New Georgetown major defects found during PDI

[RubberNail]

I intended to do a review of my RVOne Orlando/RVdirect purchase experience, not yet completed, but this is about much more. My 2nd 1700 mile round trip to RVOne Orlando was to do a PDI and take delivery of a new 2016 Georgetown 329. RVOne called the evening before to say there were some problems, but by that time we were only 200 miles short of Orlando, driving our fully loaded toad in preparation for a few days checkout and the return journey. On arrival the next day we found multiple technicians occupied in attempts to repair a leaking black water tank. When I questioned the problem I was offered the opportunity to "feel the defect" because it wasn't visible from outside the valve station compartment.

At the bottom of the tank there is a short neck formed in the tank itself, maybe 1" length. This is where the black water valve plumbing connects. A chip about 1/2" square was missing from the end of the neck. The remaining neck had a deformation rising about 1/2" from the circular neck, as if a circular rod had slipped into the casing, and extending back into the tank itself. That's where the valve plumbing was suppose to connect. No repair was possible. Believe me, the technicians tried everything imaginable.

THE POINT OF THIS POST. This defect could not have occurred post tank installation. It was manufactured into the tank and had to be apparent at the time of tank installation. SOMEBODY at the Georgetown plant knowingly and willingly installed a visibly defective black water tank in the coach.

I am somewhat tolerant of unintended defects that become evident post manufacture but this is the knowing installation of a grossly defective critical component in a coach. If you intend to buy a Georgetown, as we did, be aware that this, how inconceivable, is happening, and if they do this, then what else??!!! Remember, in the corporate culture Money is GOD.

The fix will be to remove the gray tank in order to get the black water tank out for replacement. All plumbing, sensors, wiring, etc disconnect and then reassembled. Until this happens our purchase is "on hold", if at all. Will say that at this point in time RVOne is doing their best and I can not fault them for any of this. We just wonder what other surprises Georgetown may have in store for us.

[Krazymace]

I think you'll find most of us didn't have any surprises. Every new RV I've owned has had warranty issues, but none as serious as yours.


Sent from my iPhone using Forest River Forums

[RubberNail]

Actually have had worst, a 1998 Cardinal 5th wheel with wall delamination. It went back to the factory and they fixed it. But in all my previous RV problems I could understand why they were not noticed during manufacture. In this case someone had to fit plumbing to a defective tank that obviously could not be sealed and allow it to be shipped.

[gfarmcafe]

On our 2015 Cruise Lite, they screwed the sofa bed down with drywall screws knowing the heads were too small for the holes in the metal frame. So, they didn't tighten them down in order to keep it from scooting around. When we folded the bed out and I sat down the edge, the whole bed fell forward! In looking at what they did, it was apparent the installer knew the screws were too small for the mounting holes. What happened to you is no surprise to me.

[Mr Havercamp]

They are setting sales records and Its called pushing them out the door.

Mine is a long story but to make it short, ordered a Roo last Oct and the first one delivered in Dec was frankly a POS. I have 19 pages of approved warranty repairs that were to be done on that particular unit before purchase, with dollar amounts to the tune of $5000.00 around here somewhere, that's about 25% of the purchase price by the way. Its one hell of a business model. Unfortunately F.R./Rockwood could not seem to get their act in gear after another 5 weeks or so waiting on them to send parts. I ultimately told the dealer to send that one back and have them shove it somewhere, and order us another unit. I suggest you do the same.......don't get the lemon. If that defect made it out the door, I guarantee there are more issues in that unit that are buried.

We ordered the 2nd end of Feb and it arrived in April. Much better, a night and day difference. Not perfect but better. After two months of working on it myself I now have something I'm fairly happy and comfortable with.

Good luck.

[Lynlanning]

We mysteriously and suddenly had a leak under the floor of the hallway in our sunseeker. Dealer first fixed a toilet flange - leak was still there. Turns out while mfg, the pipe under the toilet had been forcibly bent to fit the space. It was only a matter of time til It started leaking. Dealership cut it, installed the properly shaped plumbing, and fixed. Bad and shoddy workmanship. And mine's a 2010! Luckily I have an extended warranty!

[rvpezzano]

I totally feel for your Major problem, but I have a question for you. Why would you purchase something that expensive 850 miles from home knowing what a nightmare getting things repaired under warranty?
Just my 2 cents!

[gasman94]

I know that this will not help you, but I always wondered why dealers did not do an initial PDI after the RV comes to the dealer. That way some of these problems can be recognized before the customer buys them. I still would recommend a secondary PDI again before purchase.



Rich

[The_Rhino]

Originally Posted by rvpezzano

Why would you purchase something that expensive 850 miles from home knowing what a nightmare getting things repaired under warranty?

Ya, IMO it's like buying a $120K+ house sight unseen - especially one built by a mass builder that slaps them together...

Originally Posted by Mr Havercamp

I ultimately told the dealer to send that one back... and order us another unit.... If that defect made it out the door, I guarantee there are more issues in that unit that are buried.

I prefer to choose one from the lot vs. ordering one - this way you get the pick of the litter & can walk-away from the lemons...

We live in Ohio near several wholesalers but chose to buy from a local reputable dealer, 10 minutes from home/work, who had 8 same brand/model units on the lot as the one we wanted - this way I could personally inspect them for defects & choose the pick of the litter vs. getting stuck with a pre-ordered lemon. We waited for a big sale event & found that the local dealer came within 5% of the wholesalers & were willing to throw-in "free" extras like a full pressurized leak test & re-caulking and WDH (since we bought a TT)...

