My new WC

We just picked up our new 282RK. We love the looks and layout. During the transfer of our stuff from our old 97 Jayco we found a number of things that are concerning and disappointing.
1. All along the edges of the rubber roof there is a continuous bulge as if when installed they didn't pull the roof tight and/or didn't glue the edges down. Has anyone else seen this and what should be done?

2. The under belly is only fastened around the edges and looks to me like it will stretch and flop when being towed. From what I read in the posts this is a common problem.

3. The cabinetry looks great when we looked at it. We found one cabinet that was not finished inside, Cabinets over the sink have no shelves or dividers. Staple indention not filled.

The dealer we bought from is 130 miles away so taking it back will be a pain. I can fix the cabinets and install bracing under the underbelly. The roof really concerns me.

Most of all I am extremely disappointed that Forest River would produce such a product with such apparent lack of quality control on a product that has a so called MSRP of over $40K. We haven't had it on a trip yet so who knows what will happen when we actually use it.

I hate to be so negative on a product that looks so good.

TerryG

Terry,
Make a list of everything that concerns you. Take your trailer on a weekend trip and test everything - furnace, water heater, stove top, oven, microwave, electrical outlets - EVERYTHING you can think of. Then, if necessary, add things to your list. Best thing to do would be to take it to your dealer.

I don't know if you would have to take the trailer to a Wildcat dealer. Explore possibility of taking it to another Forest River dealer, if you have one nearby. I don't know if they can do Wildcat warranty work, but it's worth making some inquiries.

Before you do any repairs/changes on your own, make sure that anything you do won't void your warranty.

Regarding the underbelly. After a few trips, Scruffy decided something had to be done to make it more secure. He saw a mod that someone else did, and modified it. I think the one he saw used flat metal, and Scruffy was concerned that the flat metal would cut into the underbelly - so he used conduit. The underbelly has been discussed in the DIY or Maintenance/Repairs forum recently. You could try a search or scroll down and read titles. The easiest way to see how Scruffy did this would be to click on the Picasso link in our signature.

Our cabinet over the sink didn't have shelves or dividers - that was one of the mods Scruffy did, and it's in the Picasso album.

Could you post a photo of your roof bulge? Could it be an overlap of materials?

Tater

As far as your roof bulging, our current Wildcat does not do that, but our old TT did. I think the first time I noticed it was about a year or so after we bought it. In the 5 years we had it, it never caused us any problems. I'm not saying it is right or may not cause problems, just that we never had any.

I agree with Tater though. And don't forget to test the water pump.

As Tater said test everything, this is the only way to find faults.
Did you see the unit before your purchase, or was it brought in special for you. If you are not a happy bunny now you need to act now before you just accept things as they are, as you have already said the money they want for these units you want it right first time, not to keep traveling back and forth to a dealership to get it up to the standard that you would expect. Keep us all posted on what happens next.

I have some pic's. What is the best way to post?

Here is a link on how to post pictures.
http://www.wildcatcamperforum.com/t2358-pictorial-instructions-for-posting-photos-using-servimgcom?highlight=posting+pitures
Sean

Wow, Sean! You're quick. I'd just like to add that after posting the pic, you will probably get a mysterious message in your e-mail thanking you for joining, and click a certain link to activate your account - something like that. At least that's what happened to me, and I didn't have a clue what they were talking about, so I deleted it. Got a second chance, though when I posted another pic, that time I realized who they were.

I don't know if it even matters if you join or not, but I've gone into servimg and deleted some pics that I did twice.

Tater

If you didn't buy the second year warranty through the dealer , go back and get it quick. I think you have 30 days maybe to purchase it. I doubt the dealer told you about it. But its a second year warranty through FR for really cheap. little over a 100 bucks I think.

Here is another one I don't understand

Yup...that's what it looked like on my old Skamper TT. Like I said, never had any issues. I have some that looks like your second picture on this Wildcat. But it does not seem to affect anything.

That second picture looks like there is a expansion joint in the plywood under the rubber but it looks awful wide and doesn't seem to change any with temp changes. I has gone from 70 to 30 degrees in two days.

My roof looks like your first photo. Never have had an issue with it and mine is an 06 model.

Good, makes me feel better.
Thanks

Here's a pic of the roof on our 28 RKBS taken just after delivery in 2007. The roof has never been a problem.



The underbelly of your trailer is OK too. The material will neither stretch nor flop. Our trailer has been to the Rocky Mountains in the west to the white sand beaches of Florida to the east and we've never had a problem. Here's a photo of the underbelly on my Wildcat. The photo was taken near the fresh water drain at the rear of the trailer. While the underbelly might not look neat in appearance, the sloppy look is pretty much normal.



There aren't any shelves in our cabinetry in the kitchen either. As far as I've seen, the RK models never did have shelves in these cabinets. Here's a photo of the cabinet over the kitchen sink where the trailer weight sticker is located.

I was hoping that would be the case. What about the second pic? I looks like the two sheets of plywood are not butted togather.
Thanks for the response.

Thanks for everybody's response. I've also talked to some other people that have different brands and they all have things same things. I guess spending that much for a 5th wheel and reading some of the post on roof problems just made me nervous.

I'm over it now, I took pictures and will keep an eye on it. The cabinets I can work with, I was just venting. We do love the look and layout of the 282RK and can't wait to use it.

Thanks again.

I've always told myself that I would install some extra shelves in the kitchen cabinets but I'm usually too busy having fun to mess with them.

Don't forget, your roof has a 12 year warranty from Forest River. Also, the first time you have your slideout extended in a heavy rain check for any water leaking into the trailer, expecially the hard to get to area behind the couch.

That is what will happen to me. I always have big ideas and being on this forum just adds to the list of mods. Thanks for the help.

No shelves in 2006. Back of clock needed to be painted. They did lots of filling on many staples in the wrong place. Not much has changed since 2006. Also in 2006 the TV cab for mine is dif from the 29. Real pain. Mine came with the 2nd year warranty free.

My roof looks the same as Richard Mondavi's. Mine was also made in 2007.
Sean

My roof looks the same as Richard Mondavi's also, and mine is a 2010...

Admin wrote:If you didn't buy the second year warranty through the dealer , go back and get it quick. I think you have 30 days maybe to purchase it. I doubt the dealer told you about it. But its a second year warranty through FR for really cheap. little over a 100 bucks I think.

I just to Rod at Forest River and got the 1 year ext warrenty for $150. Thanks for the tip.

We haven't had the 282 out yet but are enjoying getting the Wildcat ready to go toward the end of the month. I did find two problems that are going to need attention. Both slides may need adjusting. The main slide doesn't seem to go out all the way. When fully extended it sets in about 4" and acts like it is free floating. When you set on the couch you can feel the slide move. The bedroom slide acts like it jumps a couple of cogs before engaging. The good news is that the local Wildcat dealer here in OKC will take care of our warranty work saving us a 300 mile round trip.

We are really enjoying this forum, lots of good info. We are getting ready to add a Mor/ride pin box and rear view camera.
Thanks
TerryG