Poor Quality 2021 Alpine 3850RD

[PaPa Redfish]

Purchased this Alpine less than a month ago and all I can say is how poor the quality is. Cannot believe how Keystone could put such junk out there for sale.

See below all problems in less than a month:

1. Kitchen sinks rust over night. When I say rust, it is bad.
2. Furrion oven control is over 80 degrees off and the oven will not get hotter than 390 degrees.
3. Kitchen faucet leaks when off.
4. Furrion stove will not stay lit on less than half. Thank god the propane detector works.
5. Had to pull underbelly to connect a dump valve.
6. Closet doors fell off when doing a load of clothes as the screws were only put into the wood two threads.
7. Elevated living room floor or the plywood rather above step has come loose from the floor joists now the trim has popped up.
8. The walls in places are missing insulation as you can feel the heat coming through and six inches to the side the wall is cool. This happens in places on all walls.
   

Have no idea what else is going to happen. This fifth wheel is so cheap I plan to take the loss after the first of the year and purchase a Van Leigh. Keystone has been contacted so many times and all they say is take it in to a dealer. The local dealer they recommended for repairs stated he would not touch it because of such the poor quality of Keystone products. The other dealer Keystone recommended cannot touch my fifth wheel for two months as he is so back logged with warranty work on Keystones.


When did the quality go so south on Keystones???

[wiredgeorge]

Good luck with your Van Leigh. I take it the "local dealer" you tried to take the trailer to is not the one you purchased it from? Anyway, good luck.

[ChuckS]

The Van Leigh won’t be any better.....

https://www.rvinsider.com/Vanleigh-R...iews_container

[sourdough]

Might read those reviews above before plopping down money for a repeat experience. You should have been here to visit with a Vilano owner a few days ago; I believe you could have removed "Alpine" from your post and replaced it with "Vilano" and it would have been very similar to his tale of woes.

[dutchmensport]

I'm not surprised a bit. I feel like I've rebuilt my current Montana High Country Fifth Wheel completely over in the first 12 months of ownership. There was a point, about 6 months after purchase, I seriously considered getting rid of it. Absolutely... and I mean Absolutely ... EVERY trip out for the first 9 months, something broke or fell apart. And item by item, I fixed it myself. I've rebuilt, strengthened, and used REAL screws wherever possible. Thinks attached to styrofoam walls have been reattached with Liquid Nails, tires replaced after a blow out, entry door replaced, bathroom door replaced, bedroom door replaced, closet rebuilt, oh the list goes on and on.

But now, it's been the 2nd year and nothing new has happened, unless its a screw up myself ... like turning on the water heater on electric with no water in it! oops!

So fellow Keystone Owner, another camper, another brand, another one will be no different. I suggest you get your caulking gun out, your screw driver and do some searching on YouTube videos (how to's), and fix those things yourself. One by one, you'll get things straightened out and .... about a year from now ... you'll have one darn good camper.

And quite frankly, RV dealership repair shops.... really!!! don't know what the hell they are doing. Fix it yourself and get it done right. Want me to tell you why I feel this way????

[purebred]

We bought a 3401RS Alpine and I can definitely understand your frustrations. I have noticed quite a few problems with quality control in our purchase also. Very few problems with the quality of the components in the build but mainly in good ole American workmanship. And Americans continually complain about chinese and other countries quality control. My new Ram 2500 made in Mexico has been problem free. Maybe your Alpine was made on a Monday or Friday. I think ours was made on a Wednesday because I'm slowly getting all the problem areas cleaned up.

[chuckster57]

Originally Posted by dutchmensport

And quite frankly, RV dealership repair shops.... really!!! don't know what the hell they are doing. Fix it yourself and get it done right. Want me to tell you why I feel this way????

Yes please tell me. I will whole heartedly agree that SOME techs don’t know what they are doing. I don’t agree with blanket statements like this.

[purebred]

Originally Posted by chuckster57

Yes please tell me. I will whole heartedly agree that SOME techs don’t know what they are doing. I don’t agree with blanket statements like this.

My problem with dealers is I could never get it in the shop for someone to look at it. After they sold it to me it was adios and good riddance by the dealer. I pride myself in fixing stuff myself and as others have said better have a good set of tools and a way to view youtube videos. After all said in done we really enjoy our Alpine now. I was next to a guy with a brand new Redwood and he had plenty of problems himself. I commend the techs in any American industry trying to repair American made stuff. If you buy American make sure you have some good ole MAC or SNAP ON tools to go with it, you'll need them.

