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Problems found on a new trailer

FF286
Explorer
Explorer
We have owned 3 FW and now a pop up, all used. We are thinking about getting a new trailer. Not sure yet if we want a TT or 5er. I've read a lot of post on here about people having to take them back for warranty repairs but was wondering what kind of problems do most of y'all find with new campers.
24 REPLIES 24

SidecarFlip
Explorer III
Explorer III
If RV manufacturers were consistent in providing the quality of construction that they brag about (like 'Amish' craftsmanship) which by the way is phooey, no owner would have the issues they do.

All goes back to the 'build 'em cheap, stack 'em deep' philosophy. I know Berkshire Hathaway makes money on Forrest River. If they didn't, they would dump them. Buffet isn't stupid by a long shot.

For what they cost, there should be very few issues.
2015 Backpack SS1500
1997 Ford 7.3 OBS 4x4 CC LB

time2roll
Nomad
Nomad
Some interior trim was loose on mine. Dealer fixed it.

Toilet seal was defective. Dometic sent me a new revised seal free for self install. Swap was easier than driving to the dealer.

Took it in to complain about the tires and alignment. Dealer did nothing. Junk tires and weak springs arose later on so I paid.

Had an intermittent water leak. Dealer could not find it. Turns out when water heater goes full cold to full hot the expanding water and increased pressure would temporarily cause a pump fitting to leak. New hoses and a small SureFlow expansion tank cured the problem and the symptom.

Been pretty good over all.

myredracer
Explorer II
Explorer II
FWs *can* have many of the same issues but also have their own unique problems once in a while liked cracked frames in the pin box area. Were just in a couple of CGs and two different FW owners backed into their campers with the tailgates still down. Oops. One was a brand new truck & FW. The other guy spent the next 2 days hammering away on his tailgate before heading out. Think I'll just stick with a TT...

Had our TT into the dealer once to get a number of things on a list attended to under warranty. They balked at some of them and the service manager said "it's just a travel trailer". I was not amused. :M

Some often say they build TTs with poor quality because buyers do want to pay more for better quality. I don't agree. Sure, some want a low cost unit but it's pretty much impossible to learn what might be built better in the market. If anyone has owned a house or two or more and a few vehicles, there's some level of expectation that an RV will be similar. But alas, there is a lack of industry regulations and inspections and the manufacturers get away with pumping out poor quality. When we bought our first TT, we had no idea what we were getting into and wasn't until I started to read RV forums that I learned what it was really like out there. A higher priced TT doesn't equate to higher quality.

After owning 3 different TTs, I could write a book on all the problems we've had. Even had one complete TT replaced under warranty due to cr*ppy design/construction.

avoidcrowds
Explorer
Explorer
We purchased a Lance 1995 in March. Have had it out on a number of trips. No problem with the build, but just had it into an axle shop, as it pulled squirrely. Turns out the wheel hubs were not tight on one side (both axles). So, that was a Dexter problem, not a Lance problem. Have not heard back from Dexter for my claim under warranty. Maybe Dexter doesn't care, once it is out of their factory.

But, we love the Lance. Most people on the Lance forum seem to have had good luck with their new trailers. Yes, some have problems, but none to the extent listed above. Can't say all Lance trailers are built great, but mine was, especially when compared to those listed above.
2017.5 Lance 1995
2017 F150 EcoBoost, Max Tow
Most camping off-road

goducks10
Explorer
Explorer
We have a 2013 Northwood MFG Fox Mountain 5th wheel. We've had very few issues in the 5 seasons of camping. We would like to get another trailer, 5th wheel or TT, but we're not sure if we want to risk getting a POS. At this point in time it looks like it would be another NW or maybe Outdoor RV unit. They just seem to have way fewer big issues. They still have the small issue stuff like the rest.
Problem is they don't have a floor plan we want. We would prefer something along the lines of a Grand Design 303RLS. After looking at Grand Design and spending the better part of 3 years reading their owners forum, I've come to the conclusion that they are really just another Elkhart ID RV. Great customer service, but I got that at NW. What I want is an RV that I don't need great customer service. Right now we're just staying put as we've had no issues other than routine maintenance in the last 4.5 years of use.
Many other owners have had the same good fortune as we've had with other brands. But many have had worse problems. It's really a **** shoot in the end.

