Who should pay for this?

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IslandGuy

IslandGuy

Well-known member
Joined
Oct 4, 2009
Posts
468
Location
Saddlebrooke, AZ
2010 Winnebago View 24A. Dodge Sprinter Chassis. I was washing the MH the other day and decided to spray water under the chassis since we just came back from a weekend trip and had some salt and sand residue. I noticed a piece of rubber hanging down. Long story short...the leaf spring mount is damaged and the rubber dampner was hanging down. Well there was no way we could have damaged this...someone....who knows, Dodge, Winnebago, Dealer, must have run into something and damaged this part of the under carriage. Unfortunately when I took delivery in early November I did not crawl under the coach and examine the under carriage otherwise I would have discovered this...Dodge dealer says $1,000+ to repair and not under warranty due to it is damaged...so my question...who should pay for this? Winnebago? Dealer?

Jim
 
Well the Service Manager at the dealership said,"... It's too bad they won't go ahead and
warranty it for you....I will forward your photos to my contacts at Winnebago for them to
review."
I have an email to the owner of the dealership to see what he will do for me. I am really hoping that someone, Winnebago or the dealer will take care of this for me....

Jim
 
It could have happened from road debris??? ...hard to say...
I have an email to the owner of the dealership
Click to expand...
I had ZERO success many times with dealerships on such issues ...they always would tell me "Winnebago said they won't cover it." And one time I realized later that the dealer lied to me (and probably to Winnebago too), and got me to do their work for them. But if I contacted Winnebago myself either via 800 number or email, Winnebago would work with me.
 
There is no way any road debris caused this damage...you would have to run over a boulder to put the dent in the spring mounting. I have no idea where or how this damage occured but I certainly did not do it. We'll see what happens...Ron Lichtsinn is the dealer we purchased from and I think he will come through.

Jim
 
I would suggest calling your insurance company because if it is damage they will cover the loss if notified within the proper time frame.
 
If you don't have any luck with your dealer, give Winnie owner relations a call Monday and run it by them.  Could you post a couple of pictures here for us to look at?
 
From your description it certainly sounds like road damage as opposed to a failed component, so a warranty does not apply. Your best hope is a good will adjustment from Winnebago or a claim to your insurance company for road hazard damage. I would pursue both options.

It is possible the damage was done during the delivery of the coach to the dealer, but there is no way to prove that once it has been in your possession for awhile.  You are out of luck on that score.
 
Here are a few pics that I sent to the Dodge dealer.
 

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Jim - thanks for the pictures.  It is difficult to rationalize what could have happened since I don't know what it should look like.  I think the thingy hanging down shouldn't be  ;)

Keep us posted on how this evolves.
 
From your pic's, it's hard to visualize how the suspension was damaged WITHOUT any additional 'dings' in the exhaust tailpipe nearby...

I would sure investigate how your RV was transported to the dealer from the factory - is it possible it was tied down on the back of some kind of highway transporter/trailer?  If so, it's possible that the damage was done by the heavy chains those companies use, when they use those over-center type 'come-a-longs' to tighten the chains...just another thought!...Was your rig shipped by rail transport? They use heavy chains as well!

I sure agree with you that the damage was done before you took delivery, and the dealer should be responsible to 'belly' up the bar for you and make it good, if they are worth their salt! 

If the delivery company was at fault, it's their responsibility to deliver the unit in like new condition - any damage in-transit should be reconciled between them and the dealer...they have their own insurance for that kind of stuff - but I agree it's difficult to prove this kind of damage after the dealer 'accepted' the rig...

If everyone is acting in 'good faith', the dealer should got to bat for you and get it fixed...

Let us know the final outcome...I still think you should hang your argument on having the dealer or transport company explain how that damage was done without making any marks on the tailpipe!!!  If you'd run over a road hazard, there would be much more damage, IMHO!

Ray



 
Thanks for your comments...the dealership is 1 mile from Winnebago so don't think it happened that way...the Sprinter is a 2008 so it was probably sitting on Winnebago's lot for some time....who the heck knows. But you are correct..if we had hit anything the tail pipe should have taken a big hit.

JIm
 
Something similar happen to me a few years back.  I had front end damage on a brand new dodge van that I bought. The damage was eating my front tires.  We later learned that the driver of the trailer that transported my van to the dealer had tied his chains to some area in the front right side and when he tighten down on the chains it bent the part.  Long story short.  The dealer payed for the repairs.
 
Hi Pookie girl and welcome!  Please take a couple of minutes and say to the forum in the Introduce yourself board.  Let any staff know if you have any questions about the board operation.
 
On the "picture #3", it looks like you have sustained some "hit" damage....the yellow portion, and the portion that has the paint scraped on the piece to the bottom left as you look at it.
 
One more pic...this looks like someone put an ill placed jack under the spring mount.

Jim
 

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Has the look of tie-down chain marks and damage, though I would expect the dealer to have driven it from the factory if it is really only 1 mile away (is the View actually made in that facotry?).  Have you contacted Winnie Customer Service and sent the pics to them? They are the ones most likely to be sympathetic. 

Dodge sold the chassis to Winnie a long time ago and doesn't know who did what to it since. I can understand their reluctance to warranty it in that condition.
 
I'm working with the dealer and yes the View was manufactured 1 mile away. I showed the damage to a mechanic friend and he thinks the damage was caused by putting the coach on a lift incorrectly and that it probably slipped off. Said he has seen that happen several times. Also the lift points for the coach are right where the damage occurred. He also said he seriously doubts any kind of road debris could have caused that damage especially since there was on other cosmetic damage in that area. He would expect to see some deep scratches on the bottom and the exhaust pipe banged up as well. Now as far as who caused the damage...your guess is as good as mine!

Jim
 
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