? on quality of Forrest River Sunseeker

[luberhill]

been looking for a C or A under 30ft,,,seems every one I see used is junk...looking at a used 2018 FR Sunseeker 2290S,,,one slide...price is 50k...
Miles 18k....
I think he said these have fiberglass roofs...I know people here say stay away from Thor but how about Sunseeker ?

[dmatt]

To the OP. As you can see, you can expect that there will be issues that need to be addressed on any RV you buy these days. Quality control is all over the place. Add to that, any number of the separately made components (generator, slide motor, TV, inverter, radio, etc) can be defective, just like anything you buy today.

Two things you can do to lessen the possibility of major issues is to research the quality of the material and build of a unit, and choose a reputable dealer.

Again, while most have issues, if you continue to see complaints of leaks, misaligned slides or other components, wires left lying and not connected to anything, and things like this, then probably look at a different make.

I think the most important aspect of buying an RV is choosing your dealer. THIS is where you are either going to be satisfied, or angry with your purchase. After years and years of reading these forums it's my opinion that most people concentrate on getting the best deal/price for their RV and that's where their research ends. Look closely at the reputation of their service department. A large majority of complaints come from terrible service after the purchase......long waits for repairs, only to find all the items weren't fixed, etc. In addition, many dealers won't service your RV unless you purchased it from them, and if they do, stick you at the end of the line while servicing their customers first. I cannot emphasize enough to research the service after the sale.

Don't forget, the internet forums are swamped with people with grievances about problems they have with their RV (and rightly so). But, put that into perspective. That is how people get advice, etc on how to deal with these problems. You really don't see many people take to the internet just to say how happy they are with their new unit.

I'll just add....don't get discouraged. There are better built RV's out there from long established companies. Winnebago has been building motorhomes for a long time and have a very good service network. Jayco, although no longer owned by the original family, has a 2-year warranty and if you go to their owners website, you can find direct lines of communications to management, etc. LTV has a great reputation and very little complaints.

Good luck on your hunt!!

[T18skyguy]

The irony is they do clean it, but only what you can see. The last thing that happens when the rig is done, is someone goes in the rig and wipes the cabinets etc down with a rag. What you can't see gets left alone. I even found a screwdriver one of the workers left(in my old rig), and I still have it. It was under one of the floor cabinets.

[cgarb]

I am new to this site, but would like to chime in. We just sold a Forest River Rpod after 7 great years using it. It had very minor problems at first that were fixed immediately by the dealer. We did have to replace the refrig after 6 years, but other that that it was great and we would still be using except for back injuries that make it impossible to deal with the WDH anymore. We did take it in to have the seals checked every couple of years, and they held up great.

We just bought a 24' Sunseeker which we get to pick up next week. The Happy Daze dealership in our town spends 2 days going over it carefully and fixing anything that needs it after its 2500 mile drive to California from the factory. That is truly a "shake down" trip! Anything that might come loose most likely did on that drive! We are fully expecting to have many years of enjoyment with it.

[Newbiecampers]

The lack of cleaning in these units before they leave the factory is nothing new, and it certainly has nothing to do with "today's generation."

The 2008 unit we owned previously was the same exact way: sawdust everywhere, particle board punch-outs laying around, broken screws and staples all over, un-used clamps, etc. etc..

You want an eye-opener? Go do a factory tour. I did a tour of a Class C plant. Yikes is all I can say. That place would give someone with OCD a heart attack, not to mention being an osha inspector's field day. I can't see how every single unit made there doesn't come out with leaking tires from all the debris on the floor. It became perfectly clear how the build quality of these items is lacking after seeing the condition of the factory, and the working space these workers created and maintined for themselves.

How does that saying go: "You don't want to see how the sausage is made."

All it would take is a 3-4 minute vacuuming of the unit at a couple of points along the way.

[PSW]

I will double ditto the other two posters praising their Phoenix Cruisers. We bought a lightly used PC in 2013 and have now owned it for five years without any problems at all. I do all the RV "stuff" maintenance myself and it has been just a couple of minor things (like a cabinet door hitch replacement). Find a used PC and if it was taken care of you may find exactly what you are looking for. As Ron posted (page one), take a look at the videos and the PC website.

