Quality control - Page 2 - Montana Owners Club

camper4 · 08-07-2010, 02:50 PM

SO, I believe the best quality product is the cheapest to make! I've seen it happen. Time and time again! Taking poorly made products with high defect rates, versus built in quality products. It costs less to make products with quality built in through out the process.
Products we call junk are expensive to make.

CORattler · 08-07-2010, 05:46 PM

Cheap price?????
I don't know what you paid for your rig, but mine was definitely not cheap. It's the 2nd biggest purchase I've made in my life.
Overall, I'm happy with the rig so far. The quality of the workmanship could use improvement in some areas .... like someone needs to show the assemblers how to drive a screw straight and how to pre-drill a hole so that the wood won't split when you put a screw into a hard wood like hickory. It doesn't cost any more to make something right the first time ... just pride in your work and a bit of craftsmanship.

jerryh96 · 08-07-2010, 07:31 PM

I would like to thank all of you that responded to my grips. Maybe it would help if the company read these forums.

footloose · 08-08-2010, 06:01 AM

Quote:

quote:Originally posted by jerryh96

. . . Maybe it would help if the company read these forums.

We have it on good authority that the company monitors this forum on a daily basis. That is why we brought up this same subject a couple of months ago. We just want them to make a good product better.
Dick and Sharon

dpam · 08-08-2010, 08:37 AM

On the Montana website they have videos that promote their product, and they use the word "quality" a fair amount and stress their excellent workmanship. So, if these Keystone statements are correct why are a lot of Montana Owners having quality workmanship issues? One example is that I've noticed that a lot of Montana Owners are having decal issues and this issue spans a number of model years, so if Keystone monitors the issues why haven't they provided a permanent fix to the problem? On Keystone's website they state they are "North America's #1 Selling Fifth Wheel for Nine Consecutive Years". I would think that if they don't listen to their customers and improve workmanship and manufacturing processes their rein of being the #1 sold RV will come to an end in the very near future. So far I've been treated fairly by Keystone (employees) with some of the quality issues I've had, but if they had the right quality processes in place I and others would not have "quality issues" after taking delivery of the Monty. Just my 2 cents worth.

Jo_Hine · 08-09-2010, 05:02 AM

Sheesh,after reading this thread, should I regret buying a Montana?
Are all fifth Wheels created equal?
I know one thing is for sure, we'll go over it with a fine tooth comb before taking delivery!

richfaa · 08-09-2010, 06:19 AM

Most if not all of the quality issues on all brands of rv's are in the workmanship of the individuals assembling them. Montana is no different than any other brand. The plants all look the same. The workforce is the same. The manufacturing process is the same. I figure that if they spent an additional 10 miniutes at each workstation in checking workmanship quality the issues would be greatly reduced but time is money.

The Chinese make quality products . We purchase low cost low quality Chinese products.When most everything was made in the USA we had cheap products. We talk about cheap Chinese tires. We had cheap USA tires.

Folks don't like to hear it but IF the Chinese enter the US Rv market they will build a better quality product for less it is their work ethic.

SlickWillie · 08-09-2010, 06:39 AM

Frankly, I don't think the Chinese can build a quality RV and ship it to the US and still be competitive with the market here. That's why we get all their low quality stuff. They can ship it and still undercut our market.

bigred715 · 08-09-2010, 07:13 AM

We just recently traded our 2001 2880RL for a new 3000RK and we can see the difference in quality. The older Montana had better finish on the wood and didn't have gaps at the joints like our new one. We definately like the new features of the new one, but the quality isn't there. Our 2001 had no problems the 8yrs. we had it. Hope the new 3000RK can do as well.

richfaa · 08-09-2010, 07:20 AM

The Chinese already have a office in Elkhart.. Read this and weep...

http://www.rvbusiness.com/2010/08/ch...h-u-s-vendors/

Think about it.... The Chinese figure they can ship US made parts to China. Build a RV there and ship it back to the US..and..make a profit... Think hard about that ...

mtpocket2 · 08-09-2010, 08:22 AM

I am sorry I bought a Montana. Probably the lowest quality item in materials and workmanship I have ever purchased. I will be doing my homework before buying another RV. I like to camp but I cannot live with getting ripped off.

