Why does quality vary so much?

[Big bird]

I have found the nature of a lot of forums is complaining and bashing. I doubt 5% of the complainers/bashers even own an RV. I am not a long time RV owner, but We have about 9 trips and other than a few screws coming loose on the window shades, we have been trouble free. I prefer forums for advice and this one has good advice and also some complaining and bashing. Just read through the crazy stuff.

[Koodog]

No one likes to feel like they got "took". I can certainly sympathize with those of you whom have had some serious issues with your RV's. I guess as a group of owners our best resolution may be to act as a group. We can certainly inform others of our issues and seek assistance, and guideance in repairs, which models have serious issues, where we have had both good and service, and the like. I for one would like to see a "review" section added to this forum much like retailers have. We could all post our opinions on specfic mfgs, dealers, parts, ect. I always use these reviews when purchasing products. They are a great help to me, and allow me to make a much more informed decision.

For what its worth.....

[granite]

We live for various amts of time in our rvs, but there are no local blg. inspectors to check the quality and workmanship and adherence to codes. Some day there will be when more folks realize they are being taken to the bank by manuf. and dealers?

[LadyWindrider]

But there is an inspection/quality thing going on (supposedly). RVIA

From http://www.gorving.org/pubs/the_rvia_seal.cfm

"As members of RVIA, manufacturers who display the seal must self-certify compliance with more than 500 safety specifications for electrical, plumbing, heating and fire and life safety established under the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) A119.2 Standard for Recreational Vehicles. Manufacturers are subject to periodic, unannounced plant inspections by RVIA representatives to audit their compliance. Members who fail to maintain an acceptable level of compliance can be expelled from the association, which prohibits them from displaying the RVIA seal on their products."

[jimh]

when i bought my rv (new), i didn't go thru it looking for things that would be a great project for me to repair. i tried to find one that would give me years of trouble free service. well...i became a handyman.
it wasn't that many years ago that the auto industry turned out products that needed more attention from the buyer and/or his mechanic. we accepted it as normal. then a few well built vehicles hit the market that showed that it could be done. now the American auto industry produces a quality product but is still trying to win back public opinion.
i don't for a minute believe that rv manufactures set out to put together a product that is going to have even little problems. i believe some of the breakdown is that they aren't receiving feed back from the dealers or owners abt problems. most are fixed and its over. the manufacture believes all is well.
we visited the factory that built ours and were told that each group was responsible for their quality. they self inspected their work as well as the work of those before them. if they were handed something done poorly, they would correct it and charge it back to the group responsible. this seems to work well for them. (the groups are the 4 or 5 that work on a specific piece of the assembly process as the trailer moves to the finished product. they are really quiet impressive in how quickly and well they do their jobs).
On the tour, when we reached the part where the bottom cover was being put on i mentioned that mine had come loose and folding back from the wind (i know...i'm complaining abt a few screws falling out) they didn't want to hear abt it. they said they had never heard abt that happening before. (it was on my second trip). that told me that they did not want to hear of problems and/or the dealer wasn't giving feedback.
as was in the auto industry, there is an opportunity for improvement but it going to take good feedback from dealers and owners along with a willingness from the manufactures to listen. meanwhile, we will continue to tighten that screw that may have needed 1/32" more metal or wood to hold it securely or change that faucet again because the plastic on the original and replacement were too thin to take the pressure of bleeding the air out of the system.
to me a complaint is a request for a "how to take care of it" from those who have had the problem and found a solution. if the problem is unique, it will be tossed around until a solution is found.