Journey with Confidence RV GPS App RV Trip Planner RV LIFE Campground Reviews RV Maintenance Take a Speed Test Free 7 Day Trial ×
 

Go Back   Keystone RV Forums > Keystone Fleet | Keystone RV Models > Travel Trailers
Click Here to Login

Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
 
Old 06-25-2015, 04:00 PM   #1
customshey
Junior Member
 
Join Date: May 2014
Location: Mass
Posts: 2
Fading front cap

I have a 2014 255rb Laredo. The front cap is dark brown and fading very badly on the top. Was wondering if anyone else is having the same issue. Tried waxing it but it didn't help. Any suggestions on how to deal with this? The dealer was no help at all. Thanks.
customshey is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-25-2015, 04:20 PM   #2
hankpage
Site Team
 
hankpage's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2009
Location: Venice
Posts: 5,346
If you look around the forum you will find that your problem is common and others have dealt with it differently. Try searching for "faded cap" or similar key words. Good luck, Hank
__________________
Hank & Lynn
2007 Cougar 290RKS, E-Z Flex, 16" XPS RIBs ( SOLD .. Gonna miss her ... looking for new 5r)
2004.5 Dodge 2500 QC, LB, 5.9HO, WestTach gauges, Ride-Rite
hankpage is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-26-2015, 08:05 AM   #3
TallEddie
Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: Fredericksburg VA
Posts: 30
I have a 2014 laredo 303TG and have the same issue. I still wax it, doesn't bring back the shine, but it does look presentable at least.

From my searching, I have seen that people have been able to pressure keystone into re-painting the cap.

I've decided to just live with it for now. Perhaps some year I may look into a repaint, but from what I have seen, even if you do get keystone to re-paint, it will fade again. I think a covered storage area would be the only way to stop this issue.
__________________
2012 F250 6.2L
2014 Laredo 303TG
Reese Dual Cam WD Hitch
TallEddie is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-26-2015, 11:48 AM   #4
rosede
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Sep 2012
Location: Omaha
Posts: 162
I have a 2012 272RK, and I had the exact same issue. Less than a year, the front cap started to fade. I contacted my dealer, and they worked with Keystone to get it repainted. The place that I took it to specialized in large trucks, buses and the like. They got it painted quickly and it still looks good.

The only difficulty that I had was getting decals. Apparently, the company that made the decals for my camper went out of business and it took Keystone nearly a year to get new ones. But, all is now good and I am happy with the whole processes.
__________________
Daryl Rose
2018 Ram BigHorn EcoDiesel
2012 272RK Outback

rosede is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-26-2015, 01:28 PM   #5
NORSK1
Junior Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2014
Location: Montana
Posts: 3
I purchased a 19 foot Bullet Premier last Fall and have the same faded look. I have managed to get it looking presentable using Boating products. The polishes have a little rubbing compound in them and are made for gel coats. So far the area I can reach looks ok. The OK look lasted a month and now it looks pretty sad and faded. I have at the dealer and am waiting for determination on a repair. 08/21/15
Good luck,
Ron
NORSK1 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-26-2015, 08:38 PM   #6
homer3
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jun 2013
Location: oxnard ca
Posts: 182
This a very common problem with certain models. As stated if you use the search tool and type in "Front Fade Cap", you see quite a long string of inputs. Some good and some bad.
__________________


John
Now Retired (At Last) Long Time Coming
Soon to be retired after 41 years with DOD
2006 Duramax Silverado 2500HD
2013 327 RES Cougar
homer3 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-29-2015, 07:49 AM   #7
barchak
Junior Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2013
Location: Collierville, TN
Posts: 21
I have a 2013 Laredo 303TG and my cap was fading really bad. I took it to the dealer about 10 months after purchase. They worked with Keystone and repainted the front cap, clear coated, and applied new graphics. Six months later it still looks great.

I was told Keystone had not properly treated some caps with UV protection.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
barchak is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-30-2015, 05:12 PM   #8
mavagrand
Member
 
Join Date: Jul 2014
Location: Florida
Posts: 46
My 2015 299BH has the same issue. The top of the front cap looks terrible. It's scheduled to be painted at LazyDays on July 9.
mavagrand is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-02-2015, 07:26 AM   #9
Imthek9
Junior Member
 
Imthek9's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2015
Location: West Olive, MI
Posts: 9
Did you purchase the exterior protection at time of purchase?


-Stephen
Working Dog Handler
West Olive, Mi

2015 Keystone Cougar 31SQB
2015 Chevy Silverado 2500 Duramax LTZ


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
Imthek9 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-24-2015, 05:33 PM   #10
mavagrand
Member
 
Join Date: Jul 2014
Location: Florida
Posts: 46
Quote:
Originally Posted by Imthek9 View Post
Did you purchase the exterior protection at time of purchase?