I installed two solar panels on the roof a couple of years ago. I called PC and asked how I could find the cross member supports under the curved roof. In two hours the president of the company called me back and walked me through how to locate them. You can't beat that kind of service can you?

[BruceMc]

Ralph Cramden wrote:

BruceMc wrote:


It seems today's generations are litterbugs, not just in the hidden spaces in our motorhomes, but in life in general.

If you take a few tours of RV factories you would find it has nothing to do with todays generation. It has to do with todays management and more with todays piecework method of compensation. All they get is a quick broom sweep, then theyre pushed out the door to the storage and shipping lots. Doing the final clean is on the dealer with most brands and the dealer is not going to spend much time if any pulling out drawers and removing cabinet baffles. You think their is debris there? Try looking in the space above the underliner, or in the black tank. When they uses a hole saw to pop a 3" hole in the top of an abs tank, where do you think the slug goes? Usually a gift to later jam up yhe blade valve.

Agree. It's a hot market right now, so management is pushing hard to get as many units out of the door as possible. They clear only what is visible, the rest is out of sight, out of mind.

I, too, had a problem with one of my wastewater slide valves, and when I took it apart, I found a piece of vinyl that looked a bit like flooring, yet it didn't match my flooring.

When I worked at Terry Trailers in LaGrande, Oregon in the late 70's, we had cleaning crews at various points along the assembly, and particularly at the final inspection. Terry exists today, but only as a niche builder of retro trailers.

[S1njin]

I had all manor of debris in the grey tank of my Sunseeker. I had to take the whole valve assembly apart to get the tank to empty. I never had that happen in any of the Jaycos I owned prior.

Not to say my next Greyhawk won't have this problem, but I never encountered it before the Sunseeker.

[Ralph_Cramden]

BruceMc wrote:


It seems today's generations are litterbugs, not just in the hidden spaces in our motorhomes, but in life in general.

If you take a few tours of RV factories you would find it has nothing to do with todays generation. It has to do with todays management and more with todays piecework method of compensation. All they get is a quick broom sweep, then theyre pushed out the door to the storage and shipping lots. Doing the final clean is on the dealer with most brands and the dealer is not going to spend much time if any pulling out drawers and removing cabinet baffles. You think their is debris there? Try looking in the space above the underliner, or in the black tank. When they uses a hole saw to pop a 3" hole in the top of an abs tank, where do you think the slug goes? Usually a gift to later jam up yhe blade valve.

[92GreenYJ]

BruceMc wrote:

92GreenYJ wrote:
Well I was working on my Sunseeker a bit adding some things to it. Bedroom tv, usb charging ports, etc. to wire in an auxiliary fuse block to power the usb charging ports I took the plywood top off the master bed for easier access. I will say the builders didn’t bother cleaning up after themselves very well. Lots of sawdust, leftover chunks of particle board they had punched out for routing wires, etc. I spent all of 2 minutes cleaning it all up with the shop vac. Kinda lowers my opinion just a tad that the builders couldn’t be bothered to do it themselves. Granted I’m sure not everyone would be getting into an area like that, but it’s the principle of the thing.

I've found that in our Sunseeker as well. I've spent a small amount of time cleaning up those areas I've accessed whilst working on various projects. To me, though irritating, it's a small issue in the grand scheme of things.

I've walked through & examined a number of other brands & found similar issues to those in the Sunseeker. Find the floorplan and chassis you want/can live with, and if the build quality is decent, move on with life.

It seems today's generations are litterbugs, not just in the hidden spaces in our motorhomes, but in life in general. I don't know what happened to the "pick up after yourself" ethic, but it sure doesn't exist any longer.

I agree completely. It’s far from a knock or indication of the overall quality of the rig. It’s just the principle of the thing. Back when I was doing that sort of work we lived on the philosophy of the only sign we were ever there should be the finished system installed. No trash, no debris, etc left behind. It’s all about taking pride in your work.

