Slide motors

[johnm]

Well, my first serious issue with my 2025 385.
Its been in for BAL slide warranty work for over 2 months now and I just got notice that the parts wont be in for 2-3 weeks. We lost Memorial Day and now it will cost us the 4th. It sits at General RV and to be honest it went it with 7 issues and Im not sure any of them are done. Communication with General is awful while Alliance has responded, but no answers... yet. After all the good I have read about Alliance, my doubts are creeping in quickly about the whole industry.
Right now the trailer has sat at the dealer for almost as many days as we have actually used it. BY the time we get it back it will definitely have sat longer at the repair shop then in campgrounds.
If we dont get it back in time for our 4th trip (June 28) I will let them store it until we leave for Florida. (If its done by then)
I am not sure what the part is, but GRV says the part number is 38565A - anyone know what this is?
Funny, but understandable, even if I found one via the aftermarket or bought the actual new part from someone outside they would not install it - it has to come from the manufacturer for warranty work. Is there anyone that can expedite this problem for me? I have traded emails with Chrystal in service several times in the last 6 weeks or so over this and a couple of the other issues its in for.
I am frustrated beyond belief right now with this trailer... and we are discussing getting out of the RV life for good - the problems were far worse with the Fuzion, but we are approaching our limits with this altogether with our high expectations.
To make matters worse - a friend brought his similar-sized Montana in right behind ours on the same morning and his slide was repaired and home within 2 weeks. (We were actually in the service center together).
Thoughts and ideas would be welcome!

 

[jagibson58]

Unfortunately you are experiencing the ever increasing dissatisfaction owners are having with RV’s. They are not designed, built or repaired like an American car. More owners are going towards RV technicians who for the most part can repair the problem in a short period of time not weeks or months. For the past four years I have used a local RV technician. 100 % of the parts I have purchased probably at a reduced cost. There are many opportunities on line to purchase parts. So far, we have not had a problem requiring a return to the dealership.

 

[RockDr896]

Call alliance about the mobile tech option...
A story from a friend who was in the same boat:
Needed work done on his Valor, that involved tearing out the back bathroom. He is in the trades and was getting nervous about, whether the dealer would do the work right and they were taking to long. Decided to just do the work himself and went to dealer to pick up his RV.
1) He told dealer to just throw the parts in the RV and he would do the work
2) They told him he would have to buy the parts, because they would have to pay for the parts. The reason was, they have to prove they made the repairs to Alliance, before they get reimbursed for the labor. If they don't do the labor, then they get charged for the parts. I guess it protects Alliance from potential dealer fraud.
3) Luckily, this lit a fire under the dealership and they somehow found a way to get the repair done 2 days after the conversation.

I hope this helps all, when considering going the dealer route for repair. If you can do the work, go direct like me and do the work yourself. Alliance only cares about labor costs, if they have to pay a dealer to do the work. My labor is free to them. However, I get the peace of mind, knowing it is done right in my opinion.

Good luck and I hope this story helps.

 

[johnm]

Call alliance about the mobile tech option...
A story from a friend who was in the same boat:
Needed work done on his Valor, that involved tearing out the back bathroom. He is in the trades and was getting nervous about, whether the dealer would do the work right and they were taking to long. Decided to just do the work himself and went to dealer to pick up his RV.
1) He told dealer to just throw the parts in the RV and he would do the work
2) They told him he would have to buy the parts, because they would have to pay for the parts. The reason was, they have to prove they made the repairs to Alliance, before they get reimbursed for the labor. If they don't do the labor, then they get charged for the parts. I guess it protects Alliance from potential dealer fraud.
3) Luckily, this lit a fire under the dealership and they somehow found a way to get the repair done 2 days after the conversation.

I hope this helps all, when considering going the dealer route for repair. If you can do the work, go direct like me and do the work yourself. Alliance only cares about labor costs, if they have to pay a dealer to do the work. My labor is free to them. However, I get the peace of mind, knowing it is done right in my opinion.

Good luck and I hope this story helps.

