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12-10-2014, 12:30 PM
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#1
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Senior Member
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: Minnesota
Posts: 762
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Don't feel too bad...
I was perusing the Airstream forums and found there are plenty of upset owners there as are here. It seems whether you spend 20K or 200K the same old QC problems keep popping up.
The following is pasted from the Airstream forum with a Q/C topic ...
We have a 2009 Airstream FC 27FB. Rear windows leak, front fantastic fan leak, entry door gap, dvd player noise, bathroom OH cabinet door/mirror would not stay closed. Issues were addressed by the selling dealer after 2 months of owning (now 14 months). Rear windows still leak (minimal visible), bathroom OH cabinet door/mirror fell off, door still has gap to daylight, filiform spots,(no suprise) led tailight out, AC leaking inside and now STAINS ON FLOOR UNDER DINETTE!! (definately signs of plywood problem) We have owned 4 other campers over the last 15 years, upgrading each time. Finally, our dream an Airstream, no more camper upgrades for years to come or so I thought. Needless to say very disappointed. Making an appointment to return to the dealer after the summer camping season.
It seems all brands have their problems, so no matter what you own be sure to enjoy it all you can. (while not in the repair shop of course)
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Aviator Wright-Flyer#1908
1996 Holiday Rambler
2012 Ram 2500HD CTD
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12-10-2014, 01:11 PM
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#2
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Member
Join Date: Sep 2014
Posts: 51
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I've often thought of buying a new unit but I've spent so much time and $$$ rebuilding/fixing my current Cedar Creek I'd never get my "repair/fix" costs out of it much less anything near what I paid for it...
When will they learn or more importantly, CARE...
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12-10-2014, 01:50 PM
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#3
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(Dry Huunday)
Join Date: Sep 2014
Location: Eastern North Carolina
Posts: 2,298
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We are pretty happy with ours.
I think one "problem" with the quality of units is the rush to get them out the door....every minute spent on "tidying up" and double checking is production money lost. Its cheaper for them to push the problem to the dealer.
In no way does that make it "right" but it is a cause.
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Beau & Sue
FurKid Express
2015 Coachmen Catalina 303RLS
2016 Chevy Silverado LT 2500HD Duramax
The more people I meet, the more I like my dogs!
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12-10-2014, 01:56 PM
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#4
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Senior Member
Join Date: Jul 2007
Location: Jefferson County, MO
Posts: 5,449
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I would never buy a used RV unless it was from someone I knew personally and how well the unit was maintained.
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Bob and Joyce
2013 CC Silverback 29RL
2010 Ford F250 XL Crew Cab 6.4 liter diesel
ATU Local 788
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12-10-2014, 05:37 PM
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#5
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Member
Join Date: Apr 2011
Posts: 83
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I'm convinced that any brand could have their problems. These things are hand built moving houses, stuff is going to go wrong. It's part of RVing... take a trip...fix the things that broke... rinse and repeat.
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Ed and Jaime, 3 kids, 2 greyhounds
2014 Berkshire 400BH
TOAD: 2002 Ford Explorer
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12-11-2014, 02:07 PM
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#6
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Maron
Join Date: Oct 2013
Posts: 253
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Ditto Oakman! We almost did one year ago...and then almost bought a used truck to pull it. I felt icky about it and bit the bullet and bought brand new. One of the best decisions I ever made. The Tundra is a dream with unbelievable service and the Rockwood...had some initial problems on our first cross country but they were fixed very well with no complaints. Amazingly they were in Albuquerque and that Camping World gave us priority service and had us back on the road in 2 hours with a great fix. The other items were fixed by the northern Illinois Camping World, where we bought it. They did a great job. Lastly the FROG convention "fix It" staff fixed all the problems that I caused...for FREE! You can't ask for better service. and we love the trailer.
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12-11-2014, 03:14 PM
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#7
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Site Team
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Goodyear, Arizona
Posts: 33,598
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Having been on various non-brand specific RV forums for 10 years, I've seen complaints about all brands, not just FR.
Bad QC is an industry-wide issue.
but sometimes you can't convince those who post here that. They've only been to this forum and they perceive FR as a bad brand, due to so many posts related to problems with their units.
They don't understand how RV forums work and that if you went to other brand-specific forums, like this one, you'd see the same complaints and frustration.
I've seen it many times.
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Dan-Retired California Firefighter/EMT
Shawn-Musician/Entrepreneur/Wine Expert
and Zoe the Wonder Dog(R.I.P.)
2016 PrimeTime TracerAIR 255, pushing a 2014 Ford F150 SCREW XTR 4x4 3.5 Ecoboost w/Max Tow Package
4pt Equal-i-zer WDH and 1828lbs of payload capacity
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12-11-2014, 03:58 PM
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#8
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Maron
Join Date: Oct 2013
Posts: 253
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And I think your post bikendan does that very well!
On the other hand, reading a lot of the complaints, it seems like many people don't know how to go about getting things fixed. Yes it takes time and you may have to drive your unit back to the dealership but some people seem frustrated by the exercise.
Probably the biggest problem occurs when they buy from a price house and their local dealership won't service them. Well Duhhh!
At one time I owned furniture stores and when customers came in with a complaint, the first thing I'd ask is where you bought it? those who told me "the guy across the street" would get quick directions back to that guy. Then they would complain about my lack of service.
Every time I think of needing service I think of what Forest River did at the FROG convention. They fixed everything they could and it was not dependent on your warranty. My cousin owns a 3 year old Winnebago A class he bought new. He could not believe Forest River fixed all issues and not just those under warranty. He told me Winnebago only fixes warranty issues at their gatherings.
