Our Camping World Experience

This blog post is designed to share Our Camping World Experience for those that are considering buying from Camping World in Grain Valley MO, or possibly having work done there, or thinking about having work done at their service department.

Reconsider, read this entire blog post and watch the video below before going to Camping World in Grain Valley MO!

In the video below I am giving a walk around of just some of the issues we now have after Camping World in Grain Valley MO service department worked on our 2011 Sabre fifth wheel camper (our home).

In this blog post I wanted to take the time to explain how our problems actually started and Our Camping World Experience so that you could better understand the entire dealing with Camping World in Grain Valley MO.

We purchased our 35′ Sabre fifth wheel camper from them in April 2016 in preparation for moving to the land we was purchasing and selling our home in town. This land had no home and we was planning to live in this Sabre while building our new home on the land we was purchasing. After our house closing date had been set 30 days away, the push was on and we needed a camper right away. So I returned to Camping World in Grain Valley MO to go ahead and purchase the 2011 35′ Sabre. Even with that black taped electrical cord that I had a bad feeling about.

We sold our home and moved onto the land July 1st 2016 and was running on generators and hauling our water due to the fact that this property had never been lived on and had no electric or water to it yet. Totally off the grid living on this property!

Why Should You Use Extreme Caution With Camping World In Grain Valley MO?

Everything was working perfectly and then one hot day in August we had some flickering of lights and some things acting a little weird. I contacted Camping World in Grain Valley MO and left a message for the service department to call me. Several days later there was no response so I called them back and left another message. Several days later no response, so I jumped in my truck and drove to their shop which is 1 hour one way.

After waiting around for awhile I finally got to talk with the service manager. After telling him of my problems he felt sure it was the convertor and agreed to send someone to me to fix it since we was unable to bring it to them due to living in it full time and having it loaded down and tied down. They did come out and fix the problem and everything was back to working as it should be.

A month or so later we started experiencing more electrical problems with our Sabre. By this time we had electric service to our property and everything had been working great. The electric problems continued with blinking lights and eventually lights going clear off, then back on, and so on. We was about to have Our Camping World Experience start.

Be Prepared For The Unexpected – Have Fire Extinguishers Ready To Go

Once again we contacted Camping World in Grain Valley MO. The unexpected (not really) with leaving messages and then finally having to drive to them to be able to speak with someone. Our problem got worse and finally one evening we experienced a complete electrical blowout. Sparks, smoke and all kinds of freaky snapping noises started and then no lights or anything besides battery power. Thank goodness for our extreme battery bank. We also had the fire extinguishers ready to go…but thank God we didn’t need them.

Once I checked everything out it became obvious that the main incoming electric cord had serious short out problems and it’s twist lock plug. At that time I completely unhooked the Sabre from the main electric box at that time.

Having A Large Battery Bank Is Vital When Living Off Grid

At this time we was down to running on battery’s only and did this for several weeks. Back to totally of grid living. Camping World in Grain Valley MO didn’t want to do anything with warranty and basically told me I was on my own.

A certified electrician looked at our Sabre before taking it to Camping World in Grain Valley MO and he informed that it needed a main cord (which was the reason we had all these problems to start with) and it’s twist lock receptacle. He also said we would need a microwave, a living room TV, a relay for the fireplace, and a stereo unit.

I also took plenty of pictures, videos and wrote everything down on paper with times and dates.

Check Things Yourself and Keep Good Records With Pictures

I told this to Camping World in hopes they could have all of the parts already there to shorten our expensive stays in hotels and shorten the time in their shop. They informed me that they would have to look at it first before ordering anything for it. So I finally had no choice but to take our Sabre in to their shop for the much needed repairs. At that time I specifically told the person in charge of our account in the parking lot of Camping World in Grain Valley MO service that this unit DID NOT have anti freeze in it due to we lived in it full time and he assured me he would drain the system and take care of it so it would not freeze.

After several weeks the guy in charge of our account called me and told me that I could come and pick our Sabre up so that we could have it for Christmas. After arriving at Camping World to get it on Dec 23rd and had no power to run the landing gear or anything and they had people looking at it and found a bad relay and fixed it. At this time I really started looking our Sabre over really good due to the fact that it was there for electrical problems and at that time it appeared to still have electrical problems.

Being Persistent and Cautious

Immediately I started searching for problems and I found the outdoor shower head busted as well as the big glass filter container for the water purification system was also busted. After showing this person and he went inside and came back outside to tell me it had frozen. While this person walked away from me and went inside led me to even more signs of potential problems that could arise once I hooked up the water to this rig…

So you might guess what I said then? I assured him that if I took it home and found other frozen and busted problems there would be heck to pay since I told him face to face in that very parking lot about the Sabre NOT having anti freeze in it and he promised me he would personally take care of it.

Once I pulled our 2011 35′ Sabre back onto our property, and after 2 hours of getting it into our large shop we hooked everything up to find water going everywhere on the inside of the Sabre. The next day I was trying to call Camping World in Grain Valley MO and talk with the person in charge of our account and you’ve probably guessed it right, left messages but no return phone calls. So after Christmas I drove to Camping World in Grain Valley MO and wouldn’t leave until I could talk with the service manager.

