New 2013 Roo factory issues

MuddauberE · 06-30-2013, 05:58 PM

Ok. I will start off with the fact that I really like my Roo. It's defiantly an upgrade from my HW popup. But I am having a lot of issues with it that frankly was the cause of someone trying to meet his quota on a Friday afternoon before getting to go home for the weekend.
The trailer has been in the shop for more than I've owned it. A list of issues are as follows

Caulking stick to the seals on the slid out as if they closed it too early before the caulk could dry.
Grommet missing on the stove.
Fridge door keeps sliding off. The wood part.
Missing caulk from the base of the shower causing water to leak from under the tub.
Loose stabilizers.
Improper connected outside shower causing it to leak. Easy fix.
Blown speaker
Outside speakers not being very loud. Extremely quiet in fact.

I've mentioned these because I want to know if anyone else has dealt with these problems with a new Roo. Is having an incomplete product a norm or did I just get that last of the straw off the product line. Again I really like it but its taking some time to get perfected to what it should have been off the floor.
Praises are welcome too. If you love your Roo and its been
Lasting you a long time that would be great for my confidence that I have a long lasting trailer for years to come with little problems in the future.

**bikendan** · 06-30-2013, 07:16 PM

i'd say you've gotten off pretty easy with your list.
that's pretty typical minor issues with all RV's anymore, no matter if they're FR products, Jayco products, KZ products, Heartland products, Thor products and so on.

modern RV's quite often have a variety of issues that are missed at the factory AND when the dealer does the PDI.

consider yourself lucky. we too had the wood insert fall off the fridge. but that's a Dometic product, not an FR product.

our outside shower valves blew off the first nite overnighted, after we left the dealer. had to jury-rig a solution so we could have water for the trip home.
we also had a number of issues and that was a 2007 model.

the speakers are typical cheap speakers. it's a CAMPER, not a rolling media room, so they're not going to put high end speakers in a RV with a MSRP of $22k.

Changes_In_Latitudes · 06-30-2013, 07:22 PM

For the outdoor speakers, we found that they run significantly quieter than the indoor speakers. We turn the inside speakers off when listening to music outside so we can turn the volume up without blaring loud inside the camper. Seems to work okay.

GABandit · 06-30-2013, 07:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bikendan

i'd say you've gotten off pretty easy with your list.
that's pretty typical minor issues with all RV's anymore, no matter if they're FR products, Jayco products, KZ products, Heartland products, Thor products and so on.

modern RV's quite often have a variety of issues that are missed at the factory AND when the dealer does the PDI.

consider yourself lucky. we too had the wood insert fall off the fridge. but that's a Dometic product, not an FR product.

our outside shower valves blew off the first nite overnighted, after we left the dealer. had to jury-rig a solution so we could have water for the trip home.
we also had a number of issues and that was a 2007 model.

the speakers are typical cheap speakers. it's a CAMPER, not a rolling media room, so they're not going to put high end speakers in a RV with a MSRP of $22k.

I still think his list is to much for a new camper. I know they are building them cheaper and faster but it really shows a lack in the QA department. I couldn't stay in business long if I sent half tail products out the door. The problem is the customer has grown accustomed to it and tolerate it.

Scottnlaura · 06-30-2013, 08:31 PM

I would say that's a pretty easy list as well.....although I understand how frustrating it is! We bought our 2013 somerset niagara last July and has been to the shop 7 times and is currently there now. On day of pick an electrical outlet caught fire, should have taken the omen! Our list has been electric lift for roof won't work, porch light cover melted, electrical shorts, frig not working occassionally, bed supports not installed right or to mention when in for repairs they bent the fresh water connection, broke the outside light and lost a small section of countertop!

**bikendan** · 06-30-2013, 08:53 PM

Apex, if you had read the amount of posts from new RV owners, that i have over the past 7 years and on various RV forums, you'd see that this owner's list is pretty minor and pretty much a standard number of issues, for most new RV's.

MuddauberE · 06-30-2013, 09:36 PM

Ok. Thanks for the input everyone. I feeling better. Even though I am big on customer service and getting something new that works 100% rather than what we deal with nowadays should not be something we need to become accustomed to. At least now know this is something most everyone has dealt with and not just me. I have bought new in the past and did have my list of issues but the roo was getting such good ratings. Guess when I get all this taken care of and work out the kinks I will be much better off.

MuddauberE · 06-30-2013, 09:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Changes_In_Latitudes

For the outdoor speakers, we found that they run significantly quieter than the indoor speakers. We turn the inside speakers off when listening to music outside so we can turn the volume up without blaring loud inside the camper. Seems to work okay.

I had a rockwood 2007 HW276 prior to this one that had outdoor speakers. It was new and even for factory speakers they were fine. I'm not trying to have some sort of boom box where I will wake up the neighbors. I just want to hear the music outside as I am letting the kids listen to it inside while they fall asleep. But it seems like this is a common issue. I thought maybe the wiring was incorrect.

