Buyer Beware

Feb 2012 my friend purchased a 2012 Flagstaff 228D Tent Trailer from Cottonwood RV in Chilliwack. It’s the closest dealer in the Lower Mainland. When we went to pick up the trailer & do a walk around I discovered they had the wrong trailer set up. The trailer was a smaller, less expensive model. No reason or apology came from the dealership. We had to make the 50km drive out again to pick up the right trailer.

In May we were setting out for a month long 1st trip with the trailer to the Oregon Coast. The day before we left Bob phoned Cottonwood to find out how to fill the cassette toilet with water for flushing. No one there had any idea. We presumed once we hooked up to park water everything would work.

We arrived at a private rv park in Cannon Beach, OR on May 20th. On setting up to site water Bob discovered he could not fill the hot water tank. The water came gushing back out. The pressure relief valve on the hot water tank was stuck. It took a fellow camper, who happened to be a plumber, to fix it(he hit the side with a rock). He said this should have been checked at the dealership.

The dining table leg extensions were not installed properly & the legs would not extend. Bob had to reassemble them.

As soon as we turned on the furnace the smoke detector went off because the smoke detector was installed above the furnace. Needless to say that had to be disarmed so we could the heater.

Within 24 hrs it rained fairly heavily & our pillows & sheets were wet because the sides of the bed area leaked. Water came in through the window zippers, the zipper seams and the sides. We couldn’t plug in the electric mattress heaters as we were afraid of being electrocuted. The 2nd night water was dripping from the roof of the bed areas as well as the zippers. Our clothes etc were very damp & the cereal boxes were coming apart from the dampness. Then the heater quit & by the 3rd morning we knew we would get very sick if we stayed in the trailer. Bob phoned Cottonwood RV & was told to take the trailer to Portland, OR, a 2hr drive east. We had no intention of going to Portland so packed up the trailer & left it at the rv resort. The toilet didn’t work either even with the shore water hookup.

We had to cancel our reservations at state parks down the Oregon Coast & took motels at a high expense. This meant throwing out all the food we bought as well.

Upon return we contacted Cottonwood. They said we mustn’t have set the trailer up properly & wanted it taken out there for them to see. Another trip out to Chilliwack! The trailer was inspected & they told their lawyer Bob didn’t set the trailer up properly. It was their worker who set the trailer up & the sides sagged just as they had from the start. I have pictures to prove it.

After 5 months we finally got the manuals, DVD & appliance info we should have had upon purchase. I had to email Cottonwood to get this info. According to the manual, the trailer should have been wet down for 4 or 5 days then paraffin wax put on the zippers. If it should happen to rain a fly should be put over the trailer. This is the 21st century, folks. None of this was ever told to us & had we known this trailer would never have been purchased. While we were at Cottonwood in June, I asked another new buyer if she had been told about leaking & she said no. Cottonwood was negligent from day 1 & they have taken no responsibility. This trailer should never have been sold to us. Bob wants his money back & all they can say is everything is ‘fixed’ & the problems were caused by him.

I had to get tutorial info from a dealer in Florida to find out about the cassette toilet. That dealer was shocked when I told him how we had been treated & had not received any info. The Warranty Dept at Forest River told us we should have had all manuals etc upon purchase. No one at Forest River has been willing to help us. Oh yes, and trying to get contact info for someone at Forest River is nearly impossible. It was through a tent trailer owners website that I got a little info. Bottom line is, do NOT buy a Flagstaff Tent Trailer esp from Cottonwood RV. They know nothing about them yet they sell them. We had a new 2000 Coleman before & never had a problem. I’m sad they don’t make them anymore.

Our summer plans to vacation all over BC have been dashed. The trailer sits at Cottonwood. We want our money back as Cottonwood was not honest in any way in regard to this trailer. Like I said in the beginning they tried to have us take away a far inferior trailer with no tip out dining area or cassette toilet/shower. RVers no more. Patricia Boston & Robert Baxter

Pat Boston
pattimb65@gmail.com