Repaired Airstream Sold as New?

[Hans627]

The Airstream Life Store (https://store.airstreamlife.com/) sells key blanks and they are reasonable priced.

Getting them cut could be a problem though!

Wishing the best in resolving the issues with your AS!

[GCinSC2]

Keys. I provided the blanks and have had copies cut at my local Ace w/o problems. All worked.

Good luck with getting this resolved, the damage that is.

[OTRA15]

Ditto . . . no prob.

Peter

[trailerpup]

Thanks. I got the door key blanks ordered. Off to find the fresh water and storage locker blanks.

[GettinAway]

Amazing, this dealer was horrible to Gene as far back as 2007, the owner dies, but the culture of bad business practices continues. There should be (there may be already) a thread here on dealers to avoid.

[overlander63]

Originally Posted by trailerpup

Thanks. I got the door key blanks ordered. Off to find the fresh water and storage locker blanks.

Water door should be a CH751, standard RV lock key. Available at most reputable RV dealers nationwide, no need to get a blank and get it cut. Storage door lock key is also one key number, no need to get a blank cut, just call any reputable Airstream dealer for a new key that's already cut.

[trailerpup]

Originally Posted by GettinAway

Amazing, this dealer was horrible to Gene as far back as 2007, the owner dies, but the culture of bad business practices continues. There should be (there may be already) a thread here on dealers to avoid.

I read lot's of reviews, etc. here and elsewhere. Some good, some bad. I even entertained the idea of traveling out of state to purchase.

But, when I saw that Airstream held them in such high regard I believed that they must have gotten their crap together.

I'm now very disappointed in myself that, in the end, I put my trust in Airstream.

Why does Airstream rate them as a 5 Rivet Dealer?

It's apparent to me now that Airstream doesn't really give a rip about anything except moving units out the door. I've read it here time and again, but now I personally believe it. Sad.

I am keenly aware that this is a first-world problem and I also accept the fact that I screwed up big time.

Thanks for all the help!

[OTRA15]

You might want to comment here IMO:

https://www.airforums.com/forums/f48...il-208322.html

Good luck,

Peter

[trailerpup]

Well, here we are enjoying our new Airstream.

It's starting to rain.

And, the water draining down the trailer runs right into the mount.

I wonder how much water is getting into the wall and soaking the wood floor.

I guess I should squeeze a big glob of silicone over the whole thing.

[Iansk]

Originally Posted by trailerpup

well, here we are enjoying our new airstream.

It's starting to rain.

And, the water draining down the trailer runs right into the mount.

I wonder how much water is getting into the wall and soaking the wood floor.

I guess i should squeeze a big glob of silicone over the whole thing.

not silicone!!!!

[Iansk]

Do not use silicone on your aluminum!
I’ve been scraping it off my trailer for 7hrs from the PO and I’m still not done.
Use blue painters tape as a temp fix. Seriously. Or shove some plumbers putty in there until you can fix it right.

Ian

[trailerpup]

I'll tape it until I can get a new rivet from Zip Dee.

[ROBERTSUNRUS]

Originally Posted by trailerpup

I was contacted by a very nice gentleman from Airstream.

He verified that my trailer did not leave the factory in this condition.

Airstream is unable to produce a set of back up keys using the VIN.

Proper buck rivet job on the corner segment will cost 4.5k and a trip to JC.

Need to contact AS service department to set up an appointment.

Thanks.

Hi, WAIT; Are you telling us that you will have to pay Airstream for a proper repair? Or is the selling dealer going to pay for it?

[guskmg]

You may be right about the lack of factory personnel caring about their products. However, in dealing with the Factory Service Center, I guarantee you will be impressed with their attitude. Those guys are great. Since most of the techs come from production, I don't see how they could have a apathetic attitude about production overall. I think the problem was post factory. Something fell through the crack alright. I know of a case where an owner and Airstream could not resolve a tire wear problem. Something was wrong with the frame. Airstream gave him a new trailer two model years newer the his old one. Now that's customer service for you!
guskmg

[trailerpup]

Originally Posted by ROBERTSUNRUS

Hi, WAIT; Are you telling us...

Airstream will repair it properly if done at JC. I was told by Airstream that it will cost me approximately $4500 to have that work done.

As it stands, it is up to me to lodge a complaint with my state's attorney general and hire personal legal counsel.

Originally Posted by guskmg

You may be right about the lack of factory personnel caring about their products. However, in dealing with the Factory Service Center, I guarantee you...

I apologize, I was referring to Airstream as a corporation and not any specific individual. As I've stated previously in this thread, the individual who contacted me from Airstream could not have been more courteous; very friendly and professional.

