Tow it yourself to Elkhart - don't rely on a transport company

[ajg617]

I wish I had taken a picture of the nose when the transport company returned the RV mid-January. I finally got outside to start cleaning the nose of the trailer today. Between my bad back and snow/ice/freezing weather I just haven’t had the chance to wash it down the way I wanted to though I did get a power wash in. When the trailer arrived in January, it was a mess with the salt spray and a lot of black mud. I was able to get most of that off with a quick power wash while it was still snow covered but today when I had a look at the nose cap, I counted about 75 locations where the gelcoat on the cap had been hit and was chipped. That was just from the trim under the LEDs down onto the gray paint area - still have to get the ladder out to check out the decals that I know were replaced at the factory. I had maybe two or three chips when it went out to Elkhart. There was some kind of black mud on both sides of the filon and stretching back on the sides. All three pads on the door side were filled with loose pieces of rusted steel from some unknown source. Spent the first two days trying to recover my LiFePO4s which were dead when the transport driver picked it up. In the teens when he dropped it and batteries wouldn't charge, heaters weren't heating. Then snow and ice the day I got that fixed - covered until early April. Couldn't see the chips in the cap until I started to seriously clean it. I have no idea what the transport driver drove on, but it wasn't I-90 for some distance.

 

[Soundsailor]

You deserve a change in luck, John, hope at least all of the issues with the trailer have been fixed.

 

[Scott'n'Wendy]

Not sure what lesson this trailer is trying to teach you...but damn it's a tough teacher.
KCCO John.

 

[ajg617]

You deserve a change in luck, John, hope at least all of the issues with the trailer have been fixed.

Thanks Stephen - guess we'll find out at some point!

 

[ajg617]

Not sure what lesson this trailer is trying to teach you...but damn it's a tough teacher.
KCCO John.

Might be payback - not one single issue with the old TT. But, I'm looking at it from the positive side. Probably the most solid 310GKR on the planet now - at least until I tow it somewhere - haven't been able to this year yet.

Only a little paint right???

 

[WhittleBurner]

I sure hope this is the last of stuff this trailer has thrown at you.. you have earned trouble free travel from here on out!

 

[ajg617]

I sure hope this is the last of stuff this trailer has thrown at you.. you have earned trouble free travel from here on out!

On a warmer day in early March, this is after power washing. Seems that when transport tows, it is to/from their dirt yard (my guess is it was muddy in January) then to/from the factory so who knows what got thrown up in their yard. After initial clean, you can't tell much from a distance. But up close, looks like it has 100K miles on it.

 

[WhittleBurner]

On a warmer day in early March, this is after power washing. Seems that when transport tows, it is to/from their dirt yard (my guess is it was muddy in January) then to/from the factory so who knows what got thrown up in their yard. After initial clean, you can't tell much from a distance. But up close, looks like it has 100K miles on it.

View attachment 1112991

Maybe GD will cover a visit from a local mobile detailer ?? That black didn't come off with power wash...is it road tar? Try some denatured alchohol on the black dirt

 

[ajg617]

Maybe GD will cover a visit from a local mobile detailer ?? That black didn't come off with power wash...is it road tar? Try some denatured alchohol on the black dirt

It looks black, but I think it is dark pea-pack after looking at the transport companies parking lot. The power wash got the gritty stuff off. Simple Green wouldn't take the rest off - wound up using an old bottle of fantastik with a soft rag and in some places needed a soft brush. Stuff was tough. Looking for a local detailer now but the gel coat needs to be repaired in some places - maybe just touch up paint others. I'll try an auto cleaner/wax on some of the minor spots.

