2016 - 180 Issues - Event Date: 21 Aug 2016

Originally posted by rdbedford The difference between me and you is that I hold the manufacture to a much higher standard than the RV Dealer. The RV dealer is not sh*t as far as I’m concerned and has nothing to do with the quality of the product. Their only purpose is to F**K you out of your money when they sell it, and then again when they repair it!

And that grasshopper, is where you are wrong. I do care, and I too think it should be better, but I live in the real world. Have a new house built sometime.. TT issues are pretty minor, in comparison, and we had the top builder in the state build ours. I had 3 pages of issues after the first week in our house.


All the hand wringing in the world won't change the truth of how RV dealers and manufacturers operate. JUST like a car dealer, when new units come in, and before they go out to the new owners, a PDI checklist is supposed to be done, completed and the new owner shown how all the buttons work etc.

If it isn't.. well.. we all know how that can work out.

Well, many Home builders are just like RV Manufactures and Dealers…rating and words mean little. I guess the builder forgot the PDI checklist before cashing your check, but I’m sure he provided some great excuses to pacify you! I designed and built the 3000+ square foot brick home that we live in now, and did 95% of the work; framing, roofing, hardwood, tile, drywall, HVAC, trim, paint, brick, electrical, plumbing, door & windows, and kitchen cabinets. None of this has given me the grief that this 2016 R-pod has.

I retired from a fortune 500 Company after 40 years of designing, installing, programming, and troubleshooting complex control systems for multi-million dollar machines. So, it’s not my first rodeo, I have had my share of complex problems to deal with, but solving with excuses was never an option for me. I guess I’m not geared for sales.

Originally posted by rdbedford Well, many Home builders are just like RV Manufactures and Dealers…rating and words mean little. I guess the builder forgot the PDI checklist before cashing your check, but I’m sure he provided some great excuses to pacify you! I designed and built the 3000+ square foot brick home that we live in now, and did 95% of the work; framing, roofing, hardwood, tile, drywall, HVAC, trim, paint, brick, electrical, plumbing, door & windows, and kitchen cabinets. None of this has given me the grief that this 2016 R-pod has.

You should not expect an Airstream at the price point of your R-Pod. Given the above statement, it sounds like you would not have been happy even in one of them. You already have building experience. Why not build your own so you can be happy with it as well? If you just want to complain and attack those who wish to help, it is your choice. If you want to try to solve some of the issues you have, then this forum can give you the information which you can use to do so.

My 2016 R-Pod isn't perfect. It has been to the dealer for warranty work more than once since we purchased it last December. I will be taking it there again in a couple of weeks to get the strip that covers the screw heads replaced as it is cracking. That will be the end of the warranty work as I did not get the extended warranty. I have made a number of modifications to address shortcomings in design and construction that make ouR escaPOD much better. I did not complain here. I just got my tools out and figured out how I could make our 'Pod better. This forum has been a great resource.

If you are in the initial period and can get the Forest River extended warranty, yes. Purchasing a dealer add-on warranty, no. Forest River only charges $99.00. The dealer's warranty is much more from what others have said. My thought is that any really significant issue should show up in the first year. In any case, some of the modifications I have made, such as the window I put in the door, void parts of the warranty anyway, so I would not be able to count on Forest River covering those items anyway. Most of the issues I have had have been relatively minor. I have taken care of a number of small fit and finish issues myself as it would have been more trouble than it would have been worth to tow the R-Pod to our dealer's location over 2 hours away. It was faster and cheaper (given gas and other costs) to fix them myself.

I was not terribly handy with tools either at one time. However, by doing things, you gain experience and confidence. Don't start with something big. Start with something small and easy. It will feel good to look at it and know that you did it yourself.

I had read the threads. I am not arguing that you do not have legitimate issues. Forest River can and will take care of these. However, when you come in and start using language (even with letters blanked out with asterisks) that is not family friendly and accuse Forest River of only trying to rip off the people purchasing these trailers, what am I to think? Give Forest River a chance to make it right. The Airstream analogy is appropriate if one thinks that paying thousands more for a camping trailer will ensure that it does not have any quality problems. I am sure that Forest River could go over these with a fine-tooth comb as they come off the assembly line and find these problems. However, I would not like to pay double what I did for our trailer in order for it to be "perfect."