[chuckster57]

I applaud anyone that can repair their own stuff. Take the new cars, you need more and more specialized tools just to change spark plugs. RV’s are about the only thing still built by humans, and the current boom has the factories pushing them out at record rates. Two brands that I know of have even started second shifts at the assembly plants.

When a new unit comes in from the factory, a GOOD dealership and decent tech will do a proper PDI and address any issues before the customer takes delivery.

Customers need to take the time to research not only the brand/floorplan they want but also research dealers. Upon delivery if the customer doesn’t check everything out, and the walkthrough person doesn’t show everything, shame on both.

As far as tools: you don’t need $nap-on or Mac or even Proto, you do need the skill to use them properly.

[travelin texans]

Originally Posted by PaPa Redfish

Purchased this Alpine less than a month ago and all I can say is how poor the quality is. Cannot believe how Keystone could put such junk out there for sale.

See below all problems in less than a month:

1. Kitchen sinks rust over night. When I say rust, it is bad.
2. Furrion oven control is over 80 degrees off and the oven will not get hotter than 390 degrees.
3. Kitchen faucet leaks when off.
4. Furrion stove will not stay lit on less than half. Thank god the propane detector works.
5. Had to pull underbelly to connect a dump valve.
6. Closet doors fell off when doing a load of clothes as the screws were only put into the wood two threads.
7. Elevated living room floor or the plywood rather above step has come loose from the floor joists now the trim has popped up.
8. The walls in places are missing insulation as you can feel the heat coming through and six inches to the side the wall is cool. This happens in places on all walls.
   

Have no idea what else is going to happen. This fifth wheel is so cheap I plan to take the loss after the first of the year and purchase a Van Leigh. Keystone has been contacted so many times and all they say is take it in to a dealer. The local dealer they recommended for repairs stated he would not touch it because of such the poor quality of Keystone products. The other dealer Keystone recommended cannot touch my fifth wheel for two months as he is so back logged with warranty work on Keystones.


When did the quality go so south on Keystones???

Apparently from what I'm reading you bought out of town to save a few bucks & now can't find a local dealer to do your warranty work?
Well it's not like the auto industry, RV dealers are under NO obligation to do warranty repairs on the units they did not sell, it's always been that way. Nowadays the techs at dealerships are a#*holes & elbows busy trying to keep the units they do sell on the road, they don't need yours to help keep them busy. You'll find the same with the Vanleigh unit, the difference being dealers for those are harder to locate them Keystone dealers.
You mentioned one dealer wouldn't touch it due to such poor quality, if you expect warranty to repair your issues you'll need to take it to a Keystone dealer I would guess.
Your best solution is contact your selling dealer to make arrangements to return the unit to them with your laundry list of problems along with a lots of pictures & copy that list with the pictures to a Keystone factory rep.
Also it sounds as if you took possession sight unseen or didn't look it over very well prior to signing on the dotted line which puts you at nearly as much to blame as the sorry dealer you bought from.
If you notice the disclaimer at the bottom of the page you'll notice there's NO ONE from Keystone or your selling dealership, or any other, monitoring this forum. Likey all your going to get by posting your issues here is writers cramp & several of us that will agree wholeheartedly that the rv industries QC sucks, but that's the way it is & not likely to change any time soon.

[gearhead]

If you are having problems with components, i.e. stoves, A/C's, heaters, etc., any repair shop that is an authorized factory warranty center can fix it.
Find you a family owned repair shop only, no RV sales. They have to rely on their reputation to fix things to stay in business. I found mine.
PaPa Redfish come on up to Channelview RV Supply on I-10 East.
I bet I know where you bought that Alpine. You can about scratch them off the re-visit list.

[purebred]

I agree whole heartedly about rvs selling like hotcakes. We just moved out of Texas to Arizona and when we left it was almost impossible to find rv parks with spaces. With the way housing is now rv manufacturers are having a hard time keeping up. That's why you have to be vigilant in buying one. If you can't fix what breaks you better be prepared for plenty of frustration dealing with it. As far as tech's are concerned there's good ones and some not so good. I've seen both I'm sure everyone has. When I bought our new alpine I was pretty bitter about quality but came to realize that is just the way it goes . Better to just suck it up and deal with it.
.