Ralph_Cramden
Explorer II
Explorer II
dodge guy wrote:
My first Forest River Cherokee lite an 05, I had no problems with. then we bought our current 07 Cherokee and had to have the radio replaced under warranty. that`s it!


That's great. Now go out and buy a 2017 or 2018 Cherokee and see if you get the same results. You may but my money would be on you wont.

There is a huge difference between 05 and 07 as opposed to now. Heck, IMO opinion there is a huge difference between 2010/2012 and now based on my experiences with the trailers in my sig.
Too many geezers, self appointed moderators, experts, and disappearing posts for me. Enjoy. How many times can the same thing be rehashed over and over?

SidecarFlip
Explorer III
Explorer III
Crimp clamps are fine if and I say if, applied properly, but a Witek stainless steel worm clamp and a barbed connector is better because you can retighten it for one and it's removable if you need to repair / replace something. However, at the factory a worm clamp takes too much time to use and skill to set properly, so they aren't used.

Poor, hurry up production techniques equal end user issues.
2015 Backpack SS1500
1997 Ford 7.3 OBS 4x4 CC LB

Hannibal
Explorer
Explorer
I just fixed our first problem with our 15 month old '17 Jayco 28RLS. Could have lead to a big problem. The hose connections on the shower faucet were weeping very slightly but enough to make a puddle on the floor in the hallway. I removed the crimp clamps, put some 3M marine sealant on the connectors and a couple of screw type stainless hose clamps.
2020 F250 STX CC SB 7.3L 10spd 3.55 4x4
2010 F250 XLT CC SB 5.4L 5spdTS 3.73
ex '95 Cummins,'98 12v Cummins,'01.5 Cummins,'03 Cummins; '05 Hemi
2017 Jayco 28RLS TT 32.5'

SidecarFlip
Explorer III
Explorer III
FR has been touting their 'shine bay' where supposedly every unit gets a through pre-ship inspection and build issues are corrected before the unit leaves the factory.

Sounds like phooey to me.

The 'shine bay' is probably the employees lunchroom.

QC isn't about end build inspection anyway. It's about doing the build correctly as it's being built and paying attention to proper build procedures, not a 'band aid' fix at the end of the production line.

Like I said in a previous post, builders CAN assemble a unit correctly if they want to and take their time to do it correctly, but when pushed by production quota's, personnel get sloppy and it shows in the end result with issues for the buyer.

If RV builders really cared about their products, you'd think (obviiously not correct) that all builders would have a multi-year warranty against all defects, not a year, which is basically no warranty at all.
2015 Backpack SS1500
1997 Ford 7.3 OBS 4x4 CC LB

SidecarFlip
Explorer III
Explorer III
1320Fastback wrote:
Water leaks around window and exterior light, soft shower floor due to no support, electrical outlets mounted to vaneer only and not studs.


Be careful about the soft 'unsupported' shower pan floor. Reason being, the flex in the pan floor will eventually crack the moulded in flange around the shower drain and it will leak and ruin the floor below the pan. 2 fixes. One, add support from the bottom (a job to get in there and correct it or Two, add a teak shower mat like I did. The teak mat spreads your weight over the entire area and lessens the 'flex' and prolongs the life of the pan flange and provides a dry, non slip surface too.

