Letter from Mark Lucas to his Shasta Airflyte Dealerships

[KimberlyLuckettCurry]

April 23, 2015

RE: Shasta Airflyte Re-issue Update #2

To All Shasta Airflyte Re-issue Dealers:

It has been quite a run over the past 6 months, and the entire team at Shasta wants to thank you and your dealership for the continued support. One of the re-issues currently sits in the RV/MH Hall of Fame, The New York Times has run a story on the product and the Airflyte was among the finalists for RV of the Year, just to name a few accolades. Truly amazing!

The FINAL run of Airflytes has been submitted for scheduling, and all units will be complete by the end of next month. If your sales representative has not been in contact with you over the past two days, please call the office at your earliest convenience. It is important we verify each order is correct, as there will be no more Airflytes produced after this schedule.

As mentioned in the last update, social media is full of information, mostly untrue. So to clear up the most recent confusion, here are a few facts:

* We are not experiencing any shortages, nor have we since the beginning of 2015
* Over 1,400 Airflytes have shipped and over 1,000 have been retail delivered
* Despite the original "catastrophic" speculation regarding tires, there has not been one single tire failure or tire replacement.
* We have had a number of leaks reported, most related to windows. Hehr has been involved from the start, and has stepped up and resolved any issues.
* We have seen only a few vent pipes responsible for leaks, these were improper installation, but have been corrected.
* Window glass has come loose from the aluminum track, and again, Hehr has been very responsive, and will send parts directly to the customer if necessary.
* Most recently, we have heard of air conditioners not cooling properly and wheel well clearance issues. Although we have had only a handful of each reported by dealers, we have a solution if necessary. Submit a warranty claim if you see either of these items.

There is a "sky is falling" mentality on social media surrounding the minor issues mentioned above. Unfortunately, owners are uneducated about or unwilling to follow the proper process of contacting their dealer. Our only reliable information comes through the warranty process, and based on the latest reports, the Airflyte is outpacing the company, and the industry as a whole, with fewer defects and lower cost of warranty on a per unit basis.

We appreciate your support, not only on Airflyte products, but the entire Shasta lineup, including Oasis, Flyte, Revere and Phoenix. This year has started off strong and we look forward to a great remainder of the year together!

Thanks again, and please feel free to contact us if you need any additional information.

Thank You-

Mark R. Lucas
President/General Manager
Shasta RV

[DouglasLive]

I've seen this letter.

What Mark doesn't understand is MANY of us have tried to get warranty work from Forest River dealers, only to be refused. Since the dealer I purchased from is 7 hours away, it's not practical to return to them for every issue encountered...and there have been many. You might ask, "Doug, why did you buy so far away?" Easy answer...not every Shasta/Forest River dealer is selling the Airflyte. If you want one, many people are finding they need to travel.

I won't refute every point made in this letter, but it's not hard to do.

[DCSconnect]

The letter is a meager attempt to address the growing list of issues, as well as the number of people experiencing them.

[ShastaSister]

Wow the letter sent to dealers can be read in so many ways. Does not look like it was intended for the poor owners of this trailer to see. It sure lists a lot of problems. Warranty process is a nightmare.

[DouglasLive]

Yeah, calling customers "uneducated," not the best of moves, Shasta.

[Terier]

Originally Posted by DouglasLive

Yeah, calling customers "uneducated," not the best of moves, Shasta.

Hint sight is 20/20. I do understand how that word is being used in this letter and I don't read it as calling anyone dumb at all. I too was pretty uneducated when I first became an RV owner. With that said it would had better if the point was worded differently.

[pcmichelle]

We bought these 1961 Shasta's because they had a vintage look. Different from the box trailers on the road. Dropping $15,000 on a new camper seems O.K. Nothing to worry about. New camper, what could possibly go wrong. I got rid of my old camper because I got tired of working on it. Well guess what. I'm working on this new camper trying to get it ready for camping. Bathroom door, A/C, Radio, resealing, bed support, ect. Any dealer that is selling these know of the issues, but do you think they will tell you not to buy one, yeah right. Some can work on these problems on there own, but others have to keep taking them back to the dealer. Can't wait to see what these look like after a year use. Mark seems to think they will be around as long as an original unit. I just hope it never hails to hard, that roof is going to look like a golf ball.

[DouglasLive]

Shasta made their money and are now content to sit back and let the dealer network suffer the fixes. It's an appalling situation for both consumer and dealer.

[Devilchick]

Hello folks,
I signed up for this forum last night. I'm interested in keeping up on fixes for the Shasta reissue. I brought my 16' Red home late April. Have not been anywhere yet. Unfortunately my former vehicle would not comfortably tow this trailer.
It finally rained here yesterday and I found my first leak in the rear window coming in at the frame. I also have a bathroom window which fell off it's frame like Mr. Lucas mentioned. Can anyone recommend a sealant for the window? Can it be applied over existing goo?
Has anyone figured out an easy way to install the awning w/o ripping the material? There has to be a trick to that!

