Disappointed with our Paradigm

[Lantley]

At the end of the day my point is most don't fil tanks to test water system. They don't plug in unit to check HVAC system.
They don't walk roof or crawl underneath. They don't check every latch, catch, faucet etc. They assume its been done and all is well.
After owning 3 RV's from 3 different brands and different dealers I have learned to conduct a thorough PDI myself vs. trusting the dealer.
Trusting the dealer leads to disappointment, frustration and delays. You can read about it on this forum and many other RV forums across all brands.
How the system should work vs. how it actually works is why the buyer needs to take charge of the PDI.
In the end the RV warranty system across all brands is slow to respond and often requires approvals and red tape for basic repairs.
Sorting things out as much as possible the dealers lot is the reason to conduct your own PDI vs. relying on the dealer.
Yes some dealers are better the others but in the end finding a good dealer can be a crap shoot. The only person with your total interest in mind is you. Counting on anyone other than yourself to TOTALLY inspect the RV pens the door for heartache and disappointment.
I know my comment sound harsh, but they are a real reality check on the buying process. BTDT 3 times at this point
Don't get caught in the middle or in line waiting for repairs. Thoroughly Check it out for yourself from the start!

 

[darrell]

To suggest you should have caught these issues on PDI is BS. That puts blame on the buyer for not identifying problems. All of the pics show problems the dealer should easily have identified and repaired under warranty BEFORE selling the trailer.

I cannot disagree more with this statement. Yes, the dealer should do these things and fix them before sale. Fact is they don't. Ultimately, it is your money, you are responsible for spending it and what you buy. It is like buying a house - you get an inspector (may be required) or you do a thorough inspection yourself. No difference. There has to be some personal accountability in this transaction.

 

[CaptTPT]

This is not a used car and it’s not a used home. Yes, I get an inspector before purchasing a used home. It’s a must. Do you get a certified inspector to review your new Porsche 911 you just bought? How about your Chevy Suburban? How about the home you just had built? In my mind this is the same. Did I do an inspection before taking my trailer off the lot? Yes I did. My point is I shouldn’t have to and I don’t this it’s appropriate to criticize people who didn’t do a perfect PDI for their trailer.

 

[darrell]

But then you are only blaming someone else for your poor judgement in not looking it over. I suppose we will have to agree to disagree on this.

 

[Lantley]

Your taking our comments personally. They are not really directed at you personally. They are given as advice to anyone purchasing an RV trailer. Some have learned from prior experience with various dealers and various brands that your RV will not be 100% functional at time of purchase. There will be loose ends and punch list items. Finding those items is the buyers challenge.
One of the first lessons to learn is the RV industry is nothing like the auto industry.
We buy expecting an RV purchase to be similar to a auto purchase. It is not. Auto Dealerships are basically franchises of the manufacture's they form a cohesive network designed to keep the buyers satisfied. You can take your Porsche to any dealership and they l honor your warranty and work on your unit in a timely fashion.
RV dealerships have no network. They are all independent of each other.
They can refuse to perform warranty work on units they did not sell.
From a more practical stand point. You can inspect your Porsche in an hour. If something is wrong just bring it back to the dealer.
An RV is much harder to inspect. You need hook ups, and water etc.
If possible it's a great idea to stay at the dealership overnight or at a nearby campground. Where testing everything can be easily done. Of course this requires and agreement with the selling dealer to fix things in short order.
An RV has wheels like a car. But it also has a furnace, waste tanks and faucets like a house. Bring it back to the dealers is not as simple. Getting it serviced promptly is not as simple either.
All these factors make it critical for the buyer to perform a thorough PDI themselves otherwise they face a slow, bizarre and cumbersome RV warranty system.
I did not originally know who understand how the RV industry operates. However 3 RV's later I understand the pitfalls of the industry. I agree my advice may seem harsh to you. But I'm a merely trying to advise and warn others to perform you OWN PDI. New units always have loose ends. Units are typically not 100% finished when they leave the factory. The factory is a precision robotic assembly line like the auto industry. RV's are not assembled by well trained unionized workers. They are assembled by workers who are paid by the piece, the more they produce the more they are paid.
Quality suffers as workers hurry to pump out more units vs. being paid hourly where they can take ample time to ensure quality.
Just knowing workers are paid more if they hurry is reason enough to inspect the units yourself.
My comments are not to be critical of anyone. The purpose is to enlighten and inform those who don't know the realities of buying a new RV. Yes the RV buying experience leaves a lot to be desired and needs to be overhauled, but until this happens be sure to perform an extensive PDI before leaving the lot with your RV.

