New Palomino Columbus 320RS

[Flatop]

Just bought a new Palomino Columbus 320RS. We're picking it up in a week or 2. Looking for any thoughts or suggestions on what I should look for durring the delivery process? I assembled a check list of items. Thanks in advance for your help.

[TheOrrs]

This is a good question.
How much of you RV repairs do you do yourself?
If you don't do much yourself...
Test every thing even if they say they do that during inspection.
I am a firm believer in " you do not know unless you know".
If you live in a cold climet make sure you have pink antifreeze in the system.
Have them show you where everything is. Including the water pump.
Ours has a fuse at the water pump I would not have known but I tear into everything so I know!!. Check every cabinet door and drawer for operation.
Check the air flow of the a/c. Check all gaps on everything anything that looks wrong probably is. Take pictures of any issues you find. They should have someone to fix things before you take it home.
I say this not to scare you but to get any issues fixed so you can have a good summer.
Welcome and congratulations on you purchase!!

[Flatop]

Thanks for the reply. I do most of my own repairs. We do live in a cold climate. Since this post, I've expanded my "Check" list & questions for the walk through Prior to pick up the new RV. I'm planning on giving them a "Punch List" if items can't be resolved quickly. I do like your idea of photographs of issues. I'm hoping for the best...... time will tell. Thank you again.

[Wiscampsin]

Congrats of your new Columbus 320RS.

[paluka44]

Congrats on your new Columbus. We picked ours up in October. Our ceiling fan was missing a few screws on the blades, the basement radio didn't work and one of the bedroom windows was not sealed with clear silicone on top like the rest. All were recently repaired when the new stereo came in. My wife and I are really happy with it.

[rvjoea]

You've heard, Don't buy a car/unit the first year it hits the market??. I did and I can tell you I should NOT have done it. Folio many little things have gone bad. A 2013 I bought in 2012. A buggy is that I have replaced ALL original tires after blowouts and damage to the wheelwells. Ask and check. Workmanship is terrible. But the cosmetics is great. We really like our Columbus, but, if only everything worded properly. I want to enjoy being retired, not the inside of a "fix it"shop.

[bclantz]

Our Columbus is a 2014 bought in spring of 2013. We've had Keystone products in the past and were relatively happy with our Cougar but looking for better quality. I don't think the workmanship was terrible by any means but there were little things: The ceiling fan screws, as someone else mentioned, were missing. The basement radio had to be replaced. The bottom rail on the shower doors was on backwards. Fortunately we noticed it before using so we avoided water all over. Look to be sure the drain holes are to the inside. The thermostat in the fireplace was in such a place that it kept recycling on and off, never giving off the heat to the room. I took the fireplace out and relocated it, now it works great. The wheels on the moveable island (which we love) broke through the floor vent when strapped in place. I moved them so they wouldn't land there and replaced the vent. The table top swells in certain conditions and won't close. I still need to taper the end to correct that. Be sure and check the satellite and cable hookups, ours were all wrong. The beautifloor buckled badly our first summer in +100 temps. not an issue when the temps are mild/not so extreme but I expect it was installed in cool conditions and expanded with the heat. I let that go and glad I did as it's really not an issue in normal conditions. Do check the a/c ducting and flow. The first times ours ran it was like a snowstorm inside, all the bits of styrofoam insulation blowing around. We ordered the front a/c and found that to be a good move. Also the thermopane windows. I later added a set of scissors jacks to the middle for added stability. This winter I added slide-out awnings. All in all it's done well for us and we use it for 2-3 months at a time and put on lots of miles. It's kind of nice not to see yourself coming and going......we've rarely seen another one at a campground.

[dale129]

Video tape the walk thru with a technician (not a salesman). Then you can review it later when you have a need.

[wersqu]

We have had a few glitches with ours including the bedroom slide leaking only when in the closed position. We did have to take that back to the factory to fix, but by far the best thing we did is have them permanently mount the island. We didn't think it would be as much of a big deal moving it around every time we moved. It was, and we love it permanently in place.

[Flatop]

To all respondents, thank you so much for your input and experiences. At the moment, I'll be extending my "Check List". I think it might be a good idea for me to pay the Dealer a visit and go through my check list with the intent that I may be leaving it there for them to make adjustments before taking it home.
I really like the idea of the permanent placement of the island. I shared the idea with my wife and we are going to try it in the free floating mode for now. The awning toppers are an idea I have been interested in. We had them on the last few RV's we had with not problems. I'm excited to bring it home, but with the cold weather in the northeast, I can be patient. Thanks again to all.

[Kidtexas]

Just got my 320 last Sat and the walk through was great. Be sure to check these things for sure and I think someone on here add the same issue with theirs. Check the ceiling fan if you have it. they left a bolt of one of the fins and it started making a grinding sound and it was found to be left off from factory also check the shower handle tightener ours was lose and would keep slipping down. other than those two things just make sure you check AC and heat to be safe. I can wait to get on the road with this thing.

[BubbaBailey]

Be sure to check the door side living room slide out clearance to the awning arm on the 320RS. Mine had about an inch but one could clearly see the slide out room was not positioned correctly into the slide out opening. Adjusting the slide out to the rear gave me more clearance.

I had a Columbus 365RL that had even more clearance but with the wind coming from the front of the coach it would cause pressure and an uneven roll up and the awning arm colliding with the slide out. I brought the slide out in. Rolled the awning in. Extended the slide out and waited for a calm day or the wind from the rear to roll the awning out and roll back up evenly.

~Bubba

2003 Carriage Cameo T/S Rear Kitchen
2006 Rockwood 30RL
2014 Columbus 365RL
2015 Columbus 320RS with the 2" sidewalls & Quiet Air
2003 Ram 3500 SRW 5.9 Cummins
16k Pullrite Super Glide

[ee2810]

This is an oddball thing but we had scratches on the back of the closet doors in the bedroom. We had the camper about 3 months when we left the light on in the closet and turned the bedroom light off. It wasn't noticeable until that happened. Dealer replaced both doors. We love our 2013 320RS.

[tugboat369]

We have a 2014 320rshave used it on trips and as a place to stay for 8 months when we completely remodeled our new home. A few small problems but our dealer took care of them in a timely fashion.

[BuckeyeChuck]

Kidtexas, you will find more things that will require attention. But not to worry that is normal no matter wich brand you buy.

[Don and Elaine]

Our 2013 320rs has been almost completely trouble free since the day we brought it home. The shower door rail had NOT been caulked so it leaked onto the floor the first shower, the Center hub on the wheel broke on our 4th trip out and we noticed this past fall that out awning LED lights were starting to die...I fixed the shower door rail and all the rest was fixed by a mobile RV service who accepts our warranty as full payment. All things said, probably the most trouble free RV we've ever had and we look forward to many years of travel in it!

[rvjoea]

I on the other hand, am completely dissatisfied with my 2013 320RS. I've got a list of over 40 items with problems and it's been in the shop at least 15 times. Especially didn't like 4 blowouts in the tires it came with, also the damage caused by the BLOWOUT. A lawyer is on my list now.