Tomorrow is the Big Day!

[Troostr]

Headed to CW of Abq to pick up our new 36.1. So from all you current owners, during pickup (pdi?) what are the key things to look at, ask etc? What is that one thing you you wish you would have asked or looked at?
I'm a newbie to the forum, not RVing. So I have experience w a DP. I'm also a proficient reader and have been through the "crappy unhappy" threads- not what I'm looking for. I'm looking for the things to watch and ask for.
Thanks in advance, we are very excited for tomorrow!

[ferg182]

Make them start at the beginning. From what you do to start it up thru parking and set up to what you do to move the next day. Don't let them just move you thru the coach. You will not remember anything! Stay in control of this time and stay overnight so they can fix anything you find wrong.


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[Don Voyage]

Go through everything and have any problems written down
1. Look over exterior for any scratchs or small dents. Look down sides at an angle any bumps from screws that came through sidewall and was repaired.
2. Make sure coach is level and open and close slides a couple of times. Wait between cycle for motors to cool before next cycle. Inspect tracks for any wear on slides. Also look on floor inside for any scrapping on floor from slide.
3. Look at bottom of slides to make sure you have long enough bottom rollar plates and that all rollers are hitting bottom plates.
4.Make sure every applaince works. Note ice maker in fridge should make ice. If not the nearby shut-off valve is off. Turn on and look for leaks at valve.
5. Make sure they give you two travel locks for large slide and smaller ones for smaller slide.
6. Have them open built in water filter to make sure the element is installed.
7. Rotate water selector valve in dump bay for ease of operation.
8.Inspect bays at all corners to insure they are caulked for water intrusion.
9.With coach level, check engine oil for being filled. On generator, run first then check engine oil level.
10. Climb up and walk the roof and inspect for anything that doesn't look right. Caulking around skylights , sewer vents etc. Also, test ladder for rigidity/strength. Note any loose supports.
11.Turn on on-board water pump and open bay it is housed in. Go around and check all faucets, toilet flush and shower. then turn off. Go to bay and listen to see if pump comes on anymore with everything shut-off. If it does come, their is a leak somewhere causing pump to cycle on.
12.Run awning in and out for ease of openeration and no binding.
13.Start all TV's and make sure you have a remote for all along with DVD[bring one with you] and radio.
14. Open and close all drawers, doors for ease of operation.
15. If equipped with front overhead bunk, run it down and up a few times. Make sure to re-install travel pins after test.
16.Lift bed for ease of opeation and make sure you have the ladder fro overhead bunk, extra cushion for fold down dinette, inflatable beds and air pump.
17.Run washer[shortest cycle] and dryer for operation.
18. Turn on every light including lights in cargo bays for operation.
19. Have them air down the tires to 95 psi from 120 psi that factory put in.
20.Open and close all windows and check shades for proper adjustment and operation.
21.Make sure you get two full sets of keys for coach.
22. Open front hood and look for any unsecured hanging wires, leaks at fittings on hydraulic pump etc.
23.Turn on headlights and check if possible that ll of the exterior lights work.
24. Verify that hub-cap removal kit is in coach.
25. Make sure mileage on all paperwork reflect exactly what is on coach at time of delivery.
Can't think of any more at this time. Take your time!!!!!! If all is OK, Good luck with your new coach and join the Thor Diesel club [free for first year].

MOST INPORTANT: DO THIS PRE-DELIVERY INSPECTION BEFORE SIGNING ANY PAPERWORK OF ACCEPTANCE OF UNIT. IF TOO MANY PROBLEMS ARE UNCOVERED DURING PDI, DO NOT TAKE OWNERSHIP AND HAVE THEM REPAIR COACH. PRIORITY OF REPAIRS WILL BE HIGH TO GET THIS UNIT DELIVERED.

Don

[jones47172]

#1 on my list would be to measure the placement of the tracks on the slides. There is a tolerance for this measurement and a specific way to make the measurement, both with the slide fully extended and partially extended. It is important to understand exactly how this is done. This will also tell you if the room is square. The sound the slides make while moving should be constant and without popping. If you hear the motors spinning normally and then bogging down several times while in motion this is indicating a problem.

#2 is to look at the interior to verify walls, doors, etc look to fit properly. If you get a coach that started out of square at the beginning of the assembly line then everything will be wrong.

Look for stripped screws in the interior. You will find screws that spin in the wood without holding anything. Expect that nearly all screws in cabinetry will need to be replaced with longer ones that have not been installed with power tools.