Changes_In_Latitudes · 06-30-2013, 09:49 PM

Well if you find out there is a problem with your outdoor speakers, please repost. I'll be taking mine in then.

bodzcampers · 06-30-2013, 09:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MuddauberE

Ok. I will start off with the fact that I really like my Roo. It's defiantly an upgrade from my HW popup. But I am having a lot of issues with it that frankly was the cause of someone trying to meet his quota on a Friday afternoon before getting to go home for the weekend.
The trailer has been in the shop for more than I've owned it. A list of issues are as follows

Caulking stick to the seals on the slid out as if they closed it too early before the caulk could dry.
Grommet missing on the stove.
Fridge door keeps sliding off. The wood part.
Missing caulk from the base of the shower causing water to leak from under the tub.
Loose stabilizers.
Improper connected outside shower causing it to leak. Easy fix.
Blown speaker
Outside speakers not being very loud. Extremely quiet in fact.

I've mentioned these because I want to know if anyone else has dealt with these problems with a new Roo. Is having an incomplete product a norm or did I just get that last of the straw off the product line. Again I really like it but its taking some time to get perfected to what it should have been off the floor.
Praises are welcome too. If you love your Roo and its been
Lasting you a long time that would be great for my confidence that I have a long lasting trailer for years to come with little problems in the future.

Sure makes the American Auto Industry look good, even at it's worst. Heard a lot of quality complaints, but never had door panels falling off and multiple parts missing and people saying, that's okay. Being from Michigan and all the auto industry ups and downs, I don't get it. I sure don't get when 22k isn't worthy of quality. That's a whole lot to me.

MuddauberE · 07-01-2013, 06:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bodzcampers

Sure makes the American Auto Industry look good, even at it's worst. Heard a lot of quality complaints, but never had door panels falling off and multiple parts missing and people saying, that's okay. Being from Michigan and all the auto industry ups and downs, I don't get it. I sure don't get when 22k isn't worthy of quality. That's a whole lot to me.

I think we are on the same page bodzcampers. I was told to get this thing back in the shop and get everything right. I've used it enough to know most items.

MuddauberE · 07-01-2013, 07:24 AM

One more item on my lit I didn't mention before and I want to know again if anyone else is dealing with this issue...
I took the trailer out this weekend and what a beautiful weeken it was in the Ohio vally region. I ran my trailer off battery as I had a close place to hook up in the event I needed to. I ran the fridge off Propain and the fans with only needed lights on in the evening. And of corse the radio

. I was at 3/4 battery after 8 hours or so of use. Great right!! went to bed, only ran the radio with the fridge, woke up in the morning with the radio off and the check light on on the fridge. I checked the battery and it was recording 50%......:/. hmmmm, thats interesting. So I checked the lights and played around with lights and fans to see what I could figure out. Fans were running slow if at all and the LED lights were really dim. If I used the pump for the water at all the lights would go out. Seems like a low battery to me. but why was the built in meeter showing I had 50% left? I would expect to get more that 20 hours out of a battery with only a radio and a few fans going and I would expect the meeter to show no battery if I didnt have any? Any comments?

**bikendan** · 07-01-2013, 09:41 AM

those battery monitor lights are only ballpark.

if you didn't have the trailer plugged in until the minute you left, the battery could have been lower than 100%.
along with the parasitic power drains, your usage could have lowered the battery by the next day.

NEVER rely on those monitor lights for exact readings. always carry a voltmeter and you may want to check the battery with it before you leave.

also, your tow vehicle may not be charging the battery while you're towing it.

KMP44 · 07-01-2013, 09:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bodzcampers

Sure makes the American Auto Industry look good, even at it's worst. Heard a lot of quality complaints, but never had door panels falling off and multiple parts missing and people saying, that's okay. Being from Michigan and all the auto industry ups and downs, I don't get it. I sure don't get when 22k isn't worthy of quality. That's a whole lot to me.

I don't think comparing a RV manufacturing process to an auto factory is an apples to apples comparison. They can install a car engine or transmission in less than five minutes - because they invested millions of dollars in specialty equipment to do one job on one vehicle hundreds of thousands of times. You can't build an tt that way and sell it for $20K

But, it does seem that these minor defects and warranty issues could be improved on. I would love to know what FR (or others) average in warranty repair costs per unit.

The list here in the OP does seem like a lot - and some were avoidable. Even if FR didn't make the items in question, they need to hold their suppliers accountable.

Just because this list may be "typical" does that make it accpetable? We have built a list of minor issues on our new tt to get taken care of. Nothing major and I fixed a few myself. I think it is unrealistic to buy an RV and expect zero defects, but that doesn't mean the factory shouldn't be trying to do better and reduce warranty expense (and customer headaches related with getting the warranty repairs done).

