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Post by laknox on Jun 18, 2018 10:40:53 GMT -5
Due to life happening, mostly dealing with the loss of my mom, we've not been able to take out our new KZ Durango 1500 277RLT until this past weekend. Was sort of a last minute suggestion by DW to head up to the Payson AZ area. After calling around, the only place I could find was a small place S of Payson called Oxbow RV Park. Small, older place, but very quiet. Fairly well maintained, though still in need of some TLC. Lots of long-timers parked, but a number of transient spots. We got a back-in spot and I was d@mned glad of having 4wd to get into it as the ground was very dry, hard-packed with a layer of crushed granite on it. Even in 4wd I spun a bit backing up the incline to the near-level spot. Beat up pedestal, but it worked. Only issue we had was with the cable, which the local cable idiot had FUBARed forcing the park's handy-man to hook it up properly. All-in-all, a nice place. Now, for the trailer... Easy tow up; I think it's a lot more aerodynamic than my old low-pro Komfort. Much less buffeting and mileage was better than expected, despite the nearly 2' higher profile. Maneuvering back into our space didn't require any hard turns and I was even complimented on how easy I backed it in with a "that's not your first rodeo".  I =did= have to watch my top and had to remind DW to watch, too, since there were some trees overhanging. The 4-point auto-level worked awesome and I can't imagine another rig without it. I =do= need to be sure to put some blocks under the rear jacks, though, as they don't have a lot of stroke and it doesn't take a lot of slope to max them out. Saw another rig that had rear jack with =extension= like the front jacks. Way cool and I wish I had them! No issues with the rig the first night, though DW was pissed at not having cable. Got up the next morning, lazed around for a couple hours, had some cereal, then decided to take a drive and do some shopping at the local WallyWorld and Home Depot for a few odds-n-ends for the FW. Drove up to Pine/Strawberry to look around and have some lunch. Some gorgeous homes down Fossil Creek Rd. and it includes the Strawberry School house, the oldest school building in AZ (1885) and on the National Register. Went back later in the PM, lazed around some more, then headed over to Mazatzal Casino for dinner. Nothing special, just some simple eats and a brewski for me while DW blew $20 on the penny slots. Home to some more TV and chips and salsa. Got up the next morning to NO 12v in the coach. No lights, no fridge, nothing. Checked, and the Interstate battery was dead. We were plugged into the 50a the whole time, so that means that the charger/converter is toast. Oh, the stereo was dead, too, which I knew before we even left home. It =was= working after I'd picked it up and I'd had it working when I'd had the FW at the house to load things up several weeks ago. Ended up having to hook up to the truck and leave it idling for nearly 45 minutes while we got packed up, slides in and jack retracted. My one paranoia was with the awning as it was a bit breezy. I did put a ratchet strap on the upwind side over night, but took it down and rolled the awning up when we left for the day. Most others had theirs out, but I didn't want to take =any= chances. When we got home, we got things cleaned up, then I headed right down to Tucson, to the dealer, to have them look at the stereo, converter and a few other things, including where the kitchen slide seems to be hitting the island cabinet doors and scuffing the trim finish on both. 90 miles, one way. NOT a happy camper about this, especially as we already have another trip planned, leaving Aug. 1. The converter is the #1 priority and I'm really hoping they replace the battery, too, as this one was marginal from the get-go, but they refused to give me a fresh battery when I picked it up. (That's a story in itself.  ) Takeaways: 1) We really like this rig. 2) We seriously need to consider adding the 2nd AC, especially if we plan on doing any summer camping at un-shaded or lower elevation sites. 3) Need to get a surge guard. 4) Need to organize the basement a bit better and to add some cargo netting. Containers and "stuff" slide around too much. 5) Need to get the 2nd battery installed, even if it's only a 12v and not the 2 6v GC2's that I =really= want. Can do that later, though I've even thought about just doing 3 12v's. We'll see... 6) I plan on a wet bolt kit at some time, though we just don't tow all that much, so it's not a priority. That's it until the next trip. Lyle |
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Post by laknox on Jun 18, 2018 11:13:01 GMT -5
Afterthought: Had a shower 1st morning and was glad I was on city water and not the pump. Even with a semi-Navy shower, I used a =lot= more water than I thought, if I'm to believe the gauge. Had water on the floor outside the shower, though and, at the dealer, the service tech immediately noticed that the ends of the door track had NOT been sealed up allowing water to leak onto the floor. C'mon KZ! How can you miss that one?
Second afterthought: The RR trim strip (rub rail) had been cut too short and had come completely out. From a comment made at the dealer, this seems to be somewhat common. C'mon KZ! How hard is this?