-Stephen
Working Dog Handler
West Olive, Mi

2015 Keystone Cougar 31SQB
2015 Chevy Silverado 2500 Duramax LTZ


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
No, sir, just the manufacturers warranty. I'm just under a year with it.
mavagrand is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-24-2015, 07:30 PM   #11
homer3
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jun 2013
Location: oxnard ca
Posts: 182
mavagrand - Yes the wife and I paid for the exterior finish warranty "Maxgard". Yes I just the the 5ver back the other day. Looks very nice. Dealer repainted with a acrylic paint as well as a clear coat. Just applied wax thew other day, looks very nice. Hope it holds. I believe the problem with original was that it was a crappy gel-coat finish over fiber glass. If you ever owned a boat you know this does not work well. Just glad its done, no money out of my pocket, so who ultimately paid for the repaint I don't care. I paid my share up front at time of purchase.
__________________


John
Now Retired (At Last) Long Time Coming
Soon to be retired after 41 years with DOD
2006 Duramax Silverado 2500HD
2013 327 RES Cougar
homer3 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-04-2015, 11:21 AM   #12
mavagrand
Member
 
Join Date: Jul 2014
Location: Florida
Posts: 46
Glad you're happy with the repair. Mine is going in this weekend.
mavagrand is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-12-2015, 06:49 PM   #13
Cemguy
Junior Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2012
Posts: 2
Laredo 294RK 2013, Fading Cap

I have a badly fading cap that I first started to notice in Oct. 2013. It was an are at the top center, and my dealer told me to use a good wax cleaner. I did that and it helped. Wasn't perfect when viewed from the roof, but ok when viewed from the ground. I was never advised that Keystone had any paint issues with the cap. The fading area became more cloudy and was about the same size, maybe somewhat larger through 2014. I wash and wax regularly. Area of fading grew a bit. This year the fading took off.

Now Keystone says tough luck.....its out of warrantee........even though I told dealer of the problem back in 2013. I am getting no help from Keystone and I think this is terrible. The rest of the rv is in pristine condition. Had I known of the issue and how it would grow I would have raised holy he__ back in 10/2013.

Today the customer service rep referred me to a page (13?) in my owners manual and asked me if I periodically power buff the cap. What? How's that for customer service. Seems to me the paint on a 2+ year old unit, that is regularly washed and waxed should hold up for many years.

What's my option? A lawyer?
Cemguy is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-12-2015, 07:16 PM   #14
JRTJH
Site Team
 
JRTJH's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: Gaylord
Posts: 26,841
Quote:
Originally Posted by Cemguy View Post
I have a badly fading cap that I first started to notice in Oct. 2013. It was an are at the top center, and my dealer told me to use a good wax cleaner. I did that and it helped. Wasn't perfect when viewed from the roof, but ok when viewed from the ground. I was never advised that Keystone had any paint issues with the cap. The fading area became more cloudy and was about the same size, maybe somewhat larger through 2014. I wash and wax regularly. Area of fading grew a bit. This year the fading took off.

Now Keystone says tough luck.....its out of warrantee........even though I told dealer of the problem back in 2013. I am getting no help from Keystone and I think this is terrible. The rest of the rv is in pristine condition. Had I known of the issue and how it would grow I would have raised holy he__ back in 10/2013.

Today the customer service rep referred me to a page (13?) in my owners manual and asked me if I periodically power buff the cap. What? How's that for customer service. Seems to me the paint on a 2+ year old unit, that is regularly washed and waxed should hold up for many years.

What's my option? A lawyer?
Do a forum search for "faded paint" or "faded front" and you will get a lot of information about the experiences of other owners. Some have been successful in getting Keystone to help with repairs, others have hit a "brick wall" and have received no help from Keystone.

After doing some research on Keystone products, it might interest you to do a "google search" on "RV faded front cap". You'll find on the first page of results, information on faded front caps on Heartland, Jayco, Keystone, Winnebago and Forest River products.

While that won't "soothe your frustration" it should illustrate that it's not a "keystone issue" but it's a problem that affects the entire RV industry.

Good luck with your quest to get your RV repaired. The more "background information" you know, the better your chances of being able to carry an intelligent conversation with customer service both at your dealership and at Keystone.
__________________
John



2015 F250 6.7l 4x4
2014 Cougar X Lite 27RKS
JRTJH is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-14-2015, 02:53 PM   #15
mavagrand
Member
 
Join Date: Jul 2014
Location: Florida
Posts: 46
Got the camper back. Look's great!
Attached Thumbnails
Click image for larger version

Name:	20150914_181723.jpg
Views:	562
Size:	98.5 KB
ID:	9432  
mavagrand is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-26-2015, 07:21 AM   #16
wayfun
Member
 
Join Date: May 2014
Location: Central KY
Posts: 79
I just pulled my trailer out of storage where it's been for the last 6 months and it has faded badly. It was fine when I left it there last April. I guess the FL sun is hard on it. It's out of warranty at 15 months. Hope a good waxing will help.
wayfun is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-26-2015, 09:28 AM   #17
sw342
Permanent User Ban
 
Join Date: Jul 2014
Location: Folsom, Ca
Posts: 204
A good waxing will help temporarily, but in no way is a permanent solution. The fading will be back in 6-12 months if not sooner The problem is with the cap itself. See if your dealer will go to bat for you. If they have a good working relationship with Keystone it would help. Keep an eye out on your stickers and see if they are starting to change colors.

