Cougar 27RES

flugelboneman · 06-18-2022, 08:53 PM

Quick question about slide and In Command. Is there an automatic slide lock after you bring the slide in via In Command? Or is there a slidelock somewhere either on In Command or somewhere else. Our model is a 2019 but just acquired it. Dont want to be rolling down the highway and the slide activates because I missed a slide lock somewhere. Our previous trailer had a manual slide lock that you placed after the slide was in. The Courgar does not appear to have such a thing.

wrvond · 06-19-2022, 03:18 AM

Yes, when the camper is connected to the truck it disables the slides.

iN-Command is equipped with a Safety Lockout feature to ensure certain system functions are unavailable during transit.
When the Brake Signal on the tow vehicle is activated, the iN-Command will lock down all motorized functions.
The Display Commander and mobile devices will also display “Travel Lock On” in red letters and the affected buttons will cease to activate.
The lights, water pump, water heater, generator, and tanks sensors will continue to function.
To turn the Travel Lock off, the “Unlock” button on the Display Commander, inside the RV, must be pressed.

**JRTJH** · 06-19-2022, 07:02 AM

There are several "slide lock" features. The one that wrvond described is an "electronic system lock" that's in the In-Command electronics program"... As long as the system is working properly, the slide can't be activated by a switch and "purposely extended while connected to the truck".

Another "slide lock type" is the automatic electric motor type. When the motor is not in operation, the inherent resistance of the armateur essentially "locks the slide ram" so it can't retract or extend", effectively acting as a "slide lock" to prevent motion.

In hydraulic slide systems, the valving prevents "slide creep" as long as there is no "hydraulic fluid leaking past seals or valves.

Then, there's also the "mechanical slide locks" which are, for the most part, no longer used. They included "wooden poles, metal jacks and sometimes "barrel slide locks" that blocked the slide movement with a mechanical device so the slide could not move. Those types are no longer necessary for a properly working slide mechanism.

When you retract your slides in the 27SGS, unless you push the extend button or use your phone to do so, the slide motors "effectively lock the slide" preventing movement. Unless something is broken, the slides won't "creep out while towing" and the In-Command system should also "lock the electronics" further preventing accidental activation of the mechanism. "SHOULD" being the exclusion to the ALWAYS rule"

bsmith0404 · 06-19-2022, 07:14 AM

I’ve never actually seen the travel lock fail allowing the slides to move out while in transit. I have seen it fail and not allow the slide to be extended after traveling. Not to say it can’t/hasn’t happened, but if it has, I’d say it’s not common.

wrvond · 06-19-2022, 07:45 AM

I once was delivering a travel trailer with three slides - I want to say it was a Forest River product but I can't remember for sure - anyway, it was at night and I pulled into a rest stop for my break. It was the kind of stop where all the trucks parallel parked while the cars parked closer to the restrooms diagonally. I took care of business and got back in my truck and got ready to pull out. I looked in my mirror to make sure nobody was coming but couldn't see anything - nothing at all back there. There should have been some kind of light but it was black. I rolled down the window and stuck my head out to see what was going on - the rear most driver side slide had extended itself fully! I got out to investigate and hurriedly went into the camper (which I never did normally) to retract that slide. The living room slide was on the curb side and left just barely enough room for me to squeeze by. I got back to the rear room which was a bunk room with opposing slides and couldn't open the door with the living room slide in. I started looking for a switch to extend that slide but couldn't find one. I was doing all this by flashlight because I couldn't find any light switches either. I eventually found a touch pad up by the bathroom and figured out how to turn it on. I had to accept a bunch of EULA stuff and enter a PIN. I chose 1111 and finally got to where I could retract the offending slide. I shut everything down and closed the unit up. The unit also had auto level, and I remember thinking how glad I was that hadn't activated as I drove down the highway. In the morning I delivered the unit to the dealership and told them what had happened. The response was "We always use 0000 for the pin." - Like I was supposed to know that! Well, during their inspection, they couldn't get any slides to extend. I was thinking I might be looking at a backhaul but wasn't really sure I wanted to risk having that thing extend it's slides while I was driving down the road. They eventually did a hard reset and everything started working. As far as I know they didn't pursue the issue any further and some lucky buyer ended up with that camper.

bsmith0404 · 06-19-2022, 08:51 AM

Well there you go, i guess it can and does happen. At least you had keys to get in it. The company I was with wouldn’t give us any. I eventually got hold of a master key, but on more than one occasion I had to stop into a dealership and ask them to open the door so it could close a window.

wrvond · 06-19-2022, 09:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bsmith0404

Well there you go, i guess it can and does happen. At least you had keys to get in it. The company I was with wouldn’t give us any. I eventually got hold of a master key, but on more than one occasion I had to stop into a dealership and ask them to open the door so it could close a window.

That would be most inconvenient - especially considering how often the factories would leave things like awning lights turned on. I pulled an Arctic Wolf (or some kind of Wolf) that as soon as I installed my battery the LED awning lights lit right up. It took me forever to figure out how to turn them off!

Now that I own a camper with In·Command and have read the manual, it isn't nearly as intimidating as it was back when touch panels in campers was a new thing. I also think the technology has matured quite a bit and these kinds of problems are more rare than they used to be.

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