Third afterthought: The Dicor caulk at the top of the RR, where the top, rear and side walls meet, was badly cracked. This is a '17 unit, built in '16 and sat at the dealer for right at 11 months before we took it home. My old Komfort's caulk didn't show cracking for over 4 years. C'mon KZ! Time for better quality caulk?
Lyle
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Post by rvdude on Jun 18, 2018 21:44:12 GMT -5
Glad you had an enjoyable maiden voyage with the trailer. Hope you have many more safe and enjoyable trips and memories for years to come. Once you get the little kinks all worked out, it will be that much better. I love my trailer, I have a few little issues, but it will all be great once those are taken care of.
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Post by Chuck on Jun 20, 2018 13:10:00 GMT -5
laknox Sorry to here about your problems on your 1st trip, sounds like the dealer is going to work with you on repairs which is a good thing ... On our 1st inspection this past December at the selling dealer it was stated that the front an rear seals needed to be re-caulked our 2017 Durango Gold G384RLT... I said the trailer was only a year old how could this be possible when none of the other caulking was bad on the roof ... Since i can not climb I stated go ahead an re-seal such, I still feel that it wasn't needed but one never knows ... One of the things this years is that the wagon master has ask the Kz people to look at all the roofs of RV's attending this years rally to make sure they are ok an sealed correctly, if not re-seal them, thank you Kz ... Safe travels an happy Glamping  Chuck |
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Post by laknox on Jun 20, 2018 13:52:10 GMT -5
laknox Sorry to here about your problems on your 1st trip, sounds like the dealer is going to work with you on repairs which is a good thing ... On our 1st inspection this past December at the selling dealer it was stated that the front an rear seals needed to be re-caulked our 2017 Durango Gold G384RLT... I said the trailer was only a year old how could this be possible when none of the other caulking was bad on the roof ... Since i can not climb I stated go ahead an re-seal such, I still feel that it wasn't needed but one never knows ... On of the things this years is that the wagon master has ask the Kz people to look at all the roofs of RV's attending this years rally to make sure they are ok an sealed correctly, if not re-seal them, thank you Kz ... Safe travels an happy Glamping Chuck Thanks, Chuck. Mustn't have been anything too bad as I got a call from the dealer saying it was ready. Only thing they won't mess with is the stereo, so I have to deal directly with Jensen on that. Stupid, stupid, STUPID! It's like having to deal directly with Delco if your alternator goes out. Don't know about you, but I've yet to see a Delco store anywhere. Don't get me started on the =other= stuff I could go off about.  Waiting for a call back from the service mgr. to get the details. I'm =hoping= they replaced the battery, too. Won't be able to pick it up for a couple weeks, though, as the next couple weekends are already booked up. Lyle |
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Post by Chuck on Jun 20, 2018 18:32:13 GMT -5
laknox Sorry to here about your problems on your 1st trip, sounds like the dealer is going to work with you on repairs which is a good thing ... On our 1st inspection this past December at the selling dealer it was stated that the front an rear seals needed to be re-caulked our 2017 Durango Gold G384RLT... I said the trailer was only a year old how could this be possible when none of the other caulking was bad on the roof ... Since i can not climb I stated go ahead an re-seal such, I still feel that it wasn't needed but one never knows ... On of the things this years is that the wagon master has ask the Kz people to look at all the roofs of RV's attending this years rally to make sure they are ok an sealed correctly, if not re-seal them, thank you Kz ... Safe travels an happy Glamping Chuck Thanks, Chuck. Mustn't have been anything too bad as I got a call from the dealer saying it was ready. Only thing they won't mess with is the stereo, so I have to deal directly with Jensen on that. Stupid, stupid, STUPID! It's like having to deal directly with Delco if your alternator goes out. Don't know about you, but I've yet to see a Delco store anywhere. Don't get me started on the =other= stuff I could go off about. Waiting for a call back from the service mgr. to get the details. I'm =hoping= they replaced the battery, too. Won't be able to pick it up for a couple weeks, though, as the next couple weekends are already booked up. Lyle Lyle If you read one of my other posts about some of my 1st repairs last March I had a furnace go out, called dealer, they stated it would be 3 months before I could get it in to be looked at an possibly another few weeks to get parts .... I called Kz Customer service, they stated that they were not on the hook for repairs to appliances which the furnace was under for the 1st year, but gave me Suburbans direct phone number ... I called Suburban an they directed me to one of the repair shops, called had a an appointment in a week an furnace was fixed in 3 days not 3 months ... So in my book going to the vender instead of the dealer in some case's may be faster Safe Travels Chuck |
