Camper is back from factory - worse shape than it left - camper is home!

[Mad DADDY]

That is wonderful. I hope it continues to go well. I am really looking forward to seeing mine now.

[TeresaInCAL]

Sounds promising...

[bobby75]

Just remember that snow is a four letter word, so keep it out of Northern Indiana next weekend as we are coming through there on the way south to down on the bayou. Long range forecast for La is 75 degrees at our arrival. See everyone there.

[Brother Les]

Find out in detail why the slide was not working correctly, please. Don't let them tell you, "it works now". I don't feel that my slides are working as designed. Took mine back to the Dealer twice for back slide issues and now I feel that the front slide is very sluggish and did not come in all the until taking it back out twice. Please get to the bottom of it on your unit.

Seems strange that a Lippert person would be called in for diagnosis and repair.... it should be under warrenty, but when it sounds like a, "we install it but don't know how it works" line (diagnosis and repair), I begin to wonder a little to much.... what is going on here???

(just talking out loud to myself, glad that you are getting the attention that you and all Forest River owners deserve from the manufacturer )

[Oakman]

It sounds like they're gettin' it done for ya. Hopefully this will be the last of your issues.

[QCCowboy]

Glad to hear they are getting it fixed. Probably a good thing they are bringing in Lippert on the slide. While they could just rip and replace to fix, the problem might just come back. By bringing in the experts they can truly diagnose and determine the root cause which might not just benefit you but anyone else as well. At least this is my glass is half full thought

[Witch Doctor]

Sounds good Doug, glad they are taking care of it all. Really that's better then most manufacturers. As long as you are happy when you leave, which I'm sure you will be. Good going and stay warm........

[dleighb]

This gives me hope!!!

[cwblaylock]

Thanks for the news today! Gives me hope that ours will be taken care of. Also the only reason I'm not heading up there tomorrow!! Let me know if you happen to see ours up there anywhere!!

Hope they got your slide fixed, if so what did Lippert have to say?

[OldCoot]

Originally Posted by Brother Les

...Seems strange that a Lippert person would be called in for diagnosis and repair.... it should be under warrenty, but when it sounds like a, "we install it but don't know how it works" line (diagnosis and repair), I begin to wonder a little to much...

That is pretty much a standard practice of manufacturing plants when they install assemblies they do not manufacture themselves. When problems arise, they call in the actual manufacturer.

We built $8,000,000 Multiple Launch Rocket Launchers (MLRS) at Lockheed Martin in Camden, AR, but when something malfunctioned in the hydraulic components, we called in Vickers from Jackson, MS to diagnose and fix the problems.

[Wiscampsin]

ependydad,
Thanks for the update and I hope things continue to go well.

[LaydBack]

Glad to see you have some success after your ordeal Doug. Way to go Gary and FR, for making it right. Hopefully the Lippert team can troubleshoot their product and get your unit headed east. I understand that FR only installs the product and probably only knows the basic installation and adjustments, and is essentially caught in the middle on your slide issue.

[Weezer]

Originally Posted by bobby75

Just remember that snow is a four letter word, so keep it out of Northern Indiana next weekend as we are coming through there on the way south to down on the bayou. Long range forecast for La is 75 degrees at our arrival. See everyone there.

Um we're under a winter storm warning right now...already had freezing rain this evening, with a good coating of ice on things, with more coming at midnight, with a big dose of it coming tomorrow.

We've gotten 18 salt trucks brought in and 9K (or was it M?) pounds of salt already being spread, with three bridges already shut down.

32* with WCF of 27* right now.

We pulled our 5er out of the back yard, as it's normally stored in the back yard, and you can't even see the roof of our house via Google earth for the huge oak trees.

She's parked in the driveway right now, still on shore power and hooked up to DH's truck, totally clear of any limbs that will likely come down due to ice accumulation. I'm not working tomorrow so he's taking my Jeep to work *if* he works.

We're hoping to dodge the worst of it like we did a couple of weeks ago, but it's not lookin' good for us.

OK, so I contributed to hijacking the thread, but in my defense I only responded to someone else.

[ependydad]

Originally Posted by dleighb

This gives me hope!!!

Originally Posted by Mad DADDY

That is wonderful. I hope it continues to go well. I am really looking forward to seeing mine now.

