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Old 03-03-2017, 07:48 PM   #1
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Warranty Questions

We bought a Wildcat 29rlx Labor day weekend 2016. Only was able to take it out camping a couple of times, but some warranty issues came up. Slides needed adjusting, LED light broke etc, and 2 larger issues, shower drain too high and the roof was not glued down everywhere.

I took it to our local dealer mid January, not where I bought it, they fixed all of the issues under warranty except the roof and shower. They say that Forest River does not want to pay the quote the dealer gave them to fix the issues. As far as I understand Forest River did not say that they are not warranty issues, just the price is too high.

I have not been able to get in contact with the dealer's warranty person and the service manager does not know where the issues stands. They were supposed to calle today, and last Friday, but the dealer did not.

My question is should I call Forest River directly or should I wait till they figure it out?

Also, I'm a little worried to have the dealer fix the shower, it is not a huge problem and I have seen other people on the forum have the same problem. We don't use the RV full time and it is so dry here that the 1/4" of water left after a shower dries up pretty quickly. The dealer says they need to remove the entire shower to fix the problem.

The roof on the other hand I'm worried about. The dealer says that Forest River did not pull it down tight and the glue along most of the edges did not stick. So instead of water running into the gutters when level it runs along lip of the roof to each end then drains into the gutter or off the front or back of the trailer. Forest River also left some construction debris under the roof that has caused bumps.

I would ideally like to take it back to the factory to get fixed, but I can not take that much time off work this summer to drive from Colorado to Indiana.

Any suggestions or comments would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you
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Old 03-05-2017, 02:38 PM   #2
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Where did you purchase this Wildcat from. According to the FR web site they do not ship Wildcat RV's to Colorado. Next, if I am reading your post correctly everything about your issues is what the dealer says. Have you had any contact with the Wildcat plant? If not you may want to give them a call, perhaps they can find a dealer that will take care of your issues or have a way to pick up your RV and take it back to the factory. Go to www.forestriverinc.com and click on contacts, then Forest River and then select the make of RV to get a proper contact phone number.


It's hard to believe that 70 people have looked at this posting and not offered any more suggestions.
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Old 03-05-2017, 02:49 PM   #3
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FR makes Wildcats in the Midwest and in Oregon.
Oregon made ones are Wildcat Maxx.
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Old 03-05-2017, 02:54 PM   #4
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Probably the most common complaint on the forum is the issue of the non-selling dealer taking on a warranty repair. The RV industry is enjoying record sales and service demands ( unlike 4-5 yrs ago) and are pricing their service time accordingly. The problem with that is that sometimes their current labor rates are higher than FR is willing to cover. This fact in conjunction with the high demand for service allows dealers to be somewhat selective in the work they take. This results in non warranty repairs taking priority over warranty repairs. I am not saying this is a good way to treat customers, but it is a fact that plays into every repair. Some dealers will refuse the work, while others will use it for fill work which can result in your unit sitting at the dealer for months. You might try calling FR rep.
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Old 03-05-2017, 03:28 PM   #5
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We bought the 5th wheel in TX because our local dealer did not have the specific model my wife wanted. She liked the 2016 model year interior more than the 2017. Our local dealer does sell and service several Forest River Wildcat models (not Maxx).

The issue is that the dealer does want to make the warranty fixes, Forest River does not want to pay the dealer for all the hours the dealer feels it will take to get the work completed correctly.

I guess I will try the dealer again Monday and then contact Forest River directly and see why they will not pay.

What does anyone think about fixing the shower? I am hesitant to have the dealer rip out the entire shower just to drop the drain 1/8-1/4".
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Old 03-05-2017, 03:40 PM   #6
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Roof: If you like the local dealer and don't want to take back to selling dealer, you may ask what the difference is and cover it out of pocket. Might be cost effective. As for shower, I would not have it pulled and replaced. If the shower is the pedestal type ( raised up off the floor) . You may want to remove the access panel on pedestal and look under to see the problem. On mine and many others there is little or no support for the thin shower floor. This concerned me so I added wooden supports ( 2X4 on edge) under the floor. You may be able to adjust enough to solve problem.
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Old 03-07-2017, 09:06 AM   #7
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I talked with the manufacturer and they said that 3-4" along the edge of the roof is not glued down for expansion and contraction and it is kept loose to be flexible if you hit a tree branch, etc. They said if the bubbling was in the middle of the roof it is a problem. It sounds good, but it seems fishy. My point to them was why have gutters if the designed edge bubbling of the roof material diverts all of the water in the roof to the cap or the back wall? They didn't really have a sufficient answer.

I feel like I have read many similar stories on this forum of thier first answer is "it is supposed to be that way". For now I guess I will just document what they told me, maybe ask for an email from them explaining it and keep checking the roof every three months and document any changes.

They also said the shower drain is a poor design and I can just remove the current cover, smash it flat with a hammer or go buy a flat drain cover at HD to get the water to drain better.
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Old 03-15-2017, 08:19 PM   #8
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I am trying to get my camper back from the dealer now so we can go camping this weekend. They are still fighting with Forest River and they want to get the roof fixed for me. Forest River wants the dealer to cut a sample of roof material from the middle of the roof and send it to them to determine if they will cover it under warranty!

The dealer says they cannot let me use my camper if I have an open warranty ticket with them , it will void my entire warranty. So they both have our camper held hostage.

If I pursue the issue with the bubbling on my roof, they have to destroy my roof to see if they will cover it. Unbiased evaluation I am sure.


The dealer says if I don't pursue the the warranty roof issues I may be voiding any future warranty claims on the roof because the dealer refuses to cut a portion of my roof off to prove it was installed incorrectly.

In the mean time I cannot​ use my camper that I am currently making payments on. The dealer has no idea how long this will take.
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Old 03-15-2017, 08:35 PM   #9
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That has got to be close to the craziest thing ever! I would be on the phone with FR before this goes any further! Good luck!
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