual here). I did the recalibration procedure, removing the big fuses and smaller one etc - which worked, ish. It still took several days to fully charge it up to 100% as indicated on the Xperience tablet. Then (and here is the biggest issue we have) with everything switched off, it dropped by over 30% in just 4 days. There seems to be a "parasitic draw" or similar, which I've measured at around 0.5A.

I've tracked it down to fuse 3, which according to the EMB manual is for "Car radio permanent." I wonder if this is associated with the connection error/issue that others have experienced? Given that with "Aux" chosen on the tablet you can use the radio when parked, drawing power from the leisure battery, I reckon it may be connected (if you pardon the pun!)

I suppose I should talk to the dealer, but they are a 2+ hour drive away... Any ideas / wisdom??
Sorry,pressed the wrong button. But while I’m here.............when we got our van, pre owned,the front of the radio had been removed and carefully stowed in its plastic box. I assumed this was to prevent an unwanted drain on the battery and have always removed it when parked up for any significant length of time. We use a separate radio when we need to anyway,with better sound quality and easier tuning.

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Jul 31, 2016
16
10
Gretna
Funster No
44,342
MH
Pilote G741FC
Exp
Since 2015
Hi all new to forum and also new to pilote last September.

Hopefully not asking to much but could anyone clarify any of the below.

We have the same display as DrunkenDuncan.

The one that is supposed to do all, not got much use of van up to now but only away one night at weekend and used 30% of Battery (on the experience display) did have van connected to mains for a few days before we went and noticed panel was showing before we left home only 93% charged. and only supplying 0.8amp.

Looking again today with not to bad sunshine and solar only producing 0.1 amp when take experience tablet of dock this rises to 0.3amp. I understand that the sun is not high and strong at this time of year but surely this should be producing something in the region of 2-3 amp.

120 solar
2nd hab battery fitted

1 What should i be expecting to see on the panel in full decent sun light, what are others seeing.

2 Does the Experience tablet only show the usable amount of battery ie we used 30% in one night could we then expect 3 nights. Or when the tablet gets below a certain percentage we would then be damaging battery's and expecting lights and pumps to stop working.

3 When plugged into electric the experience tablet is showing charging at only between 0.8 and 1.2 amp with battery level at 80% should this not be higher.

I will be calling dealer next week, but would be grateful for any information before my discussion with them.

regards
Trevor
 
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Geistguy
Jan 27, 2018
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Aberdeenshire
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Hi Trevor, this seems to be quite a common "problem" on the display, It has been discussed several times in thus and another thread on the Pilote section. Ours still does exactly the same, we are away at the moment and last night the battery symbol showed 82%, this morning it's down to 68%, nothing has been on all night to cause this to drop, however the battery indicator is showing 12.4v the same as last night.

I now tend to rely on the voltage indicator rather than the battery symbol. Our 700gj goes in for it's first habitation service early April and the dealer is going to check the system fully.

One small mystery is that when go on hook up the battery indicator now goes to 100% much quicker than it used to.

As soon as my service has been done I will post an update.

Clive

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Jun 20, 2013
44
49
Kendal
Funster No
26,574
MH
Pilote P650GJ
Exp
since 2000 (a couple of VW campervans and a low profile Dethleffs)
Hi Trevor and Clive. Ours seems to do much the same - charging rather slowly and discharging more quickly than I expected. The spec for the Schieber EMB (energy management box) shows that the built-in mains charger should deliver up to 16 amps, but shows no data about any multi-stage charging. Ours takes days to fully charge, even from 70%.
The discharge rate is too fast in my opinion, even with everything switched off - I've done some investigation and established that there is a 0.3 amp draw (ammeter inserted instead of the 50 amp leisure battery fuse). By removing fuses in turn, I also established that it's number 3, which is "car radio permanent."
To be fair on Pilote, the instruction manual says to remove the big battery fuses when leaving the van for more than 2 weeks. But after even a week our LB would be down to way under 50%. I'm thinking about putting a switch into that radio cable, near the radio/tablet, that can also serve as a reboot switch for when the "back" button disappears on the touchscreen while using the rearview camera for more than half an hour.
 

DrunkenDuncan

Free Member
Oct 30, 2018
37
13
Brize Norton
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56,991
MH
Pilote G600L
Exp
Not enough!
Hi all new to forum and also new to pilote last September.

Hopefully not asking to much but could anyone clarify any of the below.

We have the same display as DrunkenDuncan.

The one that is supposed to do all, not got much use of van up to now but only away one night at weekend and used 30% of Battery (on the experience display) did have van connected to mains for a few days before we went and noticed panel was showing before we left home only 93% charged. and only supplying 0.8amp.

Looking again today with not to bad sunshine and solar only producing 0.1 amp when take experience tablet of dock this rises to 0.3amp. I understand that the sun is not high and strong at this time of year but surely this should be producing something in the region of 2-3 amp.

120 solar
2nd hab battery fitted

1 What should i be expecting to see on the panel in full decent sun light, what are others seeing.

2 Does the Experience tablet only show the usable amount of battery ie we used 30% in one night could we then expect 3 nights. Or when the tablet gets below a certain percentage we would then be damaging battery's and expecting lights and pumps to stop working.

3 When plugged into electric the experience tablet is showing charging at only between 0.8 and 1.2 amp with battery level at 80% should this not be higher.

I will be calling dealer next week, but would be grateful for any information before my discussion with them.

regards
Trevor
Have you tried pulling the battery sensor fuse as discussed earlier in this post?
 
Jul 31, 2016
16
10
Gretna
Funster No
44,342
MH
Pilote G741FC
Exp
Since 2015
Have you tried pulling the battery sensor fuse as discussed earlier in this post?
Have done the full 3 hour reset as discussed in post yesterday, battery now showing 100%.
We are booked into local fiat commercial this Saturday for recall inspection on brake pipes. Then we are going to try and get away for three nights off electric and see how van performs, will report back when we return.
Thanks all

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rupert

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Nov 23, 2014
198
199
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caravaning on and off 10 years
hey what happened!! where's everyone gone ???
 
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Geistguy
Jan 27, 2018
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Still here Rupert but I have to say the Pilote is perhaps the most boring motorhome I've ever had. Nothing goes wrong, everything works, dealer has been fine so everr so boring having nothing to moan about.

Managed to use the van quite a bit despite everything.

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