When looking at all 8 new units on the lot I found that fit & finished varied greatly from one to the next - likely depending heavily on build date & how much pressure the line was under to meet weekly quotas. I imagine the last unit finished to meet a weekly/monthly quota goal could end-up being a hot mess...

Since the dealer was so close to work/home I purposefully looked at units during heavy rains. I found one new unit that leaked water badly although the salesperson could not find any open vents/points of entry. The salesperson admitted that new units sometimes leak & that's why they do the pressurized leak test & re-caulking with every unit they sell. Other units had really poor fit & finish... Altogether there were only 2/8 new units on the lot that I would have considered driving home...

When I discovered a used unit, same brand/model, that had better fit & finish & was bone-dry after the heavy rains, I decided to choose that one. I spent 2 hours (alone) looking it over inside & out before making an offer. They spent the next 2 hours doing the pressurized leak test & fixing the items on my list. We THEN spent an additional 2.5 hours going through the PDI. Before we left they had adjusted all slide-out cables, the awning tracking, replaced the CO2 detector, etc.

In the first 2 years of camping we had zero problems. This year our now 5 year-old Dometic fridge needed a $500 cooling unit replacement but I chose to install a residential fridge/inverter instead. Couldn't be more happy with my local purchase! NOT getting stuck with a lemon has saved me time & money.

[BusyRetirees]

I, personally, would cancel the purchase and see if the dealer has other brands. No guarantees on another make, but what you stated has soured me on Georgetowns.

[ottawapaul]

Since the installers at the factory get paid by the pieces installed, whoever did this masterpiece of work really does not care and since he knew it would not be spotted by the quality inspectors on the assembly line - he slapped it in and walked away !

Your dealer on the other hand has got to get points for not only finding this hidden mess, but for trying to fix it. Once he gets the replacement tanks, you will probably end up with a much better plumbing job than you would have gotten from the factory. And as a bonus all your pull valves will probably work!

[Mr Havercamp]

Originally Posted by The_Rhino

I prefer to choose one from the lot vs. ordering one - this way you get the pick of the litter & can walk-away from the lemons...

When looking at all 8 new units on the lot I found that fit & finished varied greatly from one to the next - likely depending heavily on build date & how much pressure the line was under to meet weekly quotas. I imagine the last unit finished to meet a weekly/monthly quota goal could end-up being a hot mess...

I fully agree. But in our case we wanted a specific model / floorplan hybrid that was sort of new at the time. No choice but to order from the factory. At the time we ordered there were 3 on lots this side of the Mississippi and one was a floor model at Hershey so it was out. The other two were grossly overpriced and the dealers who had them were not willing to negotiate.

[RubberNail]

To answer "why I would purchase 850 miles from home", about $10,000 difference from nearest local dealer, who is over 100 miles away. As for sight unseen, made the first of two trips to see and inspect the coach. It LOOKED good to me. As for RVOne, they did their job. They discovered that there was a leak problem the day before I arrived, BUT, since it's a 850 mile trip, I had already covered 650 miles. At that time they knew the black water tank had failed their leak test, but not why. It was only during the following day, while we were there doing our own PDI, that it became apparent that the only remedy was to replace the tank.

I have cancelled the purchase and RVOne is refunding my deposit. I'm sure RVOne could/would/will replace the tank better than new. I cancelled because I'm tired of driving 1700 mile round trips and unsure that this Georgetown doesn't have another surprise in store for me.

RVOne has been up front and diligent in trying to deliver a serviceable coach. It's Georgetown that dropped the ball. I wouldn't be afraid to deal with RVOne again, but it's unlikely that I'll be buying a Georgetown. That said, I own a Forest River Sunseeker 2300, and as I looked at the Sunseekers in Orlando, appears to me the construction quality is superior to the Georgetown. We first wanted a SS 3010. However, I need 3000# + CCC in a 30'+ coach, and there are none in a class "C".

Before someone asks, yes have weighed multiple times and know how much we carry. AND, we are buying another (additional) coach to do what we want, with what we want to carry, so don't plan to lighten the load.

[RubberNail]

I'm going to close this thread with this update. As of August 1, 2016 RVOne HAS REFUNDED my deposit as they said they would and I'm moving on to buy a non-FR motorhome manufactured by a more reputable, reliable vendor. Yea, cost more but you know why when you look closer.

My observation is that the RV industry today is much like the US automobile manufacturers the late 60's, early 70's when they assumed we would forever put up with poor quality junk that the dealers would find a way to fix. I remember buying a new 70 Chrysler New Yorker (top of the line) and one block out of the dealer's lot, clock stopped and a piece of side trim fell off into the street. A week later the front wheel bearing started growling. Went downhill from there. In the end, Toyota, Honda and Volkswagen became the preferred auto's and the Big 3 are yet to recover their lost glory.

[Krazymace]

Big 3 are making record profits now


Sent from my iPad using Forest River Forums

[Steeljag]

Bring on the over seas competition ! This industry needs to slow down, and focus on QUALITY over quantity !!

[gasman94]

Originally Posted by steeljag

Bring on the over seas competition ! This industry needs to slow down, and focus on QUALITY over quantity !!

Amen!!!



Rich