2023 Thor Motor Coach Sanctuary Problems
Owner-reported complaints filed with NHTSA, grouped by component
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What this page shows
Everything below is an owner-reported complaint submitted to NHTSA about the 2023 Thor Motor Coach Sanctuary, grouped by the component NHTSA recorded on the report. These are not confirmed defects, and they are not recalls. NHTSA does not verify most reports before publishing them, and a category with more reports in it is not evidence that a part is defective.
Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.
Reports by component
Ranked by how many owner reports name each component category
- Electrical250.0%
- Other / unspecified250.0%
Percentages are of component mentions. A single complaint can name more than one component, so these do not sum to the total complaint count.
Each component in detail
What the reports in each category say, in the owners' own words
Electrical
Reports naming the electrical system — wiring, battery, charging, control modules, infotainment and electrical accessories.
From owner reports, verbatim
The secondary alternator (Balmar model XTMS 170 K6) overheated and failed. An RV Mechanic and a licensed professional engineer is saying luckily there was no fire. After some research, this seems to be a common issues with these Balmar alternators. The same alternator is installed on certain Winnebago RVs (Revel and Ekko) and they have issued various bulletins (23V-663) noting that the secondary Balmar alternator setup could experience severe thermal runaway. If left unaddressed, the extreme heat poses a severe fire risk. Thor has explained that because Winnebago is a larger company that Balmar has stepped up for their demands on a recall but Thor hasn't been able to get Balmar to issue a recall for the same alternator installed on Thor vans. Documentation on other reports of the same issue for your reference. - January 22, 2025 — Complaint 11637674: A 2022 Sanctuary owner reported repeated secondary alternator failures. - June 17, 2026 — Complaint 11744782: Another 2022 Sanctuary owner alleged improper grounding of the Thor-installed secondary alternator, repeated failures, and fire risk. - February 4, 2025: A 2024 Sanctuary owner reported two secondary alternator failures within nine months. The second failure allegedly shredded a belt and disabled engine cooling.
Thor company of Indiana is the after market uplifter of a Ford Transit 2022. The Sancuary is teh model. The red power wire that connects from the secodnary altrnator in the enginne area runs along the inside f the front right tire to the chassi house battery in the back o the VAN. The power wire is incorrectly routed and the tire rubs up againsit it and rubs against the wire casuing damage and saftey issue. All of the 2023 models appear t be involved from a small sampling of owners on a facebook THOR sancuary owners forum. Thor refuses to issue a recall and refuses to facilitate the wire being replaced. They instead try to get you to take the van to the dealership and have it spliced instead. I would imagine there are some people that do not even know o the safety issue.
Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.
Other / unspecified
Reports whose component NHTSA recorded as unknown, or that do not map to one of the categories above.
From owner reports, verbatim
The secondary alternator (Balmar model XTMS 170 K6) overheated and failed. An RV Mechanic and a licensed professional engineer is saying luckily there was no fire. After some research, this seems to be a common issues with these Balmar alternators. The same alternator is installed on certain Winnebago RVs (Revel and Ekko) and they have issued various bulletins (23V-663) noting that the secondary Balmar alternator setup could experience severe thermal runaway. If left unaddressed, the extreme heat poses a severe fire risk. Thor has explained that because Winnebago is a larger company that Balmar has stepped up for their demands on a recall but Thor hasn't been able to get Balmar to issue a recall for the same alternator installed on Thor vans. Documentation on other reports of the same issue for your reference. - January 22, 2025 — Complaint 11637674: A 2022 Sanctuary owner reported repeated secondary alternator failures. - June 17, 2026 — Complaint 11744782: Another 2022 Sanctuary owner alleged improper grounding of the Thor-installed secondary alternator, repeated failures, and fire risk. - February 4, 2025: A 2024 Sanctuary owner reported two secondary alternator failures within nine months. The second failure allegedly shredded a belt and disabled engine cooling.
Thor company of Indiana is the after market uplifter of a Ford Transit 2022. The Sancuary is teh model. The red power wire that connects from the secodnary altrnator in the enginne area runs along the inside f the front right tire to the chassi house battery in the back o the VAN. The power wire is incorrectly routed and the tire rubs up againsit it and rubs against the wire casuing damage and saftey issue. All of the 2023 models appear t be involved from a small sampling of owners on a facebook THOR sancuary owners forum. Thor refuses to issue a recall and refuses to facilitate the wire being replaced. They instead try to get you to take the van to the dealership and have it spliced instead. I would imagine there are some people that do not even know o the safety issue.
Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.
Higher-selling and older vehicles accumulate more reports. Counts are not failure rates and are not directly comparable between vehicles that sold in very different numbers.
Elsewhere on this vehicle
Data sources
- NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation — owner-reported complaints and the components recorded on them
Data on this page last refreshed .