# swift ne183 control panel



## alnshaz

:x o.k.
we picked up our mh from the dealers yesterday after leaving it with them for a week to rectify some annoying problems,only to be told that basically nothing has been done.like others we've been having trouble with the unpredictable behaviour of the interior light,particularly the length of time it stays on for,although this does seem intermitent because the dealers said it was fine for them and was going out after 15mins.indeed when i got home yesterday it did go out after the specified time,yet this morning it came on whilst we were packing it and didn't go out for over 45 mins!!!.it is also annoying to have to get out of our seats to turn it off again whenever we go anywhere due to it coming on again when the ignition is turned on.any ideas anyone?.
our suspicions have been confirmed by other posts that the timer fuction for the heating and water are totally inoperable and will never work but we have been told that to turn the hot water on [230v] the control panel doesn't work this function and that the switch in the wardrobe will control this!!!!.this is also true of the 230v heating system with the control panel only enableing the use of the 12v blown air heating system.so can someone tell what the point of the control panel is please????.and since this was one of its strong selling points in our view,is anything going to be done to rectify the situation.because we feel totally let down.this is our first motorhome after 15 years as tuggers and i must say i'm not too impressed. :?

ragards alan


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## carolgavin

There is a post on here from swiftgroup about your heating thingy not working but for the life of cannot remember where  Try under swift and hopefully it will be there. Failing that someone else will hopefully remember where it was. Think the gist of the post was it can never work unfortunately :!: :!:


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## Trance

Yes the thread you would be looking for is under ' feedback from swift'. They state that the heating controls on the panel cannot work the 230v heating or gas. Personally i think its an absolute shambles, probably very like the way you feel. I have my van at the factory as we speak and i am about to get more legal advice on the issue. The vans are being sold as half finsished, half thought out and it goes from bad to worse!. I am very annoyed with the whole thing and cannot believe that any company can make such an arse of a basically simple design.

Gregg


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## stewartwebr

Gregg, I agree with you 100%. I am due to speak to the design team at Swift on Monday around the issues with the showeroom door. I think the reply from the Swift design team that they made a, "huge mistake" then place an other post by the design engineer saying that their is no solution to be unacceptable. They sold us a product saying it had various functions, but now due to their mistake we cannot have them and their is nothing they are going to do about it.

I have posted a few messages of support for Swift and have been impressed with the way they have been handling things. Peter, the owner has been very good at trying to put things right.

I think Peter needs to focus on the design team. Lots of the issues are from this team. They are the ones who are putting ideas into practice that clearly are not fit for purpose. How anyone, let a lone an "engineer" could possibly think that the small magnetic catch on the showeroom door would hold that closed during transit is beyond me. So if they cannot get a simple thing like how to keep a door closed what chance have we got with working a complex electronic control panel.

The message that say's sorry nothing we can do to fix our cock-up is just not acceptable. 8O 

We must all be effected by this issue not just Sundance owners. Is this going to be a major issue of the van? Will this issue be to Swift what the water leak is turning into for Fiat??? :evil: 

I hope Peter reads this and can speak with the design team. We really need a solution here and the answers they are giving are just not acceptable. 

Stewart


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## SwiftGroup

stewartwebr said:


> Gregg, I agree with you 100%. I am due to speak to the design team at Swift on Monday around the issues with the showeroom door. I think the reply from the Swift design team that they made a, "huge mistake" then place an other post by the design engineer saying that their is no solution to be unacceptable. They sold us a product saying it had various functions, but now due to their mistake we cannot have them and their is nothing they are going to do about it.
> 
> I have posted a few messages of support for Swift and have been impressed with the way they have been handling things. Peter, the owner has been very good at trying to put things right.
> 
> I think Peter needs to focus on the design team. Lots of the issues are from this team. They are the ones who are putting ideas into practice that clearly are not fit for purpose. How anyone, let a lone an "engineer" could possibly think that the small magnetic catch on the showeroom door would hold that closed during transit is beyond me. So if they cannot get a simple thing like how to keep a door closed what chance have we got with working a complex electronic control panel.
> 
> The message that say's sorry nothing we can do to fix our cock-up is just not acceptable. 8O
> 
> We must all be effected by this issue not just Sundance owners. Is this going to be a major issue of the van? Will this issue be to Swift what the water leak is turning into for Fiat??? :evil:
> 
> I hope Peter reads this and can speak with the design team. We really need a solution here and the answers they are giving are just not acceptable.
> 
> Stewart


