Riverstone 442MC - Frustrations, tips and things to watch out for

[deewan]

Well, here is an update. After several emails we were able to get ahold of someone directly at Riverstone. Thus far in email, they have been providing hopefully statements that Forest River/Riverstone will get our 442MC taken care of. But at this point it's all just in email and we have a 10 hour drive to Elkhart and a wait to see when they can get us in before we know if things are actually fixed. In the meantime, we made the frustrating decision to take the rig back to Unlimited RV for service of some of the minor things. Unlimited RV has to be one of the worst services I've ever dealt with in my life. Just flat out dumb people.

While dropping off we asked Unlimited to actually complete the work they said they completed the first service appointment as well as a few new items. Keep in mind things like the microwave were marked as completed by Unlimited, with notes on the work order that the microwave was replaced and warranty time was billed to Forest River. The microwave was not replaced, I'm guessing the microwave was not even touched and yet Unlimited billed service time to Forest River.

Erik, the service manager would not speak to me when I dropped off the rig when I told him I'd like to show him the work that was not completed. Instead one of the service techs was asked to hear my concerns. I pointed out all the items that were not addressed. The service tech took photos of the problems and opened a work order for each. Here is the list of items I asked them to take a look at:

1. Microwave
2. Drawer soft close slides are not staying closesd or soft closing
3. Dish washing displays error. We informed Unlimited we called Fisher & Paykel about the issue and F&P stated the washer would need to be repalced. We did not file a warranty claim directly with F&P because the dish washer is in a fifth wheel and not a home F&P would charge us time and mileage to send a service tech to our home where the rig is parked to repalce the dishwasher.
4. New item - Our truck was informing us it was losing brake connection with the rig. This started during our long trip and has become more and more frequent.
5. The 1/2 bathroom toilet will not hold water in the base
6. The firefly system does not allow for us to turn all the lights on/off using the "Light Master" switch on the home screen of the Firefly touchpad.
7. Shower drain leak
8. Missing lock on the exterior door for the electrical hookup
9. Our entry screen door remains out of alignment preventing the main exterior door from latching a majority of the time
10. The TST TPMS which came with the rig losing tire signal a majority of the time. Often we are not receiving readings for 1 or 2 of the six wheels on the rig. The wheels we are not receiving readings from varies every time we restart the system. According to the TSTtruck.com website every 507 system comes with a repeater and I wanted confirmation the repeater working properly. I included a screen shot from the TSTtruck.com website of that statement a repeater is included in every 507 series system.

After a week of hearing nothing from Unlimited RV I gave them a call. Jaci told me she believed almost everything was done. Erik had left for the day to run some personal errands and she would confirm with him that everything would be finished by August 4th. I was told we could likely pick up the rig early the following week. Below is the screen shot of the email I received from Jaci and Unlimited.

After a week of having the rig being told everything was almost done, as it turns out the only thing that has been done is confirmation of everything I told them is wrong.

After being told the dishwasher needed to be replaced and Fisher & Paykel were going to send a new washer out, Unlimited and their crack team has determined the dishwasher need to be replaced.

Apparently the Riverstone does not have a TSTtruck TPMS repeater and this is something I may need to ask Riverstone about or TSTTruck.

Sounds like the brake issue we were having is due to a brake line being damaged. Oddly enough something I had read about here on the forum so Riverstone has some issues with their brake lines that they desperately need to address. Also how funny is it that Unlimited knows the trailer has NO BRAKES and they want to know if we want to come pick it up and make the 40 minute drive home with it?!?

No mention of any of the other items. It's very frustrating at this point that a rig of this cost has this many issues and the service behind it is horrible at best. My options to have something fixed shouldn't be drive it back to Elkhart, but I guess that's the fact of the matter.

Also, it's a bit frustrating that one a rig like this fixes do not happen unless a warranty claim is approved. I'm sure there will be some people here stating I should have done better with the PDI and all that crap from above, but a lot of these thins happened AFTER delivery. A very detailed and intensive PDI would not have caught a lot of these items.

