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Old 03-03-2019, 02:49 PM   #1
Hamlej
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Opinions wanted

I submitted the following front cap damage as a warranty claim and Keystone claims it’s not a manufacturing defect. When Keystone painted and cleared the cap they sprayed right over the damage in the gel coat.
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Old 03-03-2019, 03:05 PM   #2
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Just my personal opinion but you may be better off taking it into a reputable body shop that specializes in Corvettes and pay out of pocket. By the time you get through negotiating with Keystone you will probably wish you did it on your own.
Unless of course it is near new. Has your dealer stepped up to the plate for you? YMMV
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Old 03-03-2019, 03:27 PM   #3
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Was it pointed out to the dealer before purchase?
Must body shops around here are at $50-$60 per labor hour. Corvette shops are around $100 per labor hour an I will say they are going to figure to paint a front cap at 10-12 hours plus materials so out of pocket is going to be costly.
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Old 03-03-2019, 03:29 PM   #4
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To me it appears that depressed area was probably just painted over originally. I believe you have a 2018. What are all the swirls and marks etc. that look like that cap has seen ???? If there are other mars, scratches, marks, dings etc. I think it will be an uphill fight to get them to fix it. On the other hand....

As I said, it appears the damage you've pictured is probably a factory defect. What HAS the dealership done to make sure Keystone understands that? The dealership will be the one that convinces them to cover that damage. I've had warranty repairs denied then reversed due to service manager intervention (a good one) and resubmission of erroneous documents. In this case it seems to me that the problem came from the factory and it's on the service manager to make the case for that.
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Old 03-03-2019, 03:58 PM   #5
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Yes, it is a new 2018 and it was purchased last Septtmber. If you enlarge the picture you will see the swirls are reflections of my fingers holding the camera. It is well above normal sight line and I did not notice until waxing cap by hand. I will post a couple more pictures in the morning when the sun is not causing reflections. My dealer also agrees this was done at the factory and has tried to have it covered under the warranty.
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Old 03-03-2019, 04:34 PM   #6
sourdough
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Originally Posted by Hamlej View Post
Yes, it is a new 2018 and it was purchased last Septtmber. If you enlarge the picture you will see the swirls are reflections of my fingers holding the camera. It is well above normal sight line and I did not notice until waxing cap by hand. I will post a couple more pictures in the morning when the sun is not causing reflections. My dealer also agrees this was done at the factory and has tried to have it covered under the warranty.

Who at the dealer has tried? A service writer is an immediate non starter since it has already been refused. The service manager needs to be handling this. Do you know him? Have you met him? If not, that needs to be on your agenda. If he has been involved and has had no success ask him for the documentation he has submitted; is it accurate? Has he properly placed the responsibility back on Keystone? If they refuse, which they may well do if they aren't taking care of business, contact Keystone and ask for copies of the documentation the dealership provided. If they did refuse I would also escalate the issue (probably would anyway) to the top management of the firm.

It appears to me that you have a valid claim if it is what it seems. If so YOU will have to push all the buttons, dot the I's and cross the T's if the management of the dealership won't (and if they don't - you need to be very leery of them). I wish you luck.
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Old 03-03-2019, 05:40 PM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by TLB View Post
Was it pointed out to the dealer before purchase?
Must body shops around here are at $50-$60 per labor hour. Corvette shops are around $100 per labor hour an I will say they are going to figure to paint a front cap at 10-12 hours plus materials so out of pocket is going to be costly.
If it's a 2018 there should be no fading. One of my SILs had a body shop for about 20 years and did a lot of Corvettes. He could do a small patch like that and blend within 3ft. This was on award winning show cars. Personally I don't see the need to do the entire front cap and would bet the body shop would just sand, patch and blend. JMHO
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Old 03-03-2019, 06:16 PM   #8
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You might also consider a marine fiberglass repair shop. There are a "bazillion" in the MBS area, any of which would know exactly how to repair that area with little chance of it ever being seen once repaired.

On the other hand, Keystone "ought to step up to the plate" but who knows if they will or not. As you said, it's toward the top of the cap, you only noticed it once you "climbed up there working" so chances are it won't be visible from the ground for anyone who is admiring your RV. If the gelcoat was sprayed over the "chip" then it's not going to leak, delaminate or peel, so really, even if you left it alone and just maintained it the same way as the rest of the front cap, chances are it would never cause a problem.

Of course, it's "not as it should be" and it's up to you how far to push for a repair and/or accept the defect and move on. After all, camping season is almost upon us, leaving it at the dealership for weeks or months would be a deal breaker for me. I'm not sure what your plans are for using it this summer versus parking it at the dealership for repairs.

