Grand Design what a disappointment

[Doodles]

Hello all,

We love the design and look of our Imagine but...

What to do when your new Imagine XLS 22MLE has major issues and Grand Design won't even reply?

One of the main reason we decided to buy a Grand Design was all the good things we had heard and seen about their quality and customer service. We have a growing list if issues with our Imagine, 2 are major problems:

1. Our roof membrane is loose and bulged/ballooned up in multiple spots. One section of the roof decking is not attached to the rafter.
2. The slide out has 2 big holes in the floor. We discover this issue after going down our 1st dirt road in Iowa(white dust!). The entire interior was covered in a thick layer of dust and this was our first trip!

Initially Grand Design replied to us, it took 3 weeks but they did get back to us. After going over the issues with them they requested photos. We sent them photos that day 2 weeks later they replied they never got them. We resent them again and also the a Google Photos share link if for some reason the photos attached to the email were not getting through, that was July 15th. We have not heard from them since. We have sent 20 emails requesting assistance asking why they are not replying, made multiple calls to them told the person we need to speak with is available only to get that persons voice mail.

We just recently watched YouTube video of a couple having issues with the new Grand Design 5th wheel and Grand Design flew a tech out to Alaska and fixed all their issues and even gave them some money! We can't get a reply to an email or voice mail???

Here are some photos of the slide out problem. The inside photos are with the slide all the way out and the photo of the underside are with the slide closed:

https://photos.app.goo.gl/Bdo61gSZukh6hVS87

It would be nice to no why Grand Design will not communicate with us...

[minnow101]

What is your dealer doing to rectify these issues?

[sande005]

Not to make excuses, but...it seems like all manufacturers of outdoor related items are getting slammed. Had similar issues with two highly rated other companies (not RV related). Between the unprecedented increase in new sales, covid abscensces, and working from home, their customer service areas are overwhelmed.

A) Talk/take it in to your dealer, which is the preferred way to get warranty service (calling Grand Design directly is usually reserved for when the dealer is the problem). That should have been your first step.
B) Join the GD4Life Facebook group, and see if a post there can get you in contact with the now three people that monitor social media.
C) Do the same using the resource available from Grand Designs own forum.

Like it or not, this forum is no longer monitored by Grand Design, so while there is a ton of excellent support available here, there is nothing "official" to help you get through.

[SGT ROC]

Not to make excuses, but...it seems like all manufacturers of outdoor related items are getting slammed. Had similar issues with two highly rated other companies (not RV related). Between the unprecedented increase in new sales, covid abscensces, and working from home, their customer service areas are overwhelmed.

A) Talk/take it in to your dealer, which is the preferred way to get warranty service (calling Grand Design directly is usually reserved for when the dealer is the problem). That should have been your first step.
B) Join the GD4Life Facebook group, and see if a post there can get you in contact with the now three people that monitor social media.
C) Do the same using the resource available from Grand Designs own forum.

Like it or not, this forum is no longer monitored by Grand Design, so while there is a ton of excellent support available here, there is nothing "official" to help you get through.

I agree - go through your dealer first. Having said that, my rig has been out of date for months, yet I got an email back today from Grand Design confirming that I will receive a part I need at no cost to me. I do hope you can get this resolved to your benefit!

[GeoffnCheri]

Welcome to the forum. I agree with giving the dealer the first right of refusal. Escalate to GD via the channels mentioned above.

[Timmer]

Agree with above. But I would add that if your dealer isn't helping, call GD directly during business hours.

[sande005]

And due to the high call volumes, try the call back option...

And, rather than keep trying the same person over and over, ask for the next available. You may have to restate your issues. Hopefully somewhere along the line you either got a case number, or they can see some prior notes linked to the VIN of your trailer, which would help reduce the repetition of your issues.

Or, since you apparently get someone on the phone when you do call, politely but firmly ask for a customer service supervisor/manager or 2nd level of support, citing as your reason the number of emails/messages that have not been responded to.

[Doodles]

Thanks for all suggestions.

To be clear we were talking directly with GD via email and phone, it was after they got the requested photos that they stopped replying and returning our calls. The voice mails were left after calling during business hours and GD transferring us to the person that was helping us.

As for the dealer they are great on sales but service not so much. This is the 2nd trailer we have purchased from them the first one had numerous issues that we took back to them and it's the same story you have heard before. Every single time we have used them to fix/repair an issue with a travel trailer it has turned into a nightmare. They never start work on the unit when scheduled or they are always missing a part that they are waiting on. When you get the “repaired” unit back either it wasn’t fixed or it looks like a 5 year old did the work or they broke something and claim they didn’t notice. The first day we had our Imagine home we hooked up water and power so we could test everything. After a while we noticed a small puddle of water in the pass through at the docking station we could hear dripping water coming from behind the hook up panel. Called the dealer they had us bring back in, they had it for 3 weeks finally called us said it was ready and it was just a loose fitting on the outside shower hook up. We got it home and set it back up and planned to have dinner and sleep in it to make sure everything was good. After we had dinner we were watching TV from the "theater seating", we got up to go to bed only to get wet feet. It turns out that the service tech over tightened the fitting and cracked it. The water had flooded the entire pass through and made it all the way to the fridge before we noticed it. We did contact the dealer again about the flooding however they told us it would be a month before they could get it in again. That was the last straw for us when it came to allowing dealers to fix our trailer.

Sorry for the long winded story, I just wanted for you to understand our decision to contacted GD directly. We explained our experiences with dealer repairs to them and they were very understanding and said they would be more than happy to help us if we were going to fix it ourselves the GD rep that was helping us emailed us and said: "Please provide a photo of each part needed and a brief description and I can send at no charge." at that point we were very pleased with how GD was handling our issues. After we sent them all the photos is when we were no longer able to get a reply from the rep or ANYONE at GD.

[dryfly]

I'm kinda surprised you would buy from the dealer a second time when you knew they provided unsatisfactory service? With that said, call GD and wait on the phone until someone answers. It may take 15 minutes, but someone will answer. I'd probably avoid calling on Mondays or first thing in the morning.

I've called twice in the past month and spoke with customer service reps and got immediate attention.

You do not have to speak to a specific person. They keep all issues you call about in their computer notes. Make certain they give you a "Case Number" to refer to, then anyone can open the notes and tell you why you are not getting results. Be proactive and if you do not hear from them call back within a reasonable time. They will help you.

[Riverrunner]

It took me about a week to finally get in contact with GD. No reply to email, but a phone call got results which took a couple days. Once on the phone I was able to get a reference number. I talked to our dealer but they were backed up 6 weeks and bringing it to them isn't an option. The next issue is getting a mobile repair shop to return calls and such. Those guys are slammed. Two weeks of phone/email tag and finally gave up on the guy and called someone else. I'll be interested to see how it's handled if I can get someone to work on it.

Issue one is with the refer, it won't light when in gas mode. The other and bigger issue is it appears the nose cap is separating from the body on one side.