Think twice!!

[dlpmx]

If your looking at a Heartland make sure your close to your dealer. Dealing with the warranty dept and warranty centers is a nightmare. Our sides started bubbling within 6 months and it took over a year dealing with the warranty dept. to get it fixed. During that year they had me pull my 5th wheel to 7 dealers with the last haul being 300 miles away. That final repair shop just cut out the bubbles and pieced in a repair and now the smooth sides have trim pieces top to bottom and the colors don't match. One of the shops I was directed to take the RV too stated the complete sides needed to be replaced due to defect. Now the sides and slides are bubbling again. The Cheap top vent covers are paper thin. The 1/2 time oven stopped working the second time out. The toilet valve started leaking on the way home from the dealer.

I guess all this could be fixed if you lived close to your dealer which I am not because I wanted to get my toyhauler as fast as possible. Also the local dealer has dropped the heartland line. The salesman told me "they had too many problems"

Think twice and get a good local dealer so you don't have a $55k piece of junk like I do.

 

[Mizmary]

I'm sorry you have had issues. I don't know who you have talked to, or if you have talked to anyone at heartland.

We have owned three different brands of RV and had three different sets of problems.

The difference for us has been this forum, and the good service we have received from HEARTLAND. I wouldn't rate our dealer here any better than any other dealer we've ever dealt with. I think RV dealers are doing a huge disservice to the industry by selling a product then not being honest, trustworthy, or knowledgable about how to repair what they are selling. Based on my experience, Heartland has had the best customer service of the three brands we have owned. On the other two we ended up fixing all of the problems ourselves. At least with this brand I have an option of help.

Many of the complaints on here are not so much problems with heartland but problems with companies that provide parts to heartland and EVERY OTHER manufacturer-- shurflo, dometic, Norcold, etc. I do think you are one of the exceptions with the bubbling issues. Did you purchase new, or used?

My mom used to have a saying. The more toys you have the more problems you will have. It has always proved to be true. When I buy something that is 55K or more, I do expect that it is put together well. However, I also know that I am purchasing something with lots of moving parts and lots of places where it can fail.

 

[wdk450]

I think you need to talk to either the head of Heartland service, Eric McDaniel, or ask to speak to the Cyclone "Product Manager". See if they will agree to inspect your RV IN PERSON at the factory in Elkhart.

You know, it CAN seem like a long trip to Elkhart from somewhere in Illinois, but they are neighboring states. Think of how far it was for me in California to go to Elkhart for warranty repairs, which I GOT 4 YEARS AFTER I PURCHASED THE TRAILER from a California dealer who went out of business soon after I bought it.

 

[BarneyFife]

I feel your pain. I also understand your frustration.

Since misery loves company, I'll share. We've taken our Cyclone back to the dealership five times for repairs (three times for the same thing!). Its exactly 100 miles to my dealership. That's 200 miles round trip to drop it off. 200 miles round trip to pick it up. Multiplied times five trips is 2000 miles for repairs. That's almost two trips to Disneyworld for us. Dang.

I did ask a local "big name" dealership if they'd be interested in the warranty work but they said Heartland was way too difficult to deal with. My dealership I bought from is the closest to me.

 

[Ray LeTourneau]

My thoughts on some of the dealers relationship with Heartland is based on labor charges. I feel many dealers think a given repair will take longer than Heartland allows or is willing to pay for. Unlike auto dealers, many RV dealers don't have a "flat rate" book they go by. They charge for actual time on the job. Those same dealers may be taking advantage of other manufacturers and Heartland isn't going along with that.
Keep in mind, this is pure speculation on my part.
A situation I had a couple years ago. My hot water heater would not stay lit on LP. I did everything known to eliminate all the possibilities and ended up going to my local dealer. After explaining all I had done, he said it must be the board but we have them in stock. So when should I bring it in? I brought the trailer in on the agreed date and it took almost 3 weeks to get it back. This has nothing to do with Heartlands warranty but what really took the dealer so long to swap out a board? I'll also add that this dealer no longer carries the Heartland brand. Not sure why.

