Dont think I will buy another Heartland Product

[sean.harp]

Not so, the buying power of Thor in massive quantities from suppliers is huge. That's probably the quickest way for them to gain profit. Start using what Thor is already getting at a lower price.

Well that would be great news. Anyone concerned about their near monopoly position in the market? Seems like they own almost every well known RV trailer brand now.


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[JohnDar]

Once you're past the manufacturer's warranty, you can take your rig anywhere to have work done. Even your original dealer will move Mr. Cash to the head of the line.


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[CharlieP]

Look, everyone here wants you to have a good experience with your RV. However, there is a point of personal responsibility. If you read ANY RV forum "blowmax tires" are an almost daily post. This is what I'm taking about when I say make your RV reliable, take off those tires the second it gets delivered, and put on some quality G rated tires (Goodyear or Saliun). Not doing so means you are just sitting yourself up for the hassle of a major repair and a lot of time without your RV. Blaming the dealer or the manufacturer isn't going to fix the problem.

Switching brands won't change those choices either.

As someone who's thinking of buying a new Mallard 302, this gives me pause. I don't have the usual newbie worry about towing a 37-foot trailer. My reluctance surrounds issues of build quality, reliability, warranty, and dealer service. What do you think I'd need to do to make a trailer reliable right out the door? Please be candid. I'm not a crybaby. I'm asking at the outset, because I want to know what to expect. Thanks much.

 

[wdk450]

As someone who's thinking of buying a new Mallard 302, this gives me pause. I don't have the usual newbie worry about towing a 37-foot trailer. My reluctance surrounds issues of build quality, reliability, warranty, and dealer service. What do you think I'd need to do to make a trailer reliable right out the door? Please be candid. I'm not a crybaby. I'm asking at the outset, because I want to know what to expect. Thanks much.

If you want the best level of build quality you have to pay the big bucks. I have a read about a brand of 5th wheels that only has 2 factory direct "showroom" lots in the country, builds all units to custom order, and goes to the extreme in build quality and QA. Their units start at about $125,000 for the "low end" models.

 

[danemayer]

As someone who's thinking of buying a new Mallard 302, this gives me pause. I don't have the usual newbie worry about towing a 37-foot trailer. My reluctance surrounds issues of build quality, reliability, warranty, and dealer service. What do you think I'd need to do to make a trailer reliable right out the door? Please be candid. I'm not a crybaby. I'm asking at the outset, because I want to know what to expect. Thanks much.

Hi CharlieP,

You can't control the build quality or the reliability of vendor supplied subsystems and appliances. But you can expect very good warranty support from Heartland. Dealer quality and support varies quite a bit judging from a multitude of internet discussions.

So you might do well to have the sales team at the dealer introduce you to the service manager and warranty coordinator. Discuss your concerns and ask about turnaround time on repairs.

Here's a link to our folder with a thorough Pre-Delivery Inspection Checklist. You should inspect the trailer thoroughly before signing the acceptance and financial paperwork. As you use the trailer, you may find things that need adjustment or correction. If you can stay at or near the dealer for 2 or 3 days you'll find those things. With prior agreement from the Service Manager at the dealer, you should be able to bring the trailer back and have it fixed while you wait, rather than have to drop it off.

And down the road, if you have problems getting the dealer support that you need, a call to Heartland will usually help move things along.

 

[JohnD]

Considering that Mallard's are a Heartland made product for Camping World, I'd say your biggest issue will be with Camping World . . . not Heartland.

I love Camping World for buying my camping supplies and accessories, but when it comes to getting service work done . . . well, that is another story!

They have such a high turn around rate of employees that however good they may be today might not be the same story in six months when you need warranty service.

 

[dave10a]

Customer complaints are too common in the RV industry. Reminds me of the early years inthe auto industry. It took competition from Japan to get the Americanauto industry to start building products with better quality control. Maybe that is what it is going to take to make the RV industry to minimize the complaints.
As it stands now there are several factors that cause complaints.


1. Factory Employee turn over is too high and most tasks are piece work or thru put timed
2. Engineering is towards light weight and in many cases under-designed to be cost effective.
3. Selection of components and materials is too cost sensitive.
4. Dealers are generally not properly trained for knowledge and service of the products they sell.
5. Factory QC is minimal and rely too much on the dealers.


