Not a Keystone owner.... YET

poriggity · 07-22-2018, 02:16 PM

So, we had our minds made up, we were going to go with the Forest River No Boundaries 19.5 Travel trailer... Then the Keystone Outback 210URS came into play, and really mixed up my emotions. I have decided to join this forum to do some research and see what I can come up with on these trailers before I make an ultimate decision on what trailer to go with... Looking forward to learning more about the Keystone brand...

Thanks
Scott

Chris P · 07-22-2018, 02:19 PM

I looked at a similar unit by Launch a couple years ago with a Queen slide out in back ! I liked the play out but the dealer wouldn't budge on $

Chris P · 07-22-2018, 02:20 PM

Welcome to the forum from New Jersey,

5J's · 07-22-2018, 03:17 PM

We are very satisfied with our Keystone and have only had minor issues, mostly cosmetic. I feel the dealer is where it's at. If your dealer will back the product after the sale then life will be great. Mostly you have to decide which layout fits your family the best and which dealer you feel will take care of you. Once you pick the floor plan shop dealer reviews. Good luck!

5J's · 07-22-2018, 03:18 PM

Forgot to say welcome from SE Texas.

Cougar326SRX · 07-22-2018, 04:05 PM

Do A LOT of research on Keystone before you buy.
Here's the problem I'm having on my 2 1/2 year old 5th wheel at the moment.
http://www.keystoneforums.com/forums...ad.php?t=34125

This is my second Keystone camper. I sold the first one due to a water leak. I'll never own another.....

Good luck.

bob91yj · 07-22-2018, 04:26 PM

I recently waded through 9 pages of complaints about a "top of the line" Newmar motorhome. We have had essentially no issues with our Keystone built Outback 330RL in a year of stationary full timing. Every dealership has a service drive!

Good luck with your search!

bob91yj · 07-22-2018, 05:13 PM

Pffft, didn't realize who the OP was until just now. How's it going Scott?

poriggity · 07-23-2018, 08:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bob91yj

I recently waded through 9 pages of complaints about a "top of the line" Newmar motorhome. We have had essentially no issues with our Keystone built Outback 330RL in a year of stationary full timing. Every dealership has a service drive!

Good luck with your search!

If there is one thing I've noticed, it's that it doesn't seem to matter how expensive, or how luxiourious your RV is. They ALL have issues, and the people that have the issues are the ones that scream the loudest about how horrible everything is about their RV. Heck, my parents just sold their 2004 Winnebago Vectra 40' diesel pusher to down grade to a smaller unit. It was a $300k unit, but at one point, the largest slide on the unit was damaging the side wall of the coach, to the point where the unit had to sit at a dealer and have the entire side wall replaced under warranty. Things happen. RV's break, and most RV companies quality is all about the same. Things are going to break, it's just a matter of how you handle those things that really makes the difference.

travelin texans · 07-23-2018, 10:24 AM

Read any forum, "my _______ rv sucks", "________ rv manufacturer has no QC", "I'll never buy another ______ rv", fill in the blanks with any make, model, or price, any/all are the same.

Cougar326SRX · 07-23-2018, 12:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by travelin texans

Read any forum, "my _______ rv sucks", "________ rv manufacturer has no QC", "I'll never buy another ______ rv", fill in the blanks with any make, model, or price, any/all are the same.

You are certainly correct but wouldn't you also agree that quality should be better across the board?
I bought my 5er in October of 2015 in Cincinnati. I pulled it back to Raleigh NC. By the time I got it home, it needed a new tire due to a bent axle being installed at the factory. 600 miles. That's how bent the axle was. Yes, it was replaced under warranty (the axle, NOT the tire...) but, that axle should have never been installed. There have been a myriad of other problems with my 5er that could have been prevented/caught if better QC was in place in the industry as a whole.
I'm a firm believer that if there was better QC in the industry, the manufacturers would and could offer better warranties.

Chris P · 07-23-2018, 01:23 PM

It's no different then buying a hi priced car and not expecting it not to break down! Better yet try owning a boat !

travelin texans · 07-23-2018, 02:00 PM

Unfortunately it's not likely to change anytime soon! The average worker today has 2 things on their mind, payday & quitting time. In the rv industry as long as their quota of rvs roll out the factory door they all get paid & the sooner they clear the door the sooner they all go home & they don't give a rat's a## how they roll out the door..

