New owners of Alpine 355rl5 - Unresolved issues

[Philip and Candy]

which we love! Have had it on two fairly local trips to get used to driving/towing it (had a motorhome before) and it's "care". We do have a couple of issues with Keystone's backup of their product....the generator was never factory installed and 2 months later we still are no closer to getting it installed. Also the blinds in the livingroom are broken. Not real happy with thier instruction book either.....still having to call dealership for answers that we feel should be covered in the manual. Just a few "lemons" to make into lemonade! Any suggestions on how to deal with Keystone Service would be appreciated....
Thanks Philip and Candy

[Festus2]

First, welcome to the forum. The "instruction" book, otherwise known as the "Owners Manual", is often a source of frustration for new owners. It is lacking in a lot of detail and "how to" instruction and is generic. Your manual is the same as all others - regardless of make or model. You will not find anything else that is available. Check through the manuals which should have been supplied for stuff on appliances, A/C, etc., for information about those.

Did you do a pre-delivery inspection and have a thorough walk-through at the dealership?

Some folks also find dealing with Keystone as equally frustrating - you never quite know what kind of "service" you will get. Overall, most seem pleased with their dealings with Keystone but we don't hear as much from those folks. Some have had problems and those have been the most vocal. You may get referred to your dealer and if you have a dealer who will stand up for you, that is a good start. Try to work with both Keystone and the dealer in helping to resolve your problems.

Good luck in resolving your issues with Keystone and the RV.

[Philip and Candy]

Yes, we did do the walk thru. That's when we discovered the blinds in the livingroom were broken. We already had been told that the generator, which was on the original order and was paid for had not been "factory installed" as requested. In fact, it was never even sent to the Dealership after they called Keystone. The Dealership has been trying to get Keystone to send the generator for them to install for the last 2 months. When we spoke to the Dealership about a week ago, we were told that Keystone had stopped returning their calls regarding this. They suggested that if we were going to Indiana in the near future they would set up with Keystone to bring the Alpine there and have them "factory install" it as they were orginially suppose to do. We feel that (1) since this was their error, they should cover our cost of bringing the Alpine to them and the cost of the motel, etc until we get it back. Any suggestions?

[labs4life]

Just my opinion here but, this sounds like the dealer does not want to do the work. Why would a manufacturer stop responding to one of its dealers?? If all the dealers stop selling this brand, guess where the brand goes....in the gutter.

I think the dealership is the one that can make the process painless or PAINFUL. my dealership has never questioned anything I have needed done. They have never said, "we have to wait on approval from Keystone." They do the work and get me out of the shop.

Another thing about the generator not being factory installed is the dealership accepted that same trailer on their PDI also knowing the generator was not installed. There have been two parties that have been paid for the installation of the generator, Keystone and the dealer. The dealer made more profit on the trailer because the sales price went up with the added option. Yes, Keystone dropped the ball with the original install, but now your dealer is giving you the run-around about this. They could easily have the generator shipped in a new unit (avoiding extra shipping) and install in your trailer upon arrival.

I can't believe they suggested that you take the trailer to Indiana, "since this is Keystone's fault!!"

[JRTJH]

I agree with Labs4life. If your dealer is telling you that "Keystone screwed up" and won't even talk to them about the problem now, you're getting the run-around from the dealer. There may have been a miscommunication between the dealer and Keystone when the order was placed for the trailer. That could explain why the factory didn't install the generator. BUT for the dealer to have accepted the trailer at delivery from the factory and then to have delivered the trailer to you without the generator isn't a Keystone problem, it's a dealer problem. And to tell you that the factory won't respond to their communications ???? That dog won't hunt !!!!!

You need to go "eye to eye" with the dealer, ask him for a copy of the original order for the trailer. If the generator was ordered, there will be a confirmation from Keystone with the generator listed. If he can't or won't show you the order sheet with the generator listed, then you will know where the problem lies. If I were you, I'd tell him what you expect, give him a reasonable deadline for completion, have him commit to the agreement IN WRITING and then hold him to it. If he doesn't comply, and you have paid for the generator and can prove it, then consider small claims court (if it meets your state's eligibility or seek legal advice.

If what you say is true (remember there are two sides to every situation) then you're being treated unfairly, but not by Keystone.