Sprinter 311BH ruined-center slide leak

Kdaniel29 · 01-07-2010, 04:35 PM

My wife and I purchased a 2010 sprinter 311 BH in July 2009. We used 3 times and stored it in late Aug. because our camping season was over. Over the next 6 weeks we were in and out of it periodically to clean and maintain. In Oct. on one of our visits, we noticed the entire cabin had been destroyed by water inside. I took it back to the dealer because thats what the warranty states. Well they had it for 2 months and kept putting me off. Did I mention that the dealer is 4 hours away. Finally they came to the conclusion that they could not find the leak. I pick it up and take it to the local dealer and he found the leak in ten minutes. The unit did not have any sealant on the connection of the j channel on the interior fascia. Now Keystone won't cover the repair or the damage to the TT. They said the service manager did not provide enough evidence. He submitted the evidence they were looking for and they still denied responsibility. Would not give me a reason.

Has anyone ever had any success with a lawyer? I am just wondering if it is worth my time and money to pursue a legal claim?

K&Gs3400RL · 01-07-2010, 08:18 PM

Wow what a problem, Sorry to hear. Do you subscribe to Trailer Life? The following is something you can try. Good Luck. This is from the RV Action Line article in Trailer Life.

After exhausting all other resources without success, please forward information (typewritten only) with copies of appropriate bills and correspondence to
RV Action Line
2575 Vista Del Mar
Ventura, Ca 93001

Please include a self-addressed, stamped envelope, No phone calls please

richfaa · 01-11-2010, 07:04 AM

Lesson learned the hard way. Should have called Keystone customer service the first time so the problem would have been on record. Does the first dealer you took it to have a dated record of when you reported the problem.

schutze5 · 01-12-2010, 09:17 AM

I am having very similar problems with my 2008 BHS11. Help from Keystone, even corporate customer service is pretty much non-exsistant. I am continuing to try and work with them, but I don't have a lot of hope. Please keep me in the loop of the actions you plan to take and I will do all I can to support you with informaiton around my own experience.

In my case the leak was caused by a "header" not being installed at the factory. The initial leak was finally resolved but now the unit is invested with mold and the base on the dinnette is destroyed! I have been quoted $2500-3000 to repair.

soundman · 02-17-2010, 05:59 PM

I purchased a 2008 Sprinter 301RMP in Dec 2009. The unit is in like new condition, very well maintained. I noticed a piece of corner style had gotten wet and expanded.This appeared to be from the fridge condensate tube. The previous owner said that Keystone was aware of the problem and it would be fixed under warranty. After a bad experience with his dealer he was so frustrated he dropped the issue.the water leak has been fixed but the trim needs to be replaced. I called Keystone to ask if the warranty was transferable and was told that I could in fact transfer the warranty. Now the problem is that my local dealer wont warrant the product because it was not purchased at his dealership. Now I just found a leak at the slide, there was 8" of snow on the roof that may have caused the leak so I removed it.

Its not looking good with the Keystone warranty dept.

Anyone have any words of wisdom. I will try another call to keystone but I think I'm stuck
Thanks

Tow/Haul · 02-18-2010, 05:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by richfaa

Lesson learned the hard way. Should have called Keystone customer service the first time so the problem would have been on record. Does the first dealer you took it to have a dated record of when you reported the problem.

I don't think this is a time issue as the one year warranty should be good until July 2010. It's too bad that we have to think a call to Keystone CS is needed for any claim. The dealers should be able to handle this without our intervention.

MightyMike · 02-21-2010, 03:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tow/Haul

I don't think this is a time issue as the one year warranty should be good until July 2010. It's too bad that we have to think a call to Keystone CS is needed for any claim. The dealers should be able to handle this without our intervention.

Agree with tow/haul. There should be no reason to call Keystone when you take a unit back to dealer under warranty. Do you call Ford/Gm/Toyota every time you get warranty work on a car or truck? As I have found from my recent personal experience, dealers don't want to get involved with Keystone as they lose money on waranty repairs. Some have issues with the amount they are paid, and don't want to tell customers they can't fix it for what Keystone is paying. Keystone had my unit for 3 months for major repairs and when they returned it, the Tv and stereo were "missing". Ended up going to 3 dealers to finally find one willing to do it. Keystone fought them on price of new Tv, told them to just "find" a stereo to put in, and then told them to "make" a cabinet to mount the stereo. Said they got paid 3 1/2 hours for a job that took them 8. Guy said they really just want to try and gain my future business.