ADDED: After enlarging the photos and studying them more, it looks like there is a crack in the gelcoat near the center of the depression. If so, then there may be water intrusion that could (maybe or maybe not) allow water to get under the gelcoat. With the freeze/thaw cycles we're having, you may find that any water under the gelcoat will freeze, expand and cause the area to "grow larger" with every freeze/thaw cycle. I'd put a piece of tape over the crack (if that's what it is) to be sure that no water can get under the gelcoat.
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Old 03-03-2019, 07:42 PM   #9
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Here is a couple more pictures. It’s hard to eliminate reflections on the glossy surface.
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Old 03-03-2019, 11:22 PM   #10
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I had a similar issue with my shower (gel coat just like the cap). A couple hairline cracks in the corner that did not show up until they got dirt in them. It was obvious the shower stall had been dropped/banged on the corner at the factory. The dealer I took it to sat on it for 6 weeks doing nothing. I called Keystone, provided documentation and they said if I got it fixed they would reimburse me. I took it to a boat shop and the guy did a great job; can't see the repair at all. Keystone paid the full amount, no deductible. Any good boat shop should be able to fix it.
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Old 03-07-2019, 11:56 AM   #11
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This is the answer my dealer provided to me after requesting documentation.

Hi Larry,
I have spoken to management here regarding all of this. We are a partner with Keystone and we sell their products and do warranty work for them. As a result, they determine, not us, what is covered under warranty and how a repair is made. We can only address issues a customer brings to us, take pictures, and write report of what the problem is, what we believe caused the problem, and what we believe is the solution. At that point, they tell us whether it is denied or approved. If approved, they also tell us how to proceed with repair. This is what we did with your situation, and they approved the majority of items and directed us on repairs. However they denied the other issues, namely faucet and cap repair.

Like I explained in previous emails, that the girls in our warranty department tried a number of times to get Keystone to approve warranty work on those items, but with no avail.
This is all we from our side can do. For this reason, you called Keystone customer service to try yourself to get them to approve this work and they denied you too. Keystone can provide you with the information and documents you have requested pertaining to approval and denial.

Thank you


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-----Original Message-----
From: Larry Stetz [mailto:[email protected]]
Sent: Wednesday, March 6, 2019 10:03 AM
To: Chris Jenkins
Subject: Re: Cap Damage

Thank You

Sent from my iPad

> On Mar 6, 2019, at 9:22 AM, Chris Jenkins <[email protected]> wrote:
>
> Hello Larry,
> Give me some time to do this, I am the only one up front and I will do this
> as soon as I get the opportunity...but I will get that info.
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Larry Stetz [mailto:[email protected]]
> Sent: Wednesday, March 6, 2019 7:49 AM
> To: [email protected]
> Subject: Cap Damage
>
> Good morning Chris, would you please send me a copy of documentation sent to
> Keystone regarding the claim and their response?
>
> Thank You, Larry Stetz
>
> Sent from my iPad
>
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Old 03-07-2019, 04:47 PM   #12
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Larry, it appears you are still dealing with a service writer. Talked to "management"??? I would be sitting in front of "management". Service writers, if good, can take care of general things; when you get into stuff like you have you have to have the intervention of the service manager/dealership. After I had an issue refused by Keystone and went thru this exercise, and then it was approved, the service manager told me that Keystone takes it much more seriously when the service manager takes the reins - plus, the original problem, written up by the service writer, didn't even resemble what was the real deal.

If you're going to use that dealership you are going to have to set the tone for this and other issues. Since this seems like they are blowing you off, it is imperative, to me, that you establish that relationship, right now, with the service manager and GM/owner. Don't ask, insist then "tell" if you must.

They can absolutely provide you with the documentation they sent to Keystone; it's your trailer, you bought it from them, they are doing this for YOU - their customer. If they are like my dealership they can pull up everything that's gone on with your trailer....in my case a book. They have that documentation and can pull it up. I would insist on it and not take no for an answer. That document is not some national secret, there's no agreement between Keystone and that dealer that prohibits you from seeing the documentation on your unit - they should be more than willing to provide that to you. If not, they are really messed up. Currently I think you are caught in the middle of a service advisor thinking they're doing what they are supposed to do without some sort of "managment" intervention - that will be on you.

If they really are that poor, and refuse to provide the documentation, I have had Keystone send me the text verbatim of what was provided from the dealership on one occasion. You will have to "set the stage" properly for them to feel obliged to do so.
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Old 03-08-2019, 03:04 AM   #13
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We have a statement here "the girls in our warranty department tried a number of times" that I'm not buying into. As was brought up earlier by Danny, you need to be face to face with 'the big guy' at the dealership. If you choose to pursue this matter then pick battles you can win. I just don't see you winning this by going over the owner's head to Keystone yourself.
Don't give up on demanding to see the paper trail left by 'the girls in warrantee claims.' Make sure that everything they tell you is the truth. That can only be done face to face, NOT email or text messages.
Social media is your friend. BBB is not to be overlooked.
Some information can be had here: https://www.bbb.org/us/az/prescott/p...-1126-25000193
You have NOT chosen a quality dealership and are now left to deal with the situation. Hopefully you can get this turned around in your favor.
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Old 03-12-2019, 12:44 PM   #14
Hamlej
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Just got a call from my selling dealer and Keystone has agreed to step up to the plate and cover this under the warranty. Thank you to all of you for your thoughts and suggestions.
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