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Old 05-31-2008, 01:35 PM   #1
MLynch
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Location: Davie, FL
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Default Service at Gulfstream Factory?

I'm having a heck of a time getting stuff fixed correctly. During spring break, we went through St. Augustine and stopped by Dick Gore's RV world. They diagnosed the problem with our Power Gear levelling jacks and ordered the requisite parts. Eventually, they finally got around to ordering the part in question. In the meantime, we went to the local Freightliner dealer to get our 4k mile tranny service and have them check out why our front (dash) AC was not working. Freightliner diagnosed a short at the condenser but said I'd have to get things fixed at a dealer (since Gulfstream apparently installed an aftermarket AC that Freightliner was not responsible for)....so it was off to Dick Gore's to get the AC fixed and to have them install the Power Gear parts that they ordered. It's a long drive, but the had the part in stock and I didn't want to hit the road without the levelling jacks working. So, I drove 250 miles (each way) yesterday to Dick Gore's RV world. They installed the new Power Gear motor, only to tell me that they now think that the problem is with the control pad and they were wrong with their initial diagnosis. They also could not find the short in the AC. All this after a 5 hour wait. So 10 hours of wasted drive time, a couple hundred bucks + in fuel, and no resolution on any problem. Nice!

Anyhow, I'm set to leave with the family tomorrow on our trip out west and I've got no levelling jacks.....and I've got the new unit with the full slide....also nice. I'm thinking of leaving South Florida and heading to our first stop (Mt. Rushmore) via Indiana. I was thinking of taking the kids on a tour of the Gulfstream factory and getting the AC and the levelling jacks fixed by Gulfstream while we're there. i figured that they would have all parts on site and the tour would be pretty cool to see. I thought that I had previously read about somebody doing this; however, I thought that I better double check to ensure that repairs can be done on-site in Napannee, Indiana. Am I correct? I placed calls to staff at Gulfstream yesterday and (naturally) no returned calls.

Thanks for any clarificaton that you might be able to offer.

Best regards,
Mike
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Old 05-31-2008, 05:09 PM   #2
GStream40
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Hi Mike,

Service is available at the GS factory by appointment and approval.

You can call this number if you haven't already for GS motorized service 1-800-482-6456

You could also contact Power Gear directly at 1-800-334-4712 and they might be able to fix your problem with their system while you are in Indiana.

The same with the Air conditioning problem, the unit was made by Evans Tempcon 1-800-878-7147, I know Evans dianosed what was wrong with mine and GS service techs repaired the wiring problem at the fuseblock.

The factory tour is enjoyable and eyeopening.

There is a "campgrounds" right at the factory for any GS owner, Actually it is appox. 13 sites with water and electric. A dump station is across the street.

I want to let you know that there will probably be no factory service available from June 22nd thru June 28th since the techs will be at the Gulf Streamers Back Home Rally in Goshen, IN. taking care of the members service needs that are there at the rally.

Ron
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Old 06-08-2008, 12:02 PM   #3
MLynch
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Thanks for the tips, Ron. We stopped by the Gulfstream factory and Pauline from the factory was very helpful. Gulfstream did not have an on-site service center (got blown away by the tornado); however, they had folks from Power Gear and the A/C company come to the adjcent campsite to fix our issues.

As for the Power Gear issue with the levelling jacks, I'm glad that they had a rep from the comany come out to fix it. He said that one of the jacks had a magnet adjacent to the sensor installed backwards. In all of his years of doing repairs and trouble-shooting, it was only the second time that he encountered this problem. No service center would have caught that issue.

The folks from Evans replaced a thermostat control unit to the A/C (Frieghtliner diagnosed a short to the condensor....they were wrong). This was a good news, bad news scenario: the A/C from the dash was blowing so cold that my wife asked me to adjust the temp. As soon as I adusted the temperature gauge, the thermostat control unit appeared to give out again.....so it will be back for additional repairs at some point.

Heading through South Dakota during an intense rain storm, we heard a thud and then the windshield wipers stuck on the outer edges of the windshield. I applied some RainX to the windshield as a stop-gap measure and we hit the road again. The next morning the wipers started to work again (when there was no rain). We got to Yellowstone and encountered a mini-storm (about 4 inches of snow in the higher elevations). Naturally, the wipers stopped working again (and RainX doesn't help with snow). We stopped every mile to scrape snow off of the windshield. We have a local service technician stopping by tomorrow to fix the wipers before we head toward the Grand Canyon. In the meantime, we rented a Suburban to pile the family in to so that we can see Yellowstone without having additional wiper issues in the snow (there continues to be a lot of snow here).

Yesterday, when we went to pull some stuff out of the storae bins, we found the floor to the basement storage unit completely wet.....so we also have a leak. We've also found that the TV cable hook-up in incorrect. We've been unable to hook up to cable at any of the campsites.

On a positive note, the rig has provided a smooth ride with no mechanical issues to the generator, the engne or the transmission. All of the issues that we've had are fixable.....I just wish that they presented during some of our mini-trips leading up to the Great American RV trip with the wife and 7.5 kids.

I've also gotten adapt at certain on-the-road repairs (like fixing the shower door when it came apart, replacing molding, and repairing leaks around window seals).

For now, we'll keep on motorin'. The kids are having a good time and we're creating memories......everything else is just a bump in the road.

