Warranty issues fix them or take it to the dealer

[AKRUEBBE]

Originally Posted by poohbear

I only had a slide problem while in warranty and ONLY took a month to get fixed at dealer. Probably it took 30 minutes to diagnos, 1 1/2 hours top to replace motor, 30 minutes paper work. Our problem we RV'ers have is dealers are NOT in a service industry, just a sales industry.
Dealers and mfg's should all have dedicated staff for warranty especially for those that have major problems right away. I see these problems thru a mindset of running my AC service business for 31 years. Warranty problems were a priority, they had to be taken care of. I also see poor workmanship/quality control along with cheaply made parts is a major part of warranty issues.

At $125 per hour, why wouldn't they like the service industry. The techs probably only see $25 to $30 of that.

[poohbear]

Originally Posted by AKRUEBBE

At $125 per hour, why wouldn't they like the service industry. The techs probably only see $25 to $30 of that.

I doubt most rv techs make that. I went with a friend with a Grand Design to a dealer for his 3rd warranty service since pickup in March. One of his major issue wasn't fixed . 3 techs stood there not having a clue how to fix a leaking shower door.
I just don't see makeing an appointment for warranty say a month out, take it back, then 2 months or more they call and say it's fixed. Most warranty is probably things like slide motors, sealant, bad plumbing connection, & maybe bad AC. These should be parts in stock. Service my rv as fast as you worked to sell me this $60-70 thousand or more rig.
Not all have this problem. Buy a million dollar Newmar MH as my BiL did and those guys jump on it if trouble. They act like he might comeback for another one.

[RetiredOne]

Originally Posted by AKRUEBBE

At $125 per hour, why wouldn't they like the service industry. The techs probably only see $25 to $30 of that.

The techs in the RV industry probably only see $15 - $20 of that.

The question is, how much do the dealers get reimbursed by Jayco for warranty work, and how much does Jayco expect them to eat, as part of their markup from the resale of the rig? I don't know how it's handled in the RV industry, but Jayco might make the dealers do a lot of warranty labor for nothing, only reimbursing defective parts.

When I worked in the medical equipment industry, we had to eat ALL the warranty labor ourselves, but most of the equipment was well made, so it wasn't that much.

Based on how marginally a RV rig is built, and the lack of many people unable to fix any issues, the dealers get swamped. Plus, I'm sure the RV industry doesn't get the best and brightest techs, as you see by how many times people have to bring their rigs back for the same problem.

Then, besides all the warranty work, the dealers are swamped with out of warranty service too, with all the inferior equipment installed by the manufacturers and self caused issues by owners...

[poohbear]

Same in the AC business, paid only on labor for DOA compressors . I also allways included an extended warranty that paid decent on my higher end systems. I handled the low warranty pay by moving 2% of every invoice be it service or systems to an account for warranty. This way I had a fund to bill myself when doing labor not being reimbursed for. Thru the years I had a small nest egg at retirement closeout.

[SecondRetirement]

Full timing and can’t live with dealers that don’t care after the sale. I have had good luck talking straight to the original equipment suppliers and have had parts sent to me out of sympathy.
They have all heard about the pathetic service in the RV industry. Grab a wrench.

[brandsberg]

Call Jayco and get them to reimburse you for the parts, or Domentic whichever applies.

[brandsberg]

Send the bills to Jayco. service@jayco.com. We are getting rerimbursed by Jayco and Domentic.

[Charlie G]

My first RV was not a Jayco. (2017) bought it in Oct and took it out one time. Noticed what looked like some air bubbles in roof membrane. Called dealer, asked if that was okay or needed to be looked at. They advised it needed to me looked at but could not look at for two months. Took it in they kept it until March. When I went to pick it up there was a lot of paperwork to sign and it all looked Greek to me. They told me that it was normal for the membrane to bubble up in spots and did no repairs.
When I went to hook up I noticed there was a new jack. The guy helping me said that my old one was bent and would not work. That I must have parked it on a hill and bent it. (I knew that was not true and it was pristine when I took it in) Then I noticed a mark on my frame leading to the ball hitch. Then I noticed the cover on propane tanks was different. Took it off and the pan holding the tanks was bent up, the butterfly lockdown for the tanks was damaged and one of the tanks had the base severely damaged. Further inspection showed the light at front was broken and three light covers were missing.
I don’t know what they did to my trailer but it never felt the same.
So in July I went to another dealer and bought a new travel trailer.
Took it out to a campground nearby just to test it out. Found four minor problems. Took it by the dealer on the way home. Said it would be six weeks before they could look at it...
Meet the new boss, same as the old boss...

