Sewer outlet facing wrong direction on new RV

[dbontherun]

After receiving delivery of our new 2014 Storm 32V, we encountered a problem with the sewer outlet. The factory installed the sewer outlet facing the wrong way so that you can't hook up the sewer hose to it. Was supposed to leave on a trip and had to cancel because of the problem. Took the unit back to the dealer to get the problem fixed, should have it back in a few days. I'm not a happy camper today. When we got to the dealer to drop off the unit I went and checked the other Storm 32v the had on the lot and the sewer outlet was wrong on that one too. I guess there is no quality control at Fleetwood, hard to believe it was done on another unit. Hope I don't have anymore issues. How do you attach pictures?

DB

[tiffinboy]

jhilley wrote:

well I think your wrong.A service writer is NOT a tech and Takes the the customers complaint.Fills out a WO and files a time to be worked on.THE TECH then looks at the customers complaint and rectifies/repairs it.Service writers are not RV problems solvers.
There are situations where a service writer that is a bit of a Rv tech
may be able to assist in some cases.I just read Dougs post and he is saying exactly what I just said and he,s in the business
QUOTE:1. Service writers are just THAT. They are usually not techs and have never been a tech. NOT their job to diagnois, they write the complaint, and get as much info on the complaint/s as possible.

I think this thinking may be what allows RV service centers to get away with inferior service. The first point of contact for problems had better be knowledgeable or it just goes down hill from there. The best type of service writer would perform a form of triage, assigning a tech with the proper knowledge to diagnose and repair the problem. If they just fill time slots and don't align with the proper technician, it makes for a long repair process. What could be solved in a couple of minutes like the OPs problem, gets put off days until a time slot is open. If the service writer doesn't have the knowledge to ascertain what needs to be done, he should call the service manager over and if necessary, a technician specialist to determine time required or possibly to just point out that there really isn't a problem, just operator error.

No one said they were not knowledgeable and a service writer may well be able to allocate a certain tech for a certain job.IF one sticks to subject at hand what we are saying is a service writer takes customer information./complaints and fill,s a time slot with the prepared wo.He also very well may coordinate a certain tech to a certain job
You arm chair business directors have no idea how the real world works
NO one here knows the exact set up at this dealership or exactly who the OP talked to etc.I have been in the RV repair business for 35 years.It don't always work the he way each person in their personal view of things want it to.There are far more great well run rv service centers out there than bad ones.

[topflite51]

The best service writers are those who know how to listen and who can properly interpret the customer's complaints and concerns into something that the tech can clearly understand. When most service writers turn to doing diagnosis and repair that is when the entire process falls completely apart. Time and money are wasted when this happens and most generally the consumer pays in one way or another. Just my two cents worth from a retired ASE mechanic, shop manager and business owner.

[jhilley]

well I think your wrong.A service writer is NOT a tech and Takes the the customers complaint.Fills out a WO and files a time to be worked on.THE TECH then looks at the customers complaint and rectifies/repairs it.Service writers are not RV problems solvers.
There are situations where a service writer that is a bit of a Rv tech
may be able to assist in some cases.I just read Dougs post and he is saying exactly what I just said and he,s in the business
QUOTE:1. Service writers are just THAT. They are usually not techs and have never been a tech. NOT their job to diagnois, they write the complaint, and get as much info on the complaint/s as possible.

I think this thinking may be what allows RV service centers to get away with inferior service. The first point of contact for problems had better be knowledgeable or it just goes down hill from there. The best type of service writer would perform a form of triage, assigning a tech with the proper knowledge to diagnose and repair the problem. If they just fill time slots and don't align with the proper technician, it makes for a long repair process. What could be solved in a couple of minutes like the OPs problem, gets put off days until a time slot is open. If the service writer doesn't have the knowledge to ascertain what needs to be done, he should call the service manager over and if necessary, a technician specialist to determine time required or possibly to just point out that there really isn't a problem, just operator error.

[tiffinboy]

jhilley wrote:

tiffinboy wrote:

jhilley wrote:
It should have come up before and especially the Service Writer should have known it. This kind of ignorance is unforgivable. Anyone with common sense should have realized it wouldn't be manufactured that way.

The service writer is the ambassador between the customer and the RV tech so to speak.They are not RV techs.A service writre will learn a few tricks of the trade as they go along but to call one ignorant because he did not know the sewer outlet swiveled is not correct

He had better be more than an ambassador. If he writes it up, the tech will do it. Good way to pay for something that doesn't need to be done. That was pretty much what happened here. The service writer should be able to analyze the problem and write it up. He should be able to look at the problem, and if simple like this one, show the customer how to resolve it. I admit he should be an ambassador of good will. In this case he could have looked at it, swiveled it to the opposite direction and tell the customer he was sorry for the inconvenience and sent the customer on his way. Instead he tied up the customers motor home and inconvenienced the customer in a big way.

