Thought I had that in the original post, didn't so I added.
Heartland picked it up 8/9 for repair.
If you think Im frustrated don't even think about talking to the wife!
My Heartland experience
- Thread starter wiredog
- Start date
Thought I had that in the original post, didn't so I added.
Heartland picked it up 8/9 for repair.
If you think Im frustrated don't even think about talking to the wife!
kowAlski631
Well-known member
Maybe you should contact Heartland about what's going on.
GWRam
Well-known member
Now that Heartland has your unit, find out a contact person at the heartland service center or where your unit is. Forget your dealer, only talk to the person at heartland. Verify they have the unit, confirm that they know any and all items you think need attention. Do not trust or believe that the dealer has done anything. Then stay in contact with this person as often as you feel necessary.
If you possibly can, when they say it is going to be ready. Go to the service center and go over every item with them.
Just my thoughts.
That's what we did. The service center people were great to us.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
If you possibly can, when they say it is going to be ready. Go to the service center and go over every item with them.
Just my thoughts.
That's what we did. The service center people were great to us.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
jmgratz
Original Owners Club Member
I will say on our previous Landmark we had some frame flexing issues as well as some others. Heartland RV stood behind the product and was repairing it an no charge to use (other than our cost to get it to Elkhart) even though we were 3 years out of warranty. That is one of the reasons we stuck with Heartland when we replaced that unit. We also have known several other Heartlanders that have had similar experiences. *****
In my mind if a manufacturer is willing to go that extra mile to do the repair and acknowledge there is an issue I will let the manufacturer deal with it. MHO
Last edited by a moderator:
Again, I have spoken with them during the get multiple estimates time frame. I did reach out to them 9/18 still waiting a response.
This is sad and very disappointing. You're not the only one with leaks in a brand new unit. Our '16 prowler bought in July leaked on our first trip beginning of August. Luckily dealer (3hrs from home) overnighted Dicor to repair the lap sealant. Upon further inspection during my repair I found several other spots that shouldn't have failed that quickly on a new unit. If there's a next time I will walk the roof before I buy although this shouldn't be needed...
Good luck and keep us updated
Good luck and keep us updated
mlpeloquin
Well-known member
Glad to know that now. My dealer charged me for the PDI and added TT membership and an extended warranty. They lowered the loan interest rate to keep the payment the same. Thought at the time the payment stays the same and the loan length does as well... But Heartland pays the PDI! They got a better up front kickback for the loan. Liked the TT membership, but the extended warranty is worthless unless the fridge or self leveling jacks bite the dust big time.
Must say that Heartland paid 50% of the frame separation problem I had. The fasteners on the left side that hold the front frame to the main Lippert frame sheared. My repair was done at an independent RV repair facility well after the warranty expired.
BigGuy82
Well-known member
This is really sad. As a new Heartland owner, what this tells me is that you are looking at one of two scenarios (or perhaps a combo of both):
- the repair department at Heartland is tremendously busy. Why, if they have an entire network of dealers to handle warranty problems? Perhaps they have so many problems with new units they are overwhelmed and can't get to your unit for an extended period of time. Not encouraging to me if I ever have a problem escalated beyond the dealer
- they are so busy building new units that they don't have adequate resources to address warranty repairs quickly. Not so good from the perspective of people like you who have already paid for a coach that they can't use because they wait while new units are being built.
Either way - a bad situation for you. It's nice that they are being proactive and handling your issues at the factory level, but it would be nicer if you had the use of the coach. We have been lucky so far - I've been "camping" in the driveway with my Bighorn for a month, which has given me the chance to check out every system thoroughly - so far the unit has performed flawlessly (the only problem I've found so far is a buggy satellite to TV connection in the bedroom but this was a dealer instaled option). Next week we hit the road for 4 to 6 weeks so I'm thinking chances are we will have minimal problems. I wish you luck and hope that you can get back to the normal use of your RV ASAP.
Just a side note. Your problems have been considerable but at the end of the day, this is RV'ing and there are problems and maintenance issues that always arise. I don't know if you are experienced or not, but I hope this doesn't sour you to the lifestyle. Good luck.
