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Old 06-28-2019, 02:11 PM   #1
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RV industry quality issues

I feel the need to vent a little bit (not that it will do any good) about the lack of quality in the entire rv industry. From what I can see it is an industry wide issue and not directed soley at Crossroads. I was looking at an aution web site (www.crankyape.com) at the rv's that were up for auction this week and there were four 2020 models that were brand new from the factory (not crossroads) with exterior fiberglass quality issues up for auction. for the prices that are being charged for our new rigs and the lack of quality how should we expect them to hold up for years and years when the can not even get them out of the factory brand new without serious quality issues. This is very disheartning to me.
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Old 06-28-2019, 04:30 PM   #2
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Well said, couldn’t agree more
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Old 06-29-2019, 06:00 AM   #3
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one of the problems is all the independent manufacturers are being gobbled up by Two big manufacturers...quality isn't their major concern because they know if you want to own an RV you have to come to them to buy...Just like all other aspects in life, if you take away competition you promote mediocrity...
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Old 06-29-2019, 09:09 AM   #4
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sjk
one of the problems is all the independent manufacturers are being gobbled up by Two big manufacturers...quality isn't their major concern because they know if you want to own an RV you have to come to them to buy...Just like all other aspects in life, if you take away competition you promote mediocrity...
I agree 100% with you. That is why I feel it is important to hold the dealers accountable for warranty issues and maybe if they get overwhelmed with warranty repairs they will push back against the manufacturers. I do not know what else to do but it sure is sad and frustrating.
It also bothers me that with such poor quality a person is almost forced into spending more money on top of the rv purchase price for an extended warranty that the warranty company will try to wiggle out from paying a claim. OK I am all finished ranting.
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Old 06-29-2019, 05:41 PM   #5
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Tommy, I agree that quality is down, but if you think of it, there are 3 major car manufacturers. A situation very similar to Rv's. But you have an extremely high quality control on the cars.
Point is, if the cars are more superior in quality, there's no reason that the Rv's can have a higher quality.
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Old 06-30-2019, 07:32 AM   #6
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Point is, if the cars are more superior in quality, there's no reason that the Rv's can have a higher quality.
Mark
Yes you are correct and I agree with you 100 percent...The main reason is that most states don't have lemon laws when it comes to RV's and do for automobiles...The government MAKES car manufactures keep a high standard of quality for cars, mostly due to Ralph Nader...So if you think of it GOOD SAM should be working toward that happening with RV's since they are the largest RV association of RV owners...
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Old 07-04-2019, 02:34 PM   #7
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Originally Posted by sjk1998 View Post
I feel the need to vent a little bit (not that it will do any good) about the lack of quality in the entire rv industry. From what I can see it is an industry wide issue and not directed soley at Crossroads. I was looking at an aution web site (www.crankyape.com) at the rv's that were up for auction this week and there were four 2020 models that were brand new from the factory (not crossroads) with exterior fiberglass quality issues up for auction. for the prices that are being charged for our new rigs and the lack of quality how should we expect them to hold up for years and years when the can not even get them out of the factory brand new without serious quality issues. This is very disheartning to me.
I too agree with you. My 2019 (bought new in 2018) came with a number of defects straight from the factory which my dealer needed to repair before I took possession. Then after 3 months of rv'ing down south, it's been back into the dealer for warranty issues and cosmetic repairs for the past three months. Nothing serious but frustrating from a quality control standpoint and unfortunately when you see the number of folks that are into rv'ing or getting into rv'ing, it appears as though the manufacturer's will continue to pump out sub-standard units as long as we continue to buy them. Doug
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Old 07-04-2019, 02:36 PM   #8
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From the beginning I had trouble with this camper. Now the dealer I bought it from stopped selling Crossroads. Even the dealer listed on Crossroads website won't work on them unless you pay them first, then seek out your own warranty money from Crossroads. While I agree that the general quality in the industry is poor, Crossroads customer service and warranty make it stick out like a sore thumb.
By the way....almost all my LED's on my awning burned out. Where can I get the ones that go into the awning roll?
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Old 07-04-2019, 02:41 PM   #9
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Tommy, I agree that quality is down, but if you think of it, there are 3 major car manufacturers.
While sales numbers (or some other qualifier) may dictate there are 3 major manufacturers, the choices for auto buyers today are pretty much endless (think Toyota, Kia, Nissan, Hyundai, VW, Mercedes, etc. etc.) all of which have no problem manufacturing a quality product IMHO. Doug
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Old 07-04-2019, 04:31 PM   #10
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Slightly off topic, but if you look at class C motorhomes there is the same problem with the coach, but it seems the chassis/cab part of it is up to snuff and warrantable.
We are "dumping" our Zinger and most likely going to a MH.
I am far from happy with out trailer.
Our Ram with 234K miles is still going strong.
Too bad RVs can't be as well built.
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Old 07-04-2019, 05:28 PM   #11
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My 2019 Redwood, made by Crossroads is a piece of junk. Owned it since February this year. There are 60 issues, mostly major issues from internal panels coming loose during transport to a hydraulic slide out ripping the underside apart. Have climate control windows coming apart. What is really sad is Thor/Keystone/Crossroads/Redwood factory warranty is a joke. Refuses or denies the warranty work. Took it to a recommended factory warranty dealership (Harveys) near Bangor and the service manager stated they do not like to do warranty work on RVs they do not sell even though they are a Crossroads/Redwood warranty dealership.