Did the technician identify the problem or did the OP after getting advice on the forum?

well I think your wrong.A service writer is NOT a tech and Takes the the customers complaint.Fills out a WO and files a time to be worked on.THE TECH then looks at the customers complaint and rectifies/repairs it.Service writers are not RV problems solvers.
There are situations where a service writer that is a bit of a Rv tech
may be able to assist in some cases.I just read Dougs post and he is saying exactly what I just said and he,s in the business
QUOTE:1. Service writers are just THAT. They are usually not techs and have never been a tech. NOT their job to diagnois, they write the complaint, and get as much info on the complaint/s as possible.

[dougrainer]

slemnah wrote:
I have to disagree with part of this statement. I have been in the automotive service business for almost 40 years and have been a Master ASE technician since 1975. In my career I have been a service advisor, a shop foreman and a service manager. I obviously know quite a bit about vehicles. Many Service Advisors are hired without technical automotive experience because management does not want them to diagnose vehicles in the service lane because there are too many hidden issues that can create the problem. Their job is to accurately convey the information to the technician. The shop foreman has to know the vehicle from bumper to bumper because he is in charge of the technicians and is the main troubleshooter. If a person is assigned as a Shop Foreman without technical skills then the management of the dealership/ repair garage has made a huge mistake. The Service Manager position can either be trained in automotive repair or not. I have seen many successful examples of Service Managers with almost no technical skills but have great people skills. My two cents worth....

dougrainer wrote:

wny_pat wrote:

wildmanbaker wrote:
Well..... lets not blame the dealer, techs, or whoever. It could have been the Service scheduler, and they probably do not know everything there is to know about RVs. Or, even the sales person.

But the Service Writer is a very big part of this picture who should have known better. The service writer has to be able to diagnose the problem, and in this case he/she apparently failed. Did not know his product. And that appears to be happening at many dealerships.

1. Service writers are just THAT. They are usually not techs and have never been a tech. NOT their job to diagnois, they write the complaint, and get as much info on the complaint/s as possible.
2. Shop Forman--SAME THING, but some have been promnoted from being a tech
3. Service managers SAME THING
4. Salesmen?????? Do NOT get me started. They have NO knowledge of RV's at this type complaint. They know prices and options and possibly how some of the systems work. BUT, that is NOT their job to really know that. ALWAYS ask a saleman if he has an RV and what kind and year. If he does NOT, the odds are he knows nothing about how an RV works and functions. BUT as I stated, they do NOT need to know. They sell, thats it. The PDI/delivery tech is the one that should know. Doug

As I have pointed out in the past, you CANNOT mix apples and oranges. Comparing the management of a RV dealer with a Auto dealer is not the same. BTW, I also was NIASE certified while I was a RV Technician from 1979 till 1988. I NEVER worked on Automobiles except for my own at home and passed all NIASE tests except Transmission and Body work (did not take them). When I started as a RV Tech, we were a Cadillac/RV dealership. The company paid each tech that passed a NIASE test and was certified 10 cents extra per hour for each certification. The Automotive side was just as you described, but my RV service manager was from the Auto side as well as our Shop Foreman. They knew Automotive but next to nothing on RV's. In an RV shop, the Service Manager needs to have people skills, not technical skills. Doug

[sowego]

Owning and operating any type of RV is a learning experience from day one until the day we sell the rig. I'm glad you got things figured out but I also am disgusted that the folks at the dealership and the ones that gave you your orientation did not point everything out to you. Everyone in an RV dealership needs to know everything they can know about each and every rig they offer for sale so they can answer questions and keep the dealership's name out of the mud.

[slemnah]

I have to disagree with part of this statement. I have been in the automotive service business for almost 40 years and have been a Master ASE technician since 1975. In my career I have been a service advisor, a shop foreman and a service manager. I obviously know quite a bit about vehicles. Many Service Advisors are hired without technical automotive experience because management does not want them to diagnose vehicles in the service lane because there are too many hidden issues that can create the problem. Their job is to accurately convey the information to the technician. The shop foreman has to know the vehicle from bumper to bumper because he is in charge of the technicians and is the main troubleshooter. If a person is assigned as a Shop Foreman without technical skills then the management of the dealership/ repair garage has made a huge mistake. The Service Manager position can either be trained in automotive repair or not. I have seen many successful examples of Service Managers with almost no technical skills but have great people skills. My two cents worth....

dougrainer wrote:

wny_pat wrote:

wildmanbaker wrote:
Well..... lets not blame the dealer, techs, or whoever. It could have been the Service scheduler, and they probably do not know everything there is to know about RVs. Or, even the sales person.

