Not impressed with Dutchmen

[64Zebra]

Had my 2021 300TQ two months…was sitting on the lot brand new, its listed as having the propane tank covers—we were told this one didn’t come with them, had to buy them; the bed is listed as a queen on the brochures….its not, its a short queen—I can’t lay out in my own bed in a $38,000 camper!
the back walk in door was found to be stuck in place on our first test run—had to take it in to replace the strike plate SINCE IT WAS TOO BIG for the door to operate; front door lock and handle broke—replaced under warranty; radio system bluetooth doesn’t work—supposed to have been ordered over a month ago—when we stopped by to purchase an accessory we inquired about the radio status—didn’t get ordered; the outside cover for the oven vent/fan blew off going down the road our first weekend trip, lost the shroud/cover, damper/flap, and screen….still waiting on them to be replaced; then just today when we stopped for gas I saw the door open on the outside shower—its gone….the hose and shower head obviously ripped off going down the road because the lock mechanism is complete crap; the electric tongue jack stopped working—we’ve taken it camping twice and it stops working—ZERO documentation came with the camper about the jack l, I contacted Bastion and they said it needs to be taken in….well…in the morning we’re taking it in and asking the dealer if this will qualify as a lemon and get is a new camper with our down payment applied towards the new one. I’m sick of this piece of crap and extremely disappointed. Ironically the day we left on what was supposed to be a fun family vacation we received a letter from Dutchmen with a survey on our new purchase….I’m staying up late to fill it out in full!

[ATCguy]

I feel your frustration… I really do. Although some of it could’ve been avoided with a proper PDI before you signed the papers, it’s well documented that quality control at the plants is lacking.

As for the Lemon Law… while I wish you good luck, it’s widely misunderstood. Unfortunately, as long as the dealer and/or manufacturer say they’re willing to repair the issues you have, it probably won’t qualify. You can use the SEARCH feature of this website to see where others have inquired about it… but to my knowledge, none have had success.

My advice is, if you feel you’ve truly been wronged… consult an attorney to see what real legal recourse you may have. In my experience, that’s the only time the dealer (who already has your money) will take you seriously.

[franktafl]

Tom has great points. I know that us telling you about the PDI stuff is locking the barn door after the horse ran away is something that will hurt but lessons-lessons-lessons! Consult an attorney and get him/her to send a letter to the dealership. That always helps. You may also want someone to follow you down the road to check out the coverings and roof reactions to the wind and look at the tires and tracking. By the way, consider replacing the tires whenever you can.

Do the search as tom recommend because your topic has been discussed in great detail on this site.

Good luck

Frank

[64Zebra]

Originally Posted by ATCguy

I feel your frustration… I really do. Although some of it could’ve been avoided with a proper PDI before you signed the papers, it’s well documented that quality control at the plants is lacking.

As for the Lemon Law… while I wish you good luck, it’s widely misunderstood. Unfortunately, as long as the dealer and/or manufacturer say they’re willing to repair the issues you have, it probably won’t qualify. You can use the SEARCH feature of this website to see where others have inquired about it… but to my knowledge, none have had success.

My advice is, if you feel you’ve truly been wronged… consult an attorney to see what real legal recourse you may have. In my experience, that’s the only time the dealer (who already has your money) will take you seriously.

Yeah I know what the lemon laws are here in Texas, I said that as more of a telling the dealer its a lemon on wheels
The real answer will be in the form of how they get all the fixed/replaced….which should be free….but I won’t bold my breath

[dsol]

Also, RV’s often have what they call a short queen or RV queen which of course they just call a queen.

I am not excusing the poor quality you are experiencing but it sounds like you might not have even inspected it before you took delivery. Did you even get a look inside the same model at the dealership before you decided on and purchased this one?

Again, not trying to be critical and like I said all the quality issues are completely unacceptable and on them but you likely won’t have much recourse on the bed length.

[64Zebra]

Originally Posted by dsol

Also, RV’s often have what they call a short queen or RV queen which of course they just call a queen.

