Community Forums

lce3 · 12-01-2018, 09:32 PM

We're new to Newmar and new to diesel. As full-timers, we're now trying to figure out where to get our annual service done. I had been planning to get it done at a Newmar dealer/service center or Nappanee. After getting the Nappanee price sheet, I'm not so sure.

I know that many people must go to Nappanee because appointments are scheduled months in advance and they can't all be warranty work. Thinking they must consider it worth the price.

Also wondering if dealer service is comprehensive but less expensive than the Newmar service center in Nappanee.

Where do you get your service done? Does it change if you have an older coach?

TonyMac · 12-01-2018, 09:46 PM

Most work I do on my own; lube, oil and filter, reseal the roof, icemaker messed up, heat pump stuck in heat, etc. For other coach stuff, I have C Co. come to my rig and do it, new transfer switch, furnace sail switch, salesman switch solenoid, etc. For chassis stuff, I have Charlies Service in Sunset Utah; they replaced my trailing arms, coolant, belts and hoses, broken exhaust stud, etc.

oregonhiker · 12-01-2018, 10:33 PM

As for us we have our chassis related repairs done at our local Freightliner shop and all other MH repairs done at our favorite local RV repair shop. We don't use our local Newmar dealer as we have had problems with their repair facility in the past. Others have had good luck here but we had more than one bad experience so I would assume they don't want or deserve my money. We go full time in five months and will have to search out other options for MH repairs and will use recommendations from here and RVillage to help choose a reputable shop.

lostinfla · 12-02-2018, 04:47 AM

Freightliner factory service in Gaffney. Make the trip once a year and usually make a couple week or month trip out of it to see the leaves change.

GaryKD · 12-02-2018, 06:10 AM

Hi lce3,
Newmar for the coach, Spartan for the chassis. What ever they will not do I go to a Coach Care or Cummins facility.

TwelveVolt · 12-02-2018, 06:39 AM

As we traveled across the country, we had to use local repair facilities as needed. I learned to ask a lot of questions before handing over my keys. If I get an impression of "Give us a blank check and we'll see what we can do", or they are reluctant to discuss the specifics of what they are going to do, I will walk away.

Nobody caused serious damage to the best of my knowledge, but we did see a range of ignorance and incompetence. Must notable was Wes Schwab in Oregon. They jacked up three corners of the coach with floor jacks. This caused it to swivel on the single tire on the ground and come off all three jacks. A mechanic was underneath when it dropped. He was a slim kid and insisted he was ok, but if I had been under there I would have definitely had broken ribs.

At several places the mechanic assigned to the job had no idea how to do it, so they simply turned it away, wasting my time and mileage. In one case, I gave it to them with three issues to repair and got it back with a labor bill and a report that showed I had these three problems.

One item that concerns me is whether the kid that does the lube is thorough enough to get all the grease points.

Our best service experience was at Colton Truck in Colton, CA on I10 just west of the Arizona border. They do chassis work only and about half the customers were RVs when we were there. They did some wheel work, communicated well, and left the impression that we were getting good value and honest answers. I regret that they are thousands on miles away, otherwise I would be in there today for a couple of items I will probably do myself.

lce3 · 12-02-2018, 01:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TwelveVolt

As we traveled across the country, we had to use local repair facilities as needed. I learned to ask a lot of questions before handing over my keys. If I get an impression of "Give us a blank check and we'll see what we can do", or they are reluctant to discuss the specifics of what they are going to do, I will walk away.

Nobody caused serious damage to the best of my knowledge, but we did see a range of ignorance and incompetence. Must notable was Wes Schwab in Oregon. They jacked up three corners of the coach with floor jacks. This caused it to swivel on the single tire on the ground and come off all three jacks. A mechanic was underneath when it dropped. He was a slim kid and insisted he was ok, but if I had been under there I would have definitely had broken ribs.

...

One item that concerns me is whether the kid that does the lube is thorough enough to get all the grease points.

Our best service experience was at Colton Truck in Colton, CA on I10 just west of the Arizona border. They do chassis work only and about half the customers were RVs when we were there. They did some wheel work, communicated well, and left the impression that we were getting good value and honest answers. I regret that they are thousands on miles away, otherwise I would be in there today for a couple of items I will probably do myself.