Do you do the same when buying a vehicle, or do you trust/expect greater delivery of product and warranty process?
- - - Updated - - -
I think many are confused about warranty versus defective items.
Unsure of what the issue is.. Its been at Heartland for a month.
The reason I was told that Heartland picked it up was that the local quotes to repair the defects was too high.
The use of a coach would have been nice, bought it for the grandkids and didnt get to take them anywhere this entire summer.
Experienced? More each day..
BigGuy82
Well-known member
If your Prowler leaked on it's first outing due to roof caulking issues, it is a sign of possible poor manufacturing process AND definitely poor dealer performance. The dealer should have walked the roof and checked all caulking as part of the PDI. You consider yourself lucky that the dealer was nice enough to overnight three tubes of caulk. In the same situation, I would consider myself a victim of a shoddy dealer PDI - flying out some caulk certainly does not make up for a leaky roof in my mind.
Regarding the caulking failing quickly on a new unit, that depends on how long the unit sat on the dealer's lot - it might not have been as "new" as you think. When was it manufactured? Caulking dries out, is weakened by UV exposure, hardens, fails due to road vibrations, etc - in short, it does require constant maintenance. As a suggestion, you probably should be going over the whole unit at least every six months.
I would certainly walk the roof on a new unit. In my case, the dealer was concerned due to insurance issues. No problem - I had him get out the lift and take me around for a once over. When I got home, I walked the roof.
I've never had a leak on a new unit but I can certainly understand your frustration. By the way, if you want to insure water tight integrity, many larger dealers have units that subject the coach to water under pressure as a way to identify problem areas before a torrential storm does it for you. Never had it done so I don't know how effective it is, but it sounds like a good technique.
Yes...victim of not getting educated on how to do a thorough PDI. Wouldve caught the dealer's lack of prep then. But you live and learn, Im just glad I didnt have to deal with some experiences Ive read regarding warranty work. In the end it is dealer performance but you're in a rock and a hard place and a 3 hour trip to have to some caulk applied is a loser in my book...they met my satisfaction by overnighting what I needed to fix the issue plus extra so I can keep up on any future issues so it satisfied and solved my problem. You hit the nail on the head though with actual age. I looked further into my paperwork and the delivery to dealer date for my Prowler was in Jan 2016...with my purchase in July. So it had 6 months to bake in the sun before I got it.
Again.. Nonsense.
You paid how much and feel you somehow failed because you couldn't inspect the product to point out a defect?
Power247
Well-known member
I completely agree with this statement. The purchaser should not be responsible for identifying manufacturing defects when making a purchase. So far our Pioneer has been a good unit so far. I never imagined that I should have climbed on the roof and inspect the seems during the walk though. If it is that critical it should be done at the factory AND at the dealership by trained professionals prior to hitting the sales lot.
Greg
2012 | RAM 2500 | CCSB | Custom tuned by Double R Diesel
2016 | Heartland Pioneer | DS310
Wiredog I don't quite understand what you're getting at...never said I couldn't inspect it just didn't know any better that that would've been smart. I'm saying I didn't do enough research to know that I should've insisted on checking the roof knowing the unit sat on the lot all year. Sealants wear out over time and that's what happened here and it wasn't caught by the dealer. Had I done that I would've been able to catch it before I pulled off the lot but I didn't so yes because I didn't do my homework one got slipped passed me. Ultimately their failure because they should have checked it first. Overall experience the dealer didn't question the issue and sent what I needed to do the repair. I'm sure on the other end of the spectrum other dealers would have insisted the trailer be onsite. You live and learn...had I walked up there when I bought it they would've slapped some lap sealant on the small stress crack and away I went....same end result just different timeline.
Given the situation not sure how it could've played out much better.
Given the situation not sure how it could've played out much better.
Rephrase my statement to read...because you didn't have the knowledge during inspection to point out defects.
These units are not sold caveat emptor. They have implied warranties.
kowAlski631
Well-known member
Implied warranties? Could you explain what you mean?
danemayer
Well-known member
Be sure to read the disclaimers included in the article, and then read your trailer warranty.