 

[BrianB]

Your taking our comments personally. They are not really directed at you personally. They are given as advice to anyone purchasing an RV trailer. Some have learned from prior experience with various dealers and various brands that your RV will not be 100% functional at time of purchase. There will be loose ends and punch list items. Finding those items is the buyers challenge.
One of the first lessons to learn is the RV industry is nothing like the auto industry.
We buy expecting an RV purchase to be similar to a auto purchase. It is not. Auto Dealerships are basically franchises of the manufacture's they form a cohesive network designed to keep the buyers satisfied. You can take your Porsche to any dealership and they l honor your warranty and work on your unit in a timely fashion.
RV dealerships have no network. They are all independent of each other.
They can refuse to perform warranty work on units they did not sell.
From a more practical stand point. You can inspect your Porsche in an hour. If something is wrong just bring it back to the dealer.
An RV is much harder to inspect. You need hook ups, and water etc.
If possible it's a great idea to stay at the dealership overnight or at a nearby campground. Where testing everything can be easily done. Of course this requires and agreement with the selling dealer to fix things in short order.
An RV has wheels like a car. But it also has a furnace, waste tanks and faucets like a house. Bring it back to the dealers is not as simple. Getting it serviced promptly is not as simple either.
All these factors make it critical for the buyer to perform a thorough PDI themselves otherwise they face a slow, bizarre and cumbersome RV warranty system.
I did not originally know who understand how the RV industry operates. However 3 RV's later I understand the pitfalls of the industry. I agree my advice may seem harsh to you. But I'm a merely trying to advise and warn others to perform you OWN PDI. New units always have loose ends. Units are typically not 100% finished when they leave the factory. The factory is a precision robotic assembly line like the auto industry. RV's are not assembled by well trained unionized workers. They are assembled by workers who are paid by the piece, the more they produce the more they are paid.
Quality suffers as workers hurry to pump out more units vs. being paid hourly where they can take ample time to ensure quality.
Just knowing workers are paid more if they hurry is reason enough to inspect the units yourself.
My comments are not to be critical of anyone. The purpose is to enlighten and inform those who don't know the realities of buying a new RV. Yes the RV buying experience leaves a lot to be desired and needs to be overhauled, but until this happens be sure to perform an extensive PDI before leaving the lot with your RV.

Hello, I'm new to this forum. All in all, I've heard more good than bad about Alliance. My question: Shouldn't many if not all of these stated issues with Paradigm be covered under warranty at only two months old? We are very fortunate that our dealer is only thirty minutes away, but I also know that not all dealers are created equal. I hope you continue to post progress reports from time to time. Thanks.

 

[ChasCapeGir]

I previously owned 3 Jayco units. All had their issues. Some I fixed…some the dealer fixed. I’ve always purchased extended warranty and have come out ahead each time. We are new to Alliance and there are a couple items the dealer found on PDI and is going to fix. In all cases I am blessed to have a local, family owned dealer I have purchased 5 units from in a span of 23 years. Sure, I paid more than if I travelled to one of the big dealers around the Midwest. But at any time I can pick up the phone and speak direct to the owner about anything. When we completed the paperwork, the dealer now has a sheet entitled “what we owe you” for defects, missing items, etc found during the walk-through.

 

[darrell]

Hello, I'm new to this forum. All in all, I've heard more good than bad about Alliance. My question: Shouldn't many if not all of these stated issues with Paradigm be covered under warranty at only two months old? We are very fortunate that our dealer is only thirty minutes away, but I also know that not all dealers are created equal. I hope you continue to post progress reports from time to time. Thanks.

The issue with warranty is that repairs, even simple ones, can take months to complete. Get everything fixed before you take possession - this is the only time the dealership will be really motivated to move quickly. After this point, all bets are off. If an owner is handy at all, it might be best to work directly with Alliance and have them ship parts for the owner to repair themselves or get authorization for a mobile tech. You can lose a whole season of camping waiting on simple crap...ask me how I know lol.

 

[BrianB]

The issue with warranty is that repairs, even simple ones, can take months to complete. Get everything fixed before you take possession - this is the only time the dealership will be really motivated to move quickly. After this point, all bets are off. If an owner is handy at all, it might be best to work directly with Alliance and have them ship parts for the owner to repair themselves or get authorization for a mobile tech. You can lose a whole season of camping waiting on simple crap...ask me how I know lol.