I am not excusing the poor quality you are experiencing but it sounds like you might not have even inspected it before you took delivery. Did you even get a look inside the same model at the dealership before you decided on and purchased this one?

Again, not trying to be critical and like I said all the quality issues are completely unacceptable and on them but you likely won’t have much recourse on the bed length.

We were on the lot with it. Everything was attached. We were given a tour/run-through and told it was all checked out and ready to camp.

Yeah some RV builders do list them as short queens, and some Colemans list them as queen and some as short queen….ours said queen.

[ATCguy]

Originally Posted by 64Zebra

We were on the lot with it. Everything was attached. We were given a tour/run-through and told it was all checked out and ready to camp…..

Ok, not trying to rub salt in the wound, but just in case you decide to trade it in or get a different RV down the line… my PDI (pre-delivery inspection) lasted well over 6 hours with the salesman, and 2 of their techs. I didn’t rely on them to “tell me” anything. I wanted to SEE it.

I had them operate & verify every system on the rig was working as advertised, including connecting water, draining tanks, operating slide-outs, fill the propane tanks and operate the AC & furnace, the stove & oven, operate the auto-leveling system (including manually lowering & raising jacks), on-board generator, the TVs & surround sound home theater, etc, etc. I could go on, but you get the idea.

Bottom line is… I refused to sign the paperwork until after EVERYTHING was demo’d in front of me to my satisfaction. I’m sure the dealer didn’t count on paying his people for a lost half-day of other work… but they knew I was willing to walk away, and weren’t getting my money until I was satisfied.

And that’s what I mean when I say a “proper PDI”.

[64Zebra]

Originally Posted by ATCguy

Ok, not trying to rub salt in the wound, but just in case you decide to trade it in or get a different RV down the line… my PDI (pre-delivery inspection) lasted well over 6 hours with the salesman, and 2 of their techs. I didn’t rely on them to “tell me” anything. I wanted to SEE it.

I had them operate & verify every system on the rig was working as advertised, including connecting water, draining tanks, operating slide-outs, fill the propane tanks and operate the AC & furnace, the stove & oven, operate the auto-leveling system (including manually lowering & raising jacks), on-board generator, the TVs & surround sound home theater, etc, etc. I could go on, but you get the idea.

Bottom line is… I refused to sign the paperwork until after EVERYTHING was demo’d in front of me to my satisfaction. I’m sure the dealer didn’t count on paying his people for a lost half-day of other work… but they knew I was willing to walk away, and weren’t getting my money until I was satisfied.

And that’s what I mean when I say a “proper PDI”.

Good for you. Glad you were afforded that opportunity.
I guess I didn’t explain it well enough for everyone above….
We were shown how all appliances work, had them all on, slide-out works, furnace, fridge, fireplace, A/C all working, how everything connects, opens, etc. The radio was working. The things that have fallen off were attached. The bed was shown as a queen, not an RV queen or short queen.
All that said…the quality sucks. I let Dutchmen know that directly today.
Our dealer can’t get mine in to get things fixed/replaced until Aug 19th. You better believe they know we’re not happy.

I wasn’t aware of this site, the need for this site, or that Coleman campers were pieces of garbage during certain mfg periods.

[sundancer 87]

ALL CHECKED OUT, I left a dealership with a brand new 42 foot toy hauler that had been checked out too. I found a flat tire, one of six, due to a leaking wheel.
What they check is the amount and signature on your payment. The rest is up for grabs.

[persistent]

Yes, lots of similar experiences with post 2007 Dutchmen, Kodiak, Keystone, and Voltage. Many of us sympathize with you.

My Kodiak Cub took 3 years to reach advertised capabilities. It cost more than $3000 to fix it and only $400 was paid under warranty. I paid part. Dealer paid part. Things falling off both inside and out while driving decreased a lot after about 2 years. 4 years later I have something about to fall off again.

Now it is time to move on...

Sell it and spend more to get better odds of a good experience. I contacted multiple law firms both large and small. Most would not call back. All others refused to help.

A newspaper reporter was able to get help from the dealer in 48 hours. Dutchmen just ignored everything.