Pretty common issue in RV's today.
2015 Backpack SS1500
1997 Ford 7.3 OBS 4x4 CC LB

dodge_guy
Explorer II
Explorer II
My first Forest River Cherokee lite an 05, I had no problems with. then we bought our current 07 Cherokee and had to have the radio replaced under warranty. that`s it!
Wife Kim
Son Brandon 17yrs
Daughter Marissa 16yrs
Dog Bailey

12 Forest River Georgetown 350TS Hellwig sway bars, BlueOx TrueCenter stabilizer

13 Ford Explorer Roadmaster Stowmaster 5000, VIP Tow>
A bad day camping is
better than a good day at work!

Ralph_Cramden
Explorer II
Explorer II
jim1521 wrote:
I purchased a 2016 Grand Design Reflections 313RLTS. It's the make, model, floor plan, size, and even color that we wanted. It is in near-showroom shape (front cap has some scuffs from run in with some tree branches). Other than that it's great. I went over it with a fine tooth comb one Sunday at the dealership. Even brought my own Sherline tongue weight scale to verify numbers. There wasn't a thing wrong with it. The trailer must have been built on a Tuesday or a Wednesday because everything fits, works, slides, stops, rolls, and squats just like it's supposed to.

And I saved $21,000 by buying it instead of new. I bought it for $29,000 +++

Now the ones that might have been built on a Monday morning or a Friday afternoon may have been another story altogether, but this one of mine is built perfect.

My point is it all comes down not just to the company, but the pride in workmanship of the person signing off on that QA slip.


What QA slip? QA and QC are lip service in the RV Industry. Plenty of claims on websites and brochures is all. In my prior long winded post, that unit was a Forest River Rockwood Roo 23WS, the same as we ultimatly purchased. It was built on a Wednesday by the way. The day it arrived at the dealer they allowed me to inspect it. I brought my own ladder and a tarp.

After all those problems were discovered I had at least 5 conversations with management at the factory. The dealer generated every bit of $5000 worth of required repairs and Rockwood approved all of them. This was on a trailer with an MSRP of 32K which we were paying 19K for. I was actually going to let the dealer do these repairs. 6 weeks later without Rockwood sending the required parts and a few more conversations with factory management, I pulled the plug and demanded either a new one be built or a refund of the hand money we forked over when the order was placed.

Now we had another wait of a little less than 10 weeks and was assured by the factory that this unit would be pulled from the line and inspected in what they call a QC section division pull. Supposedly they have a group that goes to their different brand facilities and pulls a random unit for a going over. It then goes to their much advertised dedicated QC facility that in actuality sees maybe 1% of all units produced. I am probably being generous with 1%. The second unit was night and day better than the 1st so they can build a good one. It still had a few minor issues. It was built on a Friday by the way.

However they lost me for life as a customer when the water tank supports on the 2nd unit failed on the way home after purchase. I had the PDI tech leave it 2/3 full to see how the trailer pulled. Forest River him hawed, pawned it off on Lippert under the component clause, and frame warranty. Lippert would not give a definitive answer as to when they would send a factory tech to the dealership. They wanted us to drop it off at dealer and when their tech was in the area would repair the supports at their convienence. An open ended proposition and Rockwood washed their hands of it. I ended up breaking out the MIG and steel and correcting that issue myself. I added a 2nd tank at the time and doubled the water capacity.

As far as Grand Design I have looked over a good number of their units at shows and on dealer lots and can not see the over and above build quality, fit and finish. I see a lot of the out the door, slap them together mentality on their product also. I have read and have heard first hand from a friend who owns a GD 5er, the support after the sale is outstanding. Forest Rivers support after the sale is more about pawning it off on suppliers and vendors hoping that you give up due to frustration, and just go away. By then the warranty clock has hopefully expired.
Too many geezers, self appointed moderators, experts, and disappearing posts for me. Enjoy. How many times can the same thing be rehashed over and over?

1320Fastback
Explorer
Explorer
Water leaks around window and exterior light, soft shower floor due to no support, electrical outlets mounted to vaneer only and not studs.
1992 D250 Cummins 5psd
2005 Forest River T26 Toy Hauler

ScottG
Nomad
Nomad
RinconVTR wrote:
New or used...they all have problems. Always have.

I own a Grand Design unit, touted to be one of the highest quality builds out there. They are not!


Actually, I think GD, like NW stuff, is some of the highest quality RV's out there.
It's just all relative. Kinda like getting the highest quality steak at Denny's!