Gregg,Stuart and Alan,if it is at all possible we will find a fix for you I have already spoken to Andy who has been working on it today.Yes they have made a mistake and I told them to go on the Forum and be open and honest and I've got to say your reaction is a bit harsh and doesnt encourage them.They are young and have made a mistake as I understand it it doesnt feature in the Sundance brochure but is in the handbook.We felt we had a system that would do what you are looking for but when we tested it it failed so they reverted to what you have now but didnt alter the handbook.We have demonstrated we are prepared to listen and correct our mistakes (it seems we are the only motorhome manufacturer who makes mistakes!) but if you hound them when they put their hands up ,when a chat on the phone or a gentle'thats not good enough' would suffice would be far better. Andy has just rung me 7pm to say the tests they have done today have worked so we can put the mod on Greggs MH and yours Stewert when it comes back.Alan if you ring Kath we can arrange to do your mod at Swift or possibly at the Dealer. I will review everything when I get in the office tomorrow.Regards Peter.


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## Trance

Peter,

Thank you for your reply. We are not knocking your willingness to help or your honesty. We are just annoyed at the fact that we have paid alot of money for something that should be right in the first place. When we looked at the vans in the show room we had a play with the control panels to see what they can do, we noticed these timer and thermosatic functions and like you do, you assume that the van has these, you don't expect to be told half the functions are not useable. If you wish people not to assume they are buying these functions remove them from the control panel. If i have come accross as harsh i apologise, but i do not apologise for being disappointed in your product or angry at the simple faults that have cropped up, things that you should have sorted before we recieved the vans. I applaude your honesty and willingness to come up with solutions, as they say better late than never.

Gregg


I have already e-mailed lyndsey about this and was waiting on a reply.


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## alnshaz

:? peter,
the last thing i want is to have to critisize anyone and i fully apreciate the efforts that are going on to resolve the problem,however,if this information had been readily available then it would have saved me a 90 mile round trip to the dealers last week and the need to take a morning off work to pick my mh back up,on top of which a lorry smashed my wing mirror on the way home .add to this the fact that the dealers claim to know nothing about the problem,strikes me that they are trying to cover the whole thing up.i can't be the only one to buy a motorhome from them surely!!.
as soon as work permits i'll call kath and discuss this with her.

regards alan.


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## SwiftGroup

Trance said:


> Peter,
> 
> Thank you for your reply. We are not knocking your willingness to help or your honesty. We are just annoyed at the fact that we have paid alot of money for something that should be right in the first place. When we looked at the vans in the show room we had a play with the control panels to see what they can do, we noticed these timer and thermosatic functions and like you do, you assume that the van has these, you don't expect to be told half the functions are not useable. If you wish people not to assume they are buying these functions remove them from the control panel. If i have come accross as harsh i apologise, but i do not apologise for being disappointed in your product or angry at the simple faults that have cropped up, things that you should have sorted before we recieved the vans. I applaude your honesty and willingness to come up with solutions, as they say better late than never.
> 
> Gregg


Gregg thanks for replying,we understand and we will do all we can to satisfy you.Andy and his team are genuine people who have themselves been let down by so called electrical experts whom we despatched six months ago!It is an excuse but a genuine one.We will follow up any criticism we receive but Forum members must respect we are human as well and we will all get more if we respect each other.Peter.


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## SwiftGroup

alnshaz said:


> :? peter,
> the last thing i want is to have to critisize anyone and i fully apreciate the efforts that are going on to resolve the problem,however,if this information had been readily available then it would have saved me a 90 mile round trip to the dealers last week and the need to take a morning off work to pick my mh back up,on top of which a lorry smashed my wing mirror on the way home .add to this the fact that the dealers claim to know nothing about the problem,strikes me that they are trying to cover the whole thing up.i can't be the only one to buy a motorhome from them surely!!.
> as soon as work permits i'll call kath and discuss this with her.
> 
> regards alan,the horse has bolted and I am running like hell to catch it! I can only apologise and offer to pay for your mirror.Regards Peter.


