Repairs

[chad523]

THOR Ace 29.3....2 months and counting warranty repairs, no repairs done, and RV is unusable at this time, anyone else having problems getting warranty work done.

[axis earl]

Originally Posted by chad523

THOR Ace 29.3....2 months and counting warranty repairs, no repairs done, and RV is unusable at this time, anyone else having problems getting warranty work done.

Where is it?

[chad523]

Giant RV, California

[Bob Denman]

Mine's been in the shop here for a couple of weeks: no repairs completed as of yet...

But I'm nowhere near into this issue as deep as YOU are!
Good luck!

[chad523]

Thank you

[16ACE27]

Short answer to your problem? Yes. It is an industry wide problem; no quality control from the manufacturers has overwhelmed the dealers with warranty repairs, which unfortunately, take a backseat to PAID repairs as the warranty rate per hour is much less that their normal shop rate.

The only time dealers want to do warranty work is when the sale depends on it. They will make up a bucket of excuses and try to blame the manufacturer for delays in getting authorization or parts when in reality, they haven't even requested the authorization or parts.

Stay on top of the dealer: when he says the delay is the manufacturer, call the manufacturer to verify. The squeaky wheel normally gets the grease but it is a fine line between checking/verifying status and becoming a royal PITA.

[chad523]

Originally Posted by Tfryman

Short answer to your problem? Yes. It is an industry wide problem; no quality control from the manufacturers has overwhelmed the dealers with warranty repairs, which unfortunately, take a backseat to PAID repairs as the warranty rate per hour is much less that their normal shop rate.

The only time dealers want to do warranty work is when the sale depends on it. They will make up a bucket of excuses and try to blame the manufacturer for delays in getting authorization or parts when in reality, they haven't even requested the authorization or parts.

Stay on top of the dealer: when he says the delay is the manufacturer, call the manufacturer to verify. The squeaky wheel normally gets the grease but it is a fine line between checking/verifying status and becoming a royal PITA.

Thanks for information

[m1noel]

Our new Aria will have been in the shop (selling dealer) 4 weeks tomorrow for a list of minor issues. I'm quite sure I could have done everything on the list in a day. and would have if I wasn't to cheap to pay for a couple parts that are under warranty. One of the issues is a GFI that keeps tripping and is a known issue with my model. I told them to call the factory- there is a fix. After 2 weeks, I was told the work hadn't been approved by the factory yet and they couldn't fix the GFI problem, I would just have to keep resetting it. After 3 weeks I was told again Thor hadn't approved the work yet, so I called Thor. Thor had just that day received a request from the dealer for part of the work on the list, not even the complete list! I asked the customer service rep from Thor about the GFI, she knew exactly what the issue was and how to fix it. She called the service writer at the dealer and told them what they needed to order. Otherwise he wouldn't even make the call. The 2 people I have talked to at Thor have been knowledgeable and helpful. I totally blame the dealer for all of the delay. When I talked to them Friday, they still hadn't ordered the parts, and told me it generally takes 2-4 weeks even for small parts to arrive. I call B.S., but there really isn't anything I can do about it. By the way, there were a few things missing on my rig when I bought it. A month in, they kept telling me they were on the way, but didn't know when they would arrive. I called Thor, they had not even been ordered by the dealer. Thor overnighted them immediately. And these were things that required absolutely no labor from the dealer (3 remote controls, bunk ladder, and a vent cover).

[chad523]

THOR customer service told me not much they can do. Will see what they will do if I decide to lawyer up...4 months if payments an only 5 days of use...water leaks, clog sink, can't use shower on an on

[Travelin' Texans]

Warranty or not you're better off fixing it yourself, #1 you can do it a hell of a faster & #2 you will care much more of how it's fixed. Mine is 5 years old & I took it to the factory when it was 8-9 months old for a list of issues & was in & out in about 6 hours. It has never been to a dealer for repairs, I've done them all with reimbursement for Thor/Crossroads for any parts I paid out of pocket for. I guess I'm fortunate that I'm able to repair most anything, but my philosophy is if I can't fix it someone will earn their money fixing it after I've torn it apart.

