I noticed that in the very beginning and wondered whay someone who has been lurking on the forum since 2009 was surprised about the problem and Heartland's response. Most of what we have been discussing has been discussed many times in other threads and what the resolution was.
Heartland won't cover out-of-warranty repair cost on slide room repair.
- Thread starter Fireball56
- Start date
Jellystone
Well-known member
Moose, I agree with your statement 100%. I am a Heartland supporter, but, all RV manufacturers (and customers) need to change their way of thinking about what is acceptable and what is not. Some of these major issues that folks are having soon after the 1 year warranty runs out are obviously caused by substandard products, poor workmanship, or bad design. All 3 of those should be easily addressed if a manufacturer wants to stay in business.
I realize that many owners do not have major problems with their RV's and that is terrific. An individual shouldn't have to be a welder,plumber,carpenter,draftsman,electrician,pipe fitter,tire & wheel specialist, and fiberglass technician just to be able to do routine maintenance on an RV. If an individual performed all the manufacturer "required" maintenance on an RV at all times and fix all of the problems, then it would require 5 hours of work a day. People don't invest that much time in their 2,000 sq. ft. house doing maintenance. The reason why: we as consumers would not put up with this from a home builder--the home builder would go out of business--quality home builder would step in and make a ton of money off happy customers.
I enjoy our 5th wheel and I believe Heartland is trying to do right by their customers. This forum is an excellent tool for Heartland to use in order to get feedback from owners. I feel confident that Heartland will listen and continue to improve their products. The key to a successful venture is to stand out from the crowd by offering QUALITY products to consumers.
RVFun4Us
Well-known member
I have read all of the posts on this thread and it is interesting to see the divergent opinions of owners. I first learned of this problem at our Oregon rally last June and when I looked under the slides, I was shocked to see the scraping underneath and a little delamination on one end of the living room slide. I contacted Heartland and they sent me the polyethylene strips in a kit and charged me their price. I bought the angle corner pieces at HD for a small price. I was able to do this on my own. Many owners out there are not able to perform this type of work because of lack of know-how or maybe their age has caught up to them. I identify warranty items as those common things that break down in an RV. Having the slide laminate stop about a half-inch above the slide floor is a design flaw, not something that breaks down like a refrigerator or furnace. That design flaw allows water that runs down the slide to penetrate the flooring, causing the swelling and delamination. Is it a safety issue? Not really. I have had auto manufacturers contact me on design flaws in my vehicles in order to take them in and repair them usually at no cost to the owner. It happens all the time. So why shouldn't Heartland, at the very least, contact the owners via mail or electronically and let them know of this flaw? Can you imagine how many people who are not part of this forum have these Heartland products and still do not know of this problem? At the very minimum, Heartland should contact the owners. Best practice would be for Heartland to allow the owners to take their RVs into a dealer to have this fixed at Heartland's cost. I know the RV industry is not doing well overall but Heartland seems to be weathering the storm and doing pretty well. Customer satisfaction should be Job 1. Again, IMO, this is a design flaw and should not be considered as a normal warranty item.
I agree it would be nice if Heartland would at least inform us of the potential problem in a design and covered during the warranty period(which it is). It's the notification that is lacking. Maybe they don't have anyone who puts 2+2 together and watches the trends of problems. Maybe it is such a small population that has the problem that it is not considered "a problem". Though having a repair kit available seems to indicate they were aware of it.
We had a truck once that had a design flaw, the oil pressure sending unit went out ever 2-3 months. While under warranty it was covered, luckily the mfg. finally fixed the problem. Were we ever notified no, why this basic component was redesigned who knows, why it wasn't adequately tested who knows. The dealers weren't even notified of the problem.
Very few mfgs have pro-active customer service unless the govt. steps in as a safety issue. When you call with a problem they have a resolution but don't notify you of the problem.
Overall if you have had a mfg. notify you of a design problem that is an exception. Most just ignore the problems.
I am grateful that Heartland monitors our forum and does make changes based on our input and requests our input for changes. I am not aware of any other rv mfg that does that. Overall Heartland has been one of the best mfgs to deal with. There customer service is knowledgeable and accommodating. Send parts fast. Try dealing with other mfgs. and see what you get.
