Georgetown Assembly GOOF!!

[goodstick]

Good afternoon folks. I'm sitting here in the quiet of my den, reflecting on the first 2 weeks of owning a Forest River Georgetown XL 378 TS. We have had several issues come up since taking delivery 6 Feb from Colerain RV, Cincinnati.
In late Oct 12, my DW and I placed an order for the 378. One of the things we special ordered was a drivers door, thus having another means of egress in case of an emergency. We were also assured the refrigerator would be a gas/electric model. We wanted the gas capability due to future dry camping plans. Our salesman Matt McDermott told us that sometimes MINOR design changes are done during a build and that we could get the gas/electric fridge. And we would get what we ordered or we wouldn't pay! That all changed 29 Jan, 2013 when the coach arrived at Colerain RV. Both parties agreed to a walk-through and delivery 6 Feb.
Sooo, for the past several years, Forest River has had the drivers door option and it was offered on the 2013 models . We placed an order for a drivers door, paid for a drivers door. Not once during the time since ordering the coach did we think there would be a problem with the drivers door.
Well, the problem is not with the door itself. We do have a very nice drivers door. It is with the rear-view side mirror that sits directly BEHIND a support post of the door thus blocking 80% of the view. That's right -somebody at Forest River wasn't smart enough to think of putting a mirror with a longer arm on that drivers door.
Colerain RV, Matt McDermott, assured us on 6 Feb that the mirror was a minor issue. One would be ordered and sent out directly.
Oh yeah- The refrigerator. Nope, no gas/electric. Got a very nice residential , pure 120V fridge. Power source is either shore power or batteries through an inverter. That is kinda all well and good except the factory put in two puny 12V batteries that would give you only a few hours of power for the fridge. Still working on FR providing bigger batteries.
Back to the mirror issue. Checked with our salesman Matt today on the status of the mirror. Said it had been ordered. Well, that coincides with 20 years of military "crew bus is on the way" and "checks in the mail". On order is a pretty broad and open-ended statement. I then chatted with Steve Jung, owner of Colerain. When he checked into the issue, he told me the mirror still NEEDED TO BE BUILT. NOTHING HAD BEEN DONE TO GET THE CORRECT MIRROR in the 13 days since we did our walk through. I tracked down Craig Fawcett, a Georgetown/Forest River " get things done guy." I expressed my complete and utter disbelief that the coach was engineered, built and delivered like this. His initial response was something along the lines of well, we don't produce many with the drivers door. Well, then DON"T offer the option if ya can't build it properly. Anyway, it does indeed need to be built yet. If the manufacturer can get right on it, the mirror will be built on Friday and shipped overnight. Craig, thanks for making something happen! In the meantime, the Georgetown is still grounded, waiting parts. My DW are still shaking our heads in utter amazement over this.
So back to the fridge and inverter. I can't get the inverter to come on. Can't find the circuit protection for it. Can't even find the inverter. Colerain RV doesn't know. I have a call into John Armstrong at FR asking him if he knows. So anybody out there know where the inverter is on a new GT XL 378TS, one with a residential type fridge?
Just want to tell the forum about FR's screw-up here. Enough venting. Need an attitude adjustment. Think I will

[jojo bamboo]

Be kind to John Armstrong, send him a little gift, you and him are going to become phone buddies. I think your one year warrenty is going to get a work-out,
but after all the bugs are fixed, you should be OK. Welcome to the club.
Good luck.

[kenandterry]

Sorry to hear about your problems with your new rig. If you scan these forum stories you'll hear that there are the odd troubles like yours reported, but for the most part things are good.

That being said, I hope your driver's door choice eventually works out. You're right in that the mirror positioning should have been something that designers looked at, but in fact driver's doors are a rare option......I'm sure someone has done a poll on it. Most people here, and other RV sites talking about driver's doors constantly complain about wind noise and drafts when they have that option. In addition, has anyone else ever noted that for the most part, Class A Diesels seem to have their mirrors mounted on arms out front of the body, but Class A Gas motorhomes seem to mount the arms off the side of the body. Makes you wonder, hmmmmmmmmm.

