Fox Mountain fifth wheel owners

Sorry to hear all that about AF. I guess I'll hang onto my 2011 for a few more years until they get their act together or shop a different builder.

ScottG wrote:

goducks10 wrote:

ScottG wrote:
I would have to give it some very serious thought before purchasing another Northwood product.
I would not let the perceived quality be a determining factor if I were looking at something else.

Why do you say that? What were your problems?

The actual, physical build quality is no better than middle of the road trailers. The fit and details like hiding screws is inferior to the 2004 Wildcat we had before. Cabinet drawer and door fronts are all askew and haphazardly put together. I spent hours fixing these things myself.
This unit has fiberglass front and rear caps. There are countless blemishes and repairs in them. Factory says it's rare for one to leave without some kind of repair. Looks really bad in the sun.
Frame is built strong but paint is terrible. It is literally dripping rust on the cement where I park it.

There are cracks in the filon where it was damaged in the factory.


There's even a screw from inside the roof area trying to poke through the siding - that was done when new roof was installed.

I ordered the trailer with 50A for a second AC someday. It arrived without being framed for the second AC.
Factory argued that I only ordered 50A and not "second AC option" (which doesn't exist on the price sheet). This was pure BS. The 50A option is specifically for second AC and it was even wired for it with a breaker in the panel labeled "Second AC"!
It took my dealer to straighten them out and cut through their baloney..
So they had to replace my roof and restructure for the new AC. I asked the factory service guy about how a new roof was installed and he assured me they would remove the end caps in order to tuck the roof over the front and rear walls just like it was originally.
I found out this factory service guy would just tell me anything I wanted to hear and lied through his teeth.
My trailer was re-roofed in ONE DAY.
They simply sliced the roof material off at the ends and then added another piece of transition trim and slathered the whole thing with sealant.




Here's where a screw is coming through now. Also notice how sloppy the wiring for awning is.. This is an example of how everything was done on their biggest, most expensive TT they make.


I had them replace several pieces of woodwork and trim inside because the gaps were huge and parts were falling off. This was all obvious long before it left the factory.

These are just some of the defects we've found. There was a lot more small stuff that I spent hours repairing.
Aside from the frame, this trailer is not built as well as my Wildcat was.

To give them credit, my dealer was able to talk them into giving me that second AC "for all my trouble".
However, I suspect they gave me a junker AC they had laying around because it shook like crazy and made a ton of noise. I was able to fix it by balancing the fan assembly.

A buddy of mine also bought an Arctic Fox Tt a couple of years ago. He's very disappointed with the sloppiness of the build quality as well.

Very disappointing. I think the RV industry theses days is just the luck of the draw. Nothing can be taken for granted. I've not had near the problems that were NW's fault that you have. Of course mine was built in Jan of 13 IIRC. Probably at the start of the down turn in quality as thats about when the whole RV industry started to boom.
There's another new owner posting right now on the NORA site with poor quality control on a TT he just bought. Pictures and all.

Rolland, thanks. I looked up the site and gained quite a bit of knowledge.
Goducks, now that's what I needed as far as info about height, etc.
Scottg, sorry about the trials your unit has given you. I'm saddened by your trailer's quality, and am experiencing similar with our rig.
On a lighter note, we read an article about an Airstream that cost $187,000.00. Maybe if I'd have spent another $150,000 for no problems? Thanks again all----

ScottG- Wow, not what I would expect for a premium price. I was planning on purchasing a 29L but will look at one in person before I do so. Evidently they don't take much pride in their work.

goducks10 wrote:

ScottG wrote:
I would have to give it some very serious thought before purchasing another Northwood product.
I would not let the perceived quality be a determining factor if I were looking at something else.

Why do you say that? What were your problems?

The actual, physical build quality is no better than middle of the road trailers. The fit and details like hiding screws is inferior to the 2004 Wildcat we had before. Cabinet drawer and door fronts are all askew and haphazardly put together. I spent hours fixing these things myself.
This unit has fiberglass front and rear caps. There are countless blemishes and repairs in them. Factory says it's rare for one to leave without some kind of repair. Looks really bad in the sun.
Frame is built strong but paint is terrible. It is literally dripping rust on the cement where I park it.

There are cracks in the filon where it was damaged in the factory.


There's even a screw from inside the roof area trying to poke through the siding - that was done when new roof was installed.

I ordered the trailer with 50A for a second AC someday. It arrived without being framed for the second AC.
Factory argued that I only ordered 50A and not "second AC option" (which doesn't exist on the price sheet). This was pure BS. The 50A option is specifically for second AC and it was even wired for it with a breaker in the panel labeled "Second AC"!
It took my dealer to straighten them out and cut through their baloney..
So they had to replace my roof and restructure for the new AC. I asked the factory service guy about how a new roof was installed and he assured me they would remove the end caps in order to tuck the roof over the front and rear walls just like it was originally.
I found out this factory service guy would just tell me anything I wanted to hear and lied through his teeth.
My trailer was re-roofed in ONE DAY.
They simply sliced the roof material off at the ends and then added another piece of transition trim and slathered the whole thing with sealant.




Here's where a screw is coming through now. Also notice how sloppy the wiring for awning is.. This is an example of how everything was done on their biggest, most expensive TT they make.


I had them replace several pieces of woodwork and trim inside because the gaps were huge and parts were falling off. This was all obvious long before it left the factory.

These are just some of the defects we've found. There was a lot more small stuff that I spent hours repairing.
Aside from the frame, this trailer is not built as well as my Wildcat was.

To give them credit, my dealer was able to talk them into giving me that second AC "for all my trouble".
However, I suspect they gave me a junker AC they had laying around because it shook like crazy and made a ton of noise. I was able to fix it by balancing the fan assembly.

A buddy of mine also bought an Arctic Fox Tt a couple of years ago. He's very disappointed with the sloppiness of the build quality as well.

ScottG wrote:
I would have to give it some very serious thought before purchasing another Northwood product.
I would not let the perceived quality be a determining factor if I were looking at something else.

Why do you say that? What were your problems?

I would have to give it some very serious thought before purchasing another Northwood product.
I would not let the perceived quality be a determining factor if I were looking at something else.

I have a 2013 FM 235. We're starting our 6th season this year with it. Everything still works like day 1. Would I buy another Northwood MFG product? Absolutely.
As for the towing part. Ours chucks a little on the worst roads. Other than that it's smooth 85-90% of the time. My truck is 59-1/2" to the top of the bed rails at the tailgate. If you're in that area then you should sit close to level. My 235 is about 1/2" high in the front. Barley noticeable.
I bought 250 miles from my home so I never had a dealer warranty experience. In fact I only had two warranty items. One for a very slow leak at the water manifold caused by the wrong fitting being used. Northwood set me up with an independent RV repair shop locally to fix it. Took all of about 2 hours.
The other was a bad water pump. I called Northwood and they just sent me a new one.
Is the Fox Mountain as good as the Arctic Fox line? IMO yes. The difference is in the amenities. The AF line is a step up from the FM's. It's like buying a Honda Civic as opposed to an Accord. Same quality just different amenities.
Don't rule out Outdoors RV. They have some nice smaller 5th wheels that offer some great items as standard equipment.

You might want to check out the Northwood Owners Forum at www.nroa2003.com. There are a few FM owners on it.