[mash557]

I agree with TravelinTexas. I have done almost all the repair work on mine. Thor has been great with sending needed parts quickly and assisting with installation phone if needed. I've only made one trip to the dealer for repairs and wonder of wonder was in and out in 5 hrs. Of course that was only because I stayed and waited on it.

[Bob Denman]

Fixing it yourself is great... if you have the mechanical skills for it!
Since I don't: I'm left in the position of learning what I can about the rig, taking it to the dealer for repairs, and knowing when to ask the important questions.

[bigben]

chad523 - sorry for your issues. Recommendation is to find another repair shop. I'd make a call to Thor Warranty CSRs and get their help finding another dealer in your area to get the work done.

I am going to do a copy/paste here from another thread with a process we've used. It is not good that you must get this involved but unfortunately I don't see an alternative.

-After a small instance of what you have related above I figured out that you MUST be your own best advocate. I was a motor officer in a mech unit while serving in the US Army for more years than I care to think about and it is the process I used in there. It is sorta like Ronald Reagan said "trust but verify". Here is what I recommend:

"You must be your own best advocate with Consumer Service Reps. Start that process trying to understand what is wrong - note this not always what is broken - and then what needs to be done to repair. If you've got a local service center that can do the work, give them a call AND THEN CALL THOR CSR. If you cannot find someone that can do the work, GIVE THOR CSR A CALL. Most times they can help find someone to do the repair. Don't stop there. Find out from service exactly what it is, that is going to be repaired and ask the question about status of parts. Then call Thor CSRs to confirm the status of the repair to make sure the service center and Thor agree. Repair information like - when will parts be shipped, received, installed and finished. If you cannot get fairly specific info, chances are your repair is what the tech industry use to call "Vapor" - not really there.

Lots of horror stories on on-line forums of folks that leave their coach at repair for days, weeks, months only to not get repair done.

The process above is what we used and Thor always came through for us on everything from leveling system overall to blown out window."

Hope this helps.

[tnedator]

Originally Posted by m1noel

Our new Aria will have been in the shop (selling dealer) 4 weeks tomorrow for a list of minor issues. I'm quite sure I could have done everything on the list in a day. and would have if I wasn't to cheap to pay for a couple parts that are under warranty. One of the issues is a GFI that keeps tripping and is a known issue with my model. I told them to call the factory- there is a fix. After 2 weeks, I was told the work hadn't been approved by the factory yet and they couldn't fix the GFI problem, I would just have to keep resetting it. After 3 weeks I was told again Thor hadn't approved the work yet, so I called Thor. Thor had just that day received a request from the dealer for part of the work on the list, not even the complete list! I asked the customer service rep from Thor about the GFI, she knew exactly what the issue was and how to fix it. She called the service writer at the dealer and told them what they needed to order. Otherwise he wouldn't even make the call. The 2 people I have talked to at Thor have been knowledgeable and helpful. I totally blame the dealer for all of the delay. When I talked to them Friday, they still hadn't ordered the parts, and told me it generally takes 2-4 weeks even for small parts to arrive. I call B.S., but there really isn't anything I can do about it. By the way, there were a few things missing on my rig when I bought it. A month in, they kept telling me they were on the way, but didn't know when they would arrive. I called Thor, they had not even been ordered by the dealer. Thor overnighted them immediately. And these were things that required absolutely no labor from the dealer (3 remote controls, bunk ladder, and a vent cover).

Based on what I've read on here and IRV2, it seems that far too many dealers lie in this regard. Presumably because they are overwhelmed and possibly understaffed, so it's easier to just tell customers they are waiting on approval from manufacturer. The story of the dealer waiting on Thor and then a customer calling and finding that they haven't even contacted Thor seems to happen a lot.

I'm not sure I buy that even small parts take weeks. When I picked up my RV at MHSRV about six weeks ago, a decal was damaged. They said they would contact Thor to have it shipped to me. That was Friday. I spent the weekend at a local campground and took some RV driving lessons and then headed home on Monday.