I will give you an example. We got back from a trip last week and I went to put the slides out. The pantry cabinet door on top came open and got caught in the slide. I thought I had done the Velcro trick to all the doors but I guess we missed those. Useless storage anyway unless you carry a 4 foot step ladder. The point is I went to Lowe's to get a replacement hinge. I grabbed a hinge that looked close to the one I was replacing. Imagine my surprise when I installed it and realized it was a hinge that snapped shut. It had a little bump in it that had to be overcome when opening the door and snapped shut when the door was close to being closed. So for 39 cents I got 10 times the quality of hinge and for the intended use a much better design. Multiply that by the hinges in the trailer and I would have gladly paid ten dollars more for the trailer to have these hinges. Now every time I see the scratch it will remind me how cheaply the trailer is built.

So I don't think we would have a problem paying more for quality parts in our trailers. We are not talking tens of thousands of dollars to improve the quality. Just individuals treating customers they way they deserve to be treated and manufacturers trying to make a quality product. We should not make excuses for them. We should demand higher quality which is what I will do with my next RV purchase. And if it is true what they say about all RV's being poor quality then there wont be a next RV purchase.

MrLeavingAK · 08-09-2010, 08:28 AM

Now I am thinking with Jo Hine... Am I gonna regret my new purchase??
We just sold our Forest River TT to purchase our new Monty 346LBQ. The FR had several small items like you mentioned (spare nuts and bolts left under the linoleum, floor came up, etc) but overall was a nice unit. Man I hope we have the same luck with the new Monty! I am thinking the PDI will take quite a while.. LOL

richfaa · 08-09-2010, 08:40 AM

The Montana is no better no worse than any other brand in the price range. My advise to someone who wants a high quality Rv with little or no issues is to take up another hobby.

SlickWillie · 08-09-2010, 11:53 AM

Quote:

quote:Originally posted by richfaa

The Montana is no better no worse than any other brand in the price range. My advise to someone who wants a high quality Rv with little or no issues is to take up another hobby.

Rich, I've got to agree with you. I've seen numerous RV's in the time since we bought ours, all with their problems. Now, I'm not gonna say I expected too much out of Keystone, but they're on par with everyone else. They need to kick it up a notch!

Clemson1881 · 08-09-2010, 01:22 PM

Again these issues come from the price is king attitude most people have these days. I would rather pay $5000 more or so for bettter quality and better parts, but most would buy another brand to save the $5000. Until that changes cost cutting and foreign goods will dominate the market.

CORattler · 08-09-2010, 02:26 PM

It's a bad feeling when you regret a $50K+ expenditure. I will agree that small changes can be made that would improve quality and customer satisfaction/loyalty. Keystone has listened some in the past. Hopefully they will again. I'd like them to be successful because their quality is second to none, not because they have a slick marketing department.

Quote:

quote:Originally posted by mtpocket2

I am sorry I bought a Montana. Probably the lowest quality item in materials and workmanship I have ever purchased. I will be doing my homework before buying another RV. I like to camp but I cannot live with getting ripped off.

I will give you an example. We got back from a trip last week and I went to put the slides out. The pantry cabinet door on top came open and got caught in the slide. I thought I had done the Velcro trick to all the doors but I guess we missed those. Useless storage anyway unless you carry a 4 foot step ladder. The point is I went to Lowe's to get a replacement hinge. I grabbed a hinge that looked close to the one I was replacing. Imagine my surprise when I installed it and realized it was a hinge that snapped shut. It had a little bump in it that had to be overcome when opening the door and snapped shut when the door was close to being closed. So for 39 cents I got 10 times the quality of hinge and for the intended use a much better design. Multiply that by the hinges in the trailer and I would have gladly paid ten dollars more for the trailer to have these hinges. Now every time I see the scratch it will remind me how cheaply the trailer is built.

So I don't think we would have a problem paying more for quality parts in our trailers. We are not talking tens of thousands of dollars to improve the quality. Just individuals treating customers they way they deserve to be treated and manufacturers trying to make a quality product. We should not make excuses for them. We should demand higher quality which is what I will do with my next RV purchase. And if it is true what they say about all RV's being poor quality then there wont be a next RV purchase.

Jo_Hine · 08-22-2010, 08:42 AM

Did our PDI yesterday. Spent 2 and a half hour with the dealer rep going over everything, then spent 2 hours by ourselves going over things. Did not sign on the dotted line. Scratch on the fireplace glass, kitchen slide-out not flush with the wall and living room slide out just a bit off.

Opened every door and drawer, turned on every light, ran the ac and heater, ran every faucet, flushed the commode, lit the stove, check the tv, stereo and other electronics, checked the compartment, tires, and asked a ton of questions.

Will go back in a couple of days and do another PDI with the same fine tooth comb.
We will do all the maintenance to keep it running well and hope not to have any major issues with this RV as it will be our home.

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