But the Service Writer is a very big part of this picture who should have known better. The service writer has to be able to diagnose the problem, and in this case he/she apparently failed. Did not know his product. And that appears to be happening at many dealerships.

1. Service writers are just THAT. They are usually not techs and have never been a tech. NOT their job to diagnois, they write the complaint, and get as much info on the complaint/s as possible.
2. Shop Forman--SAME THING, but some have been promnoted from being a tech
3. Service managers SAME THING
4. Salesmen?????? Do NOT get me started. They have NO knowledge of RV's at this type complaint. They know prices and options and possibly how some of the systems work. BUT, that is NOT their job to really know that. ALWAYS ask a saleman if he has an RV and what kind and year. If he does NOT, the odds are he knows nothing about how an RV works and functions. BUT as I stated, they do NOT need to know. They sell, thats it. The PDI/delivery tech is the one that should know. Doug

[dougrainer]

hipower wrote:
Buying from a dealer whose staff are not product users leaves you open to things like this.

I do not own an RV and have NEVER owned an RV. I have 40 years in the RV business and 34 years as a HIGHLY qualified Tech. I do not have to own or operate one to find and fix anything on an RV. HOW many A&P jet mechanics FLY and operate a 757 or any such passenger airplane? Probably less than 1 in the whole world. Yet, they keep those planes in the air. Doug

[jhilley]

tiffinboy wrote:

jhilley wrote:
It should have come up before and especially the Service Writer should have known it. This kind of ignorance is unforgivable. Anyone with common sense should have realized it wouldn't be manufactured that way.

The service writer is the ambassador between the customer and the RV tech so to speak.They are not RV techs.A service writre will learn a few tricks of the trade as they go along but to call one ignorant because he did not know the sewer outlet swiveled is not correct

He had better be more than an ambassador. If he writes it up, the tech will do it. Good way to pay for something that doesn't need to be done. That was pretty much what happened here. The service writer should be able to analyze the problem and write it up. He should be able to look at the problem, and if simple like this one, show the customer how to resolve it. I admit he should be an ambassador of good will. In this case he could have looked at it, swiveled it to the opposite direction and tell the customer he was sorry for the inconvenience and sent the customer on his way. Instead he tied up the customers motor home and inconvenienced the customer in a big way.

Did the technician identify the problem or did the OP after getting advice on the forum?

[tiffinboy]

hipower wrote:
Buying from a dealer whose staff are not product users leaves you open to things like this.

really what store can u go to in the us where every staff member knows all the product and use them all???

[hipower]

Buying from a dealer whose staff are not product users leaves you open to things like this.

[tiffinboy]

jhilley wrote:
It should have come up before and especially the Service Writer should have known it. This kind of ignorance is unforgivable. Anyone with common sense should have realized it wouldn't be manufactured that way.

The service writer is the ambassador between the customer and the RV tech so to speak.They are not RV techs.A service writre will learn a few tricks of the trade as they go along but to call one ignorant because he did not know the sewer outlet swiveled is not correct

[dougrainer]

wny_pat wrote:

wildmanbaker wrote:
Well..... lets not blame the dealer, techs, or whoever. It could have been the Service scheduler, and they probably do not know everything there is to know about RVs. Or, even the sales person.

But the Service Writer is a very big part of this picture who should have known better. The service writer has to be able to diagnose the problem, and in this case he/she apparently failed. Did not know his product. And that appears to be happening at many dealerships.

1. Service writers are just THAT. They are usually not techs and have never been a tech. NOT their job to diagnois, they write the complaint, and get as much info on the complaint/s as possible.
2. Shop Forman--SAME THING, but some have been promnoted from being a tech
3. Service managers SAME THING
4. Salesmen?????? Do NOT get me started. They have NO knowledge of RV's at this type complaint. They know prices and options and possibly how some of the systems work. BUT, that is NOT their job to really know that. ALWAYS ask a saleman if he has an RV and what kind and year. If he does NOT, the odds are he knows nothing about how an RV works and functions. BUT as I stated, they do NOT need to know. They sell, thats it. The PDI/delivery tech is the one that should know. Doug

[wallynm]

Really you have only 150 lb.ft. of torque

Cummins ISL 380 HP/150 Torque

Bob & Ann wrote:
dbontherun
Glad to hear that it was a swivel sewer system as I thought it was. Fleetwood is too big and good of a company to let something like that happen. Sorry that you lost a week in the process. Now that you have everything figured out just go have fun and try to wear it out. happy camping.