2012 Big Country Front Cap clear coat issue

We have a 2012 Big Country 5th wheel that we noticed in June of this year some fading on the top of the front cap (grey) We regularly wash and have had waxed every 6 months so we first attempted to wash and reapply hand wax and buffing but did not help. We hired a company to wash and wax and they informed us it was a clear coat issue and waxing would not help. Looking for some guidance is this a common issue with the year / model?

Hi dkbeckett,

I suggest you call Heartland Customer Service, 574-262-8030 or 877-262-8032, have your VIN when you call and maybe even some pictures would help.

Jim M

Good luck getting anything from Heartland. I found out that the day the warranty is up that is the end of Heartlands help, even with ongoing issues.

This is a common problem with the grey cap on Big Countries. There is NO paint or clear coat on these. They are finished with a gel coat only, much like a boat. The problem lies in the fact that there is no UV inhibitor in the gel coat. You can wax and buff it and the problem will keep coming back. Heartland is very aware of this problem. Warranty or not I would be very surprised if you contact them that they won't help you out with this. I had mine painted and clear coated with automotive paint. The problem lies in finding a shop with a large enough paint booth to fit it in. I had success in finding a shop that refinished Large trucks and buses. Take some pictures and get some estimates if you can. Heartland Customer Service knows what it should cost to paint this. Believe me it wasn't $6,000 like one SOB RV dealer thought they should charge. My rear cap has started to do the same thing. Rather than going through the hoops to have it painted I chose to try cleaning it and coating with a Zep floor finish product. So far so good. there are lots of posts on this and other forums that deal with this problem. Good luck...Don

Prior to the purchase of our 2014 BC, we had a 2011 BC 3250 with the fading issue on both the front & rear caps. I got several quotes from shops with indoor paint booths in the $3-5K range. Heartland did send us a check for $2300 for the repair.....this was AFTER our warranty was up!! Heartland DID step up.

Now for the "fun" part.....I recontacted the paint shops and told them how much money I DID have to spend......surprise surprise!!! One shop said that would work, another said $2300 plus I purchase paint. I went with the first shop and they did a fabulous job on both the front & rear. HL supplied them with new decals. Another friend (Pannell) with a 2011 3650 had the same issue and HL did the same for them.......both BC's now have beautiful PAINTED caps! Thank you HEARTLAND!!!!

By the way, HL is painting the caps on all the new BC's. Also, Jamie Justice at HL was my rep for this issue. Another great customer service rep is Anthony Roberts.

Good luck and safe travels!