Things That Broke, 20 Months In

[Fish]

I'll try and remember all the repairs I've made so far after living in my 2019 384BR since August of 2018 and taking one 1100 mile trip to Florida. Total road mileage on my rig now is around 2650 miles, mostly all of it on the interstate.

Furnace quit. Called mobile tech, he rebent sail switch. Quit again a few weeks later, he came out and blew water out and removed beetles and stink bugs. Then quit again a week later and he put in new sail switch. Has worked good ever since. Real nice guy, he only charged me for the first service call. Keystone said they'd reimburse me but I needed to have pictures of him working on it which I didn't have.

Water leak under back of trailer. Pulled down coroplast myself and tightened fitting to useless outside shower. Leak stopped. A few months later it started again. Outside shower fitting was froze. Pulled down coroplast again and eliminated connection to outside shower with a plug. Not enough heat gets all the way back there to keep it from freezing.

Various systems showing faults in fuse box. Fuse sockets are sloppy. Bent fuses to make good connections.

Trim popping loose on slides and kitchen island. Reattach with brad nails.

Satellite quit working intermittently. Traced it down to the splitter in the belly. Replaced splitter and ran bedroom sat connection direct bypassing splitter. Also bought extra splitters since they all look cheap and it will probably happen again.

Then in Dec. 2019 I asked for a layoff and we left for Florida.

[DQDick]

The furnace thing really isn't Keystones fault other than buying from the low bidder. Atwood, really Dometic, had a bad bunch of sail switches and should have issued a recall but didn't and won't. The plastic cover on their cheap furnaces also doesn't seal once it's been in the sun so the only answer to that I've found is to seal it with butal of foam tape.

[Fish]

Halfway to Florida I stop to fuel up and my fender is cracked above the screw hole, screw is way too close to the edge, wind is catching it and it's flopping. Gorilla tape end to slide and tighten the other screws.

About 900 miles in on our way to Florida, at Tampa, we have a hot tire according to tpms. Stop at rest area and my right rear tire has completely burned off the tread on the inside to halfway on the tire. Call nearby tire shop they say they have a Goodyear tire in that size and rating. Limp on over there.
They put the tire on and ask how much air I want in it, I say 95 pounds. They say it will only take 80! They gave me an E rated tire. Don't have an F. Won't give me my $169 back. I have them place spare tire on matching wheel and place E rated tire on spare and soldier on. Mavis Tire Shop, I'll never go there again.

Get to campground 15 miles east of Labelle, Fla. Check across tires with a 6 ft aluminum straightedge, back right tire is way out. Leaning in at top and also sticking way out in front, about 3/4 of an inch. Left side checks ok. I have hit nothing since I bought this trailer. We're there for 2 months so I start conversations with Dexter Axle. They finally agree to give me a new axle out of "goodwill" but no installation or replacement of tires since they say it's my fault. Oh well. Tell them to ship axle to Florida Spring and Axle in Ft. Myers and make appointment for installation on March 2 on our way home.

Pivoting bathroom door starts binding up. Take mechanism apart, tighten it up and reinstall. A week later if fails again. It's stripped in the roller. Flip roller upside down and reinstall, book mark new roller to buy when I get home. It's still holding up.

[Fish]

Originally Posted by DQDick

The furnace thing really isn't Keystones fault other than buying from the low bidder. Atwood, really Dometic, had a bad bunch of sail switches and should have issued a recall but didn't and won't. The plastic cover on their cheap furnaces also doesn't seal once it's been in the sun so the only answer to that I've found is to seal it with butal of foam tape.

Yeah, I forgot to mention that I put rubber insulation tape around the inside of the cover opening to seal the furnace from the water getting in.

[Fish]

After about the 3rd good hard Florida rain I developed a leak around my rear heat pump, that's what it had to be as I crawled up on the roof and nothing else was near there. Water was slowly dripping just in front of the rear cabinets above the couch at the seam in the ceiling.
The park maintenance guy came over after his shift at the campground and we climbed up there. I had already got up there earlier and checked the tightness of the mounting screws and caulked the screw heads (which I saw in a dometic bulletin) and it still leaked whether it was running or not. He felt around the fan and says "the gasket isn't even in contact with the roof in back, it's just sitting down in the hole". My hands were to big to feel down in there like he did. We pulled the heat pump up and repositioned the gasket. The hole was cut too big. He said if it leaked again he'd find a piece of gasket to add to the back but it hasn't leaked since.

Now I know what to do if it does.

[Fish]

We head home and stop at the axle shop. $200 to replace the axle which I thought was exceptionally reasonable. When they're done and I'm paying they tell me my LEFT rear tire is junk. All the cords are busted loose. It was the right one that burned down on the trip down. They said it was liable to go any time. They don't sell tires but put my spare on for me. I had swapped the e rated spare I got stuck with for an F rated trailer king from Walmart, the only f rated tire I could find. Threw the e rated tire in my utility trailer at the campground hoping I could sell it.
So I call all over Ft. Myers for an F rated or G rated tire, no luck. One place had Hercules f rated but they were damn high and I had never heard of them so I passed. Limped on up to Valdosta GA with no spare and 3 rainiers and a trailer king. Doing research at every rest area we stopped at and talking to shops in Valdosta through Bluetooth while driving.

