We are looking forward to going to Elkhart at the end of the month to get our MH repaired. A long drive , but we will make a trip out of it, probably drop it off, head to Wisconsin to visit relatives ( hopefully in a new toad). Looking forward to seeing Capt Bob there too, and I hope the weather is good. Nice trip to Austin last weekend, but the ice hit just as we got bak to DFW area.

Well, wish me luck! My new 2014.5 Challenger 37GT is supposed to arrive on Monday, March 10, 2014.

It is being delivered to CW in Colfax, NC, directly from Elkhart, IN. It came off the production line on February 12, then went to the paint shop for 10 days. It then went back to the factory for the final audit, cleaning, and on to the ship line. It was hot shipped as it was pre sold.

They will perform the dealer inspection, clean and wash the coach and undercarriage to remove any salt and debris from shipment. Then they will call me so that I can inspect it to insure that it is exactly as I ordered. They will then start the mods that I ordered and install the in-motion satellite, the stacked washer and dryer, the permanent SaniCon macerator, the First Place Finish, and install my tow bar and related wiring harness.

They will park my old coach door to door with the new coach so that we can transfer all our belongings. Once we are ready, we are on our way to NM, and several other states for the summer.

I wonder how soon I should schedule my first trip to trake the coach back to Elkhart for a check up and any related warranty work that may come up between now and then?

Looking them up on rvservicereviews.com RV Service Reviews they get a poor rating so be warned. Hopefully you've prepared by printing out a detailed PDI check list and have the tools you need to do a thorough inspection.

If I were you, I would wait until CW completed their work so it can be included in the PDI.

You should also take the time to write a review of your experience on the service review site.

Congratulations and best wishes for a fantastic 2014 camping season.

Winter is finally breaking enough in Chicago to get out of Dodge. Heading to Pigeon Forge Tennessee and the Great Smokies. Leaving Friday for a week. Will be in Elkhart at Thor on April 7. Anyone else going to be there then?

I'll be in Elkhart on 31 March. Be there until ask repairs are complete. When in April will you be there?

We're heading to Cherokee the last week of August. We love the area and the mountains so much that we bought a house there a few years back. We'll be retiring in that area for sure. Enjoy your trip and if you need suggestions on places to see, let me know

I guess I should have read your whole message, I see you'll be there on the 7th of April. I'll probably gone by then

The one you had selected was CW in Columbia, SC. There are no reviews in there for the CW in Colfax, NC. Therefore, those reviewers are meaningless for my location, as far as I can see. Regardless, I can appreciate your warnings, and I am being cautious anyway.

The purpose of this upfront review is strictly to insure the coach is what I ordered, and that there is not something glaringly wrong, and not meant to be my walkthrough or completing my PDI.

I also told them that I want to discuss their plan for performing the installations before they do anything. I have learned my lesson, and will not simply tell them to install anything without having them go through the installations beforehand and telling me exactly what they plan to do.

In regard to the PDI, I am not accepting delivery or signing anything until all the work is completed. I did take your previously provided list of items to check out during the PDI, as well as adding other items to it that are specifically related to this coach.

I sincerely wish you nothing but a satisfactory delivery experience, but unless you've got it in writing on the purchase agreement, I doubt any dealer will begin installation of such a comprehensive list "customizations"
such as you've listed, before you OWN it. I hope I'm wrong.......:flowers:

In answer to your other post, NC is a lot closer to IN than NM is. Perhaps NM is a bit too long for a "shakedown" cruise....just sayin.

Thanks for the note. You may be right, so I will be prepared to do the PDI for the coach, then separate for the upgrades. In regard to the NM trip, no choice there. I have to go out there to help out my MIL. And will be there for several weeks. There is a good sized CW in Albuquerque, if needed. I've made that trip numerous times, and yet I know that it is not advisable to go that far for a shake down trip, but the timing does not leave much leeway. I had planned to take a much closer to home shakedown trip, but the weather delayed delivery by about a month.

Regardless, I have installed a new 60' by 15' concert pad at the side of my house to park it on. I have shore power at my house (installed 50 amp service, which I used for my previous coach). I have water hookup available, and I am also able to run my macerator hose to the sewer clean out in my yard. Therefore, I plan to be camped at home for several days before leaving. Then, I will be traveling only over to Nashville, TN for the first leg and camping there for a day or two to visit some of my iRV2 comrades. Then on to Little Rock, AR for a few days to visit some relatives, etc., etc....

So, if any issues come up on the way, I can always turn around if absolutely necessary. I even had another concrete/gravel mix pad, 50 amp shore power, water, and sewer hookups installed at my MIL's place as well. So we will be close to a home base for some time before heading out to more unknown places.

Even at that, we will be meeting some iRV2 friends out there to travel with as we go to Nevada, Wyoming, Utah, etc. I guess, if I were not already a veteran RV'er, it may be more concreting.

I have had Thor warranty work done at CW Albuquerque and have been generally happy with them. Enchanted Trails RV Park next door is convenient and they honor Passport America and Good Sam discounts. For diesel owners there's a Freightliner service center at the end of the street.

Thanks my friend for the heads up!

Would appreciate your suggestions for the area Don. We will be camping at Up the Creek RV Park in Pigeon Forge. Just two adults. We will rent a car once there. We mostly want to sight-see and eat good local food. So things to see and restaurants to go to would be the best advice. Thanks in advance.