New Warranty - Boo, Hiss

[cowboy_71]

Mike, I've been reading very interesting and predictibleremarks on rv.net ...don't think CR will be able to compare the two in a favorable manner...but am still waiting...I used to think CR was one of the greatest RV companies out there..but now???

[mwebber78]

I have the faith cowboy_71....

I've been a fan of this company and it's product and employee's since I bought my 2008 Cruiser. My letter, my personal recommendation still resides under the "testimonial" page on the Crossroads homepage.... I'm not ready to request my testimonial to be pulled by CR management becuase it's not too late - Crossroads can still compromise and make the second year warranty optional.

I get it - business is tough and warranty adds liability to your cost expenditures. However, Crossroads is built on being superior and offering an industry BEST (read: BEST) warranty. Sadly, no matter how you slice it, a one-year warranty is still a ONE-year warranty once the glita, glam, and fluff is removed.

I'm vocal becuase I care - I hope CR recognizes each of us are passionate about this company.

Edited by: mwebber78

[cowboy_71]

My faith is still there too, I'm still hoping that they will come thru with options... I understand it's always about the money and I still get excited when I see a Cruiser on the road...

[avvidclif]

Originally Posted by cowboy_71

avvidclif
Not sure what you meant with the 100 day warranty, but am still axiously waiting for the side by side comparison of the old 2+5 yr and new 1+promise warranty from CR...

Easy, you probably actually use it 100 days in 2 years +/-. The rest of the time it's sitting. Not much goes wrong when it's just sitting..

[Cajun TBoy]

I'am a owner of a second Crossroads, I'am probably part of the reason the Kingston is gone. It was called the "camper from hell" by crossroads and has more mileage on it going back and forth from Louisana to Indiana TWO round trips, which Iam greatful for cause it finaly got repaired but it took the two years. I Would be real pissed spending $50k and the warranty ran out long before it was useable. I had roof problems and looks like they are comming back now it will be 4 yearsOct 28. So a one year warranty would suck.

Just hope they are really hearing us, where else can you get so much comments and then have so much concern for your family. This is a awesome group

Sad to say but we camp with Seville(two crossroads owners) that have traded to Cardinal.

[Ruck]

Originally Posted by longhauler

Tom:

Just want to pass on a positive post and I hope you pass onto the your employee. I have a 2009 CF32BL that we bought used in February of this year and we love the floor plan. During one of our trips the people we were traveling with noticed the front of the roof had a big bubble in it, so big you couldn't seen the front vent cover. I called Crossroads and spoke to Mark Quinn. He said to bring it into the factory and it would be fixed free of charge, however living about 4 hours away and with you guys being busy it was going to be fixed til the end of October. I took it to a local RV shop Pontiac RV, by the way is great dealership with great service. I called Mark back and told him that when they pealed the roof back their was no sealant that was applied on the roof to hold down the rubber roofing. Mark said to send the bill and they would pay for half the bill. I forgot to mention this was my second dealership to take the camper to because the first dealership didn't fix it right and the bubble came back.

Now about the warranty, getting rid of the 2 year for me isn't a deal breaker, what would lose my business is poor customer service and so far I have I had a good experience with Crossroads and have no reason to go elsewhere. Crossroads didn't have to do a thing with my roof problem with it being an 09 and they still took care of me and to me that means a lot. I would buy the brand new CF355BL tomorrow if I could, which why isn't this model on your website yet?

Please make sure to give Mark a pat on the back for me I'm sure he doesn't hear positive stories often.

DITTO longhauler, and u could probably be parroted by most on the forum, the service department is heads above most, hands down, period, no questions asked!! However, (here's the caviot(sp)) a lemon is still a lemon regardless how much sugar one uses.

Travel Well / Travel Safe ...

[Hunter11]

The statement below was taken straight from the Redwood web site. NowIcan't speak foryou other owners but this coupled with Crossroads quality at the time was the main reason we bought two Crossroads products since 2005.





"2 Year limited warranty and 5 Year structural warranty gives you the confidence in knowing you've partnered with the right manufacturer and gives your customer the piece of mind that we'll protect their investment."

