Colonial Airstream Propride intallation

[Tino643]

Hello, i will take delivery of my Airstream in 4 weeks at Colonial Airstream in NY. I am from Montréal so they charge me 500$ to install my PP. that it will be deliver before i arrive...So i wonder if some one before me ad a propride install by them. I am freaky meticulous so i am little bit afraid that the installation is not a my satisfaction....

[dbj216]

I installed my ProPride myself. It is fairly straight forward and did not require any frame modifications. It comes with a little tool kit so you want to make sure that is given to you at the time of delivery. And bolt torques are very strict, insure they follow the torque specs and not say it's tight enough. Check for evidence of greasing the weight distribution bar pivots. Colonial won't have a problem doing the install. The installation price does not surprise.

I find my ProPride works great. The back up camera on my tow vehicle makes hitching up easy. But it is still harder than a standard hitch. You will need to have Colonial instruct you and then observe while you complete the hitching process.

Colonial has a good reputation on these forums. I predict you will be satisfied.

David

[BAB]

Wow! That seems very high to me. I'm not sure what their hourly labor charge is, but even if it's $100 an hour, there is NO way it can take 5 hours to install a 3P. Call Sean Woodruff and see if he has a "customary or usual" installation time.

[Jaxon]

Originally Posted by BAB

Wow! That seems very high to me. I'm not sure what their hourly labor charge is, but even if it's $100 an hour, there is NO way it can take 5 hours to install a 3P. Call Sean Woodruff and see if he has a "customary or usual" installation time.

Agreed! $500 is outrageous! Seems they’re feeding... this certainly isn’t the first hitch they’ve installed and charging that when you’re also buying the trailer from them!!

[Tino643]

Thanks, i no the price is expensif for the installation. I had a PP on my last Airstrean that I install my self. But when a take delivery of this new unit, i meed it to be install. I just wonder if some one no if they do it nicely....

[ROBERTSUNRUS]

Hi, from what I have read Propride gives the dealers zero profit and/or discount on these hitches. Therefore, maybe a little bump in labor. ??????

[Jaxon]

Originally Posted by Tino643

But when a take delivery of this new unit, i meed it to be install. I just wonder if some one no if they do it nicely....

Yup... they have the skills. At $500, they went to grad school...

[bweybright]

So I paid Colonial a bunch of bucks to install a simple Reese Dual Cam hitch on a trailer I bought used. I paid them for the cam setup and other stuff, to the tune of $500..... the result one side of the cam bracket is not the same distance from the front of the center front of the tongue. Just my experience. And the door that I paid them $200 to get working right is still not shutting right.

So: I would say, in my humble opinion: Colonial is a great place to get a price on a unit when you buy, but they are not the best for repairs, service, or tow set up.

Sorry if I offend anyone. I just will not be taking any more repairs to them.

[KJRitchie]

Purchase the trailer with the free Equalizer or other standard hitch and tow it back home and install the ProPride yourself since you've installed one yourself. Since it sounds like you are not buying the ProPride from Colonial but shipping them yours and having it installed. They are probably charging you extra for not making money on the sale and the inconvenience of installing a customer's part.

Gotta pay to play.

Kelvin

[dkottum]

Originally Posted by ROBERTSUNRUS

Hi, from what I have read Propride gives the dealers zero profit and/or discount on these hitches. Therefore, maybe a little bump in labor. ??????

And this is a reason why some dealers will try to steer you away from ProPride, "Oh you don't need that, we like to use this one here and it's just as good". Been there, it's not as good.

[Ted S.]

All I can say is that I am in business and $500 is not a lot of money to me. If I charge that much for a service that takes 2 hrs I'm not going to make a lot of money after I pay my costs, which there are many from the wage, to the payroll tax, to the overhead, etc.

I pick up my Airstream from Colonial in December and would like a Hensely Arrow installed, if it costs me $500 I would be happy knowing it was installed by someone who knew what they were doing and had done it many times before. I want them to make some money, they seem truly interested in the brand and that I appreciate.

You did good, enjoy you new camper.

