Disappointed with workmanship of my 2013 351

[ChrisMSNT]

Welcome back everyone from Memorial Day weekend. Hopefully you made great memories like my family! I just needed to post this rant and get if off my chest...

This was our 'official' first trip for more than one night (we did Friday to Monday). However, I must say that I'm really disappointed with the quality of work on our Georgetown. :-( It seems like a lot of trim is just falling off or the 'wood tape' that they use on the seams is just peeling off in a lot of places. Is this considered part of the shake down run? These types of things? There's like a two inch gap in the sliding door going into the bedroom. Touches on top and gap is on the bottom.

Please see pics below:

[bubbles]

No. A shakedown is typically to identify what systems are not functioning as they are supposed to. What you have appears to be just plain old shoddy installation practices. You have a ligetimate gripe coming. Now, having said that I believe all the issues can and will be resolved. It's just a pain in the a## to have to deal with them. I have been there.

[Tinman]

Hello...I am considering buying exactly what you have. It appears you've run into some construction issues, which is exactly what I am trying to learn about when deciding what to buy. The top of my list are Tiffin and Newmar; however, I am not convinced that they are not all the same. All RV's I am considering have the same chasis, generator, tires, fiberglass, etc. Would you buy this unit again? Thanks for listening.

Tinman

[psgrandpa1]

Originally Posted by ChrisMSNT

Welcome back everyone from Memorial Day weekend. Hopefully you made great memories like my family! I just needed to post this rant and get if off my chest...

This was our 'official' first trip for more than one night (we did Friday to Monday). However, I must say that I'm really disappointed with the quality of work on our Georgetown. :-( It seems like a lot of trim is just falling off or the 'wood tape' that they use on the seams is just peeling off in a lot of places. Is this considered part of the shake down run? These types of things? There's like a two inch gap in the sliding door going into the bedroom. Touches on top and gap is on the bottom.

Please see pics below:

Read my posts! ... Especially how we have to have a total new roof. forest River is coming to southern MO to pick it up in November ...repair a list of repairs...including trim pieces...and then bring the coach back to MO. Our dealer was a horses a..!! Bypassed him and talked direct to Forest River.
They will need coach for a month more or less...we have to take stuff ( lots of it!!!!! ) out!

We have been in some kind of discontent since August 2012. But with all that is said...we do like this coach. Did some of our own modifications...

Good luck...if we can " listen ".... We're available. We live near Branson MO on Table Rock Lake. We are not at the Rally...road tripping thru Iowa to StLouis and back home to spend a week at the RV park 6 miles from our house for the 4th of July!

[Tinman]

This purchase decision is difficult, especially since I've never owned one before. I've owned fiberglass boats, (38 foot Bertram), and airplanes...well acquainted with quality work, or lack thereof. You do seem disappointed with your decision on the Forest River, and I was wondering which other RV's you considered when making you purchase decision. I think that a pre-owned diesel pusher...maybe a 2008-2009...Newmar, Tiffen may be a good choice; but then even premium coaches are subject to de-lamination and resultant leaks which is my biggest fear. The cosmetics do not concern me too much as I am very handy and have done extensive re-modeling on homes and so forth. I presume you are an experienced RV'er; this will be my first, and I want to avoid problematic brands. But if you had to do it over again, would you have purchased the FR product? I do wish you good luck with the repairs you need. Thanx again, Tinman

[psgrandpa1]

Originally Posted by Tinman

This purchase decision is difficult, especially since I've never owned one before. I've owned fiberglass boats, (38 foot Bertram), and airplanes...well acquainted with quality work, or lack thereof. You do seem disappointed with your decision on the Forest River, and I was wondering which other RV's you considered when making you purchase decision. I think that a pre-owned diesel pusher...maybe a 2008-2009...Newmar, Tiffen may be a good choice; but then even premium coaches are subject to de-lamination and resultant leaks which is my biggest fear. The cosmetics do not concern me too much as I am very handy and have done extensive re-modeling on homes and so forth. I presume you are an experienced RV'er; this will be my first, and I want to avoid problematic brands. But if you had to do it over again, would you have purchased the FR product? I do wish you good luck with the repairs you need. Thanx again, Tinman

Call you call me...? (Moderator edit- PM the member for his phone number.)

Bryan driving...I,m shotgun ( Vonnie )....and can talk. He'll tell me what to say if I don't get it right

[cfsoistman]

Originally Posted by ChrisMSNT

Welcome back everyone from Memorial Day weekend. Hopefully you made great memories like my family! I just needed to post this rant and get if off my chest...

This was our 'official' first trip for more than one night (we did Friday to Monday). However, I must say that I'm really disappointed with the quality of work on our Georgetown. :-( It seems like a lot of trim is just falling off or the 'wood tape' that they use on the seams is just peeling off in a lot of places. Is this considered part of the shake down run? These types of things? There's like a two inch gap in the sliding door going into the bedroom. Touches on top and gap is on the bottom.

Please see pics below:

Looks like the air pressure is a bit too high on their compressor and the staple gun is blowing the staples clear through the trim. We had a similar issue. I just took some construction adhesive and small nails to reinstall it. The only thing that held it until that fix was just the pinch of wood where the staple went through. As for the door it looks like the frame is out of whack. If you measure the distance to the floor from the bottom of the door is it the same on each side of the door?

