01-06JAN11 - Red Bay, AL (via jemison, al)

Saturday, New Years Day, we head almost due north to the Tiffin RV factory in Red Bay, AL. We decided to split the drive into two days & stopped overnight halfway between Montgomery & Birmingham. The first day of driving was lots of rain but it was not the worst we have driven in with the RV; back in Navarre, FL, the area was under a tornado watch, so maybe we were better off on the road? Sunday, the second day of the drive north, we stopped at a Walmart for diesel fuel. We find their price to be lower than the large truck stops; plus with their giftcard, you get three cents off a gallon. After fueling we were surprised to learn that Walmart giftcards were not allowed in AL! It is legal to get a discount using a Walmart credit card & even a Murphy Oil credit card, but not giftcards! A little past lunch time we checked into the Tiffin Camp Ground at Red Bay, AL, hopefully to get factory service (once again w/no appointment). See below BLOG link for our last visit to Red Bay & why we visit there at least once a year:

http://theryanrvexpress.blogspot.com/2009/11/091109-red-bay-al.html

Monday AM we gave our work list to Norris, the service scheduler, & learned it was too long for an Express Service (ie two technicians for three hours). So our work list was handed off to Jimmie & we went into the backlog of those who did not have an appointment. By Wednesday morning, 05JAN, we realized that we might not get into a service bay until Friday, but Monday was more likely! Since we have medical & dental appointments scheduled on almost every day next week, we opted for Plan B. We reduced the size of our work list & then found Norris to get a three hour Express Service spot for Thursday AM.

Meanwhile, to keep busy on Tues & Wed Dan fixed several things himself; including installing a new dash fan, new signal lights on the Velvac mirrors, & finding an used motor & gear box to replace on our automatic front step motor. We didn’t really need an entire step assembly, but the motor is held to the gear box by three bolts; & two of these bolts have sheared off. In Norris’s estimate it would take several hours to remove the assembly, tap out the rest of the missing bolts, & reassemble at $95 per hour! So Dan decided to do it himself. The step motor was real fun since he had to lay under the RV in near freezing rain. Actually these jobs were made much easier being next to the service center because:

>>>you can take the part to the part’s “guy” & get it right away. No trying to “find something” at the auto store or home depot that might work; or ordering off the internet & waiting.
>>>they have a large inventory of used & damaged parts that you can try & find what you need. For example our step motor cost several hundred bucks new. They had several damaged steps (people driving off without retracting steps!) & Dan got a complete used assembly for $40.
>>>you can find the technician & discuss what you are doing & they will talk you through it and/or offer suggestions. One technician called up photos on computer to show Dan what to look for & check.
Thursday AM we got our 3 hour Express Service with two technician dedicated to our RV & almost all our items were repaired (some for free). Although our RV was returned to us before lunch we decided to stay overnight & leave Friday AM, 07JAN. So that afternoon we once again took the factory tour to kill time. We still are not impressed with the quality control.

Here’s a Tiffin Service Center joke - No one “helps” you at Tiffin, they “haallp” you!