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Old 04-05-2015, 07:28 AM   #1
BigRed2013
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Location: Westport, WA
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Cougar 32RESWE Ongoing Problems

We purchased our Cougar 32RESWE in December 2013 from a reputable dealer in Portland. First I want to say the dealer has been stellar, they have gone above and beyond to meet our needs and have been very good to work with.

The problems we have are with the Keystone product. This trailer was purchased brand new. Over the course of our ownership the trailer has been in for service due to significant leaks on the wardrobe slide and minor leaking on both living room slides. This is in addition to the numerous issues we've had with poor quality worksmanship on everything from cabinet doors to trim.

We are currently on vacation in Oregon and have wet feet due to the dinette/couch slide in the living room leaking. It started with my wife sitting on the couch and started feeling a drip come down on her, I found this was coming from the trim from the top of the slide, I checked all the exterior seals and couldn't find anything blocking. I now have the wet feet because the aft part of the slide is leaking to the floor. I have a blanket soaking up the water now but I am just beside myself because we bought a brand new trailer that leaks everytime we use it. We bought this so we could take our dogs on vacation with us and had plans to use it for many years to come. At this point we feel that we either got the worst trailer produced by Keystone or certainly one that was thrown together in a manner that has no quality control whatsoever. Sickened that we still owe so much money on something we don't even enjoy now.

I researched trailers heavily and thought we were making a good choice with the trailer, now we just don't know what to do. I love the features of this trailer and if it wasn't for the leaks I'd be extremely happy. We once had an old 70's used trailer that leaked and that's why we decided to buy new but what was the point if it still leaks like this. I could understand if we didn't take care of our trailer and let debris build up on the slides but that's just not the case, fully open it leaks, fully closed it leaks. Now the newest issue this morning is the pig-tail on the back won't pull out, must be a knot inside, i'll figure that out I'm sure but it's just one of many issues that makes using this trailer stressful. Now 4+ hours drive from home and all I can think about is "what's next".

Truly disheartened this morning, wish we would have made a better decision when purchasing. If price is a consideration we paid over $30k for this thing...

Keystone needs to work on Quality Control before pushing these units off the line. I hope we are the exception and not the rule.

Very unhappy Customer....
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Old 04-07-2015, 11:28 PM   #2
Ken / Claudia
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Not sure what to say except ask questions. The trailer leaked and got work done than still leaked. What did you do?. Take it back again or not. Time is everything with warranty and repairs. The repairs should have a warranty period. If you waited to long maybe take it to a RV shop have them determine whats leaking and where and pay to fix it. Many things to try also like contacting Keystone and explain the problem. Sounds like the factory warranty is past by now, so not sure they would offer anything free.
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Old 04-30-2015, 03:24 AM   #3
MikeH
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BigRed2013 View Post
We purchased our Cougar 32RESWE in December 2013 from a reputable dealer in Portland. First I want to say the dealer has been stellar, they have gone above and beyond to meet our needs and have been very good to work with.

The problems we have are with the Keystone product. This trailer was purchased brand new. Over the course of our ownership the trailer has been in for service due to significant leaks on the wardrobe slide and minor leaking on both living room slides. This is in addition to the numerous issues we've had with poor quality worksmanship on everything from cabinet doors to trim.

We are currently on vacation in Oregon and have wet feet due to the dinette/couch slide in the living room leaking. It started with my wife sitting on the couch and started feeling a drip come down on her, I found this was coming from the trim from the top of the slide, I checked all the exterior seals and couldn't find anything blocking. I now have the wet feet because the aft part of the slide is leaking to the floor. I have a blanket soaking up the water now but I am just beside myself because we bought a brand new trailer that leaks everytime we use it. We bought this so we could take our dogs on vacation with us and had plans to use it for many years to come. At this point we feel that we either got the worst trailer produced by Keystone or certainly one that was thrown together in a manner that has no quality control whatsoever. Sickened that we still owe so much money on something we don't even enjoy now.

I researched trailers heavily and thought we were making a good choice with the trailer, now we just don't know what to do. I love the features of this trailer and if it wasn't for the leaks I'd be extremely happy. We once had an old 70's used trailer that leaked and that's why we decided to buy new but what was the point if it still leaks like this. I could understand if we didn't take care of our trailer and let debris build up on the slides but that's just not the case, fully open it leaks, fully closed it leaks. Now the newest issue this morning is the pig-tail on the back won't pull out, must be a knot inside, i'll figure that out I'm sure but it's just one of many issues that makes using this trailer stressful. Now 4+ hours drive from home and all I can think about is "what's next".

Truly disheartened this morning, wish we would have made a better decision when purchasing. If price is a consideration we paid over $30k for this thing...

Keystone needs to work on Quality Control before pushing these units off the line. I hope we are the exception and not the rule.

Very unhappy Customer....
Toured the factory (Cougar & VR1) a few years ago and I saw why there are so many problems on so many units.

Workers report at 4 AM (!) and are told how many units that management wants today.
Once the quota is filled people are free to go home and are paid for the day.

This is why so many problems slip through as the workers are anxious to get home to their Farms and other jobs.

It's just rush rush and get those units out the door.
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Old 04-30-2015, 04:51 AM   #4
JRTJH
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MikeH View Post
Toured the factory (Cougar & VR1) a few years ago and I saw why there are so many problems on so many units.

Workers report at 4 AM (!) and are told how many units that management wants today.
Once the quota is filled people are free to go home and are paid for the day.

This is why so many problems slip through as the workers are anxious to get home to their Farms and other jobs.

It's just rush rush and get those units out the door.
The model referenced in the post by BigRed2013, to which you're responding was built in the Oregon plant, not in the Goshen plant, there are few (if any Amish farm workers employed there).

While you have the "shift hours" right, the rest of your factory tour assessment isn't exactly correct. A large portion of the factory workers are Amish. They do have farms to tend and the factory accommodates their needs with the "early morning shift". ALL of the workers (Amish and not) work those same hours. The "day shift" works from 4AM to 1PM with an hour for breakfast at 8-9AM. However, there is a "standard production schedule" that is followed. The quota isn't changed from day to day. There is a time clock and workers "punch in and punch out". They are on an hourly pay scale and are not free to "rush rush and get those units out the door" and leave as soon as they throw the crap together. If they leave early, they don't get paid for the missed hours.

Additionally, repair of all QA defects noted by orange stickers are the responsibility of the line workers, so anything they "rush to get out the door" sits at the end of the assembly line until they repair it. When I was there, the line had finished building the scheduled units and couldn't start more (the chassis weren't available to start assembly) so they were using that time to sweep floors, straighten work areas, restock parts bins and clean/repair tools. There were two or three workers outside the building, in-under-on top of trailers. They were repairing the defects identified by QA and then the repair was reinspected and the orange sticker was removed by QA, not the worker.



So, while you have identified the shift hours correctly, you missed a little bit about who repairs the issues found during inspection. It actually "pays" workers to do it correctly the first time (not throw it together) as they are the ones responsible to fix it before they can go home.
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Old 04-30-2015, 05:06 AM   #5
KYFamily
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Leaks can happen with any Manufacturer. A friend of mine had a Forrest River Sandpiper that was taken back numerous time for leaks. Even the plant tried to fix the problem. He got a lawyer and Forrest River took it back and let him pick another camper at the dealer he bought the Sandpiper from. He chose a Grand Design Reflection this time. Guess what, it's at the dealer right now for a leak in the bed slide. He's sick. Wouldn't shock me if the problem presists that he quites camping.
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