[Ruck]

"we'll protect their investment."
Some KEY words there now!!! Not everybody has money to THROW away!!

Travel Well / Travel Safe ...

[steve k]

Need help. what do you think? on 9/28/2012 we put down 5k on the st32fr.we where told. that there was a 2+5 warranty with the TT. it is on order now.when i read there was just a 1 year warranty. i called the dealer up and asked them. they said sorry but it is one year. thats why we wanted the st32fr the 2+5. andwelove the floor plan. we think its better then any TT out there.we just dont know whatto do. do we go for looks or warranty. also i called crossroads up and talked to a Mike. he said there was not much he would do or could do.



thanks steve

[wincrasher]

You need to cancel your order if that is a deal breaker fit you. Seems like a large down payment for a factory order, considering I just ordered a 5th wheel from another manufacturer with only $1k deposit.



The warranty changed sept 1, so I see no valid excuse for your dealer not knowing.

[socoguy]

If you can get out of the deal you should. If only to take the pressure off about your decision. You may still decide it is what you want but you will make that choice based on the new info on the 32fr. Not sure of your legal stand I would move quickly it was only a few days ago.
Get some advice ASAP. Good luck hope it all works out.

[Dayle1]

Originally Posted by steve k

Need help. what do you think? on 9/28/2012 we put down 5k on the st32fr.we where told. that there was a 2+5 warranty with the TT. it is on order now.when i read there was just a 1 year warranty. i called the dealer up and asked them. they said sorry but it is one year. thats why we wanted the st32fr the 2+5. andwelove the floor plan. we think its better then any TT out there.we just dont know whatto do. do we go for looks or warranty. also i called crossroads up and talked to a Mike. he said there was not much he would do or could do.



thanks steve

Steve,

One option to try if you really want the ST32FR is this, ask CR and/or the dealer to pay the cost of a 3rd party warranty for the additional year.

[mark5w]

Maybe those rv's that offer 2 year warranties have more problems that

show up over a two year period. Nothing beats that gorilla cage on the

crossroads. I just replaced an interior panel on my 5er and was shocked

to see over 4 foot spacing between the studs behind the kitchen wall.


Plus the advantage of having hung walls that could be repaired without affecting the other side of the wall. Hard to find a build like a crossroads.


If your not satisfied with a 1 year warranty you could buy an extended warranty.

[speedster]

As a consumer who was told he was buying one product and is now going to receive anotherI believe you have excellent grounds to get your depositmoney back and cancel the deal.

Very bad public relations move no matter what anyone says, they should have honored your original dealwith the 2 and 5 warranty.

That is just bad business practice no matter which way you look at it.

[steve k]

Thank you all. i see all good on this Forum, I say again thank you.

We love the TT so much we are going to stay with the 32fr. we will see how this one year

thing gose. and i will let you all know how this works out for us in year two.



thank you steve

[tmontague]

Sorry for the long delays. Things are going well with my daughter - thank you so much for all your kind words. She has not complained once even though she has 5 pins and a cast bigger than my thigh. Thursday will be her first day back at school - she's been practicing writing with her left hand and has it down - she can even write in cursive.

I'm also happy to see so many positive comments and good discussions happening on the forum - and a special thanks to Steve K for believing in us and the product we build. We won't let you down.

I know I owe everyone a quick look at the differences between the 1 and 2 year warranty. I'm working on the list and will post it as soon as I'm finished. I wanted to also share with everyone the DSI ( Dealer Service Index ) results we just received yesterday at the RVDA meeting in Las Vagas. These DSI results are hot off the presses and we scored higher than any other time in CrossRoads history. We are very excited about it and I will post some info from that as well.

Hang in there forum members - things are going in the right direction and we are working hard to do things the right way.

