Rock Slide Engineering Gen 3 Slider issues

[DLW]

Um... that's supposed to go in the cabin at the OBD2 port? When did that change?

What Northridge4x4 just said.
The new ones (I bought mine about a year ago) have the switch inside, plus the switch under the hood that kills all power to them.

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[Hpc3]

What Northridge4x4 just said.
The new ones (I bought mine about a year ago) have the switch inside, plus the switch under the hood that kills all power to them.

Thanks didn't know... I use the inside switch (a lot) on mine to keep them from draining the battery while stationary (wish RSE would fix that). The under hood switch would have been nice when fixing things but haven't had to pull the fuse much if at all this past year thankfully.

 

[HDSlowride]

My experience with the new Gen 3 install......

I revisited my previous comment after a couple critical replies to it. I really wanted to give these steps a try on my Jeep. So I ordered a set after evaluating all the comments again.
They came very quickly, with the LED light set following a few days later. Packed very well and all the hardware and instructions were very clear.
I did have some previously installed tube step/sliders to remove first. So now I have the original Rubicon rock sliders and some tube steps sitting in my way. (Jeep parts, right?!)

The wiring harness was a bit of a chore. It was a struggle to get the fuse holder through the small gap between the firewall and fender/liner. Getting the driver side plastic trim removed was also a bit aggravating and I seemed to have broken a couple very small tabs that capture the trim in place. It did snap back in and seems secure. More about the trim later....

I wanted to tackle the 6 body mount bolts next. They are tight, no doubt. I used a long 1/2" breaker bar and worked them back and forth, no more than a quarter turn at a time. I did not need to use any heat on them. My JLUR is a '21 model and had the big washers captured onto the flange of the body bolt hex head. Once I was satisfied that I had them well broken loose, at least 3 full turns, I used my 1/2" impact to spin them the rest of the way out. Took the bolts to my bench grinder and with the washer against the side of the wheel, a quick spin was all that was needed to get the washer free on the bolt. These washers have to be free to allow the slide step mounting brackets to go in place. I covered the fresh grind marks as well as the threads with a liberal coat of anti-seize. They were not any trouble to get started back in place (someone had mentioned once they were difficult??)

I supported the steps on my roll around motorcycle lift which made it fairly easy to get them into position for the mounting bolts to slip through the holes in the pinch weld. The passenger side seemed a chore, but I guess I just had to get the angle right. The driver side slipped right into place much easier. (always easier the 2nd time!)

When I placed the door sensors, I carefully drilled about a 5/16" hole through the flange of the B pillar trim and then routed a slot from the hole with a Dremel for the sensor harness to pass through without being pinched. I don't know that this is necessary, but it seemed like a good idea. The rear door magnets seemed a bit problematic to get to stick to the foam. I ended up using a bit of Weldwood contact cement to get them to stay. Maybe because it was pretty cold in my shop that they didn't want to stick to the foam.

I also installed the optional light kit and I think that is a real nice addition, it looks great in dim light. They don't really light up the rear part of the step, but the front is very well lit up.

So far, everything deploys and retracts as it should and is pretty quiet. I sprayed all the moving parts with some good quality lube and will continue to do that. I don't live where we get much snow, so I won't have to deal with slush and salt buildup unless I travel north. My wife can get in now, so I am done with fooling with a step stool for the time being. I had already backed over one of them this past year after forgetting to put it away.

All in all, very satisfied with the quality and the look. I hope I have good luck with the functionality.

 

[FINN 2.0]

My wiring harness came with the red light toggle switch at the OBD2 port but never used it as a switch because I wired off the auxiliary switch bank wires next to the battery.

 

[84jeepjohn]

My experience with the new Gen 3 install......



When I placed the door sensors, I carefully drilled about a 5/16" hole through the flange of the B pillar trim and then routed a slot from the hole with a Dremel for the sensor harness to pass through without being pinched. I don't know that this is necessary, but it seemed like a good idea. The rear door magnets seemed a bit problematic to get to stick to the foam. I ended up using a bit of Weldwood contact cement to get them to stay. Maybe because it was pretty cold in my shop that they didn't want to stick to the foam.

I did not do this and regret it!!!I ended up cutting the pass rear sensor, and had to do a splice on it... I will order a new sensor and do this once it gets warmer (and put in my doors off kit).

 

[jc99]

I’ve had the Gen2 on my Wrangler for years and love them but I had some problems with my Gen3 steps on my Gladiator.
Passenger side worked only intermittently, sometimes lost power, wiggly steps….
After replacing motors twice I found a connection that had one prong that had been bent over and flattened that was most likely causing my intermittent power issues.
The guys at RockSlideEngineering have been great. They’ve never hesitated to help with my concerns. It’s taken months but I’ve finally got them working great.
I’ve now been able to lift my Gladiator way too high without needing a ladder!
I almost went another direction due to my frustration but I’m glad I stuck with them.

@SuperUltraMan Which connector had the prong that was bent over? Was it the main plug to the white control boards?

 

[jc99]

Just wanted to add an update here. Got my step sliders installed in mid-June 2022, they worked great until Mar 2023 when the passengers side started closing with quite a clang. RSE sent me bump stops which settle the issue for a few weeks. Then the passenger side started having conniptions. It would cycle open and closed several times on opening or closing the passenger side doors before settling the appropriate open or closed position. Once or twice it did this while the vehicle was in motion (doors closed of course). I tried pulling the fuse the reset the system, but with no success and eventually the passenger side stopped operating completely. Driver side still worked.