MuddauberE · 07-01-2013, 10:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KMP44

I don't think comparing a RV manufacturing process to an auto factory is an apples to apples comparison. They can install a car engine or transmission in less than five minutes - because they invested millions of dollars in specialty equipment to do one job on one vehicle hundreds of thousands of times. You can't build an tt that way and sell it for $20K

But, it does seem that these minor defects and warranty issues could be improved on. I would love to know what FR (or others) average in warranty repair costs per unit.

The list here in the OP does seem like a lot - and some were avoidable. Even if FR didn't make the items in question, they need to hold their suppliers accountable.

Just because this list may be "typical" does that make it accpetable? We have built a list of minor issues on our new tt to get taken care of. Nothing major and I fixed a few myself. I think it is unrealistic to buy an RV and expect zero defects, but that doesn't mean the factory shouldn't be trying to do better and reduce warranty expense (and customer headaches related with getting the warranty repairs done).

I dont ever expect zero issues, but as my list grows the words do out of my mouth as well

But some of the issues are a careless issue as well like missing grommits and the caulking issue. This should be inspected before a trailer leaves the lot. Some of this would be on the reseller a well. which I am not blambing everything on FR as mich as I am blambing a half *** inspection from the dealer. I never mentioned the broken door handle that I had to point out even after they did a so alled "intence inspection" of the TT after I purchaed it. (yes this was a reputable dealer)
Issues happen which is why there is warrenty; I paid up front for 7 years parts and laber on the whole trailer

So I'm not worried about the cost of anything, but the time my TT has to spend in the service shop and the travel time between sucks.

Again, I'm not picking on FR or any other brands. I really love my Roo. I just wanted to find out from my fellow Forest River owners what to expect or what is "normal" to expect from new trailers of this type.

jbdbsb · 07-02-2013, 01:22 AM

Sorry your havin issues. I guess I've been lucky (so far), as I've had no significant issues and no dealler visits with my 233S. I do have issues with some design, execution and build stuations, but that's why I have so many (obvious) mods to mine.

Cowracer · 07-02-2013, 10:16 AM

If the RV manufacturers made a camper to the quality levels that people expect of them, nobody would buy it because it would cost $80k and weigh 2-3000# more. The closesest is Airstream, and they are quite pricey compared to other RVs. Here's a bit of insight for ya. FR (and the others) know exactly how much they spend in warranty claims. They weigh that versus the cost of solving warranty issues and they are running in the most profitable region of that curve. In other words, they could eleminate most of those defects, but the costs involved would be more than the costs of warranty work. They aint dummies. Why spend $3mil fixing an issue that will only cost you $2mil in warranty claims?

People want a lightweight $25k camper with $75k quality. I hate to bust bubbles here, but it aint gonna happen. I had to fix 4 things on my brand new camper. There was plastic shavings blocking the sink spout in the kitchen, the back of the sofa was loose, a fitting on the pump wasn't tight and dribbled a little, and one speaker for the stereo didn't work. It took a lazy afternoon to repair those things.

It never ceases to amaze me how people will spend more time on the internet complaining about poor quality than it would take to just fix it. In life there is trade-offs, and I'm happy to trade lower cost for MINOR quality issues like that.

Of course, if the axles fall off the thing, that's a whole other story...

Tim

clancythecamper · 07-02-2013, 11:56 AM

Quality workmanship is a thing of the past in this country; or so it seems. Perhaps there are no more QC teams. If I pay 22K for anything, I expect 100%.

sirbob · 07-02-2013, 12:13 PM

I can understand that stuff happens and little things may be overlooked or slip through the cracks from the factory, but regardless of how much I pay, the product is still expected to be complete and functional as advertised.

Unless there are disclaimers on new builds that read "defects and cheap craftmanship are to be expected", I expect a manufacturer to put out a product that will give me trouble free use under normal circumstances with regular maintenance.

Again, I understand it's not a perfect world, but if the company is advertising a product to be or do a certain thing, then it should live up to that expectation, regardless of cost. I don't think that's too much to ask as a consumer.

jbdbsb · 07-02-2013, 12:21 PM

I believe quality has been on the upswing for several years now, sort of coinsiding with the explosion of the interent. I have little issue buying American. But Cowracer is right, issues are to be expected. Who has not had an issue with there NEW home? How much did ya spend there? But with that said you should demand a quality product and research can all but elliminate buyers remorse. If you fail to do research and buy a sub-par product, it's your own fault. And with the advent of the interent, there's simply no excuse. What most people fail to do is a thorough PDI (pre-delivery inspection). The dealer has his signed sale and may want to get you out, but don't ever rush, take your time, all the time you need. Just like when I by any vehicle, I negotiate late in the day to put pressure on them to sell. I have no problem walking away. They need the sale, I can simply go somewhere else. Inversely I take delivery in the morning so I can take my time with the PDI. You MUST check each and every single system thoroughly. I spent several hours doin mine. Don't complain if you failed to do a thorough PDI.
Peace

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