K&Gs3400RL · 02-21-2010, 09:18 AM

Quote "Now the problem is that my local dealer wont warrant the product because it was not purchased at his dealership".

Shouldent all Keystone Dealers warrant a Keystone product? Does that mean If something happens 2000 miles from home I gotta haul it back to get fixed at my dealer? Something is wrong with that picture and I would be calling Keystone. If they don't deal with the dealer. Let me know I will send you $50 to start a collection to run a Full page add in your local paper. That might get there attention. Just a thought

Festus2 · 02-21-2010, 10:11 AM

All Keystone dealers should honour the Keystone warranty - regardless of where the unit was purchased. Unfortunately, this works more in theory than in actual practice. I purchased our Keystone 5th from a dealership about 4 hours drive from here. There is another Keystone dealership 30 minutes away who informed me that, because I did not purchase the unit from them, they would be under no obligation to honour the warranty. If I wanted warranty work to be done, I would have to go to the end of the waiting line list and they would "try to squeeze me in".
I have since been told that this is standard practice at dealerships and that if this is happening to you, you should phone Keystone and complain. The dealership cannot turn you away simply because you didnt purchase your RV from it.
I believe that one of the problems that contribute to this is the difficulty the dealership has in convincing Keystone that it is a warranty problem and that Keystone should reimburse the dealership for any replacement or repair. The dealership doesnt want to pay for it, Keystone may be reluctant or resistant, and the owner certainly shouldnt have to pay for it. If you take your unit - still under warranty - in for repair to a Keystone dealer, they won't release it until they know who is going to pay for it - Keystone or you.
It is almost akin to being held hostage -- you are caught between a rock and a hard place. You shouldn't have to do battle in order to have warranty work done.

soundman · 02-25-2010, 06:36 PM

I spoke with a very nice Young Lady at Keystone today and we are in the process of getting my warranty work looked at.Also she called the local dealer to help move things along.

Tow/Haul · 02-26-2010, 12:19 PM

Please keep us in the loop as you progress. We'd like to think that Keystone will handle warranty situations with confidence, but it seems that the norm is to have to fight with them (and other manufacturers) on warranty claims.

When we were looking for our 2007 camper. I had a local dealer tell me that if I bought it somewhere else that he'd service it, but their customers would come first. I can understand that to some degree, but if I schedule an appointment and drop the unit off ahead of time I wouldn't expect anything other than an emergency situation with one of "their customers" to impinge on my service slot. I explained this to the manager who agreed with me. I also said..."if you could save $4500 (the amount we saved by buying elsewhere) what would you do? Would you consider the service value of your dealership to be worth $4500?" He didn't really have much to say to that one. I also suggested that I'd be looking for another unit in a few years and that friends of mine could also be looking to buy and any goodwill his dealership could offer would go a long way toward my recommending his dealership as a good place to shop. I did send 3 friends to his dealership after we bought elsewhere. They all were able to buy at the same out of state dealer we bought at for $3500-$5000 less on the same Keystone products. For that amount of money I was willing to take my chances on warranty.

soundman · 03-02-2010, 04:44 AM

Good Morning All

Well today is the day that I call the dealer to get the ball rolling for the warranty issues. This is there first day back after the RV Show. I,m hoping that's a good thing. I was ask by Keystone to give them time to settle in after the show. She said that they would accommodate there customers first but I need this addressed fast because the factory warranty runs out in April.

Do these dealers now how much business they can gain form taking care of people. I know some people who are in the market to purchase campers and are waiting to hear about my experience. Also my mother has a class C that need some attention and I would love to give them the business.
In this day and age a little CS can go a long way. Maybe I will post a letter I received from a customer to prove my point, we'll see.