I can't remember if when I got home Monday night, or if it was Tuesday, but one of those two days a box arrived from Thor with a replacement decal. It took either one or two days to arrive, shipped directly to me.

[bigben]

Spot on tnedator

[Budman]

Haven't had to deal with Thor on anything warranty as I purchased my unit used. But I can say when I called the 800 number people gave me part #'s almost immediate. Then I could order direct from a dealer and I already knew info and usually availability.
Worked in the coal business since 1973. Last 36 in purchasing and inventory. In these days and times worldwide parts can be obtained in less than 2 days, and usually shipped, thru customs, and in hand in less than a week. And I can't imagine anything Thor coming direct from too far away.
The oldest excuse in the world from service/maintenance is "we're waiting on parts"!!!! Thx, Dennis.

[chad523]

I paid for an RV that is a nightmare's, they can make it right an all will be good, if I have to fight them to get it done than I will, right is right. It's up to them to make it right

[Forest Grump]

Originally Posted by chad523

Giant RV, California

Good luck. I finally had Thor send me the parts and I fixed it. At the time they didn’t know what a desulfonator was, Thor did. They will not keep your batteries charged and with the OEM batteries when they drop into the 11v range the OEM converter will probably restore them. So when you go to pick it up make sure it is not plugged in and have them run a voltmeter across them. Try opening the slide.

Lawyering up is very expensive. Plugged sinks are easy to fix so are water leaks. I would learn how to fix them then you know. The more you know how to do the better off you are. I ha added my own batteries, desulfinator, inverter, sub panel etc. and that confused the hell out of them. Thor service people were very helpful. Giant said I voided the warranty but Thor said nope. They recommended a private Thor dealership near Hemet if worse came to worst. I put in a new slide controller and radio under their direction. Took a few minutes as I’m a microbiologist with poor mechanical skills.

I had Redlands RV and Truck do a front and rear alignment, track bars and summo springs.

[airforceret]

I disagree with the industry wide problem. My purchase from Krenek RV in Coloma Mi was stellar (Starcraft) and all warranty work was done without issue. My purchase from Ewings Outpost in Middlebury IN was stellar (Forest River) and all warranty work was done without issue. My purchase from Pete's RV in Schererville IN had a couple hiccups (Keystone) but overall they completed all warranty work and most of it in a reasonable amount of time. The one delay was fiberglass work that was outsourced and took longer than it really should. My purchase from Heart City in Elkhart was not that great but they are now defunct and out of business (karma). The manufacturer quickly stepped in and resolved all warranty issues (Starcraft). My Lance camper was one of the best factory experiences. They drop shipped parts at my door.

My last purchase from Tiara RV in Elkhart IN is pathetic (Thor). Neither the dealer or Thor is willing to work with me on outstanding issues unless I file a lawsuit against them and agree to give up camping for an undermined amount of time while in litigation. #ThorLacksIntegrity

[chad523]

Originally Posted by Forest Grump

Good luck. I finally had Thor send me the parts and I fixed it. At the time they didn’t know what a desulfonator was, Thor did. They will not keep your batteries charged and with the OEM batteries when they drop into the 11v range the OEM converter will probably restore them. So when you go to pick it up make sure it is not plugged in and have them run a voltmeter across them. Try opening the slide.

Lawyering up is very expensive. Plugged sinks are easy to fix so are water leaks. I would learn how to fix them then you know. The more you know how to do the better off you are. I ha added my own batteries, desulfinator, inverter, sub panel etc. and that confused the hell out of them. Thor service people were very helpful. Giant said I voided the warranty but Thor said nope. They recommended a private Thor dealership near Hemet if worse came to worst. I put in a new slide controller and radio under their direction. Took a few minutes as I’m a microbiologist with poor mechanical skills.

I had Redlands RV and Truck do a front and rear alignment, track bars and summo springs.

I can fix it all, but I paid for it, they will fix it, lawyers on retainer, not a problem