In this column, we summarize some of your emails and comments regarding RV service centers and repairs (we asked you to submit your stories here). We’ll tell you all: the best, the good, the bad and the ugly. At the end of this article, you’ll find a place to submit your own comments. I encourage you to do so.
Keep in mind, we typically only present one side of the story in most of these. Also, any remarks about service centers and mobile techs mentioned are the opinions of our readers and not necessarily RVtravel.com.
Here’s what you had to say:
Loyalty matters
Mike M. wrote about about how important loyalty is. He says, “Preparing to leave on a trip to OBX the following day, the right rear leaf springs (all three leaves) on our Grand Design Explorer 21RB broke off just behind the rear axle. We called our go-to (Bill’s) garage and asked if they could look at our trailer… they said to bring it out. After an evaluation and measuring the springs, they called a local trailer dealer with four on hand. Pat, Bill’s Garage owner, said if I could go get the springs his men would install them right away. Back at the garage, two mechanics disassembled the right and left springs and were waiting for the parts when we returned. Start to finish was 2.5 hours and the bill was $100 for the springs and $155 for the labor. Both mechanics and Pat got a nice tip and my appreciation. Loyalty is important and will sometimes save your bacon. An auto garage may be a better choice than an RV dealer. We left on the trip as planned.”
Reader asks, “How to find mobile RV techs?”
Stephen M. wants to find a good mobile tech and asks our readers for their advice, He says, “Is there a ‘registry’ of nationwide mobile techs? How do I go about finding one? It would be great if there was such a thing, especially with a rating system. The only one I’ve located in my area, SW Michigan just North of Elkhart (yes, I know), was very unresponsive and non-committal.”
Editors note: We have had good luck calling RV parks and dealer service centers for mobile techs they recommend. Also found one by Googling, “Mobile RV tech near me”.
Please leave your comments for Stephen below.
Blatantly sloppy and shoddy repairs
Jackie B. has spent two-and-a-half years and $6,000 on repairs poorly done. “My 2022 Reflection 341RDS had a refrigerator mounting issue on our maiden voyage (bought it new Dec 2021) before we ever slept in it. The damage it caused led us down the road of 2.5 years of RV repairs (fridge, slide, countertop, microwave, table, chairs and floor). We spent more than $6,000 (tolls, gas, and lost wages) taking it back to the dealership for repairs that were done shoddy and blatantly sloppy (molding replaced upside down, shorting the slide cap, replacing molding wrong and impeding the recliner from reclining, using sheet metal screws to secure recliner to the floor with no spacers… etc.).
“This July we moved into our 5th wheel as full-timers, thinking everything was good to go, and after three weeks the fridge quit working. We called them and requested to bring the fridge to a dealer we trusted but it would be in October (we were a few states away). They agreed—we got an appointment that suited us and they did the necessary testing as per the manufacturer. We had to stay in a hotel for one night because the testing was extensive. We had results and the manufacturer representative stated we needed a new fridge but they would not honor the warranty.
“After numerous calls back and forth, they finally agreed to replace the fridge with a new one (no new warranty on the new fridge though). I called Grand Design to see if we could make an appointment at their facility in the future to prevent all of the service issues. They said, ‘Only if your problem is severe.’ If it is not severe, then only if they can fit you in. During all of this, we were unable to get a mobile tech to come to us as there were none in our area.”
Dealer service out two months. Mobile tech came next day
William G. needed a new slide topper and fireplace but couldn’t get an appointment for months. He wrote, “This summer traveling in Washington state I needed new Greystone fireplace and slide topper for my 2015 Outback 5th wheel. I called multiple dealers with RV repair and was told I couldn’t even get an appointment for two months. Mobile tech came out the next day and had a new slide topper awning cut and installed. I ordered a fireplace from Amazon. Got it in two days and installed it in an hour myself.”
“Can get four technicians on the problem right now!” Wow!
Jim T. had amazing service from their dealer. He reports, “This is a positive experience concerning MHSRV at Alvarado, Texas. We bought a 2022 Berkshire motorhome at this dealership in April 2022. First of all, they gave me a great deal on the trade-in and the purchase of the MH. The service manager said we should have the roof inspected annually. We pass through this area in the spring and fall on our way down to and back from South Texas. I called them two days before we would be passing through there and asked if we could get the roof inspected. We got an appointment for 3 p.m. When I got there, I told them I thought the roof had a leak at the front of the coach. And yes, it looked like there were some cracks in the seam.
“I asked when I could get it taken care of. To my surprise, the technician said they could get four technicians on it right now. Then I added that I also have the fabric for the dual pitch awning (which Carefree of Colorado provided) that needed to be replaced. In five minutes, Mike, the service technician, came back and said they would be able to get it done with three or four technicians working together in about two hours. WOW!!!! And then they added that I shouldn’t drive on the road for at least one hour. I was able to stay overnight in their service camping area. I was totally surprised. Mike the service technician ran the entire repair project. With the help of Abby, everything’s going 100% the way I hoped it would. It was spectacular, to say the least!!!”
Don’t purchase anything newer than 2008
Bill S. bought an older RV and is happy that he did. He emailed us: “We bought our first RV in 2016. However, we started searching for new and used RVs in 2014. We looked at everything from teardrops to 5th wheels. We settled on a 2000 model Tioga Class C. This RV is so stinking solid. I noticed back in 2014 that new RV quality was just sad. Flimsy walls and ceilings. Our first RV, we had a budget. There was nothing suitable new or used within our budget. $10,000. The Tioga was over budget but it was also the best we were able to find anywhere near our budget. $19,000 was asking. We got a much better deal than that but it was still over budget. We looked and looked and what we decided is that we would NOT purchase any RV manufactured after 2008. Strictly based on build quality!! I would still advise people to purchase pre-2008. Manufacturers are understaffed, under-trained and over-worked. 2008!!”
