What's next?

[BusManRG]

After a long, sometimes frustrating, search we finally placed our order for a new Big Horn 3160el. The dealer sent me a text on June 15 that the order was at the factory!! So what's next? Should I expect any communication from the factory or dealer prior to delivery? Or will I just get a call one day saying, "It's here. Come and get it!", which will be tricky since we don't have a tow vehicle yet!!! Meanwhile our shopping list for supplies is growing like crazy. We traded our Jayco class C and hubby is shopping for new hoses, sewer stuff etc. We previously had a portable surge guard, but are considering a hard wired unit. Thoughts?

So excited for this! Now if we just had a truck to tow it

Sandy

 

[jbeletti]

Congrats on your order!

Your purchase relationship is with your dealer - not the factory. It's the dealer that is responsible for updating you. That said, some dealers are very communicative and some are not. Hard to say about your dealer. I suggest you call them today to thank them for the text and ask them at what intervals/milestones will you hear from them.

Typical milestones in the order/build cycle are:
- Order entered in Heartland's production system
- Unit scheduled in the system (planned online date)
- Planned offline date
- Unit is offline (production is done - not to paint if applicable)
- Unit is (back from paint and) at Dispatch, awaiting pickup by dealer or contract delivery company
- Unit is at dealership awaiting their PDI
- Unit is ready for pickup

This is not an official industry list, I just wrote it up based on experience.

 

[SNOKING]

One of the first things I did was install a Progressive Industries hardwired surge protector with the remote display. Chris

The remote is in the top right in this picture. I also installed a DC digital volt meter.

 

[Oregon_Camper]

Congrats!! We love our 3160EL. Feel free to ask questions. Grab a copy of my PDI document from my signature below. Will take you about 4 hours to complete....do all of the inspections before you sign/pay for the unit.

BTW...our 3160EL took about 8 weeks to build. It is almost harder then waiting for Christmas morning as a child.

 

[SNOKING]

BTW...our 3160EL took about 8 weeks to build. It is almost harder then waiting for Christmas morning as a child.

I have never ordered a trailer/car/truck or had a new house built, and in 72 years I have had quite a few of all of these. I just could not take the wait!

 

[For20hunter]

Congratulations Sandy on your Bighorn order! What an exciting time! Jim answered all your questions perfectly so I do not have much else to add other than reiterate what Oregon Camper said about doing the PDI. Insure you check EVERYTHING during the PDI and have them fix all of them before you sign the paperwork accepting delivering of your new rig. I hope you join the Heartland Owners Club and join us at some upcoming rallies. If you have ANY questions please feel free to ask.

Rod

 

[Bones]

it's funny I actually started out talking to Heartland Sales rep before I meet my Dealer sales guy. I ended up talking to both heartland and the dealership at the same time and they were talking to each other at the same time and that is how I ended up getting the unit I have now.

 

[Nabo]

Congratulations on your new "condo on wheels". Jim Beletti gave you a pretty good idea how things work normally but issues sometimes happen. As for a surge protector, we have had one on our last 4 coaches. The first 2 coaches were portable ones but we got tired of not knowing what's going on all the time with incoming voltage so the last 2 coaches we have had hard wired Progressive protectors with a digital display mounted inside the coach. Now we know if there might be a problem within the campground as far as incoming power and if it will effect our coach.

 

[BusManRG]

it's funny I actually started out talking to Heartland Sales rep before I meet my Dealer sales guy. I ended up talking to both heartland and the dealership at the same time and they were talking to each other at the same time and that is how I ended up getting the unit I have now.

Same with us! We started by calling Heartland and they put us in touch with the area sales rep. He gave us some suggestions on the unit and also encouraged us to buy locally for follow up reasons. After a couple of frustrating experiences we called him back. We ended up working with a new location and the Heartland rep concurrently. Worked out great!

- - - Updated - - -

I have never ordered a trailer/car/truck or had a new house built, and in 72 years I have had quite a few of all of these. I just could not take the wait!

