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Old 11-23-2022, 04:32 AM   #1
KJJ
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Shop didn't Winterize TT

Trailer was dropped off at RV-1 in AUGUST for overheated brakes. Shop JUST got it done for $2K+ and told me they DID NOT WINTERIZE IT while they had it! Told me they had to be asked, also mentioned having 300 units on site as a reason they don't monitor this. Three months of changing their minds on repairs, waiting on parts, and repeatedly not updating me. Obviously I should have hounded them unmercifully and probably yanked it and gave it to another shop. Now I get to see what broke in the sub 20° weather we had in the last week. Picking it up and paying them soon, SMH..
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Old 11-23-2022, 04:49 AM   #2
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We had a similar situation a few years ago. We took the camper in to the dealership repair shop for an item. It was still warm weather, never thought anything about it. They had the camper longer than expected, and weather started turning cold. I was concerned about winterizing when temps started dropping.

I contacted them and asked them about winterizing. Of course they were going to charge for that. I asked them if I could come by and do it myself. The trailer was sitting on their lot, parked beside a hundred other campers waiting for service too. They said it would be no problem. So, I brought everything I needed and winterized on their lot. (I did the pink stuff).

After that experience, I always made sure I had a good handle on the worst case scenario regarding how long the shop may hold my camper. And if it's getting into cold weather, I make sure it's winterized before taking it in now.

Mine is in the shop right now, waiting for bearing repacking, and a couple other items I don't want to tackle myself, since it's in the shop anyway. It's winterized. I winterized early this year, earlier than normal, but I also knew I had the appointment with the shop coming up and no plans for hitting the road too soon. So I went ahead and winterized when it was still 60 degrees. (First time ever I did it that early). But glad I did. It turned cold fast after that and now, don't have to worry how long the shop has the camper (especially between now and until December 31. Come January 1, we'll probably hit the road again. )
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Old 11-23-2022, 05:16 AM   #3
German Shepherd Guy
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Aghhhh!


What a bummer. AND you get to pay for the privilege


There is such a shortage, at least in my area, of RV repair shops that they can get away with this. A young couple opened an independent RV repair shop in small city about 60 miles from me. Immediately their lot filled up with RVs needing repair. Overwhelmed them. Do not know if it was a matter of getting parts or what but after a year they stopped repairs and began building "small houses". They no longer do RV repairs.


There is a vacuum and not sure exactly why it is not getting filled.
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Old 11-23-2022, 05:34 AM   #4
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$2K+ for brakes? What did they actually do?
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Old 11-23-2022, 05:44 AM   #5
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Had the same thing happen. Camper was in shop weather was nice;however, they had it forever. Weather started to turn cold I asked winterizing it since it was getting cold. They did charged me 100.00. That was high I thought and let them know it. Couldn’t do it myself they were to far away. My thoughts are if a dealer has the unit and it’s their any keystone fault having it forever. They should winterize it or be responsible for any damage caused. But they along with keystone don’t care. Hell they don’t even keep the unit plugged in to get battery charged. Had to jump battery when picked up to check repairs.
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Old 11-23-2022, 05:48 AM   #6
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Quote:
Originally Posted by KJJ View Post
Trailer was dropped off at RV-1 in AUGUST for overheated brakes. Shop JUST got it done for $2K+ and told me they DID NOT WINTERIZE IT while they had it! Told me they had to be asked, also mentioned having 300 units on site as a reason they don't monitor this. Three months of changing their minds on repairs, waiting on parts, and repeatedly not updating me. Obviously I should have hounded them unmercifully and probably yanked it and gave it to another shop. Now I get to see what broke in the sub 20° weather we had in the last week. Picking it up and paying them soon, SMH..


You need to be having a face to face with the top management at the dealership. IF they are worth their salt they should have contacted everyone who had their RVs in there for months going from summer into winter - no matter how many units they have. That consideration SHOULD have been on the top of their mind....along with yours. In the end it's your trailer and what happens to it ultimately falls on your shoulders but any way you slice it they had some responsibility for what you find broken from freezing; they should be made aware of that in no uncertain terms.
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Old 11-23-2022, 07:21 AM   #7
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That would the price for the Platinum Brake Deluxe Service.
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Old 11-23-2022, 08:56 AM   #8
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I have worked in Automotive After Sales (parts and service business) for 45+ years. I have taken my fair share of heat for our business practices including our pricing models. Some of that heat was well deserved. BUT.... I watch what takes place in the RV industry (and marine industry is just as bad) and I am amazed by what some of these businesses are doing.
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Old 11-23-2022, 09:24 AM   #9
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Such a shame you paid that amount for brake replacement. If it was for two sets of Dexter axles the entire set of four new backing plate assy with brakes, new hubs, bearings, races, seals,lug nuts would have cost about $800 for twoi axles..

https://thetrailerpartsoutlet.com/pr...BoCSKIQAvD_BwE

Their labor rate must be north of $150 an hour or they are slower than molasses

Regarding your rig sitting full of water at below 20 degree temps:
.. Take a close look at that water heater to see if it is cracked or bulged
.. All PEX Fittings and lines
.. toilet pedal water valve
.. all sink and shower fixtures
.. batteries are probably completely shot