Going to trade it in and buy a Solitude because their quality is still there and it is not owned by Thor or any of its subsidaries.
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Old 07-05-2019, 11:41 AM   #12
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Ripe for Competition

We bought a 2009 Crossroads Zinger used in 2010 - happy with overall quality.

That aside, the RV industry is ripe for a foreign company or two to get into the business and start offering better quality at a lower price or equivalent price, exactly what happened with the US big 4 automakers in the 70's. By the time the US RV makers realize the competition is valid, they will already have lost market share. They have gotten fat, lazy, and do not really care about their customers.

Ultimately the smart RV builders will improve quality and customer service. Unfortunately, it will not help recently purchased RV owners until that happens.
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Old 07-05-2019, 01:09 PM   #13
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We have had campers throughout the decades and the quality has gone downhill quickly. My brother/sister-in-law phoned us yesterday they are sick and tired of the issues on their 2019 Montana that they traded it in yesterday for a Solitude 282WB-R Their decision was easy to make because a slide out started sliding out while driving down I-95 in Georgia. When they drove up to Maine the front landing gear started coming down on its own. They stopped for fuel and noticed it. Guess most of the new RVs have a Lippert (LCI) problem.
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Old 07-05-2019, 02:05 PM   #14
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Comparing the Camper industry to the Auto industry is like comparing a skate board to a jet-- they both have wheels but that's all. The auto industry uses a lot of automation where the camper industry uses humans. They are hand built. Also autos and trucks are designed to be on the road. Just pulling a camper down the road is like your house going thru a 1.9 earthquake - they bounce and twist themselves apart.

Could they be built better YES!

Lets look a little history. Campers years age averaged 13 to 21 ft as the most common size. You could go to a campground on a Friday evening and have a spot. Reservations did not exist -My references are based on campgrounds in Mo. A 21 ft. camper was pretty heavy and you would need a truck any thing that size and under you could pull with your station wagon. Then they started getting bigger and became so heavy you needed a 3/4 ton truck with a big block to pull them.

Fast forward - Trucks were mostly used on farms and in construction and were very utilitarian and rode like well a truck. Now trucks ride better then most cars and are a lot fancier and in a lot of houses have replaced the family car. What does this have to do with the camper industry? Just do a search for "helper springs in your choice of brands" and you will see that the nice ride was a compromise for carrying capacity.

As campers have got bigger and bigger - most now are over 30+ ft and have multiple slides something had to give so they had to be made lighter to be able to be pulled by todays trucks. What was made with 1" floors now have 1/2" to save weight. 1/4" panels became 1/8 ". In the old days they all had metal roofs that you had to get up on to coat every year now some campers you are not supposed to walk on the roof at all. Better? Lighter-Yes.

Now I will say this these things are being pumped out at a alarming rate. There are camper sales lots everywhere and - just a guess but some have over 100 campers on the lot for sale.

Now if they OVERALL are so bad with the number of sales why are there not more complaints and less sales? Also people I talk to that buy new campers have never owned one. Some do not understand that a "entry level" camper is not built like a top end one and also not priced the same. Also they are not built like your house.

Another thing is the MEGA DEALER. They sell more campers then the service department can keep up with. They should go over each and every camper before delivery to the customer and when the customer takes delivery they often times do not do a proper inspection. And if something is wrong or broken do not take delivery till its fixed.