Best regards,
Mike
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Old 08-12-2008, 06:43 PM   #4
RayChez1
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Which Gulfstream Motorhome do you own, maybe we can help if we knew what coach you have.
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Old 12-15-2010, 10:17 PM   #5
nomad
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I read post after post about Gulfstream customer service and issues and wonder if I did the right thing by buying one.

I thought Gulfstream was a good brand ....
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Old 12-15-2010, 10:56 PM   #6
RayChez1
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Quote:
Originally Posted by nomad
I read post after post about Gulfstream customer service and issues and wonder if I did the right thing by buying one.

I thought Gulfstream was a good brand ....
Gulf Stream made some real good coaches, but like all manufactures they also made some that were a lot to be desired. But all coach companies have their lemons. I don't care whether it is Monaco, Fleetwood or Newmars. They all have some coaches that just give problems.
Where a lot of RVers have complained about Gulf Stream is their customer service not answering the phone calls. But as you know with the recession as hard as it has been a lot of companies are barely making ends meet. Gulf Stream is no exception, they have not gone belly up like a lot of other companies, but they had to cut off the class A assembly line because of the slow sales of the class A coaches. They have survived because it is a family owned company and they have streamlined to manufacturing only trailers and class C motorhomes until the economy picks up.
Gulf Stream does not manufacture real high end coaches like Newmar, Fleetwood, Tiffin, Foretravel. Gulf Stream coaches are mid range in prices that were on the class A TourMasters for around 350K. I paid in 2003 for a Scenic Cruiser 212K dollars which was not bad for their top of the line at the time.
Where Gulf Stream made the mistake was to cut down on their quality control and pass the coach down to the dealer for final prep. Lot of dealers didn't like that and didn't particularly like Gulf Stream because they would not pay them what they wanted to charge per hour to make repairs to the coaches.
I can't complain, my coach has been an excellent coach.
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2018 Buick Envision Essence
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Old 04-13-2011, 03:59 PM   #7
strike11
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Default Re:

Quote:
Originally Posted by RayChez
Quote:
Originally Posted by nomad
I read post after post about Gulfstream customer service and issues and wonder if I did the right thing by buying one.

I thought Gulfstream was a good brand ....
Gulf Stream made some real good coaches, but like all manufactures they also made some that were a lot to be desired. But all coach companies have their lemons. I don't care whether it is Monaco, Fleetwood or Newmars. They all have some coaches that just give problems.
Where a lot of RVers have complained about Gulf Stream is their customer service not answering the phone calls. But as you know with the recession as hard as it has been a lot of companies are barely making ends meet. Gulf Stream is no exception, they have not gone belly up like a lot of other companies, but they had to cut off the class A assembly line because of the slow sales of the class A coaches. They have survived because it is a family owned company and they have streamlined to manufacturing only trailers and class C motorhomes until the economy picks up.
Gulf Stream does not manufacture real high end coaches like Newmar, Fleetwood, Tiffin, Foretravel. Gulf Stream coaches are mid range in prices that were on the class A TourMasters for around 350K. I paid in 2003 for a Scenic Cruiser 212K dollars which was not bad for their top of the line at the time.
Where Gulf Stream made the mistake was to cut down on their quality control and pass the coach down to the dealer for final prep. Lot of dealers didn't like that and didn't particularly like Gulf Stream because they would not pay them what they wanted to charge per hour to make repairs to the coaches.
I can't complain, my coach has been an excellent coach.
Thanks for that insight as I am considering purchasing a 06 8356 DP with 6K I had been warn by the service dept to be aware of the customer service issues regarding parts. The coach went throught the shop with only minor adjustments being made. I am considering a complete service even with the low miles just to be safe.
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Old 05-27-2011, 03:56 AM   #8
nomad
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Default Re:

Quote:
Originally Posted by RayChez
Quote:
Originally Posted by nomad
I read post after post about Gulfstream customer service and issues and wonder if I did the right thing by buying one.

I thought Gulfstream was a good brand ....
Gulf Stream made some real good coaches, but like all manufactures they also made some that were a lot to be desired. But all coach companies have their lemons. I don't care whether it is Monaco, Fleetwood or Newmars. They all have some coaches that just give problems.
Where a lot of RVers have complained about Gulf Stream is their customer service not answering the phone calls. But as you know with the recession as hard as it has been a lot of companies are barely making ends meet. Gulf Stream is no exception, they have not gone belly up like a lot of other companies, but they had to cut off the class A assembly line because of the slow sales of the class A coaches. They have survived because it is a family owned company and they have streamlined to manufacturing only trailers and class C motorhomes until the economy picks up.
Gulf Stream does not manufacture real high end coaches like Newmar, Fleetwood, Tiffin, Foretravel. Gulf Stream coaches are mid range in prices that were on the class A TourMasters for around 350K. I paid in 2003 for a Scenic Cruiser 212K dollars which was not bad for their top of the line at the time.
Where Gulf Stream made the mistake was to cut down on their quality control and pass the coach down to the dealer for final prep. Lot of dealers didn't like that and didn't particularly like Gulf Stream because they would not pay them what they wanted to charge per hour to make repairs to the coaches.
I can't complain, my coach has been an excellent coach.
Well it is great that you have a good coach --- but the fact is that many don't and GulfStreaM IS NOT THERE FOR FOLKS ANYMORE THAT OWN COACHES .

Buy one ------------- better think it out is my advice
__________________
2010 GulfStream Caribbean 35-A
Last of the Class A's GulfStream made
340 Cummins Diesel engine
8000 watt Onan Generator
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