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:
Camping World has always come to the aid of this Evangelist
Cliff T. has had good service from Camping World and writes to us about it. “I have been living in RVs now for 20 years. I travel full-time as an Evangelist. I have had to buy my RVs in different places, mostly due to road wear. (As they wore out, I bought another one where I could.) I have had each one repaired at some point and I have used independent shops who treated me well.
“But when it came to major damage, like blown tire damage, I have been able to get it to Camping World. The greatest choice I ever made in traveling was to join their membership. I have taken three different rigs into Camping World, Las Vegas, and I can HIGHLY recommend their service guys. They have ALWAYS helped me. They are very helpful in getting me in quickly as I NEED my house for my work. And if there is a mix-up from the ‘supply chain,’ they are always on it right away, getting it back up and running as timely as they can.”
Excellent service from Discount Tire
Mike M. writes to us about the great service and response from Discount Tire. He says, “A tip about Discount Tire. Needing a tire repair for a slow leak on our GD 21RB, I went to their shop in Sequim, WA. The service was excellent. Three men responded, jacked up the trailer, removed the tire, took it inside the shop, removed, patched and plugged the tire. It was remounted only to find out the rim was bent and would not balance. They removed the spare and exchanged the tires, re-balanced, and put the tire back on the trailer. Checked the pressure in all the tires and coated them with ‘shine’. I asked the young man at the register for a bill and he said Discount Tire has a ‘no-charge policy’ for fixing flats. All of the men got $20 for lunch and my many thanks.”
Saga of unrelenting repairs and issues
Joanne B. tells of the continuing issues resolved and unresolved with their truck camper. “We purchased a 2022 Palomino slide-in truck camper. Right from the first use, we had problems. First, the refrigerator did not work. Camping World got us right in and it needed a new control board.
“A month later, it was installed and it worked! For 2 and 1/2 days! Long story short, after a couple more months, the dealership was just going to get us a new refrigerator. When they went to remove ours, it was discovered that the factory had not cut the insulation from the vent. So, that problem was solved. We had trouble with both tail lights and the door wouldn’t stay shut.
“We used it four times (three were weekends) and headed out West. A little over a week into our journey, the black water tank started to leak. So here we are, 2,000 miles from home, and no toilet that is usable. When we got home two weeks later, the dealership replaced the tank and the entire floor of our camper.
“We had owned the camper eight months and it had been in the shop about a third of that time. Well, things finally worked as they should, so off we go to Arizona again and less than a week into our journey, the gray water tank starts to leak! Now we are out of warranty. Needless to say, we were not happy!
“At this time, the manufacturer is helping to pay for parts and we may get some help from the dealership as well, but we have been without a camper for over a month so far.
We disassembled the bathroom ourselves and realized that the manufacturer never fastened either tank down. The only thing holding them in place was just plumbing fittings. There is a 2 x 3-inch sticker on the bottom of each tank that specifies what to use and how to fasten it down, but no one ever did that. I have heard people call our camper a ‘Covid camper’ because quality control was even worse than it usually was during that time.
“The dealership has been very helpful and the manufacturer has tried to work with us since it is a year out of warranty, but what a hassle this whole thing has been!! And it is not resolved yet!!!! Now they are having trouble finding and deciding what parts are needed!!!”
Amazing RV Freightliner service center
On a personal note, it is not often that I can write absolute rave reviews about an RV Service Center, but Truck Centers, Inc. in Morton, Illinois, is one of the few. We have been traveling for two months and have been hearing a popping noise under the front driver’s side for a lot longer than that. It was getting worse, so it was time to find an RV repair shop that could handle a Freightliner chassis and check it out. …
I wrote a whole story about our experience with them. Read about it here.
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.
Last week’s Service Centers and Repairs Report:
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Re: Camping World, it seems the service you receive depends on management and location. You read Camping World this and that, will never go back or do business with them again, then get Cliff T’s comment highly recommending their service guys. Go figure, lol!
Most Camping Worlds are now franchises. Camping World doesn’t manage them, they just charge franchise fees for using the name and the big flag. If the dealer had good service before becoming a Camping World, they probably still do. If they were bad before, they undoubtedly still are. Marcus used to pay attention, then he became a TV star and it grew too big with too much emphasis on sales to maintain quality.
We use an independent truck shop for our chasis repairs and only go back to our selling dealer out of desperation. Why? Our long time dealer- and independent- got bought out by one of the national “behemouths” and their service rate went up $100.00 per hour and their parts prices jumped 100 %.
Thank you, Nanci! Safe travels! 🙂
I would not even take my dog in to camping world to have its anal glands squeezed!