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My wife and I traded in our 2008 18ft. travel trailer in Feb. of 2010 for a brand new 2010 Keystone Laredo 303TG 30 ft. travel trailer with two slides. I work for a traveling construction company and spend 3-4 months minimum in my camper each year. We discovered soon after purchasing the 18 ft. camper made by a different company that it was much too small for my use and began doing research into a new unit that would be better suited for extended camping.

After extensive research, visiting several dealers and touring countless floor plans we settled on the Laredo by Keystone. It appeared to be very well made and had an extensive list of optional equipment that made it ideal for long term camping plus cold weather camping (a must in my area). We purchased it, got it home and two months later sent it out for its first use.

The camper sat for three weeks and performed flawlessly. At the end of the job, I hooked onto the camper and towed it home. After getting it parked, I went in to retrieve some clothes and found the carpet on the left side of the front bedroom to be soaked with what appeared to be water all the way from the pass through to the edge of the large slide. I called my dealer and explained to them what I found. They sent me to another Keystone dealer that did not sell the Laredo line but was only about 20 miles from my home for inspection and repairs. I hauled the camper there and waited for their call.

A week later the dealer called me and said the camper was repaired and ready to go. I went there and he told me a rubber boot on the TV antenna had popped off and allowed water from the roof A/C unit to leak into the camper. I brought the camper home and rolled out the slides.

A few days later, a thunderstorm hit our area with heavy rain and lots of wind. After the storm had passed, I opened the camper to inspect-sure enough, water was again in the same place. I called the dealer where I had repairs made and told them there was water in the camper again. Bring it down they said. Brought it back and waited another week.

I received a call it was done again. This time, a rubber seal in the lower corner of the large slide by the bedroom was the culprit I was told. Now when I rolled out the slides I was to manually flip out the corners of the seals. This was due to poor engineering I was told by the dealer and would keep out the water. I had to do this each time the slides were rolled in and out.

Got it home, rolled out the slides, flipped out the seal corners and waited for the next rainstorm. Week and a half later we were rained on again. After the storm, went in the camper and again felt water squishing through my toes. Called the dealer again. He was shocked that after doing everything right we were still getting wet. Bring it down one more time he said.

He called me a week later. This time, he was sure it was repaired. I asked him what was wrong with it but he had forgotten and didn't have the paperwork in front of him to explain. He mentioned that on their lot some of their new Keystone campers also had water in them after a heavy rain and this was the norm with them. I was told the campers could get some water in them now and then and be just fine because that's the way they're made. Now, I was born at night but it wasn't last night. I've spent many many nights in several different campers and survived what felt like hurricanes going on outside but never had water in them unless something was wrong.

I picked up my camper and brought it home. A couple weeks later, I was sent out on another long distance job so the camper came with me. I decided to try something this time. I opened up the pass through door on the left side of the camper which is right under the front bedroom and in the area where water was found during these incidents. I placed a large towel in there folded up to see if this was where the water was getting in.

I didn't wait long-two days later a monsoon hit the area I was camped out at. After the rain stopped, I opened up the pass through and found the towel was soaked but the camper bedroom was not. I called the original dealer where I purchased the camper and explained to the service manager what had transpired over the past few months. Now, a new problem had developed with my camper that required attention.

In addition to the water leak, as I lay sleeping on the bed in the front bedroom I was awakened in the middle of the night by a large BANG under the bed followed by the collapse of the front corner of the mattress under my feet. I lifted up the bed to inspect the under bed storage compartment and found the bed frame on the left side had pulled completely apart and was in pieces. With no frame on the side, there was no support to hold the bed up. The frame was assembled with finger-jointed pieces of what appeared to be scrap pine wood that were connected at the corners with two flimsy staples. It would've held fine except the mattress is held up by two large gas-charged lift supports that place a huge amount of force on the bed frame when compressed. I did not sleep well that night.

I had to go to a hardware store and purchase some steel corner brackets to get the bed frame shored up enough so I could lay on the bed and not wonder if it would again collapse under me. I counted the days until our job was done so I could get the camper to the shop.

As I waited, another problem developed. This camper has an outdoor kitchen that is accessed through a large hatch. The door for this hatch also has gas-charged lift supports that hold it up so you can use the kitchen. I went out there to use the kitchen and when I lifted up the door, it wouldn't stay up. Each of the lift supports had its lower mounting bracket pulled out of the wall on the inside of the kitchen frame. The holes were totally stripped out and there was no way of getting the screws to stay.

I also had not had any TV reception since getting the camper even though the antenna was raised and turned through it travel. I had a tire that was leaking and needed constant refilling with air. And, a floor register for the furnace had broken as well leaving sharp edges that you had to be careful not to step on. This was getting ridiculous.