[DouglasLive]

Call an auto windshield shop (Safelite) and let them fix it. It won't cost much and you'll know it's done right.

[DouglasLive]

Regarding the awning, take a metal file to the track opening and file off the sharp edges, then pull the awning on slowly.

[Ford Idaho]

Document the leak with pictures and a description of where the leak was found with backup from who ever fix's the leak.

Bundle all the information and ship it to Mr.Lucas with the explanation that you have little or no faith in people who did not get it right in the first place.

[DouglasLive]

And tell him you expected at least 6 months of leak-free camping before having to break out the lap sealant.

[pcmichelle]

Sorry to hear about the leaking window, and the bathroom window. Kind of shocked to hear about the leaking window since Mr. Lucas said that every camper goes through a thorough water testing to make sure its water tight. They must be using powered water. Haven't tried to put the awning up yet. Sounds like it's going to be fun.

[DCSconnect]

Dchick - your leak is probably not coming from the window but rather from the seam on the roof. I started another thread on this forum asking if "Yours has a one piece roof" like we were told there would be, and in there I explained the source of the leak. I think from reading here and other places, a lot of people are experiencing this same leak.

[Devilchick]

My roof is NOT one rolled piece as advertised. it is four just as you described. the leak could be coming from a few places.
I have more questions today.
Has anyone plugged anything into electrical outlet using just the battery power? My receptacles do not work. I pulled out an extension cord from the house to check them again, but my dealer sold me the wrong shape plug. so off I go to buy another one.
Is this a feature to protect the trailer battery? (what good is it then?)
Did anyone else's trailer have water in your fresh tank upon purchase? Mine was 1/3 full. I'm seriously wondering if this trailer was used or a show model. Wouldn't that have to be disclosed to me? the bathroom door has been damaged by the rear bed and I had them change the door out.


How do I look for other posts / threads concerning just the reissued Shasta & other vintage only?
Debbie

[Devilchick]

Originally Posted by DouglasLive

Regarding the awning, take a metal file to the track opening and file off the sharp edges, then pull the awning on slowly.

I opened the rear of the awning channel, flared the edges and filed them smooth. I could not get the awning into the channel any more than about 3". It felt like I was going to have to open the entire channel or risk ripping the material, so I felt I'd better ask around. Have you gotten yours installed?

[wmtire]

Originally Posted by Devilchick

I have more questions today.
Has anyone plugged anything into electrical outlet using just the battery power? My receptacles do not work. I pulled out an extension cord from the house to check them again, but my dealer sold me the wrong shape plug. so off I go to buy another one.
Is this a feature to protect the trailer battery? (what good is it then?)
Did anyone else's trailer have water in your fresh tank upon purchase? Mine was 1/3 full. I'm seriously wondering if this trailer was used or a show model. Wouldn't that have to be disclosed to me? the bathroom door has been damaged by the rear bed and I had them change the door out.


How do I look for other posts / threads concerning just the reissued Shasta & other vintage only?
Debbie

Howdy and welcome aboard, Devilchick. First thing, nothing that's 120 volt AC works off of the battery in ANY RV..unless you have an inverter. Motorhomes can have inverters but travel trailers usually don't.

Your outlets, microwave, television, air conditioner...and anything that plugs into an outlet are powered only by 120 volt AC power. You have to be plugged into a form of shore power (or generator) with your trailer for the aforementioned items to work.

The things in your trailer that work off of 12 volt DC power will work off the battery. Lights, fans, pumps, furnace, radio, etc.

Here is a good article by Mark Polk that will familiarize you with the different power requirements, and staying within the amp ratings depending on what you are plugged into.

http://rvservices.koa.com/rvinformat...lectricity.asp

Also here is another good article explaining the differences between inverters and converter...which is another good thing to understand so as to not confuse the terminology.

http://extremervguy.com/2011/09/23/r...-need-to-know/

[Nahanni]

Originally Posted by Devilchick

Hello folks,
I signed up for this forum last night. I'm interested in keeping up on fixes for the Shasta reissue. I brought my 16' Red home late April. Have not been anywhere yet. Unfortunately my former vehicle would not comfortably tow this trailer.
It finally rained here yesterday and I found my first leak in the rear window coming in at the frame. I also have a bathroom window which fell off it's frame like Mr. Lucas mentioned. Can anyone recommend a sealant for the window? Can it be applied over existing goo?
Has anyone figured out an easy way to install the awning w/o ripping the material? There has to be a trick to that!

you have to clean all old Urethane off the glass and Aluminum frame. You can do it yourself or take it to a glass shop that installs Auto Wind shields. They will sell you the urethane or you can pay them to run a bead on the frame and put on some clamps to hold it in place for a few hours. Two of my windows have fallen out so far, bound to be more.
Have not even tried the awning yet. Too busy fixing the rear bed, AC, windows, microwave mounting. Good Luck.