New to Forum.... I am NOT a happy Heartland owner

[wdk450]

Re: heartland issues

I am going to make a negative comment here. For the repairs on my trailer I have found when contacting the reps at Heartland and left a voice mail I never once got a return phone call, if I got them on the phone when I called it was ok, only with one issue I felt as if I was left hanging. The only exception was AJ who responded to all my emails, never did talk to him on the phone. Another good thing was there were a few members on here with great advice and help.

Tim and Bev:
I would call again and take this comment up a step to the director of Heartland Service. Maybe an e-mail to Jim B. will get you a direct e-mail link to this person.

 

[Urban350]

Re: heartland issues

Tim and Bev:
I would call again and take this comment up a step to the director of Heartland Service. Maybe an e-mail to Jim B. will get you a direct e-mail link to this person.

Thanks for the thought but as of today my trailer is off warranty and it is time to no longer be so negative and look at the positve things like the fact that DW loves the trailer and it works great for us. I am also going to say thanks again to all the people on this forum for all the advice along the way and hope that my experiences can help someone on a future date, like the other members of this site have helped us. This is one of the better owners sites that I have been on.

 

[RollingHome]

Tim & Bev... My rig is off waranty too. However, HL customer service has always returned my calls or messages left. HL is not perfect and like the rest of the big 8 RV makers in Elkhart, they have their problems... but, by gosh, they try, they really do. I'll be the first to say, I don't always like their answer - but in the end "if" I owned HL, what would I do ? If HL did what I wanted, they would have been out of biz last year or the year before... They ain't perfect but they're not bad either. This is just my opinion based on years of Rving and wishing it were better... Then as I lost more hair and it got greyer, I had an epiphany... It don't get any better then this... So go with it and lets rock & roll...JMHO Happy Rving

 

[Urban350]

Don't get me wrong we use are trailer almost anytime we are not working, we also do a lot of winter camping. I just hate it when you leave a voice mail more then once and nobody returns my calls.

 

[notobright]

I just found this forum. I own a 2011 North Trail 32 BUDS. I bought it about 2 years ago brand new.
I am not a happy owner... I am on my 3rd set of axles and 3rd set of tires... There are other issues as well.

Where and who should I contact to tell my stories... Thanks.

Below is the story that pretty much started this thread. It’s in two parts, first is the story of what happened with the axles which I originally posted in a private message. The second part deals with what happened after my original post… Thanks for all your input,good bad or indifferent.



It is a very long story Dan. Thank you for your interest. I bought my trailer new in March 2010 from Longview RV in Dover Florida. My family and I took a six week trip to Maine in the summer of 2010.We had no issues. In April of 2011, there was a recall on our model. Since we had another trip planned for that summer, I took it to the dealer we purchased from and while we were having the recall fixed, I asked them to inspect the trailer. They suggested new bearings and brakes. Being new to the hobby I told them to do it even though the trailer maybe had 5000 miles on her. I have a family and you probably feel as I do, you can't put a price on safety for your family. The work cost me about $800.
The day we left, a couple of miles south of Ocala, the right forward wheel came off while we were going 60 MPH riding north on I 75. (FYI - I was never able to find the wheel)
After some interesting conversation with the dealer, they agreed to have it towed back to the dealership. They removed an axle from another brand new North Trail they had in stock and replaced the problem axle on my trailer at no charge.

We left the next day, got back on our itinerary, losing just the one day. I noticed the trailer seemed squirrely when I drove it... it seemed like it wasf ish tailing quite a bit. I also noticed the tires were wearing.

Two days later in South Carolina we received a call that my mother's husband had passed away. Since she lives in Sun City Fl, we decided to just camp there while I helped her handle the arrangements.

Now Sun City is about 25 miles south of the dealer. I brought the trailer back and they adjusted the hitch and told me that the tire wear was due to over inflating the tires.