We had a truck once that had a design flaw, the oil pressure sending unit went out ever 2-3 months. While under warranty it was covered, luckily the mfg. finally fixed the problem. Were we ever notified no, why this basic component was redesigned who knows, why it wasn't adequately tested who knows. The dealers weren't even notified of the problem.
Very few mfgs have pro-active customer service unless the govt. steps in as a safety issue. When you call with a problem they have a resolution but don't notify you of the problem.
Overall if you have had a mfg. notify you of a design problem that is an exception. Most just ignore the problems.
I am grateful that Heartland monitors our forum and does make changes based on our input and requests our input for changes. I am not aware of any other rv mfg that does that. Overall Heartland has been one of the best mfgs to deal with. There customer service is knowledgeable and accommodating. Send parts fast. Try dealing with other mfgs. and see what you get.
fjspinelli
Common Sense Jake
Anyone interested in purchasing a 2009 Cyclone 3950? The repairs have been made to my slides, by me, with no assistance from Heartland, but greatly guided by the members of this forum. I am shopping for a different unit and while I will look at a 2011 Cyclone, I am not sure I trust Heartland enough to purchase another one. They have completely dropped the ball on this matter.
linuxkidd
Member
I gotta say, I'm surprised that a $400 repair after 18 months of ownership is enough to send you looking for SOBs. These units cost multiple thousands of dollars, and yes.. like anything require some maintenance and upkeep. I understand how this could be seen as a manufacturing defect, but I think we can also look at this from a different angle. Heartland took action to overcome a flaw in someone else's product by adding the extra covering over the edge of the flooring. The flooring manufacturer says that the material is practically water proof even with the covering compromised since they use marine grade plywood. Since it's not holding up to those claims, Heartland stepped up.
If anything, I would think this would lead you to a stronger resolve that Heartland is committed to improving the product and is turning out better units each day. There have been so many improvements made to their units based off of feedback provided in the forums here. You could argue that every update to the unit was due to a 'design flaw', but lets be more realistic. Everyone who is successful learns from doing. Some stuff gets fixed before a unit leaves, some after it leaves, and some a year or more later after the previous unit shows signs of wear that could be prevented by a small investment.
I may have rambled a bit, but the bottom line is this.. Do what makes you comfortable. Me personally... I think $400 investment into a multiple thousand dollar unit 6 months out of warranty isn't a big deal. Would I ask for it to be reimbursed? Sure. Would I be surprised if the answer is no? Nope..
I hope you can enjoy your Heartland while you have it, and I wish you all the best with whatever your new unit is.
Thanks,
LK
linuxkidd
Member
Sorry for the double post, but I also want to challenge you to find a more helpful and supportive group of owners backed by a forum that is supported, visited, and listened to by the manufacturer. I've looked at SOBs, and looked for their owners forums, etc.. I can tell you from my experience, this forum is ( in my opinion ) the best and one of the biggest selling points of the Heartland brand.
Thanks,
LK
Thanks,
LK
fjspinelli
Common Sense Jake
Lk,
You are correct about the forum, the group of owners who are here, and the factory at least tuning in. If the slides were the only manufacturing defect I might be more supportive, but this has not been the case (as evidenced by prior posts). As I told Terry in the parts department Friday, I will look at the 2011 3950 or a similar unit, but I won't be looking at them the same way I did. The trust level is just not there anymore, and yes, I paid top dollar for this unit, with every option available. There is no way I should have been making these repairs, no matter what the cost.
Thanks - FJ
You are correct about the forum, the group of owners who are here, and the factory at least tuning in. If the slides were the only manufacturing defect I might be more supportive, but this has not been the case (as evidenced by prior posts). As I told Terry in the parts department Friday, I will look at the 2011 3950 or a similar unit, but I won't be looking at them the same way I did. The trust level is just not there anymore, and yes, I paid top dollar for this unit, with every option available. There is no way I should have been making these repairs, no matter what the cost.
Thanks - FJ
