Montana Quality Issues

[fatcatzzz]

Originally Posted by captbanjo

Can I ask what you mean by 'dealer selection'?

Choose your dealer well, not all dealers are created equal.

[Good Life]

Originally Posted by fatcatzzz

Choose your dealer well, not all dealers are created equal.

That's A FACT! Good Call!
Shame SOME Manufactures are only worried about Numbers/$$$$ which in my opinion causes dealers to have the same mind set!

Good Quality Products/Manufactures should chose and hold there dealers to a higher standard !!!!!!!

[1retired06]

Make sure you buy from a quality RV business with trained techs and is responsive to customers. Buy one from a dealer who lacks those professional qualifications and unfortunately there are many, life gets more complicated.

[mlh]

You can go to rvservicereviews or the best way for us to find out about a dealer is just ask here.
Lynwood

[Phil P]

Hi

Research the dealer’s reputation for repairs more than sales.

In my case as much as I blame Keystone for their actions and still blame them for the very poor dealer I purchased from if I had researched the dealer on forums I would have found out that they have a very good sales staff and “0” qualified repair technicians.

If you do purchase get everything in writing DO NOT let the dealer tell you that because the problem was reported on the Pre Delivery Inspection or repaired on warranty that there is no requirement for paper work.

Even then you may have problems with Keystone.

Once you have selected a dealer have someone call them and ask for a quote to install a high dollar black tank wash unit and see how long it takes them to get back to you.

I did this a few years ago to one of the nation’s large multi state dealers and got a real eye opener. I will not purchase anything from them. Months to get the quote then excuses like they never heard of the product ect.

Phil P

[dfb]

I'm another who is not happy with THOR GARBAGE! Carpet after 2 years is worn, my kz new vision after 13 yeas still looked new. Our molding on the top sides has disintegrated in YHE sun..New visions stay good. Axle not aligned causing tire to wear faster. Just a myriad of issues. Most due o shoddy work and substandard cheap parts..

[Travelling Three]

Originally Posted by captbanjo

Good points all around. For us, it was the opposite problem: our 2004 had many issues and the 2013 just run-of-the mill stuff really. Except for the extremely pricey makers, probably similar issues with other companies.

Now we had just the opposite issues, we purchased a 2007 Sundance, put 20K miles on it with very few problems. We upgraded to a 2014 Big Horn and had several major QA problems, most serious was water leaking in the gray tank, water pump and leaking bedroom slide. I think its the luck of the draw as to if your newly purchased camper will be a lemon or pretty much trouble free (none of them are totally trouble free).

[dfb]

This is where quality control comes n.. AT EVERY STAGE, A QC PERSON SHOULD CHECK OFF WITH HIS NAME. FAME, WIREING, PLUMBING,WALLS, FLOORS, ROOF FOR LEAKES..this is just cutting corners for THOR FOR MAX PROFIT AND WE PAY FOR IT. WE SHOULD ALL DROP OR FIVERS OFF AT HEAD QUARTERS AND REFUSE TO PAY THE PAYMENTS TIL THEY FIX THEM. THIS WILL CAUSE BANKS TO NOT LOAN ON
THEM DUE TO ISSUES..

[mlh]

QC is expensive. How much more are you willing to pay to have everything checked? How much business would they loose if the price was higher? How much less warranty work would they have if everything was checked?
These are the questions manufacturers ask every day.
Lynwood

[dfb]

Originally Posted by mlh

QC is expensive. How much more are you willing to pay to have everything checked? How much business would they loose if the price was higher? How much less warranty work would they have if everything was checked?
These are the questions manufacturers ask every day.
Lynwood

It's ALOT CHEAPER TO DO IT RIGHT THE FIRST TIME!

[bshgto]

[QUOTE=mlh;1075237]QC is expensive. How much more are you willing to pay to have everything checked? How much business would they loose if the price was higher? How much less warranty work would they have if everything was checked?
These are the questions manufacturers ask every day.




This is an excuse, I was quality control for 30 years it didn`t cost a dime more to check peoples work as they were doing it. If a worker was not doing his job which takes no more time to do it right, he was held accountable, straightened up or lost his job, period. And yes I fired many of them. A big one is over driving screws and fasteners, this causes all kinds of failures and problems it takes no more time to do it right than not. The general RV industry worker has no accountability for anything they do all that matters to them is get 8 hours worth of work done in 7 so they can get home to milk the cows or get to the bar before Fred the welder. But we as stupid sheep will keep buying the failures because they all are guilty ( aside a few), until they hire some one that isn`t afraid of management it will continue.

[dfb]

Exactly!

[richfaa]

This is an excuse, I was quality control for 30 years it didn`t cost a dime more to check peoples work as they were doing it. " This is true. I also have some experience in the quality control area. The cost for a effective quality control program is setting up a effective program, training the employees and monitoring the program. Our job was to show the employer that a good quality program could increase profit, efficiency, etc but most did not want to spend the up front $$$ to implement the program. There was also union resistance as they saw it as a method to reduce the workforce through greater efficiency.

[Phil P]

Hi

X2

Richfaa and bshgto

[1retired06]

Certainly was a cost factor in our company. . We had 10 folks in our QA/QC inspection division and those 10 manyear salaries/benefits/occasional travel/were reflected in the burden we placed on our market pricing .ie cost was passed on to the customer. Most of our work was fixed price bids, so cost to the customer was always a key consideration on who won or lost contracts. We felt it was absolutely necessary for our reputation to do continuous QC and a final inspection of every job completed, and it paid off. We often won contracts even though our bid was higher because folks knew of our work. Larger the company, the easier it is to spread those costs.

[dfb]

Can you imagine building airplanes with no qc
because of cost?

[Beau2010]

We hear a lot about how poorly built the newer RVs are, but we haven't had too many problems with our rig. Been on the road with it for about 35,000 miles and about 6 months out of the year over the last 4+ years. I have seen things from time to time that may explain why some people have so much trouble with their rigs. In a campground in Santa Fe last week which has speed bumps every few hundred feet. More than one rig leaving the campground that morning hit the speed bumps hard enough to cause the rear tires of the trailer to leave the ground. If that didn't do some damage inside, it would be a very well-built rig.

[akf15e]

FWIW, I had 2 Montanas. Lots of problems - leaking tanks, failed landing gear (multiple times), poor attention to detail on fit and finish, multiple failed OEM tires, and numerous other small issues. When we decided it was time for a new rig (because I had little faith my tanks weren't done leaking), I tried a higher priced SOB with a few more features. After 2 years, I'd say things are better, but not by much. Had leaking tank connections, failed fridge, leaking Level Up, horrible tank smells in the rig. Fit and finish is better, but not by much. Overall, it is evident to me after owning 3 different brands of trailer is that there is an industry wide problem with quality control. And that is that there is no quality control! We have friends who bought a $400K motorhome who have been back to the factory for multiple fixes in 2 years. Seriously? How do they get away with this stuff? I guess as long as we keep buying, they will keep producing faulty products.

Bottom line - pick a rig with the floor plan, features, and price that fit your needs. Expect problems. Find a good repair shop or learn to fix things yourself. Enjoy yourself.

[DQDick]

Agreed. In this industry you can get a good deal or pay a ton of money and still get poor quality no matter who you buy from.

[captbanjo]

Yes, I definitely agree with the last two posts after doing a couple of weeks of research on the Internet. It seems that no matter which company is used the problem that most often is identified is that all dealers have to use outside components and thus have no ability to control the quality of those components. I'm sure that build quality and design factor into this as well but we are driving houses on wheels and if there are problems they will probably emerge quickly or eventually.