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Old 06-10-2019, 02:02 PM   #1
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Forest River quality

What does everyone think about their quality? I'm not very impressed. We had it for almost a year and it been back 4 times for warranty work. That brings up another problem. Dealer seems to have problems listening to what's needed. The one time that ticks me off probably the most is took it in for some roof issues and they replaced water tank. There was nothing wrong with water tank. To top that instead of removing screws from belly panel they cut it out with a knife and taped back together. Last trip we took it in for interior wall delamination and piece of trim that goes up front to roof that was 2" too short and they just fill gap with caulk. They never touched delamination issue. Now we have to wait on parts and take it back again. They are 2 hours one way. I wish I would have never seen a forest river. If it was a car it would qualify for lemon law.
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Old 06-10-2019, 02:16 PM   #2
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So is your problem with Forest River or the dealer?
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Old 06-10-2019, 02:21 PM   #3
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Originally Posted by Kebees4 View Post
What does everyone think about their quality? I'm not very impressed. We had it for almost a year and it been back 4 times for warranty work. That brings up another problem. Dealer seems to have problems listening to what's needed. The one time that ticks me off probably the most is took it in for some roof issues and they replaced water tank. There was nothing wrong with water tank. To top that instead of removing screws from belly panel they cut it out with a knife and taped back together. Last trip we took it in for interior wall delamination and piece of trim that goes up front to roof that was 2" too short and they just fill gap with caulk. They never touched delamination issue. Now we have to wait on parts and take it back again. They are 2 hours one way. I wish I would have never seen a forest river. If it was a car it would qualify for lemon law.
Forest River is a corporation name.
There are almost 100 different brands and numerous divisions with numerous factories.
Each brand has different levels of features and expected quality/fit/finish.
So simply saying "Forest River" isn't a fair assessment.
We've had a Rockwood and now a Prime time and both had a few issues but we considered both to be great trailers for the price point.
And why have you not simply bypassed the dealer and use an independent RV shop or mobile RV tech, for warranty work? As long as you get pre-approval from FR and be willing to be reimbursed.
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Old 06-10-2019, 03:00 PM   #4
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Sounds to me like the people doing the service work are the issue and not Forest River. We have a 2018 Surveyor and in the year that we have owned it only minor issues, which I have taken care of. Hope things get better for you.
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Old 06-10-2019, 03:14 PM   #5
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2018 Cardinal 3825 FL no issues since we get it on 9-23-18.
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Old 06-10-2019, 03:15 PM   #6
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Sounds like a dealer problem and also things should never have left factory that way like trim being to short . it's all starts with the factory letting units out that are clearly not up to snuff and then to dealers that can't /won't address problems the way they should .
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Old 06-10-2019, 03:43 PM   #7
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The dealer is number 1 problem but if Forest River had better quality control it wouldn't needed to go back to dealer. Screws were missing where rubber roof meets fiberglass on front and wasnt attached properly on the rear.
There is several brands that fall under forest river but that shouldn't make some to have poor quality control.
Also dealer has problems letting us know when its ready to pick up. We have to call to see if it's done. One time the wife called and was told its been ready for 10 days.
It is a 2018 Vibe and we like the camper other than the service department.
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Old 06-10-2019, 07:33 PM   #8
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What does everyone think about their quality?
I feel for you but, since I think most of your post is just to vent and not really an attempt to solve your problem, I'll answer the one question you did ask.

The quality on our 2019 Rockwood has been very good so far. No warranty issues (yet?) and all systems function. We spent a good 3 hours at our PDI and only found a couple of very minor items.

If you haven't owned an RV before you're going to find new issues every now and then. That's the nature of the beast when you haul a mobile house through a hurricane every trip you take.
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Old 06-10-2019, 07:54 PM   #9
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For the cheap price point, FR is ok.
The RV industry is unregulated, much like the auto industry was in the 1950's.
No Lemon Law protection, no Monroney stickers, no online invoice reasearch, no factory warranty support of dealers and dealers who won't do warranty work on your rig unless you bought it from them.
I have learned you are expected to DIY any problems.
I didn't buy an Airstream.
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Old 06-10-2019, 08:02 PM   #10
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I've had no issues with my FR product to date. It's a Cherokee Alpha Wolf. The cosmetic things I take care of myself. I can do a better job of those than my dealer anyway.
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Old 06-10-2019, 08:06 PM   #11
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I agree with woo10-210. To answer the question that you asked, I have been very pleased with our Wildcat. Sure we have had a few issues but most were fixed be me. I think that you will find a lot of happy Forest River owners. To say that all of Forest River’s quality is poor is misleading and wrong. Didn’t you notice the 2 inch gap in your trim during the PDI? Most of your issues seem to be dealer related. Maybe you can edit the title of your post and replace Forest River with your dealers name.
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Old 06-10-2019, 08:06 PM   #12
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It’s no secret that you have to stay on top of these things. With that said, your dealer pretty much sucks from the sound of things. I am a big believer that before you shop for your RV, you shop for your dealer, and you find one nearby. The little bit you save up front driving a couple hours isn’t always worth it in the long run. And a lot of dealers don’t like doing warranty work on a unit somebody else sold
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Old 06-10-2019, 08:06 PM   #13
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FR Quality