[BruceMc]

92GreenYJ wrote:
Well I was working on my Sunseeker a bit adding some things to it. Bedroom tv, usb charging ports, etc. to wire in an auxiliary fuse block to power the usb charging ports I took the plywood top off the master bed for easier access. I will say the builders didn’t bother cleaning up after themselves very well. Lots of sawdust, leftover chunks of particle board they had punched out for routing wires, etc. I spent all of 2 minutes cleaning it all up with the shop vac. Kinda lowers my opinion just a tad that the builders couldn’t be bothered to do it themselves. Granted I’m sure not everyone would be getting into an area like that, but it’s the principle of the thing.

I've found that in our Sunseeker as well. I've spent a small amount of time cleaning up those areas I've accessed whilst working on various projects. To me, though irritating, it's a small issue in the grand scheme of things.

I've walked through & examined a number of other brands & found similar issues to those in the Sunseeker. Find the floorplan and chassis you want/can live with, and if the build quality is decent, move on with life.

It seems today's generations are litterbugs, not just in the hidden spaces in our motorhomes, but in life in general. I don't know what happened to the "pick up after yourself" ethic, but it sure doesn't exist any longer.

[92GreenYJ]

Well I was working on my Sunseeker a bit adding some things to it. Bedroom tv, usb charging ports, etc. to wire in an auxiliary fuse block to power the usb charging ports I took the plywood top off the master bed for easier access. I will say the builders didn’t bother cleaning up after themselves very well. Lots of sawdust, leftover chunks of particle board they had punched out for routing wires, etc. I spent all of 2 minutes cleaning it all up with the shop vac. Kinda lowers my opinion just a tad that the builders couldn’t be bothered to do it themselves. Granted I’m sure not everyone would be getting into an area like that, but it’s the principle of the thing.

[S1njin]

I had a Greyhawk previously and found it well built, it being a RV and all. So I'm going back to the brand/line with some prior experience with it.

[T18skyguy]

S1njin wrote:
FWIW I have a 2018 Sunseeker and I'll be trading it in for a Jayco Greyhawk. I won't brand bash here, but the FR just isn't living up to my expectations.

I researched for months before buying my rig. I have no prejudices either way. I expected a dozen problems whatever I chose. I took a very close look at the Sunseeker bunk model. There's a lot to like about it's options and floor plan. Their bunk model is very clever in that the front of the top bunk lifts up and locks up to let someone sitting in the lower bunk some head room. I plan to modify my Greyhawk with that feature. When looking at the Sunseeker, it was a bit cold in the rig, and the salesman went to adjust the thermostat, and his finger hit the wall instead which collapsed inward two inches. There was no support at all in the thermostat wall area. I figured the rest wouldn't be any different. Ultimately, Jayco's standard J ride and their higher rated hitch(7500 lbs versus 5000 lbs) won me over. I have had to replace the foam in the Dinette and couch, but if you start with a superior chassis, your going to chase some coach issue's either way. The interior walls in the Greyhawk seem more sturdy to me.

[ron_dittmer]

docsouce wrote:
I can only post about my experience. I bought my "New 2016" Thor 22e Freedom Elite from Camping World in late Summer of 2015. From the research I did I found out that this was an entry level lower end Class C on a bullet proof frame and if I was good with a wrench (which I am) it was a good RV at a good price. The first trip I had a water leak. The factory installed a rigid PVC pipe connecting the 2 fresh water tanks. I drained the water to a point below the pipe connection, that left the tanks about 1/2 full, brought it back and had the dealer install a flex pipe connection. Problem solved.

We have since completed 3 cross country trips, have 39,000 miles on is so far, have camped out 227 nights in it (not bad considering it is closed up 4 months for winter) and haven't had a major problem.....yet. Sure there are small things like screws coming loose and the mattresses getting a little thin, but it has treated us well.

I inspect it often. Tighten up screws, clean the A/C, check the roof and seal and so on. Routine maintenance.

We use this RV a lot. I'm sure there are people that haven't been as fortunate as we are and for sure there ARE some "bad" RV's out there.
However our THOR RV has given us exactly what we paid for.

You are the "right" owner for the rig you purchased. "Good For You" that you stay on top of maintenance with your rig keeping it working right to fulfill your RV travels. That is doing it right to avoid the horror stories we all read about here. Take care of it so it takes care of you.

It is remarkable how many people just use it without a care in the world, then complain about their rig after a few years.