 

[JKJavelin]

My goto for tough to remove things like tar is WD-40. Try it on one spot first to make sure it does no harm (it shouldn't). Then clean off the WD-40 with Dawn.
JK

 

[ajg617]

My goto for tough to remove things like tar is WD-40. Try it on one spot first to make sure it does no harm (it shouldn't). Then clean off the WD-40 with Dawn.
JK

Yep - WD-40 wouldn't take it off either. Very strange stuff - not sure what it was. Also interesting was the normal black streaks down the nose and under the awning arms usually came off with either Simple Green or WD-40 in the past for me - neither one would take the streaks off this time though. Cleaner wax is next step.

 

[SGT ROC]

Yep - WD-40 wouldn't take it off either. Very strange stuff - not sure what it was. Also interesting was the normal black streaks down the nose and under the awning arms usually came off with either Simple Green or WD-40 in the past for me - neither one would take the streaks off this time though. Cleaner wax is next step.

You may want to try some Rubbing compound before the cleaner wax. Clay might work also....

 

[ajg617]

You may want to try some Rubbing compound before the cleaner wax. Clay might work also....

I do have some polishing compound. I'm really surprised because Simple Green or WD-40 has been easy in the past - just not this year. Still, doesn't look too bad after a lot of scrubbing with Fantastik.

 

[SGT ROC]

I do have some polishing compound. I'm really surprised because Simple Green or WD-40 has been easy in the past - just not this year. Still, doesn't look too bad after a lot of scrubbing with Fantastik.

View attachment 1113264

Actually Looks really good!

 

[ajg617]

Actually Looks really good!

The upper (black) part of the cap gets a good scrubbing when the snow/ice melts multiple times each winter.

 

[RV2600RB]

Man, sorry for your misfortune.
I wouldn’t ever trust my RV to be towed by anyone but myself.

 

[Randy Beasley]

I wish I had taken a picture of the nose when the transport company returned the RV mid-January. I finally got outside to start cleaning the nose of the trailer today. Between my bad back and snow/ice/freezing weather I just haven’t had the chance to wash it down the way I wanted to though I did get a power wash in. When the trailer arrived in January, it was a mess with the salt spray and a lot of black mud. I was able to get most of that off with a quick power wash while it was still snow covered but today when I had a look at the nose cap, I counted about 75 locations where the gelcoat on the cap had been hit and was chipped. That was just from the trim under the LEDs down onto the gray paint area - still have to get the ladder out to check out the decals that I know were replaced at the factory. I had maybe two or three chips when it went out to Elkhart. There was some kind of black mud on both sides of the filon and stretching back on the sides. All three pads on the door side were filled with loose pieces of rusted steel from some unknown source. Spent the first two days trying to recover my LiFePO4s which were dead when the transport driver picked it up. In the teens when he dropped it and batteries wouldn't charge, heaters weren't heating. Then snow and ice the day I got that fixed - covered until early April. Couldn't see the chips in the cap until I started to seriously clean it. I have no idea what the transport driver drove on, but it wasn't I-90 for some distance.

When the transpost company picked mine up they took pictures all around. They repeated those pictures when they returned it. They should have those pictures. They may not be willing to release them to you. But an insurance claim on your part make generate a request from the insurance company. They have more clout.

 

[RonRobot]

The best thing I've ever found to clean road tar from my vehicles, is diesel fuel. It's never damaged any paint or the plastic that Ram mirrors are made of.

 

[ajg617]

When the transpost company picked mine up they took pictures all around. They repeated those pictures when they returned it. They should have those pictures. They may not be willing to release them to you. But an insurance claim on your part make generate a request from the insurance company. They have more clout.

The guy that picked it up did take pictures. The guy that dropped it off did not. It was so covered with salt that pictures wouldn't have shown anything on the nose cap - all I noticed was the black or dark gray muck on the filon which I've been able to remove with WD-40 after a power wash.

 

[WhittleBurner]

The guy that picked it up did take pictures. The guy that dropped it off did not. It was so covered with salt that pictures wouldn't have shown anything on the nose cap - all I noticed was the black or dark gray muck on the filon which I've been able to remove with WD-40 after a power wash.

Curious, can you get your hands on the before pictures?