Prospective HL Owner question:

PeterW

Member
We are considering the purchase of a Heartland Country Ridge park trailer to use as a "destination trailer" in the mountains of southern New Mexico. We like the floor plans, standards/options, and the generally positive thoughts current HL owners seem to have with their RVs.

BUT.....the nearest dealer is about 700 miles from our destination location. The trailer will be placed on site and, hopefully, left there for a long time (The CG no longer allows park models.)

Without having any local dealers, we'll be relying on local independent RV service mechanics to handle warranty repairs/problems.

Most RV manufacturers will say something to the effect of "Contact a licensed RV repair shop and have them call us before they do any work and we'll talk to them and then approve the repair/$$$ amount," but I'd like to hear from any current owners who are in a similar situation and can relate their experiences.

My other three RVs have been motorhomes....two Winnebagos, and a Tiffin. Both Winnebagos were bought used as two-year-olds, and while we didn't have many problems, Winnie did a good job in general of helping us out when we needed.

Tiffin was in a world of its own. Bob Tiffin should write a book on keeping their customers happy. Example: When we were traveling in Louisiana and a side window started getting moisture inside the dual pane glass, I called the factory. I told him we were over a year out of warranty, but that we had traveled mostly in the southwest, with little rain or humidity, so we didn't know if the seal was bad all that time.

His response: "A window seal should last longer than that. There's a dealer 40 miles from you in XXXXX City....I can have a replacement window there in five days, so call them now and schedule an appointment to have it installed for as soon as you can make it there."

My cost: $0.00.

The Tiffin reputation was one we had heard about from Tiffin owners in our RV travels long before we owned one. I thought most of the stories were "too good to be true," but found out they were justified.

So my (admittedly long-winded) question: I related my Tiffin experience to give some background. Given my distance to ANY Heartland dealer, if you Heartland owners were in my shoes, would you feel comfortable with going ahead with a +/- $35,000 purchase without a local dealer and relying on local RV repair authorizations?

Thank you for your help on what is, for us, a HUGE purchase decision!

.
 

jmgratz

Original Owners Club Member
We are considering the purchase of a Heartland Country Ridge park trailer to use as a "destination trailer" in the mountains of southern New Mexico. We like the floor plans, standards/options, and the generally positive thoughts current HL owners seem to have with their RVs.

BUT.....the nearest dealer is about 700 miles from our destination location. The trailer will be placed on site and, hopefully, left there for a long time (The CG no longer allows park models.)

Without having any local dealers, we'll be relying on local independent RV service mechanics to handle warranty repairs/problems.

Most RV manufacturers will say something to the effect of "Contact a licensed RV repair shop and have them call us before they do any work and we'll talk to them and then approve the repair/$$$ amount," but I'd like to hear from any current owners who are in a similar situation and can relate their experiences.

My other three RVs have been motorhomes....two Winnebagos, and a Tiffin. Both Winnebagos were bought used as two-year-olds, and while we didn't have many problems, Winnie did a good job in general of helping us out when we needed.

Tiffin was in a world of its own. Bob Tiffin should write a book on keeping their customers happy. Example: When we were traveling in Louisiana and a side window started getting moisture inside the dual pane glass, I called the factory. I told him we were over a year out of warranty, but that we had traveled mostly in the southwest, with little rain or humidity, so we didn't know if the seal was bad all that time.

His response: "A window seal should last longer than that. There's a dealer 40 miles from you in XXXXX City....I can have a replacement window there in five days, so call them now and schedule an appointment to have it installed for as soon as you can make it there."

My cost: $0.00.

The Tiffin reputation was one we had heard about from Tiffin owners in our RV travels long before we owned one. I thought most of the stories were "too good to be true," but found out they were justified.

So my (admittedly long-winded) question: I related my Tiffin experience to give some background. Given my distance to ANY Heartland dealer, if you Heartland owners were in my shoes, would you feel comfortable with going ahead with a +/- $35,000 purchase without a local dealer and relying on local RV repair authorizations?

Thank you for your help on what is, for us, a HUGE purchase decision!

.

I think you will be pleasantly surprised with the Heartland Customer Service. They will take care of your customers. Also any rv repair shop can repair your Heartland product while it is in warranty with prior approval from Heartland. It does not have to be a Heartland dealer.
 

jimtoo

Moderator
And I could give you a story about Bob Tiffin that is just the opposite of yours. But I won't do it here. You will hear good and bad about all manufactures. Heartland, in my estimation, is the best. I have had 2 TT, 2 MH, and 2 5ers before owning a Heartland Big Horn. I would not hesitate to recommend Heartland to anyone,,, even my best friend.

And yes, Heartland will authorize independent repair facilities to repair your unit if needed, providing you and repair person get proper authorization prior to repairs.

Jim M
 
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