Talk to you soon.
Thanks,
Tom Montague
GM CrossRoads & Redwood RV

[tator447]

Tom,
No problem, take your time we're not going anywhere. One word of caution if I may, whatever you post, be sure it is spot on, correct and what you truly want to say. There are many on here who still believe in CR and their product, there are many who want to jump ship, and there are many who are on the middle of the fence. So what you say, and how you say it will be the ultimate deciding factor on how people feel after reading what you say. I can already say it will be hard to convince some of them, so you have your work cut out for you. I for one will give you all the chance you deserve. But, I have a great dealer and I have had dealings with the Randi and Andi and have been more than satisfied..and of course I still have another year and a half on my warranty.

Thanks, and best wishes to your daughter,
Jim

[wikdslo]

Hi Tom, sorry to hear about your daughter. I have an 9 month old that is cute as a button but is getting to the stage of wanting climb on everything and stick her fingers in any and all electrical outlets.. FUN!

Just wanted to chime in on my experience here, both good and bad.'

First off, we purchased a 2012 Crossroads Sunset Trail 26BH in August and have been VERY pleased with it. We do love the floorplan, the features, and the styling.

However, it has been a bit of a bumpy road. No major warranty issues or anything. But to touch on the positives of the 12 point plan, I'd like to review where they would have been useful before, and how they may not be panning out so well for you right now.

#1 - CrossRoads Direct. Which means we administer the warranty in-house. In the past, our vendors administered our warranty and we had no control over the process. This gives us the control. This will decrease the time it takes to get the customer up and running again and it will allow us to deal with the manufacturer instead of our dealers. Its a win for everyone.

I like this concept. However, here in Calgary, Alberta, it seems that my dealer doesn't even return phone calls much of the time, and booking in for service takes about a week or more just to get your trailer on the lot, nevermind having it looked at. So having a quick turn around on getting a product to my trailer is noble, but I don't feel that in my case it would be justifiable as a good trade off.

#2 - Quick Assist

See previous comment

3 - 24 Hour Factory Support. We've increased the staff in our Service Department and extended the hours to 24 for better customer service and quicker response times

I know this was primarily directed at the dealers getting responses, but for myself, I have had about enough of my dealer, and after being hung up on by the ASM, I have been doing my best to deal directly with Crossroads. I am in contact with Bill at the moment, and am awaiting some responses from him. Non-urgent (more or less), but from what Bill has told me he is swamped. I know that to run a business, you can't have people sitting around waiting all day for some work to come in, but I'm concerned about the real life experience of this point vs the trade off that you are selling.

#4 - 1 Hour Work Authorizations. With the increase in staff we are able to respond quicker to our dealerbase which means customers issues get solved quicker.

I do feel this will be a very valuable asset, however, it would have been nice to think that a quick turnaround on authorizations would have already been in place, or that a system to prioritize urgent authorizations vs non urgent ones would have already been in place and sufficient.

#5 - Emergency Parts List.

Again, I do think this is a good idea, however, I would have hoped that the dealerships would have already been doing this (at least the bigger ones). I can't imagine that fridges last forever, and they seem to be somewhat an industry standard, so having a few new units kicking around would always seem like a good idea. However, this again brings me back to my first comment about my dealer just not having time to book people in.

#6 - Dealer Stock

I also like this idea, however, concerns about who then provides warranty on the new part should be detailed and addressed to the customer BEFORE a purchase. If a replacement part were used by the dealer, and it happened to be an inferior/less expensive part to what CR had originally installed, the idea of "you get what you pay for" would come in to play. I would hope that full disclosure with the customer would be something that is a must in this instance. I know I wouldn't want to have an inferior part put on, and have it break down just outside of warranty, and be left with the new bill.

#7 - Dedicated Supplier Reps.

I think I will have to wait for more verbiage on this one before I comment further. I've always been a fan of having my own Product Knowledge, and being as much of an expert on the things I want to know about. In my experience, leaving your opinion up to who has the best sales pitch often ends up in disappointment.

#8 - NGV Ownership Delivery Process.