I understand. We took our 32rls for a shakedown trip this past weekend. Overall pleased but Greystone digital gas range went belly-up. My guess is LED light panel is bad. It's funny how the range worked like a champ the day we picked it, but wouldn't perform on its maiden voyage. First call to dealer is coming soon. Thanks.

 

[darrell]

I understand. We took our 32rls for a shakedown trip this past weekend. Overall pleased but Greystone digital gas range went belly-up. My guess is LED light panel is bad. It's funny how the range worked like a champ the day we picked it, but wouldn't perform on its maiden voyage. First call to dealer is coming soon. Thanks.

Is it just the LEDs not working or is the whole unit not working? My Paradigm (and my current trailer) had the Insignia, so I am not familiar with the Greystone. But I found the LEDs on the insignia to be useless anyway. Always just got out my phone to adjust over lol. If it still works, strongly recommend trying to file the claim but hold off until after the season to have the repair done (or do it yourself - they are pretty easy to change out).

 

[BrianB]

Is it just the LEDs not working or is the whole unit not working? My Paradigm (and my current trailer) had the Insignia, so I am not familiar with the Greystone. But I found the LEDs on the insignia to be useless anyway. Always just got out my phone to adjust over lol. If it still works, strongly recommend trying to file the claim but hold off until after the season to have the repair done (or do it yourself - they are pretty easy to change out).

There are four red dashes on the display for temp readout. But the other buttons (stove, oven, oven light, etc), do not light up when pushed or have any effect at all. Pilot light will light but goes back out when oven knob is released. Top burners function normally. We have trips planned all the way into Oct thus far. Maybe you're right, just hold off and get a laundry list going.

 

[darrell]

When we first got our 310RL back in 2021 we were first-time buyers and did know what to really expect. Spent a lot of time on this site and YouTube researching about PDI, and did the best we could at the time. Found several things that were fixed before delivery. A few more things we have had to live with that never got fixed. But for the most part we are happy with our rig.

Ok so fast forward 3 years ... rig still nice with no major issues. Biggest thing now is refrigerator (we have a residential fridge that runs on 110 ac) not always coming back on after power loss when plugged into a power pedestal at an RV park. Called Alliance service number over a month ago for help with troubleshooting issue...STILL NO ANSWER FROM THEM! Used to be you could call in and speak to someone right away. Not anymore since they have gotten bigger and more popular. BUT, reason for non-callbacks is irrelevant. I am an owner who needs help with their Alliance product and it seems manufacturer is turning their back on me. Not happy with that response, or lack thereof. Thankfully I have been able to nurse the refrigerator issue but would rather the issue we are having be fixed not bandaged. Found that there is NO BREAKER labeled for refrigerator in breaker panel either. Ended up finding refrigerator plug behind same panel as ice maker water valve. Unplugging refrigerator and letting it sit for 10 minutes seems to work. However, can't count on refrigerator working anymore after a power loss. BTW, inverter works fine. I have tested it since all this started. Other items plugged into inverter circuit work fine when power lost.

As I said earlier, happy with our rig overall. But, from our experience the past year or so Alliance service department either has issues, or is mostly focusing on new customers or customers still under factory warranty. Since we have all spent lots of money on our rigs, we expect Alliance to help somehow when needed. Or at least that is what my wife and I were lead to believe by dealer and Alliance when we bought our rig. I have spoken personally to both of Alliance's owners and VP of Customer Service about service-related issues over the past few years and crickets.....nothing is changing. At least not for us.

Anyway, best of luck with the issues you are having. I hope you get things fixed the way you expect them to be fixed. BTW, the ceiling spackling/staple mess is rampant in our rig. Spackling over the staples is starting to turn yellow.

Have a great day and stay safe out there....

Just an FYI - most manufacturers will not warranty appliances - those are generally handled by the appliance manufacturer. You refrigerator is likely powered directly from the inverter, so there will be no separate breaker for it in the PDC. It sounds like the refrigerator is going into a compressor protection mode. Do you leave your inverter powered on all the time? If not, you should. It should prevent the fridge from seeing the power drop.

 

[sheath]

That's just not right. I hope you get these resolved swiftly and to your satisfaction.