We wanted the generator and a few other things that most dealers don't order for the lot, so a custom order just made sense. Just not cents

- - - Updated - - -

Congratulations on your new "condo on wheels". Jim Beletti gave you a pretty good idea how things work normally but issues sometimes happen. As for a surge protector, we have had one on our last 4 coaches. The first 2 coaches were portable ones but we got tired of not knowing what's going on all the time with incoming voltage so the last 2 coaches we have had hard wired Progressive protectors with a digital display mounted inside the coach. Now we know if there might be a problem within the campground as far as incoming power and if it will effect our coach.

Hubby is really handy and liked puttering on our old unit, but that interior mount looks tricky. Was it difficult? Is this something that's pretty easy for the weekend do-it-yourselfer to do?

 

[olcoon]

Yes it is fairly easy to install, just cramped quarters. My electrical knowledge consists of if you touch the wrong spot you get zapped...but where is the wrong spot?! I read the directions that came with it, read what they had on their website, and read whats on here about installing one. I think I might have even made 1 phone call to them. I installed it in less than a day, and the scary part was turning on the power. I was amazed...no smoking, no odd noises, and it worked! A couple of things I'd suggest it to mount it in an area where it won't have water dripping on it in case of a leak, and mount it off the floor in case of flooding due to a massive leak. Also, when I plugged in the converter after the installation, I used zip ties to keep the plug from vibrating/bouncing loose, as some people have had problems with it getting unplugged. I mounted the remote display in the same area as all the switches & other displays like SNOKING did.

BTW consider joining the club & attending some rallys. You'll meet a lot of great folks, and have a lot of fun!

 

[Nabo]

My hubby ain't handy so we had the dealership install ours. The display is mounted inside of the control panel area like what snoking posted above. I highly recommend a protector because not all campgrounds check and keep up their site posts so this is a great way to protect your coach.

 

[gasman]

I hardwired the Progressive Dynamics EMS behind the basement wall. I went with the remote display unit. I installed the remote display in the UDC compartment. My advice on supplies and accessories is to make a list of everything you think you might want to purchase and then prioritize the list. Don't try to purchase everything at once. This stuff can get very expensive. Unless you can get a great deal on a lower priority item, let it wait a bit. I would think the dealer should be able to get a build date in a couple of weeks. Most important...do a thorough PDI on your timetable, not theirs. Take your time, ask questions, make them show you how to operate everything, know what every switch is for, take lots of notes or maybe even video the PDI so you can refer to it later when your head quits spinning.

 

[JohnD]

After a long, sometimes frustrating, search we finally placed our order for a new Big Horn 3160el.

So excited for this! Now if we just had a truck to tow it

Sandy

Might want to get started on truck shopping!

 

[BusManRG]

Might want to get started on truck shopping!

Looks like a beautiful 2013 Ford F350 might be in our future! Previous owner ordered it loaded to pull his 5th wheel. It's perfect. Even has a pretty B&W Companion hitch mounted in the bed.

Sandy

 

[BusManRG]

Called the dealer to see if we could get a vin# yet and found out the factory is closed for the next couple of weeks. Bummer. Looks like it will be a while before we see our Big Horn. So on the bright side, my unit will be assembled by well rested employees....right? I'm sure they come back happy and ready to build the best quality rig ever...right? Any ideas as to what else happens during this down time? Any changes to the units or equipment?

Sandy

 

[danemayer]

Called the dealer to see if we could get a vin# yet and found out the factory is closed for the next couple of weeks. Bummer. Looks like it will be a while before we see our Big Horn. So on the bright side, my unit will be assembled by well rested employees....right? I'm sure they come back happy and ready to build the best quality rig ever...right? Any ideas as to what else happens during this down time? Any changes to the units or equipment?

Sandy

Maybe call Heartland Customer Service at 877-262-8032 / 574-262-8030.

 

[SNOKING]

Don't they take them all to Hawaii and have a big continous beach party? Chris