This one I can't say enough about. I really like this idea. I really wish this was in place BEFORE I bought my trailer. I was told by said ASM that hung up on me, with emails to show for it, that sales training is the ... the responsibility? of CR. Well, my dealership got a LOT of things wrong. In fact, I originally got financing based on the cost of the Zinger 26BH. When I went back in to sign the papers, found out that the salesman had told me the wrong weight, and the actual weight of it would put it way over my trucks tow capacity, so I was left with only an option to get the Sunset Trail due to it's lighter weight. Had to reapply for financing, etc. So many other things have been an issue with this, but they just don't seem to care. I'm more of a bother to them than anything and it seems to be my fault for that. Thus my being in talks with Bill. As part of this, you should be holding your Dealers personally responsible for Customer Service issues that arise from this point. It would maybe make them think twice about their sales training and their willingness to just throw information out to customers.

#9 - NGV Owners Care Kit.

I also really like this concept, but I don't quite understand the reason behind the seemingly convoluted process to obtain the care kit. Why not just offer it at delivery of every new trailer?

#10 - Six Month Ownership Satisfaction Certificate

This is something that I think needs a little more clarification, but I do like the concept. I'm sure there are plenty of tell tale signs that a good Tech will know to look for, that can help address a problem before it becomes a problem. However, is this something to do with the 6 month factory checkup that people seem disgruntled about? I think that needs some clarification as well. If it were only available at your factory, it wouldn't make sense. I took the other road and assumed some logic was in place that it would be available at a Dealer instead/also.
However, on this point, one issue I did get in touch with Bill about was something along these lines. Where it could be something that is going to get really bad. I just don't know. However, as mentioned, he is quite swamped, and I trust that with all the details I have given him, he knows what is best in terms of timeframe to address the matter. He has been very responsive in keeping me up to date at least on the fact that he is busy and will be responding to it as soon as he can. For that I am appreciative.

#11 - Show Room Ready Inventory.

I would like to see this in practice. My dealer told me to mark down anything that was in need of addressing before I took delivery. I did. They didn't fix most of it. Told me to get it done when I brought it back in. So, there's that. I do like the concept it, but getting the dealerships to be on board with the idea I believe will be your biggest challenge.

#12 - Coach-Net 24 Hour Roadside Assistance.

Coach-net seems like a value add to the warranty, but if you go on their website, it lists many things rather vaguely.
<h3>24/7 Unlimited Road Service Coverage</h3>

Towing, Flat Tire

Assistance, Fluid Delivery, Jump-Starts, Lockout Service, Mobile

Mechanic, Appointment Assistance� No Mileage or Dollar Amount Limits- no

out-of-pocket costs!


This really doesn't tell you anything about their coverage. Area of coverage, limitations to what it covers. What guarantee is there on what coverage is given.


More details to list out what is and is not covered, in comparison to the 1 year warranty CR now covers (which you say is more of a hitch to bumper warranty than ever before), will really help detail the benefits of this to a consumer.
At a glance, it looks like a flat tire is the most I can hope to benefit from. When my trailer has brand new, well balanced tires, and less than 100 km on them in 1 year.I'm personally always leery of any sales that makes you sign up before they give you details on what you are getting.



So there you have it. I hope this feedback has been constructive and helpful. I think these points are all valuable items, but I would hope that some of them were already in place and working long before any one came up with the idea to change the warranty structure.

Feel free to contact me about anything else.

Cheers.

[mwebber78]

Great to hear daughter is on the mend Tom.

Mike.

[socoguy]

Hi Let us all take a break here. Tom ispreoccupiedwith the challenge of his daughters accident, He needs a period of space. All business aside this man needs to have a singular focus at this time.
</span>I think this is a positive exchange of ideas at this time. I am tottaly aproponentof a 2 year warranty I haveexpressedthis in previous posts.
I personally feel this is a major turning point in philosophy for CR. I was excited to buy thisproductthis a very big industry choice wise. The 2 years plus the CR forum input of enthusiasticownerssold me.
I implore CR to consider thisdecisiona second time. Find acompromisethis could be a turning point in customer support., Look what you have consider, the negativepossibilities they are worth consideration.
Tom M has given us as a group an avenue of connection lets explore that in a positive mind set.
Last but notleastTom we allsincerelyhave best wishes for you daughters swift recovery. Thoselittleones are soresilientgood luck.
Go Well Happy Trails.
Al