I finally end up ordering 4 g rated Hercules tires from Valdosta Camping World as they were the only tire I could get that appeared to be us made and the camping world is right next to the campground we stay at there. Ended up staying over 5 days and spending $1000. No one had sailuns nor goodyears and I had to get home. Was very happy to make it to Valdosta in my situation. I was a nervous wreck driving those 350 miles.

[Fish]

We made it the rest of the way home with no incidents and I really like the way the Hercules tires feel while pulling. I did have the bottom of a piece of side slide trim pop loose due to a pillow that fell off the couch but that's my fault and an easy fix.



We stopped at Chattanooga for the night, then stopped at home (Marion, IL) and unloaded the trailer, then pulled it on up to Bethalto IL to get ready for my next sting at the refinery.

The guy at the axle shop in Ft. Myers said the axle was badly bent, he blames the transporters that we see passing us all the time going 80 mph pulling our yet to be bought trailers to the dealerships.

He also said he'd get those oem tires off of there immediately. He said He blew 3 tires on his new rv on his first trip in it on the way to the Sturgis bike rally. I guess I was very lucky I didn't have a major incident with that axle and those tires.

And that's all for now.

[skidoomatt]

My wife and I are really interested in the 384BR, but after reading things like this it makes me want to keep our 12 year old camper that has no issues....just want to upgrade for more room. I know all RV's are not perfect, but it's damn disappointing at how much these things cost and the problems they come with.

[Route66Rambler]

All that time waiting and looking for a tire you could have ordered Sailuns from Simple Tire and had them delivered.

[Last2Die]

I feel your pain with the bent axles, both of mine were bent and I got no help from Keystone, given the CW manager stated there was no way my rear axle should be that far out of wack, he stated that I would need to drive in reverse 80 mph and hit a curb for the axle to be that far out. the front was out too but not as much. Had to get the axles bent new bearings installed because they weren't done right from the factory, then 4 new tires. Keystone said they would help, I called back after I got the work done and they knew nothing of my calls.
Contacted Trailer Life Magazine gave them all the information and even my call history from ATT to prove they were lying. TL has been trying for months to help me but keystone won't respond. my first and last keystone product......

I won't get into the fact that CW had my trailer for the first 6 months I owned it... yeah lots of repairs some I had to repair the repair..... over it....

never again keystone, never ever again !

Tony

[Theunz]

I don’t think that we can blame Keystone for bent axles, maybe undersized, but not bent. While not impossible, it’s highly unlikely that they are bent before they are installed. I don’t know of anyone who hasn’t complained about rough roads and potholes, and I’ll wager that’s where the bent axles come from. When you run something like suspension components at near capacity from the get go it doesn’t take much to over tax it. Sure the transport companies may not slow down for rough roads and bridges, but that’s not Keystones fault.

[Last2Die]

Bent, not installed right whatever I had to pay out of pocket to fix a new product that should never happen, ignoring my requests and trailer life, piss poor customer service.

[Harrisden54]

I also have the 2019 384BR. Love the floorplan but I too have had many issues with it.
My furnace would not light and after troubleshooting I removed the burner and found the burner was full of water. Dometic is familiar with the issue and sent me a new burner and related parts that were corroded from the water. The water was not entering from the plastic door, it was coming in the exhaust flange and running down the exhaust pipe into the burner area. Keystone Techs at the Goshen Rally caulked the top and sides of the exhaust flange and it has not happened since.
My rear A/C also dripped from the seem in front of the cabinets on hot days when it was running. I had it to 2 different dealers who could not find a problem. I checked mounting bolts and caulked all the heads but it still dripped water. I pulled the A/C cover and stuck my hand down into the cold air side and could feel the foil sealing material was ripped and not attached. This was allowing cold air into the ceiling area and causing condensation and the dripping from the ceiling. I pulled the A/C unit and resealed the ductwork with foil tape and hope that has solved the problem. It was no fun getting a shower while sitting on the couch.
I have had several other issues too many to list, but after about 20 months of ownership I think I have them resolved and can drive down the road without wandering what I will find broken and falling off when I open the door.
Not happy at all with Keystone's customer service, but I will say the tech's at the Goshen Rally were awesome and helped me with several issues. I would recommend attending the Fall Rally. You can learn a bunch.

[Slow Hand]

Originally Posted by Last2Die

Bent, not installed right whatever I had to pay out of pocket to fix a new product that should never happen, ignoring my requests and trailer life, piss poor customer service.

You are correct. This is lousy customer service. I guess it's always easier to blame the customer than make a good customer by helping a guy out. Axles just shouldn't bend or deflect this easy. You spend as much if not more on a RV than a truck and with the truck the manufacturer will stand behind his product for 3/36. Keystone I guess it's 3 minuets or 36 seconds which ever comes first.

