2018 Montana High Country Cracked Frame

[Benny, Sharon, & Logan]

Did you find some way of fixing your frame. I have three welders who refuse to touch it without Lippert approval and I cant get them to call me back.

My 2018 Montana High Country 305RL has been out of operation for over a year now. Last Sept I enlisted the help of my dealer to get Lipperts attention regarding my broken
Frame. They had ignored my calls to them like Lippert has done this year as well.
Lippert response is at best a 1 out of five. After several months working through my dealer. Where I sent dozens of photos, descriptions, ect. Lippert sent out a welder to verify my Montana High Country frame made by Lippart in 2018 is cracking apart.
He came out in January 2019.It took that long to get their attention to my problem. I understand Covid was an issue, but now they won't even respond. It is stuck in place because it is unsafe to pull safely. Does someone have a number to lippart corporate that will work.
After Lippart came out, they have refused to return my calls. Luckily, I used Black Cat scales to avoid over loading and even a Smart weight buy Escapees. No adjustments needed. All under the weights on the name plate. The frame was delivered with bad welds as per the lippart tech. I have attached an example where the welds were sub par at best and negligent at worst.
Surely they are past covid and back to work. It has now been a year last month since I started trying to get this broken RV Fixed.

[rames14]

Benny, this is a two year old thread. You may want to post a new thread.

[Ram Montana High Country]

Op was old but this is a new problem - maybe should have been a new post.

I'd contact Keystone. Did you buy new? Who is your dealer? What is the original warranty for frames?

[Roadtravelers]

We had a frame shop do the repairs with Lippert's ok They welded a plate over the crack on the vertical plate and then welded a angled bracket to the horz . plate to the vertical web. We have traded it off for a 2020 331RL with a real "I beam" frame.

[Benny, Sharon, & Logan]

I attemped to start a new thread but was unsuccessful. If the manager can move my thread to new. it is a 2018 Montana I bought in Jun 2017. My dealer worked with me to get lipperts attention. They came out and all I got for months was Covid be patient. Now my rig has been stranded for a full year and I am making my last attempts before buying another lawyer a new car. Both qualified welders I showed this too refused to touch it without specs from the Manufacture. I need someway to get lipperts attention.

[Carl n Susan]

The Thread was moved to a new one as requested. To be fair, it is a similar problem to the 2 year old Thread where it was posted originally.

[scottz]

Keystone has more pull with Lippert than you or your dealer. I would work both angles, Lippert & Keystone, but I think your dealer should be doing this for you. Both Keystone and Lippert would prefer to talk to your dealer.

Sorry for your frustration, Good luck.

[Petmoose]

We had a frame issue that Keystone factory repair discover when we were there for the 2017 national rally. They fixed it for free and our unit is a 2012. I am concerned that there may be a reoccurrence but have been directed to a local dealer for evaluation rather than take it to the factory. I do not have a dealer in my area that is trustworthy enough for me to have anyone but the factory due the repairs.

In 2017 the factory told us that all of these repairs were done by the factory due to the complexity of the repair. I would suspect that there may be a legal aspect to havIng the factory rather than a dealer do the repairs. The factory took 3 days to do it and welder joints and glued plywood reinforcement under the front cap.

As an aside, there were several units brand new ones and a 2006 in for the same repair/problem. Unfortunately it sounds like the same problem persists on current units.

Please post now you proceed as I for one am curious how this ends. Thanks

[Mikelff]

I would try working all the angles first before the lawyer. Once you get the lawyer involved things will definitely stop for a while. I understand your frustration. Lippert does have a warranty and are obligated to fix your issue. You might want to consult with your attorney and see what he says before actually launching any legal action. A year trying to get some action , regardless of Covid, is more than enough time to at least respond to your issues. Keep banging on the door and if no action soon, legal action may be your only choice. Going up the ladder at Lippert may help. Good luck!

[Greg1780]

We purchased 2021 Montana model: 3813MS. Recently noticed the bedroom door is out of square by 1/2” or so and the front door is getting harder to open. Can someone advise me of signs of a cracked frame ?

[Dreamersandtravelers]

While in St. George,, Utah no dealer would address our situation.. (we didn't buy from them!) Our unit is 2013 model. So we did our own repair. We had a crack on fwd section above hitch due to water leak & rust. Peeled back skirting around hitch and lifted cap searching for crack. Once we found issue we found a very qualified mobile welder from Kanab, UT to respond and solve our issue for a mere $250 where dealers wanted thousands. Very satisfied with repair and haven't observed any flexing as we connect or tow our rig. Lippert is a very qualified LOW bid build for profitable manufacturers and fail miserably standing behind their products. Unlike the automotive industry consumer laws, there are little or no lemon laws. It is what it is.

[firestation12]

Originally Posted by Greg1780

We purchased 2021 Montana model: 3813MS. Recently noticed the bedroom door is out of square by 1/2” or so and the front door is getting harder to open. Can someone advise me of signs of a cracked frame ?

The two symptoms you are asking about, may not be related. Start with the entry door first, carefully check to see where contact is being made between the door and frame. This includes the bottom sill plate of the door. It takes a dentist several tries with a bite marker and grinding to get your teeth the proper clearance.....you might have to open and close that door a bunch of times to determine where the problem lies. Sometimes it is nothing more than the strike plate that causes the interference or in other cases, the screen door is the culprit. As for the interior bedroom door, I've seen out of square openings in new campers. I think your 2 issues deserve a bit more scrutiny before jumping on the frame train.

[Greg1780]

Thanks, I’m hoping so also

[Robert Suesserman]

My 2019 Montana 3761 appears to have major frame flex. Where should I look for cracks, I opened the lower front and dont see anything. Is it safe to drive 8 hours. I'm 2 hours from Amarillo headed to Colorado.

[browens62]

2018. 3121

We had a flex Frame issue. File with keystone before the 3 years was up. Was fixed after 3 years warranty . The repair station did not want to touch it. Keystone came and picked it up and fixed the issue.

[Greg1780]

Browens62, Where did you notice the flex issue, was It towards the front of your rid, or one vs the other side ?

[browens62]

Front bottom corner of the bedroom slide ODS

[Montana Man]

Sorry for all that have to experience this issue. I can't go anywhere with mine and not look for that bulge to finally come out. To think that Keystone knows about this engineering (or lack thereof) problem and continue with it for years makes it worse. I'm considering a proactive approach by reinforcing that corner from the inside.

[Greg1780]

I would probably drive it right to the factory as is and leave it.