Off we go again, trailer handled better but tires were still wearing.
A couple of weeks later (we were in northern Mississippi), I had one of the shackles (it’s where the leaf springs attach between the axles) lock in an up position. Called the dealer, told to take it to a repair shop and have them jack up the opposite axle. This would cause the axle in the locked up to pop back into place.
We took it to a small trailer shop in Memphis on recommendation from an RV dealer in the area.
Once the axle was popped back into place, (by the way he would not charge me) I asked the owner of this small trailer shop why he thought my tires were wearing. He inspected the axles and told me the rear axle was bent... I had both axles replaced as well as the tires in Memphis. Cost $700 for axles $600 for tires.
We drove the trailer to the UP of Michigan and back to Florida without another problem. It was the best the trailer has ever towed.
We took another couple of short trips in the winter with no issues.
By now you’re probably thinking this is the dealers fault.... but I am not done yet.
This year’s trip is out west.... Yellowstone, Glacier. Banff, Jasper... (We ares till on the road actually... heading home. I am writing this in Chicago)
Anyway, this year, before the trip, I took the trailer to a local trailer company to have him inspect the axles. He adjusted the brakes and told me everything looked great...
We left from Clearwater Fl in June 13. On July 2, while driving on US 93, 30 miles south of the Canadian border, while looking out the side mirror, my son noticed smoke and then fire coming out of the same wheel. We pulled over and put out the fire. This time the wheel did not come off until we were towed to Pierce Manufacturing in Kalispell Montana. As they moved the trailer from tow vehicle to the service bay the wheel and hub ... fell off the axle. They claim the axles were inadequate for the load. Again new but this time beefier axles and tires. Cost.... $2200. for the axles $600 for the tires.

That’s the big story, but we have had other issues too. Our rear leveling electric jack motor needs to be replaced, the inside microwave isn’t working and the right rear exterior aluminum sheeting is being held on by sheet metal screws right now.
This just seems like an awful lot to go wrong with a trailer that is just 28 monthold. Of course it’s out of warranty, and Heartland has made that loud and clear so far...

Part 2
Since I gave my word, I am posting my experience with Heartland both good and bad. Above is the story that I posted in a private message. I did not feel that I wanted to go public right away. I had to give Heartland a chance to respond.Thanks to Bill Knight for your advice.
On Bill’s recommendation I contacted Jim Beletti. Jim responded immediately (as he did with all of my emails) Jim suggested that I contact Heartland Customer Service
I contacted Heartland customer service and spoke with Mike Rogers. Our first conversation was less than fruitful. Perhaps that was my fault. The most important thing to me was to make sure that my family was safe. Unfortunately our conversation seemed to be focused on why things may have happened and the diverting of blame from Heartland. Again this may of have been my fault but by the time I hung up the phone I was still avery unhappy Heartland customer.
I emailed Jim immediately explaining my frustration with customer service and desire NOT to have Heartland do anything more than inspect my trailer and tell me that my family and I would be safe.
Jim and I did trade several interesting emails but, I want to thank Jim Beletti publicly for reaching out to the president of Heartland Chris Hermon. Apparently Chris recommended that customer service take a second look at our case. I was contacted by Mike in customer service a day later and directed to set up an inspection of my axles at RV Capital in Elkhart, which was completed yesterday.After the inspection, I was told “everything checks out to spec and the new beefier axles should work just fine.’
I know some of you ultra techie RV fifth wheel guys and gals are still wondering why it happened. Frankly, everybody that has either fixed my trailer or heard my story has a theory. Personally I don’t care how or why it happened; I just don’t want it to happen anymore.
So in the end Heartland did give me what I ultimately needed, peace of mind.
We are heading back to Florida and even though we have a certain level of comfort, we are still considering trading… I’ll take some suggestions on fifth wheels with bunkhouses and outdoor kitchens if you feel so inclined. I have a 2012 F 250 King Ranch Diesel to handle the towing. Thanks.

 

[danemayer]

Notobright,

Thanks for sharing the details, and I'm glad that you were able to get some peace of mind that the upgraded parts are in spec and should work fine. I'm sure that anyone who reads what you've been through will understand your concerns.

 

[wdk450]

NotToBright:
It seems to me that you handled this vexing situation very astutely. It also seems that people at Heartland listened, and responded above and beyond their legal requirements to do so. Although the cause of your axle problems seems to be answered by a variety of guesses by experienced people in the RV industry, I truly hope that your experience will cause the people in charge of the design and assembly of the North Trail product line to re-examine the suspension system, so that possibly others may not be inconvenienced or put in peril.

 

[Urban350]

Re: heartland issues

Tim and Bev:
I would call again and take this comment up a step to the director of Heartland Service. Maybe an e-mail to Jim B. will get you a direct e-mail link to this person.

Left a mesg. at Hearthland on Aug. 2 (yesterday) and still no return phone call, it has been more then 24hrs.

 

[Ray LeTourneau]

Re: heartland issues

Left a mesg. at Hearthland on Aug. 2 (yesterday) and still no return phone call, it has been more then 24hrs.

I've not been a fan of leaving messages. Too many things can cause a lack of a reply. I would keep calling until you talk to a human being.