Where is quality?????

In answer to some of the questions listed above. 3 units had to have the roof AC replaced. 2 had water {plumbing} leaks. 1 had a problem with the slide outs and 1 had to have the water heater replaced. 4 of the units went directly to the campground.

Wow, minor stuff to be sure. The 'quality' that the manufacturer put into the coaches is summed up as two plumbing leaks and one slide out issue. All the A/C and water heater issues were not the 'quality' fault of the manufacturer. They might be the fault of the appliance manufacturer but not the coach manufacturer. A billion dollar submarine has sea trials to check all the parts and systems to make sure they work. Every RV dealer suggests the new owners test everything near home to allow for the things that are not correct to be fixed before really using the coach and being disappointed. Since four of the seven units went directly to the campground it appears that the sea trials were never carried out and therefore those issues not as easily fixed as could have been at or near the selling dealers. Complain that stuff does not work correctly, but don't give the dealer a chance to fix it easily. I tend to see some culpability on the part of the new owners in at least four of the cases. Were the coaches were really 'new' as A/C units (four of them) failed right away. How statistically odd!!

I love +support and agree with this statement

Conclusion, don't buy an RV unless you have a brain and a toolbox

We "full time" nine months a year, sometimes a little less.

Our 2012 Winnebago Tour (Ruby) has only had one problem since purchased new. We did stay at LD in Seffner, FL having the punch list items fixed/replaced for three weeks before taking possession. Two years later, a water pump failure.

Maybe it was sheer dumb luck, but four full years of just routine maintenance and we are big fans of LD and Winnebago.

Im a fixit kind-of-guy.
Obtaining my first RV 30+ years ago, i find myself improving just about every dam thing installed.
There is no better quality than doing it yourself.

I'm going to go a bit contrary on the OP's original statement. We bought a 2016 Winnebago Journey 40R one year ago. We are pleased with the overall quality of the assembly considering the complexity of the onboard systems.

Here is a list of the issues we had with the motorhome:

1. First night out the mother board on the back furnace failed. Not Winnebago's fault. Paid for by Suburban to a mobile tech.
2. Keyless door lock failed. Everybody's fault. We should have caught it in PDI. I trouble shot the issue with help of Winnebago. Problem was that the wires on the door frame side were not properly crimped on the assembly line. I fixed at no cost.
3. Master bath door latch died requiring some "work" to open door. Latch replaced by picking up part at Winnebago dealer. Fault of supplier not Winnebago.
4. Half bath door would not stay shut in transit. Fault of Winnebago because bath wall was miss framed. I fixed by shimming the door.
5. Glass insert in one cabinet door broke. Fault of Winnebago because nail holding inside trim in was too close to glass. Winnebago shipped new cabinet door to a dealer and I replaced it.
6. Had a water leak behind master sink. Fault of Winnebago for not tightening fitting. Fixed it myself.
7. Puddle on dash after heavy rains. Fault of Winnebago for bad seal. Fixed myself.
8. Matrix switch lost it's mind. Called supplier's support and figured it out. Not an uncommon problem. Fault of Winnebago for using this supplier.
9. Numerous loose screws, etc. Fault of Winnebago. Fixed them myself.

Conclusion, don't buy an RV unless you have a brain and a toolbox. I would buy another Winnebago.

OK, first, i admit I have not read every post in this thread. So, please don't take my head off. A motorhome is essentially a custom built one off every time. Even the most heavily produced MH is a small run and the bigger and more complex the unit the more likely there will be issues. No two units are exactly alike. My 2016 is identical to the 2017 built a couple months later EXCEPT that the oven is not in mine, the TVs are a newer model, the satellite receiver is in a different location, there are a few other items I noticed during a very quick walk through. If MH builders built 50,000 units exactly alike each year, then I am sure a lot of issue would cease to be. I am not defending them, simply stating what I see as facts. Now that said, the issues like properly aligning cabinet doors, tightening screws, making sure that drawer frames are properly installed, those things should not be issues at warranty time. Those are tasks, not design or option items.

jmtandem wrote:

We have sold Airstreams for 37 years both Motorhomes and Trailers. ALL sorts of problems.

Something like 70 percent of all Airstreams made since the mid 1930's are still on the road. Compare that to many standard box trailers that barely last the loan, if that long!!! Quality is often how long a product lasts not that it might need some maintenance along the way or fix a latch or microwave here and there. And if you sold Airstreams for 37 years the quality must not have been that bad or you would have dropped them a long time ago. The very fact that you sold them for almost four decades tells me they are a product worth selling and buyers are getting something of 'quality'.

MY point is, Airstreams can have all the quality problems other RV's can have. Just because they build a metal box that can be rebuilt numerous times does NOT mean they have unsurpassed quality. I do NOT see across the board Quality problems on most long term Manufacturers. The problems are from the upstarts that have started in the past 15 years. I would put Forest River at the top that DOES sell junk all across their product lines. We have attempted to sell various Motorized and Towable FR products over the years and dropped them because they are JUNK. AND, they are the darling of Berkshire/Hathaway. Doug

We have sold Airstreams for 37 years both Motorhomes and Trailers. ALL sorts of problems.

Something like 70 percent of all Airstreams made since the mid 1930's are still on the road. Compare that to many standard box trailers that barely last the loan, if that long!!! Quality is often how long a product lasts not that it might need some maintenance along the way or fix a latch or microwave here and there. And if you sold Airstreams for 37 years the quality must not have been that bad or you would have dropped them a long time ago. The very fact that you sold them for almost four decades tells me they are a product worth selling and buyers are getting something of 'quality'.

usersmanual wrote:

ScottG wrote:
When I've walked around RV shows it always looks to me that some of the material and technology has gotten better but the actual workmanship is even worse than it was 10 or more years ago.

Iam always curious when people say this.So I ask what Class A and number of units have you viewed that had bad workmanship? what areas did u see this as the most obvious ?were they entry level gassers or higher end DP like newmar or tiffin?

No, for some reason nice rigs made by the very high end companies aren't represented at the Seattle RV show. Sometimes there's 1 or 2 but often there's none - which is disappointing.
My comment is about the more common mass produced stuff.

I sure wish that were true. The reality is that if it were true then all the manufacturers would slow down and use the best materials. The reality is that the consumer demands the lowest price possible for the most RV available. That means that if 1 manufacturer did what you consider to be the right thing they would have to charge more and they would get run over by the competition. It's really not the manufacturers fault. It is our fault for demanding cheap RVs.