I originally started to title this thread "Buyer Beware" but we should already know that. With that qualification let me begin by saying I am a bit disgruntled right now so take the following with that in mind.
We purchased our Landmark 365 Key West in August, taking possession of it on 13 August 2015. We did what we thought to be a complete PDI check working off several different work-sheets. We still missed some things as was previously posted. We used the coach for one 'shake-down weekend' and then for a couple of football tailgates but the longest trip was less than 30 miles.( However, it is 150 miles from the dealer to home.) However, the first week in October we took a trip to New Mexico that resulted in 1500 plus round-trip miles being put on the coach. During this trip we discovered several quality control and material issues. The following list is just some of them.
Interior doors will not stay shut -- the door width (the hole itself) is cut too large for the door and the door latch just barely hits the strike plate. Dealer installed three small washers per screw to move the strike plates out when we had the refrigerator moved so that it would open completely (an earlier post.). The door framing itself is properly installed. The bathroom door now has a hole in it from the bedroom door handle hitting it while we were traveling.
Off-Door slide (kitchen and entertainment center) - LARGE holes with daylight visible at both the front and back lower corner, that is the bottom and side seals do not fully seal at these junction points leaving openings, one the size of a folder dollar bill, the other just a tiny bit smaller. Front of this same slide does not seal completely (outside of slide was two inches out. Additionally the rear portion of the slide was tearing the carpet apart as it opened and closed. Fibers of the rug are being pulled out. Heartland authorized a mobile repair tech to adjust the slide while we were in New Mexico but he could not adjust it all the way in because the residential refrigerator hit the island
) Result, when driving back from New Mexico we hit heavy rain; carpet at the back saturated with water; kitchen floor had large puddle of water that had gone across and wet the carpet on the other side of the coach. The slide now makes a horrific squealing sound when it extends; we found that at least one of the long white rollers is damaged.
Bedroom bed side slide apparently doesn't seal completely - rain water saturated the carpet on that side of the coach as well. From the outside, and looking at the seals with slide extended and fully in, all look to be in good shape and the slide is in completely.
Finally, the ornamental faux wood on the ceiling in the main coach fell down while we enjoyed this nations finest roads (I-70 and I-25). Damaged the ceiling fan and the fascia over the TV, not to mention whatever damage to the ceiling itself. I would wager that there are a hundred very thin brads that are less than 1/4 inch long in the pieces that fell. No adhesive and a few longer brads in the 16 or so foot length that fell.
When we got back I did a video covering all of the above, plus more (I actually started it before we left, adding to it during the trip, and then took some more video of things upon return home.) I submitted the video with a very long email to Heartland's Landmark Customer Care who looked at it and replied that everything is considered field reparable and to take it to my dealer. I called them, got the correct email address and then provided (emailed) them the same video and the original email with Heartland's reply (actually several additional queries and replies as well).
They, the dealer, in turn sent to whole thing back to Heartland ( ) and got the same answer back but from a different customer service rep. So, now a month later I have an appointment to take the coach in the day after Thanksgiving so that they can 'verify' everything, take pictures to get per-authorization, and then get the parts ordered. Was told it would be there for three to four weeks. Spoke with them earlier today and asked -- Aren't the Heartland shops closed for Christmas (yes - two weeks); oops, that will delay everything a bit. Ok, early January. Nope - the dealer is taking two weeks off to prep everything for the big Winter RV show. (one week to clean / prep / deliver and set up everything; one week for the show.) So now we have the coach down for two months minimum. So much for using it to take a trip to New Mexico to see family during the holidays.
Many others have posted about quality control and service support. I have no doubt but that my dealer can handle the seals but the manager stated again today that he does not touch the slides, especially since the coach has full-paint and the graphics won't line up afterwards. Paraphrasing him - the factory would make sure the slides were properly adjusted before they painted it! Well, in my mind a properly adjusted slide does not rip out the carpet - it didn't on my two previous SOBs (lower end models at that) so why would a top-of-the-line coach do so? No answer.
Sorry for the rant. Do I feel better? Not one bit. All I can say, and hope, is that others have better luck with their coaches. The wife and I will see what the New Year brings - nothing else we can do at this stage.
