Like Gene said, after four years.....
It's kinda like getting that first door ding in you new car. I'm a lot more relaxed with my "dents" than last year...and I bought near new, not brand new.
__________________
"All I want in this life of mine..... is some good clean fun" - Little Feat
Unless we shrink wrap it, something will happen. I want to know who put those dings in my truck passenger door and tailgate (how does anyone ding a tailgate?) and both happened when the truck was several years old, but it is the way of life when you use things. I do know who put the crease in the side of the trailer—the dealer—and they paid for it.
The corrosion is, so far, minor, and I can ignore it most of the time. But it should have been preventable and that sloppiness is what gets to me.
Evan, a belated happy solstice. I hope you'll be down in the southwest this year and we could meet somewhere.
2012 28' International
Greensboro
, North Carolina
Join Date: Aug 2011
Posts: 80
I read this thread carefully before I bought my new trailer. There is a lot of wisdom (along with frustration and disappointment) passing through these 4 years of posts. No matter how educated you try to be as a buyer, timing matters. (If you deal with the stock market you already have learned this lesson, many times.) In purchasing "new", I had the advantage of 4 years of this thread. And, I went to JC to "see for myself." What I saw impressed me. The guys who were building the trailers liked what they were doing (I asked). Does "corporate" listen? I think so. While you might not get an outright admission -- my water pump is quiet, it is directly behind a self releasing panel. At JC, I saw the PLYWOOD that went into the flooring (not OSB)...and it was coated with some kind of black preservative, I SAW the guy inside the trailer when the high pressure water garage opened....and he had a caulking gun in his hand, not a cup of coffee. Filiform is ugly, I'll be watching carefully -- because you folks on the Forum educated me about it. Everything I put on my trailer was as a result of lessons learned by all of you -- the TV, the 3P hitch, the Honda 2000's, and so if some of you are frustrated, be advised that you really helped me. Maybe that wasn't your intent, but there it is. I'll have to "pay it forward" by sharing my experience and observations as "Silver Leaf" takes to the road. Being passionate owners (and wow, so many of us are!), is the difference between having a "trailer" and something you are truly proud of.
Thanks BAB; I certainly have been frustrated and I'm glad frustrated owners have educated you. Others have educated me.
The guy in the trailer with a caulking gun should have been on the outside. Maybe he went outside after the "rain" stopped. Caulking on the inside only stops leaks from dripping down inside, but not between the inner and outer panels where the water will drip down and eventually come out somewhere after soaking the insulation and promoting mold growth.
OSB was used for a short time on certain cheaper trailers. Anybody who thought OSB would hold up should have been fired. OSB is designed only for completely dry applications. There are many grades of plywood and marine grade would be the best. I don't believe they use that. If coated, that may help, but it should be on all sides including the edges and wherever it is cut.
Corporate does listen sometimes. It depends on how you deal with them. Individuals may get something solved, but others may not. Airstream is very slow to change and while they think about it, many customers suffer from cheap parts, poor workmanship and bad designs. They appear to be better now and all the complaints on this and other threads may have worked, but a quicker and more open response would have been appreciated and would have helped them sell more trailers. A couple of years ago the complaints were so persistent and responses weak or nonexistent that many potential owners decided not to buy an Airstream. The company lost hundreds of thousands of dollars because of that. There is some evidence they finally heard us.
So, I am still frustrated. I have fixed many of the problems either through taking the trailer to JC for warranty work, or fixing it myself. We quickly learned the dealer was the worst place to take it.
We like the trailer. It is cool. The original design was brilliant. The company went through changes of ownership and present corporate policy seems to be focused on cost cutting and shows a lack of creativity. As I said, improvements seem to have been made as Thor seems to have realized cheapening their premium brand destroys value. Many companies (remember Packards?) have done the same thing and went bankrupt or were sold for a fraction of their former value.
I'm glad you like your brand new International and I hope things work out for you and Airstream.
