Dear Dave,
I wrote to you previously about the floor moving in the kitchen (the island) even when our dogs walked by it. (I couldn’t find the answer you provided in RV Travel to link to.) We already had the MORyde X-brace you recommended. It wasn’t until later that we discovered the problem. Our RV’s tanks fell out. The cross members were either badly welded (the one under the island and the other middle one) or not welded at all (the front and rear). It was a wonder they lasted as long as they did and we didn’t get in a bad wreck.
Unfortunately, when we called Dutchmen about this issue, the person who took our call said, “Your warranty is up in 60 days.” They would not speak to us. They would not respond to our certified mobile tech (who did work for them in the past—not on our RV but others). Plus, they would not respond to the dealership. I learned later from an RV Travel Newsletter that RV manufacturers don’t like to have warranty claims within the last 90 days of the warranty.
Traded at a loss
We patched her up and traded her at a loss. Even though I really wanted the belly cover removed before buying the RV we live in now, we have no intention of giving up the RV life. Despite this setback, we love working in state parks and seeing the great USA.
I have attached pictures. None of the tanks were attached, nor were the secondary straps attached (sitting on top of the tanks in a pile). These are the pictures that I have. My husband has many more, but you get the idea of how bad it was. —Elizabeth, 2022 Dutchmen Astoria 3173RLP
Dear Elizabeth,
I could not find an email about the soft floor by the island that you sent previously, just one from November 2022 about the rattle of the washing machine. My reply to that was to use the MORyde cross bar.
It is sad that you had to go through such a rough time and also unfortunate that you took a loss in the trade. But I’m glad you did not give up on the RV life! Was the affected unit the 2022 Dutchmen? If so, what brand and model did you just purchase?
I don’t know what article you are referring to regarding RV manufacturers not wanting to do warranty work in the last 90 days. However, I disagree with that information and have worked with many manufacturers over the years under those circumstances. I’m not saying that is true with all, but a good dealer would have taken care of it and gone to bat for you.
Time frame involved
You also did not indicate the time frame you were trying to get this resolved. If was during COVID, everything changed, unfortunately. Also, if it was the Dutchmen rig, I have heard some issues with Thor and especially discontinuing to work with mobile technicians that are not actual Thor dealers. [Dutchmen is a Thor company.]
As for pulling the underbelly off a new or used unit that you are looking to purchase, I doubt any dealer would be willing to go to the expense of that as it would most likely be 2–3 hours at $200+ per hour that they would not get paid for.
An endoscope helps locate hidden problems
Another option would be to use an endoscope camera that can be connected to your phone. These have a light to illuminate the dark underbelly. This one on Amazon has a rigid but bendable cable to allow you to “fish” it into hard-to-reach places.
With this, you could just pull down a small section of the underbelly material or cut a small hole and see most of the tank and brackets. You could then just patch it up with some sealant or EternaBond.
You might also enjoy this from Dave
Thor says my RV’s soft floor is normal, but it can’t be!
Dear Dave,
I have a 2017 Thor Synergy that we LOVE, but a year after the dealership delivered it, the floor in the living area started going soft. The unit was bought new. Repeated calls to Thor warranty assured that this was normal. No evidence of water damage. We live and travel in a very dry climate. We have lived with this for five years. Can the floor structure be replaced? —Bob, 2017 Thor Synergy
Dave Solberg is a leading expert in the RV industry and the author of the “RV Handbook.”
Read more from Dave here.
HAVE A QUESTION FOR DAVE?
Send your inquiries to him using the form below.
##RVDT2420
Once again, Thor comes up as a brand to avoid. When will they ever learn?
I agree with you Tom. Avoid Thor, like the plague! But if you are still under Warranty, you should fight to have them repair their defective Coach! That is why they do what they do, because they know there will always be people like Elizabeth, that will just roll over and play dead!
The Warranty has to be honored on the First Day, the last Day and any Days in between. If you allowed Thor to get away with this, shame on you. It is exactly for that reason that companies like Thor do what they do. Because they know there will be a percentage of people, still under warranty, that will not fight for what they have paid for! Until people begin to fight these tyrants, they will get shafted, just like you did!
Agreed. The paperwork when I bought my RV said “2 years”, not “2 years minus 60 days”. Any rep that said that to me would be getting an earful before my threat to sue for breech of contract. But we know they pull this stunt because they know that 90% of the time, the consumer will fold.
One needs to understand that many RV models manufactured under the conglomerate Thor will be built to minimum standards. If you are buying used, find out when or if Thor bought the manufacturer. Anything built before the Thor take over may have more mechanical integrity.
Thank you, Dave! 🙂 Well, refusing to honor a manufacturer’s warranty if there are only 60 days left means that Thor/Dutchman gives a 10-month warranty, not 12. Thus, another cautionary tale about including Thor companies when shopping for an RV. Yikes! 🤔😯 Thanks again, have a great weekend, safe travels, and safe stays! 🙂
Thor and Forest River…a pair of Jokers in a stacked deck. Find yourself an older Hitchhiker , Holiday Rambler or Newmar product in good shape and keep it forever.
Having a holding tank fall out while driving down the road could cause an accident. File a complaint with NHTSA and be sure to include name of dealer that refused to honor warrant. You might also contact your state Consumer Protection Dept concerning false advertising on length of warrant