As for your fridge mix-up, someone obviously didn't verify the order. I've heard that the 378 and other Gerogetown XL trims are more commonly equipped with residential fridges as the norm versus gas/electric. Once again, your choice was for something outside of the standard assembled unit.

You wrote that there was supposed to be a deal here, where if you didn't get what you wanted, you didn't pay. Was that in writing?

Just wondering, but I understand your need to vent.

[Iggy]

Sorry to hear about your issues. Many of us have been thru that.
All I can do is give you an idea where the invertor for the refrigerator is located.
The invertor is usually below the refrigerator and can be seen when you open the compartment outside below it. You may see a plastic plate that is held on with a few screws. Behind it you may find the invertor.
Hope this is correct and you can find it.

[mwebber78]

Why is it grounded for a pair of batteries and an extension mirror?

[armye7]

We also purchased our 2012 378 at colerain, this is our 2nd Georgetown from there. I will tell you that they are some of the best folks in the rv business that I have dealt with. But I do agree with you, you should get what u ordered I too would be upset. Good luck hope they get u taking care of. Let me know if I can help.

[Lawfive]

I have an 07 391 and the mirrors are mounted on the front of the rig. Visited a friend who just bought a new replacement rig and he complained loudly about the mirror mounts on the side. Said half the time glare from the dashboard reflected in the mirror ruined his sight lines to the passing lane. I'm wondering if the designers spend any real RV time?

[bresdogsr]

Thank you for posting the information about the mirror with the drivers door. Just contacted FR and they may be able to help me out as well.

[cfsoistman]

Originally Posted by kenandterry

Sorry to hear about your problems with your new rig. If you scan these forum stories you'll hear that there are the odd troubles like yours reported, but for the most part things are good.

That being said, I hope your driver's door choice eventually works out. You're right in that the mirror positioning should have been something that designers looked at, but in fact driver's doors are a rare option......I'm sure someone has done a poll on it. Most people here, and other RV sites talking about driver's doors constantly complain about wind noise and drafts when they have that option.

In addition to kenandterry's post I too am sorry to hear about your problems. I have the driver's door, no problem with the mirror location. I have it adjusted so I can see down the sides very well. Of course my unit was built prior to side cameras being offered so that might come into play with the location now? As for the noise and air leaks, BINGO, You'll wish you never had it, I do. We purchased our coach to be built as the one at the Hershey show in 2006. Never realized it had a door since they line them up so driver's sides are next to each other in opposite aisles. My focus was for the Home Theatre set-up and never looked to see a door there. Every time a truck passes by the air gushed in. I've added additional weather stripping to it and it is better but far from air tight. I will add also that Stink Bugs love the crease and manage to get in the coach through the door seal as well.
As stated John Armstrong is really nice to work with. I've known him since he worked for Keystone back in 2001. He's always been fair to me when I've had any issues. As for your inverter, just wondering if the fridge was a mistake possibly they didn't include one? I wish you all the best getting through the couple issues. Just remember there are plenty others out there that spent way more than us and have the same issues. Enjoy your coach, be safe and

[BillMFl]

Well I can understand a new owner expecting perfection but the reality is any large complex system (house, RV, large boat) is going to have some shake down cruise bugs. All makes and model regardless of which manufacturer are gonna have some issues, usually small. None of yours are in the serious category so I hope you don't let them spoil the fun. It usually just takes a little time so like the song says "relax, just do it, theres really nothing to it"!