Well, I have contacted Alliance. General RV is building up the hours that they will charge Alliance I am sure. I was told they would look at all 7 issues we had and determine the parts necessary. Well, I know they let me know 3 times they were waiting for parts in the last 6 or so weeks. I hope Alliance will share with me the hours they get billed for, as this is really a joke. Any mobile tech would have gotten it done in a day at the worst.
Frankly, Im fed up with the whole industry, top to bottom. After being so optimistic about this unit, we are now thinking of getting completely out of RV life....
BTW - I have fixed 8 other problems we've had since we took possession. But I will admit its not close to the number of problems that our Fuzion had....

 

[RockDr896]

Well, I have contacted Alliance. General RV is building up the hours that they will charge Alliance I am sure. I was told they would look at all 7 issues we had and determine the parts necessary. Well, I know they let me know 3 times they were waiting for parts in the last 6 or so weeks. I hope Alliance will share with me the hours they get billed for, as this is really a joke. Any mobile tech would have gotten it done in a day at the worst.
Frankly, Im fed up with the whole industry, top to bottom. After being so optimistic about this unit, we are now thinking of getting completely out of RV life....
BTW - I have fixed 8 other problems we've had since we took possession. But I will admit its not close to the number of problems that our Fuzion had....

You my friend are the voices I am listening too, since I am a first time owner, but no stranger to fixing stuff. What is the RV industry going to do, since the FYI crowd has been narrowing for decades. I don't even think YOUTUBE videos will save them. The economics today, barely lets them rent a home, let alone accumulate the tools/space needed to fix things. Maybe the 350 class will be the same price, tow a hell of a lot more, and let the Industry build a more robust trailer, without a CDL license.....

Having manufactured heavy equipment for my own use before, I have a hard time believing the excuses as to why they can't. It falls somewhere in the engineering dept, accounting, and legal. Basically the Ivory tower vs get it done. The get it done will always not care, if they have no input. I used to give bonuses, to the idea of the year, that fixed a re-occurring problem. My stuff beat on rock every day...investing in fixing problems always make the get it done crowd happy. I started as a get it done guy......

Alliances challenges are many....weight regulation, towing vehicle limitations, dimensional, cost of materials, clients that can fix their own and those that can't....ect.......It is a challenging market, but I now believe they are growing this brand to sell it.......Their exit strategy is looking like consolidation happening in the future........why else would they build and acquire Terex, when they haven't found a way to help clients with parts and support on the weekends?.........

 

[johnm]

You my friend are the voices I am listening too, since I am a first time owner, but no stranger to fixing stuff. What is the RV industry going to do, since the FYI crowd has been narrowing for decades. I don't even think YOUTUBE videos will save them. The economics today, barely lets them rent a home, let alone accumulate the tools/space needed to fix things. Maybe the 350 class will be the same price, tow a hell of a lot more, and let the Industry build a more robust trailer, without a CDL license.....

Having manufactured heavy equipment for my own use before, I have a hard time believing the excuses as to why they can't. It falls somewhere in the engineering dept, accounting, and legal. Basically the Ivory tower vs get it done. The get it done will always not care, if they have no input. I used to give bonuses, to the idea of the year, that fixed a re-occurring problem. My stuff beat on rock every day...investing in fixing problems always make the get it done crowd happy. I started as a get it done guy......

Alliances challenges are many....weight regulation, towing vehicle limitations, dimensional, cost of materials, clients that can fix their own and those that can't....ect.......It is a challenging market, but I now believe they are growing this brand to sell it.......Their exit strategy is looking like consolidation happening in the future........why else would they build and acquire Terex, when they haven't found a way to help clients with parts and support on the weekends?.........

Yep, the only real thing that matters is the dollar. Kinda sad, but a fact of life.

Call alliance about the mobile tech option...
A story from a friend who was in the same boat:
Needed work done on his Valor, that involved tearing out the back bathroom. He is in the trades and was getting nervous about, whether the dealer would do the work right and they were taking to long. Decided to just do the work himself and went to dealer to pick up his RV.
1) He told dealer to just throw the parts in the RV and he would do the work
2) They told him he would have to buy the parts, because they would have to pay for the parts. The reason was, they have to prove they made the repairs to Alliance, before they get reimbursed for the labor. If they don't do the labor, then they get charged for the parts. I guess it protects Alliance from potential dealer fraud.
3) Luckily, this lit a fire under the dealership and they somehow found a way to get the repair done 2 days after the conversation.

