Anyone have success in Airstream taking back a lemon?

[hhendrix]

Originally Posted by AWCHIEF

Sounds like a good excuse to visit Jackson Center. Give them a call, politely discuss the issues you are having and make an appointment. The repair facility is staffed by very experienced techs with access to a huge data base of even more experience. I doubt that there are any problems that they have not seen and successfully repaired.

Really? With all due respect, telling someone to take a 4,500 mile roundtrip for a $100,000.00 plus brand new Airstream to fix a warranty problem is a good idea? For that kind of money, Jackson Center should send a tech to fix the trailer and train the staff who couldn't.
Other advice here is good. Call AS and get referred to another dealer with better trained staff or specialists.

Is it me or do we seem to be seeing a lost more problems with newer trailers?

[hhendrix]

Originally Posted by Maryelia

Could someone explain the terms "rivet master", "supporting member", "2 rivets, "4 rivets", etc.Who assigns the terms and where does one do this? Are these people who have worked for AS or are mechanics, or some such? I am intrigued.

To answer both questions, rivets have to do with your number of posts. It has nothing to do with expertise.

"Supporting Member" is someone sees the value of information provided here and who contributes $20 a year to support the site. Some members feel the contribution of their "wisdom and experience" is more than enough to compensate.

[369goose]

Ditto, call Airstream direct, and yes, everything on an Airstream is repairable!

We also had issues with our new FC and Tampa RV was absolutely no help after the sale and dragged the situation out. We were not as patient as you in that there was no way we would've waited so long. Anyway, fInally contacted Airstream and they sent two very, very, qualified service techs out to us!

It was a beautiful thing to see each issue resolved in short order as soon as the experienced tech was assigned to the job.

Very Happy Campers now

[jcanavera]

FYI, if you noticed the post #17, this thread has been picked up by Dave Schumann. He's a recently retired big wig at Airstream. I forget his position but it was service related.. I wouldn't be surprised if some wheels will be turning tomorrow to start getting your issue resolved. Dave's a long time employee and a good guy. http://www.airstream.com/thank-you-dave-schumann/

Jack

[Drathaar]

Originally Posted by Maryelia

Could someone explain the terms "rivet master", "supporting member", "2 rivets, "4 rivets", etc.Who assigns the terms and where does one do this? Are these people who have worked for AS or are mechanics, or some such? I am intrigued.

From the number of posts, not expertise, although there could be considerable expertise there.

[Wolf Alaska]

Not unusual to have post-delivery defects in any product. Good after sale support is essential. A well cared for RV can be less trouble than a new one. The original owner got everything fixed !

My new trailer had a shower leak that had to be. fixed twice. Once by the selling dealer, & again, after the repaired shower leaked before we left the lot. So the dealer fixed it twice. Actually, tried to fix once, then did on the second try. Oh, there were some other items, but those were done on the first try.
Some causes are difficult to find & access may make the fix very difficult. These type of repairs are only possible by a very few number of highly talented RV technicians. I hope Jackson Center will send its experts to your location if the other repair attempts continue to fail.
Let's Roll !
Wolf

[Drathaar]

With respect to the lemon question, Google Magnusson Moss. This is the federal law on the subject.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magn...s_Warranty_Act

[dfschultz]

California Lemon Law - Statewide Attorneys, check this website, it describes the California Lemon Law, and it does apply to RV's. It appears you have to take the vehicle in at least 4 times for the same problem. Good luck, hope they can get your problem resolved.

[TomKirk]

You need to handle this issue face-to-face with the dealer principal. Phone calls and emails just don't get the job done.

A dealer with integrity will always do the right thing and take the lemon back or take it as trade for something else. This is not unusual. Neither is it rocket science.

BTW - You must never be intimidated by the dealer.

It's not like this happens every day. But over the course of my auto dealership career, I've actually seen this quite frequently. But you hafta let the dealer know you mean business. And it'll take a face-to-face meeting to get that process started.

BTW - You should also contact the Airstream dealer service representative. Get him on your side and he will work with you.

Be sure to document everything.

Tom

[time2play]

I just have to share an experience we had. Not with a water leak, but with the Sony media player. We've had been experiencing problems with it and every time we took it to the dealer to repair under warranty they could never recreate the problem. So they never fixed it.

Finally decided to replace the darn thing and took it to a local audio company. When they started to take out the old unit to put the new unit in, they found the problem. Loose wire or something. Anyway, we opted to have them fix it instead of replacing it. They charged us $100 for the work.

Later I called Airstream Factory, told my story and they promptly sent us a $100 check.

I totally second the recommendation to call the Factory directly. At least get the issue documented. I truly do believe they stand behind their 2-year warranty 100%.

[CRH]

Originally Posted by hhendrix

Really? With all due respect, telling someone to take a 4,500 mile roundtrip for a $100,000.00 plus brand new Airstream to fix a warranty problem is a good idea? For that kind of money, Jackson Center should send a tech to fix the trailer and train the staff who couldn't.
Other advice here is good. Call AS and get referred to another dealer with better trained staff or specialists.

Is it me or do we seem to be seeing a lost more problems with newer trailers?

Thank you for saying what I was thinking.