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Post by laknox on Jun 21, 2018 11:41:55 GMT -5
I hear ya, Chuck, but what vendor, other than Hyundai, could I get a NIB short block from =and= have it installed...for free? So, just heard back from the dealer about the converter. Seems there were some blown fuses that took it out. Replaced and all is good again. They won't touch the stereo (Surprised? Didn't think so.), so have to go to Jensen for that. No clue as to what happened, though it =could= have been the pedestal. I did manage to trip the 50a breaker as I was putting a slide out at the same time as the auto-level was running. I =suppose= it could have tripped a weak-ish breaker... (shrug) Lyle |
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Post by Chuck on Jun 22, 2018 11:53:12 GMT -5
Lyle I have to say I level 1st an the then run my slides out, never both at the say time, but that the old man in me, one thing at a time As far as the stereo I would call Kz Customer service an ask what can be done about such, state that the dealer will not touch such an see if they will either send you a replacement or steer you to a repair shop or dealer who will replace such ... Safe Travels an glad you finally got to go Glamping Chuck |
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Post by laknox on Jun 22, 2018 11:59:13 GMT -5
Quick update:
Talked to the owner (small dealership) and, since I'd given him the info on the stereo from Jensen (I'd already called them and had a case #), he pretended he was me and was having the new unit shipped directly to him and they'll install it. Only issue is that this is an older unit and no longer produced. Hopefully they'll have one on the shelf to replace it, or have one that's compatible. Biggest issue will be the main plug; if that's different, then they'll have to tear into things a bit to do some re-wiring.
So far, kudos to Frost RV in Tucson!
Lyle
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Post by Chuck on Jun 23, 2018 12:49:44 GMT -5
Well Lyle Glad the dealer is working with you, Kz may be able to order such from the MFG or even have it on the shelf just by chance one never knows ... I know that our stereo is an older version of what is in the mid to later 2018 which have CD players in them where we had to buy an after market CD player to put in out 384 ... I think last year at the rally what Kz took away from the rally was our comments on no CD players an upgraded G rated tire on some units along with some other minor things owners stated that was needed so they were listening to what we had to say I believe .... Safe Travels Chuck |
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Post by mtcowgirl on Jun 23, 2018 19:39:57 GMT -5
We don't have a CD player in our 2018. But we do have a DVD player that is a separate unit that came with our 2018.
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Post by Chuck on Jun 24, 2018 10:38:47 GMT -5
mtcowgirl Again I miss spoke Ugh, what I meant was a DVD player, but we also do not have a CD player, I'm old an was thinking about one where I meant the other Ugh ... LOL Safe Travels an happy Glamping Chuck |
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Post by laknox on Jul 2, 2018 17:22:30 GMT -5
mtcowgirl Again I miss spoke Ugh, what I meant was a DVD player, but we also do not have a CD player, I'm old an was thinking about one where I meant the other Ugh ... LOL Safe Travels an happy Glamping Chuck Ours does have the DVD player, though with the stereo not working, we could not channel the TV audio through the speaker system. I need to call Frost and see what they've been able to find out from Jensen about the replacement and whether they had the old model available or, if not, if a newer system will PnP into the same harness, OR if something else will have to be done. I just cant' believe that the electrics are so fragile that (possibly) tripping the pedestal breaker would fry the converter fuses =and= the stereo, as that's the =only= thing I know that's happened since I've had it. I guess Progressive Industries is going to get some business sooner rather than later.  Lyle |
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Post by Chuck on Jul 3, 2018 10:58:51 GMT -5
Lyle't You can go wrong with a Progressive Industries unit, we have one now an had one in are other 5th wheel an Class C Here is hoping that they can plug an pay with the new stereo system, I would think they would have a tech who is able to figure it out, maybe not one never knows ... As far as the electrics being fragile it you tripped a 50amp breaker you could have had low voltage thought out the trailer an that could have did the trick or when the breaker was reset a voltage spike could have happened as well ... Glad you have it all in hand an getting it fixed, as second battery I believe is a must in these newer 5th wheel Safe Travels Chuck |
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Post by laknox on Jul 3, 2018 11:15:23 GMT -5
