Keystone Aquires Crossroads / Redwood

[travelin' texans]

Congratulations on the new RW! I totally agree with Guy! We've been fulltime in ours for 4 1/2 years & yes there have been issues most of which would've occurred regardless of brand or price, just the rv industry, but all in all it's the best rv we've ever owned (7 total). Go enjoy the experience & if/when you need help there's LOTS of good folks here to assist.

[Dale & Tracey Fietz]

Welcome to the forum.There is a lot of good folks on this forum that can help you out if you have any issues.We have had vary few.Nothing we couldn't fix our self with the help of the great people here.Enjoy your RW when you get it.

[spindrift]

Originally Posted by boatguy

I'm sure I am going to regret posting here, but I spent yesterday in Topeka. I toured the plant with a plant manager and met with the National Sales Manager. Among all the things we discussed was the warranty, which still is 2 years for Redwood. I spoke to them about "internet reputation management" and how unkind these types of forums can be. We talked about the rapid growth and the challenges of quality control. I witnessed the process and people trying to do just that.
Maybe I will regret my purchase but I hope not. I suppose there is a component of disgruntled customers for every purchase, and in this case forums like these give them a chance to air their grievances. Fair enough for them I suppose, but it does take some of the thrill and excitement away from newcomers and first time buyers.

I chose a dealer I really respect and like. I chose a product I think fits my wants needs and budget. I thank you most sincerely for your opinions and hope you understand the impact it has on others. For me, it was catalyst enough to put in a 4 hour drive to Topeka and see and here for myself. I was thrilled to see my unit on the line and have renewed sense of excitement and look forward to building great memories.

So I don't expect congratulations on joining the family of Redwood owners, but I really don't expect condolences either.

Welcome! Absolutely your smartest move was going to a dealer that you trust. I can't underscore enough just how important this move will prove to be for you.

[Iceman1777]

I am also in the "Happy Camper" group of Redwood. We've been fulltiming almost a year and other than the icemaker line our RW has been trouble-free. I do have compassion for those who have constant issues with their rigs, and it happens with every manufacturer. I too was disappointed with the Thor/Keystone/Redwood takeover as Keystone is earning a horrible reputation for customer service. But I will keep happily rolling down the road!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[homeguy]

We are very happy with our Redwood but given the atmosphere and the unknown, I don't see us buying another one. Instead, fix what we need to get along for another stretch. We bought ours in 2012 used and have had minimal issues. frozen water line for the ice maker, my fault; blowout which knocked out our hydraulics, my fault for not switching from the standard tires; fridge quit working, mfg issue but best thing that could have happened as we went to a residential fridge; couple soft spots on the roof that need to be addressed and then covered with a new roof, my fault for not inspecting more often. I think that is all that we have had issues with. As you can see, a relatively short list given that we have owned it for 5 years now and we do not regret the decision of buying a Redwood. We looked at them for quite a while before we found one we could afford. This is our 3rd RV and was our 'Dream Camper'. We still enjoy it everyday and consider it home.

[Char & Steve]

Originally Posted by boatguy

I'm sure I am going to regret posting here, but I spent yesterday in Topeka. I toured the plant with a plant manager and met with the National Sales Manager. Among all the things we discussed was the warranty, which still is 2 years for Redwood. I spoke to them about "internet reputation management" and how unkind these types of forums can be. We talked about the rapid growth and the challenges of quality control. I witnessed the process and people trying to do just that.
Maybe I will regret my purchase but I hope not. I suppose there is a component of disgruntled customers for every purchase, and in this case forums like these give them a chance to air their grievances. Fair enough for them I suppose, but it does take some of the thrill and excitement away from newcomers and first time buyers.

I chose a dealer I really respect and like. I chose a product I think fits my wants needs and budget. I thank you most sincerely for your opinions and hope you understand the impact it has on others. For me, it was catalyst enough to put in a 4 hour drive to Topeka and see and here for myself. I was thrilled to see my unit on the line and have renewed sense of excitement and look forward to building great memories.

So I don't expect congratulations on joining the family of Redwood owners, but I really don't expect condolences either.

Congratulations!!!!!
We all like to vent the problems and rarely do we give complements but most forums are like that. With lots of reading you will see that I was one with many problems in the beginning and very upset with RW but as time went on I learned much here and also was able to talk with both the current and past RW president and sales manager and it changed how I look at mine now. I gave RW a chance and they came through with ALL my concerns and repairs with very little out of my own pocket. ALL brands will have the same issues as we talk about here and if RW chooses to up the quality control I think once again they can be a top contender. The 2 year warrantee is and was a huge selling point when we purchased.

My 2 cents is a little more quality control, a little less bling and put more into what your coach rides on for safety which they have done some of these items.