[Florida Ranger]

Your warranty ran out when you drove out of the dealers lot. Also Jayco dealers are not required by Jayco to fix your camper if you did not buy it from them. Jayco can only ask a dealer to repair camper under warranty but can not and does not have any way to force dealer to make a repair. Some dealers will not even make the repair if you $ pay for it. Because you did not buy it from them. Also Quality Control does not happen at most RV manufacturers....Just fix everything you can yourself......

[MaxDMax]

Originally Posted by Charlie G

My first RV was not a Jayco. (2017) bought it in Oct and took it out one time. Noticed what looked like some air bubbles in roof membrane. Called dealer, asked if that was okay or needed to be looked at. They advised it needed to me looked at but could not look at for two months. Took it in they kept it until March. When I went to pick it up there was a lot of paperwork to sign and it all looked Greek to me. They told me that it was normal for the membrane to bubble up in spots and did no repairs.
When I went to hook up I noticed there was a new jack. The guy helping me said that my old one was bent and would not work. That I must have parked it on a hill and bent it. (I knew that was not true and it was pristine when I took it in) Then I noticed a mark on my frame leading to the ball hitch. Then I noticed the cover on propane tanks was different. Took it off and the pan holding the tanks was bent up, the butterfly lockdown for the tanks was damaged and one of the tanks had the base severely damaged. Further inspection showed the light at front was broken and three light covers were missing.
I don’t know what they did to my trailer but it never felt the same.
So in July I went to another dealer and bought a new travel trailer.
Took it out to a campground nearby just to test it out. Found four minor problems. Took it by the dealer on the way home. Said it would be six weeks before they could look at it...
Meet the new boss, same as the old boss...

This is another good reason to not take your RV back to the dealer for repair if you can avoid it. No telling what is going to happen to your RV while it sits for weeks if not months at the RV dealership awaiting repairs.

The RV industry better be thinking about the Millennials and the X/Y generation and understand they are not fixers like the previous generations and fix their service issues. Else they will surely fail in the long run.

[Charlie G]

My first was a micro Lite by Forrest River. I bought it from an approved dealer.
This one is a jayco...and I purchased it from an approved dealer that assured me during the sales process that repair work and warranty work would be no problem. Not only that... I purchase the priority package which is supposed to put me at the front of the line.

[Florida Ranger]

RV dealers are just like car dealers, they will tell you anything to get you to buy.

[DJNavyDavy]

Just thought I'd share my experience as a first time TT owner. Bought and brought my trailer home after a 825 mile drive. Noticed following day that my 28 inch Furrion TV had large areas on the screen where the pixels were out. I called up my local Camper World and they told me they weren't certified to work on Jayco TT's. Found out that my closest repair facility was 120 miles away. Called them up and provided pictures and serial number. They submitted the warranty order and they called me a week and a half later and said come get. They told me to just bring the TV and and swap it. Much cheaper to run down in my car especially with the wind blowing the way it was. Good experience thus far.

[Huffy]

We have a 27.5 and we’ve also had a ton of issues including a power inverter that had one of the connections broken off! My husband jerry rigged it so we could have heat but we had to bring it to a dealer for replacement while traveling. We haven’t been able to use our fiver for 2 months now due to waiting for parts and scheduling. Our current repair list is over 30 items long including our large slide where the entire gear system is gone! We got our trailer in May! Very disappointed in Jayco quality control.

[Charlie G]

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Thanks

[mharrison]

We have had good luck so far, the first issue was the water heater like many others. Called our dealer and made an appointment, pulled up by their shop and parked. While I was inside at the desk taking care of the paperwork a guy was already changing the faulty board and testing the heater to make sure it cycled right. I went back out and talked to the repairman and he asked if there was anything else he could do for me, never unhitched it from the truck. I had some minor issues like a sticking entry door and the tub 2x4 brace was located over the hole for the p-trap and not supporting the floor. I fixed that stuff myself.