[ChuckS]

Having owned RVs for well over 40 years I’ve seen some OEM assembly work that amazed me... it amazed me at how the work could have possibly passed any type of QC final inspection before shipping to a dealership...

And... I’ve owned my current fifth wheel since early 2014... it’s an Alpine... it has worked well, has had a few sloppy assembly issues with short screws, a few loose wire connections, etc...

But overall this Alpine works, the dual AC units with HP work well, the RV style fridge, furnace, fireplace, 3 all hydraulic slides, 6 point hyd level up... all so far have and are working as designed..

Could the build have been better from the factory? Sure... but.. it appears the earlier Alpines were assembled with a bit more pride..

I use Sears and sawbucks tools, some harbor freight tools, and others made from who knows where? Who made the tools I am using matters not.. what matters is can the tool I’m using do the job or do I need another tool...

If I listed every screw I had to tighten, every piece of trim that needed adjusting, every wire harness I rerouted ... etc..the list would be long....

And this would be for every different RV I’ve owned over the last several decades.

Heck I’ll put the old Alpine up against any of them out there... After all.. the RV life is an adventure.

The RV dealerships could do a better job in pre delivery inspection for the customer... some do a pretty good job... Camping World does not...

The RV techs out there that are properly trained ... be it old school Techs or new ones are ... doing a pretty good job ...

Some RV techs know the business and have the skill sets to troubleshoot and repair RVs quite well... and .. there are some that could use some help... just like in any other business

The new systems coming into play such as In Command, air conditioners controlled via CANBUS communications, etc have left some of the RV techs behind... and then you have KeyTV.. which is a grand idea with a poor implementation into the market.. too many failures. And.. Furion appliances are junk.. period...

But.. The RV owner that thinks owning an RV is plug and play... hookup and go.. without taking the time to educate themselves on how the thing works, what to do if something don’t work, and how to handle it when things don’t go planned is in for an unpleasant adventure.

[sourdough]

Originally Posted by ChuckS

Having owned RVs for well over 40 years I’ve seen some OEM assembly work that amazed me... it amazed me at how the work could have possibly passed any type of QC final inspection before shipping to a dealership...

And... I’ve owned my current fifth wheel since early 2014... it’s an Alpine... it has worked well, has had a few sloppy assembly issues with short screws, a few loose wire connections, etc...

But overall this Alpine works, the dual AC units with HP work well, the RV style fridge, furnace, fireplace, 3 all hydraulic slides, 6 point hyd level up... all so far have and are working as designed..

Could the build have been better from the factory? Sure... but.. it appears the earlier Alpines were assembled with a bit more pride..

I use Sears and sawbucks tools, some harbor freight tools, and others made from who knows where? Who made the tools I am using matters not.. what matters is can the tool I’m using do the job or do I need another tool...

If I listed every screw I had to tighten, every piece of trim that needed adjusting, every wire harness I rerouted ... etc..the list would be long....

And this would be for every different RV I’ve owned over the last several decades.

Heck I’ll put the old Alpine up against any of them out there... After all.. the RV life is an adventure.

The RV dealerships could do a better job in pre delivery inspection for the customer... some do a pretty good job... Camping World does not...

The RV techs out there that are properly trained ... be it old school Techs or new ones are ... doing a pretty good job ...

Some RV techs know the business and have the skill sets to troubleshoot and repair RVs quite well... and .. there are some that could use some help... just like in any other business

The new systems coming into play such as In Command, air conditioners controlled via CANBUS communications, etc have left some of the RV techs behind... and then you have KeyTV.. which is a grand idea with a poor implementation into the market.. too many failures. And.. Furion appliances are junk.. period...

But.. The RV owner that thinks owning an RV is plug and play... hookup and go.. without taking the time to educate themselves on how the thing works, what to do if something don’t work, and how to handle it when things don’t go planned is in for an unpleasant adventure.

Well said Chuck.