Furpod said essentially the same thing. If you have not alienated your dealer, he/she should be assisting you in getting these issues resolved. My dealer has been great at getting the issues I have had with my R-Pod fixed. I could wish that there were no issues, but there were. They were not as serious as the ones you have had with your 180. Some of the issues you have should have been found by the dealer and you should not have been sold that particular 180 unless all issues had been resolved prior to you taking delivery.

Many years ago, I worked for Uniflite building cabin cruisers. I did fiberglass work, carpeting, wallpapering, and wood finishing. My work had to pass a QC inspection before the boat could be delivered to its new owner. It was not fun to have to go back in and grind off fiberglass that had slipped or otherwise not stuck properly and re-do it, but it had to be done. I will agree with you that Forest River should do a better job of QC before shipping these pods. Right now, it seems like there is s cursory QC and then the dealer is the final QC before the 'pod is delivered to the customer. If the dealer does not do the PDI and if the dealer fails to take the time to go through the R-Pod with the customer, that is, unfortunately, not Forest River's fault. As has been pointed out in this forum, the dealers are not owned by Forest River. Each one is independent. That is why the "bargain" price on an R-Pod is not always the least expensive option if the "bargain" means that the dealer basically abandons the purchaser after the R-Pod is delivered.

Issues I have had that I fixed myself:
- Panel under refrigerator fell off. Only held on by 3 screws into aluminum frame. Reattached with anchors. I will probably put a hinge on it eventually.

- Trim under dinette seat fell off at one end. I reattached.

- rubber seal (rounded, not flat) along side of slide-out falling out. I repaired.

- kitchen cabinet drawer slide attached so as to make the drawer not square with the cabinet. I fixed.

- loose plumbing on kitchen sink drain which ruined two cookbooks. I tightened and found other plumbing connections loose also which I also fixed. This also includes the black water line vacuum break/check valve which was leaking while being used.

- outside shower fittings with supply lines brought up and bent to attach. Reattached with elbows to keep lines from kinking

- Tank support crossmembers not adequately attached to the frame. I drilled and used bolts to ensure that I would never have the problem of a tank falling off while going down the road. This was after a trip to the dealer where the screws were just tightened and one added when the mechanic stripped one of them. That is when I decided to use bolts and do it myself.

- replace sealant around kitchen window where the RTV sealant had gaps and showed evidence of peeling loose, likely due to inadequate surface preparation. Also tightened screws which were loose.

- remove and replace sealant around spoiler. Removed to check that wires were adequately sealed and found that the sealant had failed in some areas and that the screws themselves had not been sealed. The wires turned out to have been sealed well.

- replace porch light fixture (needed because I messed up the first one trying to replace the incandescent bulb with the wrong type of LED bulb) Discovered that the installer had stripped a screw and just drilled a third hole and used a third screw.

- sealed outside outlet where the anchors were not holding anything and the outlet was loose.

- Other modifications that address shortcomings of R-Pod design and/or implementation as detailed in my mods.

Items repaired by the dealer under warranty by Forest River:

- replace refrigerator burner components (I am not sure which ones) burned when the flame was blocked by a wasp nest and was not discovered prior to delivery. This was discovered when we tried to use the gas part a week after delivery in December when wasps were not active.

- replace kitchen drawer slide which was missing the cap to keep the ball bearings from falling out. This likely happened when the dealer adjusted the drawer at delivery.

- replace fender near the door which was scratched by someone opening the door too far. I called Forest River and suggested they add a bumper. The newest R-Pod 179s (and 180s also I would think) now have a bumper to protect the fender. The hinge removed the need for a catch to keep the door open, but did not prevent the door from being opened wide enough to hit the fender.

- tighten all tank support crossmembers (see above).

- seal around water heater opening where a gap was allowing water to drain behind the outside wall when water heater anode rod was removed.

- replace convection-microwave

- to be done soon: replace strip covering screw heads in corner rail.

My RP-179 is not perfect, but I am satisfied that I got a camping trailer at a price I could afford. I had originally wanted to get something like a Scamp or Casita, but after I got scammed on what I thought was a deal to purchase a used one, I am very happy I found the R-Pod. It is something I can tow with our Ford Escape which would not be able to tow one like a Lance or even the copycat model from Winnebago (weighs more than our 179). When we can afford to upgrade tow vehicles, I would like to upgrade to a 4-season capable camping trailer. Until then, I am quite satisfied with ouR escaPOD.

I hope that Forest River repairs your 180 and that you will be satisfied with it.