Two and half weeks later I just picked up my 2017 3160RL after the repair and all is great, solid with very little hassle. I dropped rig off on a Saturday, service manager knew right off the bat that I had the broken weld, sidewall, frame flex issue. They communicated first thing on Monday with Keystone on the dealer support side, I contacted the customer support for the second time via email asking for coverage of the repair. That same day the dealer said the repairs were approved and would be covered. Yay!
Then, I received a reply on Tuesday from Keystone denying the repair because "there is an unauthorized hitch on the bumper of the unit. Keystone does not recommend pulling anything behind the unit."
I have a Curt bolt-on hitch receiver on my rear tube bumper to attached A two bicycle bike rack. I sent a reply with photos of the bike rack along with the fact there is no trailer wiring harness receptacle to tow anything, and why it would be crazy for me to double tow ANYTHING behind my trailer. A day later they said the repairs were now approved. Long story short, two weeks later I have my Montana back and it looks fantastic. The only sign of a repair is some fresh Dicor on the Cap/Roof seam and a new short seam in the sidewall, in the upper left corner of the bedroom slide. All looks factory fresh. The repair entailed re-welding joints, adding gussets in corners and putting wood filler strips/boards into the bottom tubes where the wall attaches to the frame. See attached TSB.
At the end of the day for others, especially shoppers of a Montana or other Keystone product.
1. Find a good dealer. I tried my local dealer and ended up two hours away at
Folsom Lake RV in Rancho Cordova, CA. Family-owned, no games, very efficient, and they stand behind their customers.
2. Keep an eye on the forums to stay up on any issues. I almost thought mine was not a big deal and for a second was going to wait for it to get worse until I read up on this issue.
3. This issue appears to not be just a Keystone issue but looks like the same/similar issue has occurred on other brands and many other years of rigs.
4. My guess is this is not super widespread compared to the number of rigs on the road, but if it happens to yours its no fun.
5. Finally, I would not hesitate to buy another Montana in the future.
Attached are the final photos, sorry no photos of repairs themselves.