Airstream dealer won't work on my Limited!

[AtomicNo13]

I own some of the rarest, oddest, and slimmest produced automobiles in the world. I know all about obscurium, and unobtanium!
Airstream is easy, and everything for the recent fleet is a FedEx away.
There is nothing I cant find...
Tip... the dealer is rarely the right place to go, go right to the source of manufacture!

[ShullsinUtah]

We're lucky to have TWO shops that specialize in Airstreams within a hour of us.

https://www.airstreamofutah.com/

https://varr.co/

[GM Airstream]

I have heard it all... dealers and factory excuses... so now when I need a item like the water pump.. I start looking at the water pump manufactures and get a UPGRADE... after all no sence in putting in the same old piece of high priced junk... from airstream... just because they have their name on it...

By going to the current manufactures or aftermarket parts... your actually upgrading the older airstream to new specifications.. and making it better than the old'ie...

So when they say no parts aviable...I just say ok and head for the marine parts store... and see whats new and improved tech. (The water pump that we put in uses less current and has a higher flow and same pressure as the old airstream part) so which one do you want... and is better... grin..

I don't even look at airstream parts anymore... for appliances... and smile all the way home..

[Martee]

Originally Posted by 3campers

The dealer, Albany RV, won't service or even consider any work on my Airstream because it's more than ten years old. In fact they were about to give me a phone to Airsrtream direct to talk me down... As in the best of luck finding someone to work on your old camper dude...
Here's the thing... We camped over the weekend. had some torrential rains on Friday night...hardest rain ever! We had our very first leak since new in our 31 foot 1985 Limited. Not bad just a tad but got me to thinking. Might be time to do a little sealing up there and definitely time to re-coat the roof. I also want to pull off the tv antenna. We haven't used it in years and it's seen better days so taking it off is happening plus need to plug the big ole hole from it. I wouldn't think it would all that expensive or hard and it's a little above my pay grade, I'm happy to spend a couple of bucks to have some expert who knows how to not crawl around on top of Airstreams to do it right so it will last but I can't find anyone who will do the job! Wo is me...

Avoid Albany RV for any service. Sales are OK there....but not for service anymore. In your area consider using "Whites RV" in Rotterdam, NY. They are a full RV and Trailer service only place. No RV sales to distract them from their daily work. They will work on all RV and travel trailers regardless of age. Quality work at fair price. RV Service is all they do. Experts in all plumbing, all electrical, weather sealing and winterizing of RV units. Yes, they even work on Airstreams.

The closest Full AS dealer that i would allow to work on my trailer, is Colonial Airstream. They can fully service your Airstream in a professional and experienced manner.

Both Whites RV and Colonial are busy, and so appointments will be a few weeks waiting time. Good luck.

[uncle_bob]

Originally Posted by AtomicNo13

I own some of the rarest, oddest, and slimmest produced automobiles in the world. I know all about obscurium, and unobtanium!
Airstream is easy, and everything for the recent fleet is a FedEx away.
There is nothing I cant find...
Tip... the dealer is rarely the right place to go, go right to the source of manufacture!

Hi

There are always weird things like the ... errr ... bolts on the step ... (not that mine would *ever* fall out) that are only going to come from JC in terms of original manufacturer. I agree that there are sources for just about any weird part you might need to go looking for. The point is that it takes time to dig into that kind of stuff. If the "value" of that time is $135/hour, a few hours of digging is generating a pretty big bill. Again, we're talking about a dealer who (at this point) hasn't a clue where to start. Having met the people at some of these dealers, you could give them a map of how to do it and they still would not have a clue. Indeed at other dealers, the folks who work there are incredibly sharp.

So, if you are the dealer in this case, do you set up to bill the poor customer $1,372 for the 10 hours of digging for various parts plus the actual $22 the parts cost? Even a stupid dealer isn't likely to go that route. I can't imagine any customer paying a bill like that. Much easier for the dealer to just say no up front.

Now, you might say, "the learning on the first pass will carry forward". Yup, that could be true. Walk around said dealer and as you fume about their approach to business. Talk to various people who work there. Note that nobody has been there for over six months. Dealer's been there for years ... hmmmm ... so about that knowledge carrying forward .... ( ... and yes, that's real data from a very real currently authorized AS dealer ...)