Lyle't You can go wrong with a Progressive Industries unit, we have one now an had one in are other 5th wheel an Class C Here is hoping that they can plug an pay with the new stereo system, I would think they would have a tech who is able to figure it out, maybe not one never knows ... As far as the electrics being fragile it you tripped a 50amp breaker you could have had low voltage thought out the trailer an that could have did the trick or when the breaker was reset a voltage spike could have happened as well ... Glad you have it all in hand an getting it fixed, as second battery I believe is a must in these newer 5th wheel Safe Travels Chuck I know when we got our Komfort in '04, we were =asked= if we wanted the 2nd battery and the cost was not bad at all. Frost never asked me if I'd like one and I, frankly, didn't think about it too much, since I wanted to go 2x6v. When I asked this last time down, they wanted > $400 to install. Hay-ell NO! $25 for a box, $25 for some cables and whatever a new Gp27 battery costs. Few bucks to extend the vent tube. Some sweat and beer, and I'm good to go! Still re-thinking the 6v's, though, since that would require all-new boxes and, likely, a complete move of the batteries. Having the 100w solar gives me more peace of mind about drawing the batteries down too far and it's not hard to add another 100w panel (or 3) to the system. Also, I'm probably going to bite the bullet and replace the original battery with a fresh one since it's been flat 2x that I know about, and I don't want to F up a new, 2nd battery. Lyle |
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Post by Chuck on Jul 3, 2018 12:19:55 GMT -5
Lyle I think $400 is a little over the top, batteries must be made of gold, local RV dealer has interstate deep cell's for $110 ... Putting a new battery with an old one is not a good idea, better to get two new ones thus avoid a problem ... I think putting in 4 6 volts would be better but as you stated, new wiring an the weight of such along with the room is in your 5th wheel may not be an option unless you moved all to you storage area an put covered box's an vents in ... We have solar inlets on are roof but have not went the route since the DW dozen't like BD at all an wants only full hookups .... Safe Travels Chuck |
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Post by laknox on Jul 3, 2018 13:13:41 GMT -5
Lyle I think $400 is a little over the top, batteries must be made of gold, local RV dealer has interstate deep cell's for $110 ... Putting a new battery with an old one is not a good idea, better to get two new ones thus avoid a problem ... I think putting in 4 6 volts would be better but as you stated, new wiring an the weight of such along with the room is in your 5th wheel may not be an option unless you moved all to you storage area an put covered box's an vents in ... We have solar inlets on are roof but have not went the route since the DW dozen't like BD at all an wants only full hookups .... Safe Travels Chuck Oh, I know about mixing old/new batteries. Hell, we bought 2 "voltaged matched" batteries for Dad's scooter last Nov. and they've already gone bad. Had to replace them for about $150 more at Batteries+. Looking to get a refund on them or, at worst, file a chargeback on his card. :-( We do an annual 'docker with DW's family. Ususally have 30-40 people out in the forest of N AZ for 3-4 days. Lots of fun and peaceful. Hopefully, everything will be open and rains won't be too bad. Have had issues with rain several times, even cancelling us one year. I like to go up early both to make sure "our" spot is occupied and to just get the hell outta Dodge for an extra day. :-) Lyle |
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Post by laknox on Jul 9, 2018 10:49:20 GMT -5
Got the FW back from the dealer last Friday and all is working again. They found some "blown fuses" and, according to the repair sheet, "loose connections" on the power block, which caused the converter failure. No clue about the stereo but we got lucky and Jensen had the exact same unit still in stock, so no issues about getting it to fit and PnP into the harness. Since I do like me some tunes, I think I'm going to get some new speakers sooner, rather than later.
First step, though, is to get the battery situation taken care of before our boondocker in a couple weeks.
Lyle
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Post by Chuck on Jul 10, 2018 13:27:20 GMT -5
Lyle Glad you got things worked out Again it sounds as if your dealer is stepping up to the plate an doing the right thing Safe travels an happy Glamping, see you on the road Chuck |
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Post by laknox on Jul 10, 2018 14:46:27 GMT -5
Dealer did cheap out a bit on the piece of "rub rail" trim that had been cut too short. Replacement was more of a solid ribbon, not the hollow type, so you can see all the screw heads. Oh, well; unless you know what to look for, you won't know.
Now, I've just got to figure out how to handle the batteries. Replace the one, weaker, battery with 2 new ones and one new battery box or go with 2 6v and 2 new battery boxes. Actually, I almost think that it would be almost a wash, as the 12v Interstates are about $20 each more than the 6v GC batteries at Sam's.
Lyle
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I =did= have to watch my top and had to remind DW to watch, too, since there were some trees overhanging. The 4-point auto-level worked awesome and I can't imagine another rig without it. 
)
Waiting for a call back from the service mgr. to get the details. I'm =hoping= they replaced the battery, too. Won't be able to pick it up for a couple weeks, though, as the next couple weekends are already booked up.
