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Old 08-16-2018, 10:19 PM   #1
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Dealer frustration

I’m not sure where this fits. My husband and I are new to this RV life. We bought a Fifth wheel Chaparral 30RLS in October at an RV Show. The dealer we bought from is 105 miles from our home. In January we had our fireplace replaced because it didn’t work upon delivery. A local dealer (25 my les duo us) did the authorized warranty repair. So this week I called our dealer (105 miles away) about a warranty repair issue. He said to call any authorized Forest River dealer. So I called our local dealer (25 miles away). I was given a date of September 25 to bring in the rig. I was asked if I bought the rig from them to which I replied no. Well that change everything. I was told they are not at this time working on units not sold by them. I explained that the dealer we bought from was 105 miles away and that I was told to call them. Long story short I can not get my rig fixed buy the authorized local dealer. Has anyone else had this problem? The next closest dealer is farther than the dealer we bought from. Is this a normal occurrence? Do dealers not honor warranty work?
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Old 08-17-2018, 12:32 AM   #2
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I wish you had done research about buying a RV before buying one because this is a VERY common dealer practice.
RV dealers are independent and can decide who they do warranty work for. RV manufacturers can strongly suggest that they service anyone but many will only serve those who buy from them.
Contact Coachmen for nearby dealers who will do the warranty work.
Or you can use independent RV shops or mobile RV techs. You just have to get pre-approval from FR and be willing to be reimbursed.
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Old 08-17-2018, 05:27 AM   #3
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Most rv dealers to get you to buy from them will tell you this. A camper is not like a auto dealership. Find another dealer that sells Forest River products. I’ll buy from the cheapest dealer I can find from now on and find someone locally to do service work.
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Old 08-17-2018, 05:51 AM   #4
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Lesson learned. Sometimes price isn't the only factor. I also found out the hard way (boat) that dealers service who they sell to first. In retrospect I can understand that. It's important to develop a relationship with anyone in the service industry. I'll pay a bit more knowing I'll be taken care of down the road.
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Old 08-17-2018, 06:42 AM   #5
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I would contact a mobile RV service, as they don’t care where you bought it, and it sure is more convenient
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Old 08-17-2018, 06:47 AM   #6
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Yes Denise, you just found out an ugly truth in the RV industry about dealers and warranty. Most of all of FR brands will explain this on their websites (dealer locater) or brochures, and have a page similar to this one from Coachmen:


Coachmen RV - Manufacturer of Travel Trailers - Fifth Wheels - Tent Campers - Motorhomes


Below are a few things to seriously consider when making your purchase and choosing a Dealer:
- Dealers in our Industry are not franchised like automotive dealers and therefore not obligated to work on your product when it is not purchased from them.

- Our Dealers are independently owned and operated businesses. Service and scheduling is at their discretion and priority is commonly provided to customers that purchased from their dealership.

- Pre-Delivery Inspections and the customer’s product orientation educating them on their new purchase are often more thorough and convenient for both the customer and dealer when performed by your local dealer. Proximity to your dealership determines the ease of follow up on questions that may arise.

- Your first uses may result in some needed adjustments and tweaks. Often referred to as “shake down,” these minor adjustments are much more easily addressed by your local (and selling) dealer.

- Scheduling timely warranty repairs and adjustments through your local dealership provides far greater flexibility and convenience to you the customer!

- Purchasing locally allows you to establish longstanding personal relationships with your dealer, enhancing your overall experience and adding value in future transactions from product to product.

- Local dealers are more readily available to assist their loyal customers with product questions, user tips, and are more knowledgeable regarding uses and regulations within the dealer’s region.

- Your dealer’s knowledge of how your product is serviced and maintained can help to enhance its value when you make a trade.

- Buying locally provides you a greater opportunity to develop relations not only with the dealer principal and managers, but also those team members at the dealership who actually service your product.

- Buying locally helps you support local businesses who in turn support your community by providing jobs and aiding the local economy.

-With one of the largest North American Dealer Networks, Forest River is committed to helping customers with service when they are in transit and far from their local dealer
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Old 08-17-2018, 07:12 AM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by lcv800 View Post
.... Sometimes price isn't the only factor....
X2 on that one.

