Broken Wet Bay Handle

[Nevada Rob]

The outside handle on the wet bay latch has broken off on our 2008 Dynasty. There is no possibility of crawling through from the other side to get to the back of the latch mechanism. I can not remember how the upper part of the door latches. The door lifts up vertically and does not swing out like all the other doors.  Does anyone have a picture of a door that would be similar to mine. We are out boondocking for the Thanksgiving and have the power cable out to a generator and Starlink. Plus I need to add more water to the tank. This is not a good situation as I can not move the coach until I either get the door open or get out an angle grinder and cutoff wheel and cut the door off. I am really starting to believe that RV stands for "ruins vacation." Any input would be greatly appreciated.

[Mark Holt]

Had the same issue last year. If you want to PM me your cell# and I will call you to describe how I fixed it 

[bret trickett]

is there any nub left?
when mine broke i had an SMALL piece sticking out on the right.

I was able to use pliers and release the latch by twisting on the nub.

I also took a long flat head and pried the door open

(WARNING my latch is plastic so it popped open
I figured latch would be cheaper than door ;)

[Doug and Nicki]

I had the same problem on my AquaHot bay. After doing research, I discovered that drilling a 1/4 inch hole in the handle in a specific location allowed me to use a screwdriver and push the latching mechanism to the side to open the door. If you want, I will take a picture after the rain stops and attach it to this post.

[jacwjames]

All of my doors swing up. 

I had trouble with one of mine,  The door lock would not unlatch with the key and/or keyless entry.  Actually broke the key off trying to get it open. 

I did some measuring and all the latches are offset from the handle by the same distance so took a drill from underneath and drill a ~1/4" hole up and then used a screw driver to push the latch up so could open the door.  I did this on one other door that I didn't have access from the other side but did it while the door was open and just drilled a hole down.  

[Nevada Rob]

Thank you all for your input. We figured out that if you lift the coach as high as possible on the drivers side with the air bags, crawl under the coach and remove the utilities access plugs, two people can reach up and operate the latching mechanisms on each side of the interior part of the door. The third latching point of the door moves with the side latching rods and cams. Thank you again to all those who offered up suggestions. There is a for sale section on this site correct? 

[DrDon4u]

I have had the same thing happen to me a few times. I took a long wide screw driver and pushed up the pin that holds the bottom of the door in. Its a small hole, not easy to see, but it is in the middle of the door at the bottom. That unlocked all the other pins. I will show you a picture of the back of the lock. Maybe that will help.   If you go to buy a new lock here is the model number. Trimark 19583-09 Chrome 1-Point 60-475 Baggage Door

Edited November 22, 2022 by DrDon4u

[tomevansfl]

I had Cummins Coach Care of Orlando replace my chassis batteries. When I parked my Diplomat at the storage facility I went to turn off both of the cut-off switches (chassis and house batteries) only to discover the handle for the battery bay was missing. They didn’t try to repair or replace the handle (painted) nor did they tell me they had damaged it. Another reason to not use Cummins Coach Care of Orlando.  

I found the handle on the floor next to the entry door. Unfortunately I haven’t had the opportunity to go back and see if it can be reinstalled or if a new one is in order. I didn’t have time to try and fix it that day. I was able to use needle-nosed players to get in and turn the battery disconnects off.

If Coach Care broke the handle too much to reuse it and I need to replace the whole latch unit, where would I get one that matches my paint?

[Jobert]

I have had the same experience. Like earlier, there was a nub left to grab and got it open.  An article I read shortly after that by someone that had the same problem highly suggested opening that bay door with two hands.  One on the latch to unlock it and the other on the bottom of the door to lift.  It suggested not using the latch with one hand to unlock then lift the door, it is heavier than most of the other ones. I have gotten in the habit of doing this all the time. Hope this may help, Happy Trails Bert.

[Frank McElroy]

I have your same year coach.  After seeing a number of posts over the years, I've learned a few things. 

First is to never lift the door by using just the handle.  As these coaches age the lift cylinders aren't as strong as the used to be and putting too much upward force can break the handle.  So I use the handle to release the lock and while holding the handle out, I lift the door open from the bottom. 

Second, I removed the inside black plastic cover over the lock mechanism.  That way, should I ever brake the handle, I can remove the large access opening from the bottom and have easy access to the handle mechanism from behind the door without a need to remove the plastic cover plate.