Expect water leaks everywhere there is plumbing. This is easy to fix by tightening by hand but needs to be found before damage occurs. The water filter cartridge is not installed by the factory and the filter canister will be loose.

These coaches go down the assembly line fast and the dealer is not going to do anything more than what is required to get the coach out the door. It will be up to you to find the major problems before taking delivery. Fix the minor ones yourself.

In my case I spent several weeks fixing things after taking delivery. Thor has been very willing to work with me directly without forcing me to take the coach to a dealer. Don't go into this buying experience with the attitude that you are paying so much that everything should be perfect. I guess Thor has to get a certain number of coaches built every day to keep the price down.

I am very happy with our Palazzo, love the floor plan and the way it drives.

[wstrace3]

1. look in the floor heater vents for saw dust. Make them pull the grates and vacuum if necessary.

2. kick on the furnace and check for air flow. I was told their "standard" test is to light a lighter and hold it 12" from the floor vents and see if it blows it out.

3. with slides out get down and pull up the rubber flap inside the coach under the slide and look with a flashlight for any loose screws or bolts. You might be surprised at what you find.

[oakcreekeric]

From everything I've ever read about dealing with CW...

Absolutely.. Positively... DO NOT sign anything or hand over any checks until your are 100% satisfied and the RV is in exactly the condition it should be.. You've gotten excellent advice on what to look for..

Do NOT let them "owe" you anything
Do NOT let them "promise" to fix something at a later time

I know this is the happiest day of your life and you're about ready to burst with anticipation and excitement.. but this transaction needs to be handled without emotion (which I know is nearly impossible)... They (CW) are betting on that emotion to get you to sign off on the deal... Please stick to your guns.. You'll be happier you did..

Good luck !!

[Redridge]

Originally Posted by oakcreekeric

From everything I've ever read about dealing with CW...

Absolutely.. Positively... DO NOT sign anything or hand over any checks until your are 100% satisfied and the RV is in exactly the condition it should be.. You've gotten excellent advice on what to look for..

Do NOT let them "owe" you anything
Do NOT let them "promise" to fix something at a later time

I know this is the happiest day of your life and you're about ready to burst with anticipation and excitement.. but this transaction needs to be handled without emotion (which I know is nearly impossible)... They (CW) are betting on that emotion to get you to sign off on the deal... Please stick to your guns.. You'll be happier you did..

Good luck !!

+1, best advice...

Do not take it home the first day. Do a thorough PDI and take your time.... Don has a great list...

[Steve N Sal]

If at all possible, do a video of the PDI. Everything is pretty much documented and there won't be any he said, she said if you know what I mean. Good Luck and hope it all goes well.

[Troostr]

Thank you, thank you, thank you! I can't tell you how much your advise helped! PDI went great thanks to you folks. I've got to give CW Albuquerque kudos for immediately fixing or righting about everything I pointed out. I did take an IOU on a black sat cover, they installed a white sat instead of making me wait for a black one that is on back order. The GM ordered the cover as I watched to confirm that will drop ship to my house when availible. The GM, and 6 guys stayed an hour after close to finish everything up so we could get down the road (50mi) and camp a night in it. I have a couple little things that they are going to take care of Tuesday on our way out of town for the first Real maiden voyage. Otherwise it was motor coaching at its best.
I'll post this question in a separate thread after I search to see if it hasn't already been asked: has anyone done any condensation routing from their roof a/c units? I noticed it just kinda finds its way off the roof, sometimes over the door other times over the slide out. Also, the wife wants a step cover for while we are under way so the kids don't eat it into the stairwell. I'm thinking about calling Thor and getting some floor vinyl (and a '16 fridge lock, maybe '16 front side window pull down shades to replace the acordians) to cover an aluminum plate w an angle gusset welded under and a good rubber edging to keep it in place, from scuffing the floor, and quiet. Anyone tackled anything like this?
Anyway, we're thrilled with the new coach and thankful to all of you who gave advise!

[Redridge]

good job... you sound like a happy camper.

Yeah, the Palazzo needs some gutters... I haven't seen these done yet.

I have magna shades for the windows, still have the accordians... they arent the roller type. They sorta fold up via magnets... I like them alot with the matching front windshield shades... good stuff. Some has installed MCD roller shades...

When I was at Thor for warranty work, they gave me a set of stair sized carpets that you can take on/off to clean, works great. Im sure you can just buy some remnant carpet and cut it to size.

[Don Voyage]

Congradulations on new coach and glad everything was to your satisfaction.

