Problems with vengeance rogue armored 351

[Eddie1265]

I bought my toy hauler new last April, it's been at the dealer more then it has been in my possession, I've only been camping in it a couple of times since I purchased it because it has been at the dealer getting repaired, all defects from the factory and were problems from the day of sale. The camper is still currently at the dealer who has had it since November 1st 2020, the couple of times we did get to camp was only because the dealer said you might as well take and use it the best you can since we're waiting on parts so we camped with a fridge not working . Shower leaked into the floor, which took multiple trips to get repaired. Door ramp has to be replaced which were still waiting on, outside doors stay gapped open when closed, we have about 20 other items that needed repairs. Has anyone else had 1 of these where it was kept at the dealer longer then you had it because you couldn't get the repairs done? Has anyone else bought 1 of these with so many repairs needed or did I just get a lemon from them? Based off my experience I would not recommend a forest river product.

[jeffnronda]

We purchased ours in October. We haven’t been camping yet but the generator won’t start from inside the camper and then the electric couch controls aren’t working. I just sent the dealer a nasty email but not sure they care. We live 200 miles from the dealer. Not really happy either.

[ACE110]

We picked up our 371A13 Dec 10th. Only driveway “camped” one night. Didn’t even dewinterize. Not near as many issues as op. We went ahead & took delivery that day, and drove the 165 miles home. Most of the items were minor, or items probably not going to get fixed by FR. Items like fan in kitchen area only has a on/off switch on the wall. It doesn’t open vent nor change speed. The switch on the fan is out of reach, for me (5’ 7”) & even the tech who was fairly tall. I was under the impression that the generator would be an Onan, as the units I saw were, mine isn’t (and it’s loud). Fridge is different than advertised in specs. In the fine print it says all is subject to change.... Hope you get the issues taken care of, soon.

[5picker]

While your dealer should be your 1st point of contact for service, many are not capable and many, simply do not care. That's the R/V industry and those that don't know this have not done their due diligence. That's not to say all dealers are bad. Some are just the opposite but if you spend even a fraction amount of time on any of the R/V forums, you quickly see what I'm saying.

We often say on these forums, finding the right dealer can be as important as finding the right R/V if you are not capable of some maintenance/repairs.

Certainly a dealer 200 miles away wasn't picked for ease of returning for service.

Try contacting the factory via their point of contact information on Forest River's web site. Each brand and type has their information posted there.

Mobile technicians are another viable source of repairs too. Many can get prior authorization for warranty repairs, some you'll need to do that leg work yourself.

Any rig that has/had 20+ items that need repairs right off the bat didn't get a good PDI and probably shouldn't have been taken off the lot until they were.

R/V dealers are NOTHING like auto dealers and folks (often in their minds) make comparisons but repairs to a R/Vs and the way dealers work are completely different. Unfortunately, R/V owners often have to be their own advocate when looking for help.

There are some manufacturer reps here that are trying to change the mantra and they are a welcome breath of fresh air.

[Luke Moseley]

Originally Posted by Eddie1265

I bought my toy hauler new last April, it's been at the dealer more then it has been in my possession, I've only been camping in it a couple of times since I purchased it because it has been at the dealer getting repaired, all defects from the factory and were problems from the day of sale. The camper is still currently at the dealer who has had it since November 1st 2020, the couple of times we did get to camp was only because the dealer said you might as well take and use it the best you can since we're waiting on parts so we camped with a fridge not working . Shower leaked into the floor, which took multiple trips to get repaired. Door ramp has to be replaced which were still waiting on, outside doors stay gapped open when closed, we have about 20 other items that needed repairs. Has anyone else had 1 of these where it was kept at the dealer longer then you had it because you couldn't get the repairs done? Has anyone else bought 1 of these with so many repairs needed or did I just get a lemon from them? Based off my experience I would not recommend a forest river product.

Wouldn't this be a good candidate for the lemon law? Worth asking an attorney. Let the"dealer" deal with this.

[pdqparalegal1]

Originally Posted by Luke Moseley

Wouldn't this be a good candidate for the lemon law? Worth asking an attorney. Let the"dealer" deal with this.

Most states don't have RV lemon laws.

Worse thing to do in any dispute resolution is to "LAWYER UP". Try to work with dealer then manufacture then dispute resolution at magistrate court level. That can all be done without a PAID lawyer..


If all else fails, then look for legal remedy.
Good luck, hope it gets resolved soon so you can enjoy your camper.

