Soon to be new owner of a barely used 2006 Bighorn 3400RL, things I should watch for during PDI to get fixed

[RedneckExpress]

New owner of a barely used 2006 Bighorn 3400RL, things I should watch for during PDI to get fixed

Howdy all , come tuesday next week, I will become the owner of a 2006 Heartland Bighorn 3400RL. The trailer is barely used and looks straight and sharp, and I will be going in for the PDI this coming tuesday.

I've been doing some reading lately on the internet and read some threads on axle issues and what not and wanted to get an idea of what all I should be on the look out for for that model year to get it fixed before I end up having to call in the extended warranty on the trailer.

I'll be crawling under the unit to check the axles, to find out if it has lipperts or alkos.

I heard rumblings about fridge problems with the original Dometic? Was this a particularly common issue and what was the problem? Circuit board? Cooling coil problems?

Anything to look for in advance would be greatly appreciated.

 

[danemayer]

Hi RedneckExpress,

Welcome to the Heartland Owners Forum. There's a lot of great information on this forum along with a bunch of friendly and helpful people.

While you're under the rig, check the bottoms of the slideouts. Changes have been made over the years to better protect the wood from water damage. Also, if the suspension uses springs and equalizers, check the shackle links for wear.

If the trailer comes with maintenance records, take a look at when it was last caulked and when the bearings were last packed. If no records, you should assume these maintenance items need to be done.

Sometimes manuals are missing on resale. We have an extensive collection of manuals on the forum. On the NAVBAR at top of page, go to TOOLS and select HOM - HEARTLAND OWNERS MANUALS. We also have some owner-written user guides and troubleshooting guides in the manuals section. And of course, feel free to ask questions on the forum.

 

[oldmannj]

Being an '06 I would add checking the manufacture dates on the tires. If they're original equipment I'd think about changing them out because of age, no matter how good they LOOK!

 

[priorguy]

Also check the last propane pressure test, it should be recent. Test every appliance and system before you take it off the lot. Much easier and quicker to get it fixed before you hand over the cash.

 

[RedneckExpress]

Thanks all . I forgot to post a link to the unit, the dealer still has it listed:

http://www.johnsonrv.com/inventory/318081/Used-2006-Heartland-Bighorn-3400RL.aspx

The tires are not the originals, those I did check before even going in on financing, they've only got to make one trip, as this fifth wheel is becoming our weekend cabin at our lease site and will be the second RV in our fleet. The fridge had been only off a short time before I looked at it, it had only been at the dealers a couple days before I snagged it.

Was the Dometic fridge part of the series that had the recall on it?

 

[danemayer]

Was the Dometic fridge part of the series that had the recall on it?

You'll probably need the model # and serial # of the frig and check it on the Dometic website.

 

[Rickhansen]

Redneck,
It's REALLY nice. You'll probably have to check the serial number on Dometic's website for recalls. I don't think the recalls expire, but I don't know how you would know if it had been done. Your selling dealer should be able to verify any open recalls and maybe if it had been performed??

 

[RedneckExpress]

I'll have to double check, I poked my head into the fridge compartment when I was going over it and noticed it's a Swedish built unit, vs an American made unit. Would be nice if it held true on longevity on their swedish made units. My main traveling RV is nearly 40 and the fridge is original, it's a G.E., which back then was made by Dometic under an older name. It's still going strong 39 years later, and it too, had a swedish made fridge.

 

[ziggy]

Welcome to the forum! Since the guys have been giving you good advice, I don't need to add to it. Once you have it checked out and get it home, you will have a really nice place to stay. Obviously, if you are still using a 40 yr old RV you know that things break and lots of maintenance needs to be kept up.

Take Care,
Kristy

 

[TravelTiger]

I'm curious, since the trailer has a VIN, can it be tracked by companies like CARFAX, to see where it's "been" prior to purchasing it?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[sgtbigb]

Wow! comes with a free warranty:angel: Is the warranty thur the dealer or insurance service policy?