[idroba]

And to think, my hitch cost only 80% of the cost of installation of the PP! And I installed it all by myself. And I like my hitch too.

[dkottum]

Originally Posted by idroba

And to think, my hitch cost only 80% of the cost of installation of the PP! And I installed it all by myself. And I like my hitch too.

You got you money's worth and those with ProPride got their money's worth.

[SteveSueMac]

My dealer charged me $1100 to install the ProPride. It was their first time and they said they really struggled with it. I asked if they had called Sean with any questions as he had personally offered and they didn't. Sean said a backyard mechanic could do it in 4 hours and a shop could do it in 2.

I told them their failure to call Sean when they were stuck - despite my sending them 2 emails with Sean's mobile number and telling the service manager in person - should not be my fault. I agreed to pay $500 and no more.

I think $500 is reasonable for an installation I'm sure I couldn't do myself. Just make sure it isn't their first time...

Sean should certify service techs for installation, inspection, adjustment and repairs (or, I should have paid more attention in shop during middle school...). Folks here seem to think it's a straightforward installation if you have any mechanical skills - so the suggestion to go with the free hitch to get it home and then install the PP yourself is a good one if you're confident in your mechanical skills. Sean's available by phone during installation if you have questions.

Good luck!

[kdinnar]

We bought a 23fb at Colonial Airstream in NJ last year on which they installed a ProPride hitch. At the time, I had to order the ProPride and have it shipped to them. We had no problem with the installation and everything was done correctly.

[Bruce B]

Colonial Airstream is a good dealer and they have a first rate service department. I suggest that you pay their price and check the installation when you get there. If you have issues with the work, they will make it right. No shop is perfect 100% of the time, the difference is in how they respond when things go wrong. Tony, head of Colonial's service department and is among the best.
Bruce

[Wingeezer]

Why not take the tools you need and do the installation yourself at the dealer's place? Hopefully they would not object since you are buying a trailer from them. Couldn't hurt to suggest to them that is what you would like to do anyway! Save $500 and ensure it is installed to your satisfaction!

I haven't installed a PP but did install our Hensley - pretty straightforward and didn't take more than an hour or so from what I recall.

I think you said you installed one before, so you know exactly what is involved and what tools you would need.


Bonne chance ................. Brian

[dkottum]

ProPride is several hundred dollars less than a similar Hensley and designed as an easy do-it-yourself installation. It is. No drilling, bolt on install and there are several videos and step-by-step photos on the internet to walk you through it, and ProPride owner Sean is always willing to assist on the phone. You need something to lift and hold the heavy hitch head in place (most use a floor jack) and a large torque wrench, otherwise common hand tools.

With the Hensley design being around 20 years it is surprising how few rv shops are familiar with it.

[moosetags]

I wholeheartedly agree with Wingeezer. I have not installed a ProPride, but I have personally installed my ten year old Hensley Arrow four different times as recently as the day before yesterday. We took delivery of our brand new 2015 Flying Cloud 25FB last Thursday at Dixie Airstream in DeFuniak Springs, Florida. I installed the Hensley on the new Airstream in the dealer's parking lot.

The Hensley installation is slightly more difficult than the ProPride in that you have to drill four holes in the tailer yoke to complete the installation. The rest of the installation is similar.

I agree that $500 seems a little steep to install a ProPride, but that is not the reason that I would install it myself. Most dealers do not install many of these complex hitch systems and, accordingly, don't know what they are doing. I install it myself mainly because I then know that it's done correctly.

My Hensley was originally installed on our new 2005 Safari 25FB by the Airstream dealer. It was not done correctly and I had to reinstall it and set it up properly. Since then, I installed the Hensley on our 2012 FC 23FB and reinstalled it on the 23FB in September at a campground in Moses Lake, Washington when the bearings in the main unit failed and Hensley sent me a new one.

Last Thursday, I removed the Hensley from our 23FB and installed it on the new 25FB in about two hours.

Brian

[ghaynes755]

I had my ProPride shipped to Colonial. I think the install was $400 and it did take them about 3 hours. Sop rate if I remember was $115 or $120. If it was summer I would do it myself the next. If it is raining or winter let them do it.