[Smoker 1]

I bought a new 2018 vengance and had a lot of problems. I wound up fixing them my self as the dealer and factory were of no help. If better craftsmanship there would have been no problems. I have things working good now but that will be my last Forrest River

[tgold]

I feel your pain. Good luck.

[Eddie1265]

Originally Posted by ACE110

We picked up our 371A13 Dec 10th. Only driveway “camped” one night. Didn’t even dewinterize. Not near as many issues as op. We went ahead & took delivery that day, and drove the 165 miles home. Most of the items were minor, or items probably not going to get fixed by FR. Items like fan in kitchen area only has a on/off switch on the wall. It doesn’t open vent nor change speed. The switch on the fan is out of reach, for me (5’ 7”) & even the tech who was fairly tall. I was under the impression that the generator would be an Onan, as the units I saw were, mine isn’t (and it’s loud). Fridge is different than advertised in specs. In the fine print it says all is subject to change.... Hope you get the issues taken care of, soon.

Same problem here with the fans, we have to use a 3 step step ladder to open the fans, really difficult in the rear bathroom. They also do not have a way to get into the top bed in the garage, referring the bed that pulls down. I had a list of over 37 items that had to be repaired, im hoping I get it back before spring

[Eddie1265]

Originally Posted by Luke Moseley

Wouldn't this be a good candidate for the lemon law? Worth asking an attorney. Let the"dealer" deal with this.

I'll look into it , its still less then a yr old thank you for the advice

[Eddie1265]

Originally Posted by pdqparalegal1

Most states don't have RV lemon laws.

Worse thing to do in any dispute resolution is to "LAWYER UP". Try to work with dealer then manufacture then dispute resolution at magistrate court level. That can all be done without a PAID lawyer..


If all else fails, then look for legal remedy.
Good luck, hope it gets resolved soon so you can enjoy your camper.

Thank you I'll try that route also

[LittleBill]

Originally Posted by Eddie1265

I bought my toy hauler new last April, it's been at the dealer more then it has been in my possession, I've only been camping in it a couple of times since I purchased it because it has been at the dealer getting repaired, all defects from the factory and were problems from the day of sale. The camper is still currently at the dealer who has had it since November 1st 2020, the couple of times we did get to camp was only because the dealer said you might as well take and use it the best you can since we're waiting on parts so we camped with a fridge not working . Shower leaked into the floor, which took multiple trips to get repaired. Door ramp has to be replaced which were still waiting on, outside doors stay gapped open when closed, we have about 20 other items that needed repairs. Has anyone else had 1 of these where it was kept at the dealer longer then you had it because you couldn't get the repairs done? Has anyone else bought 1 of these with so many repairs needed or did I just get a lemon from them? Based off my experience I would not recommend a forest river product.

I know that this may not help, but I had a similar issue with my dealer getting my 2018 Cedar Creek 36CK2 fixed in the time frame I expected.

In Nov 2018 I took my 5er back for several warranty issues. They were able to work on some of the issues but not all due to not getting parts from factory. In late Dec/early Jan 2019 I picked it up as I wanted to take it directly to indoor storage (Illinois winters) instead of staying in their outdoor yard.

We pulled it out of storage in mid April to travel for a month. When I returned, I took it back to the dealer late May, where it stayed till I pulled it out first of Aug with not much else done to attend the international rally in Goshen. Hasn't been back to dealer since. At the rally the factory agreed to take it back to factory due to all the warranty and other issues we were having. In actually it didn't go to the factory, but to Amish Family RV in Topeka, IN who only work on Cedar Creeks (two miles from factory).

They fixed 36 warranty issues and did 18 enhancements (my cost) in less than 6 days. The deal is that my dealer didn't have the resource or access to the factory as Orvan owner of Amish Family RV. Orvan worked 17 years for CC before opening his shop. I think my dealer tried their best but just don't have the extensive experience as Orvan.

I took my 5er back to Orvan after spending 2 months in Florida for some additional warranty work and more enhancements last July again. It took him about 3 days to complete the work. Generally they can do the work in one or two days. Unfortunately I took it directly to storage after they finished and hasn't moved since due to Covid .

My dealer is 35 miles away, but I plan to continue to travel the 135 miles to have Orvan do work on my 5er.

As you don't own a Cedar Creek, Amish Family RV won't be able to help you. But I wonder if that there isn't someone out there who works exclusively on your brand? Maybe another Vengeance Rouge owner knows of such a dealer or RV shop that does similar viable work.

