Flexing of trim on outside cap of 2010 Heartland Sundance RLB

[jmp9701300]

I own a 2010 Heartland Sundance 33RLB. We bought it brand new for around 45K and it has never been in any recks or accidents. The trim where the bottom of the cap meets the side wall on the outside of the 5th wheel is separating/flexing/cracking out (about an 8 inch section on the door side) and has been caulked at least 4 times. The dealer said that most likely the welds have come loose. The kingpin box is also experiencing some flex issue as well. Our dealer contacted their rep at Heartland as well as sending them pictures and a video and they said sure they would fix it. I'm in Oregon and they are in Indiana. I received a quote for $3700.00 one way. This is out of the question. We still owe alot on it and cannot afford to pay $7000.00 round trip and risk a faulty repair from Heartland and if that occurs wonder what to do next if that does happens. They aren't local and Indiana isn't a hop, skip, and a jump away. We would like to have someone locally fix it where we could take it back if the problem was still occurring.

This problem has been going on since our warranty was still in effect so I am very, very surprised that Heartland isn't willing to help out more on this matter because the problem was discovered while it was still under warranty. We just didn't figure it out until it was out of warranty. The dealer has all the documentation on this to back up the claim that the flexing happened while still under warranty.

I was looking on some forums and found that Lippert has a 2 year warranty on the frame. If that is the case, we are still within that warranty (we purchased November 2010) and with luck, we are hoping that Lippert stands by their product and we can pull it to their Pendleton, Oregon location to get it fixed. Our dealer (Northwest RV in Salem Oregon) has been extremely helpful in this situation.

I also have to add that we have upgraded to the Mor Ride system both on our hitch and for our shocks. We also have an extended warranty that we purchased through Camping World. I'm wondering if it will cover this kind of work if Lippert passes the buck or blames it on something else.

Does anyone else have any suggestions on what we should do?

Has anyone had this happen and what was your outcome and the cost to repair out of pocket?

Does anyone know if it is true that Lippert does have a two year warranty and if so do you think they will stand by their product and fix our frame issue?

Does anyone know where we can get it repaired in Oregon?

Just need any suggestions because I am at a loss on what to do and very surprised that Heartland hasn't helped more than what they offered to do.

Your help is greatly appreciated on this matter and Thank you in advance!

 

[danemayer]

Hi jmp9701300,

Welcome to the Heartland Owners Forum. I'm sure you'll find a lot of useful information here along with a great bunch of people who are willing to share their knowledge and experience.

I'm sorry to here you're having this problem. It's certainly not what any of us would want. I've seen some similar posts over the past couple of years where Heartland has offered to do the repairs at the factory but does expect the owner to get it there. In most of these situations, the owner tows it there. I suppose that must be impractical for you.

First thing I'd suggest is to speak with Heartland directly to make sure there's nothing lost in the conversation. Perhaps Heartland would be willing to support other options, such as a closer repair shop that has experience with structural repairs. If you can get a hold of an adjuster from your insurance company, they may be able to refer you to a shop that can do the work. It might be a place that handles collision damage to motorcoaches or large vehicles like fire engines.

You might also want to make direct contact with Lippert to ask for their support and also if they know of nearby repair facilities.

And of course other owners in your area may jump in with additional suggestions.

 

[jmp9701300]

Thanks so much for your suggestions danemayer.

We thought about researching a facility that does repairs for collision damage type things. That was our next step.

The dealer did get a callback from Lippert and Lippert said that the warranty is one year on the frame. Great news is that they are willing to fix it in their Pendleton, Oregon location in which I was told Pendleton is about 3-4 hours away from my home area. They said we have to make an appointment to get it in for which I will call tomorrow because of course the factory is closed for the day today. The only catch is seeing if they will cover the costs of the repairs because the coach was in warranty when the first instance occurred.

Does anyone have suggestions on how to go about negotiating with them on this?

Has anyone had something similar happen to them with their coach barely being out of warranty (purchased November 2010) and Lippert honoring and covering the costs of the repair?

