Is this worth $139.00?

[BandJCarm]

as folks who are about to spend 1/2 of our retirement money and order a new 5'er, is this worth $139.00?

If not, where can truly meaningful data be found?

Thanks.

WINDOWS: Membership Packages

[Mr Havercamp]

NO!

[wana65stang]

Save your money , you can get all that info and more by doing some research, starting HERE!!!!!

[BandJCarm]

I've been doing that for months and months. But when I read the thread on F.R. Quality, and other threads elsewhere, it's almost as if there's no viable hope!

There should be a Consumer Reports type of comparison. The models and makers are so numerous, there needs to be some kind of way to rate them. But there isn't. Just word of mouth from owners. And that leads me to Much Good and Much Bad.

Which is Much Confusing.

[ChateauV10]

Originally Posted by BandJCarm

I've been doing that for months and months. But when I read the thread on F.R. Quality, and other threads elsewhere, it's almost as if there's no viable hope!

There should be a Consumer Reports type of comparison. The models and makers are so numerous, there needs to be some kind of way to rate them. But there isn't. Just word of mouth from owners. And that leads me to Much Good and Much Bad.

Which is Much Confusing.

I see too much variation from unit to unit to have much confidence in a lot of the generalities about RV quality. Granted, I am talking about higher-end travel trailer, not 5ers, not toy haulers and not lower end products.

Want to see for yourself? go to a BIG dealer that you know has 3 or more examples of the same trailer on their lot (the dealer I purchased my yet to be delivered Rockwood from had 9 on their lot). Send the sales guy away because you need to sit and think in them or talk or whatever and just look around. Look at cabinet doors, moldings, alignment of things.

Choose a couple of drawers in each unit, like the ones down low in the kitchen, and pull each one out and see how it feels. Look at how an electrical outlet or a switch plate is placed and aligned in each unit. If there is any exposed plumbing, look as how it's arranged and located.

You could go on and look at electrical wiring by the tongue, sealing of windows, any place where it's possible to see the mark of the people who put the trailer together.

You will see differences. Not all are bad, but there are differences. now imagine what you can't see or easily inspect and you get an idea on the possible variations in a modern travel trailer. Some of those differences matter from a quality perspective and some don't. Quality has a visual or esthetic aspect as well as a functional or performance aspect. A high quality RV will have the right amount attention applied to all aspects. A lower quality unit will not. We have to make up our minds individually if the quality we see and imagine at what we can't see, is good enough for us.

As is pointed out in other posts, travel trailers are not cars. the production numbers are wildly different, the amount of production engineering is wildly different and the number of jigs, special tools and automated equipment is different as well. it's no surprise the real and perceived quality levels are different too.

[aceinspp]

Hope save your money. A lot of campers are now coming with 2 year warranties. FR does offer an extra year warranty for reasonable dollars. Later RJD

[BandJCarm]

Thanks again. Good responses.

Chateau, we did that. I was visiting my daughter in S. Carolina and we went and sat in many of them and inspected closely at a huge dealer. No salesman ever came near! We took all afternoon.

We came away impressed with the CC 36CKTS and are about to pull the trigger on ordering. My sphincter is closing tightly and I'm running in circles trying to ensure we are not messing up. I have a big history of head slapping AFTER a big decision!

Thanks again!

[jeffrapp]

Originally Posted by aceinspp

Hope save your money. A lot of campers are now coming with 2 year warranties. FR does offer an extra year warranty for reasonable dollars. Later RJD

That's true, but may be the good news/bad news.
The warranty is only as good as the people who do the work.
If you read this forum, you will find:
1) Generally, the only dealer willing to do warranty work is the one you bought it from, which in many cases is far from your home.
2) Dealers generally don't like to do warranty work.
3) The quality of the work done by dealers varies considerably.
4) You must be out of warranty before a third party service contract kicks in.

[D_B Travelers]

Originally Posted by BandJCarm

as folks who are about to spend 1/2 of our retirement money and order a new 5'er, is this worth $139.00?

BandJCarm, we all feel your pain and if you do decide to purchase a reference I would suggest the book by Roger Eaton "2016 Travel Trailer & Fifth Wheel Comparison Guide". It is $69 in print from Amazon or $59 for a download. I purchased one of these two years ago before we bought our first TT, and for exactly the same reasons you said. It has years worth of manufacturer's ratings and some background on their company business records as well. Yes, I use this forum to look for specific data about issues I might have, or types of equipment to use for special problems, but you and I were looking for overall ratings of all the manufacturers BEFORE we plunked down big $$ for a new rig. I felt the book gave me an insight as to which manufacturers built better RVs and it also rates some of the major dealers. I felt it was worth the $69 and still do. Hope this helps.

