new motorhome problems

brandonrv wrote:
Mine had to have the dash ac resealed. Brand new took 2 weeks dash ac never worked. My rv guy said "they must have assembled this on a Friday"

What brand of motorhome do you have?

MM.

Mine had to have the dash ac resealed. Brand new took 2 weeks dash ac never worked. My rv guy said "they must have assembled this on a Friday"

My Allegro Open Road is two months old now and I do have a few minor problems. Tiffin told me I could take it anywhere I was comfortable with. The repair facility only needs to get prior authorization before starting the repair.
As I understand it a lot of people that own Tiffins have so for a long time and have established relationships with people at Red Bay and go there to visit. Even chatting with Bob Tiffin himself. Kinda like a big rally.
I am staying in PA.

wnytaxman brings up some very good points. I know for a fact that Tiffin has had some major problems with cracks on the curve part where the roof meets the side walls on the longer Phaetons. That takes a major shop to repair and that is why they are all piled up at Red Bay.

Tiffin does manufacture a nice looking coach, but they do have major problems that need to be corrected.

But it is not different then when Monaco bought out Safari and they also had so many problems they almost went under because of all the recalls. That is why they built in 2001 the big shop in Wildwood Florida.

Finally wrote:
We've owned 9 RV's. Two are Tiffin.... An 05 Phaeton and a 2012 Phaeton. NO ONE HAS TO RETURN TO RED BAY, ALABAMA FOR SERVICE UNLESS THEY WANT TO!!! We've owned 2 Tiffin motorhomes. We have found Tiffin to be the best, by far, than the other brands we have owned. ( great service anywhere in the United States, Mexico, and Canada)

Please don't take this the wrong way, but if no one has to go to Red Bay then why do people go and literally spend weeks and months there for repairs? I gather that Camp Red Bay has over 150 sites and from the postings it seems like the sites are quite often totally booked and people waiting at satellite sites.

From the perspective of someone outside of the Tiffin ownership, that seems rather unique that someone would spend the dollars required to travel hundreds, if not thousands, of miles for service that could be completed locally.

We've owned 9 RV's. Two are Tiffin.... An 05 Phaeton and a 2012 Phaeton. NO ONE HAS TO RETURN TO RED BAY, ALABAMA FOR SERVICE UNLESS THEY WANT TO!!! We've owned 2 Tiffin motorhomes. We have found Tiffin to be the best, by far, than the other brands we have owned. ( great service anywhere in the United States, Mexico, and Canada)

So what???? We should simply excuse shoddy quality as a result? Somebody spends a quarter million dollars or more and should expect to lose the use of their new coach for a significant portion of the first season?

Automobile companies, WORLDWIDE, have reached the point where only a minuscule number of new cars have quality problems. My last several new cars NEVER went back to the dealer for a single warranty issue. Regular maintenance and nothing else. Why do so many continue to make excuses for RV manufacturers? It's inexcusable!

wny_pat wrote:
You guys need to talk to someone in the trucking industry. They don't let their Class 8 over the road tractors venture far from home when they are new. They know better, and keep them close to the shop until they get all the bugs worked out of them. Those new rigs really keep the shop techs on their toes and very busy. They are just like new RV!

You guys need to talk to someone in the trucking industry. They don't let their Class 8 over the road tractors venture far from home when they are new. They know better, and keep them close to the shop until they get all the bugs worked out of them. Those new rigs really keep the shop techs on their toes and very busy. They are just like new RV!

RayChez wrote:
And I am surprised this company does not have satellite repair shops through out the country that could handle the problem close to the owner of the coach.

And how do you know they don't? I live on the west coast and have had three fairly major repairs done at Tiffin authorized repair facilities (not dealers), with Tiffin picking up 100% of the bill. Based on my location at the time, the facilities were located in Bend, OR, Phoenix, AZ, and Newcastle, CA.

Would I rather not have the necessity for the repairs in the first place? Certainly, but it's nice to know I'm dealing with a manufacturer that will do their utmost to try and make me happy.

Mr.Mark wrote:

tony lee wrote:
All good reasons why astute buyers don't buy brand new, but instead look for low-mileage units a couple of years old that have had all of the problems sorted out by the previous owner - who has also taken the huge hit due to depreciation.

There is a market for every buyer. I always buy new, the depreciation is not an issue as I want to be the first owner. Buying used does not mean that there will be no problems. As a unit ages, items start wearing out and need replacement, especially the house items. Then there are those companies that are no longer in business to buy parts from. For instance, I'm hearing that Aladdin is out of business so no new replacement parts.

As they say in the car business, there is a butt for every seat.

MM.

I agree with both statements although I wouldn't necessarily say "astute buyer", more than I would just say a different market for different people. There are people with money that will only buy new and I both respect and appreciate them. Then there are the ones who are ok buying someone elses toys to save some money or buy a little higher quality with their budget.

I am glad there are people that can afford new high end units if not there would not be any used ones for people like me. When we were looking my wife and I thought about purchasing a new lower end diesel pusher (I won't mention any brand/model)but I know how I am and I wouldn't have been happy with it. I wanted new just to be the first owner and not have to purchase someone elses neglect or abuse.

I just had set in my mind what I wanted and was not willing to "settle" so we started looking used. We looked long and hard for over nine months before finding our Dynasty. It was not abused but definately not overly maintained. The previous owner had some issues and rather than fixing them merely traded it in on a new one. Great for us because we were able to benefit and he supported the market by purchasing a brand new unit which I am sure will be sold to someone else in a similar situation to my wife and I.

I am sure there are issues with used as well as new units but it seems those who buy used are more expecting to have to fix/repair/replace things vs. those who just drove it out of the factory.

Our coach took me the better part of a year to get where I wanted it but now would not trade it for a new one and hope it will last another 15 or so years.

Mike.