New North Trail 32Buds Caliper Edition Owner w/Questions-Issues

Hi Everyone,

Me and my husband just purchased a 2013 32 BUDS Caliper Edition Camper and brought it home this past friday. It was about a 2 hr drive from the dealer and when we got home the sliding doors in the bedroom had busted off. The little plastic snaps apparently are worthless. The bottom plastic clips where the door slides came right out of the doors and were just laying on the floor. The 1 top clip on the door broke in half and was laying on the floor. This is an extremely bad design! We were NOT towing this camper home like a bunch of banchies either.......it was mainly all highway. Does anyone know where we can get new replacement clips for these? My 2nd question or complaint is the kitchen countertops. I did not realize how EASY these scratch. Just sliding something across them puts a scratch that is visible in them. Does anyone know of a way to protect them? Is there something I can put on them to possibly help with this? While we do like the camper very much, we are alittle disappointed in these items. Also, who in gods name designed where the outlets go in the kitchen?? Do they NOT drink coffee? Why did they not put a plug on TOP of the counter somewhere where you can plug a coffee pot in.........why would they put in on the side towards the front of the counter? I can put the coffee pot by the outlet but cannot use 1 side of the sink. I know these are items we should have noticed before we purchased the camper but in spending that much money, I was concerned with many other options. Perhaps the designers should re-think some of these little things.........little things in the end mean alot! But back to the doors and the countertops.........if anyone has an suggestions, we would greatly appreciate it. Also, is there anywhere we can obtain a few manuals.........we were told they were all in the camper and we trusted they were there. Only to get home and have no manual for the outside refrigerator, the power jacks or the outside TV. Thank you to all that respond.

Hello SandyD and welcome to the forum. There is a lot of good information to be shared here.
Sorry to hear that you have has a few problems on your way home.
But fear not, everything can be fixed. I think.
Lets start with the doors. The single most popular reason doors come off their tracks is if they were not secured for travel. Yours may not have been.
Contact your dealer or Heartland Customer Service for replacement parts.
Receptacle, I don't know about the North Trail, but take a look under the upper cabinets. Sometimes they can be found there. Some people have used outlet strips for their appliances. That will extend the range from the lower receptacle.
Do you have the solid surface counter tops? If so they can be buffed out with a polishing media if it gets too bad. I keep ours looking pretty good by keeping a coat of wax on them.
Small scratches will show on any shiny surface.
You may have already done this, but you will have to scour the RV looking for manuals. Sometimes found in a drawer or under the bed, if there is storage there. Again, your dealer or Heartland Customer Service should be able to help out with that.
Heartland Customer Service
877-262-8032 / 574-262-8030

Peace
Dave

Thank you Cookie for the reply. We did have the plastic straps in place before we traveled. The countertops are solid so I will give the wax a try. I just was very surprised they were not a little more durable. This is a very good forum for information and I'm glad I found it. Thank you again

I don't have an outside refrigerator or tv, but there was no manual for the power jacks. I found it online by googling the name of the jacks. There is not a whole lot to it, but it would be handy if you have a problem. On the bedroom door, my wife uses a couple of those spring loaded cafe curtain rod to hold the door open. On ours when the door is closed it meets the corner of the hall wall. She just adjusts them so there is a little tension on them and puts them between the wall and door.

Sandy,

We too had the exact same problem with the straps for the door on our 2012 32 BUDS. The dealer changed out the straps and they have worked ever since. Until we had them swapped we used the spring loaded cabinet rods you can buy at Camping World. They worked well.

Outlet in the kitchen......preaching to the choir! That one can't be argued to make sense. There is an outlet in the top cabinet next to the microwave which is where the microwave plugs in. I am thinking of installing an outlet off of that one and place it on the bottom of the cabinets.

We too have the solid surface counter tops. Multiple trips thus far with no noticeable scratches. I can't be of help there but you can buff them and then wax them like previously mentioned.

Jeff

Thanks Jeff for the input. I am going to try wax on the countertops to see if that helps. The straps actually are still attached to the doors, it was the bottom plastic rail piece that ripped right out of the door and the top plastic piece that snaps into the metal type bolt at the top of the door. From what I have been reading, we should just be able to call the Customer Service Dept and get replacements. It's just such a shame that for how much money you spend on these campers. I understand they are what some consider "little" things.........but to me, it's the little things that matter the most.

Hi SandyD,

Congrats on the new North Trail and welcome to the forum. This is a great place to get info and to learn how to fix, improve, or add things to your camper.

We have the 2012 version. Same problem with front doors, put a hook on them to keep them together at the top and moved the straps to the bottom and postitioned to hold the doors to the island.

Good news about the kitchen countertops is they also buff easy. The selling dealer buffed out some scratches on ours.
Like fmj039, we're adding an outlet in the bottom of our cupboard. We are also adding an outlet in the outside kitchen. Both should be pretty simple.

We have had our share of problems, some still need to be corrected but things are moving in the right direction. We've had seven trips this year and another eight planned. I'm trying to not let the small stuff bother me, pretty easy fixes and changes that'll be in the past soon.

Hope you enjoy your new camper!

SandyD said:

It's just such a shame that for how much money you spend on these campers. I understand they are what some consider "little" things.........but to me, it's the little things that matter the most.

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Agree 100%. I got a little caught up on that too. Most on the forum only consider them little things because they've had to fix or deal with similar stuff on their own units. Hope they become little things for you in the long run.

Cliff

Sandy,
We had the same problem with the bedroom door on our 26RKS but not to the extent of yours-ours did not actually break. It just wouldn't stay open with the strap. We augmented the strap with two clips attached to the door track. One clip on each side of the door to keep it from sliding closed or off the track. The clips are large industrial type that we picked up at Lowes that are used for holding wood together for gluing or something like that. We've never had a problem with the door since on our many cross country trips. Hope this helps.

Tracy

We have also had issues with the door hanger breaking in our 2011 30QOK. It happens when the part of the door not held by the bottom quide swings forward when braking. For the door to the master bedroom I just set my duffle bag between the door and the bed. For the bunkhouse door I think an extra guide or a hook at the rear bottom corner should help.

Just remember that the door issues can be resolved as this is under warranty for a year. Make sure you get everything properly repaired. As for the outlet, you could consider rewiring your coffee pot, or consider doing your first modification and installing an outlet in a more convenient location. Many people here can help you and guide you through that process.

I think I saved our door from having the issues you had, before I pulled off of the lot I noticed the doors to be very loose. I had the tech tighten up all of the screws. He replaced a few with larger diameter screws as needed. This really helped. I wonder if yours are lose.