 

[danemayer]

Talk to Lippert directly to see if they'll give you an accomodation and repair it for free even though out of warranty.

If they won't, I'd recommend you call Heartland Customer Service at 877-262-8032. Have your vin# ready. Since they already offered to repair the unit, perhaps they'll agree to cover the repair costs at Lippert.

 

[n2snow2]

im having the same type problem with my 33rl. heartland is paying to take mine back to the factory. it sounds like its an ongoing problem. mine is a 2012 but ive had this seperation from day one.i was told they have to remove the whole front of the camper to fix this. im not very happy................

 

[rick_debbie_gallant]

We have a BH3670rl. We also had problems with cracking of the sidewall and flex of the pin box. I was out of warranty. Heartland or lippart picked up the tab for the repair. Zero problems as of now.


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[aatauses]

We also had an issue with flexing---I contacted HL and they treated us just great. We did take it to the factory and yes they took off the whole cap along with some of the sides and welding from the underbelly. I guess from your note you were concerned about the quality if you take it to IN---I will asure you that if HL does it--it will be right!!!
al
currently in Kenai, AK

 

[rick_debbie_gallant]

Exactly what AA said.


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[ihsolutions]

I had this issue on my coach. Still having it to a lesser degree. Heartland has been awesome, fixed it at their facility, however, I am much more local (Michigan) so I never had the transport issue that you do.

I suspect (and this is only my gut based on conversations I've had) that Lippert is participating in the frame reinforcements going on at Heartland (if not physically, then monetarily). This is just my impression... so if that is what's going on, then I suspect Lippert would be taking care of your repairs on their dime, especially if it's at their facility. I do know for a fact they have repaired other things for me, outside warranty, at no cost to me.

Good luck and let us know how it turns out.

 

[Ray LeTourneau]

I think how it works is, Heartland brings the rig into their service area for cap and side removal as needed to expose the frontal areas. Lippert then sends a crew on an individual to heartlands facility to perform the structural fix. Heartland closes up the front end and recaulks the whole shebang. It takes between 2 and 4 days depending on labor availability.

 

[jmp9701300]

Just a quick question....did you have to take it Indiana to have these repairs done?

We have a BH3670rl. We also had problems with cracking of the sidewall and flex of the pin box. I was out of warranty. Heartland or lippart picked up the tab for the repair. Zero problems as of now.


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[rick_debbie_gallant]

Just a quick question....did you have to take it Indiana to have these repairs done?

We took ours on our way home to Michigan after being in Texas for the winter. We took it to them.


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[jmp9701300]

So here we are back to square one. We took it to the largest Heartland dealer in Oregon and they opened it up and found that no welds were broken. The question is what is causing the seam to split???? They worked with the factory and the factory said that it was the sidewalls have become detached from the frame. Huge, huge job and thousands of dollars to fix. Still....the factory won't step up and help us on shipping it. There is no way we can afford to ship it back to Indiana with more than $7000.00 to do that. So does anyone have any suggestions on what to do? Can we turn it into our insurance company as a claim? Can we write a letter to Heartlands president/CEO pleading our case? Since the problem did start while our RV was still under warranty what are our options? We really need everyones help on this one. We don't know what to do and even if it is safe to travel down the road now with the problem of the sidewall not even attached to the frame. Please help if you can on options.

 

[jmp9701300]

Oh and I forgot to mention that the largest Heartland dealer in Oregon said that it would be better if the factory did the work because they are better equipted to do the work. So they made it sound like they didn't want to take on the responsibility of doing the job. So we are stuck now.

 

[jayandhisgals]

Try placing an ad on UShip or Craigslist to get your rig towed to Indy. UShip has independent professional drivers who bid aginst eachother for loads. You may be able to find someone who will tow it for much less then $7k. Just a thought.

 

[TravelTiger]

I'm sorry you are having to deal with this, it is a job the factory needs to do.

You could make a cross-country vacation of it and tow it there yourself? Many folks have done this.

Have you talked to anyone at Heartland directly, or is the dealer talking to them on your behalf? If you call and talk to them, you may get different answers.




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