I would suggest you get a pad and keep it handy to jot down anything else that pops up requiring service.

A/C condensation suggestion: Once camp is all set-up with slides out and all is in place, start up coach and work levelers to very slightly tilt towards drivers side to let water run down that side. Just a touch off level will do it! BUT REMEMBER to start coach back up and re-level BEFORE bringing slides in!!!

I was disappointed to hear that you were there along time, but happy CW responded with the necessary labor to take care of things. Why didn't they [CW] do a comprehensive PDI PRIOR to your arrival? Feel for the people with limited or no knowledge taking ownership with these issues of quality. Not to mention one would think with three years into production Thor would of improved on the out the door quality and appears it hasn't. Don't want to hi-jack thread nor rain on your parade, but just had to vent a little!

I have the front Magna shade and the side interior Magna flip down shades with the factory accordian shades. So far this set-up works for me.

Also, have the full rear flap with the SS embosing with "Palazzo" in it to keep down the "Stuff" on my car I am towing. A guy in Canada sells these cheaper than the US brand and is built really well. [Wish I knew about him before I bought the US brand]

Once all is in check, I hope you really enjoy this wonderful way of recreation. Welcome again to our group and hope you will join the Thor Diesel club and make a few rallies to share your stories and adventures.

Good Luck!
Don

[tcopeland]

Originally Posted by Don Voyage

Congradulations on new coach and glad everything was to your satisfaction.



I would suggest you get a pad and keep it handy to jot down anything else that pops up requiring service.



A/C condensation suggestion: Once camp is all set-up with slides out and all is in place, start up coach and work levelers to very slightly tilt towards drivers side to let water run down that side. Just a touch off level will do it! BUT REMEMBER to start coach back up and re-level BEFORE bringing slides in!!!



I was disappointed to hear that you were there along time, but happy CW responded with the necessary labor to take care of things. Why didn't they [CW] do a comprehensive PDI PRIOR to your arrival? Feel for the people with limited or no knowledge taking ownership with these issues of quality. Not to mention one would think with three years into production Thor would of improved on the out the door quality and appears it hasn't. Don't want to hi-jack thread nor rain on your parade, but just had to vent a little!



I have the front Magna shade and the side interior Magna flip down shades with the factory accordian shades. So far this set-up works for me.



Also, have the full rear flap with the SS embosing with "Palazzo" in it to keep down the "Stuff" on my car I am towing. A guy in Canada sells these cheaper than the US brand and is built really well. [Wish I knew about him before I bought the US brand]



Once all is in check, I hope you really enjoy this wonderful way of recreation. Welcome again to our group and hope you will join the Thor Diesel club and make a few rallies to share your stories and adventures.



Good Luck!

Don

Oh, come on Don!

[akadeadeye]

One of you take notes. The other should video the pdi. Or, preferably, a third party. We have looked back on our video several times and referred to our notes even more. Still, there were things that were not covered. Ours was a short pdi at 6.5 hours. This was our doing, not the dealers. We should have had another day.

Don

[RKNOLA]

Originally Posted by Don Voyage

Congradulations on new coach and glad everything was to your satisfaction.

I would suggest you get a pad and keep it handy to jot down anything else that pops up requiring service.

A/C condensation suggestion: Once camp is all set-up with slides out and all is in place, start up coach and work levelers to very slightly tilt towards drivers side to let water run down that side. Just a touch off level will do it! BUT REMEMBER to start coach back up and re-level BEFORE bringing slides in!!!

I was disappointed to hear that you were there along time, but happy CW responded with the necessary labor to take care of things. Why didn't they [CW] do a comprehensive PDI PRIOR to your arrival? Feel for the people with limited or no knowledge taking ownership with these issues of quality. Not to mention one would think with three years into production Thor would of improved on the out the door quality and appears it hasn't. Don't want to hi-jack thread nor rain on your parade, but just had to vent a little!

I have the front Magna shade and the side interior Magna flip down shades with the factory accordian shades. So far this set-up works for me.

Also, have the full rear flap with the SS embosing with "Palazzo" in it to keep down the "Stuff" on my car I am towing. A guy in Canada sells these cheaper than the US brand and is built really well. [Wish I knew about him before I bought the US brand]

Once all is in check, I hope you really enjoy this wonderful way of recreation. Welcome again to our group and hope you will join the Thor Diesel club and make a few rallies to share your stories and adventures.

Good Luck!
Don

the mud flap website is www.flappinrvflaps.com if you want to get a new one Don.