Frustration !

[YIKES]

Trying to keep this short: With the following givens, what would you exercise as options.

Purchased new a 2013 Starcraft Autumn Ridge 265RLS (5 of 2013).
Dealership is a biggie in Sales, RV parts and Accessories.
Problems with TT almost right from get go.
Currently 6 Work Orders written for failures of this and that.
Ownership at this moment is 22 1/2 months.
Time in the shop for repairs is 300 days, or 10 months.

Footnote: The bank who holds the loan, does not grant grace for Out of Service. Neither does the operation where the TT is stored, when not in use.

This last trip, TT was in shop for 9 months.
Repairs made, but a total failure on these repairs.

TT has to go back in to correct what was supposed to have been corrected, in those last 9 months.

Tried going up the chain of authority for what I would term as a 'Hardship'.
Result was 0 (zero).

That may not be the right word (hardship), but you can picture the Frustration.

First thought, sell it---Does conscience allow me to pass problems to an unsuspecting party ?

Any ideas out there ????????????????
john

[Crabman]

It seems you got a bad unit or a really bad dealer that cannot/will not fix the unit or both, I cannot imagine what could take 9 months to repair when they can build a new one in 7 hours. Has the dealer offered you any kind of a break on a trade in for a new one for all your aggravation?

[314BHDS]

Attach a 20 foot metal rod to it before a lightning storm and hope it gets struck and burns down,haha. All kidding aside,i have issues with mine but not as serious as yours.Mine has been to dealer 6 times for same heater issue,it doesn't work!!!I travel for work and stay in my trailer and having no heat sucks in the fall and winter.I would pursue the lemon law if possible,some states I believe are very helpful with it,be persistent with manufacturer,the dealer just sells them and repairs them,they don't seem as concerned but they could be helpful with replacement if manufacturer is hesistant.

[BigJohnD]

Longest I've ever left one at a dealer was 2 weeks I think, and that was a front cap change out and slide floor change out on our last fifth wheel. And 2 weeks was too long really. The paint shop for the cap is what took the longest. Slide floor, a matter of hours, front cap, a matter of hours, waiting in line at the paint shop, a while.


Do you have the option for another service place? I always prefer a private service place opposed to a dealer. The private party has no interest in selling, and makes their living fixing.

[Grumpy]

Originally Posted by YIKES

Dealership is a biggie in Sales, RV parts and Accessories.

But apparently lousy when it comes to service.

What keeps breaking?

[YIKES]

Originally Posted by Crabman

It seems you got a bad unit or a really bad dealer that cannot/will not fix the unit or both, I cannot imagine what could take 9 months to repair when they can build a new one in 7 hours. Has the dealer offered you any kind of a break on a trade in for a new one for all your aggravation?

Crabman has come very close.

I was sent to another dealer (under the same company). I was treated well by the Manager, until he assigned me to a Sales Person.

UH-OH. This is not going to be good !------He showed me different units to trade up or down to----All I remember was the Sales person saying "the Manager really knows how to work the numbers"----Sounded like a beartrap to me. My wife and I are going for a ride and going to get stung

Exercised option----Got outta' there real quick.
John-----Really ? Good at working the numbers !!!!!!

[BigJohnD]

Really what? Simply made a post about my experience one time and another option. Don't know what all is wrong with your rig. I've seen dealers take months to fix something that takes hours. Lack of knowledge, trouble with getting parts, could be anything. Not enough info to really know anything. Are we talking bent frame or worse? Care to elaborate on what all is wrong with it?


Guess I missed something or you took something the wrong way.

[Murff]

Originally Posted by BigJohnD

Really what? Simply made a post about my experience one time and another option. Don't know what all is wrong with your rig. I've seen dealers take months to fix something that takes hours. Lack of knowledge, trouble with getting parts, could be anything. Not enough info to really know anything. Are we talking bent frame or worse? Care to elaborate on what all is wrong with it?


Guess I missed something or you took something the wrong way.

A little more detail would be good.

To the extreme, you might ask an attorney what you can put on a great big sign that you could mount on the side of your trailer advertising what a screw over you got from this dealer and park it as close to their lot as possible for all to see.

They might settle with you to take away to take the sign down.

Murff

[YIKES]

For Big John & Murph:

My really was directed at other dealership. The last thing I wanted to hear was a rep saying "working the numbers" REALLY !

Details: Try to keep short;

Rear picture window valance kept coming off, a few times. Had no idea water was running down between paneling and outside off TT siding.

One of the times the valance came off, I noticed carpeting was wet.

Solution: Dealer to replace rear picture window. Never replaced just re-caulked.

Damage to panel. One broken in shipment, one delivered wrong color, one lost in shipment. Dealer now has right panel, but leak is still there.

Estimate to repair leak from TT tech $1,500, due to insulation between floor and bottom covering has to be replaced (10 hours labor on that alone). While dealer was putting old panel back on they cracked a side panel (during rear cabinet replacement). I don't have a cost on that.