[Flybob]

Unfortunately there are no universal solutions to purchasing a problem free RV. As you will see by viewing various threads here, one buyer will have only a few minor issues with a model where the next purchaser has major issues with the same model. As RV's are still produced by humans ( that have good and bad days) quality can vary greatly. The best solution is to choose the model you like, become very familiar with it's features and do a detailed PDI testing out everything (including roof) before signing anything. Be wary of the salesman that tells you they can clean it and have t ready for pick up tomorrow. Do not let the excitement of picking it up cloud your judgement and accept a unit with issues that the dealer promises to fix later. You are buying this to enjoy. Getting things corrected prior to signing will always be faster than getting them corrected once you sign and drive it off the lot. Follow your gut. If something does not seem right it probably isn't. Get the 2nd year FR warranty. Then come back and post pictures of you enjoying it.

[Big Vic]

My issue with buying a guide is that it likely is one person's opinion. Guides are helpful in researching certain specs on RVs, but they can be outdated as soon as published. Manufacturers change their builds year to year in some cases.

I think you are much better served by attending RV shows or dealerships and looking at them yourself, perhaps with a friend who is an experienced RVer.

Asking questions on this forum is also a good strategy.

[JP Camper]

It's a shame you're not near an RV factory. We went through three different manufacturer's plants and all were different in the way they do things, even though the process is the same. We were very happy seeing first hand how our then, Flagsatff 829fkss was "put together" and shocked at how it was done at a different manufacturer.

[RubberNail]

I've had at least one of almost all types of RVs since the mid-70s. Only had one (1) dealership that I would recommend, but now defunct. My rules are 1) locate a NON-DEALER RV repair shop within a couple hours drive of where you live, 2) do your research but realize, as others have said, even the best manufacturers have lapses, 3) get the best price you can within a day or two's drive from your home base, 4) put aside cash equal to about 10% to 15% of the purchase price to have the NON-DEALER repair shop fix the fixable shortcomings. Remember that really major stuff will qualify for going back to the factory for fixes. (Done that and it works.)

The reality is that most problems are not really that major, it's just the hassle of several trips to the dealer, and several weeks of missed camping while you wait on a $10 part or to have the repair actually done. NON-Dealer shops generally want you in and out as quick as possible, and since you're a paying customer, will want you to want to use them again.

I would say that there are "GOOD" dealers. In 40 years of RVing I've had one! Best characteristic to look for, other than neighbor recommendations, is that they carry at least one line of "premium" manufacturers, as in Newmar and Tiffin. The upper line manufacturer's generally try to sell through superior service dealerships - albeit not always.

[JCMINIS]

Originally Posted by Flybob

Unfortunately there are no universal solutions to purchasing a problem free RV. As you will see by viewing various threads here, one buyer will have only a few minor issues with a model where the next purchaser has major issues with the same model. As RV's are still produced by humans ( that have good and bad days) quality can vary greatly. The best solution is to choose the model you like, become very familiar with it's features and do a detailed PDI testing out everything (including roof) before signing anything. Be wary of the salesman that tells you they can clean it and have t ready for pick up tomorrow. Do not let the excitement of picking it up cloud your judgement and accept a unit with issues that the dealer promises to fix later. You are buying this to enjoy. Getting things corrected prior to signing will always be faster than getting them corrected once you sign and drive it off the lot. Follow your gut. If something does not seem right it probably isn't. Get the 2nd year FR warranty. Then come back and post pictures of you enjoying it.

I agree completely with this entire comment. I took an entire day during my PDI. Salesman got all frustrated, wanting to move on to the next sale. Top, bottom front to back. I checked and operated everything in the unit.

My thought on the comment of some people having issues and some people not having or having less issues with the same model is this. Some folks are handy/ mechanically minded and fix some things their selves depending on the nature of the repair needed. Some people are not. I mean no disrespect to anyone. Sure if my fridge went out I would take it in for warranty work/ replacement. The 1st rain with my new rv it leaked. I climbed the ladder and found the missed spot of sealant and repaired it in 5 minutes with some standard silicone. Been good for 2 years. I could have hauled it to dealer and waited who knows how long for it to be repaired then come on to the forum and complained.

I also spent a lot of my research time, researching the dealerships. Picking the unit was easy, I knew what I wanted. but ANYTIME you have ANYTHING with electrics and mechanical/plumbing items it will have some type of issues. Doesn't matter if its a $5k pop up or a high dollar class A. The integrity and customer service of the dealership is where its at. I probably spent as much time if not more researching dealers than the unit its self.

[BamaBob]

Originally Posted by BandJCarm

as folks who are about to spend 1/2 of our retirement money and order a new 5'er, is this worth $139.00?

If not, where can truly meaningful data be found?

Thanks.

WINDOWS: Membership Packages

You can get as good - probably better - info right here on the FRF

Assuming, that is, you are planning on buying a Forest River Product

Seriously, a lot of the forum members are past owners of SOB RVs (Some Other Brand ) and have knowledge in that area as well.

Questions? Ask away! First question is are you getting a Motorhome or a Tow Behind?

