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Old 12-10-2015, 09:15 AM   #1
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Is Forest River badly made?

I've heard a few times that Forest Rivers are made badly. We found a used park model we'd like to buy, but what I've heard about being cheaply made is putting me off. How are they???
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Old 12-10-2015, 09:28 AM   #2
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You need to take some time and read/understand some of the various posts on this forum and draw your own conclusions. Any single responses you receive here will be biased according to the experiences of the poster. Also, keep in mind that most of the posts made on forums are made by unhappy/dissatisfied owners. If folks made their decisions as to what to buy based on "forum traffic", there'd be a lot less RV's, cars, appliances, etc, purchased!!
My opinion is FR makes a decent RV and good value for the $$$. Most will agree here that the RV industry could use a major overhaul with their Quality System(s) as they are generally lacking!
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Old 12-10-2015, 09:33 AM   #3
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Quality on everything is pathetic.
Cars, houses, furniture, appliances.

We have demanded cheaper prices, and received cheaper products in return ( quality).


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Old 12-10-2015, 09:39 AM   #4
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I've owned 2 FR products so far. Both have been good for our family. I don't think you will see a drastic difference in other brands either. Having looked at many different trailers and motorhomes, they all seem to be cheaply made to some degree. Could things be better, yes but all owners of other brands will probably agree too.
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Old 12-10-2015, 09:48 AM   #5
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Do a quick search and you will have enough to read for weeks about people in the same situation.

The gist is the happy people are out there enjoying their units and the unhappy ones are on here complaining (that is why you see a bunch of negative posts on forums in general).

Basically the industry as a whole suffers from QC issues. Sometimes it is the manufacturers fault and sometimes not. These units are assembled using other manufactured parts so sometimes those parts are the problem which have no bearing on the FR.

Just do a solid PDI and get everything addressed before taking delivery and then use the warranty to fix any problems in the first/second year.
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Old 12-10-2015, 09:53 AM   #6
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Quote:
Originally Posted by RSchleder View Post
You need to take some time and read/understand some of the various posts on this forum and draw your own conclusions. Any single responses you receive here with be biased according to the experiences of the poster. Also, keep in mind that most of the posts made on forums are made by unhappy/dissatisfied owners. If folks made their decisions as to what to buy based on "forum traffic", there'd be a lot less RV's, cars, appliances, etc, purchased!!
My opinion is FR makes a decent RV and good value for the $$$. Most will agree here that the RV industry could use a major overhaul with their Quality System(s) as they are generally lacking!
Yes ↑↑↑↑↑↑↑↑↑↑↑↑↑↑↑↑↑↑↑↑

Go to the Keystone RV forums and read the complaints they have. You also need to watch out for the manufacturer specific forums where the brainwashed moderators go through and delete complaints. I know of one that is notorious for that which begins with an H.

My last 2 trailers have been Thor Industries products, an Aerolite and Keystone Passport. Prior to those had a Palomino product (Forest River). I am going back to Forest River with the Roo I have ordered. They are all about the same as far as I'm concerned. From what I have looked at lately, Rockwood seems to just be a little better in build quality than some of the others which is one of the reasons why I went with them.
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Old 12-10-2015, 10:33 AM   #7
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Mine seems to be made good, but I did have to make repair to some items to make things right as they should have been. I think you will find 90% of the RV's you buy no matter what the price of the unit, thing will need adjusting and corrected. If you can make the corrections yourself you will have a lot less headaches and take a lot less time than if you are depending on the dealer.
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Old 12-10-2015, 10:55 AM   #8
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My Forest River Rockwood Windjammer is probably the best built trailer I have ever seen.

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Old 12-10-2015, 11:20 AM   #9
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If you're buying a park model I assume you will be parking it permanently at a CG somewhere? If that's the case, you will avoid the wear & tear of travel which should help limit some of the problems you may experience.

At least that's been the case for me over the past 5 years or so.
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Old 12-10-2015, 11:20 AM   #10
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Every issue we have had with our 5er (3 actually ) were completely repaired at Forest River's expense.

Since you will be getting a park model and cannot avail yourself of the annual free repairs at the Goshen rally, you will be in a different boat. Thus, do a VERY complete PDI of the unit and consider buying a aftermarket repair insurance. Give Coach Net a call and see what they can do for you.

If you are interested in Coach Net, drop me a PM and I can give you a good Point of Contact.
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Old 12-10-2015, 12:28 PM   #11
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intentionally no
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Old 12-10-2015, 12:31 PM   #12
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Fr quality

We own a Rockwood TT. I have owned 12 different RV's over a lifetime. I believe FR is competetive with other manufacturers more or less. I was under the impression when Mr. Buffett became a share holder under Bershire Hathaway that he insisted in a separate building exclusive to quality control for all FR products. On inspecting new models I still see the same old flaws e.g cabinet work, moldings, general gaps in what should be caught if this here building is a fact. The only make of RV I ever owned that was above and beyond for quality of construction was Triple E based in Manitoba Canada. They were so good that they are no longer making RV's. Don't know whether it became too expensive to continue due to their quest for perfection. Someone mentioned that the industry needs to set the same standards as american motor vehicles. Perhaps.
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Old 12-10-2015, 12:32 PM   #13
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Forrest River Great

We got a Cedar Creek in 2012. Yes we had issues with the unit, but repairs were made as soon as we got back to the dealer. We had a oil leak on a jack and the dealer replaced it the same day we went there for the repair. We were on a trip to Indiana and stopped at the RV factory, had issue with the water heater and they dropped what they were doing and made the repairs at no charge. We have had 3 other brands of RV's but will purchase Cedar Creek again.
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Old 12-10-2015, 12:40 PM   #14
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Unhappy Not one of the best that we have owned

We have a 2011 Brookstone 5th wheel by Forest River. Of the three 5th wheels that we have owned this one is the worst one.

