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Old 01-21-2014, 12:38 PM   #1
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New unit,never used,going back to the factory for repairs

We purchased a Cherokee/Vengeance 320A toy hauler in September, had the dealer add a generator, didn't take delivery until late November because of issues with exterior damages and dealer damages that were done installing the gen. Picked it up, pulled it home, began the process of familiarizing ourselves with it and moving in and getting ready for our first trip. The more we looked, the worse it got. Water leaks and damage, slide damaged the flooring after being moved maybe half a dozen times, fit and finish is terrible. Counter tops have to be replaced, the list goes on and on. We have contacted Forest River directly and delivered the unit back to the dealer. Now the dealer says it needs to go back to the factory. I believe we have a LEMON. Now waiting to be contacted about what's going to happen next.
Any opinions or advise? Similar experiences?
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Old 01-21-2014, 03:14 PM   #2
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yes , it will go back to the factory, the question is will they pick it up or will they tell you to deliver it. In my case they picked it up and others have had the same experience, however some had to take them back themselves. As far as lemon, do not know if that applies to towables, in either case to lemon it would require you to continue to make payments while it goes through the process and lose of use of it. If its paid for than you just lose the use of it. in either cast good luck, sometimes the factory comes thru and sometimes its more damage than it left with.
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Old 01-21-2014, 05:11 PM   #3
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That's what we're afraid of. Some of the repairs are major, it will have to be gutted for the most part. I'm sure it will turn into a six month ordeal or more.
We're probably going to get ugly. I have already expressed to the dealer and manufacturer that I want a quick resolution. We'll see.
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Old 01-21-2014, 06:24 PM   #4
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That's what we're afraid of. Some of the repairs are major, it will have to be gutted for the most part. I'm sure it will turn into a six month ordeal or more.
We're probably going to get ugly. I have already expressed to the dealer and manufacturer that I want a quick resolution. We'll see.
if they take it back, just give them a dead line, in my case it was a prepaid vacation, believe me they built it in less than a week , they can rebuild it just as fast.
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Old 01-21-2014, 06:46 PM   #5
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We had so many issues before taking delivery that they offered to give us a different unit. We now regret not taking that deal. I believe we are going to pursue going back to that deal. I'm just not willing to wait for them to get it right the second time. I walked through another 320 at the dealer Saturday and it had none of the cosmetic issues. I told FR that mine looked like a trial run and the other, the finished product. It has been so frustrating and after seeing that, I was even more irritated. The rep at FR said that they want to make us "happy campers". They'll have to prove that.
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Old 01-22-2014, 07:51 AM   #6
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well good luck, faced with a total rebuild of my RV or replacement FR choose to rebuild it. It was good when returned but other issues came up due to the rebuild. it was eventually easier for us to trade it, but than the new one was at the dealership for repairs 6 out of the first 9 months for repairs.
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Old 01-22-2014, 08:54 AM   #7
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How can they get away with conducting business this way? I'm in the automotive collision repair business and have never seen anything like it. I raised enough cane with the first issues and time delays on taking delivery that the dealer reimbursed me for my first two payments and threw in several things for the trouble. They have tried to make it right. Now the battle turns to dealing with FR. I sent an email yesterday, putting some heat on the representative, just waiting for a response. I'm hoping they will work with me, if not I'm already prepared to involve outside parties, you know, the BBB and such. I hope it won't come to that.
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Old 01-22-2014, 12:35 PM   #8
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in my "conversations" with FR it always seems emails get put off, phone calls usually get a faster response. Also remember that the condition of your RV might not be the condition it left FR, the haulers are not that careful and the dealers do not do a really good inspection when delivered. anyway, good luck.
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Old 01-22-2014, 01:40 PM   #9
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Well, here it is. The unit will be picked up from the dealer, taken to the factory and repaired (rebuilt) there. They are saying a two to three week turn around (I'll believe it when I see it!), not including the week it will take to get it there. Naturally, I have no chance of legal action until I give them a chance to do corrective repairs. This is not acceptable to me but I have no other options. The dealer is working some numbers to see how big of a loss I have to take to ditch this unit. This was our first new unit, so I'm wondering, does every new buyer have to go through this type of headache? Are they all of such poor quality?
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Old 01-22-2014, 02:03 PM   #10
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in a word, yes!. I have bought 5 new Rvs in the past 5 years, 1st was an Airstream, no problems, no. 2 thru 5 FR products, collectively they spent most of their 1st year getting repaired and prepped for the next owner as i traded them after they were finished.
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Old 01-22-2014, 02:26 PM   #11
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You can't compare a Bentley to a Toyota.

2006 roo 23b
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Old 01-22-2014, 02:34 PM   #12
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I don't think I will be a returning FR customer. I'll give someone else a chance to disappoint me.
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Old 01-22-2014, 02:44 PM   #13
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Originally Posted by Carolina Hauler View Post
How can they get away with conducting business this way? I'm in the automotive collision repair business and have never seen anything like it. I raised enough cane with the first issues and time delays on taking delivery that the dealer reimbursed me for my first two payments and threw in several things for the trouble. They have tried to make it right. Now the battle turns to dealing with FR. I sent an email yesterday, putting some heat on the representative, just waiting for a response. I'm hoping they will work with me, if not I'm already prepared to involve outside parties, you know, the BBB and such. I hope it won't come to that.
If you are to the point of feeling that you "hope" it will not come to that...it probably has.

