NEVER Buying Another Heartland

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We purchased a 2015 Cyclone last July 2014 (On July 29th), didn't get it in our possession before August 7th- and here are the things we've discovered since that time:

Stereo System FRIED- first week.
Back Patio- floor base lifts up, bubbles are half the size of a soccer ball.

The railings on the patio had holes in them, asked the dealer to replace them, said they would, never did.

The Transfer switch was incorrectly wired and fried costing us $750 to have it fixed onsite while we were 100 miles from home.

When we paid a company to look at it, we discovered that it was placed DIRECTLY underneath our water pipes, at the unions where they are most likely to Leak.

The Satellite cables were incorrectly installed- they used Cable switches rather than satellite switches so you can't use the campers Satellite wiring.

They used a cheap $10 plastic faucet in the bathroom- you literally could not put your hand under the water because it ran along the backside of the sink, we replaced that too.

The Vacuum cleaner Fried before the first bag even needed to be replaced. When I called the dealer they told me it would be a service call of $95- and it would probably be covered under warranty. So we ended up buying one on Amazon and having it shipped directly to our campsite to replace that too.


The slide out has always "Clunked" when Sliding out, when we did our walk through, we asked the dealer about it, since it was our first camper with a slide-out, they said it was normal. It's even cracked the trim in the kitchen.
Clunk gets louder and louder each day, Today, we discovered that when it slides out it was dropping several inches and it needs to be WELDED because it only has 2 little tiny welded spots which is causing it to bend severely every time its used. I could punch the dealer technician that told us it was FINE from the get go- because it's done this from day ONE. Unbelieveable.


I am so ultimately disgusted that we now have to PAY someone to Weld this $100,000 camper because it was thrown together in a rush to get it out the door. Every single time we camp, something else is broken.

LEMON.
 

2psnapod2

Texas-South Chapter Leaders-Retired
Sounds like your problems are with your dealer, not Heartland. Sorry you have had the dealer issues.
 

jmgratz

Original Owners Club Member
Just wondering why you didn't keep after your dealer to repair the items that were in warranty? I would say you have to follow-through to 'make' the dealer do its responsibility. Yes maybe Heartland made some mistakes however the dealer is the one who makes it right.
 

Tundra2084

Well-known member
OK..before you bash Heartland lets take it one step at a time. Have YOU contacted Heartland and asked for help from them? Have you taken it to a different dealer for the work it needs? Why did you pay someone to look at it before you called heartland and ask them what could be done? Sorry but did you at any time call Heartland and speak to someone there? Dont believe dealerships...we know this first hand.
When we bought our unit the door came off the sidewall. Took it to the dealership for repairs. They had it for over a month and when we went to get something out of it, one of the other employee's asked if ours was the unit that had a hole in the side wall. Well NO it does not..or DID NOT have a hole in the sidewall when we dropped it off. Walked over to our unit and the guy says..yes you do..and showed us where the hole was, then asked why we didn't tell them it had to also be repaired. Long story shortened..when they were screwing the door back onto the sidewall from the inside the tech used screws to long and went thru the outside wall..then tried saying it was like that and we did it. NOT LIKELY when the screw was still sticking out and he put down that he had done the repairs to the door...IDIOT.

Dealers have a bad rep for saying things were repaired and or that heartland was contacted for authorization for repairs when in fact they were not done or contacted.
PLEASE call heartland customer service with your vin # and be nice and ask them if they can help you. If its the frame then it may be something that Lippert will be responsible for but Heartland may be able to help you with many of your problems...if you ask.
 

danemayer

Well-known member
Hi CampingGwrl,

If you do discuss these problems with Heartland, one thing to add is the consequential issues than can result from a transfer switch failure. Certain types of electrical failures, a loose neutral wire for example, could result in voltage levels approaching 220V on some of your devices. Sometimes this can immediately fry the device. Other times, it may weaken power supply components and the failure could show up at a later date.

Depending on what was found when you had the transfer switch repair done, Heartland might agree that other problems resulted from that initial failure.

Btw, if you're away from your home and need service, Heartland will usually approve warranty reimbursement by a non-Heartland dealer. But you need to get approval in advance. They won't cover travel time for a mobile servicer, but often that charge is no more than it would cost to take the rig to an authorized dealer - sometimes much less. Can you get reimbursed for part of that expense after the fact? Maybe. Heartland might cover the cost of the part and reasonable labor to have it installed. It doesn't cost much to ask.