We finished our job and I made the 90 mile trip with the camper back to where we purchased it. I told the folks there to keep it as long as they needed to get everything repaired. It took two months but they finally called me and told me everything was done. Here's what they found:

Leaking tire: had a bent rim that wasn't allowing the tire bead to seat properly-replaced rim

TV: The input cable into the booster from the antenna wasn't connected at the factory leaving me with no signal

Repaired the bed properly with sturdy brackets and screws instead of staples

Attached the lift supports for the outdoor kitchen door to metal brackets instead of screwing them into the thin plywood and foam where they were attached before

Water leak: Had to replace the whole pass through door and door frame on the left side of the camper. The door had a curve in it that wasn't allowing it to seat properly against the weatherstripping on the inside of the frame.

Replace the floor register with a new one

We brought the camper home last week. Everything was repaired under warranty so there was no cost for repairs (except for gas for my pickup plus stress amongst others). Since we're in the middle of winter here, I won't know if the water leak is for sure stopped until spring when my warranty is expired. My dealer assured me that if it does indeed leak again, they'll take care of it with no cost. I'm thinking if it leaks again, I'm going to pursue lemon law status for it. I really do enjoy my camper but I know that the next camper we purchase will not be from any brand made by Keystone RV. I know this was a lengthy story to read but I hope it helps you make a decision that you won't regret. Thank you for your time.

Location: Ramsey, Illinois

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Guest

We got a new 2013 keystone Lorado 5th wheel nice camper water leak in Kitchen I fixed it Oven Wouldn't Like Thermocouple Not Hooked up I fix that This year I went to winterize Now the pump won't work lots of problems with a new camper

Guest

Stay away from buffalo RV on southwestern.Me and wife were pretty much chased out of there by a salesman Tom, because we were looking at class a motorhomes unescorted.He approached us in an accusatory manner maybe because we don't dress the part.We are presently trading a class A to a new Georgetown and it is a cash deal. A more subtle and helpful approach to a guy spending the day with his wife of 20 years would have been much more appreciated.We are retired and unfortunately for Mr.

Not so pleasant salesman of the month Tom, we have cash and are ready to deal. I was embarrassed and felt bad for my wife when this guy basically accused us of being malingerers and transient.I will not purchase another RV from Buffalo RV.

Guest

i would be more than happy to take your keystone in on trade towards a jayco

big mike buffalo rv 716652**** ext121

Guest

first to belong to bbb keystone has to pay the bbb so I think you can see the answer there. I live in ny and trailer are notcover by lemon laws here Next I spent 9 months with attorney gernal office and they could he lp there? I spent 29000.00 a year and a half dam thing sit in yard and can;t use it!

Guest

I have the same 303Tg and are having the same types of problems i.e. outside kitchen door screws coming out, water leak in front bedroom.

Dealer (FLAGG RV)says never seen it before haha! Seems they forgot to seal the roof fixed water damage but who knows if mold set in .Dont know how keystone stays in business.Cant even get good money towards a trade.

Guest

in 2006 my husband and I purchased a 2005 Keystone Larado camper from PawPaws campers in Mobile Alabama with a repair contract that we paid for. The camper did not come with a warranty because we were told a couple had purchased it and used it once for the weekend.

We were told that it was too small for them so they returned it. I did believe this until things started to break and fall apart. The first thing that happened was the heating system broke and would not work, so because of this the plastic piping installed throughout the camper started freezing and cracking. after putting up a big stink Paw Paws did send some one down to look at it.

They would not fix the heating system but did replace a few places of piping with weatherized piping. They told me that the plumbing piping installed in manufacturing was not made for cold temperatures. Keep in mind, this is in the southern tip of Alabama. that was just the beginning.

One of my windows leaks and rain pours in, that is only one leak. there are 4 in total. The awning fell off on one side because of the little bitty screws they attached it with. The water pump that pumps the water from the holding tank stopped working, so you can only have water when hooked into a direct water source.

This past weekend the kitchen faucet arm just fell off. my husband said it dry rotted and cracked. I can go on and on with things that are broken and dont work. After finding out that the warranty we purchased did not cover any of these breaks I cancelled that.

I purchased this camper for 32.000 dollars and i am paying 308.49$ per month on it. i will be paying this for the next 6 years. Last year I lost my home because of the bad economy, and its a good thing I was not forced to move into this LEMON of a camper because I would not be able to. its unliveable and unbelievable!

I am preparing to write a letter to the BBB and the Attorney Generals office. I live in New Hampshire and dont know anything about any Lemon Law here, but i am going to look into that also.

I will never ever purchase another camper from Keystone and I am telling all my friends not to ever buy one either. From very displeased consumer.

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