I just removed all the stickers off my faded front cap its ready now for me to wet sand it and buff it out or put a wrap on it. At my storage facility my neighbor with a 2 year old Cougar with the grey front cap is starting to go at the top. Four spots down from me another guy with his 5th wheel with the brown front cap just had his wrapped. Keystone told him to pound sand since he was a couple months out of warranty and his trailer is always covered unless he is using it. So the BS lie that Keystone tells you about YOUR lack of maintaining/waxing it and its a natural occurrence is just that...BS

There are numerous other TT and 5th wheels at my storage yard that are starting to fade or are in bad shape already. Not all Keystones, but other brands included that have the colored front caps. A class action suit should be brought against the manufacturer of those caps. Its a shame Keystone, Glacier Bay, Heartland and the other makers will not stand up for their customers when an industry wide problem comes up. I suppose its much easier for them to blame their customers than to hold their partner/supplier responsible.
sw342 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-26-2015, 05:43 PM   #18
therink
Senior Member
 
Join Date: May 2010
Location: Rochester, NY
Posts: 1,605
I thought the cap on my 2013 was immune to the fading issue until a few weeks ago. I keep it clean and have waxed the cap 3x year for the 3 seasons I have owned it. 2 weeks ago when waxing it before winter, I noticed a large area on the top now fading.
It will only get worse over time. So do I try to claim under the fight of warranty or do I get it fixed on my nickel and move on?
I pretty sure that if I do pay myself, I will likely have a graphics shop simply put a vinyl colored skin on it to color match it. I talked to a friend of my who owns a graphics business and he said he could do it. We didn't talk cost.
__________________
Steve Rinker
Rochester, NY
2013 Outback Sydney 340FBH (12,280 lbs loaded-scale)

2015 GMC Sierra Denali 3500HD, SRW, Duramax, CC, SB (payload 3700)

https://i1109.photobucket.com/albums/...65/340FBH1.jpg
therink is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-26-2015, 07:21 PM   #19
sw342
Permanent User Ban
 
Join Date: Jul 2014
Location: Folsom, Ca
Posts: 204
Quote:
Originally Posted by therink View Post
I thought the cap on my 2013 was immune to the fading issue until a few weeks ago. I keep it clean and have waxed the cap 3x year for the 3 seasons I have owned it. 2 weeks ago when waxing it before winter, I noticed a large area on the top now fading.
It will only get worse over time. So do I try to claim under the fight of warranty or do I get it fixed on my nickel and move on?
I pretty sure that if I do pay myself, I will likely have a graphics shop simply put a vinyl colored skin on it to color match it. I talked to a friend of my who owns a graphics business and he said he could do it. We didn't talk cost.
2013 was one of the prime years for problems. Can't hurt to talk to your dealer and see what he says considering you are out of warranty. Around here its about $1500 to get the front wrapped. If you have a friend in the business maybe he could cut you a nice discount and it would be a good way to go.
sw342 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-26-2015, 07:55 PM   #20
Pmedic4
Senior Member
 
Pmedic4's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: Illinois
Posts: 581
Front cap fading

Quote:
Originally Posted by sw342 View Post
A good waxing will help temporarily, but in no way is a permanent solution. The fading will be back in 6-12 months if not sooner The problem is with the cap itself. See if your dealer will go to bat for you. If they have a good working relationship with Keystone it would help. Keep an eye out on your stickers and see if they are starting to change colors.

I just removed all the stickers off my faded front cap its ready now for me to wet sand it and buff it out or put a wrap on it. At my storage facility my neighbor with a 2 year old Cougar with the grey front cap is starting to go at the top. Four spots down from me another guy with his 5th wheel with the brown front cap just had his wrapped. Keystone told him to pound sand since he was a couple months out of warranty and his trailer is always covered unless he is using it. So the BS lie that Keystone tells you about YOUR lack of maintaining/waxing it and its a natural occurrence is just that...BS

There are numerous other TT and 5th wheels at my storage yard that are starting to fade or are in bad shape already. Not all Keystones, but other brands included that have the colored front caps. A class action suit should be brought against the manufacturer of those caps. Its a shame Keystone, Glacier Bay, Heartland and the other makers will not stand up for their customers when an industry wide problem comes up. I suppose its much easier for them to blame their customers than to hold their partner/supplier responsible.
What is really bothersome about the front caps fading on all the RV's, is if our trucks or cars faded as bad as the RV's, we'd all be in complaining at our dealerships probably even 5 years afterwards. Definitely a different exterior manufacturing quality standard applies to the entire RV industry, except those shiny metal twinkies.
__________________
Ed & Mary

2017 Cougar 333MKS
2015 RAM 3500 HD with 6.4L

Pmedic4 is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Forum Jump

» Featured Campgrounds

Reviews provided by

Powered by vBadvanced CMPS v3.2.3
Disclaimer:

This website is not affiliated with or endorsed by the Keystone RV Company or any of its affiliates in any way. Keystone RV® is a registered trademark of the Keystone RV Company.


All times are GMT -8. The time now is 05:23 PM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.9
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.