1/2 of the "good customer experience" is the camper brand and 1/2 is the dealer.
I consider the choosing of the dealer as important as the selection of the brand you will buy from.
I bought two campers from the same dealer and I made sure to get to know the service manager and that He knows that I bought two units with them. He told me that their schedule is around the needs of people that bought campers with them, which translate that if you bought campers with them, you have priority on schedule.
That being said, my latest (and only one on this rig) service took three weeks on a job that I'm sure took 2 days max to finish... So I also learned that wait 3 - 4 weeks for a warranty work is "normal".....
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Old 08-17-2018, 08:05 AM   #8
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It Pays to Buy Local

I bought my Windjammer at a dealer three miles from my seasonal site. I could have saved a couple of thousand dollars if I had bought from a dealer a couple-hundred miles away, but it was worth the additional cost to me for my dealer to be so close. Three years later, they still know who I am and give me great service — warranty or not — whenever I call them or go by to tell them what I need. They have about eight service bays, but I have never needed to take my Windjammer there because they also have a few mobile technicians who are capable of doing just about anything that could need to be done to any RV, that they just send out to me at no additional cost. This dealer takes no flack from Forest River on warranty items and they work as hard as they need to do to ensure what should be covered is covered. I have never had to contact Forest River over a warranty issue because this dealer fights for me. I am sure this is the case with all of their customers. I have never waited over two days for their mobile technicians to come to me to assess a problem and fix it if it wasn’t a big item like my awning. That took two weeks of them arguing with Forest River and Dometic to get approval. One week later, a couple of mobile technicians came to my site when I wasn’t there and replaced it. It didn’t cost me a penny.

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Old 08-17-2018, 08:10 AM   #9
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Quote:
Originally Posted by kmoore13 View Post
My frustration is that I shouldn’t have to be diagnosing the problem. You would think that they could figure it out since that is what they do for a living.
I fully understand your frustration but in my former ventures I was a sailor and I witnessed a friend to buy a brand new $1M+ sailing catamaran, then he had to contract several companies ($$$) to make the catamaran right and then he had to sue the company that built the catamaran in order to recover the costs(partially) in a 2 years long tale....
I know the a above will not fix your problem but hope this helps you understand this it is not the Automotive industry, it is not only you and sometimes, for the sake of of speed and quality of the solution, we need to take things in our hands.
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Old 08-17-2018, 09:12 AM   #10
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Yes, you have options. You do NOT have to take to a dealer for warranty work. We buy from a dealer, then never see a dealer again for anything.

Find a certified independent service only shop. Google or ask local RV parks. Some have shops, some are mobile. Call and ask about warranty service.

We have used service only shops all over the west with much better results. Most are exactly like taking to a dealer as far as warranty coverage, no cost to us, no payment up front, they usually get pre-approval themselves, sometimes we get the pre-approval. Occasionally mobile will charge a site visit fee.

Service only shops fix the problem quickly and better than any service we ever had at dealers. Dealers (even local that you bought it from) will usually keep your RV weeks/months for even simple repairs. Independent service only is usually hours/days.

We gave up on service at dealers years ago. We are much happier with results of service only shops.
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Old 08-17-2018, 09:44 AM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by NMWildcat View Post
Yes, you have options. You do NOT have to take to a dealer for warranty work. We buy from a dealer, then never see a dealer again for anything.

Find a certified independent service only shop. Google or ask local RV parks. Some have shops, some are mobile. Call and ask about warranty service.

We have used service only shops all over the west with much better results. Most are exactly like taking to a dealer as far as warranty coverage, no cost to us, no payment up front, they usually get pre-approval themselves, sometimes we get the pre-approval. Occasionally mobile will charge a site visit fee.

Service only shops fix the problem quickly and better than any service we ever had at dealers. Dealers (even local that you bought it from) will usually keep your RV weeks/months for even simple repairs. Independent service only is usually hours/days.

We gave up on service at dealers years ago. We are much happier with results of service only shops.
This is 100% true. Before the dealer I mentioned above, I would try to get independent specialists to do the work after learning the hard way how some dealers handle things.

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Old 08-17-2018, 10:16 AM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by DeniseD View Post
I’m not sure where this fits. My husband and I are new to this RV life. We bought a Fifth wheel Chaparral 30RLS in October at an RV Show. The dealer we bought from is 105 miles from our home. In January we had our fireplace replaced because it didn’t work upon delivery. A local dealer (25 my les duo us) did the authorized warranty repair. So this week I called our dealer (105 miles away) about a warranty repair issue. He said to call any authorized Forest River dealer. So I called our local dealer (25 miles away). I was given a date of September 25 to bring in the rig. I was asked if I bought the rig from them to which I replied no. Well that change everything. I was told they are not at this time working on units not sold by them. I explained that the dealer we bought from was 105 miles away and that I was told to call them. Long story short I can not get my rig fixed buy the authorized local dealer. Has anyone else had this problem? The next closest dealer is farther than the dealer we bought from. Is this a normal occurrence? Do dealers not honor warranty work?
If your warranty issue is something that can wait until the summer camping season is over...wait until then to get it fixed!

Unless your RV is not functional for use, make a list of your issues throughout the summer season and report each one to not only your dealership, but to Forest River, as you find them, then when you are done using the RV for the season, then schedule the warranty repair.

And don't take your RV to them until they have all of the parts and are ready to fix all of the issues at the same time!

And if your warranty will expire before the end of the summer...well, that is why it is so important to report each issue to them as you find them.

As long as you reported the issues before the warranty has expired, they still must fix these issues under warranty!
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