warranty issues

[Big Willy]

Has anyone had any issues with "delamination" occurring on outside walls of trailer/5th wheels (ours let go on the outer wall by the bedroom in front of the "closet" slide right from the roof to the bottom about 8 inches wide. Apparently this due to problem with glue used by the manufacturer between 2008 and 2010 - we have a 2009 8280ws. It is at this moment in Indiana (Forest River plant) being repaired "under warranty".

Has anyone ever been told that if you install a trailer hitch (on your 5th wheel) your warranty is voided -- I don't recall reading anything about this or signing/initialling a waiver when our dealer installed the hitch as part of the sale.

Any comments or inputs?

Thanks,
Big Willy

[Dave_Monica]

Sorry to hear about your delamination problem. Good to see that Rockwood/Forest River is correcting the problem in spite of being out of warranty. I'm assuming that they're replacing the complete door-side wall.

I've heard that the frame warranty would be voided by adding anything structurally to it. The dealer should have informed you prior in installing the hitch. Did this come up in discussions with Rockwood/Forest River?

Dave

[TURBS]

unless its factory installed with a weight rating applied to it the frame warranty is voided when adding a hitch of any kind for towing or hanging bikes and the like . tmk

[Big Willy]

Thanks Dave,

But really it is not out of warranty as we did not buy it till April of 2010 and the walls are three years I do believe.
And it costed 1150 to get it to forest river
and they will cover that but not the return trip witch will cost us 750 plus fuel for about 300 Klicks/. And if something goes wrong with the other side they will not cover it because of a hitch .... (12foot alum.boat-and 3.3hp) Not a happy camper

[bikendan]

your trailer is an ultra-light and it isn't strong enough to be towing a second trailer with, according to the frame manufacturer. they won't even warranty a bike rack in a welded receiver.

that's why modding a receiver to it, voids the frame warranty.

if your dealer did the work, they should be partially responsible if something happened.

[craig_mac]

We have been fighting with our dealer here in Canada (Paradise RV Red Deer, Alberta) for 3 years over delam issues. They decided to use a local body shop to fix it both times. If we wanted the wall replaced we were told the frieght charges (around 4500.00) would have to come out of our own pocket. The first repair was made, the wall cracked and the repair sunk and more delam appeared. The second delam and repairs to the first delam problems were repaired but the wall looks like crap now. We can see exactly where the repair was made. Dealer told me that was all they can do for us. Can't get a definate reason for the delam, only possible causes. Back to Forest River to see what they will do. When we contacted FR last fall regarding this he told us to stop work but the work had already been started and I wasn't about to have it sit outside with a hole in the wall where they started the repair. Looks like we will have to live with the delam or try to take a huge loss and dump it on another dealership for a trade in.

[Triguy]

Craig,
I understand that distance to the factory could be an issue for you but another option for you is to ask FR to repair the delamination at the factory. They have done this successfully so I wonder if that has been offered to you? If not, and you and your are interested, you should ask.

[craig_mac]

Thanks for the input. The problem is I am not willing to spend 4500.00 to have the trailer hauled to the factory and returned. If this was looked after properly the first time this wouldn't be an issue. Everything would have been covered by warranty but now they are saying warranty has expired. Is that how FR does business? Throw a band aid on the problem to get customers satisfied until the warranty runs out then too bad for us? Maybe all TT have the same issues but it is how the dealer and the factory stand behind their products that makes the difference. We do have another call in to FR, just waiting for a call back.

[Triguy]

Craig, I can understand your frustration (I would be, too, if I were you). Be firm with them but polite and professional. Good luck on your call and let us know how it turns out for you.

[Big Willy]

Sorry to hear about your Problem CRAIG , I am happy to say that Forest River did come thought on this issue for us , they replace both sides of our 8280ws , put a up- grade on the axles and repaired some wallpaper , did a pressure test of the water and propane.All in all it looks like a brand new trailer, but it did cost me 750 to get it back, and they will not warranty it any more ,but I am happy with that.

Big Willy

[craig_mac]

The dealer has told me they are not going to do anything more for me, including trying to get anything from the manufacturer so now I am waiting to hear back from FR.

[crocus]

Big Willy, glad to hear that they did both sides of your camper.
It may have cost a couple of bucks, but you have a much better unit now. Interesting that they also upgraded the axles. Did they put heavier ones in? The ones they come with are minimal at best.