Some Service Managers Lack People Skills

Our conversation face to face wasn’t the best, but I told him that his guy had promised me that our Sabre would not freeze up and he said that it wasn’t their problem and there was nothing I could do about it. I informed him that he was wrong and that I could indeed do plenty…

This service manager kept asking me what I wanted him to do and I told him several times I wanted him to make it right. He said he WOULD NOT do the labor on this freeze up because it wasn’t their fault and I assured him that Camping World in Grain Valley MO would NEVER work on our stuff ever again and that I would take care of the labor if he would just give me the parts I needed.

Some service managers lack people skills and leaves you wondering how they ever got that position!

What About Spare Parts?

The only parts they had in stock was the outside shower head and the indoors shower head as well as the toilet valve. This wasn’t even close to everything we needed, but I took the parts and left their store. I went home to install the parts so that we could at least use our toilet and take showers.

Huge tip: If you are living in an RV full time, make sure you keep a spare toilet valve. I have found that this is the one thing that can and will go bad, or one of the first things to freeze up. What a mess this makes…trust me!

This was the last time we have ever heard a word from Camping World in Grain Valley MO. So again, I have called and left message, but as usual no return phone calls. And I am not driving down there ever again. Honestly, I am as done with them as I am sure they are with me. Our Camping World Experience has just continued to get worse at this point What a way to run a business.

One thing I forgot to mention about Our Camping World Experience. When we purchased this Sabre back in April of 2016 I noticed that the main cord going to the camper was black taped on both ends. I could see wires showing through the black tape and asked my salesman for a new incoming cord. He asked his boss and he told me that since they had given me new tires and lowered the price of the Sabre that they would not give me a new electric cord. I specifically told him that this was just a problem on down the road and wasn’t interested in it anymore if that was the case.

Looking Back At Our Camping World Experience…

Now looking back at Our Camping World Experience and how our entire electrical issue and having to take it to Camping World in Grain Valley MO could have been avoided if they would have replaced that electrical cord. Camping World in Grain Valley MO admitted to me that cord was the problem for all of the electrical issues that we had.

Might I mention when I picked up our 2011 Sabre on Dec 23rd I immediately noticed the only thing that Camping World in Grain Valley MO had even done. After weeks of having our 2011 35′ Sabre tied up and us having to pay for expensive travel and a place to stay, was the following. They installed a new living room TV, installed a new relay switch in the fireplace (and left the fireplace sitting in the living room floor for me to put back in it’s rightful place. They also place a new main electrical cord in the under cabin storage area and installed a new outside twist lock receptacle. I’m serious, that’s all they did in 2 weeks!

Then to take it home and find all of the leaks from allowing our home to freeze up and bust everything. What a let down this was. So you can imagine how we felt about Our Camping World Experience at this point.

This is our home and to us it isn’t any different than having someone come into our regular home and totally screw things up, leaving us with a great deal of things to fix and spend more money on. These are all things they screwed up, not us. Our Camping World Experience was less than great and we would not recommend this service department to our worst enemy.

Below is a list of things we have already fixed from the freeze up while at Camping World:

• Toilet valve assembly.
• Bathroom shower head and hose assembly.
• Outdoor shower head and hose assembly.
• Repairs to kitchen sink and lines…(temporary while waiting for the right parts).
• Bathroom sink and drain repairs.
• Cleaning up the messes that water left behind and drying everything out.
• Temporary fix to water purification system while waiting for correct parts.
• Hose replacements in under storage areas.
• Drain system and valves replace and repairs.

Below is a list of the parts (from freeze up) we still have to get for our 2011 Sabre:

• Large clear (see thru) glass canister and filter for water purification system.
• Fittings for water purification system.
• Kitchen faucet assembly (nickel plated with pull out cord).
• PVC pipe and fittings for shower drain from freezing and cracking. (I have a bucket under it for now).

Below here is things that wasn’t working when we got it back from Camping World in Grain Valley MO:

• Main electric board and inside board for refrigerator so we don’t have to run fridge and water heater on gas only.
• Stereo unit…(was suppose to be replaced from the first problem we had back in August last year and still haven’t received).
• Microwave unit.

Writing this is such a reminder of Our Camping World Experience, and also a having that feeling that we have really been wronged and maybe we should rethink our earlier thoughts as what to do.

Don’t Forget To Do Your Research Before Using Any Company

Check out the reviews I later found online. Of course this was all after Our Camping World Experience. This is only a small handful of the (not so good) reviews that I found on Camping World In Grain Valley MO.

What Could We Have Done Differently?

We could have done more extensive research on this company and not just assumed because of the big Camping World name that their service department was 100%. We could have done the research on the Camping World In Grain Valley Service Department to find out what others were saying and experiences they had with this company and it’s service department.

However, we didn’t do that and it is what it is. Another learning experience in the books. The one thing we can do is this; we can make others aware of our mistakes in hopes that they won’t go down the same road and have it lead to bad experiences like ours has. We will plow right through Our Camping World Experience and look back someday and have a great story to tell on the front porch of our new home sitting in the rocking chairs drinking a cold one. Or maybe at one of our bonfires. Lol…

Always do your best,

-Mike Pilcher

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