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## alnshaz

peter,thanks for the offer but it's not necessary.it was my mistake after all.i'm very sorry for the criticism and assure you i don't mean to offend anyone.i'm sure you must feel like everyones against you at the moment ,but i do applaud you for all your efforts and honesty.

alan


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## cabby

Blimey o riley fellers, I have to say after reading about Swift problems that this Peter is bending so far over to sort things out he should get a medal. 8O a medal I said. I have had a Swift caravan and a motorhome. but now have an Autocruise.But give the bloke some elbow room.I am sure he does not want to have a reputation similar to a certain dealers we all know.

cabby


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## alnshaz

cabby, we too have had four new caravans from swift before getting the motorhom in june had never had any problems before.i'm sure the actions of the dealers has'nt helped things at all.i contacted them several times before taking the mh in to be looked at and nobody offered any explanation, they just denied there were any problems and claimed noboby else had reported these probs before.on top of all this they had done nothing when i picked it up after a week and just seemed unconcerned with the problems we were having.


alan


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## 106003

I hope that Swift are really as committed as Peter suggests.
My Bessacarr has several design faults but they are only silly things like you cannot have the over bunk window open and open the habitation door onto its catch but hey ho these silly things get overlooked and hopefully the new models will be different. It strikes me that people like Peter are told by their miniums what he wants to hear and not exactly as it is. Perhaps he should gather a committee of motor home users and have regular meetings with them and his design team and come up with a world leading brand because at the end of the day we are the people that use his product. I for one would be happy to give my views being both a user of the product and having been in the commercial vehicle industry all my working life (albeit with only 2 manufacturers) which spans from 1972 to present. People like us can make his product work.
The customer service aspect also has left a lot to be desired, as a customer I e mailed swift direct regarding a leisure battery problem with my MH the battery had 3 dead cells I was advised by Swift customer services to take it to my local dealer for replacement under warranty but was also informed that Swift do not have any formal warranty arrangements in place with their dealers and therefore could not guarantee a replacement. That is not good customer service.
Bearing in mind where I live to get to a dealer and be told sorry could be a 4 hour round trip and as I work between 60 and 70 hours per week my time is very precious not to mention the fuel and wear and tear on my MH
Peter I take my hat off to you for sticking your neck above the trench but await your positive reply.

Regards
Paul


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## Trance

Peter,

I look forward to the day where i can come on here and praise you for the good repair work you carried out. You seem to be on the ball with things and a very genuine guy. Again i thank you for your attention and interest. Credit where its due.

Gregg


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## SwiftGroup

mildew said:


> I hope that Swift are really as committed as Peter suggests.
> My Bessacarr has several design faults but they are only silly things like you cannot have the over bunk window open and open the habitation door onto its catch but hey ho these silly things get overlooked and hopefully the new models will be different. It strikes me that people like Peter are told by their miniums what he wants to hear and not exactly as it is. Perhaps he should gather a committee of motor home users and have regular meetings with them and his design team and come up with a world leading brand because at the end of the day we are the people that use his product. I for one would be happy to give my views being both a user of the product and having been in the commercial vehicle industry all my working life (albeit with only 2 manufacturers) which spans from 1972 to present. People like us can make his product work.
> The customer service aspect also has left a lot to be desired, as a customer I e mailed swift direct regarding a leisure battery problem with my MH the battery had 3 dead cells I was advised by Swift customer services to take it to my local dealer for replacement under warranty but was also informed that Swift do not have any formal warranty arrangements in place with their dealers and therefore could not guarantee a replacement. That is not good customer service.
> Bearing in mind where I live to get to a dealer and be told sorry could be a 4 hour round trip and as I work between 60 and 70 hours per week my time is very precious not to mention the fuel and wear and tear on my MH
> Peter I take my hat off to you for sticking your neck above the trench but await your positive reply.
> 
> Regards
> Paul


Paul,I am Swift thats why I am committed to get it right! Its down to me to educate my staff in understanding your requirments, too often they are involved in day to day issues and do not see it from a customers point of view,that maybe is my fault and I expect too much of them but getting good people is very difficult these days.Too often Andy and his team are still in the office past 7 pm so they are dedicated lads but they need more support.Peter.


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## stewartwebr

Peter,

I sincerely apologise if my comment came across as being harsh. It was not how it was meant to sound. I am very grateful for the stand that you have taken and how you are handling the situation. I have posted a few posts defending your company and commending the actions you personally are taking to put things right. I do really think this is commendable, and from your postings I appreciate you are a genuine person who has a real desire and drive to put the failings right and in some ways help us all improve the standards within the industry.

Having come back to what I have just typed after a short meeting and thinking about my comments and your comments, I was feeling extremely guilty. Only now after that reflection I’m starting to think, okay Peter is doing a great job and putting things right and giving lots of commitment and drive, but wait a minute, I’m the one who has forked out a large amount of money for something that is not right. Although his actions are commendable, I’m only getting what I originally paid for. So a feeling of mixed emotions I guess!

