Mike & Lisa Grondahl are fitness industry friends who have asked me to forward this link. If you know of anyone experiencing the same problem with Fleetwood RV contact Lisa.
http://www.rvsthatsuck.com/A secret you need to know before you do business with Fleetwood RV and Tom Johnson Camping Center of North Carolina.
When you purchase a pricey vehicle, which turns out to be a piece of crap, you might figure that it’s bad luck. One of those things. It can happen to anybody.
But when you get two lemons from the same manufacturer, and the same dealer, it’s a pattern. You are getting screwed.
That’s what happened to my family. We got screwed. Big time.
If you drive a Fleetwood RV, you better keep your fingers crossed. My husband and I owned a 2002 Fleetwood Discovery. It was a three-slider – a reliable vehicle – and a big part of our family life. Alas, with four young children, it was not quite big enough.
A year ago we made the decision to upgrade to a larger, 2004 American Eagle-model Fleetwood – a four-slider with just 3,000 miles on it. It was purchased from Tom Johnson Camping Center in North Carolina for $297,000.
Pretty good deal, right?
It sure seemed like it. That is until my husband tried to drive it from the dealership to our home in New Hampshire. The generator crapped out, the heater didn’t work – and after he finally arrived home with it, we noticed that the airbags in the suspension system were rotted.
Frustrated and angry, my husband headed out on the 900 mile, 15 hour drive back to Tom Johnson Camping Center. He was told that they would fix the problems and get back to us.
A week passed.
Then a couple more.
Then several more.
Finally, shortly before our planned trip to Florida for Thanksgiving week, Tom Johnson called and told us that the Fleetwood would not be ready in time for our vacation. A salesman suggested that we might want to upgrade to a new 2006, 43-foot Fleetwood. The price? $420,000. Reluctantly, we took the bait.
We traveled to Florida on our own, while a friend picked up the RV from Tom Johnson Camping Center and met up with us down there. We planned to camp for a few nights at a motocross event. The first night, the generator in the new 2006, 43-foot Fleetwood went kaput. Next, we discovered that the inverter was not working. Four kids. Two adults. No air conditioning. No television. No microwave. And, at night, absolutely no heat!
We called for service but were told that the repairs were not under warranty because the vehicle was still “drivable.”
Amazingly, we had to go through five transfer switches before Fleetwood determined that the vehicle’s electrical system was a complete mess and declared that it probably could not be fixed.
Frustrated, my husband asked Tom Johnson to take the vehicle back, but the dealership refused. We even offered to cover a portion of their loss. Again, they refused.
Unfortunately for them, we are do not quit.
Despite the fact that that the vehicle had been in and out of the shop a half-dozen times, and even though the dealership had nearly given up on fixing it – we powered up the generator, packed up the four children and one of their friends, and climbed aboard the RV From Hell for a July trip to Tennessee.
Just a few hours into our journey, on a New York highway, we were overwhelmed with the unmistakable smell of burning rubber. Moments later, while rumbling along at 75 miles per hour, everything in the Fleetwood suddenly shut down.
Lights.
Power steering.
Power brakes.
Everything.
We managed to navigate carefully from the far left passing lane, to the far right slow lane, to an exit ramp, and finally glided in to a park-and-ride. We called for help. Fleetwood assured us that they would send someone out. We spent the night.
The help that Fleetwood promised never arrived!
The following morning, we juiced up the generator once again and continued on down the road. Only 100 miles passed when everything shut down once again. This time, we made our way to a truck stop. We contacted Fleetwood once again, where they recommend that we get it rigged at a repair shop – where we waited 9 hours for repairs to be completed.
We eventually made it to Tennessee. On the way back home to New Hampshire, a friend volunteered to follow us in his pickup truck – just in case the power shut down in the Fleetwood again.
It did.
Fed up, we called Tom Johnson Camping Center and told them where to pickup their Fleetwood RV. We crammed into our friend’s pickup truck and made the long drive home. Finally, the trip, and the nightmare, ended.
Yet, we’re still paying the price. Neither Fleetwood, nor Tom Johnson Camping Center, will provide us with a refund. Tough luck, they tell us. Caveat Emptor.
Honestly, even if they offered us a replacement vehicle for free, I doubt that we would take it. When we think back to swerving across the highway, with five young children in the Fleetwood, we are reminded of what we really could have lost.
Sincerely,
Lisa Grondahl
We are organizing a class action lawsuit against Fleetwood. If your Fleetwood RV has had electrical problems, please email us at help.me@rvsthatsuck.com