[Tinman]

I appreciate you guys reaching out, and welcome the opportunity to call you. I am an Air Traffic Controller so while at work I have limited opportunity to make personal calls, etc. Based on the feedback I am receiving, it seems the FR is a good value and is the biggest "bang for the buck" out there. Thanks again and will reach out to you guys soon...safe travels!

[sherman12]

Tinman, Welcome! I think anyone who RV's regardless of pull behind, gas powered or diesel will have their share of stories of things gone wrong. I have had my issue's too with my Georgetown. When my wife and I were shopping rigs fall of 2011 and last spring I said one rig I would not look at was a Forest River product (sorta anti Warren Buffet) but here I am on their forum. What got me was the enormous amount of upgrade type features they offer. Fiberglass roof, power window shades, power awnings, fog lights, huge back up lights, 26K Ford chassis' and on and on. They also may have the smoothest fiberglass gel coated side walls in the industry, straight as an arrow. Do they have some crappy construction practices, yep, but read this forum and you'll see that their customer service direct through FR is getting some pretty darn good reviews, often going beyond warranty coverage to make it right. Review Tiffin's forum to see what they are talking about. I have heard that they have had their fair share of quality issues too. Yeah they back up their rigs at the Alabama factory, but their price point will be 30-40K more. Same goes with Newmar, though I have not heard as many negatives with them as Tiffin (which was my first MH, 2000 gaser). Good luck with your research and keep us in the loop on what you decide, FR or otherwise.

[ChrisMSNT]

I am going to use silicone adhesive since that should have some give of being on the road instead of Elmers Glue or the sorts. I am a first time MH owner, so I'm not sure if this is "normal" or not. However, spending upwards of $100K just to have a potential nail gun's pressure too high is unacceptable to me, personally. If that's the case, then all the trim will be falling off sooner than later. So, to me, this should be a "do over" from Forest River. Take my coach back, gut it, and reapply the interior to spec. I expected some things however benign trim just falling off the wall is unacceptable. Especially in areas that aren't traveled and getting hit. Heck, I'd even buy into trim that was in a traffic area being "knocked off" due to use. However, this isn't the case given where it's falling off at.

So the real question becomes, is this something I should just "put up with" and fix or do I contact FR? I do believe, from what I shopped, that the aesthetics of the coaches on the market at that price point.. FR was appealing to me. In the same vain, I sort of feel like I have lipstick on a pig at this point. Something I wasn't expecting from a brand new coach. I'm torn on this one... insights invited. Thanks everyone!

[Falcon35]

I also had a few peaces of trim that had to be glued back on.
My real problems were with products that came from other suppliers that all the other company's use as well. I have toured the plant and was happy with what I saw.

[mwebber78]

I've owned everything from a popup to a Class C, fix the small stuff yourself and enjoy the road, that's my advice.

[HookupAndGo]

We just did our first real trip... about 2500 miles or so in our new 2013. We have a pretty long list of items heading back to the dealer, lots of fun. We had the regulator on the propane go out, so no propane for the last week of the trip (not to mention losing half a tank of propane), rear air won't run via generator, front air "surges" (looking at a plugged in power meter it just dances all over when the front a/c is on), jacks tend to "leak" and we go off level after a day or so, dash air just isn't cold at all, maybe cool, but no where near cold.

That all being said, it was a great trip (FL to Ohio, then a bunch of places in between).

For those that keep mentioning Tiffen and Newmar specifically....my sister has a 2011 Baystar that we have used quite a bit -- I keep it maintained for my sister. Being able to use it is what convinced my wife we needed to sell our TT and move up to a motorhome. Honestly, we have found lots of smaller issues with it as well. Probably the worst is the counters and the delamination due to water under the sinks -- and this was a brand new motorhome. I will admit, it has MUCH better level jacks, smooth and they are much more stable when deployed.

So, ours goes into the shop on Thursday, hopefully they will address and fix all the issues above and several more smaller (like the original OP mentioned).

[SteveBingham52]

Our last two have both had some issues but the dealer has worked hard to resolve them. We camp a lot and have heard pretty much the same stories from owners of most models. I think it is best to keep a good relationship with the service department and shake out the bugs and get them fixed. I fix what I can and just make note of the rest so when I take it in they can fix a bunch at once. Currently dealing with severe shower leaks on our Sandpiper but they have it now and have assured me it will be right when I pick it up. I do intend to take a shower in it at the dealers before I pull it off just in case though. Good luck and enjoy.

[Lorigirl10]

Originally Posted by SteveBingham52

Our last two have both had some issues but the dealer has worked hard to resolve them. We camp a lot and have heard pretty much the same stories from owners of most models. I think it is best to keep a good relationship with the service department and shake out the bugs and get them fixed. I fix what I can and just make note of the rest so when I take it in they can fix a bunch at once. Currently dealing with severe shower leaks on our Sandpiper but they have it now and have assured me it will be right when I pick it up. I do intend to take a shower in it at the dealers before I pull it off just in case though. Good luck and enjoy.

That sounds funny !! Taking a shower at the dealers! BUT I wish we would have done it when we got back our georgetown xl , it would have saved us lots of money, due to lost days camping, they would not refund the lost days camping due to it being a holiday weekend, gas going down there, and all the food!! So I say, yes take a shower!
Lori

Ps. After many trips to the dealers for warranty repair, this last weekend was awesome!!! NO problems. We got to bring our MH home with us, and use the storage spot we've been paying for and not using the last 3 months.