2012 28' International
Greensboro
, North Carolina
Join Date: Aug 2011
Posts: 80
Agree completely about destroying value. Remember the words of Oscar Wilde, "cynics know the price of everything and the value of nothing." And, once you get to the top the expectations most certainly do not slack off. Packard in its heyday was among the most prestigious cars you could own .... and there are plenty of case studies on how that brand came to an inglorious end. My Dad bought a used Packard Clipper around 1958. One year. Back to a Lincoln. Ending up as a Studebaker was not a way to go.
I went over my new Airstream very carefully before I towed it home. I'm pretty fanatical at maintenance and can keep up with most mechanical challenges. I hope not to have to use them on the new trailer, but once the warranty is up, I'm ready to have at it.
While I was doing the JC tour, I had a chance to talk with 3-4 owners who were availing themselves of the JC maintenance base operations. One thing in common -- they were all irrevocably in love with their trailer....and one guy had driven almost 1,000 miles to meet an appointment he'd made 5 months earlier. THAT is amazing brand loyalty -- and a sad commentary that the dealer network was obviously not what it ought to be.
I've known quite a number of Rolls Royce owners, and it seems to me it's the same sort of complaints I hear from AS owners. When you pay that much, you expect as close to perfection as human made things can get. And like RR owners, I've noted that the vast majority, despite the complaints, would never give up their cherished goods.
I'm certainly going to be looking for filiform when I pick up the Bambino at the end of the month!
__________________
"If you can't be a good example, then you'll just have to be a horrible warning." - Catherine Aird
We have a 28'-2009 Flying cloud. The taillight bezels are corroded quite badly.JC customer service sent me one on warranty,(we had to instal , no big deal ) We also have noticed same on the door hinges.We are a long way from the ocean,our trailer is stored in a unheated building in the off season.
2012 28' International
Greensboro
, North Carolina
Join Date: Aug 2011
Posts: 80
I've already ordered a can of the Corrosion X -- and plan on doing my tail light assemblies when it arrives. Guess the door hinges as well. Funny about the Rolls Royce owners. I bought a new Lambo three years ago and enjoy being part of the owners on-line community. You could just change the name from "Airstream" to "Lamborghini" and you'd hear many of the same comments about "quality", "perfection", and "modifications". You would also sense the unbridled passion for the product. (And NO, I do not use the Lambo as a TV! Not even CanAm could figure this one out.) I have been inside, outside, and all around my new Intl and am thoroughly delighted with what I've found in terms of attention to detail, cleanliness, etc. I've examined the wiring harnesses, the proper clamping of the PEX (yes, I have a gauge to do this as I've installed a bunch of it in my home). I have yet to find a defect. And I'll keep looking.
Before and after pics. After...discussion with AS customer service = washed, cleaned area with rubbing alcohol, allowed to dry, scraped area with plastic putty knife, applied CorrosionX.
Looks to me like I am not "underneath" the clearcoat yet. Do you agree? Have I made any progress? Not sure what I am looking for at this point.
Start here and check the following posts, the described procedures have worked for me in controlling the filiform...as well as I have been able to come up with.
I do have a new clear that I will be trying this Spring, will post on the progress.
see post#1069
It seems to me a product such as CorrosionX that can penetrate and coat openings in the protective clear coat finish, would displace the water that leads to filiform. Most likely it would need regular treatments, but those treatments are rather easy. Just spray it on (lightly) and wipe off the excess. Fittings on the shell such as hinges, light futures, and trim are the important areas to ensure the product gets well into them.
There is talk about paint sealers or waxes but I don't think that gets into the areas where the corrosion starts. They would be for surface protection.
Our 2007 Airstream had some minor filiform and I decided to use CorrosionX to treat it, rather than removing it and opening up even more of the finish. It looked like the product was able to get into the filiform "trails" and displace any water that tried to enter. The filiform areas were very small, I don't know about larger areas.
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