Bob

[tojimmiller]

For time being just make sure the roof has good sealants around every fixture. You can do it from a ladder. I have a 1984 , 1990, and a 1996 airstream on the property and they don’t leak. So just calk don’t make any more holes. Live with what you’ve got
Jm

[2dabeach]

3 campers....There is a guy that use to work for the Airstream dealer in CT that opened a shop in Fish Kill, NY. It's a bit of a ride from you location but you will be satisfied with his work. Classic RV Repair & Restorations, (George Hernandez, 73 Route 9, Fishkill, NY 914-523-8310.

[Ray Eklund]

Great variety of opinions.

Many, myself included, went to a new Airstream and Tow Vehicle. This was after decades of doing repairs and part sourcing due to a tight budget, young family costs, just for basic transportation on used purchases. A trailer was out of the question. A tent was affordable.

My neighbor bought a 45 foot diesel pusher, used. He has taken it for repairs several times, already. I went with him to a Las Vegas service center for RV's of all kinds and trailers to look around.

RV's were parked everywhere for repairs. People were coming through the door needing work done while on vacation. There was no room to park. There could have been twenty stalls to work. I wandered around until an employee asked me to stay in the sitting area.

I listened to quotes being given to those sitting around. $800, $1200, $500... The owners did not even flinch. One guy towing a 25 foot 2019 trailer needed his AC worked on and I noticed his hitch was adjusted where the back of his tow vehicle was sitting down three or four inches lower than the front.

This was absolutely... insane.

Fixing a leak? Buy a ladder, climb up there and get dirty. At $125 an hour for labor... you could stock your tools and parts yourself.

As far as parts at one of these businesses. Parts have to be ordered. They keep parts that have a fast turnover, and odds and ends in the sitting area. When you service ALL Brands... one would need an Airport Hanger to store just the basics and that is overhead.

I saw fewer mechanics there than... customers and service writers writing up 'estimates' from first observation.

After seeing the complex systems on these large RV's... working on our Airstreams can be just a matter of watching videos on the internet, asking questions on this Forum, order the parts that are delivered to your door... and do it yourself.

If you want a RV Shop to do the job... go there first and wander around until you are asked to go the the sitting area. It will not be a happy experience at some of these places. Too much work and too few to do it.

[Hans627]

Originally Posted by Martee

Avoid Albany RV for any service. Sales are OK there....but not for service anymore. In your area consider using "Whites RV" in Rotterdam, NY. They are a full RV and Trailer service only place. No RV sales to distract them from their daily work. They will work on all RV and travel trailers regardless of age. Quality work at fair price. RV Service is all they do. Experts in all plumbing, all electrical, weather sealing and winterizing of RV units. Yes, they even work on Airstreams.

The closest Full AS dealer that i would allow to work on my trailer, is Colonial Airstream. They can fully service your Airstream in a professional and experienced manner.

Both Whites RV and Colonial are busy, and so appointments will be a few weeks waiting time. Good luck.

I have heard many, many negative comments about Albany RV and some of the other stores associated with RV One. That would include Tampa RV and Orland RV.

FWIW!

[Jeremiwvu]

Originally Posted by uncle_bob

Hi

First off .... as far as I could see when I was there .... JC does indeed work on 30+ year old Airstreams.

Dealer wise, there are several of them I would not let near my trailer on a bet. One that actually *realizes* how incompetent they are is a bit of a surprise. I'd say they are doing you a favor by admitting their lack of competence. There are indeed dealers out there that *do* work on older RV's.

Bob

This is absolutely correct... Jackson center will service any airstream regardless of age, they will not do custom work or modifications but will fix and put back to original anything. They had a 1930’s model there when I did my tour...

Lots of other dealers will as well, there are also private individuals who specialize in airstream work. Depending on where you are there are lots of options. Also if the dealer you went to had that attitude you probably don’t want them working on it anyway.

You will find someone, it’s not hard. We have a 1981 and it’s been serviced at a dealership. In Greensboro N.C... they are busy and not overly friendly but they’ll service any age.