Thanks for letting me vent. Lesson learned on my part. Now I'm trying to decide if I take the finical hit of selling the Riverstone and go back to something where I know I get a quality product and quality service (locally).

 

[IamProstreet]

Wow you got Liz to do an episode with your problems with Unlimited RV. Hope she is able to get you some resolutions to your problems!

https://youtu.be/J3G6sGs3cg4?si=-JN6sXxRNqI0OIei

 

[deewan]

Wow you got Liz to do an episode with your problems with Unlimited RV. Hope she is able to get you some resolutions to your problems!

https://youtu.be/J3G6sGs3cg4?si=-JN6sXxRNqI0OIei

Yup. Liz is amazing. She did a great job editing the video and sharing both sides of the situation. My opinion, she actually made Unlimited look better than what they are. But I did enjoy when Stacy at Unlimited would say something and Liz would show the text messages contradicting their actions.

 

[IamProstreet]

Was watching the video and I’m like “I know this story” then the lightbulb went on!

 

[BC@CANUCK]

This so sad for a Luxury RV. We had two Heartland Fifth Wheels. The last one was a Landmark 365, we never ever had anything like this new from the factory. Many of these issues are built by Forest River. The dealer is a typical crap shoot of excuses. If I were FR and Riverstone this trailer would be back at the factory being rebuilt today! This is bad press for their ability to build a good trailer. We traded down to a Travel Trailer for several reason and did not look at Forest River due to all the Rockwood issues we had some 12 years ago.

 

[deewan]

This so sad for a Luxury RV. We had two Heartland Fifth Wheels. The last one was a Landmark 365, we never ever had anything like this new from the factory. Many of these issues are built by Forest River. The dealer is a typical crap shoot of excuses. If I were FR and Riverstone this trailer would be back at the factory being rebuilt today! This is bad press for their ability to build a good trailer. We traded down to a Travel Trailer for several reason and did not look at Forest River due to all the Rockwood issues we had some 12 years ago.

After a few emails I was able to get in touch with someone under the Riverstone brand. They are the group who setup the return to the factory for my rig. Unfortunately with some new issues which have arisen, I'm not entirely sure the frame has not snapped. Quality of this product just isn't there. Appliances broken during first use. Firefly control system was a failure. Wall panels are now separating. The exterior door housing the generator will not close if I have any weight on the pin box. Team that up with the broken shower pipe and the wall panel separation and I think there is a major structural issue. I know the frame is a Lippert thing, but honestly from the drawer slides to the frame, this rig has been one big disappointment after another and the service form the dealership has been the nail in the coffin.

 

[KennyGolub]

We have owned our Riverstone Legacy about a year and a half now. Totally disappointed and will sell or trade in and NEVER buy a Forest River product again.
Some folks have good reports but for us, FR treated us like crap and acted like we were trying to steal something when still under warranty and trying to get things fixed. Lesson learned.

 

[Freebird2020]

If you take your RV back to the factory, I would suggest you have Amish Family RV do a review after your visit to the Factory. The factory might even send it to them. The guy that owns Amish Family RV used to work at Cedar Creek for 18 years which is another Forest River Division just down the road. His shop is also in Topeka, IN.

He specializes in Cedar Creek and Riverstone service.

Just search Amish Family RV on this forum and you will see many positive experiences from owners.

Riverstone was started from many people from the Cedar Creek Division in 2016. They share many manufacturing procedures.

It's too bad Independence RV dropped the ball on the Service. The issues you mentioned were pretty minor and could have been addressed very easily if they only would have listened to you from day one. Not minor to you of course!!

 

[deewan]

Despite reporting the same issue to my local service department AND taking the rig to Indiana and the Forest River plant, I still have issues remaining.

