2013 SolAire Shakedown trip in the books.

[SPPD]

I will check, but my SolAire is currently parked at my property 110 miles from my home. I will not be out there again until June 8th. I will snap a few photos too, but maybe someone else with a SolAire will chime in before then to answer your question. Also, you may want to post your picture in a new thread and see if more people chime in. There are lots of people on here with lots of knowledge that may be able to answer all of your questions quite quickly. But otherwise I will let you know around June 9th.

[SPPD]

From memory my SolAire has a white thick interior rubber covered weather strip around the interior frame inside the trim.

[Giant Tiger]

We have a new 2013 Solaire Eclipse 269 and are heading out this weekend for our first trip with the new rig. We will checkout our slide and see what it looks like and report back early next week.

Lou

[howellma]

we have a solaire 267 but have had heavy rains and just got back from Ga. We have had no issues at all!

[Fish guy]

Thx SPPD and Giant Tiger, much appreciated. I will try a new thread and see if others have the same issue.

Its great that yours doesn't leak, just trying to figure out why mine does.

ThxD

[klmboxer]

We are totally new to rving, and this is also our first post. We will not be purchasing a TT or fifth wheel (not sure which yet) until at least the end of summer when we can get even better deals on whatever. I have been researching everything I can get time for, from checklists, to floor plans, makes, models, quality, etc., etc. The Solaire 297rlds was at the top of the list so far, but not quite sure now. We have only seen 2 or 3 posts out of all we have read that have not had problems. I know the sad reality is that all makes and models have their share sooner or later, but when there are so many problems before it is even taken out for the first time, it does not sit well with me! We have read that Palomino is among the top quality builds, but that appears to have gone down hill from what we are reading now. I still have months of looking, but Palomino is knocked down on my list, at least until they can honestly get their act together. Thanks for all of the info to all.

[Fish guy]

We did the same thing. My wife and I took all last summer to look around at what was available, and Palomino T276 was the one that blew the rest away as far as quality goes. So thats the unit we selected, but then found out the they had discontinued that unit, and replaced with the SolAire. We ordered this SolAire sight unseen, assuming they would continue with the same quality. While our 269 Eclipse is a nice looking unit, and has an awesome floorplan, the build quality is nothing compared to the T276. I wasnt shopping on price, I just wanted a quality unit. I do realize it is a trailer, and they all have their issues, but for me personally, this one has been a nightmare even having to sleep in it with the slides in to keep the rain out. Im not saying that all the SolAires are like this, im doing my best trying to determine if there was just a mistake when mine was built or what.

[klmboxer]

I really hate this. I was just telling my wife about these issues everyone is having. We LOVE the floorplans, furniture, and everything about them. I especially love the big tv and location of it, although my wife keeps telling me that it should not matter that much. I could never bring myself to roll the dice on this TT.

[Fish guy]

Well, I havent given up yet. It still turns heads at the campgrounds. You can follow my thread on the leak issue and see what others have to say if ya like.

[SPPD]

Please understand that most people that have no issues never post in the forums. There are very few SolAire threads anywhere so that tells you the vast majority of people have little or no issues with their SolAires. I have had my share of issues, but I think that myself and FishGuy are the exception. I still love my choice in the SolAire despite all the problems. With any product there are defective units that make it to the consumer. So far my dealer has taken care of them quickly as they have come up under warranty. I refuse to have anymore down time unless there are safety issues that come up. I will tell you that the manufacturers do look at these posts and and seem to really care about the customers experiences. I was just contacted by Palomino based on my posts here and they have reassured me that when I am ready to bring my unit in they will do whatever it takes to make our unit right. When I was a younger man I would be absolutely livid about the issues we have been having. This is my 3rd TT and my 1st to have any major issues. I consider myself lucky. I am hoping that come fall when we bring our SolAire to the dealer with our list of issues that they will be resolved quickly and starting nexy season we will be trouble free going forward. I guess age has brought with it patience and optimism, but I have a feeling that this will all work out for us.

