We purchased a new 2015 r-pod 179 a couple of months ago froma local dealer and have used it on two camping trips. We are quite pleased withthe way the trailer tows and functions. It is comfortable and suits us well.There have been a few issues with the trailer, however, a couple of them due tothe design and others due to a lack of attention in the final assembly or inthe preparation by the dealer. I sent a version of what follows to both ourlocal dealer and directly to Forest River, but have not received a responsefrom either of them. I’m posting this message in the hopes that someone fromForest River sees it or in case it could help other new owners.

When I picked up the trailer, the dealer’s representativegave me a quick introduction to the features. I then towed the trailer aboutthree miles to my home and backed it into an enclosed RV shed where I store it.I plugged the power cord into a 110-v receptacle and found out that the batterywas not charging and most of the electrical equipment was not functioning. Idiscovered that two 40 amp fuses were blown, and once I replaced them,everything functioned properly. I have no way of knowing whether or not thetrailer came to the dealer that way, but the dealer’s preparation did not catchthe problem. That was my first indication that there might be some issues withthe trailer.

The next thing that I noticed was that the door into thetrailer opens against the running light on the fender. The door on the 179 isbehind the fender and if we are not careful or if a gust of wind catches thedoor, it will smash against the running light and break it. That is a designmistake and Forest River should fix it.

I appreciated receiving a list of the model and serialnumbers of the equipment in the trailer to make registering the warranteeseasier. The first item on my list was a Dometic air conditioner and when I wentto the Dometic website and attempted to register the item, the model number onthe list that I was given didn’t exist. I had to climb up on the top of thetrailer and open the cover on the air conditioner to find the actual modelnumber and serial number. That got me wondering about the accuracy of the othermodel and serial numbers on the list, and in fact one other model number wasincorrect and two other serial numbers were incorrect. The idea of giving thepurchaser a list of the numbers is a good one, but the numbers must be correctto be useful.

When we made up the bed in the trailer for the first time, Idiscovered that one of the two sheets of particle board that make up the basefor the mattress was warped up about two inches across one end. The installerattempted to pull the board down with a screw on one corner and instead pulledthe screw completely through the board and then just left it there. Theinstaller started another screw at the other corner of the warped end and leftit sticking up about an inch. The installer also left another screw sticking upabout an inch on one corner of the non-warped end of the board. The preparationperson at the dealer’s did not do anything about the warp or the improperlyinstalled screws. I’m surprised that the screws did not rip the mattress. Itwasn’t hard to flip the warped board over and install four screws properly atthe corners, but aggravating that I had to do it.

The trailer came with a Jensen JE1915 television mounted ona swing arm and mated with a Jensen AWM968 Mobile Audio System. That model televisionhas a very limited viewing angle and must be viewed almost straight on to bewatchable. The center of the television is mounted 64 inches above the floorand is fixed on the swing arm—it can’t be tilted up or down. Because of thelimited viewing angle, the television can’t be watched very well while sittingor lying on the bed. It can barely be watched from the sitting area in theslide out. We almost need to be standing to be able to see a clear picture.Either the swing arm should be mounted much lower—at the height of someonereclining in bed or sitting on the bench—or the television should be on aswivel so it can be tilted down.

The Jensen AWM968 Mobile Audio System will send a DVD videosignal to the television and play the DVD audio through its own speakers for areasonable watching and listening experience. I had to experiment with the twoextra cables that came with the units to find a way to play through the AWM968 theaudio portion of a program that is coming into the television from the rooftopantenna or the cable hookup. The audio speakers in the television itself are ofquite poor quality. Some instructions from Forest River or Jensen would havehelped.

When we made up the slide-out bench into a bed for the firsttime, we discovered that the table in its lowest position was about an inchhigher than the bottom of the bench, and thus the bed with all the cushions onit was very uneven. I had to take the four short legs off the bottom of thetable frame in order to get the two heights to match more closely. That seemslike a poor design.

While I was checking out the trailer closely for the firsttime, I discovered that the pressure manifold on the propane tank setup wasloose. It was held onto the frame with two small bolts and nuts and one set wasloose. The installer stripped out one of the two small bolts and just left itthere. It was easy to replace, but again aggravating to have to do it.

On our first trip out to test the trailer, I stopped forfuel after about an hour and then walked around the trailer to look for anyissues. I discovered that the spare tire frame was loose in the mount on thetrailer and the spare tire was flopping a bit. The main pin holding the frameinto the mount was somewhat loose and was only held in place by a clip at theend. A 1-inch by 3/8-inch bolt screwed into a nut that is spot welded onto themount is meant to lock the frame into the mount. That bolt had worked loose andthus the spare tire was moving around. When I attempted to tighten the boldwith a six-inch ratchet, the bolt twisted off easily as it was made of verysoft metal. I had to drill out the broken portion of the bolt that was still inthe nut and install a new, hardened bolt. Forest River should consider usingthe design that Yakima and Thule use for their bike racks. The main pin is threadedand screws into the frame for a very solid coupling, the bolt is secondary andonly needs to help stabilize the frame.

The faucet in the bathroom is mounted well above the sinkand to the right of center. The faucet has a pull to switch the shower on andoff, and doesn’t send out a contained stream when the shower is off. It isn’tpossible to run water out of the faucet at any pressure without splashing yourshoes and the floor. Mounting the faucet lower and more to the left would help,but a different design would be best.

I’ve used standard milk crates to carry camping supplies foryears. Those crates are 11 inches high, but the storage opening under the 179is 10 3/8 inches high and 34 1/4 inches long, an unusual size. My milk crates won’tfit. The storage area is the width of the trailer—about six feet. With only onesmall opening into the area, you have to crawl up into the space to get items outof the far size. Not a very user friendly design that could easily be improvedwith a larger opening.