Issue 1: The rear black tank flush inlet will not allow water to pass wan clean out the tank. This was first reported to the local Forest Riverstone service department. They said the inlet worked for them, it did not work for me when I tried it. At that point I didn't really care if it worked or not because I had an appointment to go to the Forest River plant. While in Indiana I asked Forest River to take a look. They said it worked for them. They were not able to show me the inlet worked at the rig had been winterized. This spring I attempted to use the inlet, the inlet will not allow water to pass. Not sure what to do. Can't get this issue resolved after taking to a service department, back to the factory and sending numerous videos. I've attempted to call a mobile tech, once they hear the issue they stop responding.

Solution: My fix until I can get someone to believe me and actually fix the issue was a Valterra Flush King Reverse Flush Valve Attachment. It was a relief finally being able to flush out the rear black tank after a years of use.


Issue 2: Leak in Bedroom slide out. Same as above. I've reported the leak to the service department. No fix. I reported to Forest River and they said they made some adjustments and redid some of the weather striping. After all that the first rain I found water on the bedroom floor. I documented my leak testing in another thread so long story short, I found a piece of tape left by the factory was was acting like a makeshift hose and directing rain water from the outside into the bedroom. I reported this back to Forest River and send multiple emails with my concern that water was still getting behind the weather striping and where that water was going. Each email was replied to with "Sounds like you fixed the issue." Well fast forward to the next rain storm and I've found water in the basement storage area. I took video and pictures of that and Forest River's response was simply "We can't diagnose a water leak from pictures." I am well aware they can't find the source of the leak and I wasn't even asking them to fix it at this point. I simply wanted them to acknowledge the original issue was never fixed by them and the issue remained.

Solution: I'm attempting to get a mobile tech to come out and take a look, but mobile techs also seem very scared of water leaks and nobody has offered to come out and take a look once I send them pictures. I will likely have to resolve this issue myself.

Issue 3: While cleaning last week I noticed significant water damage to the wood in the closet. I was able to trace the water back to the cloths washer. I spent a day trouble shooting trying to find if the leak was from a drain hose, supply line, inside the appliance, etc. I was able to discover the leak is in the plastic value where the hot water supply line connects. Now for the kicker, the appliance manufacturer does not warranty the water valves and made it very clear they are not responsible for any water damage. I called the manufacture and the small plastic valve that is less than year old and used less than 20 times is $65. I've called several local service centers. I was very clear with each appliance service center I called that the washer was in a RV. Two appliance centers wouldn't come out since the washer is in an RV. The third place came out but only because the receptionist didn't tell them the appliance was in a RV. Tech stood at my front door and had to call his boss asking if he could work on the washer since it was in a RV, his boss said no. I offered him $100 cash to take a look. He agreed to do it on his lunch break.

My solution: The tech was very nice and I'm going to pay him cash for him to service the washer after he clocks out from his job. Total cost will be $484, or a third of the cost of a brand new washer. I hav also ordered a washer pan for the clothes washer to sit in. If it leaks again the water will at least be contained in the plastic tub. Cost of the tub was $50. Really I have no idea why the tub isn't included with any washer put in the RV by the manufactures since the appliance company doesn't warranty anything and doesn't take responsibility for anything.

Issue 4: The dish washer, after being fixed by Forest River, still did not function. I've never been able to get it ti run for more than 3 minutes since day 1 of ownership. I sent several emails to Forest River stating I would be back in the area to get MorRyde IS installed in late June and asked if they could replace the dish washer (still under warranty). After a few back and forth emails and then a long silence from FR, I asked for an update and FR said they were going to do a "Good Faith" warranty claim and send a replacement dishwasher to me. I was not to happy they referred to this as a "good faith" warranty claim as my entire rig and the appliance is still under factory warranty. Also, I was asking to make an appointment for them to replace it, or fix it. Instead they sent me a new dishwasher which I am thankful for, but now I have to try and find a mobile tech (see frustrations in the above comments) to swap out the washer.

I love being able to travel and camp in this rig. But the frustrations and breaks at every turn has turned ownership into a nightmare. If anyone is thinking of getting into RV'ing I would strongly suggest buying something pre-covid or not at all. No manufacturer or service department wants to help or support you since they have your money.

 

[kevin211]

you should call Amish family RV center....aka Orvan and have him fix your unit plus things you don't even see