SPPD

[klmboxer]

I appreciate all that have posted with concerns that I have completely wrote the Solaire off. I haven't. I still WANT it, but have just had to force myself to take my finger off of the trigger, so to speak. If we do choose to pursue the 297rlds, I would contact Palomino, AND the dealer directly, and have them coordinate this sale together.

In other words, any reputable manufacturer, when a product has had issues off of the assembly line, will most likely go out of the way for a customer, and get with the specific dealer to make sure the product that has been having issues, is fully inspected, and all issues are addressed BEFORE I buy it. I am pretty certain by all of the posts and positive feedback we have encountered about Palomino, that they would not have a problem in reassuring a customer in this manner, if that is what it takes.

When I say we WANT this unit, we mean we REALLY love the looks of this unit, and REALLY want this to work out where we have peace of mind in buying. Sooo... we REALLY do not want to write this one off, and will not, unless concerns are not addressed.

The nearest reputable dealer selling these is 235 miles away (Country Roads RV) in NC. What hinders our decision even more, is that our local dealer does not appeal to us very much, and don't want problems with poor service from them when we do need it, as we did not buy from them. We have read about nightmarish experiences when the manufacturer authorizes another dealer to cover it under the warranty. This is not the issue. The issue emerges when the dealer knows you did not buy from them, it is not their brand, and they think they can give subpar service for some reason or another. I have to automatically make the choice that I will be taking it the 235 miles to get issues taken care of. Maybe it is just me, but I would rather do that, and have peace of mind, than trust my local dealer to do the same quality of repairs/service.

Sorry about the long post, and long story short... we are still interested. Just concerned about our dollar. Thanks again for the posts on this, and keep them coming, as I will be here. Does anyone know if there are other posts on this topic?

[howellma]

An earlier post commented that there are few posts about the Solaire, i searched as well right before i bought mine. i have the 267 bhsk, and the only thing i had my dealer replace was the led light strip in the awning, with just an email to the dealer! i am 2 1/2 hrs away from my dealer, but i have not had anything worthy of going to the dealer for, tighten a few screws here and there but no leaks and no slide issues! We just returned from GA and going out again in two weeks. we are very happy with our camper and are slowly customizing it to us, we now have a fully decked out duck decor bathroom for our two year old grandson and i couldnt resist the colored led lights to put outside, my grandson loves them!

[Fish guy]

Well said SPPD, I must agree. I am absolutley sure that the people at Palomino read these posts, and they know exactly who I am. I am posting not to bash, just to get answers, as I have stated many times. I consider myself a patient customer. I own my own buisnesses installing aquariums and pools, so trust me, i have had my share of leaks but I look after them 100%. To date Forest river has listened to my concerns, and the dealer has also done their best, but with the leaks Im having I just want to make sure there isnt something wrong with my TT. Quality should always be a factor for Forest River, and I think these posts help in a way. I live north of the boarder and get but a short glimps of the campin season y'all get down there, so I need to use it as it is, and when I'm done with it in the fall, I will be returning it to have my issues addressed.

Kimboxer, you mentioned TV size, here's a pic of another thing I like about our 269, the kitchen slide is just the right size.........

[Giant Tiger]

Checked our slide this past weekend. The area where the wall meets the top of the slide box simply has a bead of sealant similar to Dicor Lap Sealant. There is no gap either. To date we have had only a few minor issues which our dealer has addressed.

Lou

[klmboxer]

Nice setup fish guy. Sorry to hear about your issue. It does sound like FR will take care of their customers. This gives me more peace of mind. But... If most of the leaks that owners are having are the ones they see, then what about the ones that owners can't. This is what concerns me. I'm sure if I wasn't reading about them, it wouldn't concern me as much. But sometimes the leaks that occur in various places on TTs do not show up until later (the ones you can't see), usually along with a compounded problem inside walls, and such. Sorry, I am probably being anal, but this, and a TV (Ford F150 ecoboost- they currently also have issues) to pull with is a major investment for me and my wife. So I will err on the side of caution. Just my $.02.