[Myrle]

Originally Posted by jeffrapp

That's true, but may be the good news/bad news.
The warranty is only as good as the people who do the work.
If you read this forum, you will find:
1) Generally, the only dealer willing to do warranty work is the one you bought it from, which in many cases is far from your home.
2) Dealers generally don't like to do warranty work.
3) The quality of the work done by dealers varies considerably.
4) You must be out of warranty before a third party service contract kicks in.

There are a lot of RV repair places that do quality work on warranty work or have I just been lucky finding them.

[grumpyoldman]

Originally Posted by BandJCarm

Thanks again. Good responses.

Chateau, we did that. I was visiting my daughter in S. Carolina and we went and sat in many of them and inspected closely at a huge dealer. No salesman ever came near! We took all afternoon.

We came away impressed with the CC 36CKTS and are about to pull the trigger on ordering. My sphincter is closing tightly and I'm running in circles trying to ensure we are not messing up. I have a big history of head slapping AFTER a big decision!

Thanks again!

That is a great model. I purchased one in August 2014 and love it. The layout of the whole RV and the location of electrical outlets in the bedroom is what sold us.
I did this without reading any forums and I didn't even know what a PDI was. I guess I lucked out because I have only had minor issues with it. This forum is a source of some good information and I would have used it prior to purchasing my CC 36CKTS if I had known about it.

[jeffrapp]

[QUOTE=RubberNail;1118192]I've had at least one of almost all types of RVs since the mid-70s. Only had one (1) dealership that I would recommend, but now defunct. My rules are 1) locate a NON-DEALER RV repair shop within a couple hours drive of where you live, 2) do your research but realize, as others have said, even the best manufacturers have lapses, 3) get the best price you can within a day or two's drive from your home base, 4) put aside cash equal to about 10% to 15% of the purchase price to have the NON-DEALER repair shop fix the fixable shortcomings. Remember that really major stuff will qualify for going back to the factory for fixes. (Done that and it works.)
The reality is that most problems are not really that major, it's just the hassle of several trips to the dealer, and several weeks of missed camping while you wait on a $10 part or to have the repair actually done. NON-Dealer shops generally want you in and out as quick as possible, and since you're a paying customer, will want you to want to use them again.

Very good advice!
One thing regarding warranties is that you can often get Forest River to authorize warranty repairs at a non-dealer. This is not an official policy on their part, involves some convincing on your part (be nice!) and varies with which model of FR you have, and who you talk to that day at customer service. Also, if you're on the road, and unable to obtain warranty service nearby, FR is more likely to help.

[D_B Travelers]

Originally Posted by Big Vic

My issue with buying a guide is that it likely is one person's opinion. Guides are helpful in researching certain specs on RVs, but they can be outdated as soon as published. Manufacturers change their builds year to year in some cases.

I think you are much better served by attending RV shows or dealerships and looking at them yourself, perhaps with a friend who is an experienced RVer.

Asking questions on this forum is also a good strategy.

The guide I suggested is updated yearly, and they do a lot of research before publishing. It is only a tool, and should not be your "only" tool in making decisions. However, you can get good information on the forums, but keep in mind posters are more likely to write about the issues they have than how happy they were that the kitchen drawer opens properly every time. Human nature.

[BandJCarm]

Originally Posted by RubberNail

I've had at least one of almost all types of RVs since the mid-70s. Only had one (1) dealership that I would recommend, but now defunct. My rules are 1) locate a NON-DEALER RV repair shop within a couple hours drive of where you live, 2) do your research but realize, as others have said, even the best manufacturers have lapses, 3) get the best price you can within a day or two's drive from your home base, 4) put aside cash equal to about 10% to 15% of the purchase price to have the NON-DEALER repair shop fix the fixable shortcomings. Remember that really major stuff will qualify for going back to the factory for fixes. (Done that and it works.)

The reality is that most problems are not really that major, it's just the hassle of several trips to the dealer, and several weeks of missed camping while you wait on a $10 part or to have the repair actually done. NON-Dealer shops generally want you in and out as quick as possible, and since you're a paying customer, will want you to want to use them again.

I would say that there are "GOOD" dealers. In 40 years of RVing I've had one! Best characteristic to look for, other than neighbor recommendations, is that they carry at least one line of "premium" manufacturers, as in Newmar and Tiffin. The upper line manufacturer's generally try to sell through superior service dealerships - albeit not always.

Good info.

There is a FR Dealer here in town. He's $25,000 more, best price, for same model. I'm at top of my budget now, can't go any higher, much less by that amount. If he will not do warranty work (even though I'm sure I'll be at end of list), Forest River has lied to me and we'll deal with that at the proper time.

I also have an Independent RV Repair guy about 40 miles away. Already used him once on our existing TT. Excellent work. Comes to you for the added cost of fuel. He fixed a plumbing problem in our driveway. So that exists.

My FIL had an old TT made in the early 70's. The ones today make that look like a Model T. Cars/trucks are amazingly better, and so are these things. Yet, some of the issues on manufacturing problems are hard to understand, I admit.