Tow/Haul · 03-02-2010, 05:17 AM

Soundman:

Most dealers seem to think that CS is a double edged sword...a weapon for them to use as they see fit. The use it as a sales tool when trying to convince you to buy from them telling you how great they are, but they don't hesitate to use it against you when they feel it can benefit them not even realizing how it completely negates ANY goodwill they may have built. So many RV dealers are so out of tune with the direction the market is taking that they think they can do what they want to anyone and expect people to not hear about it. The internet has made every market a national or global market. Consumers discuss poor service, pricing, bad salespeople and poorly run dealerships online and hundreds of thousands of potential clients read, learn and buy based on what they see/hear/read. You're seeing dealerships close due to economy, but they can also consider that lack of business is due to their CS record. Treat one person badly and thousands now read about it. Some have woken up from their ignorant slumber, but far too many still think they can do business the same way they have for 30 years. I can't tell you the number of sales people...older folks mainly...who have bragged on their "30 years of experience in the RV industry" like it's a badge of honor. Every one of them...bar none...were extremely poor sales people. Very little product knowledge, poor people skills, some bordering on acting as if we were troubling them by coming into the dealership. In all cases, the older "experts" knew far less about the industry and product than we did and when called on it..gently...they simply would not admit being incorrect. I hate to stereotype, but find yourself a dealer that has young people selling and servicing and I'd wager that your chances of being treated well by a knowledgable sales person will increase dramatically.

It's a sad state of affairs...hopefully these old time dinosaurs will get their franchise pulled or better yet go out of business to make room for someone who truly wants to do it right. Out of the 5 dealers we tried to buy from in 2006 in NY (we ended up buying in MD and saved $4500) one 1 is still standing and they no longer sell Keystone.

soundman · 03-02-2010, 07:47 AM

Tow/Haul

Thanks for the great reply. I spoke with my local dealer this morning and made an appointment to drop off my TH on Thursday. The young man on the phone seemed to very helpful and wanted to help, they are going to take some pictures and send them to Keystone. He also said that my phone call to Keystone was very helpful, when I called Keystone last week they called the dealer to get things moving.

Thanks

PS who is your MD dealer?

Tow/Haul · 03-02-2010, 08:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by soundman

Tow/Haul

Thanks for the great reply. I spoke with my local dealer this morning and made an appointment to drop off my TH on Thursday. The young man on the phone seemed to very helpful and wanted to help, they are going to take some pictures and send them to Keystone. He also said that my phone call to Keystone was very helpful, when I called Keystone last week they called the dealer to get things moving.

Thanks

PS who is your MD dealer?

Beckleys in Thurmont, MD. We've sent a lot of people there who have had good experiences with them. See Mike Boerum if you visit there.

soundman · 03-02-2010, 08:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tow/Haul

Beckleys in Thurmont, MD. We've sent a lot of people there who have had good experiences with them. See Mike Boerum if you visit there.

They seem to have the best reputation.

Also we a planing a trip to NY this summer any suggestions?

Thanks

Tow/Haul · 03-02-2010, 10:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by soundman

They seem to have the best reputation.

Also we a planing a trip to NY this summer any suggestions?

Thanks

Where in NY are you thinking of going? Upstate, Central or downstate? Lots to do here and it's beautiful in the spring/summer/fall.

soundman · 03-04-2010, 08:38 AM

Hello
Well I dropped off my TH this morning and the service tech seems to be a good guy, he explained the process and how he will go about finding the problem. All we need to do at this point is to wait on an answer from keystone.
These folks seem to want to help even though I did not buy my trailer from them. Also I bought my TH from a private owner so I will be extremely great full if all works out as planed.
The folks at Economy RV in Mechanicsville MD seem to be OK, I want to give them the a chance. If all goes well I will help to Increase there business.

Bulldog80 · 04-08-2010, 06:51 AM

Soundman,
Any updates on your situation? Very curious bystander.

soundman · 04-10-2010, 03:14 AM

Hello
Still waiting to here from the dealer as to when they will be able to get to it. they took pictures when the unit was sitting in there lot.They are very busy with new sales from the RV show and I understand, I did not purchase the unit from them so I need to give them some time. I was able to pick up the unit and use it wile waiting for the repair. I think I will call this week.

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