I spoke with one of the design team yesterday and he was extremely helpful and understanding. The conversation was around the issue with the shower room door. One thing that became apparent to me and something I had never thought about was the constraints of design associated with legal obligation. We discussed how I felt the issue could be resolved and it was explained why it was not possible under certain design regulations. So this is perhaps something that owners don’t think about when they asking themselves why a simple catch or lock should have been fitted. 

The posting where I offended Peter was around the issue of the heating controls. I have to say once again that offence was not my intention. But equally if you look at the reply from the design team manager on this issue where he states “Nothing can be done” That upset me. Nothing is impossible and I would have expected his response to be as Peter’s has been…we are working a solution.

I also feel I need to add that you have taken a huge step forward Peter, but you are still going to be getting some negative feedback until such time as your products are running off with new QA implementation.

As for your young design team, I don’t question their drive and commitment but given all the recent issue I would question some of their decisions. Again, I don’t want to sound negative and how the design team address the concerns and issue and future designs will be the true determination to the commitment you mention. As for knocking them, I’m sorry Peter that’s life. If you make “Huge Mistakes” you need to take the ramifications of that error. As we are the ones being inconvenienced I think that gives us the right to have a little moan!

Stewart


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## SwiftGroup

stewartwebr said:


> Peter,
> 
> I sincerely apologise if my comment came across as being harsh. It was not how it was meant to sound. I am very grateful for the stand that you have taken and how you are handling the situation. I have posted a few posts defending your company and commending the actions you personally are taking to put things right. I do really think this is commendable, and from your postings I appreciate you are a genuine person who has a real desire and drive to put the failings right and in some ways help us all improve the standards within the industry.
> 
> Having come back to what I have just typed after a short meeting and thinking about my comments and your comments, I was feeling extremely guilty. Only now after that reflection I'm starting to think, okay Peter is doing a great job and putting things right and giving lots of commitment and drive, but wait a minute, I'm the one who has forked out a large amount of money for something that is not right. Although his actions are commendable, I'm only getting what I originally paid for. So a feeling of mixed emotions I guess!
> 
> I spoke with one of the design team yesterday and he was extremely helpful and understanding. The conversation was around the issue with the shower room door. One thing that became apparent to me and something I had never thought about was the constraints of design associated with legal obligation. We discussed how I felt the issue could be resolved and it was explained why it was not possible under certain design regulations. So this is perhaps something that owners don't think about when they asking themselves why a simple catch or lock should have been fitted.
> 
> The posting where I offended Peter was around the issue of the heating controls. I have to say once again that offence was not my intention. But equally if you look at the reply from the design team manager on this issue where he states "Nothing can be done" That upset me. Nothing is impossible and I would have expected his response to be as Peter's has been…we are working a solution.
> 
> I also feel I need to add that you have taken a huge step forward Peter, but you are still going to be getting some negative feedback until such time as your products are running off with new QA implementation.
> 
> As for your young design team, I don't question their drive and commitment but given all the recent issue I would question some of their decisions. Again, I don't want to sound negative and how the design team address the concerns and issue and future designs will be the true determination to the commitment you mention. As for knocking them, I'm sorry Peter that's life. If you make "Huge Mistakes" you need to take the ramifications of that error. As we are the ones being inconvenienced I think that gives us the right to have a little moan!
> 
> Stewart


Stewart,No arguments now with what you are saying and I dont think Andy and his team will either,they have to stand up and be counted and knowing them as I do they will.What we have now is a dedicated team (now under resourced) as the non performers have gone and your comments will be taken positively.You have established a direct link with them so feel free to use it.Regards Peter.


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## HARRYH

Hi
Iv just yesterday sent an enquiry to Swift. Im asking if here is an Idiots Guide to the simple operation of the NE183 control panel.
It seems to have a mind of it own. Some times its simple and works as the book, but some time it locks out and sulks if Iv pushed the wrong button and seems to need a rest before playing with the buttons sorts it out. All very annoying. Is there a reset button/ method ?
I only want to simply turn each function on or off, Im not that bothered about timers etc. 
What happened to the simple switch on and off. 
This NE183 a bit like the old digital watches if you loose the setup instruction you are lost. but in this case you cant just bin it.
Are all new MH the same.? Is there no simple panel controller? 
Harry


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## Pixelpusher

Harry...

The control panel can take a little getting used to but its not too bad given a little time to play with it.

If you're not interested in setting the clock or the timers then basically the 4 buttons down each side are just Push for On, Push for Off. Don't hold any down for more than 3 seconds.