[D-mo]

i would be quite concerned about the fridge thing myself. No matter how big your batteries are, even with a generator, you will be tending that for the rest of your camping life, when you camp off the grid. Anything the produces or reduces heat, takes alot of juice to run. You may find yourself recharging your batteries on a daily basis, just to keep the inverter/fridge thing working ...

d-mo

[BillMFl]

The concept for this type of Frig was to give a house style frig vs the usual RV frig. A number of MH manufacturers are offering this. Not really suitable for boondocking unless you have a DP with a large battery bank. Its a good feature for going down the road as the altenator will keep the batteries fresh. Its also good for short stops at rest areas and fuel stops. Not good for boondocking long term for any type of coach unless you run the gen set each day long enough to keep the charge up. I prefer my 2012 electric/LP version, but the home type frig is a "hot" option lately. Its a popular retrofit in older coaches.

[Uncle AL]

Goodstick:

We are in the process of dealing with the Fridge as well on our 378. The inverter is on the Right Side of the Fridge at floor level. I am also going to talk to Craig F at Georgetown about the inverter capacity and limitation. Since we have not taken actual delivery, I have not looked into the mirror issue.

Good Luck.

Uncle Al

[kenandterry]

Anyone else notice we haven't heard back from Goodstick since he vented?

These boards are full of helpful people with actual experience, but you gotta learn to play both ways to make corrections in a positive way.

Just sayin'.

[F and E Damp]

We bought our '02 325 used and it has a driver's door. The big bus-type mirror doesn't get in the way until the door is opened to 90 degrees. I wish it had electric adjustment and tighter clamps. Fifty mph starts it moving slowly backwards.

If I were buying new, I don't think I'd opt for a driver's door. You have to be very agile to use it. The second time I tried, I almost fell backwards onto the parking lot when my foot missed that stirrup-shaped step behind the wheel-arch.

I do have to use it at present, as I can't open the house door when the rig is all the way to the end of the driveway away from the street. We modified the garage roof to be able to get the rig down the side of the garage, but the rig's house door hits the rain gutter on the garage fascia board. Another mod in the works when the weather warms up.

I'm also going to get a 5' ladder to carry in the rig so I can safely use the driver's door.

[bresdogsr]

Originally Posted by bresdogsr

Thank you for posting the information about the mirror with the drivers door. Just contacted FR and they may be able to help me out as well.

Followup:

Matt McDermott the salesperson at Colrain provided contact information for FR to me. FR did get back to me and they are mailing a new mirror arm and will pay for installation. I am extermely happy that I will be safer driving down the road. Thanks to Matt and FR.

[Witch Doctor]

Sorry about the problems, I'm sure FR will take care of them, I still believe in that company. As far as your refer go's do you know how many amp's it pulls? Remember once you cool down to your temp you will be cycling on and off. Your unit is probably better insulated then mine which is gas and elec. Just a question to you.

[goodstick]

Just an update on our coach. The mirror ordered by Colerain/Forest River to replace original equipment was the wrong mirror. The base didn't match. I've been quite busy getting this mirror issue worked on. As it is now, 80% of the drivers door mirror is blocked. The point is not "shouldn't have gotten a drivers door" but rather FR/Georgetown should have never offered the option if a useable mirror is not provided. Not expecting perfection. I know and understand there will be small issues. And as it turns out, FR/Georgetown DOES NOT have a stock mirror for the drivers door that is functional. They are having to engineer and design a functional/useable mirror to be used with the drivers door option. The coach is going to the factory body shop in early May to have this issue resolved.
As for the residential refrigerator/inverter/battery issue, we are going to find out this week-end just how user-friendly this set-up is going to be.

[cfsoistman]

Driver's Side - My Photo Gallery

Just wondering where they mounted your driver's side mirror. Mine is just in front of the hinges and almost even with the column between the door jamb and the other window. I can't tell by the new brochure, but are they still using Velvac Mirrors? Mine is the #2025 with heat.

Velvac Mirrors.pdf

[sherman12]

Goodstick, I hope your residential fridge and inverter has an auto start feature on the generator for when the batteries run low it'll kick on to bring them back up to full charge. Otherwise, good luck.