Steve

[boatguy]

Thanks everyone for you kind thoughts. I wasn't trying to be ungrateful for the opinions. In fact, most of my decisions were as a result of reading and watching others. So I made sure I had things like 8k lb axles, H rated tires, rear monitor instead of a backup cam, 17.5 tires. Even made sure we bought somewhat off topic things like an Andersen Ultimate hitch, and a Redport wifi range extender and a 6 wheel tire minder. Most of what people said was accurate, i.e. your truck will pull this no problem. It might but it wouldn't be safe, so we upgraded to a 2017 Denali Dually. My heart feels better just from the longer walk parking in the back of the lots for the extra space.

So I do value the opinions, but I was just wanting to make sure everyone is aware that when you only vent the negatives it can scare people like me off. I know nobody does it maliciously, but sometimes your frustration can lead to my paranoia.

So I saw it off to paint, the next time I see it will be at the dealer. And believe me, if I have learned from all of you I will temper my excitement and proceed through the walk through with thorough due diligence.

Cheers,
John

[Blenhardt]

Originally Posted by hoosierguy

Congratulations on your upcoming Redwood purchase and welcome to the forum of Redwood owners.

There are a lot of good people here that are willing to share their experience/s with RV ownership and willing to help if you have questions.

After 35 years of being a "pop-up camper", six years ago I did the same as you with the plant tour, ordering a Redwood and took ownership of my first 5th wheel. It has been a learning experience. I have had fewer issues with my Redwood than some folks have had and generally have been happy with the product. I have done some up-grades to the suspension, wheels and brakes. Some I did myself and others I did at the time of ordering.

Generally, if I have been critical, it is has mostly been of the RV industry as a whole. It is a marketing driven industry which often results in engineering and quality control shortcuts that don't make a lot of sense.

Don't hesitate to return and ask questions if you have them. I hope and trust your experience will be good and that you have many years of great travels.

Couldn't have said it better. We do still love our RW. A few problems but that is par for the course in the RV industry. Enjoy your RW.

[sncindee]

I am wondering where to get dining chairs for my 2016 redwood 38mb we bought a repo and the former owner took.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Char & Steve]

Originally Posted by sncindee

I am wondering where to get dining chairs for my 2016 redwood 38mb we bought a repo and the former owner took.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

What color or pattern are you looking for? We removed our table and 2 chairs along with the 2 folding chairs. Just sitting in storage and would make you a super deal but somehow would need to get them. I am headed to the Rally in July.

Steve

[NewRW Owner]

Congrats on your new RW purchase. I hope it goes well for you. We purchased our new RW38GK16 one month ago. The day we started heading home with it, water was draining on the ground. We hadn't made it out of our dealers lot. The leak from the gray holding tank line was fixed and we left. Two weeks ago we went on our first outing and on day two, we had a leak that filled the belly again and leaked all over our camp site. This time the plumbing leak was from another spot. It's now been back at our dealer to make this repair and a couple of other issues since last Wednesday, 10 days. Our 5th wheel is beautiful but I'm worried about the soundness of it and in our ability to use and enjoy it. We've been RVing with many rigs for over 40 years. Never have we had so much trouble, with our RVs even as they got older. I truly hope you have a better experience and that eventually our situation improves

[RW Cal]

My first and (hopefully) last 5th wheel is a 2015 38RL. My wife and I love the floorplan and I appreciate the folks at the forum who have helped me resolve many of the problems I have encountered. Yes, the qualify control issue has been a problem. I think the entire industry has it to some extent.
Buy the way, one of the first things I learned as a newbie was that their were two types of 5th wheel owners. The old timers that had owned multiple trailers and treated them as projects, and the newbies that bought RV's to enjoy and had little interest in fixing, improving, or modifying them like Atom Ant. Over the 3 years I have been towing my RW, I have been transitioning to an old timer and with ya'lls help, I'm enjoying converting it to what I want to eventually full time in. I will probably never be Atom, but I have added an 8K IS, a full width tray slide to the basement, an aluminum rack for the back to haul lightweight but bulky items. Yesterday I upraded the wheels to 17.5 inchers thanks to Titan Guy, so my tires can handle the same load the IS can. I may even upgrade the frame someday since I hear that RW did that after 2015. One problem I have had ever since delivery was my batteries drained whatever the cuttoff switch setting was. I rewired the battery compartment and finally cured that problem. Various dealers had kept my rig for a combined 6 months with no progress on the problem until I did it myself.
Eventually, when the RW has had its last night slept-in, I may take it to the beach and let the tide drag it out to become a new home for the fish!

