Heartland quality

[rhett92]

Hi guys and gals. I not trying to bash heartland but I want to share my experience. We bought a next to new road warrior 30c. Previous owner used trailer one weekend and traded it for a camper leaving us with what we thought was a great deal. We bought it from a huge heartland dealer in Alberta where it was originally purchased. We have had nothing but problems with it. We left from Alberta to Victoria bc. The morning we go to leave we lose all marker lights but the front two. Get to Kamloops close to dusk and a nice rv tech at least got my tailights to light up. Always had brake and signals. He said bad ground. What a nightmare to chase down! Get to where we are gonna be full timing it till we buy a house,drop trailer set it all up and the fridge faults. It is at an rv repair shop which is great. The have to pull fridge and waiting on parts.
Here is a list of flaws that have been found right from factory
1. Fridge does not work
2. Out door speaker was not connected from factory.
3. Rear awning is out of its channel halfway from factory and has to come off and be reinstalled as the first time we ever put it out it tilted really bad to one side.
4. Marker lights out and am paying a minimum of 10 hrs labor to try and diagnose!$$$
5. Windows not caulked properly.
6. Factory 8k paint job is pealing and this trailer has a total of 4000km travel time.
Now I love my unit but am beyond frustrated and feel heartland should be compensating me for lights that don't work, fixing paint,rear awning, outdoor speaker etc..
The rv techs here cannot believe the way the marker lights are wired. Why does a $90000rig need all this work???? Mabey a little more time and quality control would alleviate this. Has anyone ever tried to go after heartland for stuff like this. I realize it not under warranty as its a 2013 but this rig had been used a total of ten nights in its life and has been a never ending list of problems. The most hard pill to swallow is the labour on the wiring problem. They have used heat shrink crimps but didn't beat them to shrink so we are finding corroded wires everywhere. I posted pic at bottom.
Any advice from you guys would be appreciated. I know heartland monitors this so I'd like to hear what they say about this. Look at the pics!! No wonder I have lights out everywhere and it's gonna cost upwards of 2000$ to fix just this. Having said that I understand these things need to be built quick for heartland to make $ but come on man. This is insanity. Any advice would be great.

 

[danemayer]

Hi rhett92,

2013 models were mostly built in 2012, which would make the rig 3 to 4 years old. Peeling paint, corroded connections, leaking window caulking all suggest that someone (perhaps the original dealer or first owner) may not have kept up with required maintenance. The water leak experienced by the first owner could also have contributed to later problems.

So while the factory may not have done a perfect job, it's very possible that you bought a rig in less than the "mint" condition you mentioned in an older post. You might want to have all of the caulking checked very carefully to make sure you don't have water intrusion causing your problems.

 

[rhett92]

Thanks for input. Rig was in absolutely perfect condition. Rig was used for one weekend before I got it. The only reason I didn't buy knew was because this thing was better and had less nicks and scratches than the brand new ones on the lot. As far as paint goes it's like my big dollar truck. U don't see paint peeling off trucks at that age ever. I own a lot of trucks and trailers as I own a construction co and have never seen anything like this. The guy who owned my rig before me lives down the street from me so I know all history on it. As far as window caulking goes they only caulked halfway down each window from factory. I believe that is all that is required but on a rig this expensive it should be done all the way around. I appreciate the input though

 

[Crumgater]

Our Elkridge is a 2011 model... built and delivered in the fall of 2010. We haven't had any problems like that (knock on wood) - and we've dragged it all over the rainy NW US.
...really, not shrinking the shrink-tubing on the wire connections??? How did QA miss that?

Sorry you're going through all this.

 

[jimtoo]

The posted pictures of the wiring appear to be crimp connectors, they are not heat shrink covered. Crimp connectors are the common connectors for just about every thing in 12v world.

Jim M

 

[Bob&Patty]

Let me see, "one owner...only used once. I got it. 4 year old trailer, possibly towed once or twice or maybe not on a salted road and you have corrosion in wiring. Your trucks have rust preventing coatings on the metal....fiberglass does not. Caulking needs to be inspected every 6 months and repaired as needed. It is not a forever one time application. BTW, you never put caulking at the bottom of the windows. Only across the top and down the sides. BTW, do you ever find things that need to be repaired on a S/B house?? Like roof repair, paint touch up, bad connection at a plug or light switch..etc..etc. I Know I do almost every year. Rolling earthquakes need attention all the time.

 

[rhett92]

Why have two rv dealers told me those windows should be caulked all the way around. Not sure I understand why they are caulked halfway. Please explain

 

[rhett92]

I guess my point bob and Jim is those crimps after they are crimped are meant to have a little butane torch heat the ends so they shrink. Every basic guy who installs any 12 v wiring knows that. And bob I agree the thing definitely needs attention as it is a rolling earthquake !! I do take excellent care of my rig. It just seams like its never ending. Every single time I use this thing something else is wrong with it and most of my complaints are right from factory. I'm done being mad about it. Just want to enjoy it. Thanks for the input

 

[Sniper]

Sorry to hear of your troubles, but I was just curious if all these things were good when you did your PDI at the dealership, and if the previous owner down the street had these issues prior to him trading it in. I've never seen window caulking all the way around on any of the RV's we owned. Just the tops and sides. I don't no why though.