Of the three buttons in the middle:-

Bottom Right - Press to Turn On Electrics / Press and Hold for 3 secs to Turn Off

Middle Top - Press Once each time to cycle through > Water Tank Levels > Battery Levels > Discharge Rate. Don't press it for more than 3 seconds otherwise you go into Programming Mode.

Bottom Left - Press Once each time to switch between Cab or Liesure Battery.

You'll get used to it - eventually 

Colin


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## motorhomeviews

*Ne 183 control panel*

Hi All swift owners

Admit the control panel takes a bit of fiddling around, the use of reading the manual being an essential aspect of the various operations the panel can perform. Advised this on handover of my new Suntor, think I've just about got it now though, 6 months 3500 miles later. Must add though we haven't used the timer and thermostatic controls, still working this out. Dealer advised set up for 24 hour operation and just use the manual controls at the side of the main control panel.
We have stuck cupboard door closer clear plastic buttons on each of the control buttons, can now operate the panel in the darkness of night. Swift call the clear plastic buttons "jelly tots"
treveden
swift suntor 580pr


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## stewartwebr

Hi Guys,

I was involved in the initial complaints around this panel. I have since changed van. Swift are now installing a simpler model. Just to put the cat amoungst the pigeons. I miss the control of the old panel. Having a timer for your heating and water was a great feature, after Swift got it working.
The new panel is very basic and I think most people will prefer it. Still having issues with it locking up after it's been powered down for sometime.

Stewart


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## SwiftGroup

hi there is a fix for your entry light staying on so if you can call swift on monday and ask for martin he will help you.
Thanks padge


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## motorhomeviews

*NE183 control panel*

Noticed the control panels on the new Motorhome models have changed whilst at the NEC.

Stewart,
I agree , prefer the old panel where I can set the timer like the central heating control at home. Now I've figured it out that is.

trev eden


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## andymac

I also have a question about this panel, if anyone can help, when I select the heating only switch (squiggly lines) it will not work unless I have also got the hot water & squiggly line button below it switched on, is this correct? (Ace Airstream 630)

TIA
Andy


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## Pixelpusher

Andy....

On my Bessacarr E410 they work independently.

Are you using Electricity or Gas?

Colin


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## safariboy

On our Swift control panel the "air heating" does not do anything but the "water heating": needs to be on in order to get the system to work.


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## Pixelpusher

Are you folks just talking about Manual Operation - not Timer?

Colin


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## safariboy

Certainly on Manual. I think that the timer should work the same way BUT on gas I get a flame failure light if you set the Truma controls and then switch on with the Swift panel so it might not.


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## andymac

Colin, Im talking about using electric, its interesting that you say manual or auto, because im trying to use manual, but I get x2 hand symbols on my display which i believe is both manual and auto selected, but I cant seem to cancel auto. Mines the same as safariboy, I get nothing from just selecting the warm air heater symbol at all on electric, but maybe its for gas only? I dont know, but the instruction manual & the dealer leaflet for this control panel are vague to say the least

To get hot air from EHU I have to have both buttons lit up???

Time to get my £10 out I think

Andy


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## Pixelpusher

The Hand Symbols come on to indicate Manual control.

Swift didn't actually get the design of this panel correct. Certainly on mine the Electric Heater wouldn't work on Timer as it should until Swift modified it. All it would do is turn on the Fan - not a lot of use.

The Electric Hot Water Timer, likewise, doesn't work on Timer and I'm still in discussion with Swift about this. All it will do is work on Gas.

To get into Auto you need to hold down the Heater or Hot Water button for about 3 secs. You then use the Up/Down and C button to select or set the options.

Colin


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## SwiftGroup

please call swif and ask for martin padget and i will talk to you about your light staying because we have a fix for this and it will only take 10min to do.
Thanks padge


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## markmi

Martin can i give you a call too, as my lights don't come on at all and my heating and water don't work as they should, panel does nothing to control water (just switch in wardrobe) and if heating is turned on at panel it just operates the blow air fan, not the heater that has to be turn on manual for it to work.


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## SwiftGroup

*Call*



markmi said:


> Martin can i give you a call too, as my lights don't come on at all and my heating and water don't work as they should, panel does nothing to control water (just switch in wardrobe) and if heating is turned on at panel it just operates the blow air fan, not the heater that has to be turn on manual for it to work.


Hello

Give us a call and we will assist you. Our number is 01482 875740. Our lines are open today 9am until 5pm, Friday it is 9am until 2pm.

Regards
Kath


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