As for pulling your boat, it is also an "ultralight", haha, so you shouldn't have any issues if the installer did it right. But the frames on these lightweights are fairly pathetic, mine isn't even a real I-beam, but 3 pieces of thin metal strips welded together by machine. I have never seen anything quite so cheap, but I knew I was buying a fifth with a lot of compromises in the quest to save weight.

Even worse, though, is that they punched huge holes throught the so-called I-beam for the slide mechanism to go through. They tacked "reinforcement" patches over the holes, but it isn't done the way I would have. Kindof scary really, and I don't think I will be putting a hitch on mine, even after the warranty is done.

[crocus]

craig-mac, if you have the documentation of your discussions with the dealer, take them to court. Simply put, they screwed you. No "body-shop" knows how to fix delamination, as the only fix is to replace the walls.
Sorry to hear your tale.

[craig_mac]

Thanks to all for the sympathetic ear and advice. We are starting the proceedings to take action against the dealer. When we talked to the factory rep last fall he told us to stop work but the work was already started and I wasn't about to send my trailer back out into the rain with a gaping hole in the side. Hopefully they will at least do something about the way their product is represented by this dealer. I will do my best to make deter people from dealing there. We have plenty of RV dealers here so we do have choices.

[hiflyer901]

Hi, we bought our 2012 Forest River Surveyor 235RKS from Valley RV in Burlington, WA in February of 2012. After delivery we started noticing the seam tape was coming detached. I pulled one off and it wasnt even covering a seam. It was covering a large damaged spot obviously caused by the factory and then just covered up. There were 3 more spots like that. Also after our first use we noticed that the one of the kitchen cabinet pieces was cut too long and got in the way of the window treatment "valance" so they used a sawzall and cut out a knotch very cruedly. Forest River covered all of this and replaced the walls and the cabinet piece. Recently May 4th I noticed that our bathroom door was not shutting and it was because it was coming detached from the wall. I then recieved a noticed from Forest River of a recall to our vent caps. I took the trailer back to the dealer for the warrantly work. They called me today May 8th and said it was done but would need to be brought back for more work to the roof. They told me the front left part of the roof was delaminating and causing a water leak problem and pulling the caulking away from the edge. If not treated it would cause bigger problems down the road.

Really? I have had this trailer for 3 months and only used it once. Looking for a little advice on what I should do. My gut tells me to only accept a new trailer or a refund because a 3 month old trailer should not need this extensive of work. I am very pissed off and am trying to remain calm but any advise would be appreciated. Thanks

[craig_mac]

Update, After fighting with the dealership and getting no where I sent a complaint to the Better Business Bureau. Forest River has offered to replace the wall at no cost to me. Just very disappointed it took this long to get this accomplished. Thank you FR and BBB for the help.

[bowmab]

Funny story. I also live in Alberta Canada and am experiencing the same problem. 2013 Flagstaff bought at Paradise RV in Grande Prairie Alberta. Dealer tells me they want to take it to a body shop for repair. Reading Craig Mac's posts and appears that maybe I just head straight to the BBB. Maybe I'll mention the BBB to the dealer first though?


bowmab

[whj77372]

Most RV trailer companys tell you not to install a hitch and pull anything with a fiver or TT. Yes I have heard that many will void the warranty if you do.

[craig_mac]

Received our trailer back from the factory. They ended up replacing all walls and the roof. Unfortunately when the trailer came back there was some damage to the fender and the skirting but none to the wall. May have been done at the factory, may have been done unloading (by the lack of bugs on the front of the trailer it appeared the trailer was hauled on a trailer rather than towed on it's own).The dealer's rep thought maybe they could say the damage was there before it went in but pointed out the damage was on the brand new wall. The dealership did repair the damages. My advice to you is to talk with Rob (when he is in GP. He alternates between Red Deer and GP). Tell him you spoke to Craig, the the guy who had the same trouble in Red Deer. Also get in touch with the factory now and start the ball rolling. Body shops cannot fix this problem. Good luck and keep us posted.

[candy2013]

Hi Craig mac, i am in the same boat as what you were in. they want me to send my trailer back to them, but i have to pay for the shipping. Did you pay for any shipping?