[BR2018]

I've talked with quite a few dealers who don't touch anything really old. As a service tech I saw my dealer cut back on oddball appointments because they catch all kinds of problems in finding parts. Problem is a leaks a leak and gets fixed pretty much the same way as a new one. Find it seal it keep it moving. Hence I started my own business because I love working on airstream and find it neat to make something old work again or retrofitting a new component to an old one. Yes it takes a lot of thinking but the end result should be the same. Good luck getting it repaired jc might be the best way to go due to current geographic locations. To me training at the mothership was the equivalent of a dream come true

[banderabob]

I know it's an Airstream, a member of your family, but it's just a trailer. The closest AS dealer to us is 2+ hours. We found a very good RV dealer and service center 25 miles away and have used them for going on 7 years and 2 Airstreams. I'll bet there is a similar vendor in your area.

[PewterPalace]

Originally Posted by 3campers

The dealer, Albany RV, won't service or even consider any work on my Airstream because it's more than ten years old. In fact they were about to give me a phone to Airsrtream direct to talk me down... As in the best of luck finding someone to work on your old camper dude...
Here's the thing... We camped over the weekend. had some torrential rains on Friday night...hardest rain ever! We had our very first leak since new in our 31 foot 1985 Limited. Not bad just a tad but got me to thinking. Might be time to do a little sealing up there and definitely time to re-coat the roof. I also want to pull off the tv antenna. We haven't used it in years and it's seen better days so taking it off is happening plus need to plug the big ole hole from it. I wouldn't think it would all that expensive or hard and it's a little above my pay grade, I'm happy to spend a couple of bucks to have some expert who knows how to not crawl around on top of Airstreams to do it right so it will last but I can't find anyone who will do the job! Wo is me...

We know that dealer all to well as we live 30min north. Yah they want to get you to buy new. We had a class A a few years back and they would not work on it because "you did not buy it from us". I would not trust them to work on your airstream. We have a vintage Avion and for same reason, the rounded aluminum skins we would never recommend them. Your best bet is Colin Hyde in Plattsburgh tho he is in high demand and does not have great customer service skills from our direct experience but most claim he does very good AS work. down in NJ there is Colonial Airstream in Lakehurst. He is one of largest AS dealers on all east coast. We have used Fletchers out in the Finger Lakes NY. He specializes in aluminum and vintage. Good luck! http://Www.ThePewterPalace.com

[phowe46]

Hi there,

We have had a similar problem with Albany RV. We bought our 2015 FC from them and they would not agree to address a broken sink pipe this past summer. They told us they only do service for customers who have purchased an extended warranty from them. This is pretty frustrating. We have brought the problem to the attention of Customer Service at Airstream. I would recommend you do the same. This will only be addressed if Airstream has the data it needs since Albany RV does not seem to be willing to change.

[nm1oqrz]

Hello all. I have a 1988 25ft Excella and I have taken it to a place in Ohio for repair and re-coating twice in its life and they do excellent work.

P & S Trailer in Helena Ohio. It is a family run business. They are really experts in all things Airstream. When my Airstream was damaged back in the early 90s I called Airstream factory for repair and they recommended P&S as the factory was backed up. I highly recommend them.

nm1oqrz

[uncle_bob]

Hi

One thing that has not been suggested (at least that I've noticed) - write a letter to Airstream. There is a company policy against "we only work on trailers we sold".

Bob

[doodledog]

We, too, tried to use the Albany dealership for winterizing our Airstream. They were clear they had no interest in us since we had purchased from Colonial. I would not go to the Albany dealer. It seems really short-sighted to turn away potential customers. What if we wanted to upgrade our Airstream? I certainly would not go to them for that now.

[Ldytraveller]

We have a 1998 34 ft Excella Classic. Before that we had a 1990 29 ft. Excella. Both serviced annually by CanAm RV in London, Ontario, Canada - Just off the 401 Hwy. They are one of Airstream's top dealers and are second generation in the business. Give them a call with your issues and see what they say. Their web site is www.CanAmRV.ca They are expert in all things Airstream. I know they service any Airstream no matter the vintage. They have many US customers. Bonus for you is your US dollar will buy you at least $1.25 Canadian so the cost for repairs should be in your favour. Otherwise I would give the factory in Jackson Center a try. Good Luck!

[Mansderm161]

Thank you for that tip. I have family in Ohio and just returned from Jackson center. They were good but its nice to have options. P&S trailer would not be a bad option for me.

[bobmiller1]

If you are willing to go to Albany RV, I live about an hour south west in the Catskills and would be happy to do that job for you. I own 4 Airstreams 2005 34 limited S/O, 2007 396XL, 1989 325LE, 1989 370LE. Private msg. Me and we can set up a time. Regards, Bob