**sourdough** · 07-23-2018, 02:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cougar326SRX

You are certainly correct but wouldn't you also agree that quality should be better across the board?
I bought my 5er in October of 2015 in Cincinnati. I pulled it back to Raleigh NC. By the time I got it home, it needed a new tire due to a bent axle being installed at the factory. 600 miles. That's how bent the axle was. Yes, it was replaced under warranty (the axle, NOT the tire...) but, that axle should have never been installed. There have been a myriad of other problems with my 5er that could have been prevented/caught if better QC was in place in the industry as a whole.
I'm a firm believer that if there was better QC in the industry, the manufacturers would and could offer better warranties.

Here's the problem as I see it with the RV industry trying to turn out a "perfect" product at the end of the assembly line;

Right now they are running full tilt (using extra shifts as I read at one point, probably still are) just trying to throw them together and get them off the line as fast as they can. And, they are selling them as fast as they can build them. People want cheap and lots of features. In that scenario "cheap" means initial cost AND cheap appliances along with construction methods. Some are lucky and their unit came out unscathed, some folks have a few problems and some, the unlucky few, have terrible problems. On the whole, the RV buying public is seemingly happy and the manufacturers are doing what they do.

Now, if you had quality control points along the way and the line was stopped every time a defective component was found, everything waited for the procurement of a new component then installed, the production process would grind to a halt. If there was just a final QC point and everything defective was placed back in line to be repaired the new units would be pushed back. If the defective units were placed "over there" to await repair additional resources would be diverted away from production to that task...and, as we've seen, production is NUMBER ONE. So, at the end of the day, they make them as fast as they can, folks buy them as fast as they can make them, and the vast majority are happy. If you took that $45k trailer (example) and hiked the price to $60k to give it a QC check at various points, no one is going to buy it. And, if you are the only manufacturer that did that....you'll be out of business shortly. As I see it, unfortunately, there is zero incentive for an RV manufacturer to change their business model because the current one seems to work well for them.

bob91yj · 07-23-2018, 02:47 PM

I saw where Lamborghini just recalled the Aventaur(sp) because the wheels can fall off! You want to talk about pissed, $500,000 (give or take) and the wheels can fall off!

Vet4jdc · 07-23-2018, 04:09 PM

We just got back from camping this past weekend. When we arrived at the campground, we had our fifth wheel parked beside two Grand Design Solitudes. Both MSRP'd at over $100k. Both had experienced issues on the way to the campground. One with springs broken and the other had brake issues. Happens!

We are on our second Keystone RV. Our next one will be a Keystone too!

Gegrad · 07-23-2018, 06:18 PM

What's the old saying? you can pick 2 of 3: Cheap, fast, and high quality.

The manufacturers are already under demand for huge production to meet even larger demands, and also from the consumers to make them affordable. So you can see which one of the three gets neglected.

bob91yj · 07-23-2018, 08:02 PM

^^^^You missed the punch line... cheap, fast or right...pick two, because you aren't going to get the other one!

pitman44 · 07-29-2018, 07:42 AM

FWIW, we bought a 2006 Outback 5er in 2011 and kept it until this year. Had a couple of minor issues that I would really classify as maintenance. Traded that in this year and bought a 2013 HC Montana. Again a couple of minor maintenance issues, but not biggies yet.

JimMach1 · 07-29-2018, 10:30 AM

Boy this opened a can of worms. I agree with most all have issues we have had 5 fifth wheel campers a wilderness several Dutchman and our latest is a keystone cougar you have to be willing and able to fix some stuff yourself to be a camper owner. Or have pockets deeper than mine. We bought 2 new ones the Denali and the cougar can’t say either is better but the last one I didn’t opt for the extended warranty figured the 2000 was better in our bank Incase of a break down. I am mechanically inclined and parts are cheaper on line. My experience with having several at dealers to be fixed is they have no interest in the game as it is not there camper fix it fast kick it out the door.

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