A few years ago I had issues with a purchase (non-RV) but substantial. I was at the point I perceive you are and retained counsel. For a initial outlay of several hundred bucks, which resulted in a couple of communiques from my lawyer to the builder. Result: I not only got what I asked for, but compensation for time/expenses/inconvenience plus the builder paid my legal expenses.

Mind you I had a good paper trail of the issues and broken promises involved, but if you have similar documentation....and a initial consult is often Pro Bono.
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Old 01-22-2014, 02:51 PM   #14
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I don't think I will be a returning FR customer. I'll give someone else a chance to disappoint me.
Just a thought...often it is NOT the Manufacturer but the dealer. I agree with others that this is often the weak point in the link.

We have 4 (maybe 5 or 6) RV dealers in the North Alabama area - 3 here in town. I would not send my worst enemy to any of them! We drive 100 miles south to Dandy RV because they KNOW what Customer Service is - and YES we would only take our unit to them for service (even though we have an extended warranty).

SO, if you do trade in you MAY want to look elsewhere before you buy again (my 2 cents worth)
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Old 01-22-2014, 03:02 PM   #15
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You can't compare a Bentley to a Toyota.

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you are correct sir! a Toyota has far fewer problems and retains a higher percentage of its MSRP when it comes time to trade.
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Old 01-22-2014, 03:10 PM   #16
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I don't think I will be a returning FR customer. I'll give someone else a chance to disappoint me.
2 summers ago my wife and I decided we had had it with home ownership , so we sold it and moved into our RV and lived at Fort Wilderness from June until Oct. before deciding we wanted a house again, the point is in 4 months you meet a lot of people at Disney's campground due to the nature of vacations, and not one new owner of any brand that I met had good things to say about initial quality no matter what manufacturer. As a matter of fact my good friend who has been at the Fort now for over 4 years bought a new DRV with a MSRP of 150,000 and had it delivered directly to the Fort. it arrived with over 50,000 in warranty issues , water was leaking out of every pipe and opening , DRV paid for her to stay at another site for 2 months in her motorhome while they repaired it, to this day it still has problems. so I would not assume your problems are a FR only issue.
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Old 01-22-2014, 03:44 PM   #17
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you are correct sir! a Toyota has far fewer problems and retains a higher percentage of its MSRP when it comes time to trade.
I'll second that!
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Old 01-22-2014, 04:08 PM   #18
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major repairs

We had major issues with the floor in our 829fkss Flagstaff. FR picked it up, repaired it and returned it to us in good time. They did a fantastic job on the replacement. They also repaired several items that we did not request. They replaced the fire extinguisher bracket that was broken when our chair shifted during a trip. They repaired the stove vent. They removed the front window, repositioned and sealed it. Kudos to FR for doing such a great job.
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Old 01-22-2014, 04:23 PM   #19
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829fkss

I have to add that before the Flagstaff, we bought a Holiday Rambler TT. It was an 829RL. We traded it after just 2.5 years of arguing with Monaco and the dealer. Absolutely the worst trailer we ever owned, over 30 defects both minor and major.. When Sunline went belly up, it was a sad day. I have never heard anything bad about any sunline trailer built before 2004. In 2004 an investment group bought the company and ran it into the ground. They cheapened everything. Needless to say, three years later they closed the doors.
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Old 01-22-2014, 05:04 PM   #20
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We had major issues with the floor in our 829fkss Flagstaff. FR picked it up, repaired it and returned it to us in good time. They did a fantastic job on the replacement. They also repaired several items that we did not request. They replaced the fire extinguisher bracket that was broken when our chair shifted during a trip. They repaired the stove vent. They removed the front window, repositioned and sealed it. Kudos to FR for doing such a great job.
yes they repaired many things on mine during the rebuild that I did not bother to mention as I thought them trivial , but the fact remains these things should have never left the factory. they count on people not using the RV much during the warranty period so minor things get overlooked , every RV that I have bought I have made it a point to use it a lot at first and create a list of everything, if more people would pursue even the minor items FR would soon change as warranty charges would kill them. Many on here state they would rather fix the small stuff themselves, well that solves nothing for QC on future units. As far as cheaping out FR is approaching the top on that item, my Aviator had an MSRP of 90,000, for a TT ! and the fabrics are cheap, the couch is cheap, but I do have a 1000 watt sony surround system , in a 34' TT !!!. there was no thought to how people would actually use this unit, there is a pantry that when pulled out you have to be on the correct side to get what you want as it blocks the hallway. the upper cabinets are curved making it impossible for anyone taller than 4' to wash dishes. oh well enough about my albatross , again good luck with yours
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