[woodman1]

No one really knows what influence Keystone will have in acquiring CrossRoads RV, but my guess is that management will probably be less redundant and that Keystone may expand RW's presence in the market place as well as the dealership base. We all know that there are two major players in the RV industry; Forest River, a subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway where Warren Buffet is the major shareholder and THOR, comprised of two business partners, Wade THompson and Peter ORthwein. After Thompson died, former COO of Keystone RV, Robert Martin became CEO of THOR. THOR originally championed RW. Keystone RV is the largest and most profitable division in the THOR lineup, so it should come as no surprise that Martin (THOR) would acquire CrossRoads RV and the RW lineup. Keystone made a hasty attempt in developing a high end luxury 5th and called it the "Big Sky" however; it never really succeeded and had more problems, than virtues and is now history. RW has been heads above most other luxury models both in value and class and has maintained a well established niche in the luxury 5th wheel market, despite the occasional negative postings on this forum. I don't think their overall product will change other than they may become more accessible. We love our 2017 RW. Like others, we had a few problems, but had those addressed and now we've added the MorRyde 8K IS and Kodiak Disc brakes, so we've got a keeper and proud of it. Last year alone, there were more RW's owners in our gated RV resort than any other luxury brand and more and more couples were seeking them out. In other words, RW's were in demand.

[Shane Wood]

Congrats on your new toy and welcome to the group

[rob_fla]

Congratulations on your new Redwood.
Now that I have worked through the bugs in my Redwood and done some modifications too make it my home, I plan on keeping it for a while as I have not found anything else that fits my wants and needs, even my new Girlfriend approves

[Ford truck guy]

Unless the walls come crashing in, I am very happy with my "RL" also . .

I have spend some coin to take some well documented issues out of the equation, and to UPGRADE some systems and add on .. I now feel that I have "MY" perfect Fifth Wheel . .

[sncindee]

Originally Posted by travelin' texans

Congratulations on the new RW! I totally agree with Guy! We've been fulltime in ours for 4 1/2 years & yes there have been issues most of which would've occurred regardless of brand or price, just the rv industry, but all in all it's the best rv we've ever owned (7 total). Go enjoy the experience & if/when you need help there's LOTS of good folks here to assist.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[NewRW Owner]

Originally Posted by sncindee

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I hope you're right. Our RW really is beautiful but its been unusable since the 28th of April, after springing a leak that filled up the underbelly. This was the second time that's happened. Our dealer scheduled an appointment to fix our RW for April 3rd. It's been there ever since. The issues so far are the 2 major leaks that filled the underbelly and leaked out the bottom of the trailer, a big leak under the kitchen sink that flooded the island cabinet and ran on the floor, 2 of the holding tanks don't register their levels, the residential refrigerator moved and was banging into the island cabinet when the slide was in. All this in the little over the month that we've owned it. Our dealer still doesn't have an eta for us getting it back. This is the 12th rig that we've owned in the over 45 years that we've been RVing. We've never had one with so many problems. The small and few problems were never so bad that we couldn't use it. Hopefully we do get to the point that we can use it..

[Buddy Wallace]

Originally Posted by woodman1

No one really knows what influence Keystone will have in acquiring CrossRoads RV, but my guess is that management will probably be less redundant and that Keystone may expand RW's presence in the market place as well as the dealership base. We all know that there are two major players in the RV industry; Forest River, a subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway where Warren Buffet is the major shareholder and THOR, comprised of two business partners, Wade THompson and Peter ORthwein. After Thompson died, former COO of Keystone RV, Robert Martin became CEO of THOR. THOR originally championed RW. Keystone RV is the largest and most profitable division in the THOR lineup, so it should come as no surprise that Martin (THOR) would acquire CrossRoads RV and the RW lineup. Keystone made a hasty attempt in developing a high end luxury 5th and called it the "Big Sky" however; it never really succeeded and had more problems, than virtues and is now history. RW has been heads above most other luxury models both in value and class and has maintained a well established niche in the luxury 5th wheel market, despite the occasional negative postings on this forum. I don't think their overall product will change other than they may become more accessible. We love our 2017 RW. Like others, we had a few problems, but had those addressed and now we've added the MorRyde 8K IS and Kodiak Disc brakes, so we've got a keeper and proud of it. Last year alone, there were more RW's owners in our gated RV resort than any other luxury brand and more and more couples were seeking them out. In other words, RW's were in demand.

I'm glad we bought 2013 Redwood 36FB right after Cameo was bought out, still had quality, we went to the 2017 Tampa show and was surprised with how much changed for the worse. Wasn't impressed
with Redwood, DRV or New Horizon. I'm not selling what I have now until I feel a new coach is equal or better than mine now,

[spindrift]

Originally Posted by Buddy Wallace

I'm glad we bought 2013 Redwood 36FB right after Cameo was bought out, still had quality, we went to the 2017 Tampa show and was surprised with how much changed for the worse. Wasn't impressed
with Redwood, DRV or New Horizon. I'm not selling what I have now until I feel a new coach is equal or better than mine now,

Buddy...where have you been hiding?