I can tell you for certain that I saw your unit. In fact, Gary and I were talking about it. In fact, all of FRF and a lot of the Sabre folks with factory returns were talked about. We talked about many of the customer service, communication and headaches concerns that customers have. I'm actually hoping to sit down tomorrow with Gary, the plant manager and any "higher up" that I can wrangle to play patient advocate a bit as to what we expect as customers of the factory. IMO, Gary's heart is in the right place- it's just a matter of ensuring that adequate support is in place. He was frank with me about the things that he isn't doing well and we talked through the "why" a bit. I'm hopeful to "stay on" as a volunteer advocate for a while hoping to influence their warranty/factory return process a bit. Honestly I wouldn't be saying anything that they don't already know (as Gary and I sat on the bumper and talked; only thing missing was a couple of cold ones)- just hopefully coming from an actual customer helps be heard.

[ependydad]

Originally Posted by cwblaylock

Thanks for the news today! Gives me hope that ours will be taken care of. Also the only reason I'm not heading up there tomorrow!! Let me know if you happen to see ours up there anywhere!!

Hope they got your slide fixed, if so what did Lippert have to say?

We got a bit stuck with Lippert today due to process issues. The fellow that they called is in charge of new build line support. Apparently he had to go to their warranty department to have a warranty tech come out for the diagnosis and repair. They're scheduled to come out early tomorrow morning.

We Les, we did talk a bit about what was happening and why. I'm not 100% positive if I'll make it over early enough to meet with the Lippert guys while they're there.

Given my interactions with the plant manager, I'm sure they'll get it to where he's happy and ultimately I am, too.

[SabreSam]

Originally Posted by ependydad

I can tell you for certain that I saw your unit. In fact, Gary and I were talking about it. In fact, all of FRF and a lot of the Sabre folks with factory returns were talked about. We talked about many of the customer service, communication and headaches concerns that customers have. I'm actually hoping to sit down tomorrow with Gary, the plant manager and any "higher up" that I can wrangle to play patient advocate a bit as to what we expect as customers of the factory. IMO, Gary's heart is in the right place- it's just a matter of ensuring that adequate support is in place. He was frank with me about the things that he isn't doing well and we talked through the "why" a bit. I'm hopeful to "stay on" as a volunteer advocate for a while hoping to influence their warranty/factory return process a bit. Honestly I wouldn't be saying anything that they don't already know (as Gary and I sat on the bumper and talked; only thing missing was a couple of cold ones)- just hopefully coming from an actual customer helps be heard.

A person I respect once said "complaining about a problem makes you normal, becoming part of the solution makes a difference in the world and yourself unique and special". Thank you.

[ependydad]

I'm standing and waiting for a final mop inside to clean 'er up and push antifreeze into it. The slide is fixed, they even replaced a motor on the other side and have gone through and taken care of very item on my original list, things they found on their own and items I found while I was here. They even fixed up a few of my boneheaded mistakes and threw in a few goodies.

I can honestly say- I'm happy as a pig in crap at this point. I thank SabreSam, Gary (warranty mgr), Bob (plant mgr), and Joe (my fixer upper guy).

Now, for the delivery company to not mess things up.

[dblr]

Glad to hear you were well taken care of, now for you and the camper to have a safe trip home. Hope you get home before the storm hits and the camper makes it well after the roads are clear.
Now to start planning some camping trips, we have a group of Disney nuts going to Granite Hill Easter weekend and then we will head to Circle M after that to finish out spring break as long as make up days are not used then.

[RKR]

Originally Posted by ependydad

I'm standing and waiting for a final mop inside to clean 'er up and push antifreeze into it. The slide is fixed, they even replaced a motor on the other side and have gone through and taken care of very item on my original list, things they found on their own and items I found while I was here. They even fixed up a few of my boneheaded mistakes and threw in a few goodies.

I can honestly say- I'm happy as a pig in crap at this point. I thank SabreSam, Gary (warranty mgr), Bob (plant mgr), and Joe (my fixer upper guy).

Now, for the delivery company to not mess things up.

Big thumbs up !!! Glad to hear they got you taken care of
I know who to call if my wagon ever needs to go to the factory.....I'm calling Ependydad and seeing if he's busy !

[cwblaylock]

Great News Doug!!!! Glad they got you taken care of.. Safe travels home for you and the unit when they bring it out!!!