I got too busy to troubleshoot or follow-up on it, but fast forward a few months into Nov 2023 and contacted RSE, they initially thought it was a bad controller, they sent me a new controller/motor assembly. Unfortunately that did not resolve it. After a little more troubleshooting, they sent me a replacement harness. Replaced the harness and all is good again (equals happy wife).

I dissected the old harness and it turned out there was corrosion in one of the crimped butt connections supplying +12VDC to the passenger side controller. I figure this bad/contaminated crimp was made during the manufacturing of the harness as this butt connected was well seal within an adhesive shrink tube.

It been working great since the harness was replaced, hopefully no more problems, but if something happens, I sure know how to test the system now. Kudos to RSE for their support, they gave me a wealth of information about the system.

@WorldExpy where on the harness was the butt connector? I 'm still chasing issues and would love to be able to find it without tearing it all out/apart. Was it close to the controller board in the step?

 

[WorldExpy]

@WorldExpy where on the harness was the butt connector? I 'm still chasing issues and would love to be able to find it without tearing it all out/apart. Was it close to the controller board in the step?

@jc99, The butt joint hidden withing the braided loom of the wiring harness and within a heat shrink tube. It's around the where the main power +12VDC & GND splits to the Driver and Passenger sides of the wiring harness. See the image below:

From my image below (of the deconstructed cable), the numbered references (in no particular order):

• #18 (H) - Ground (Bundle of 4 black wires (2 for driver side/2 for passenger side)
• #4 (Protected side of Fuse holder 'I') - This is a bundle of 4 red wires, +12 VDC (2 for driver side/2 for passenger side)
• #16P+ - Two of the red wires from #4 connect via this butt connector to supply power to the passenger side. This was the bad connection.
• #16- - Two of the black wires from #18 connect via a butt connector for ground to the passenger side.
• #6P (A) - Connector to the control board passenger side.
• #9P (C) - Aux LED
• #12P (E) & 12PR (D) - Door Sensors Front & Rear
• #15 (B) - Motor Power.

I'm not an electrical engineer, so I'm not sure why they doubled up on the wires going from the #4 & 18 to join them at #16+/-. Whether it was to carry more current if needed (in this case could have used a heavier gauge wire) or redundancy, I'm not sure the reason.

This is a close up of the corroded connector. Since it was sealed in heat shrink, I would think this occurred at manufacturing.

Depending on what problem you are having with your steps. You can do the following checks:

• Applying +12VDC to the motor side of #15 (B). This will drive the motor to open and close the steps. Reverse the polarity to drive the steps in the opposite direction. This will help confirm the status of the motor.
• Test that your ground connection is Good. With #18 (H) connected, check that you have continuity at the controller connector #6 (A). Ground is Pin 2 on the passenger side and Pin 5 on the driver side.
• Test that you have +12VDC at the controller conector #6 (A). +12VDC is Pin 3 on the passenger side and Pin 4 on the driver side.
• 

* Updated chart above to have a non-transparent background.

 

[jc99]

@WorldExpy That was a great detailed post thanks!

 

[johnmonthrots]

Wow sure seems to be a lot of problems with these. I really wanted them to be a solid product like my F150 AMPs but guess not. I guess I’ll look for a fixed slider that has a bit of a step for my wife for my JLU.

 

[Ruby Mike]

Wow sure seems to be a lot of problems with these. I really wanted them to be a solid product like my F150 AMPs but guess not. I guess I’ll look for a fixed slider that has a bit of a step for my wife for my JLU.

I have had the RSE steps, gen 2, since I bought the jeep February 2020. Overall they are doing well. I recently heard that you can upgrade the steps to gen 3 but not sure. The major issues I have with the steps is, they hate any kind of snow or slush buildup. The motor is flat to weak to activate and open the steps. The springs get weak with use and will need replacement. It is also likely that the motor will need replacement.
Without the steps I would have to pull myself into the jeep because it is 38 inches from the ground to the bottom of the door sil. Overall I am very happy with the unit.

 

[Terrymo]

Wow sure seems to be a lot of problems with these. I really wanted them to be a solid product like my F150 AMPs but guess not. I guess I’ll look for a fixed slider that has a bit of a step for my wife for my JLU.

I’ve had mine for approaching 2 years now. Not a single glitch. No noticeable battery drain. Keep in mind with any product there will be problems. People who have had problems are, understandably, much more vocal than people who have had no issues.

 

[johnmonthrots]

Yeah, understand. The other thing that sort of bothers me is that you might need “armor” for your sliders. Hmmm

 

[84jeepjohn]

Yeah, understand. The other thing that sort of bothers me is that you might need “armor” for your sliders. Hmmm

well even without the armor, they will tak a bigger hit than the Amp steps. I've had mine on for about 6 months, and I have a light that I think I need to clean the contact on... OK. and twice the passenger side did not want to open this winter due to ice build up. again...OK not a big deal. but I'm 6.2 and have never used the steps on my suburban, but these are perfect.

 

[johnmonthrots]

Yeah I didn’t mean to imply my F150 was ever off-roaded as it isn’t. That truck is a townie and the AMPs were for my mother and wife. I guess I was naive in thinking the RSE sliders were really tough and then I see the “armor“ option.

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