"Oil canning" of the front Cap

[Chemtchr]

My 08 Fleetwood prowler's front cap collapses while on the road. Fleetwood calls it oil canning. I would not have known unless someone told me after seeing me on the road. Anyone else have this problem?

[Chemtchr]

My 08 Fleetwood prowler's front cap collapses while on the road. Fleetwood calls it oil canning. I would not have known unless someone told me after seeing me on the road. Anyone else have this problem?

[K-Star]

Chemtchr

Welcome to iRV2.com. We hope you continue to visit us sharing your experiences.

Someone will come along with some responses so hang in there. To help get responses, I am going to link this to the Fleetwood owners forum too.

[Hitchhiker]

Welcome to iRV2, we're really glad to have you here as a new member and are looking forward to reading your posts about your RVing experiences and adventures in your Fleetwood Prowler. You'll find a great bunch of folks on this site who are very knowledgeable of RVing, the rigs we use, and the places we go in them.

Never had an "oil canning" problem (that I'm aware of) with any of the trailers I've owned. Is Fleetwood acknowledging a problem and offering to fix it?

Again, welcome to iRV2, we're glad you joined.

[Chemtchr]

They had the dealership pull the cap off place foam supports under the cap. This prevents the top portion from collapsing, but the bottom portion still flexes in. They say the problem is fixed and will not approve anymore work. Fleetwood says they have seen it before on some of their trailers, but I am the first for this model. I would not have known unless some one else told me. I wonder how many other owners are as clueless as I was?

[Jack Myton]

Strange? Obviously the front cap, fibreglass or plastic is simply too flimsy. Removing the cap and layering additional fibreglass resin and matting, on the inside, would fix it, making it sturdier and also heavier. Make sure that they fix it properly. Good luck.

[Chemtchr]

Fleetwood placed three foam supports under the cap. They say it is fixed. I disagree. The bottom of the cap still ripples in the wind. The dealership cannot do anymore work unless Fleetwood approves. I don't know what to do. I am "hoping" others have had this problem and will tell me how they resolved this problem.

[sfischer]

Which Fleetwood model is involved here?

[MojaveJoe]

Ive always found that the mfr's service dept will do better and faster work than most dealerships. After all they are working on their own product. I doubt they would want it on the road looking like you describe. I wonder how long before the gelcoat starts cracking?

I would call your mfr's plant, tell the service mgr it is still a problem, and you are willing to bring it to their facility, and let them put a new cap on, or at least fix it properly. After all, it's not very good advertising for their product line, rolling down the road and oil canning.

Good luck,
Joe

[Chemtchr]

I have a 2008 Prowler, 235RL. My problem is not with the dealership, it is with Fleetwood. Their head service tech has told me directly that the problem is fixed. I still see the front cap ripple in the wind. I am hoping that their are others out there who have not seen this before to take a look and maybe, collectively, we can get Fleetwood to admit to this design flaw. I am wondering how long before the gelcoat starts to crack as well. Fleetwood's response " Depends how long down the road this occurs. If it is 10 years down the road, well, the answer is no, we won't fix it." I would think a properly functioning cap would last longer than 10 years before it starts to crack.

[Ray,IN]

Highways magazine has their "action line" column to mediate exactly such disputes between owners and manufacturers. You may not gain anything by writing the magazine, but you have nothing to lose either.

[Korryp]

Action line is a very good approach. I had a problem with a Heritage Platinum RV Service Contract and the letter they wrote got me immediate action. Heritage had put me off for 6 months with no payment. I highly recommend Action Line for getting things done.