 

[RedneckExpress]

It has a 60 day warranty from the dealer, and I added an extended 3-year warranty that covers mobile tech visits as well.

 

[sgtbigb]

Mobile tech coverage, what company do you have?

 

[RedneckExpress]

sgtbigb, I'll have to dig around for it, as I don't have it handy, but it was a question I specifically asked and got written down that mobile tech service was covered as my unit is being delivered into my seasonal space and we won't have a means to move it once it's in.

Anyway, did the fine tooth comb yesterday and had a list of things to be fixed made up.

The trailer is equipped with the Mor-Ryde suspension and all was in order and in good repair, no frame deflection on the pin box, all the systems worked, the undersides of the slides were clean and in good repair and only minor things needed fixing (Compartment latches were a little loose, no air flow out of the register vent by the stove and fridge, one of the stops for the main slide was a little out of adjustment, one of the rear burners on the stove needed to be fixed, was demonstrating signs of improper air mixing, one light wasn't turning on, face plate on the fantastic fan thermostat wouldn't stay on, joint between kitchen counter and back splash needed a new bead of caulk, the remote for the stereo/surround sound was missing it's back plate and the batteries were dead....).

So, no longer a "Prospective Owner", I AM the owner .

 

[dieselsweetheart]

As a fellow owner of the "classic" '06 3400RL Bighorn I welcome you to the classic club. We have had ours since new and never a problem. We are lucky in that respect...when we think about buying a new one we think how well the '06 has served us and continues to serve.

 

[ziggy]

Congratulations! Sounds like you got a nice coach.

Kristy

 

[Ray LeTourneau]

Re: New owner of a barely used 2006 Bighorn 3400RL, things I should watch for during PDI to get fixed

Attached is a picture of the fridge after completion of the recall. The flat galvanized sheet at the lower right corner covers up the burner/flue assembly which also has an additional wrap of galvanized sheet. The intent is to prevent a fire in the flue from overheating the adjacent areas. The reason for the recall is potential leakage of ammonia from a defective cooling unit could cause a fire. If yours looks different, the recall may not have been done.

By the way, welcome to the Forum and Enjoy your new coach.

 

[RedneckExpress]

Re: New owner of a barely used 2006 Bighorn 3400RL, things I should watch for during PDI to get fixed

Attached is a picture of the fridge after completion of the recall. The flat galvanized sheet at the lower right corner covers up the burner/flue assembly which also has an additional wrap of galvanized sheet. The intent is to prevent a fire in the flue from overheating the adjacent areas. The reason for the recall is potential leakage of ammonia from a defective cooling unit could cause a fire. If yours looks different, the recall may not have been done.

By the way, welcome to the Forum and Enjoy your new coach.

Thanks to all for the welcome, it's only a shame my heartland won't be out on the open road (She was bought to use as a weekend "cabin" for the immediate future) any time soon!

One of the first things I checked was to confirm if the Dometic Recall fix had been performed and it was , I belong to NATCOA as well, as that's my main traveling RV (40 year old KIT Kamper) and Dometic & Norcold are two of our corporate sponsors so we got notices from them about the recall on the forum.

One of the ither things I did during my PDI was to confirm that the fridge was actually working in both electric and gas operation modes without cycling and locking itself out as well.

I am considering shopping around for one of those safety extinguisher systems that can be installed that will go off if the event of a fire as a safety measure as well.

 

[happyappy]

Re: New owner of a barely used 2006 Bighorn 3400RL, things I should watch for during PDI to get fixed

Welcome to the "Classic Club"! After reading about the issues new owners go through...I'm happy with my pre-owned "classic". I know you'll enjoy it.

 

[RedneckExpress]

Re: New owner of a barely used 2006 Bighorn 3400RL, things I should watch for during PDI to get fixed

Thanks all, the trailer is mine and is now at its new home where it'll be staying for the foreseeable future . Sadly, like all PDIs, not all the things were fixed, so I will end up fixing them myself.