Caution when buying RW RV or any other brand

mstan · 09-04-2015, 06:42 PM

First I would like to make it clear, I do not hold Redwood Manufacturing responsible for all of my problems. Christian M (who is on this site) and Jim Izbicki have both responded to my woe's and I would like to give them a public thank you.
As of today, I have owned my Redwood 38 GK for a total of 17 weeks. I have only had it in my possession for a total of 5 weeks. The rest of the time it has sat on the Dealer service lot in Lafayette, La. at Primeaux RV. There is really nothing major wrong with it. Lots of small issues which I do hold RW responsible for as I feel these were QC issues. The time spent waiting I have to place a lot of the blame on my dealer. I will say that my dealer was awesome when I came with cash money ready to make a purchase. But their service center as it relates to the customer leaves a lot to be desired. Now I am informed that it will most likely be another 3 weeks in waiting. Which if that is true will ruin a planned two week trip for a convention I am schedule to attend and a following vacation. RW has sent either damaged and or wrong parts multiply times. I have no promise when the proper parts will arrive. Here is the CAUTION for all BUYERS no matter what you purchase. DO NOT SEND, GIVE MONEY TO ANY DEALER UNTIL ALL ISSUES ARE REPAIRED!!!!! Now I know that some issues will not be known until you have purchased it. If possible, stay in the RV for one day hooked up and all operational on the Dealers lot. Retract and extend the slides multiply times in a day. And anything else you can make operational. DO NOT TRUST THE DEALERS WORD on anything. They should all become politicians!!! LOL! Because they will tell you anything to sell you a RV. But then your just another number. And they are saying NEXT! I know there will be many who say but my dealer is different. Well that is exactly what I was told and why I chose the one I chose. Close to home and I felt being I was purchasing a upper line unit I would get that same attention after the sale that I had already been given. WRONG!! So in the mean time I wait and am sick I sold my 10 year old Carriage Carri-lite.. I purchased it and never had one issue with it for 10 years. I should have listened to some old salts on this and other forums and just kept my old one and not been swayed by all of the ginger bread. All that glitters is not gold.

Mark

Shane Wood · 09-04-2015, 07:16 PM

sorry to hear you are having these problems I hope things get better for you

RWJSIM2003 · 09-04-2015, 07:19 PM

Mark

If most of the issues were minor issues can you not use the RV and then return it to the dealer once your trip is over? We to had some issues with the RW but we used the RV for a while and then took it back in when the parts arrived. Just a thought.

RomanyLife · 09-04-2015, 07:29 PM

I have to agree. I do not know what your issues are and I certainly sympathize with your situation. Our Service Center does not make the appointment until they have the part in hand. Then they get us in quickly and we are out quickly. If the unit is disabled then that's another story but if it is not it is much safer in your own possession. Those dealer lots are a crap shoot with all of the activity there. Good luck I hope things get better soon!

sinder · 09-05-2015, 06:22 AM

We never have had an issue with our dealer/service center out of CA. Hope things get better.

mstan · 09-05-2015, 07:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RWJSIM2003

Mark

If most of the issues were minor issues can you not use the RV and then return it to the dealer once your trip is over? We to had some issues with the RW but we used the RV for a while and then took it back in when the parts arrived. Just a thought.

The first time I took it in they were suppose to have all the parts. I checked with them prior to taking it over. After 5 weeks I picked it up with the agreement that they would again call me when the other parts came in. I took it back again. In my mind I don't think I should have been place in another rotation. I feel that being it wasn't completed the first time. Then when I took it back assuming again that all parts was in. That it would be at most a week long job. Again they failed to have all parts. This is RW's fault for sending damaged and wrong color parts. Now the Roof was a on going condition from PDI which was finally approved for complete replacement. Now the issue is they have replaced the roof but now have to take it to a paint and body shop to paint the top edges of the roof to match the RV. They cannot promise me how long that will take. Estimated up to an additional 3 weeks.

**Blenhardt** · 09-05-2015, 02:13 PM

Sorry you are having so many problems and that you can get them all fixed up. As others have stated, if the remain problems are not major maybe you can take it on your planned trip and get it back in later. Maybe the painting can be scheduled for a date after your trip and you would not have to get back in line again?

homeguy · 09-05-2015, 02:23 PM

Mark
I know this is a major thorn in your side and I am sorry for that. With all I have read on hear, no matter what the dealer tells you, take it with a grain of salt. There are so many instances of Redwood coming through for people that what the dealer is telling you is hard to get a handle on. It is always easier to blame the big company for a mistake instead of admitting the mistake to their customer. Who's to say that the parts they showed you were what was ordered for your camper and not someone elses? I truly hope this situation gets resolved for you in a very positive manner.

mhs4771 · 09-05-2015, 03:24 PM

I personally wouldn't let many Dealers do anything more than change a light bulb. For anything major I would work with RW and get an appointment at the Service Center, might be a bit of wait and a haul to get there, but they know what they're doing and do it right vs the BandAid fixes from many Dealers.