 

[Westwind]

"I would love to know" How much Suburban was billed for my how water heater repair. We were at Camping World, Seffner, Fl for 11 hours, they started and stopped the repairs 3 times and took the inner cabinet panel where the switches are and took the hot water heater out of the trailer to end up replacing the electric thermostat on the HW heater. I told them that's what was wrong right from the start. It took him 20 minutes to replace the thermostat.
Cracks, frame problems, de-lamination problems I would find away to get to the factory.

 

[danemayer]

FYI,

dlpmx's problems are described in more detail in his posts from mid 2010.

 

[Bob&Patty]

Dan, 2010? Thats 3 years ago.

 

[danemayer]

Dan, 2010? Thats 3 years ago.

Yep.

Not sure what prompted him to start a new thread on it after 3 years.

 

[kowAlski631]

Interesting.

 

[Jimsryker]

Just like the last guy, eh Bob? Three years later??

 

[JanAndBill]

I wouldn't rate our dealer here any better than any other dealer we've ever dealt with. I think RV dealers are doing a huge disservice to the industry by selling a product then not being honest, trustworthy, or knowledgable about how to repair what they are selling.

I've said this before, "Dealers are the first line experience that the customer has with a manufacturer". By their actions, they can most influence the customer perception of the manufacturer. Yet for some reason the RV industry by and large turns a blind eye toward bad dealers. If I spend $$$ dollars on a new motor vehicle with all the bells and whistles, I wouldn't be required to take it back to the factory for repairs. Maybe it's time for the RV industry to take a hard look at their distribution network, and be more proactive in the actions of the dealers.

 

[Westwind]

A manufacturer can't stay in business without dealers to sell their products. I think that is why they will turn their head when some really off the wall things happen. It appears if you read a lot of the posts on different forums that they just send their product owner to another dealer or try to get them back to the factory to fix the problem.
I think half of the dealers service departments are out of their league on structural, frame, De-lamination, slide problems and the factory is the best place to get them repaired.

 

[wdk450]

An important fact relating to this thread is the fact that Heartland will pay for warranty service to ANY RV servicer YOU choose, not necessarily the dealer. In fact, I believe that independent RV servicers with no sales operations serve the interests of the RV owner best. For the independents, service is not just an annoying requirement to be able to sell RV's, but the entirety of their business. Prompt repairs, customer satisfaction, and word-of-mouth referrals are vital to their continuing existence as a business. Heartland service keeps a list of 3rd party servicers in your area that they have had good results with.

 

[gpshemi]

I wondered what this was all about considering he's profile said 2010.
Just stirring the pot again it seems...

 

[danemayer]

An important fact relating to this thread is the fact that Heartland will pay for warranty service to ANY RV servicer YOU choose, not necessarily the dealer. In fact, I believe that independent RV servicers with no sales operations serve the interests of the RV owner best. For the independents, service is not just an annoying requirement to be able to sell RV's, but the entirety of their business. Prompt repairs, customer satisfaction, and word-of-mouth referrals are vital to their continuing existence as a business. Heartland service keeps a list of 3rd party servicers in your area that they have had good results with.

Heartland is very flexible in this area. But call Heartland first to get prior approval.

 

[dlpmx]

Yes three years later!!! If you had been tring to get your RV fixed for three years you'd be put off too. Every time I walk outside and see more bubbles forming yes I get mad. When I spent 55K on a camper only to have it fall apart I'm going to "stir the pot". If I stir the pot and save someone else the grief I've endured then so be it. So go back to the assembly line and make more junk for heartland and save your jobs.

Moderator please delete my account as I can't seem to find out how.

Thanks

 

[kowAlski631]

Believe we are owners here. Not employees of Heartland.

 

[jbeletti]

User account deletion request by user "dlpmx" has been honored.

Jim
Admin