Frustrated beyond words...

Mamabear23 · 10-06-2020, 10:01 PM

Good evening,

I am new to this forum. I have owned an older Forest River TT. I traded it in on a brand new TT. It is a Rockwood Mini Lite 2509s. Ever since I got it home, I have had nothing but problems with it. I take spending that much money seriously, so this has been the worst experience ever. My first trip out, the electric water heater did not work. It had a leak under the bathroom sink, which ruined the TP I had stores under there. The air conditioner didn't seem to keep the inside of the camper cold. I took it back to the dealer "Specialty RV" they tightened water lines, replaced the water heater electronic control board, and tested the air conditioner. They said the air conditioner was good. Second trip out, the electronic front jack quit working. After using the manual thing, it started working. It now only works occasionally. Third trip out, had tire issue. The tire had a huge bulge in it. Used road side service that came with the purchase. Waited 1 hour, and called the tow company, who said they weren't coming until they got paid. When the guy finally showed up, all he did was change it with the spare. The tire should have been covered in the warranty. I question that the tire itself when on, looked cambered. He came up with a line that sometimes new axles are 100% straight, and it was fine. Continued on my way. After going down a 7% grade for 7 miles in the rockies, the tire was seriously cambered. Spent 2 hours on the phone trying to figure out where to have it towed and who might be able to fix it, only to find out that no dealer in Denver would work on it. Found a trailer company to fix it, but Dexter is unable to get the axle there for 5 weeks. Had to rent a u-haul, unpack perishables that I could salvage, and personal belongings. I had to change my whole vacation plans, after wasting 2 days on the phone. Then had to try to salvage a little of my vacation, there were 5 adults and 3 kids on this vacation. After towing a u-haul and paying for hotel accommodations, I can say I feel that buying this camper was the worst decision I have made!! I have a camper in Colorado, and I am now back in Ohio. I cannot take random time off work to go get it, and I am worried about the fact that it is isn't winterized. I am getting the run around by Mr. F Yoder from Forest River Warranty and Ms Sebrina King from Dexter Axle.

SlowrideHD · 10-06-2020, 10:19 PM

As long as there was air in the tires, I would have pulled it home and used the roadside warranty to get reimbursed for tires, if it kept requiring them.

dieselguy · 10-06-2020, 10:23 PM

Boy Howdy ... what a crappy chain of events. Being several states away from your rig amplifies the issue. I hesitate to bring up a personal observation being this is your first post here on the forum ... 5 adults and 3 kids on major vacation in a 25' trailer seems a very ambitious vacation plan even if everything went flawlessly. These words won't help, but I'm hoping for better days for you.

**wmtire** · 10-06-2020, 10:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SlowrideHD

As long as there was air in the tires, I would have pulled it home and used the roadside warranty to get reimbursed for tires, if it kept requiring them.

Unfortunately, this would not work for this members situation. According to the roadside assistance warranty from Forest River located here:

https://forestriverinc.com/rvs/owners

with the pdf file here:

https://forestriverinc.com/brochures...ceFlyer-OM.pdf

Tire Assistance: Changing flat tires using a mounted and inflated spare tire, delivering comparable tires to disablement sites, or towing vehicles to a tire facility. The cost of a delivered replacement tire, alignment, mount and dismount, and balancing is not covered. Customers are responsible for all charges related to on-site repairs, including but not limited to parts and labor costs.

As per this, the member would have had to pay for any/all replacement tires up to the point of getting it home, then trying to ascertain if it was a tire defect; tires being ruined by a bad axle from Dexter; or a misinstalled axle by Forest River in order to get reimbursed from which party. It sounds like maybe the axle was getting worse as they traveled.

Maybe an option would have to bee n to pay for an axle in CO, to get the RV home and then have Forest River or Dexter reimburse for the problem if covered. Of course there may have not been any axles available to accomplish this either.

dblr · 10-07-2020, 05:51 AM

Sorry to hear about the trouble you are having, I would try to contact Bob Byrne at FROG ( link below) and see if there is anything else he can do to assist you, he is a great help.

https://forestriverfrog.com/ContactUs.aspx

Mamabear23 · 10-09-2020, 09:03 PM

There were no axles to be had in CO. Or anywhere I guess. I received an email from Sabrina at Dexter stating that the axle would not even ship out until 10/21/2020. Also there ia a dispute between her alloted time to repair and the actual repair place. She will only allow for 1.3 hours work, and the repair place wants 3 hours. So now they are trying to get me to pay the difference. Along with that, I have no way to get it home, and of course, it is getting cold in CO and it is not winterized at all. I have spoke to quite a few of my friends who are looking to purchase campers and are now not so sure they want this mess.

NMWildcat · 10-09-2020, 10:14 PM

The first year on any new trailer (at least on all of mine) means fixing something every trip. Maybe not as severe as yours. If you aren't good at DIY (or willing), it's going to be a long year.
3 hours to replace an axle in a shop? BS. Two of us amateurs replaced an axle (regular tandem springs) in a little over an hour in the dirt at an RV park in Tombstone AZ with hand tools, and that included beer breaks!
Good luck and Happy RVing in your future trips, it does get better.

Mamabear23 · 10-10-2020, 11:50 PM

The axles are torsion axles. If they would have been spring, it could have been fixed within a couple hours in Denver, and I could have completed my original vacation.

NMWildcat · 10-11-2020, 07:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mamabear23

The axles are torsion axles. If they would have been spring, it could have been fixed within a couple hours in Denver, and I could have completed my original vacation.

Ah. Just added another line to my list of 'must not have' in my search for a new RV. Torsion axles.

**wmtire** · 10-11-2020, 07:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NMWildcat

Ah. Just added another line to my list of 'must not have' in my search for a new RV. Torsion axles.

Torsion axles are usually no harder to replace than leaf spring type axles, and in many cases can be easier as some just have two bolts per side. The problem, as in the OP's, is finding a place with the appropriate torsion axle.

FYI. here is a youtube video on a fellow FR Rockwood owner who had a problem with his Dexter torsion axle, and replaced it himself. It'll give you an idea of the process.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ybbfn7BL20A

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