It does not surprise me to read the usacomplaints.com on TEXAS RV CENTER, INC in Cleburne TX. It more or less falls into what we experienced when we bought a travel trailer from the Christian business called TEXAS RV CENTER, INC., although in all fairness I am not sure that the owners Bethany and Jackie Morales know about how their business is being run. We dealt with a person named JIM SCHULTZ, who claimed to be the general manager there. Had he worked for me, he would have been FIRED long ago.
Anyway here goes:
After much research on the internet to find a travel trailer we could safely tow with our 2007 Hyundai Santa Fe, we settled on a TRAILMANOR ELKMONT 24 foot trailer, advertised as weighing 2498 lb and with a tongue weight of 320 lb. There was a nice brochure and spec sheets on the dealers website http://www.texasrvcenter.com. Our Santa Fe was able to tow 3500 lb with 350 on the tongue. After talking to Mr. Schultz and confirming that the advertised weight was as stated we decided to drive from Arizona to Texas to purchase this trailer. Mr. Schultz had assured us that Texas RV was legit and that they had many years experience in that they mainly dealt in used RVs and travel trailers that they purchased at auctions and than refurbished to like new conditions. He stated: We have only recently gone into the new trailer business to supplement our used RV sales as other have begun to do what we were doing almost exclusively before. We trusted them. Wrong move.
When we got to Texas RV late in the afternoon on Monday September 21, we met with Mr. Schultz, and again he ascertained that we could safely tow the Elkmont trailer. He showed us the trailer, and we liked the LOOKS of it. Workers were working on some electrical problem; Mr. Schultz stated that it was really minor, something to do with the waste water tank monitoring system. The following morning we took the Santa Fe to a place a mile or 2 down the street for a wiring harness and a brake control install. It was supposed to take 1-2 hours but ended up taking over 4 hours. Meanwhile they were still working on the trailer. The night before a bad storm had passed over Cleburne dumping a lot of rain there. There wasnt much we could do but sit around and wait. Meanwhile a nice worker was trying to explain how things worked in the trailer. He showed us the fridge, the oven, stove top and the bathroom. He showed how the bed could flip up and had storage under. He showed us how to turn on the furnace but it was not actually turned on, the water pump and how to read the waste water monitor. Outside we saw where to hook up the external water, how to hook up electrical, and an outdoor shower. We assumed, and in retrospect wrongly so, that because it was a new trailer it would all work. Had Mr. Schultz not told us that they were experts at preparing an RV or travel trailer? We are experts he said.
Late in the afternoon of September 22 we were getting ready to leave all we had to do was hook up the trailer. When that happened, the rear end of the Santa Fe went down almost 8 inches. Not to worry we were told, the hitch needs to be adjusted. After adjusting it to were it was only 5 inches down we were ready to go. Taking off very slowly the front wheels of the tow car spun, but it was wet gravel and slightly uphill so we didnt get suspicious. On the trip back to Arizona we were told by many people at rest stops and gas stations that it seemed we were towing more than we should. Of course this was our first experience with a travel trailer so what did we know? Yes the steering did feel a little light but we had talked to a professional about the weight issues several times and re-verified the numbers in their spec sheet and the colorful brochure, which all claimed that we were within our limits so we felt relative safe.
However when we arrived back in Arizona, we decided that perhaps it was better to check the actual weight on a scale. We found a public truck scale and had the rig weighed. WOW!!! The trailer weighed in at over 3500 lb empty, and the tongue weight was around 600 lb not counting the extra 40 lb of the hitch. We also found out that the furnace was not ducted at all. If turned on it ran but all the hot air would be expelled under the seat and not into the living quarters at all. We had been given a ring binder as a user manual, and in it were an electrical schematic for the trailer. It showed a 30 A fuse for the 12 V battery connections, but it too was missing. So much for the professional prep of the trailer. I emailed Mr. Schultz about the problems and shortcomings, and he answered me back that they were sorry that this slight oversight had come at my expense but that they were new at selling new trailers, and that it was also an oversight from the factory. Please remember that there is a 2 year warranty on the trailer he wrote. We ended up going directly to the manufacturer, because Texas RV was 1000 miles away, and there was a TM dealer in the area. We also filed complaint with the Texas BBB, to no avail, after the second round, Texas RV refused to talk any more about this matter. They had done enough they said. Besides the small flaw of the furnace not being functional could have been fixed in a matter of minutes they claimed. It took the local dealer 6 hours to fix, as the fresh water tank had to be relocated, new holes drilled, re-routing of water lines etc. And after the trailer spent 3 weeks in the shop getting a long list of flaws fixed, we went on our first real trip, only to find numerous other flaws to be fixed, among others water leaks from water lines that had not been crimped correctly, gas hoses that leaked, with the potential of an explosion or fire, 120 V electrical wiring that did not meet electrical code, shower head that fell off the wall because the screws were too small or the holes too big, shelves that collapsed because of missing supports etc.
And after all this TEXAS RV CENTER accused us of blackmail, because I asked for a $ 2500.00 price reduction due to Lack of MERCHANTABILITY on their part. They claimed that we were professional complainers only out to make a buck, when in reality Texas RV is just passing the buck. We will fix anything and just come back to Texas for the repairs is one of their answers. I wouldnt go back even if they were 3 block over. They couldnt do it right the first time why would I believe that they would succeed the second time over? Mr. Schultz apparently does not understand the meaning of MERCHANTABILITY and Customer Service. But hopefully he will learn soon.
So much for a Christian owned business. All of this has only enticed me to look deeper at the TM Elkmont, and what I have found is now resulting in a formal safety complaint to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTDA) for investigation of possible safety issues. And formal complaints will also shortly go to the respective Attorney Generals Consumer Divisions for False and Deceptive Advertising, in that the product is NOT as described in their sales brochures.
I will probably again hear from Mr. Schultz, as he has promised me to legally pursue my slander, although little does he know that The Truth is an Ultimate Defense. All my allegations are documented, so I fear not his wrath.
Their business is so specialized that few customers are aware of what they are exposed to, and few have the resources to do anything about it IF they become aware of problems. And Mr. Schultz is certainly not going to do ANYTHING to make it right, other than say hes sorry. This is what they told us: We are very sorry for the oversight on the furnace duct work and we appreciate that you brought this information to our attention. Obviously, our delivery technician should have caught this problem on his final check-out. We have just begun to carry brand-new trailers (all of our previous experience has been with pre-owned), and this was definitely a learning experience for us. We are again sorry that it came at your expense, and we are taking steps to make sure that it does not happen again. You are correct at feeling that we did a poor job of prepping the unit, as did TrailManor at the factory. Our previous experiences with the TrailManor units, however, have been very positive. The key words here are: We are again sorry that it came at your expense, and we are taking steps to make sure that it does not happen again. Mr. Schultzs answers and behavior resembles that of a 1950-1960 used car sales person, akin to the ones in the old Mr. Magoo movies.
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