WINNEBAGO TRAVATO – Awning Mechanism Repair and Fabric Replacement

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Awning Mechanism Repair and Fabric Replacement for WINNEBAGO TRAVATO

The Thule HideAway 1200 awning on the Winnebago Travato mounts to the driver-side upper rail of the ProMaster body, just below the EPDM rubber roof membrane edge — which means any fastener you touch in that area is also a potential leak point, so seal everything you disturb. Most Travato owners encounter the same three failures: torn or sun-degraded fabric, a sluggish or dead motor, and a pull strap that frays where it exits the roller tube. This guide covers all three repairs, from quick strap swaps to full fabric replacement, with the van parked on level ground and the awning fully retracted before you start.

Required Parts

Step-by-Step Instructions

Step 1: Set Up Safely and Assess the Damage

Park the Travato on solid, level pavement — the ProMaster’s high roofline puts the awning rail at roughly 9 feet, so a stable six-foot stepladder is the minimum you need. Before climbing, clip your safety fall-protection strap to a fixed roof rack point or the ladder itself; a slip at van height is a serious injury. With the awning retracted, walk the full length of the driver side and look for three things: fabric tears or UV chalking (fabric feels brittle and flakes white powder when rubbed), a pull strap that is frayed or missing its sewn loop, and whether the roller tube sits flush in both end caps. Extend the awning manually using your telescoping awning rod hooked into the pull strap loop — if the tube resists turning or only unrolls a foot before binding, the spring tension or motor is the culprit. Take photos of both end-cap assemblies before touching anything; the Thule HideAway 1200 has left and right end caps that are not interchangeable, and reassembly confusion is the number-one DIY mistake on this system.

Step 2: Disconnect Power to the Awning Motor

The Thule HideAway 1200 motor is an inline 12V DC unit that lives inside the driver-side (rear) end cap of the roller tube. Its power lead runs through the awning rail channel and drops into the van’s wall cavity, eventually connecting to the fused 12V distribution block located in the driver-side lower cabinet — the same cabinet that houses the Xantrex Freedom XC inverter/charger. Open that cabinet and locate the dedicated awning fuse, typically a 10A or 15A blade fuse on a labeled circuit. Pull it before doing any work on the motor or wiring. Do not simply switch off the Xantrex or assume the shore-power disconnect kills 12V accessories — the Travato’s 12V bus remains live from the house batteries unless you disconnect at the battery itself or pull the fuse. Confirm the motor is de-energized by pressing the awning switch (usually on the driver-side wall near the entry door) and verifying nothing happens. Tape over the fuse slot with a strip of painter’s tape and a note so nobody re-inserts the fuse while you are working outside.

Step 3: Remove the End Caps and Extract the Roller Tube

The Thule HideAway 1200 mounts to the ProMaster body rail via two cast-aluminum mounting brackets — one near the B-pillar and one near the C-pillar on the driver side. Each bracket has a locking lever or a hex retention bolt (depending on model year) that releases the roller tube assembly downward. With a helper supporting the tube’s weight, unscrew the driver-side (motor) end cap first using a T25 Torx driver — three screws hold the plastic cap to the bracket. The motor wire connector is a two-pin Deutsch-style plug; squeeze the locking tab and pull straight out, never yank by the wire. On the passenger-side end cap (spring side), the spring is under tension even when the awning is fully retracted — keep your hand cupped over the end cap as the last screw comes out, because the spring can kick the cap off with enough force to cause injury. Lower the full roller tube to the ground with your helper. It is heavier than it looks — a 10-foot Travato awning tube with motor weighs roughly 18–22 pounds.

Step 4: Replace the Pull Strap

The pull strap is the simplest repair on this system and often overlooked until the strap breaks mid-campsite. On the Thule HideAway 1200, the strap feeds through a slot in the roller tube and is secured inside by a sewn fabric flap that gets clamped under the awning fabric leading edge during installation. If you are only replacing the strap — not the full fabric — you can do this with the roller tube still mounted by fully extending the awning and working at ground level. Thread the new 27-inch UV-resistant pull strap through the roller tube slot from outside, then tie a temporary overhand knot in the interior end to keep it from pulling through while you work. The exterior end with the sewn loop should hang down freely for hooking with your telescoping awning rod. Once the fabric is rolled back up, the strap tension holds itself in the slot — no adhesive needed. If the old strap left adhesive residue inside the slot, clean it with isopropyl alcohol on a cotton swab before threading the new one, or the new strap will bind and eventually fray in the same spot.

Step 5: Replace the Awning Fabric

With the roller tube on the ground, you will see the fabric is attached at two points: the leading edge wraps around and is sewn/clamped into the roller tube slot (same slot as the pull strap), and the trailing edge slides into the awning rail track on the van’s body via a beaded hem called the drop wire or bead cord. Slide the old fabric’s bead cord out of the van rail track — it pulls from one end like removing weatherstripping. On the roller tube, remove the aluminum extrusion clamp bar (two M6 screws, 10mm socket) that locks the sewn leading edge into the tube slot, and pull the old fabric free. Measure the old fabric width before discarding it — confirm it matches the replacement fabric you ordered, as Travato awnings come in 10-foot and 11-foot widths depending on model year. Feed the new fabric’s leading edge sewn hem into the tube slot, re-install the clamp bar and snug the screws evenly so the fabric lies flat with no bunching. Then slide the new bead cord into the van rail track from the rear, working forward, keeping slight tension on the fabric so it feeds straight without folding.

Step 6: Test or Replace the Awning Motor

If the motor failed rather than (or in addition to) the fabric, now is the time to swap it with the Thule/Solera-compatible universal replacement motor before reinstalling the roller tube. The motor slides out of the driver-side end of the tube once the end cap is removed — it is held by a splined shaft and a spring-retention clip. Note the orientation of the drive end before pulling it out (photograph it). The replacement motor should drop in with the same shaft spline engagement; if it feels loose, double-check that you have the correct tube diameter variant. Before fully reinstalling the end cap, do a bench test: reconnect the motor’s two-pin plug to a spare 12V source (a jump pack works perfectly) and verify rotation direction. The tube should unroll the fabric when powered in one direction and retract it in the other. If rotation is backward, simply swap the two pins in the Deutsch connector housing using a pin-extraction tool — this is normal during motor swaps and is not a wiring error. Getting rotation correct on the bench saves you from reinstalling the tube twice.

Step 7: Reinstall, Seal, and Tune the Finished Awning

Lift the roller tube back into the mounting brackets with your helper, reconnect the motor wire, and secure both end caps — driver side first, then spring side with your hand cupped over the cap. Re-insert the awning fuse in the driver-side cabinet and test the motor switch. The awning should extend and retract smoothly; if it hesitates at full extension, the spring tension on the passenger-side end cap may need one quarter-turn of additional preload — remove the spring-side end cap and rotate the spring anchor one detent clockwise before reassembly. Now check every fastener hole where the mounting brackets contact the ProMaster body rail and re-seal any that were disturbed with self-leveling lap sealant rated for EPDM — this is critical given how close these brackets are to the rubber roof membrane transition, which is already the Travato’s most common leak point. Finally, install the Camco wind stabilizer de-flappers on the awning’s front rail — they clamp on without tools and dramatically reduce the fabric oscillation that accelerates hem wear. Store your telescoping awning rod inside the van; you will reach for it every trip.

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