[m.hony]

I went through the same thought process when I first took delivery of my trailer. I talked to everyone at Airstream up to Dave Schuman (now retired) who told me that after the bugs were worked out I would love the trailer and get many years enjoyment out of it. They gave me a $100 gift certificate to spend in the Airstream online store, after the dealer had already bought my lunch, filled my truck up with gas, gave me an Equal-i-zer hitch, MaxxAir fan cover, tire covers, awning lights, screen cocers for the furnace and water heater. Turns out, Dave was right. We took the trailer to Jackson Center. They fixed everything to better than production. We have never had anymore trouble.
Thing is, none of the 60+ items on the punch list kept me from camping in the trailer every night. We had an sob trailer before that when something broke, we lost the use of the trailer for 2 weeks.
Try getting all the problems fixed and see if you can start your Airstream adventure.

[mefly2]

Sorry to hear of your issues. We have been down that road as well. However, we found the factory to be very responsive to our water leakage and they sent appropriate parts / compensation to effect a repair locally. As well, we found the owners and service department to be superb at AS Adv NW in Seattle (Covington). I would suggest that you remain calm and try another service department ... where you are may already be alienated due to your repeated frustrations ... it is unlikely that you have wood rot at this early stage ... warp and mold potential with discoloration - yes; but actual wood rot no. It is, indeed, truly frustrating when spending that kind of $$$ but it can and should be repairable. It seems like it is a technician training issue at the factory for most of the complaints on newer AS models - not a defect in materials. Stay calm and it is likely that the factory will stand behind dealer repairs.

We have a 7 hour drive to our selling dealer; so, much of our "hit" list of repairs have been done locally... and not by the local AS dealer!

[BFamily]

Originally Posted by hhendrix

Really? With all due respect, telling someone to take a 4,500 mile roundtrip for a $100,000.00 plus brand new Airstream to fix a warranty problem is a good idea? For that kind of money, Jackson Center should send a tech to fix the trailer and train the staff who couldn't.
Other advice here is good. Call AS and get referred to another dealer with better trained staff or specialists.

Is it me or do we seem to be seeing a lost more problems with newer trailers?

Thank you for your response!

[BFamily]

Originally Posted by m.hony

I went through the same thought process when I first took delivery of my trailer. I talked to everyone at Airstream up to Dave Schuman (now retired) who told me that after the bugs were worked out I would love the trailer and get many years enjoyment out of it. They gave me a $100 gift certificate to spend in the Airstream online store, after the dealer had already bought my lunch, filled my truck up with gas, gave me an Equal-i-zer hitch, MaxxAir fan cover, tire covers, awning lights, screen cocers for the furnace and water heater. Turns out, Dave was right. We took the trailer to Jackson Center. They fixed everything to better than production. We have never had anymore trouble.
Thing is, none of the 60+ items on the punch list kept me from camping in the trailer every night. We had an sob trailer before that when something broke, we lost the use of the trailer for 2 weeks.
Try getting all the problems fixed and see if you can start your Airstream adventure.

Thank you for your response.
Sounds like your dealer tried to make it right and Airstream took an active role in getting your issues resolved!
That gives me hope.
Our service and dealer NEVER so much as offer to buy us a soda.

[m.hony]

Keep in constant contact with Chris Burch and Randy McNally at Airstream, detailing a running list of all problems with descriptions and photos via email and telephone. They are eager to please.
Is going to,Jackson Center a possibility for you? After our visit to the Airstream service center, no one else will ever service my trailer. Yes, they are that good.
For me, the closest dealers are 5-6 hours away. You have to leave the trailer for 2 weeks. 10-12 hours to drop it off. Another 10-12 hours to pick it up. Jackson Center is 12 hours away and we can camp in the trailer every night in the Terraport. 20-24 hours and 2 weeks without the trailer to a dealer or 24 hours to Jackson Center and camp in the trailer every night? Hmm...

[BFamily]

Originally Posted by m.hony

I went through the same thought process when I first took delivery of my trailer. I talked to everyone at Airstream up to Dave Schuman (now retired) who told me that after the bugs were worked out I would love the trailer and get many years enjoyment out of it. They gave me a $100 gift certificate to spend in the Airstream online store, after the dealer had already bought my lunch, filled my truck up with gas, gave me an Equal-i-zer hitch, MaxxAir fan cover, tire covers, awning lights, screen cocers for the furnace and water heater. Turns out, Dave was right. We took the trailer to Jackson Center. They fixed everything to better than production. We have never had anymore trouble.
Thing is, none of the 60+ items on the punch list kept me from camping in the trailer every night. We had an sob trailer before that when something broke, we lost the use of the trailer for 2 weeks.
Try getting all the problems fixed and see if you can start your Airstream adventure.

Thank you for your response.
Sounds like your dealer tried to make it right and Airstream took an active role in getting your issues resolved!
That gives me hope.
Our service and dealer NEVER so much as offer to buy us a soda.

[BFamily]

Well, we spoke to D@@ at Ohio and were told we have 2 options.
1. Take it back and see if it happens again and then they will send a local technition out to our camp ground to check it out!!!!
Hym, take it out, go camping, and when/if the water leaks again, sit on it, and wait for a “local technition,” to come to our location and check it out.....
2. Leave it at the dealer and sue for Breach of Contract.


They refused to send a factory technition out to dealer They refused to tow it back to Ohio.
A possible cause of our water issues is that the original leak from the cracked toilet, caused water to collect in the vertical lines and so it is residual........

Wow, prospective buyers take note.
This is a brand new 2015 $101K unit that has water intrusion.

[Gsmblue]

Not acceptable. I am aghast.... Sorry for you troubles

[xrvr]

I suggest you do what they optioned. They did say they would send out a tech, correct? if necessary. Why not do this? Jim