And as others have suggested, also ask Heartland where else you could go nearby for service since your dealer seems to have let you down.
 

buddyboy

Well-known member
Personally, I'd never buy any RV from whomever your dealer is again. All RVs no matter the manufacturer have issues ours did and we were 100s of miles from where we purchased it. But we called Heartland, explained the situation, and received help and advise. Heartland can't help if you don't call, but rely on others with, bluntly, no interest to call. Sellers of any merchandise (with a few exceptions) forget you when the sale is final - they're on to the next sale/income.
 

AJJONES

Senior GM for Cyclone, Torque, Gateway & Sundance
I am very sorry to hear of all the issues you are having with your unit. Can you please email me your name, contact info, and last 6 numbers of your vin number and I will have someone from service contact you shortly. My email address is aj.jones@heartlandrvs.com.

thanks,

AJ
 

wdk450

Well-known member
I would also post about your dealer (NON) service experience on RVServiceReviews.com . I would be curious to see any previous postings there on your dealer. I encourage prospective buyers to look there before buying from a dealer. Regretfully, there have been very few glowing praise reports on this forum about selling dealer's service operations. Most dealers survive off of their RV sales profits, and service is a department the RV manufacturers require they have in order to get the RV sales franchises. On the other hand, independent RV servicers (who have no RV sales operations) must do quality and timely RV repairs to remain in business over the years, and get your word of mouth recommendations and repeat business. Seek out the independent servicvers with good reputations on RVServiceReviews.com , call Heartland Service telling them of your problems and that you want your warranty work done with the independent servicer. Heartland Service has also kept it own lists of independent RV servicers in your area that they have had good results with.
 

Bob&Patty

Founders of SoCal Chapter
See, if you ask for help from HL....you will get it. AJ is a great guy and will help resolve your issues. BUT, YOU have to help him help you. OH and BTW, your dealer is the problem.
 

codycarver

Founding Wyoming Chapter Leader-retired
caution...a reply to a thread from management does not necessarily equal help from the factory. I have neighbors that are still waiting for a reply to their issues.
 

oscar

Well-known member
Sorry to hear that you had so many issues. We all have some, seems you got most of them. I agree with staying after the dealer. That said, it will result in many weeks if not months of loss of use. Many of these issues can be traced back to the manufacturing process; the dealer shouldn't have to be involved so much. There is a lot of room for improvement. Imagine buying an automobile and having to take it to the dealer every week? Thought so.
 

2psnapod2

Texas-South Chapter Leaders-Retired
Looks like this might be a hit and run. I sure hope not because it only hurts them in the long run.
 

diamondl

Member
Say what you want about the dealers, but we have had issues with our Bighorn that we haven't even heard of in any of the last 6 campers we've had.
L&L
 

Jim.Allison

Well-known member
My DW and I took delivery of our 2014 BC3650RL in October 2013. We love it, and can't wait to think up a new adventure for it. It has NEVER been back for warranty service. And the very few minor problems were easily fixed. I think that some people are suffering from the fog that accompanies unfamiliarity. If people spend time with their rig trying to learn to operate it, they would be better off. It is difficult for people to learn the entire operation procedures during a single walkthrough. Reading the owner's manual helps also. I know that I have encountered problems with my rig and after much consternation I discovered that I was the problem.
 

JohnD

Moved on to the next thing...
I take our 2015 Prowler in for warranty repair later this week.

This is our second Heartland product and will buy another when the time comes.

Our issues are minor compared to some I've read about.

The small items I've fixed myself, but the issues that needs parts replacements I'll leave to the dealership.

One of the window shades needs to be replaced (the big one on the big back window), and possibly one of the windows needs to be replaced.

The cable TV line in doesn't work . . . furnace only blows in the bedroom and bathroom, but no heat in the living room . . . and the awning is out of the tract on one end causing it to sag and rub on the top of one of the slides.

One other issue I just had last night when we got home from our week long campout in the mountains . . .

The day we picked up our trailer, I said that I thought the pigtail wire was way too long and I was afraid that it would catch on something . . . and they said "Nah . . . better to have it too long than too short . . . shouldn't be a problem!"

