Blackout trim bubbling/peeling?

[tommyc]

Hey I noticed a few trips ago that some of the black trim on the front of my VRV was chipping and few good sized spots where the finish peeled off. Figured it was from stones so wasn't to concerned with it.

Then we got back from a trip today and noticed a large section on the black trim at the roof line is bubbling in dozens of spots. It's going to look horrible once it peels. My 2015 is already out of warranty so was wondering if anyone else has had any issues. not looking forward to having to deal with LL on this one.

[thudd3r]

got any pics?  is it a painted piece? or the plastic gap filler that covers the screws?

thanks

[tommyc]

[davidb]

It never occurred to me how the models with the black trim option got the black aluminum.
I assumed it was anodized, but now it looks like it is an adhesive sticker over the raw silver aluminum.
So sad how some of these issues don't occur until  after you have owned them a while, I still think the Livin Lite construction is superior to the typical RV construction used by other manufacturers.
I'm glad we got ours two years ago before Scott left the company.

[thudd3r]

that sucks...unfortunately i dont see it ever holding up very well if that is the approach they are going to use.  black anodizing would be costly and would just look purple after a couple of years of exposure to the sun.  i would consider powdercoating route.  as long as it all fit in a single oven run, you are probably looking at about $250 to do all of the trim

[fasteddieb]

Let me add that that is inexcusable.

On an aviation forum, I suggested that a certain manufacturer hire a "Drek Inspector". "Drek" is Yiddish for garbage.

On that plane, it was wing root fairings that were attached with double-sided tape and a GPS antenna stuck to the underside of the glare shield with standard Velcro.

This kind of jury-rigged "blackout" fits in that department, IMHO.

[tommyc]

Agreed especially when it is an additional charge for the black trim. Unfortunately with so few on the road it was impossible to know how well it would hold up. Though I knew it would chip on the front and was prepared for that. What I really didn't want was oxidized bare aluminum which to me made the finished trim a no brainier at the time of ordering.

[tommyc]

[quote source="/post/15029/thread" timestamp="1441771667" author="@thudd3r"]that sucks...unfortunately i dont see it ever holding up very well if that is the approach they are going to use.  black anodizing would be costly and would just look purple after a couple of years of exposure to the sun.  i would consider powdercoating route.  as long as it all fit in a single oven run, you are probably looking at about $250 to do all of the trim[/quote]Having a bit of experience with powder coating $250 is not even close to what it would cost to do all the trim unless LL supplied fresh bare prebent pieces as the prep work of the already coated pieces would be time consuming. Not to mention the R&I time just to get the pieces to the coater.

[christianm]

[quote source="/post/14954/thread" timestamp="1441676677" author="@tommyc"]Hey I noticed a few trips ago that some of the black trim on the front of my VRV was chipping and few good sized spots where the finish peeled off. Figured it was from stones so wasn't to concerned with it.

Then we got back from a trip today and noticed a large section on the black trim at the roof line is bubbling in dozens of spots. It's going to look horrible once it peels. My 2015 is already out of warranty so was wondering if anyone else has had any issues. not looking forward to having to deal with LL on this one.[/quote]Hi There! 

Thanks for reaching out and for providing pictures. On behalf of Livin Lite- I'm really sorry that these issues popped up. I would like to do some research and be your advocate to our warranty department- it that is ok with you! I have contacted you privately to get some more info :-) 

I am part of an initiative put into place by Livin Lite to be sure that situations like this do not go unnoticed or unaddressed. Someone mentioned that the issue might be due to Scott's leaving, but let me assure you...

We have no intention of letting that be the case, now or ever! I have spent many, many MANY hours in meetings with Scott discussing his continuing vision for this company, and I think many of you would be astonished at how often he is still here...Just checking up on things. He has transferred his vision of building unique, quality products to us, and we are committed to sharing in that vision! 

Hope this answers some questions! We'll be in touch! 

[tommyc]

Thanks I'll will be in touch

[scout]

x2 here I only had the nice blackout after my first trip out on the bottom trim piece front side...it seems to only be the trim as the black checker plate is holding up beautifully...

[tommyc]

Got a response from livin lite yesterday. After sending pictures of the bubbling/peeling trim and the exterior finish panels that are separating it was determined that they are not willing to help with any sort of repairs on my 2015 model because it is 3 months out of the factory warranty.

Very disappointing to say the least. Guess it's time to start looking for a replacement...

[thudd3r]

I guess Scott's vision is limited to the rather short livin lite warranty period 

Sorry to hear about this issue. Three months or not, it was a bad design/manufacturing issue and LL should man up and make it right.

[tommyc]

Sorry to hear about this issue. Three months or not, it was a bad design/manufacturing issue and LL should man up and make it right.

Yeah it is a real shame. I love the trailer but considering the price paid this is not the service one would hope for. Our trailer was in for service 4-5 times for numerous problems in the first year. Mostly component (dometic) failures but for the most part things were handled well. Heck I was even able to laugh about the cabinet that fell off the wall lol. I'm not sure how to go about this from this point on but such a new trailer with these kinds of cosmetic issues will clearly be taking a major hit in resale value.