I have seen what happens out here in Idaho when folks leave their RV full of water.. A few days at 18 degree temps does an awesome job on the plumbing
..
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Old 11-23-2022, 10:00 PM   #10
KJJ
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Originally Posted by chuckster57 View Post
$2K+ for brakes? What did they actually do?
Ended up with bearings, drums, and shoes. They ended up just replacing the axles as all those things came with them and were cheaper that way.
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Old 11-23-2022, 10:07 PM   #11
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Originally Posted by Camping family View Post
Had the same thing happen. Camper was in shop weather was nice;however, they had it forever. Weather started to turn cold I asked winterizing it since it was getting cold. They did charged me 100.00. That was high I thought and let them know it. Couldn’t do it myself they were to far away. My thoughts are if a dealer has the unit and it’s their any keystone fault having it forever. They should winterize it or be responsible for any damage caused. But they along with keystone don’t care. Hell they don’t even keep the unit plugged in to get battery charged. Had to jump battery when picked up to check repairs.
Agree, and my TT's 2x6V batteries were nearly dead too! They seem to have recovered during drive home and now plugged in to house. First attempt at turning on pump and running a wee bit of water looked good, gonna leave her sit overnight and look for leaks then.
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Old 11-23-2022, 10:27 PM   #12
KJJ
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ChuckS View Post
Such a shame you paid that amount for brake replacement. If it was for two sets of Dexter axles the entire set of four new backing plate assy with brakes, new hubs, bearings, races, seals,lug nuts would have cost about $800 for twoi axles..

Their labor rate must be north of $150 an hour or they are slower than molasses

Regarding your rig sitting full of water at below 20 degree temps:
.. Take a close look at that water heater to see if it is cracked or bulged
.. All PEX Fittings and lines
.. toilet pedal water valve
.. all sink and shower fixtures
.. batteries are probably completely shot

I have seen what happens out here in Idaho when folks leave their RV full of water.. A few days at 18 degree temps does an awesome job on the plumbing
..
Thanks for the price info, I'll look over the detailed invoice in between eating sessions...
Flipped the pump on and ran a little water in kitchen and bath, will look for leaks when it's light out but no problem seen at first small tests. And 6Vs seem to have recovered on drive home & are charging overnight.
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Old 11-24-2022, 06:26 AM   #13
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The dealer should have you sign something when you drop it off that your aware it needs to be winterized by someone before it gets cold….whether that’s the dealer or the owner should be signed off on right then and there or send a letter or email to everyone before the cold sets in.

The dealer may have been burned before because once they touch something they own it

as much as we like to think the world is full of wonderful people …that isn’t always the case

In business you often have people trying to blame you because you worked on something related.

There are even those people that KNOW something has already failed and will try and get you to replace it because they asked you to work on something else nearby…a GOTCHA scenario

Then there are the percentage of people that would refuse to pay for the winterizing if the dealer took it upon themselves to be the good guy and look out for everyone….they would either swear they were going to do it themselves or say they already did it and will not pay.

Damned if you do ..Damned if you don’t

really not a good situation to be in for the buisness

as an owner of a rv or a boat or airplane …whatever ..it’s the owners responsibility to make sure it’s prepared for each season no matter where it is at the moment

When you take a boat to a marina for example it’s up to you to babysit it …check on it in storms make sure the battery’s charged/ plugged in..bilge pumps etc.
i keep my boats on land for the winter and drive over every week or so and check on everything…the marina owner doesn’t lose any sleep over my boats…it’s my responsibility

the op said the dealer had 300 rvs …do you know how much money that would cost to winterize all of them ? labor and material? somebody has to pay for that unfortunately

not trying to paint a negative picture of the average rv owner but as a small business owner i’ve seen what people can try to pull

and i’m sure the op is a wonderful person but the businesses policy’s are based on the worst person they encountered
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Old 11-27-2022, 04:27 PM   #14
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Originally Posted by sourdough View Post
You need to be having a face to face with the top management at the dealership. IF they are worth their salt they should have contacted everyone who had their RVs in there for months going from summer into winter - no matter how many units they have. That consideration SHOULD have been on the top of their mind....along with yours. In the end it's your trailer and what happens to it ultimately falls on your shoulders but any way you slice it they had some responsibility for what you find broken from freezing; they should be made aware of that in no uncertain terms.
If it's the dealer that I think the OP is talking about, they have no consideration for pleasing the customer. Long story with my dealings, but had conversation face to face with their service manager. Mine was a warranty issue that they filed incorrectly with Keystone. All I got was lip service and no satisfaction. I even had Keystone contact him to rectify the problem, still waiting to hear. In the meantime, I took care of the problem myself.
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Old 11-29-2022, 03:52 AM   #15
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Ended up with bearings, drums, and shoes. They ended up just replacing the axles as all those things came with them and were cheaper that way.
I didn't replace axles last year, but replaced everything else on mine for about $400 if I remember correctly. It took a whole weekend because it is stored 20 mins from my house. I created a thread about it if you're interested including tools needed, links to products, etc.

I'm fairly young (40's) and understand that not everyone can do it as easily. I just hate to see the $$ difference being paid and the time during the camping season wasted. Any chance a buddy can help you with any repairs going forward? I had never done a similar repair in a TT, but it's about the same as on a TV. If you're winterizing yourself, ask questions here. Folks are extremely helpful, which I'm sure you already know. You tube is another great source of information. Good luck
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