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12-11-2014, 06:12 PM
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#9
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Member
Join Date: May 2010
Posts: 45
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Forest River Units produced
Guys I have owned 1 Flagstaff TT, 1 Flagstaff 5th Wheel, and presently own a 38 Foot Sanibel 5th Wheel. Forest River is one of the best RV Manufactures in the United States. They proved that to me they care about Customer satisfaction. I had some issues with my Flagstaff 5th wheel and Forest River made it right with me. That made me upgrade
and purchase a 2014 (Prime Time) Sanibel year ago in November. I have had a few minor items fixed by the Dealership. When I attended the Frog Rally in Goshen IN. in August I pointed out some major items I was concerned about and Sanibel corrected them for me, no questions asked. I am sure this (Prime Time) Sanibel is a keeper for me and I highly recommend a Forest River Unit to anyone I meet.
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12-11-2014, 07:00 PM
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#10
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Junior Member
Join Date: May 2012
Posts: 7
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This is our second RV. A TT when our kids were home that we bought well used when we got it, and we drove many k miles that did not require any service that I could not easily repair. Two years ago we bought a new Georgetown 360. We are very happy with it and have had very few problems. But, we have had it to the dealer (300 miles) numerous times for the refrigerator.
The idea of a Forest River fix-it crew certainly speaks volumes about Forest River. When you say they are available at the FROG Convention I am not sure exactly when you are talking about. Looking at the FROG Event List, I see Lunches / Dinners, Campouts, Rally & Trips, and Shows. Do you mean the International Rally in Goshen IN, other Rally Trips and Campouts or something else?
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12-11-2014, 07:17 PM
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#11
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Moderator Emeritus
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: St. Paul, Minnesota
Posts: 3,365
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Quote:
Originally Posted by bikendan
Having been on various non-brand specific RV forums for 10 years, I've seen complaints about all brands, not just FR.
Bad QC is an industry-wide issue.
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Makes you wonder what would happen if a Japanese or Korean manufacturer got into the market. I bet quality would go up by leaps and bounds; across ALL manufacturers.
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2021 F350 Lariat 7.3 4X4 w 4.30s, 2018 Wildcat 29RLX
2012 BMW G650GS, Demco Premiere Slider
1969 John Deere 1020, 1940 Ford 9N, 1948 Ford 8N
Jonsered 535, Can of WD-40, Duct Tape
Red Green coffee mugs
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12-11-2014, 07:57 PM
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#12
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Senior Member
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: Minnesota
Posts: 762
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If quality improved too much what would we all talk about?
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Aviator Wright-Flyer#1908
1996 Holiday Rambler
2012 Ram 2500HD CTD
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12-11-2014, 08:57 PM
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#13
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Senior Member
Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: Part Timing It Now
Posts: 3,451
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Quote:
Originally Posted by AWS
The idea of a Forest River fix-it crew certainly speaks volumes about Forest River. When you say they are available at the FROG Convention I am not sure exactly when you are talking about. Looking at the FROG Event List, I see Lunches / Dinners, Campouts, Rally & Trips, and Shows. Do you mean the International Rally in Goshen IN, other Rally Trips and Campouts or something else?
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Yes, The International Rally in Goshen is all the rave the past 4 years.
__________________
"PT Crew Members Since 9/2010"
2011 RAM 2500 HD 6.7L CTD Crew
2014 Prime Time Sanibel 3250
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12-12-2014, 02:21 PM
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#14
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Member
Join Date: May 2010
Posts: 45
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Hi AWS,
This was my 1st time going to Goshen this last August. I can tell you from my stand point, join (FROG) Forest River Owners Group! Then make reservations for next September 2015 for the FROG Rally. It will be the best time you ever spent with your family and making new friends while you are there. Forest River will be there showing you they care about their Customers. They have Seminars on how to do, tours of the Factories, touring adventures of the Amish Community, evening music and Venders for RV needs. You must Register and pay an entry to go to this event, but it is well spent money to attend. Mr. Bob Byrnes is the Event coordinator, and will take care of your stay. I hope this is helpful information for you,
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12-12-2014, 05:40 PM
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#15
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Maron
Join Date: Oct 2013
Posts: 253
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Great comments and let me add to it....yes there was a charge of a few hundred dollars or so...but that not only covered your campsite for 6 or 7 nights, it included electric and water plus the honey wagon came around mid week to empty your black water.
Plus there was an all you could eat breakfast every morning and great dinners 4 nights of the week. If you had to walk a ways...a courtesy tractor came along with a multi passenger cart that allowed for lots of friendliness.
As to the Forest River Fix it crew, how great was that? There was a building set up where you got to meet with a representative from the different companies. Berkshire and those guys had theirs, Rockwood and Flagstaff had theirs etc. You turned in your "fix It" requests and a few days later your camping area was swamped by a bunch of top notch technicians directly from the plant that made your unit. It was fantastic! Prior to going to Goshen I had priced out problems that I created (bent rear stabilizer, canopy posts almost torn off, door handle broken and falling off (come on guys...I was a newbie last February when we first got it and had to learn the hard way) so the total came to almost $1600..at high retail...at the storage facility where we kept it. My experience not only offset the few hundred it cost to go...but probably close to $1000 more.
Guys got new windows, dings and scratches fixed and a whole bunch more. One guy we met had a 2001 5th wheel that needed new windows, he didn't get them for free but he got a heck of a deal direct from the window manufacturer with Forest Rivers help.
It was fun, educational, and an all around great time!
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12-12-2014, 06:21 PM
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#16
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Junior Member
Join Date: May 2012
Posts: 7
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Thank you all for the great recommendations.
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