You haven't had it long enough to realize the Bad Craftmanship of FR brand product. If you have 300K MSRP motorhome and only 3 years ago and so many things went right past QC or they just don't give a rats ass. Wood cabinet joints at the joiners never glued. Left off the metal supports for all the slide rollers. Left bent screws in door tracks so when I had to replace/repair the sliding wood door, which by the way fell apart, had to work to remove it just to remove the door. What a joke. The list just goes on an on. Now the RV repair wants 1400 to install the plates that should have been there in the first place. And just to confirm I am on a Big Rig site and posted that, surprised how many posted the same issue. I had an appx 40 foot Open Range purchased that was 4 years old, a 5th wheel, not one single craftmanship issue. One blown inverter. I did not mention all the crooked cabinet doors. Why didn't I notice this when I purchased? Same reason most people do, all shiny and new! I even wrote FR service, no response. So bye bye FR products for me, when this goes it will be may last.
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Old 06-10-2019, 10:40 PM   #14
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Forest River quality

Our 2017 Rockwood mini lite has been great. That’s because our dealer kept it for a week after purchase and went thru it with I fine tooth comb. Not one problem since we took it off the lot.
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Old 06-10-2019, 10:49 PM   #15
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2017 Flagstaff 27RLWS purchased new 2 years ago, only one issue to date. Kitchen faucet failed, I replaced with a Moen. I don't see that happening again. Porcelain throne is next on my list as an upgrade. Love our Flagstaff!!!
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Old 06-10-2019, 11:17 PM   #16
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I've had both FR and dealer problems. Dealer prep was non-existent so I never went back. Eight problems; things like a rubber propane line hanging down 6" plus, delivered with dead batteries, empty propane tanks (stored with water heater on). Etc.

Had about 25 FR quality control issues.

Live and learn. I should have spent a few weeks on this forum before buying!
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Old 06-11-2019, 04:17 AM   #17
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I would have never guessed I should bring a ladder to get on roof to inspect a new unit. The trim that was short was above where you can see. Yes I just need to vent. When you get Mickey mouse repairs for warranty work its frustrating. Also when they dont fix what it goes in for and dealer cant even call to say its ready for pick up.
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Old 06-11-2019, 05:43 AM   #18
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The dealer seems to be most of your problem. The dealer is not owned or part Forest River other than they sell their product and may do warranty work.

As far as to quality we have owned three campers made by Forest River Companies and found all 3 to be of very good quality. The current one no trips back to the dealer for warranty work. I can't say that for the Fleetwood Terry that we owned before them.

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Old 06-11-2019, 06:31 AM   #19
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It sounds like you need to build a relationship with a dealer that’s closer to you. As mentioned earlier in this thread, the money you save on purchase by driving some distance away isn’t worth the future headaches you have by not having a nearby dealership that you can establish a close relationship with.

Go in, talk to the service manager or owner, and see what they can do.
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Old 06-11-2019, 07:20 AM   #20
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It sounds like you need to build a relationship with a dealer that’s closer to you. As mentioned earlier in this thread, the money you save on purchase by driving some distance away isn’t worth the future headaches you have by not having a nearby dealership that you can establish a close relationship with.

Go in, talk to the service manager or owner, and see what they can do.
Before we purchased our new TT we went dealer shopping in addition to brand. We selected Rockwood but the local dealer left us feeling like we needed to shower with industrial grade cleaner due to out right deceitful tactics.

Ended up purchasing from a dealer over an hour away, first they sold themselves then sold us a TT, what we wanted not what they had on the lot. Never felt lied to, treated fairly and honestly. Sent them our PDI, dealer asked for an additional day and when we showed up we found a couple minor items that where fixed right away.

This pass weekend we had a problem with the water pump and the dealer offered to come out and fix it, we where able to resolve it over the phone and it was self-inflicted problem, color me impressed. My advice find the dealer then the RV.
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