This same dealer treated my daughter's family very well when they bought their popup and so we bought from the same place. No high pressure sales and didn't try to talk me into anything I didn't want during the TT purchase.

[jkkinder]

Originally Posted by Nature Ist

I am going through the same issues with a brand new 2020 Eagle HT fifth wheel. In July, on our first camping trip, we discovered the AC would not cool. Long story short, on July 9th the dealer ordered a new unit under warranty. It is now September 5th and I still don't have the new unit installed. Someone forgot to place the order for the replacement AC unit! My DVD player also failed on the same first camping trip. I still don't have the new one!
I have discovered leaks, a disconnected rod for the gray water tank drain valve, loose bolts and missing nuts and washers on the floor frame outrigger bolts, and on one of the 3 slide units, the factory installed the slide so far to one side of the rough opening that all but one screw from the outside attaching the slide to the frame had missed the frame and threaded into nothing. When opening the slide, the whole side would separate from the frame. I could go on with the complete list, but the point is that there is no way we can wait for weeks or months to have a dealer attempt to repair these issues. My poor experience with what I did try to have the dealer fix has been very frustrating. All summer with an AC that apparently never had any refrigerant put in it in the first place...how does this get all the way to me without quality control or the dealer never actually testing it for performance. (Granted, the unit did sound like it was running and the compressor did start)
So, I have spent many hours troubleshooting and repairing things I have found to be wrong.
I could go on a rant about how disappointed I am in Jayco. In 2019,I sold a Jayco Eagle TT we bought new in 2007, it was virtually free of any defects. The few things that needed attention under warranty were handled efficiently and in a timely fashion.

I feel much more confident making repairs myself. I am well experienced in engineering and mechanical/building/electrical trades and find the attention to detail pathetic! Pinched wires, one screw through a 110V Romex wire in the basement that I discovered literally by chance, not to mention a mattress that has permanent depressions where we sleep after only 2 weeks (I'm 195 lbs and my wife is 115 lbs) of use!
Sadly, for those owners who are not mechanically inclined, knowledgeable, or with the necessary tools, there is little hope for resolution to these kinds of issues. Shame on the entire system from Jayco's factory all the way down individuals at each dealership!

I couldn't agree more! My hubby is not mechanical or electrical his expertise is in other areas! I think Jayco is running on blue sky & their reputation is going down the drain mainly due to quality control or lack thereof but also their dealers! The dealers are the link between Jayco & their customers & dealers are definitely the weak link! Too far apart, wait times for service are ridiculous, service people are rude & unhelpful & costs are high! I think Jayco is a good company but they need to correct the issues customers are facing with service or their reputation will be as high as the lowest point of service for their customers!

[mharrison]

I forgot to name our dealer in my earlier post about the good service we had, https://www.trailsiderv.net/. Pre delivery inspection was us going into their shop and an employee going through every detail of the TT with us from the propane to the radio. Last July we bought a 195RB, used it a lot and had no issues with it but the DW wanted something a little bigger (she didn't like brushing her teeth at the kitchen sink). So in January we traded up to the 212QB, the dealer asked if we were sure we wanted to take the depreciation hit, we knew what to expect going in. Each purchase a price was set, no surprise fees.

Once again we got the full pre delivery inspection and any accessories we bought that day were 15% off and free installation, 10% off for the year after. I added a power jack, Maxxair vent cover and better grab handles on the entry door and screen door handle. They brought several handles out for my wife to see what would work best for her (she has severe arthritis in her knees and short to boot!)

I know our TT is smaller and on the low end price range but we're happy with our purchase.

[Huffy]

We ran into issues also with DVD player, broken large slide, power inverter, etc. the list is huge! Our unit is finally back at RVOne for the repairs after not being able to use it since the middle of July! My husband IS mechanically inclined, however we were told that our warrantee would be void if he did some of the repairs. Has anyone else been told this?

[RetiredOne]

Originally Posted by Huffy

My husband IS mechanically inclined, however we were told that our warrantee would be void if he did some of the repairs. Has anyone else been told this?

Based on the quality of some of these rigs as they came out of the factory, how would they even know he tried to fix some items. He could only make them better.

I say go for it, it's better to plead for forgiveness than miss out on adventures because your rig is sitting in the dealer lot, waiting to be repaired.