Safe travels.

 

[dave10a]

Caulking cost money and most manufacturers skimp where ever they can. I had to re-caulk the roof after 1st year and did it like the manufacturer of the roof recommended. Now that caulking is over 3 years old and is still in good shape. You will hear several reasons why Heartland is not the blame and the owner is. Just ignore them and fix the pre mature problems as they occur. Maybe Heartland should offer an option and charge accordingly to build it right in the first place

 

[rhett92]

Thanks Dave. A lot of opinions by people who have low expectations I guess. Or Mabey mine are to high. Lol

 

[rhett92]

When the unit was pdi there was a list of other problems. Mainly plumbing. They had to cut into heated underbelly due to water leak. I just talked to him and other than that it was fine. They used it one week and it was always stored indoors in his shop. They didn't need such a big unit so traded it in and I bought it a week later from dealer

 

[jbeletti]

Behind the entire outer frame of a frame-style window is a seal/gasket of some sort. This seal is compressed against the outer wall of the RV when the interior trim/clamp ring is secured with screws. It's this seal that provides protection against water ingress.

While I don't know much about the requirement, RV manufacturers generally "cap seal" standard framed windows after installation. Cap Seal, so far as I know, means sealing across the top and around the radius top corners and that's it. Cap Sealing does not generally include the entire length of the sides of the window frame.

I see no harm in sealing all the way down the sides of the window if you wish. As mentioned by others, be real careful about sealing the bottom of the window frame that you don't seal up any weep-holes.

 

[Sniper]

Thanks Dave. A lot of opinions by people who have low expectations I guess. Or Mabey mine are to high. Lol

Indeed it is hard to balance that excitement level with expectations. LOL I replaced all our marker lights to LED's and I was surprised at the wiring lack of integrity. Not that it will make you feel any better, but the other brand toy hauler we had was assembled the same way. I guess that may be industry standard. I do hope you get everything fixed to your satisfaction and get to enjoy it as much as we do ours.

 

[dave10a]

Thanks Dave. A lot of opinions by people who have low expectations I guess. Or Mabey mine are to high. Lol

People were reacting the same way with the auto industry decades ago until Japan demonstrated that automobiles could be manufactured with fewer warranty problems.

 

[Noofear]

Thanks Dave. A lot of opinions by people who have low expectations I guess. Or Mabey mine are to high. Lol

Don't suppose you thought to buy an extended warranty. If you're that unhappy with your unit than sell it. I just bought my Bighorn unit a 2015 new, last year's clearance model, moved it over a thousand miles, have full timed in it for a month and have had absolutely no problems with it.

I don't have low expectations, I figure I got what I paid for I don't expect anymore don't expect any less. If there are any problems the factory warranty should take care it.

Also its hard to be upset when I have had nothing to be upset about. Just like that used car everyone had problems with you have to expect to have problems when you by used, not all previous problems get reported when trading off a unit. Just saying......

Thanks Dave. A lot of opinions by people who have low expectations I guess. Or Mabey mine are to high. Lol

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[kowAlski631]

Don't suppose you thought to buy an extended warranty. If you're that unhappy with your unit than sell it. I just bought my Bighorn unit a 2015 new, last year's clearance model, moved it over a thousand miles, have full timed in it for a month and have had absolutely no problems with it.

I don't have low expectations, I figure I got what I paid for I don't expect anymore don't expect any less. If there are any problems the factory warranty should take care it.

Also its hard to be upset when I have had nothing to be upset about. Just like that used car everyone had problems with you have to expect to have problems when you by used, not all previous problems get reported when trading off a unit. Just saying......



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Agree!!!

 

[JohnD]

OK . . . this is what I got back from our dealership one week ago yesterday:

 

[Sniper]

OK . . . this is what I got back from our dealership one week ago yesterday:

? ?

 

[GOTTOYS]

Don't suppose you thought to buy an extended warranty. If you're that unhappy with your unit than sell it. I just bought my Bighorn unit a 2015 new, last year's clearance model, moved it over a thousand miles, have full timed in it for a month and have had absolutely no problems with it.

I don't have low expectations, I figure I got what I paid for I don't expect anymore don't expect any less. If there are any problems the factory warranty should take care it.

Also its hard to be upset when I have had nothing to be upset about. Just like that used car everyone had problems with you have to expect to have problems when you by used, not all previous problems get reported when trading off a unit. Just saying......



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Extended warranty is not always a good answer. Many of them cover much less than the factory plan. If you have one, don't take the salesperson's word for what it covers, read it yourself. You might be surprised at all the loopholes...Don