We purchased our Landmark 365 Key West in August, taking possession of it on 13 August 2015. We did what we thought to be a complete PDI check working off several different work-sheets. We still missed some things as was previously posted. We used the coach for one 'shake-down weekend' and then for a couple of football tailgates but the longest trip was less than 30 miles.( However, it is 150 miles from the dealer to home.) However, the first week in October we took a trip to New Mexico that resulted in 1500 plus round-trip miles being put on the coach. During this trip we discovered several quality control and material issues. The following list is just some of them.
Interior doors will not stay shut -- the door width (the hole itself) is cut too large for the door and the door latch just barely hits the strike plate. Dealer installed three small washers per screw to move the strike plates out when we had the refrigerator moved so that it would open completely (an earlier post.). The door framing itself is properly installed. The bathroom door now has a hole in it from the bedroom door handle hitting it while we were traveling.
Off-Door slide (kitchen and entertainment center) - LARGE holes with daylight visible at both the front and back lower corner, that is the bottom and side seals do not fully seal at these junction points leaving openings, one the size of a folder dollar bill, the other just a tiny bit smaller. Front of this same slide does not seal completely (outside of slide was two inches out. Additionally the rear portion of the slide was tearing the carpet apart as it opened and closed. Fibers of the rug are being pulled out. Heartland authorized a mobile repair tech to adjust the slide while we were in New Mexico but he could not adjust it all the way in because the residential refrigerator hit the island
) Result, when driving back from New Mexico we hit heavy rain; carpet at the back saturated with water; kitchen floor had large puddle of water that had gone across and wet the carpet on the other side of the coach. The slide now makes a horrific squealing sound when it extends; we found that at least one of the long white rollers is damaged.Bedroom bed side slide apparently doesn't seal completely - rain water saturated the carpet on that side of the coach as well. From the outside, and looking at the seals with slide extended and fully in, all look to be in good shape and the slide is in completely.
Finally, the ornamental faux wood on the ceiling in the main coach fell down while we enjoyed this nations finest roads (I-70 and I-25). Damaged the ceiling fan and the fascia over the TV, not to mention whatever damage to the ceiling itself. I would wager that there are a hundred very thin brads that are less than 1/4 inch long in the pieces that fell. No adhesive and a few longer brads in the 16 or so foot length that fell.
When we got back I did a video covering all of the above, plus more (I actually started it before we left, adding to it during the trip, and then took some more video of things upon return home.) I submitted the video with a very long email to Heartland's Landmark Customer Care who looked at it and replied that everything is considered field reparable and to take it to my dealer. I called them, got the correct email address and then provided (emailed) them the same video and the original email with Heartland's reply (actually several additional queries and replies as well).
They, the dealer, in turn sent to whole thing back to Heartland (
) and got the same answer back but from a different customer service rep. So, now a month later I have an appointment to take the coach in the day after Thanksgiving so that they can 'verify' everything, take pictures to get per-authorization, and then get the parts ordered. Was told it would be there for three to four weeks. Spoke with them earlier today and asked -- Aren't the Heartland shops closed for Christmas (yes - two weeks); oops, that will delay everything a bit. Ok, early January. Nope - the dealer is taking two weeks off to prep everything for the big Winter RV show. (one week to clean / prep / deliver and set up everything; one week for the show.) So now we have the coach down for two months minimum. So much for using it to take a trip to New Mexico to see family during the holidays.Many others have posted about quality control and service support. I have no doubt but that my dealer can handle the seals but the manager stated again today that he does not touch the slides, especially since the coach has full-paint and the graphics won't line up afterwards. Paraphrasing him - the factory would make sure the slides were properly adjusted before they painted it! Well, in my mind a properly adjusted slide does not rip out the carpet - it didn't on my two previous SOBs (lower end models at that) so why would a top-of-the-line coach do so? No answer.
Sorry for the rant. Do I feel better? Not one bit. All I can say, and hope, is that others have better luck with their coaches. The wife and I will see what the New Year brings - nothing else we can do at this stage.