It is a maze, I hope you get the drift. John

[clubhouse]

Does Starcraft not get a 2 year warranty? If so who cares what it costs to fix something, you are paying it. If not, well that's a different story.

If you are anything like me you will never like this RV. Even if it gets fixed your are only going to see all the problems, lost use, lost time, and it will never be enjoyable.

I would sell it and move on. Let me be clear however, I would not pawn off the problems on the next guy. I would be very clear about its past and any present concerns and price it accordingly. There are folks who love these projects and would be happy to get a problem plagued late model for a good price.

Otherwise I would be back to the dealer and see how good they are with the numbers. It might be less costly for you.

No matter what I suspect you are going to lose money. I am sorry for that.

[Gone campin]

I think I would have looked into how they could work the numbers... They probably planned to push your defective trade back to the manufacturer some how and were going to get you something with minimal loss on your part to keep your business. If they were talking about a trade on a new unit with those statements, you may have run from the best option you have... just my opinion...

[YIKES]

Through a 3rd and 4th party there appears to have been movement with my FRUSTRATION problem.

I called the Dealership and I believe my request for help may have been heard.

If this is true, I am quickly working on a 'return for repair with conditions'. No I am not looking for monetary compensation.

I should know something by Tuesday 1/12. Let's see where this is going.

Hold on for a bit, I will get back to you & thanks for your input.

John

[maromeo]

I do understand your frustration. We also lost 10 months of out of service on our new previous unit. It was a similar model as yours and the Jayco's first year model. Most of our issues were caused by the dealer while under warranty. They were trying to adjust the slide and it came crashing down on the floor causing 2 18" gashes in the wood flooring and rips in the linoleum almost 2 feet each. It also cracked the slide side walls. The aluminum siding bulged out while driving between the master bedroom window and the front if the TT. The table would never sit level. The facia on the side of slide fell off. The storage compartment under the couch could not be accessed until they trimmed the facia trim at the bottom. The dealer replaced the whole flooring but not with the same flooring but with a different linoleum. So what was in the cabinets and under the bed were different. After 8 months it started to curl at the edges which caused us to catch our shoes on the edges. It was taken back to dealer at least twice for regluing. The repaired slide leaked when it rained. Carpet under the couch was soaked. Every time we look the unit in for warranty work we would find exterior damage. Dented aluminum, they replaced. Dented the A frame hitch while moving unit with the fork lift. They painted it. I soon began to dislike the previous unit due to all the issues and repairs. So 6 months after warranty expired we saw a consigned unit of the floorpan that we loved, so much more additional storage and a bigger bed for our DD. When we inquired about a new unit the new unit was less than the consigns unit. We sat down with the dealer owner and showed our folder of repairs. He said he would back our unit as a trade. The numbers were more than our unit was worth we came out better than we paid for the unit. They ordered the new unit with nothing down with the stipulation that we have to look at it first before we would do any paperwork. We had everything in writing so we were good. So needless to say the dealer took the unit back but it was not sold. We negotiated the new unit with prices from RV Direct. They came within a few hundred. That was perfect since we did not have to pick up. The new unit was all setup, cleaned and ready for us to view which we did and did try everything during the viewing. Needless to say we signed and had a thorough PDI. So far no major issues, only the LED awning light strip not a biggie since we installed a porch light so we are covered when the strip goes out.

Sorry for the length but I do understand the frustration. I have a huge folder full.

On a side note the dealer has revamped the service dept only 2 techs former are remaining. I wish them luck don't think we will be going back.

[wags999]

I probably would take it to an independent repair center and pay for the repairs and move on. Not worth the aggravation to get warranty service it appears.

[YIKES]

This will be my final response until I get a decision from the Dealership. I don't want to tie up the Board with my thoughts of 'what if'.

I hope to know something shortly. Biting the bullet and taking a hit financially, is tough to do at our age. Fixed Income and all that good stuff.

An example: Going legal (Attorney) a Retainer is $1,500 then $200 / hour for costs. Most don't even want to touch the subject. Assumption is the yield to them is not worth it.

Outta' here for now.

john

[norty1]

I agree, What if's do not solve anything. Please post the resolution because it can help others in decision making no matter how it goes.

Hoping they make you happy, after all you are the customer.

[Cdash]

Originally Posted by YIKES

This will be my final response until I get a decision from the Dealership. I don't want to tie up the Board with my thoughts of 'what if'.

I hope to know something shortly. Biting the bullet and taking a hit financially, is tough to do at our age. Fixed Income and all that good stuff.

An example: Going legal (Attorney) a Retainer is $1,500 then $200 / hour for costs. Most don't even want to touch the subject. Assumption is the yield to them is not worth it.

Outta' here for now.

john

Any chance it can be taken back to the factory for repairs? That's what I would try for. I'd be willing to blow a few days and the fuel, even though I shouldn't have to.