Thank you for the detail. Wondering how you found Colton Truck. Is is word of mouth from locals?

We're finding that checking Google reviews doesn't always give us the correct picture or other people are willing to put up with things that we don't find acceptable. We're also finding that having a specific service advisor, or mechanic, makes all the difference. But how do you know that when only in town for a short stay?

DutchStar38 · 12-02-2018, 01:45 PM

We live in Sarasota, FL and get our 05 Newmar Dutchstar serviced at https://www.campbellrv.com/rv-service . Honest, reliable, & knowledgeable. Unless we are on the road and need an emergency, Campbells is our preferred service place.

Hawkeye · 12-02-2018, 02:06 PM

If you are anywhere near Orlando, I strongly suggest Independence RV. They are a Newmar dealer, and treat you like family.

lce3 · 12-02-2018, 03:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hawkeye

If you are anywhere near Orlando, I strongly suggest Independence RV. They are a Newmar dealer, and treat you like family.

Did you buy from them? I wonder if that makes a difference.

We had a brake recall for our coach and tried to get them to do it. Had seen all the good reviews & that they're a Platinum dealership, and since we're domiciled in Florida, thought we might be able to make them our go-to dealership.

The recall fix turned out to take about a minute but the person we talked to said they couldn't fit us in for 3 months.

I complained to Newmar and the service manager called to apologize. Unfortunately, that "introduction" made us uncomfortable and we came up with another option for the recall.

Thanks for the suggestion though. If we hadn't had the experience we did, we would most likely use them in the future.

lce3 · 12-02-2018, 03:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GaryKD

Hi lce3,
Newmar for the coach, Spartan for the chassis. What ever they will not do I go to a Coach Care or Cummins facility.

When you say Newmar for the coach, do you go to Nappanee or a local dealer?

I hadn't really looked at Coach Care before but it looks like they will do everything from chassis to Oasis. Thinking they might be a good option. What is your experience with them?

Hawkeye · 12-02-2018, 03:21 PM

Yes, we did buy from them. We were there for 4 days recently and they are extremely busy. We live 1200 miles away and are also concerned about service, but they are in an area we love to visit, and a lot warmer!!

CoachC · 12-02-2018, 03:25 PM

We have had good experiences with Midway in Grand Rapids MI for coach. I also do some of my own coach stuff.
Spartan factory for annual chassis/engine, generator service.

Best of luck and safe travels!

WoodyS · 12-02-2018, 03:27 PM

I don't think there's any one-size-fits-all answer to your questions. There are good Newmar service places and bad ones. There are good large Freightliner, Spartan and Cummins service places and bad ones. And there are good small independents and bad ones.

The problem I'm running into now is service back-logs and wait-time for appointments. My local Cummins Service place is very good -- but they're backed up over a month. Another large local RV service place I use is also very good, but backed up at least 2 weeks, often 3 weeks.

Interestingly, all the local places I use have about the same labor rate -- $120 - $134 per hour -- even the smaller independents. And no, Cummins isn't the most expensive! In fact, with the Cummins Power Club 10% discount, they're cheaper -- both for parts and labor.

Some RV shops have two schedules, one for "regular" maintenance, and a different "rush" schedule for travelers on-the-road. So it doesn't hurt to tell the service scheduling person that you're living in your RV and can't wait. Often times that puts you at the front of the line. But not always.

The last time I bought parts at my local Cummins Service place, their parking lot was full of municipal busses and fire trucks. I'm sure those guys always go to the front of the line.

There are a lot of maintenance things you can do yourself, but there can be problems there. My first problem is my extended warranty. It requires that all maintenance be done by licensed shops -- and that I keep the receipts. Well, that pretty much means I can't do most of the routine preventative maintenance myself -- until the warranty runs out.

Another problem for me is the mess and used fluids I have to collect and then dispose of. Draining the oil on a passenger car is one thing. Draining 24 quarts of oil from a big Cummins engine is another thing! And then I have to put it in containers and transport it to a disposal facility.

I'm just not equipped to do that.

And lastly, I like skilled and experienced mechanics examining my rig every now and then just to spot early potential problems I might miss. Eventually I'll hopefully gain the skill and experience to do more of this myself. But at the moment, there are lots of systems in a diesel pusher I'm just not familiar with. So I leave a lot of it to the "pros."