Well, last night while backing the trailer into the yard, I heard a strange sound and saw sparks . . . turns out the pigtail got caught on the truck's trailer hitch receiver and when I straightened out the truck and trailer, it ripped the pigtail right out of the trailer!

Of course . . . no running lights . . . no brake lights or any trailer brakes!

Great end to a great week of camping, huh.
 

murry135

New York Chapter Leaders - retired
We purchased a 2015 Cyclone last July 2014 (On July 29th), didn't get it in our possession before August 7th- and here are the things we've discovered since that time:

Stereo System FRIED- first week.
Back Patio- floor base lifts up, bubbles are half the size of a soccer ball.

The railings on the patio had holes in them, asked the dealer to replace them, said they would, never did.

The Transfer switch was incorrectly wired and fried costing us $750 to have it fixed onsite while we were 100 miles from home.

When we paid a company to look at it, we discovered that it was placed DIRECTLY underneath our water pipes, at the unions where they are most likely to Leak.

The Satellite cables were incorrectly installed- they used Cable switches rather than satellite switches so you can't use the campers Satellite wiring.

They used a cheap $10 plastic faucet in the bathroom- you literally could not put your hand under the water because it ran along the backside of the sink, we replaced that too.

The Vacuum cleaner Fried before the first bag even needed to be replaced. When I called the dealer they told me it would be a service call of $95- and it would probably be covered under warranty. So we ended up buying one on Amazon and having it shipped directly to our campsite to replace that too.


The slide out has always "Clunked" when Sliding out, when we did our walk through, we asked the dealer about it, since it was our first camper with a slide-out, they said it was normal. It's even cracked the trim in the kitchen.
Clunk gets louder and louder each day, Today, we discovered that when it slides out it was dropping several inches and it needs to be WELDED because it only has 2 little tiny welded spots which is causing it to bend severely every time its used. I could punch the dealer technician that told us it was FINE from the get go- because it's done this from day ONE. Unbelieveable.


I am so ultimately disgusted that we now have to PAY someone to Weld this $100,000 camper because it was thrown together in a rush to get it out the door. Every single time we camp, something else is broken.

LEMON.

It sure is amazing how a poor dealership can lead someone to blame the manufacture for a poor product. I hope they return to the forum to read the advice given and learn from what we all have experienced. This can ruin your fun but hopefully they can locate a good dealership for the proper help. I would also like to know if they followed up with the Brand manager.
 

JanAndBill

Well-known member
I agree with others that a good dealer experience will result in a lot less problems, but the blame needs to be spread around to the responsible people. Who decides to award a dealership in the first place??? As the dealer is the first line of experience any customer has, as a responsible manufacturer wouldn't you want a reputable person representing you to the public?? Who determines the qualifications of a dealer??? As a responsible manufacturer wouldn't you want to be sure that the people representing you at least had certain "basic skills"? I've said this before, Heartland needs to do a better job in oversight of their dealers.
 

TravelTiger

Founding Texas-West Chapter Leaders-Retired
I agree with others that a good dealer experience will result in a lot less problems, but the blame needs to be spread around to the responsible people. Who decides to award a dealership in the first place??? As the dealer is the first line of experience any customer has, as a responsible manufacturer wouldn't you want a reputable person representing you to the public?? Who determines the qualifications of a dealer??? As a responsible manufacturer wouldn't you want to be sure that the people representing you at least had certain "basic skills"? I've said this before, Heartland needs to do a better job in oversight of their dealers.

Heartland does not pick the dealers, the dealers pick Heartland. RV sales are not like auto sales. RV dealers can determine whatever brand of product they want to carry.

If the dealership doesn't have a good service department to take care of customers, that's on the dealership, not Heartland.

The agreement between HL and the dealership has to include some PDI, though, to make sure the unit is ready for the consumer so there is less warranty work after the sale.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

Bohemian

Well-known member
Heartland does not pick the dealers, the dealers pick Heartland. RV sales are not like auto sales. RV dealers can determine whatever brand of product they want to carry.

If the dealership doesn't have a good service department to take care of customers, that's on the dealership, not Heartland.

The agreement between HL and the dealership has to include some PDI, though, to make sure the unit is ready for the consumer so there is less warranty work after the sale.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Not quite. Heartland and dealers make a mutual agreement by contract.
 
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