[purebred]

One last comment. I guess my comment about mac and snap on hit a few nerves here. Sorry I was a mechanic welder all my life and if I seemed a little snooty about my tools than so be it. I'll not apologize for using tools that made me a living for almost 50 years or so. Kinda like a cop talking about a nice 357 or something . Seems like any forum you're on there's some who take things out of context. If you're happy with what you got so be it. I know one thing I have the best American made tools money can buy and I dang sure know how to use them.

[Rich1945]

I have had problems with 2017 Cougar, wife wanted to trade it but i kept fixing whatever fell apart. No reason trading it in for more expensive junk

[chuckster57]

Originally Posted by purebred

One last comment. I guess my comment about mac and snap on hit a few nerves here. Sorry I was a mechanic welder all my life and if I seemed a little snooty about my tools than so be it. I'll not apologize for using tools that made me a living for almost 50 years or so. Kinda like a cop talking about a nice 357 or something . Seems like any forum you're on there's some who take things out of context. If you're happy with what you got so be it. I know one thing I have the best American made tools money can buy and I dang sure know how to use them.

I took no offense to your comment about tools. I agree if your happy with what you have so be it. To be honest I was only going to be a tech for 1 year, long enough to buy a S&W 500mag and wasn’t interested in investing in too much tools. Here we are almost 10 years later and those same tools are still “ making dreams come true, 1 RV at a time” as my old boss said. And I have another bunch that has been helping me make money working on autos “on the side” for over 40 years.

[sourdough]

Originally Posted by purebred

One last comment. I guess my comment about mac and snap on hit a few nerves here. Sorry I was a mechanic welder all my life and if I seemed a little snooty about my tools than so be it. I'll not apologize for using tools that made me a living for almost 50 years or so. Kinda like a cop talking about a nice 357 or something . Seems like any forum you're on there's some who take things out of context. If you're happy with what you got so be it. I know one thing I have the best American made tools money can buy and I dang sure know how to use them.

I'm sorry but I hope my quote of another post, on point, did not upset you. Liking good tools doesn't hit a nerve here, or anywhere that I've seen on the forum. You like what you like, others like what they like. We all get the job done with "whatever". If I can run it down to 250 ft. lbs. does it really matter if it is HF or SnapOn? Of course not. You, IMO, weren't "snooty", you like what you like. If you said I only drive a "Mercedes" I don't take that as snooty as long as you don't run down anyone else's choices of vehicles.

[Vet4jdc]

Originally Posted by dutchmensport

I'm not surprised a bit. I feel like I've rebuilt my current Montana High Country Fifth Wheel completely over in the first 12 months of ownership. There was a point, about 6 months after purchase, I seriously considered getting rid of it. Absolutely... and I mean Absolutely ... EVERY trip out for the first 9 months, something broke or fell apart. And item by item, I fixed it myself. I've rebuilt, strengthened, and used REAL screws wherever possible. Thinks attached to styrofoam walls have been reattached with Liquid Nails, tires replaced after a blow out, entry door replaced, bathroom door replaced, bedroom door replaced, closet rebuilt, oh the list goes on and on.

But now, it's been the 2nd year and nothing new has happened, unless its a screw up myself ... like turning on the water heater on electric with no water in it! oops!

So fellow Keystone Owner, another camper, another brand, another one will be no different. I suggest you get your caulking gun out, your screw driver and do some searching on YouTube videos (how to's), and fix those things yourself. One by one, you'll get things straightened out and .... about a year from now ... you'll have one darn good camper.

And quite frankly, RV dealership repair shops.... really!!! don't know what the hell they are doing. Fix it yourself and get it done right. Want me to tell you why I feel this way????

I agree with this. In the first 12 months of ownership of our MHC331RL I felt like I had a list of things to fix every time we came home from camping. Now after a year and a half, I feel like I am slowly getting everything tight and the way it should be. I have not been back to the dealer and fix things myself.

[notanlines]

Two blanket statements have been made that are blatantly untrue: RV techs don’t know what they’re doing, and Camping World doesn’t do a good job.
Over the years I have read on these forums of customers constantly traveling many miles to save a few hundred on an RV and then expect “Mom and Pop’s Friendly RV” to fix their problems post haste right close to home. Might I ask how Camping World got to be as big as they are if they (and their techs) are as bad as you say?
Lots of good techs AND good Camping Worlds in this country. Shop close to home, quit trying to squeeze every last dollar out of a sale, and stop with the blanket statements.