My take away is that once an Airstream trailer leaves the factory it is no longer their concern (unless it being a specific warranty issue). Even if the issue, as in this case, is with one of their so-called 5 Rivet Dealers.

The fact of the matter is that if the dealer had done the repair properly no one would be the wiser. A couple folks on this thread spotted right away that the o-rings were left on the Olympic rivets, improperly installed rivets, etc.

I am hoping that potential Airstream customers will read this thread and add to their pre-purchase check-list to closely check each rivet on the trailer before purchasing.

Cheers.

[overlander63]

Originally Posted by Iansk

Do not use silicone on your aluminum!
I’ve been scraping it off my trailer for 7hrs from the PO and I’m still not done.
Use blue painters tape as a temp fix. Seriously. Or shove some plumbers putty in there until you can fix it right.

Ian

Adseal is the current recommended sealant for Airstream trailers, and is composed of silicone.

[Gene]

Originally Posted by GettinAway

Amazing, this dealer was horrible to Gene as far back as 2007, the owner dies, but the culture of bad business practices continues. There should be (there may be already) a thread here on dealers to avoid.

After the owner died, his daughter took over. I negotiated a settlement with her after a manager kept insulting me about damage they hadn't repaired and I was considering a small claims suit although I would have had to travel 250 miles back to Denver to appear in court. The additional damage was hard to see, but it was there and would have cost more than $4K back in 2008 to replace a side panel. They offered to do it for free, but I refused to take it back to them. The original damage had occurred when they backed the trailer into another trailer's hitch coupler and it put a hole in our rear panel. They fixed that, but missed a dent on the side. It looked like a mechanic or something had fallen against it and put the dent in.

Our warranty claims were hard to get resolved. The person who took care of that would not tell Airstream, which had to approve each claim, that our various claims were worth covering, so of course the company denied them. When I took the trailer to Jackson Center they were all fixed without any problems. Dealers' main customers are usually the manufacturers because warranty claims on any vehicles are a major part of what a dealer's shop does, but this dealer didn't seem to care about that.

It was pretty obvious the dealer did a poor job of going over the trailer when we picked it up. We stayed at a CG near by and brought it back the next morning with about 5 to 7 things that needed fixing. They missed an improperly tightened lock on the side window. The window opened traveling back home and was sucked out. It was quite a surprise when we stopped for lunch and found a window missing. When we got home the dealer refused to help and I called Airstream and they were difficult about replacing the window, but they finally consented to sent me one for free and I installed it. However it didn't close right because when it blew out it bent the place where it was attached and I could not straighten it properly. At JC, they fixed that without any questions and actually fixed some things they were not responsible for under the warranty at no charge.

The finance manager at the dealer was about as obnoxious as any dealer's employee I have ever met. He was doing the closing since the regular closer was out that day and trying to sell us an extended warranty. When I kept saying "no", he turned to my wife and tried to scare her. Getting between married couples is a dangerous thing to do and I was about ready to cancel the deal then. I told him off and he was good for the rest of the closing. We had plenty of warnings, but with aluminitus raging, we pressed forward.

We had first gone to a dealer in Colorado Springs and the salesman went to answer a phone call and never came back. He has already told us our early version of the Tundra could tow a 25' trailer. We knew that was a lie. We walked out. That dealer stopped carrying Airstreams shortly after.

The whole experience was disappointing and frustrating. Car dealers have gotten better over the years, though there's a way to go. Our experience buying an Airstream and getting things fixed was awful. If you think the free market weeds out bad dealers, it doesn't. Not only does this dealer still sell RV's, but they have expanded to more stores. I told people at Airstream about our experience, but nothing changed. From what I read here, nothing has changed since.

[Iansk]

Originally Posted by overlander63

Adseal is the current recommended sealant for Airstream trailers, and is composed of silicone.

Knock yourself out but don't sell your trailer to me.

Haven't you ever had to remove silicone sealant from aluminum?
Surely I'm not the first source you've heard this from though if I am, please do more research on the matter.

Cheers,
Ian

[lsbrodsky]

Terry,

Although this might be a hijack, I have never been happy with the Airstream recommended sealants. There are so many better products, especially in the marine markets. I can live with silicone sealants inside but not the exterior. I would like to have a sealant last for the life of the trailer, but maybe that is unrealistic. I certainly never had any problem with 20 years of boat ownership and the sealants the manufacturer used, none of which were silicone.

Larry

[Rocinante]

These may be helpful threads regarding sealants that work well on Airstreams and where they serve best:

• https://www.airforums.com/forums/f45...ry-116214.html
• https://www.airforums.com/forums/f44...se-187616.html