 

[Midnight Rider]

To suggest you should have caught these issues on PDI is BS. That puts blame on the buyer for not identifying problems. All of the pics show problems the dealer should easily have identified and repaired under warranty BEFORE selling the trailer.

With all that damage plainly visible they should have never paid for the trailer! Tell dealer to shove it. They will sing a different toon immediately!
If all that damage would have been visible on my new 2024 Paradigm That I bought last year, I never would have written the check?
Never loose your power with a dealer! Always try and keep the upper hand!

 

[justdee]

Just finding this post, after we bought and took possession of our 310RL in early November.
I brought it home to Texas from Tennessee with no problems and it has sat under our carport up until last week when we were finally able to have the free time to take it on our maiden trip. We only drove three hours one way, so not a real long journey.
We had no issues at all, and it was in the 20's at night. Everything, to the best of my knowledge worked as it should.
We were advised to hire a private inspector to look it over before we took delivery, and I did reach out to two that were in the Nashville area, neither responded to my emails. I believe that I left voicemail messages as well, still with no response.
I noticed a couple of small things while I was at the dealership, I was there for two days, and they repaired those items. I guess, maybe, a professional would have found more issues?
As of today, my wife and I are very pleased with our units fit and finish. It's not perfect, and issues will arise as we use it more, but we are prepared to expect those hardships.

What I don't understand is why manufactures cut corners on any of their products, especially the high end models. For example on our Paradigm, by most everyone's statements I've read, the tires that came on our unit are low end tires. You'd think, on a unit that retails for $110,000, they could put some quality tires on them.

I'm sorry that the OP got a lemon. I wish them luck getting those issues resolved.

 

[HCL]

Its a dang shame that it takes super detailed inspections sheets and hours to inspect a purchase or hiring an outside inspector.
In my mind this stuff should be found by the Quality Control inspector prior to leaving the factory and/or by whomever accepts delivery at the dealership. Yes its my money but I should be able to have a little faith in the company and product.
Yes our 22, 36V11 had issues when we got it home but after some back and forth with Aliance they made good on the repairs.
Just my 2 cents

 

[DanNJanice]

Its a dang shame that it takes super detailed inspections sheets and hours to inspect a purchase or hiring an outside inspector.
In my mind this stuff should be found by the Quality Control inspector prior to leaving the factory and/or by whomever accepts delivery at the dealership. Yes its my money but I should be able to have a little faith in the company and product.
Yes our 22, 36V11 had issues when we got it home but after some back and forth with Aliance they made good on the repairs.
Just my 2 cents

For sure. Can you imagine having an engine failure in a car and then having everyone ask if you had the engine torn down and inspected for manufacturing defects before it left the lot!

 

[HCL]

My point exactly!
In August I purchased a new Ram 3500, spent about an hour with dealership in Idaho doing paperwork and once over on truck and then I was on the road home back to Alaska.
Now I will say we did spend about 2 hours going over our 36V11 when we picked it up in Colorado (we drove down from Alaska) because we were back on the road headed back to Alaska within a few days and wanted to make sure there were no issues. Issues did pop up on the road home and absolutely nothing we would have caught in an inspection, but Alliance did us right on the warranty repairs once we got home to Alaska.
If I need to spend more time than that inspecting something that cost that much, I am buying the wrong product from the wrong manufacture.

 

[Turfengineer]

I had a few issues found during PDI, but we were in a hurry and the dealer ensured us Alliance would take care of it closer to home. That’s when I really learned that the only thing less trust worthy than a used car dealer, is an RV dealer. They told us the water damage (minor) was from a leaking window that they had replaced and Alliance would fix it. Well Alliance said that window was never replaced and the internal seal was rolled. I found a loose barn door track for the closet, the dealer fixed it while we did paper work. They shot a few more staples into it and the doors were on the ground by the time I got home. The dealer told me the noise coming from the bed slide was normal, then it failed the first time I used it. The list could go on….

Alliance prioritize a factory appointment and repaired everything on my list and even found some other issues. They also set up an appointment with a local dealer to have the bed slide replaced and the bed repaired a week after we picked it up. They have been great, my purchasing dealer had been terrible.

 

[dogbalou]

As others have said, give Alliance some time. We have an issue with our Avenue flooring. There was a scar in the floor that was touched up at the factory, but started to show itself as the putty wore off. Alliance initially denied our claim, but made things right after a couple of months. It is hard to put PDI on the owner when the professionals don't catch it either.