**Dave&Ginny** · 09-05-2015, 04:58 PM

unfortunately at most dealerships there are 2 different divisions, #1 is the sales side and #2 is the service side. Once the sales side gets the sale done, they wash their hands of the situation. The service side has previous service obligations "barking" at them and therefore the new customer falls in the long line.

To make this problem worse, the dealerships don't tend to have the same quality of service people as the auto dealerships do. This I believe is the "cancer" of the RV industry. Unlike the auto manufactures, the RV manufactures don't require certified training of technicians that complete the required repairs. I personally think it would be great if the RV manufactures asked for surveys from customers that experienced service.

JT & BT · 09-05-2015, 05:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dave&Ginny

unfortunately at most dealerships there are 2 different divisions, #1 is the sales side and #2 is the service side. Once the sales side gets the sale done, they wash their hands of the situation. The service side has previous service obligations "barking" at them and therefore the new customer falls in the long line.

To make this problem worse, the dealerships don't tend to have the same quality of service people as the auto dealerships do. This I believe is the "cancer" of the RV industry. Unlike the auto manufactures, the RV manufactures don't require certified training of technicians that complete the required repairs. I personally think it would be great if the RV manufactures asked for surveys from customers that experienced service.

Dave&Ginny:

Totally correct! It is not the Sales department after the sale, it is in fact the Shop and Parts department that will have to deal with your issues.

Most RVer's don't realize that Redwood RV only pays a limited amount on repairs and the dealers barely cover their labor expenses. For Instance: A repair that might take the Shop 4 hours, will only be reimbursed by the factory for say 1.25 hours of labor plus parts. Don't believe this, ask the shop to see their reimbursement schedule for various repairs, they will usually show it too you. And you have to understand that RW has a good reason for doing this, not only to save money, but to limit dealers from over charging them.

This is not our first rodeo with RV's. We have had 7 so far, including a Motor Home, (never buy a motor home) We have had good dealers and shops and then there has been a number of dealers who never want to see you again, (they are now out of business)!

After visiting the factory in Topeka recently, I was quite impressed at their quality control! I think they build a great product. They are also PRO-Owner and try to help all owners with their problems. RW on the other hand cannot force a Dealer or Service Department to really do anything. The biggest penalty RW can do, is pull their product from the Dealership if they fail to keep up quality customer care!

That is my 2.5 cents worth.

You all have a great day.

RWJSIM2003 · 09-05-2015, 06:44 PM

Mark,
So sorry to hear of you service issues with the dealer. I feel your pain as many of us here have to gone through it our selves. I would take the trailer and go on my trip they can paint it when you get back.

In my experience I call RW after taking my RW in and make sure the right parts were ordered. I never take the dealers word or leave our trailer there unless it is unusable. Unfortunately this is the RV world we all live in and this is not just with RW's. I have had 8 different units from Trailer all the way to DP and it is industry wide.

I hope your issues get resolved soon so you can enjoy your RW

mstan · 09-05-2015, 10:32 PM

Thanks guys for allowing me to vent a little. I do think that it is good to keep all of this in proper perspective. And I am doing my best to do just that. When this all gets through I will be a better man for it. A few years ago I was examined by the IRX. Scared me to death first then made me madd..... Then I got over it and am much better because of it. So by the time i get through this next level of education I will have the the best education that warranty and money can buy. LOL! I will keep you guys updated and let you know the finally outcome.

Mark

markw · 09-06-2015, 03:59 AM

There seems to be a lot of talk on here lately, about only having major work done at the service center . I thought I read here last year, the center wasn't going to do customer work anymore.

Mark

DLRAKOWITZ · 09-06-2015, 05:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mstan

Thanks guys for allowing me to vent a little. I do think that it is good to keep all of this in proper perspective. And I am doing my best to do just that. When this all gets through I will be a better man for it. A few years ago I was examined by the IRX. Scared me to death first then made me madd..... Then I got over it and am much better because of it. So by the time i get through this next level of education I will have the the best education that warranty and money can buy. LOL! I will keep you guys updated and let you know the finally outcome.

Mark

Hey mstan, I have been in your shoes many times with our previous rw. I do know what your going through. Good luck and I hope all works out for you

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