[RoadDog66]

SPPD and Fishguy, what are your build dates? I'm seriously considering buying a Solaire and found a few 2013's at really good prices (under $20K). I'm just concerned that the earlier models might have more issues and the dealers are too far away to easily get repairs.

I can special order a 2014 for a little more $ than the 2013's, so I'm wondering if that might be smarter if they are discovering some early build manufacturing issues. I hate waiting for 8-10 weeks though and by then the season is over.

As others have said I really like the layouts, interior and exterior look, features, and amenities. I haven't seen one in person since they seem scarce on the East Coast, so I'm relying on the forums and posts to help me out. I've also not had a slide before so the leak issues that you guys speak of has me leery.

I went to an RV show over the weekend and some of the makes/models I looked had very cheap and light materials used in the exterior doors/hatches and I even had some latches and riveted pieces break while opening them. Seems as though some manufacturers used a cheap hardware supplier to save money. I can't see spending $28K-$30K on some of these trailers only to have them leak, break and force us to miss out on trips. These Solaires can be bought in the $18K-$22K range which is why I'm hoping it was only early production models that are experiencing these issues.

[SPPD]

My SolAire was built in Oct. 2012. Purchased in March 2013.

SPPD

[luv2drum]

Just to jump back in here, ours is a 2013 model and I sent you a PM Road Dogg regarding your questions. We have had no issues with water and our slide. We've only had our 28QBSS since April and taken it out once. It's at the dealer with a small list of things that needed attention. Here's our list, just as an FYI for anyone else experiencing issues. Maybe there is some commonality.

1. Propane system check for possible leak - see prior post
2. Bathroom and bunkhouse doors not latching properly - Bathroom door was not mortised properly and the latch didn't line up.
3. Bathroom wall behind toilet has come loose and is bowing substantially - dealer determined the wall was cut too long so it was bowing due to being to big for the space between the floor and ceiling. They are trimming some off and re-attaching it.
4. Sealant between bathtub and vanity is not applied correctly - Dealer is resealing around tub surround.
5. Wall in bedroom has wrinkles and bubbles. - This wasn't water damage, but rather the manufacturer had obviously reapplied a new layer of wallpaper for some reason in that area. The dealer immediately could tell because the piece in question wasn't the standard 4' length. So the dealer was going to pull off that improperly applied piece of wall paper and reapply it, after checking as to why the manufacturer did it in the first place.
6. Exterior front trim above rock guard not attached properly on passenger side. - A pretty good size gap between the trim and main front wall. Easy fix, but QC issue for sure.
7. Front exterior compartment doors leak, mainly front right (passenger side). - Could be related to #6
8. Multiple pieces of interior trim coming off. - Have had three pieces of interior trim come loose. The brads they use to apply them are just set too deep or not big enough heads so they pop through the trim and the trim lets loose.
9. Screen in large window by table stuck and not able to be slid open. - Not a big deal, but I do like being able to slide the screens open and closed. I'm thinking the window frame itself just was a bit bowed and needs some adjusting.
10. Roof sealant & material checked as I found a few spots in question. I found both some holes in the sealant and bubbles in the roof material. - Definitely a cause for concern, especially seeing the issues SPPD had. I'm having the dealer check things, and then I'm going to go over it again and check it again. Certainly don't want water issues.

These are relatively minor things, but definitely QC issues and not acceptable. The good things of buying new is the warranty, so we're taking advantage of it.....if you have a good dealer.

Would I still buy the same unit again...probably. We love the styling and overall layout. As SPPD said, many, many Solaire owners are out there and never have an issue or use the internet like we all do. So don't let a few of us with issues scare others away. My guess is there are other forums where you can read poor user experiences from other manufacturers as well.

Lars

[SPPD]

Well said Lars!

[Fish guy]

Sorry, I missed this.... My build date was Dec 20 2012, everyone at the plant had rum and eggnog on their brains.