Dealer walk through, what would you do the second time?

[Haynaorno]

Getting our new Surveyor 225t on Friday. Used to pop up camp In a Coleman but its been a decade. What would you do on your shakedown trip if you had a second chance?

[real4u2c]

Partner this is what we did, I had my dealer have their Lead Mechanic show me how to troubleshoot basic items associated with my particular htt. Now that was as he was also walking me through operator orientation, ie' manual slide crank arm location, H2O filter location, electric tongue lift over ride, does the mattress have heat. Another thing the wife and I did was talk to the parts staff prior to even seeking help with sales department, they know what models are having the costly repairs, recalls, and the sort. Go looking on rain , snow, windy days. This way you can inspect the quality of the equipment.

[docnascar]

Congrats on the new camper.

My second time around I would take it for a test drive. The brakes vibrate on mine and I have yet had luck getting the dealer to want to fix them. They lied to me and said it was normal. I didn't know better at the time. Next month I'm going somewhere else and getting them fixed regardless.

Taking a video is a great idea. Easy to forget stuff.

LOL at the awning comments. That so happened to us. Forgot how to put it out and was unhooking things I should have left alone. Almost shoved the awning into the camper windows. Lessons learned but now I can do the awning like I'm a pro.

Make sure if they install your receiver that it is properly torqued or risk what happened to me.

[Haynaorno]

Weekend went great thanks for all the help on walk through. Had to check the notes a couple times but overall no crisis. Electric HW was more than enough for our needs' it is very hot, did not expect that much temp. What a difference from the pop up on having hot water! Found I still like to cook outside, may need to upgrade my outside kitchen to newer gas stove. I did not get an outside gas hook up on the camper, has anyone spliced one in? Would need a flaring tool and hardware but thought I'd check if its been done aftermarket.

As for the Taco, three things it will never see while towing- 7000 ft, 70mph and 5th gear :-). We knew that going in so no surprise. It's the perfect truck for us 95percent of the time and we'll take it real easy while towing. Very stable, just underpowered for sure. That said, we towed the pop up with 1988 5.0l Chevy truck with 175hp and 3.08 rear and the taco feels like a diesel compared so all perspective I suppose.

Thanks all, let me know if you mod'd a camp stove. For now a tank stand will work just fine.

[dadmomh]

My understanding that the WH does recover faster on propane than electric. DH just flips the switch to the WH during regular set up so it's ready whenever we are. Have never had a problem running out of hot water either showering or dishwashing....just getting used to turning the water off and on rather than letting it run. Same thing with the frig - cools faster on propane, but changes over to electric at the CG. We've never needed to speed up either process. We figure we're paying for electric with the site fee, so that's what gets used.

[bikendan]

just a comment, that trailer is going to be an issue for your Taco, when you start getting in the mountains. with an actual weight of around 4500lbs. from the factory, you can easily be in the 5500lbs. loaded for camping range.
that v-6 can probably handle the flats but it will struggle in places like the Rockies or Sierras or a strong headwind.

[Haynaorno]

It's home! My wife took pictures and notes the entire review, we saved video on the ipad of each componet and towing set up. Towing with WDH and Sway control was calm but not too fast, raining heavy on way home. One question that we have is running the hot water heater on Gas vs. electric, my guess is quicker recovery on gas but using the CG's electric would have some upside on saving LP. Anyone notice a difference between the 2 systems in performance?

BTW- the tech was awesome and spent over 4 hours no concern or question left by the time we were ready to leave.

[bikendan]

Have the water System pressurized and make sure it all works, especially the outside shower.
And spend the first nite nearby, in case other issues pop up.

[Oasisbob]

I reccomend setting a time so as to give the dealer time to have all appliances working and do a check for water and hoank leaks. Ask for a soak down and interior pressure test to search out leaks. You will find a few. Be sure you get all the hoses, cords adaptors etc you paid for. I have done this on my last purchase and was glad I did.

[Cotay]

I would actually do one. We had ours delivered and did not have an opportunity to walk through. It wasn't even offered to us...they delivered it filthy with bird droppings all over the tents. We love the Aerolite, but this is the last unit I'll ever buy from Best RV in Turlock. I will gladly pay extra elsewhere given the lack of response from the dealer post-sale.

[dadmomh]

Nothing needed for the seams other than some water. The thread that's used swells when it gets wet the first time and fills in any little needle holes. If it's not a rainy day (Yea!!), just take the water hose and give them a quick rinse off and let air dry. If you see a drip or two inside not to panic.

[rockhillmanor]

phenrichs wrote:
I agree with the video thing. Or at least note EVERYTHING they tell you. The most important info they give you is for the just in case stuff that you probably won't run into until a year or two later. Then you have forgotten the instructions.

Like the manual slide operation

and such.

X2.
I can't keep count on how MANY campers I have helped put their slide in when something mechanical/electrical went wrong, because they did NOT know HOW to put the slide in manually!

[phenrichs]

I agree with the video thing. Or at least note EVERYTHING they tell you. The most important info they give you is for the just in case stuff that you probably won't run into until a year or two later. Then you have forgotten the instructions. Like the manual slide operation and such.

[Haynaorno]

Thanks for all the great suggestions. We set up four hours with tech and i started an excel list for shakedown. I assume all appliances will also be demonstrated, do they hook up power or just show you where to push, ignite etc...? We have a local state park planned for the weekend (within 10 miles) last question, is there a need to use a seam sealer on tent stitching?

Thanks!

2012 Tacoma DCLB
225T Surveyor

[dadmomh]

Take your time! We just did our PDI on our second new camper since '06. Thought we pretty much knew what was what...not even close. Times have changed, systems have changed, everything is located somewhere different than you're used to. DH and I had pretty much made a plan on what each of us was going to focus on, but that changed once we got started. The tech was very helpful and didn't rush us at all. If you feel rushed, just remind them that this is a big ticket item and you want to be sure you know what's what. Make sure that there is water in the water heater - found that out from our first, which didn't have water already filled. New element from the dealer with apologies. Slide, awning, stove, refrig, oven. Ask that they have some water in the fresh tank and check all the faucets and underneath in cabinets for leaks.

I don't know about overnighting at the dealer's lot, but if there is a CG very, very close, that's where I would plan the first night. We were only about 3 miles away and found a couple of minor things, so we called that afternoon, made a quick stop in the morning and they took care of them right away. You certainly could ask about overnighting. If you have kids, though they may be excited, if you can leave them home, all the better. You'll have enough to deal with signing a zillion papers and then towing a new trailer + figuring out what the heck you've just bought. Plan a Camp Driveway ASAP for them. It's an exciting and fun time....once you get a couple of Tylenol for that headache and maybe a glass or two and a few minutes to relax. Enjoy, the rest is easy(ier).