I hope this helps all, when considering going the dealer route for repair. If you can do the work, go direct like me and do the work yourself. Alliance only cares about labor costs, if they have to pay a dealer to do the work. My labor is free to them. However, I get the peace of mind, knowing it is done right in my opinion.

Good luck and I hope this story helps.

Others have mentioned that Alliance could ok a mobile tech... unfortunately I found this out after the fact. We have at least 2 very good ones in our Florida park and he diagnosed my problem in about 2 minutes. Obviously he had more experience than General RV does in repair work. I even have a tech not far from my home.... I hope that every new buyer checks with his manufacturer about having mobile techs do warranty work.... it would save them a lot of frustrations, fuel and time.

 

[Tgrfan2]

Yep, the only real thing that matters is the dollar. Kinda sad, but a fact of life.

Others have mentioned that Alliance could ok a mobile tech... unfortunately I found this out after the fact. We have at least 2 very good ones in our Florida park and he diagnosed my problem in about 2 minutes. Obviously he had more experience than General RV does in repair work. I even have a tech not far from my home.... I hope that every new buyer checks with his manufacturer about having mobile techs do warranty work.... it would save them a lot of frustrations, fuel and time.

I had a problem with the left front slide front motor about 4 months ago for the first time. Luckily, I got the extended warranty because they are real trouble with the slide in! We have a great mobile tech near us. He came out and checked it out. He told me about all the Lippert problems with the motors and even frames. It did take a whil;e to get the motor but we camped anyway. Wife had a problem with her recliner not being able to recline but I was OK.
Considering the dealer problems I have seen, I think the companies that want to do a good job should possibly just sell these rigs through shows and online. They could find reputable mobile techs and take care of them. That would have saved 800 miles of towing mine to the dealer and a lot of hard feelings when ours was new.

 

[Bozo]

I had a problem with the left front slide front motor about 4 months ago for the first time. Luckily, I got the extended warranty because they are real trouble with the slide in! We have a great mobile tech near us. He came out and checked it out. He told me about all the Lippert problems with the motors and even frames. It did take a whil;e to get the motor but we camped anyway. Wife had a problem with her recliner not being able to recline but I was OK.
Considering the dealer problems I have seen, I think the companies that want to do a good job should possibly just sell these rigs through shows and online. They could find reputable mobile techs and take care of them. That would have saved 800 miles of towing mine to the dealer and a lot of hard feelings when ours was new.

I am right there with you on dealers, not only for rv but for autos as well. Get rid of the sheisters in the middle.

 

[RockDr896]

I had a problem with the left front slide front motor about 4 months ago for the first time. Luckily, I got the extended warranty because they are real trouble with the slide in! We have a great mobile tech near us. He came out and checked it out. He told me about all the Lippert problems with the motors and even frames. It did take a whil;e to get the motor but we camped anyway. Wife had a problem with her recliner not being able to recline but I was OK.
Considering the dealer problems I have seen, I think the companies that want to do a good job should possibly just sell these rigs through shows and online. They could find reputable mobile techs and take care of them. That would have saved 800 miles of towing mine to the dealer and a lot of hard feelings when ours was new.

I think it would be a much better repair experience for many....if they could get their parts and warranty approval operation working 7 days a week. They should also approve OEM repair parts, if the customer wants to save time and it is an option.

However, the Dealers rely on the repairs to help float their land costs to floor plan the models every year.

I did a regional roll up of small engine stores and threw it all into a superstore. It was a good fit with all the mechanics I had and some space I had. Nobody could get anything fixed, so I saw it as an opportunity. I did everything LOWES, Home Depot, and contractors.......Husky, Stihl, Exmark, Skaggs, Briggs, Kohler, Honda...ect....none of the manufacturers cared for any of the business to fix their crap....they never asked about what I was having to fix a lot........It is just a 1 year limited warranty game and I don't see it changing anytime soon. Most would go the OEM route, because they needed their small engine product and was over the moon I could save them the wait time. Now the price point was much smaller for a small engine, but I don't see the RV industry is any different. TIME and OPTIONS, is what should be the FOCUS.....