[Fish]

Originally Posted by Theunz

I don’t think that we can blame Keystone for bent axles, maybe undersized, but not bent. While not impossible, it’s highly unlikely that they are bent before they are installed. I don’t know of anyone who hasn’t complained about rough roads and potholes, and I’ll wager that’s where the bent axles come from. When you run something like suspension components at near capacity from the get go it doesn’t take much to over tax it. Sure the transport companies may not slow down for rough roads and bridges, but that’s not Keystones fault.

I've pulled 4 trailers down to the same place in florida over the same roads. Never an axle problem before now.
I had a semi cut in front of me in the right lane on I75 when pulling my windjammer down there. Blocked my view of the pavement and I hit a pothole so big and deep I almost hit my head on the cab roof. Actually pulled over the first chance I had figuring I'd have to change at least one tire. No problems and the Carlisle tires I had put on were fine.

If an rv can't handle being on the interstate it isn't built well enough. I have yet to find anything in my high country out of place when we stop for the night so that tells me I didn't hit anything hard, and I know I haven't curbed it.
Dexter's guarantee looks good until you realize you have to prove you didn't bend their axle, which is impossible. At least they did give me a complete axle (which best I can tell costs around $1000) so I was only out $200 for the installation.

I'm really not sure who to blame, I just know it shouldn't happen.

If I found I couldn't afford the DRV Mobile Suites I want I'd buy another Montana if something happened to this one. I'd for sure take a good look at the tires and axles and lay a straightedge across them before driving off the lot though.

[Fish]

Originally Posted by Route66Rambler

All that time waiting and looking for a tire you could have ordered Sailuns from Simple Tire and had them delivered.

I could have done that in the 2 months I was down there but

I've never been big on buying something and then asking someone else to install it when they sell a similar product. Especially since I don't know hardly anyone in florida.

I didn't know I needed 4 tires until the axle shop told me, thought I just needed a spare. Actually they told me I needed one tire for sure but at that stage of the game I wasn't taking anymore chances with the Rainiers. The one Rainier burnt off because of the axle. The other one was on the same axle on the other side, I don't know if the axle was the problem with it or not.

[Last2Die]

I think it was about 900 for the alignment and new bearings. Another 600-700 for new tires. We won’t even talk about the electric brakes....all the hotspots but they adjusted those too. He was really good the trailer actually tracks correct now.

[DutchmenSport]

Since we're creating lists, we purchased our Montana High Country 375FL in September 2018. Here's a list of the break-downs on mine since we purchased it. Most I did myself, some under warranty:

7 Fixed 2 cabinet doors after they popped open and bent the hinges
19 Fixed - Every screw on the fenders needed replaced, tightened, or secured tighter in some way or another. They are broken out.
20 Fixed - After closet trim fell, rebuilt and supported the trim and put supports under the shelf
21 Fixed - hot water in shower by flipping the water lines so hot is HOT.
22 Fixed - Quick Connect gas valve was twisted upward. Valve broke when attempting to position it so it could be used, and had to replaced it with a new one
24 Fixed - Calked the fenders
31 Fixed - Added - partition under kitchen sink so items won't fall off shelf behind door
36 Fixed - Walnut Ridge adjusted front door, but will be replacing it
37 Fixed - Replaced front door
38 Fixed by adding a catch on the glass door for the stereo in the living room that kept falling open
39 Fixed by replacing - New front door
40 Fixed by replaced Blind on passenger side living room slide out, forward window
41 Fixed bedroom door
42 Fixed leak on city water inlet, garden hose connection
48 Fixed - Placed metal strips on passenger side bed room skirting to keep wind from making it pop
50 Fixed - New Tires after blow out in April 2019
51 Fixed fender and metal bent after tire blow out
52 Fixed - Lost one nut on bolt on spare tire under floor
53 Fixed Rear axle, replaced brakes and hub, both sides
54 Fixed - Replaced trailer pig-tail 7 pin wire and plug
57 Fixed - Added support under bedroom door when door is open
58 Fixed by making anchors for the 2 recliners in the living room so they won't tip. Original screws pulled out of the floor.
62 Fixed by re-affixed the underbelly skirting on the driver side rear of camper with big washers.
63 Fixed by re-affixed the underbelly on the front passenger side of the camper with big washers
65 Fixed - Reinforced the bedroom back closet (again) with solid wood this time.
67 Fixed the metal clamp that holds the black gas pipe in place on the passenger side of the front storage area and fixed the pipe so there is no movement in it. Photo July 5, 2019
68 Fixed by replaced the mirror on the front cap.
69 Fixed broken cable on bedroom slide under warrant
70 Fixed by replacing Wingard Razyor television antenna under warranty
74 Fixed - Shower door handle fell apart
75 Fixed every blind in the camper when the pull handle came off each one.
76 Fixed Hinges on the glass door cover over the radio
77 Fixed replaced Sail Switch in furnace - 10-26-2019
78 Fixed broken kitchen chair

[Montana Man]

I'm thinkin a two year old trailer properly used and repaired is worth more than a new one.

[Dave W]

From the various lists of aches and pains others have had, we'll keep our '14 HC 343RL built in mid 2013. No, it hasn't been trouble free but the problems have been pretty mundane in comparison to newer ones but only about 28,000 miles of use.