No fun at Fun Town
Glen W. wonders if there had been a party in their RV. He said, “It was no fun at Fun Town RV of Cleburne, TX. Dropped off our new camper for service. It was in the shop for 3 to 4 months. When we picked it up we found an unknown pink substance all around the inside of the camper. There was also a beer can and lighter under the sink. The dealership could not explain what the substance was or where the beer can and lighter came from, but promised that no one had a party in the camper while it was in for service.”
Editor’s note
Note from RVtravel.com: If hiring a mobile tech, a small or mega service center, make sure that they are experienced in the issue and have insurance in case something goes wrong. Also, check their warranty policy on the work they perform. Check reviews too and read between the lines—if the review sounds way too good to be true it might be. Compare with several reviews and not just the ones on their website.
Questions for you about RV service
We’ll continue to share stories of your RV service experiences. We want to know:
- Have you had good luck with great service or not so much?
- Did you get good service from knowledgeable technicians?
- Are you waiting to get into a service center or have a mobile tech come out?
- What has been the average time to get an appointment?
- Has your RV been in a service center for a while?
- Are you able to get any mobile techs to come out?
- Are the service centers able to get parts?
- When you do get the repairs done, is the price reasonable?
Please fill out the form below and tell us what your experiences have been like. It can be a horror story, an opinion about what’s going on, a positive experience, or anything else related to the topic. We want to know the great, the good, the bad, and the ugly!
Check back next week for more on RV service centers. See you then.
I signed up for this newsletter at
rvtechnewsletter.com
Yesterday I had a problem with my slide out and called in the morning. The gentleman came out to me around four in the afternoon and got it fixed! It lists techs from all states.
Thank you!
Thanks! Just signed up. This looks like a fine resource at first glance.
Buy nothing built during the COVID scare.
Our dealer-Stoltzfus RV and Marine, West Chester, Pa.- was recently bought by General RV. For over 20 years they have had our backs and stood behind the 4 units-2 TT and 2 MH- we bought from them. So far all the employees have stayed and the great service continues. Loyalty does still make a difference. Hope this remains with the new owners.
These are 2 sites where you can locate mobile techs. The first one is for finding an rv inspector (but they may also be willing to do repair work). The map shows “certified” and “master certified”. Find them at: https://nrvia.org/locate/
The second site is a locator for mobile techs. Again, there is a map that shows “registered”, “certified”, and “master certified”. Find them at: https://rvtaa.org/locate/
NRVIA.org has a locater app to find inspectors, some inspectors are also technicians.
I was looking at the NRVIA list of three inspectors in Washington State. Poor information on the site. As a retired Quality Inspection Leader, inspector and temporary supervisor. I was disappointed. From the lack of information they would not have made the best qualified list yet an interview. Seems like they rely on the NRVIA certification, but having had up to 40 inspectors working for me. I need more information on their experience.
The other thing is there aren’t any reviews on the NRVIA inspectors. I also remember some who complained on some sites they didn’t feel it was worth what they paid. Which goes back to my experience and understanding of some inspectors in the performance of their job.
https://rvtaa.org/locate/ Is another source for Certified RV Techs by location.
Does this list only include techs who have received their training at the school in Athens?
No, it also includes other certification programs.
Build quality is not so much age-related as it is builder-related. I can relate to the person above who suggests 2008 Is a turnkey year for build quality. Back then there were more family-owned businesses constructing and servicing RV’s. They took pride in their product. Unfortunately many have since been bought out by conglomerates. And conglomerates never let pride stand in the way of profit.
Kudos to your comment about corporate greed. America has really went downhill because of the greed.
Bemoaning corporate greed is common and often noted. Just wonder how many of us are stock holders or mutual fund holders that benefit from corporate greed in the form of dividends?
Any time I’ve needed a mobile tech the first place I ask is the RV park I’m in. They know who does the best work in the area, if someone doesn’t do good work I’m sure the park management will hear about one way or the other.
rvservicereviews.com used to be the go to site for locating service techs until updates were blocked a couple years ago. I have no idea why this site was blocked and have had no luck getting anyone to explain to me why it was blocked. It is accessible and still one of the best resources for RVers. It didn’t take any advertisers and you didn’t have to buy a slot to be included. If anyone knows why it can not be updated I would sure like to know.
Hi, rag. I just Googled rvservicereviews.com and clicked on it. The website comes up and at the bottom it says “Page last updated on 11/26/23.” So I’m not quite sure what you’re referring to. Sorry. Have a good afternoon/evening. 😀 –Diane at RVtravel.com
yes Ma’am it does all that. Now, do me a favor and try to leave a comment. I have tried numerous times and never had one post after 2019. If you are successful let me know and I will try another server.
Thanks for the further explanation, Robert. I just went to their website and clicked on the place where it said to tell about your experiences, but on that page with the form to submit reviews it says: “Important! If no actual service was performed please do not submit the review. We only publish reviews where actual work has been performed. Reviews submitted where no service was performed will be deleted.” So, I’m not even going to try, since I don’t have a valid review to submit. Maybe you could try writing to the webmaster: admin@RVServiceReviews.com . It says you can write there “For problems or suggestions.” Good luck! Sorry I can’t help. Have a good night, Robert. 😀 –Diane at RVtravel.com
Thanks for checking with them. I have tried to write several reviews over the past couple of years and none have been posted. Emailed customer support over a year ago and was told site would be operational again soon. Guess “soon” means different things to different people! Thought maybe, with your huge subscriber base, y’all might have more impact with them than I.
Thank you, Nanci! Safe travels!
Any place where large numbers of rv’ers congregate will be a great place to get good references for mobile tech places. Ask those people for references. More than likely only one or two outfits get positive comments.