Good luck and be safe

[Eddie1265]

Originally Posted by LittleBill

I know that this may not help, but I had a similar issue with my dealer getting my 2018 Cedar Creek 36CK2 fixed in the time frame I expected.

In Nov 2018 I took my 5er back for several warranty issues. They were able to work on some of the issues but not all due to not getting parts from factory. In late Dec/early Jan 2019 I picked it up as I wanted to take it directly to indoor storage (Illinois winters) instead of staying in their outdoor yard.

We pulled it out of storage in mid April to travel for a month. When I returned, I took it back to the dealer late May, where it stayed till I pulled it out first of Aug with not much else done to attend the international rally in Goshen. Hasn't been back to dealer since. At the rally the factory agreed to take it back to factory due to all the warranty and other issues we were having. In actually it didn't go to the factory, but to Amish Family RV in Topeka, IN who only work on Cedar Creeks (two miles from factory).

They fixed 36 warranty issues and did 18 enhancements (my cost) in less than 6 days. The deal is that my dealer didn't have the resource or access to the factory as Orvan owner of Amish Family RV. Orvan worked 17 years for CC before opening his shop. I think my dealer tried their best but just don't have the extensive experience as Orvan.

I took my 5er back to Orvan after spending 2 months in Florida for some additional warranty work and more enhancements last July again. It took him about 3 days to complete the work. Generally they can do the work in one or two days. Unfortunately I took it directly to storage after they finished and hasn't moved since due to Covid .

My dealer is 35 miles away, but I plan to continue to travel the 135 miles to have Orvan do work on my 5er.

As you don't own a Cedar Creek, Amish Family RV won't be able to help you. But I wonder if that there isn't someone out there who works exclusively on your brand? Maybe another Vengeance Rouge owner knows of such a dealer or RV shop that does similar viable work.

Good luck and be safe

That information is actually very helpful, I will be checking into that option. Thank you

[Eddie1265]

Update from my original post, I called forest river, was told some of the needed items had not been ordered even though my camper has been at the dealer for over 2 months and that some of the items needed will take a minimum of 10 weeks to get after the dealer orders it, asked if the camper could just go back to the factory and be repaired on site since it's been almost a full year trying to get it repaired at the dealer and we are still waiting, forest river said no unless it has a major electrical problem. I feel like they are just going to sit on it until the warranty runs out, I've asked them to buy it back because it has so many problems and almost a year later we are still dealing the same original problems found at the inspection on the day of the sale.

[Homebrew]

Sounds like you need to schedule a face to face with the dealer. Parts not being ordered falls under the dealer. I would request the warranty be extended since the dealer delayed the repairs.

[CanAmHLR]

The only way to get an rv the way you want is for everything to be handled before delivery. If there is any problem don't take it home this is the last time you will have the power to get things done. When you pick it up everything after that will be near impossible. I worked in the recreation industry for 15 years and after sale warranty work is like an enema. Doesn't matter if it's boat, rv, ect. A warranty on a recreational vehicle is less than a page long and is worth less then TP.

[Eddie1265]

Some of the items didn't show up until the first trip out, like fridge not cooling properly, then we find out it's a problem nation wide. Seems like it should have been recalled

[Brewhedd]

I feel your pain. Bought a new Grand Design in 2019 and had 30 issues. The dealer was slow doing repairs and screwed up a couple but got all but one done, took over a year. I would say I got a lemon. Sold it a couple months ago, only issue remaining was one decal started to delaminate in a small area. Just got tired of the industry and it's B.S. Manufacturers, despite their "quality" claims, have no consistency in workmanship. One unit will have 4 issues while another has 20 or 30. Unfortunately the issues become more of the owners headache rather than the dealers or manufacturers. I refused to fix any of the issues, even minor ones, after spending thousands. Good luck.

[BloodAngl]

Hi everyone,

I have my walkthrough & training on Friday (3 days) -- I would love a list of things I should check to ensure they are operational before I take this thing home and sign off on it.

This thread got me pretty nervous, so I'm hoping I can find anything before I'm stuck with it.

Thanks in Advance!

[bikendan]

Originally Posted by BloodAngl

Hi everyone,

I have my walkthrough & training on Friday (3 days) -- I would love a list of things I should check to ensure they are operational before I take this thing home and sign off on it.

This thread got me pretty nervous, so I'm hoping I can find anything before I'm stuck with it.

Thanks in Advance!

There are PDI/walkthroughs lists in the Forum Library.