Most RVmanufacturers and their component suppliers stand behind theirwarranties fairly well which helps alleviate the pain of buying thoseproducts, but it is mostly inconvenient for the customer.


It is most helpfulif one is mechanically inclined and can deal with these products bydoing your own corrective and preventive maintenance. I have empathyfor those who are not so inclined.

 

[TravelTiger]

Customer complaints are too common in the RV industry. Reminds me of the early years inthe auto industry. It took competition from Japan to get the Americanauto industry to start building products with better quality control. Maybe that is what it is going to take to make the RV industry to minimize the complaints.
As it stands now there are several factors that cause complaints.


1. Factory Employee turn over is too high and most tasks are piece work or thru put timed
2. Engineering is towards light weight and in many cases under-designed to be cost effective.
3. Selection of components and materials is too cost sensitive.
4. Dealers are generally not properly trained for knowledge and service of the products they sell.
5. Factory QC is minimal and rely too much on the dealers.


Most RVmanufacturers and their component suppliers stand behind theirwarranties fairly well which helps alleviate the pain of buying thoseproducts, but it is mostly inconvenient for the customer.


It is most helpfulif one is mechanically inclined and can deal with these products bydoing your own corrective and preventive maintenance. I have empathyfor those who are not so inclined.

Pretty good analysis.


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[CharlieP]

Customer complaints are too common in the RV industry. Reminds me of the early years inthe auto industry. It took competition from Japan to get the Americanauto industry to start building products with better quality control. Maybe that is what it is going to take to make the RV industry to minimize the complaints.

I'm talking to friends who have trailers, and am thinking of something radically different: a snap-together geodesic dome from a company called HarvestRight. It some ways it'd be a lot more work, because I'd probably wind up with a small trailer to haul the structure and the furniture. But I could at least be confident that everything would work. I guess it comes down to camping out vs. a trailer. I've got a bunch of thinking to do.

By the way, after checking around, I think the Japan vs. Detroit comparison is excellent, mainly because I thought of exactly the same thing yesterday. One friend who owns a trailer says this:

Charlie, as far as workmanship they're all s****y. Glue guns and staples is about it. One formed with aluminum skinned foam versus stick frame and aluminum siding if FAR superior. Don't get one with stick construction. Most manufacturers make both, with the higher grade models foam core.

I prefer treated plywood floors versus plastic. The plastic ones are used on most ultra lites. they tend to sag and soften after a time. Mallard is an old name in RVs. At this point they're almost all made by Thor Industries. My Starcraft has a comparable Jayco model. Check out RV Trader to see how yours compares price and feature wise. Have a dealer inspect it if it's a private sale. Get a warranty if it's from a dealer.

The more I think of it, the more it sounds like a pre-planned headache.

 

[danemayer]

Something else to consider is that everything you see online is biased heavily toward problem reports. People out enjoying themselves are much less motivated to post.

We have these discussions frequently and it seems like there's quite a bit of unpredictability. One person has 1 or 2 very minor things that need to be corrected and someone else has a long list.

And picking the right dealer goes a long way to sweetening your experience. For example, I don't think I've heard any bad stories about RVs For Less in Knoxville, Tennessee. I have heard a lot of good stories about them.

Do more trailers fall into the category of the 1 or 2 minor problems? We have no data; only our guesses. The people who have 1 or 2 minor problems probably think most are that way. The people who came out worse may think the other way.

But, one takeaway from this forum is that many of the regulars who hang out here keep buying Heartland products; some as they've moved up are on their 3rd or 4th Heartland trailer. They've read all the good and bad and they're sticking with Heartland.

 

[JENDAVE]

We too, had a new Heartland product with several issues. We took it to the dealer and tried to have the problems fixed, with horrible results. Finally, we started contacting Heartland Customer Service directly, and found the dealer had never contacted them or requested parts. We told Heartland what our issues were and they contacted the dealer, problem solved. Out of warrant now, and still some minor issues, but I would still buy another Heartland product. At the Goshen Rally Heartland fixed several issues for us, without cost. One of the issues, which we didn't think they'd help with, was a bad refrigerator door. They couldn't get the door before the rally was over, so they shipped it to our house. Now that's customer service!!!!!!

