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Old 03-02-2014, 05:21 PM   #1
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Repairs...Is this typical?

Bought my interstate ext in November 2013. So, I've had it 4 months. It was a dealer demo with 4500 miles on it. One of their vice presidents owned it and used it. It wasn't a demo on a lot. It's a 2013/2014. The shower, toilet, fridge, stove top...none of those had ever been used.

So far, besides some things that needed to be tightened inside (drawers and such), we've had the following problems.

1. Some clamp or bolt was missing from underneath and when we flushed (not dumped) our tanks, water was gushing everywhere. (been fixed)

2. Shower isn't draining properly. It's only been used about 10 times. (waiting for them to look at it)

3. Gasket on the ceiling fan in the bathroom is broken, so fan doesn't function properly. (part is on order)

4. We have a pinhole puncture in our sewer hose. (just noticed this one on last trip). Should dealer be responsible to replace this under warranty?

Just wondering if these kinds of things are typical and we just need to roll with it and deal with things as they occur.
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Old 03-02-2014, 06:02 PM   #2
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It sounds like only a handful of items. In our first 4-5 months with our 28' International we had many more issues including:

1) Water leaks in skin.

2) Water leak at handle to entrance door.

3) Furnace blower motor fan self destructed due to construction debris.

4) Refrigerator quit working.

5) Water heater quit working.

6) Bathroom floor buckled with vanity pulling away from wall.

7) Fresh water fill leaked from a cut hose.

8) Tank monitors have completely unreliable.

9) Poorly done upholstery on the "L" lounge.

10) Toilet leaks.

11) Exterior light has been unreliable.

12) Many stripped screws and fasteners from being over-torqued at the factory.

13) Many snapped rivets.

Fortunately our dealer has been wonderful but it still have been about 6-7 trips to the dealer last summer addressing all of this. We shall see how this summer goes, hopefully most of this is behind us. If not, it will be major problem since we are moving to a state with only one dealer that I've yet to hear any favorable comments or reviews of their service.

Again, I think the issues with your Interstate sound pretty small overall and hopefully you have a good dealer that can work through them for you. Best of luck.
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Old 03-02-2014, 06:14 PM   #3
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That punctured hose should be covered. I would make sure it is documented and if you have to use it, buy some appropriate sealant for a temporary fix.
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Old 03-02-2014, 06:56 PM   #4
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HeadWest....wow, you've had a lot of stuff needing fixin'. You're right, my list is small compared to all of that.

Ron_Ca....ok. I'll notify them about the puncture on Monday when I call to follow up with the other things.

Part of my wondering if these things are typical, is that it's just surprising to me that, on such an expensive vehicle, so many things would be broken.

We've never owned any kind of vehicle that cost over $23,000. I assumed that when you pay $100,000+ for a vehicle, that the quality and quality control would be super high!!

OK, not complaining, and not trying to be negative. Was just wondering what might be normal.
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Old 03-02-2014, 07:30 PM   #5
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Hello weirdstuff, yes this is quite typical and your list is small in my opinion. I had a Flying Cloud 19' before the Interstate, and that had a much larger set of issues.
I have come to expect new cars at any price to be totally defect-free, but an RV
Is a house on wheels and I doubt a new million dollar house would be defect-free either!
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Old 03-02-2014, 07:36 PM   #6
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2. Shower isn't draining properly. It's only been used about 10 times. (waiting for them to look at it)
Could be something plugging the drain, or the air vent (on the roof?) is plugged?

Really, that doesn't sound like a lot of things, although I know it is disappointing to realize that your new jewel wasn't perfect from the get-go.
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Old 03-02-2014, 07:52 PM   #7
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OK. Thanks, you guys, for giving me a clue as to what to expect. My expectations were obviously too high.
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Old 03-02-2014, 07:54 PM   #8
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Could be something plugging the drain, or the air vent (on the roof?) is plugged?
Nothing that we know of has gone down the drain, so, if something's clogging it, it wouldn't be from us!!

The air vent in the bathroom opens fine. Broken gasket makes the fan not run properly. But, shouldn't the shower drain even with the air vent closed?
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Old 03-02-2014, 08:01 PM   #9
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Silly question I know, but is the grey tank empty? If it's full, the grey water will back up to the lowest point.... which is the shower tray.
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Old 03-02-2014, 08:05 PM   #10
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What do you expect? It was brand new....
You didn't expect it to be right did you?

Matters not how expensive.... this is the world we live in.
Rest on your laurels and they will still buy...

Sad but true! I will no longer buy new. No one cares because we as a society accept less than perfect because we want things and we want them now. Quality is gone here because it is our new standard. Personally I share on your frustration... I demand more for my money.
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Old 03-02-2014, 08:08 PM   #11
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But, shouldn't the shower drain even with the air vent closed?
Yes, it should. The plumbing in your RV is vented, just like it is on your home. If an air vent becomes blocked, it will drain, but s-l-o-w-l-y. In a new vehicle, it is unusual that a vent would get plugged, but stranger things have happened.

UKDUDE's point is also a good one: have you checked if the grey tank is full?
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Old 03-02-2014, 08:49 PM   #12
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Yes, it should. The plumbing in your RV is vented, just like it is on your home. If an air vent becomes blocked, it will drain, but s-l-o-w-l-y. In a new vehicle, it is unusual that a vent would get plugged, but stranger things have happened.

UKDUDE's point is also a good one: have you checked if the grey tank is full?
When this happened, the grey tank monitor was reading 2/3 full. The water started backing up during my shower. (I take super-fast showers too) And then, after about a minute or two, it started to drain slowly. Then, same thing happened when my husband took his shower. But, the water did completely drain, so, it wasn't that the tank was full.

They're going to look at it when they do the regulator recall repair. Service guy said that they've seen Airstream use the wrong shaped pipe on the tanks before.

Hopefully, I'll soon know what's going on with this.
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Old 03-02-2014, 11:46 PM   #13
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I do know that they don't use P-traps on the drains. Forget the name of what they use, something like HepvO valve. Maybe they got a bad one on the shower drain.
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Old 01-28-2015, 07:00 PM   #14
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I do know that they don't use P-traps on the drains. Forget the name of what they use, something like HepvO valve. Maybe they got a bad one on the shower drain.
I've read where these drain check-valves can be installed upside down, which would cause draining issues.
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Old 01-29-2015, 08:45 AM   #15
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Typical
Ive experienced the same
Mine in now for probably 3-4 weeks
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Old 01-29-2015, 09:57 AM   #16
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Sounds like a usual hit list ... only one of our three AS purchased new did not require numerous repairs.
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