We love the floor plan but we have major water leaks and the Lippert hydraulic slide and jacks have been nothing but problems and of course these problems all started just after a year of ownership so no warranty.

It would be great if they spent more time in making the units, than trying to push the trailers of of the factory as fast as they can.
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Old 12-10-2015, 12:51 PM   #15
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My response is more about the sub systems like heating, air conditioning, tv's, etc. When the manufactures buy sub system components, they buy is lots of 100's or even 1000's of items. Many of the issues I have found are not of the manufactures making, but of the sub system components. Tires, microwaves, refrigerators, and a/c units, leveling componants and electrical charging components are probably the biggest of the bunch. RV's are packed with the subsystems from the lowest bidder. The manufacture does run an assembly line and like Boeing they move the product along if something in the subsystem is missing, and go back and install it when it arrives. Sometimes this disturbes associated wires or plumbing. Ive had a few units and found Numar to be the best manufacture, but affordability was my issue, so I own the next best (IMO) a Georgetown. That is unless you can afford a Prevo size/priced unit.
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Old 12-10-2015, 12:54 PM   #16
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Quote:
Originally Posted by flugelboneman View Post
We own a Rockwood TT. I have owned 12 different RV's over a lifetime. I believe FR is competetive with other manufacturers more or less. I was under the impression when Mr. Buffett became a share holder under Bershire Hathaway that he insisted in a separate building exclusive to quality control for all FR products. On inspecting new models I still see the same old flaws e.g cabinet work, moldings, general gaps in what should be caught if this here building is a fact. The only make of RV I ever owned that was above and beyond for quality of construction was Triple E based in Manitoba Canada. They were so good that they are no longer making RV's. Don't know whether it became too expensive to continue due to their quest for perfection. Someone mentioned that the industry needs to set the same standards as american motor vehicles. Perhaps.

Manitoba proud!

Actually, triple e is still around.
In fact, a few weeks ago, I saw a flat deck of sprinter chassis being transported by one of their trucks!


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Old 12-10-2015, 12:57 PM   #17
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I've only had my FR3 30DS for about 6 months...had a few things go wrong..
P-traps not hooked up in the bathroom
Heater wiring come loose on the heater
TV went out in the main living area
Hot water heater caught on fire burned up some wires
Stove hood fan quit...there may be some other things I've forgotten about... but almost everything has a break in period...
I bought a new car and it had issues... I have a Harley... it had a few things... I bought a brand new 70 TV and Soundbar for the house... the soundbar remote didn't work... I have a ski boat that had some issues when I first got it, but all that stuff got worked out and all of it has been worry free since.
Most of the stuff FR builds their product with is bought from vendors... toilets, TV's Ranges, hot water heaters... all that stuff is purchased from someone who has just as many quality control issues as anyone else.


Overall I'm happy with my purchase and I plan on many years of fun with it... are things going to come up?.... maybe, but that's what I bought the extended warrantee for and that's why I talked with my sales and service dealer prior to buying to understand the warrantee procedure.
I don't think one brand is really all that much better than the other.... but only you can answer it for yourself.
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Old 12-10-2015, 12:59 PM   #18
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Originally Posted by Kenny kustom View Post
We have demanded cheaper prices, and received cheaper products in return ( quality).
That pretty much sums it up perfectly
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Old 12-10-2015, 01:04 PM   #19
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Good or bad

I would hate to judge an entire product on one example. But I just bought a 2015 model Cardinal and had all kinds of problems. Nothing that would stop you dead on the road (at least not yet), but aggravating things. Like awning not working, window shades falling off windows while traveling, Closet doors falling off track while traveling, sewage and waste water valves rusting solid, storm door made out of square which causes it to stick, and etc. I spent 2 weeks after purchase and before first trip to repair some of these little things. After this season I took it in to get other things fixed through warranty and it's been 2 months and I still don't have it back. I was talking to a representative from Forest River the other day and told him if I had known about this forum before I bought this one, I wouldn't have had all these problems, because I would have bought from a different manufacture. (By the way this units MSRP was $90,000). You would think in this price range a little more attention to quality would have been made. This is the 4th 5th wheel and second brand new unit I have had. All the others were made by Keystone. If I ever buy another one it will be Keystone (new or used)
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Old 12-10-2015, 01:05 PM   #20
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Forest River doesn't "make" anything. They own a bunch of companies that build RVs. Those companies are independent and operate on their. Forest River's role is that they are a holding company, much like Thor, a competitor of theirs. Some of the brands they own are exceptional products, some not so...
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