We also had horrible luck with the dealer, telling us it was Heartland holding up the repairs on our 2017 Landmark. One email to Heartland told me different, things moved very quickly after that email and subsequent phone call. We have had several issues most resolved now, but Ron at Heartland has been AMAZING! The lesson don't fool around with the dealer go to the source to get results. Still working out a few bugs, but feel confident in Heartland's customer service.


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[Stickdog]

Here I sit a potential Heartland customer and wonder if this is the right way to go. I do find on fourms that the frustration from problems are most often the reason for rants.

We're fulltimers so where we purchase will be based on the best deal and not on service from a dealer. I assume there will be some after delivery kinks but unless it's a major problem I'll handle it myself.

There's a lot of talk about poor quality tires but seeing how rv delivery drivers make time, I've never passed one but many, many have passed me. I prefer to run at 62 even with my G614's. They seem to do the limit or more no matter what it is. It's no wonder that rv tires have already been stressed to their limits before they ever reach a dealers lot.

 

[DickO]

We had a 2010 Bighorn we LOVED. We became vocal ambassadors of Heartland. We just got our 2017 Bighorn in February. I am contacting .... Monday to get Heartland to pay for New power cord that died ---repairing the frig that stopped working on gas and fixing a wall that was falling off. I will be posting a full report soon.

 

[MTPockets]

Here I sit a potential Heartland customer and wonder if this is the right way to go. I do find on fourms that the frustration from problems are most often the reason for rants.

We're fulltimers so where we purchase will be based on the best deal and not on service from a dealer. I assume there will be some after delivery kinks but unless it's a major problem I'll handle it myself.

There's a lot of talk about poor quality tires but seeing how rv delivery drivers make time, I've never passed one but many, many have passed me. I prefer to run at 62 even with my G614's. They seem to do the limit or more no matter what it is. It's no wonder that rv tires have already been stressed to their limits before they ever reach a dealers lot.

Someone will correct me if I'm not recalling correctly, but I believe the G rated tires are labeled with a speed limit max of 75 MPH, while the E rated tires are labeled a max of 65 MPH. I'm sure a large number of of haulers and owners exceed these limits regularly, especially the 65 MPH. Hence, more tire issues.

 

[CDN]

Happy with our Bighorn compared to previous RV's

One of those hot threads.

I have owned 5 RVs. The most recent 2 Forest River products were a Travel trailer (dumped month 13 as the main slide never worked right) and then a lower mid level 5th Wheel. I had several things repaired on the coach and also had a extended warranty that was never used. The cheapness of a Ultralite trailer in material quality to keep weight down leads to issues. Floor sandwich was not very strong, torsion axles just heavy enough, frame somewhat OK. What this did educate me on was overall quality and what we both wanted out of a new Fifth Wheel. We searched for 2 years and tried to stay with a FR product due to club activities. Build quality went down the tubes on our chosen model (C$%^&bus).

We searched other brands and bought a high end Heartland Bighorn instead for not many dollars more than the competitions. We had 2 issues. The dining slide did not seat down all the way and a the wrong cabinet door and trim piece needs replacement. Slide is fixed, dealer looked after us and fixed the issue to our satisfaction. This also formed part of our selection process and we only have 1 so we needed to make sure it would work.
I have found lots loose screws and enough spares for future use. I also used my pin nailer to attached many pieces of trim, fixed a closet door latch that pulled a panel loose, cleaned gunk from bedroom slide rollers so they rolled once again. One thing that always was an issue was AV wiring, this coach worked correctly from day one, every connection. Knock on luan very lightly this is best built coach i have owned since 1985 and is also the best designed.

I have many mods going in to make this ours, that is the fun part.

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Someone will correct me if I'm not recalling correctly, but I believe the G rated tires are labeled with a speed limit max of 75 MPH, while the E rated tires are labeled a max of 65 MPH. I'm sure a large number of of haulers and owners exceed these limits regularly, especially the 65 MPH. Hence, more tire issues.

Agreed! I had Blowmax on my old trailer and changed them to Goodyears after first year and horror stories.