 

[Lantley]

I think it would be a much better repair experience for many....if they could get their parts and warranty approval operation working 7 days a week. They should also approve OEM repair parts, if the customer wants to save time and it is an option.

However, the Dealers rely on the repairs to help float their land costs to floor plan the models every year.

I did a regional roll up of small engine stores and threw it all into a superstore. It was a good fit with all the mechanics I had and some space I had. Nobody could get anything fixed, so I saw it as an opportunity. I did everything LOWES, Home Depot, and contractors.......Husky, Stihl, Exmark, Skaggs, Briggs, Kohler, Honda...ect....none of the manufacturers cared for any of the business to fix their crap....they never asked about what I was having to fix a lot........It is just a 1 year limited warranty game and I don't see it changing anytime soon. Most would go the OEM route, because they needed their small engine product and was over the moon I could save them the wait time. Now the price point was much smaller for a small engine, but I don't see the RV industry is any different. TIME and OPTIONS, is what should be the FOCUS.....

Comparing an small engine store to an RV operation is apples and oranges. RV's are big bulky heavy and fragile.
You require a lot of space just to work on them and park them.
You special equipment just to move them around in and out of the shop.
None of those things apply to small engines.
Half the reason many don't like To use dealerships is the effort required to take them in and drop them off versus just doing the repair yourself.


0

 

[johnm]

Update - I received an automated call from General RV parts this morning (Jun 17) saying my parts were in. I called and talked to the service department and the motors arrived at least a week and likely 2 weeks ahead of when I was told.... I think my note to Chrystal at Alliance sped the process up for us.
Appreciate all of the feedback and I will cross my fingers for the work getting done in time for our trip.

 

[RockDr896]

Comparing an small engine store to an RV operation is apples and oranges. RV's are big bulky heavy and fragile.
You require a lot of space just to work on them and park them.
You special equipment just to move them around in and out of the shop.
None of those things apply to small engines.
Half the reason many don't like To use dealerships is the effort required to take them in and drop them off versus just doing the repair yourself.


0

I think I failed to make my point by story telling again.....forget my other dribble, but it really is the same, regardless of the product.....They just operate on different scales of capital requirements.......

I like the idea of bringing in the mobile techs and pushing them to the front line, more than they currently do....The repair and warranty approval process, needs to by 24/7

 

[Lantley]

I think I failed to make my point by story telling again.....forget my other dribble, but it really is the same, regardless of the product.....They just operate on different scales of capital requirements.......

I like the idea of bringing in the mobile techs and pushing them to the front line, more than they currently do....The repair and warranty approval process, needs to by 24/7

You are right about 24/7. The real shame of it all is that the RV industry intentionally has a slow approval process in an effort to limit/reduce warranty claims

 

[Tgrfan2]

My mobile guy has a shop. I offered to take the fiver there. Capitalism is a great thing. The present RV system is not.
The first time I took my fiver in was less than 6 months after purchase. It was for soft close drawers that would not close. After one week and soon to be 400 miles of driving, they tried to charge me $180 for time spent not finding the problem!
That started a downward spiral. It would have been much worse if not for one new service writer. Her parents had a 385FL too. She pointed out the same cracks in the dining room slide that showed up on her parent's slide. She wasn't there long.
After taking pictures of missing screws and misaligned parts and even a broken board I kindly called pallet material, I got a call from a so called customer service rep. The first thing he said was "we don't have soft close on our 2023s". I told him to send me the 2023 cabinets then. Soft close was the biggest selling point of the 2022s! After about 30 minutes, I gave him 3 days to do what I asked, or I would contact my lawyer.
It is ridiculous what we had to put up with over simple stuff. I bought farm equipment for years from John Deere dealers and never had anything like this experience.
My dealer was absorbed by a big outfit. I haven't been back. A reputable dealer near me now sells Alliance. He is under that same nationaI banner. I hope this helps the situation. My experience with the other "national" conglomerate doesn't make me very confident.
If the RV industry doesn't make changes faster, they don't deserve to survive. If you are going to have a cash cow like service and parts, you better make it work. Try starting with competent, trained people!
Otherwise, let the mobile industry become "contractors" or some set up that actually rewards competent service.