The last thing is the warranty. If its for 2 years its for 2 years. try to take your out of warranty truck to the dealer and try to get it fixed. They do not come with a "lifetime warranty"!

If you look at my signature my cruiser is14 years old and we still use it a lot. Major problem's- none- that's not saying things have not needed replacing. Awning fabric so a new awning - converter - slide switch. Not bad for 14 years. On the list are the slide gear packs and I will post on them when I do them. The camper gets caulked every year and I regularly check the trim screws for tightness and some times find a loose one Water can get in from everywhere.

These are just my observations. I just turned 59 and have been camping For all of my life. My first trip was at 6 weeks old. My parents had everything from a 3 room tent to a 28 ft Coachman trailer. In 1980 I got married and we used a mattress in the back of a truck cap. We have had tents - tents on wheels - hard top tent campers- pull type campers and 5 different 5th wheels one of which was new and the refrigerator failed on our first trip. The dealer Nationwide Rv replaced in on our way out of town. They did not have one in stock so they actually took one from another new camper and put in ours and gave us money to buy a cooler and ice till it cooled down. Sad but they are gone now. Camping World wanted to buy them they said no so Camping World bought the ground surrounding them and if they did not sell would have ran them out of business.


" As grampaw would say -Some people would complain if you hung um with a NEW rope"
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Old 07-06-2019, 08:27 AM   #15
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As a 35+-year RVer, I can say that the industry focuses much more on presentation and cosmetics than it does on quality. As I explained in my post of a few months ago, my 2014 40’, Crossroads Washington (a Thor product) was totaled by my insurance company because all the gooseneck welds had broken and both the insurance company and the repair facility I took it to told me I was lucky it didn’t break in half on the road to get to them. And, in the 5 years I had the rig, it had had numerous factory-authorized repairs. I got satisfaction only by writing threatening individual letter to the presidents of Crossroads, Thor and Lippert (maker of many components.) But I think the main reason I got their attention is because I threatened to take videos of all the problems and put them on YouTube for the world to see what crap the rig was – from engineering to components – and especially the atrocious workmanship. One comment here was that Good Sam could act as a watchdog. Forget it. Good Sam is owned by Camping World and Camping World has only a mediocre reputation for handling RV problems itself. Once it gets its arm-and-a-leg from its customers it will try to hit them on the way out with the proverbial screen door.
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Old 07-06-2019, 08:46 AM   #16
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We have had campers throughout the decades and the quality has gone downhill quickly. My brother/sister-in-law phoned us yesterday they are sick and tired of the issues on their 2019 Montana that they traded it in yesterday for a Solitude 282WB-R Their decision was easy to make because a slide out started sliding out while driving down I-95 in Georgia. When they drove up to Maine the front landing gear started coming down on its own. They stopped for fuel and noticed it. Guess most of the new RVs have a Lippert (LCI) problem.
They are built pretty well, with the occasional problem RV. You will likely have a couple minor issues that always needs to be corrected. The good thing is Grand Design stands behind their product and will answer phone calls and take care of warranty issues. They even help where they can after the warranty expires. Another plus is you can use whatever shop or mobile mechanic you wish. You will have to pay the mobile charge though yourself ($50 or so I hear most cases, but at least you won’t be waiting weeks.)
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Old 07-06-2019, 09:35 AM   #17
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As a 35+-year RVer, I can say that the industry focuses much more on presentation and cosmetics than it does on quality. As I explained in my post of a few months ago, my 2014 40’, Crossroads Washington (a Thor product) was totaled by my insurance company because all the gooseneck welds had broken and both the insurance company and the repair facility I took it to told me I was lucky it didn’t break in half on the road to get to them. And, in the 5 years I had the rig, it had had numerous factory-authorized repairs. I got satisfaction only by writing threatening individual letter to the presidents of Crossroads, Thor and Lippert (maker of many components.) But I think the main reason I got their attention is because I threatened to take videos of all the problems and put them on YouTube for the world to see what crap the rig was – from engineering to components – and especially the atrocious workmanship. One comment here was that Good Sam could act as a watchdog. Forget it. Good Sam is owned by Camping World and Camping World has only a mediocre reputation for handling RV problems itself. Once it gets its arm-and-a-leg from its customers it will try to hit them on the way out with the proverbial screen door.



Where I can agree with most everything you have stated.-------
I don't think you posted anything about your Rushmore before this post.
According to your post count, this is your first post here on this forum.
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