2015 SHASTA AIRFLYTE Structure Problems

The entire front panel of my Shasta Airflyte travel trailer is separating from the pine bracing where the dinette is, creating a 2” gap at the floor where rodents and water could get in. It appears the screws meant to attach the panel to the bracing are sheared off or improperly installed. The separating front panel is resting on the propane tank which could create a safety hazard. I believe there is a technical service bulletin issued from the manufacturer to address this defect, but it should be noted that this is still an ongoing problem. The trailer is available for inspection, but hasn’t yet been seen by a dealer or insurance agent.

The Shasta Airflyte trailer is clad in aluminum metal sheathing called a skin. The metal skins on the doors are held by a rubber spline molding but no screws or fasteners. The trailer door needs a decent amount of force to open/close which creates some flex so the metal skin gets loose and had popped out over the spline in a couple places. I noticed it a couple months ago but shoved it back under the spline as intended, and that seemed to fix it. The spline molding seemed to be in normal working condition, there weren’t obvious signs of wear or failure, I just think it’s a bad design and inadequate manufacturing. While I was driving down the road at maybe 40-50 mph, the bottom aluminum skin on the door ripped clear off and landed on the road. That panel is roughly 24”x30”. The upper panel skin also came loose and was flapping in the wind against the trailer until I was able to make an emergency stop and remove it. This put myself and the drivers around me at risk of flying metal obstructions on the road. I did some research and this problem has happened to other Shasta Airflyte owners but no recall has been made. The door and upper panel are available for inspection. I didn’t file a police report but might make an insurance claim, so it has not yet been inspected. There was no prior warning that the skin was loose and not securely attached. I was not driving in extreme conditions.

SEAMS ON THE EXTERIOR HAVE LEAKED ALLOWING WATER TO GET IN FROM DAY ONE. ELECTRICAL IN WALLS IS A POTENTIAL DANGER. SHASTA CLAIMS NO RESPONSIBILITY AND WILL NOT REPAIR ANY WATER DAMAGE.

2015 SHASTA AIRFLYTE. CONSUMER WRITE SIN REGARDS TO FAULTY DESIGN AND FRAME WELDING. *LD *TR *DT UPDATED 10/5/18*JB

CONCERNED THAT THE CHASSIS, FLOOR AND FRONT WALL MAY HAVE BEEN INCONSISTENTLY FASTENED TOGETHER. TSB: 53-0597 IN PLACE WITH 2 "KITS" RECOMMENDED. WITH RECOMMEND FIX I AM WORRIED ABOUT ALL THE WEIGHT AND TORQUE THAT WOULD BE APPLIED TO A BOLT ON FIX. SHASTA/FOREST RIVER SAID THAT A FLEXING FRAME IS OK AND GAPS ARE NORMAL. CONCERNED FOR MY SAFETY AND SAFETY OF OTHERS WHEN WE TOW. INFORMED OF PROBLEM APPROXIMATELY OCT. 2017. *BF *BF *TR

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2015 SHASTA AIRFLYTE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT PIECES OF THE FRAME (WHERE IT WAS WELDED) HAD DETACHED FROM THE VEHICLE. THE TORQUE/FRAME WAS NOT TAKEN TO THE DEALER. THE SHASTA/RIVERFOREST MANUFACTURER IS WORKING WITH THE FRAME MANUFACTURE TO PROVIDE A FIX FOR THE BODY/FRAME; HOWEVER, A REMEDY HAD NOT YET BEEN DETERMINED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 300. *TT *TR

Mileage: 300

RE: 2015 SHASTA RE-ISSUE. MY TRAILER, ALONG WITH SEVERAL HUNDRED OTHER TRAILERS, HAS A FRAME THAT IS NOT WELDED TOGETHER. THERE ARE PLACES WHERE THE GAP BETWEEN THE HORIZONTAL AND VERTICAL BEAMS IS OVER TWO INCHES - NO ATTEMPT WAS MADE TO CONNECT THE BEAMS. IN A FEW PLACES, THE WELDS APPEAR TO BE MADE ON JUST ONE OF THE BEAMS, BUT NO ATTEMPT WAS MADE TO CONNECT IT WELD TO THE ADJACENT BEAM. FOREST RIVER (THE OEM) HAS BEEN INVESTIGATING THE SITUATION, THE INITIAL REPAIR IS TO BOLT A PIECE OF METAL TO THE TWO BEAMS. THE PICTURE SELECTED SHOWS THE GAP BETWEEN THE BEAM ON THE FRONT RIGHT OF THE TRAILER, OTHER CORNERS (WELDS) ARE SIMILAR. I AM A RETIRED AIRFRAME STRUCTURAL ENGINEER (LOCKHEED MARTIN CORP ON THE F-117A) AND KNOW THAT THIS IS NOT A VALID REPAIR. PLEASE ASSIST ME, AND THE HUNDREDS OF OTHERS, IN GETTING THE CORRECT REPAIRS THAT WILL NOT ONLY WORK FOR TODAY, BUT FOR YEARS TO COME.

THE FRAME AND WELDING ON MY TRAILER IS FAULTY. THE TONGUE AND FRAME ASSEMBLY HAS SEPARATED, CAUSING THE BODY TO FAIL. IT CAUSED THE FRONT BODY/WALL TO SEPARATE FROM THE BENCH SEATS BY OVER AN INCH WITH EXPOSED SCREWS AND STAPLES. THE SKIN ON THE OUTSIDE IS BUCKLING ON THE FRONT, RUBBING ON THE PROPANE BOTTLE AREA, AND HAS A CLEAR FOLD AT THE BOTTOM NEAR WHERE THE FRAME GOES UNDER THE SKIN. IN ONE SIDE WHERE THE SKIN HAS BUCKLED, IT IS BENT SO MUCH THE SKIN HAS FOLDED AND HAS A STRESS FRACTURE. THE SIDE SKINS ARE ALSO STARTING TO BUCKLE A BIT SINCE THE FRONT IS DIPPING SO BAD AND DUE TO THIS, THE MAIN DOOR IS STARTING TO STICK AND GIVE US TROUBLE OPENING AND EGRESSING. I CONTACTED THE MANUFACTURER ON OCTOBER 6, 2017. I HAVEN'T HEARD FROM SHASTA SINCE OCTOBER 23, 2017, WHEN THEY GLOSSED OVER THIS PROBLEM, TELLING ME "WE NEED TO GET SOME BACKER INSTALLED INTO THE FRONT WALL. THIS IS A PRETTY SIMPLE TASK. I WILL TRY TO LOCATE A DEALER NEAR YOU, TO DO THIS. PLEASE SEND ME YOUR CURRENT ADDRESS." I SENT MY ADDRESS TWO DAYS LATER AND NEVER HEARD BACK.

Mileage: 3,000

FAULTY OR LACK OF WELDS ON FRAME. INSIDE DINETTE WALL SEPARATING FROM SEAT. I WILL ATTACH PICTURES. WELDS ARE SLOPPY AND NOT ON SEAM ON ONE SIDE AND NO WELD ON THE OTHER. I'M AFRAID TO PULL IT ANYWHERE NOW DUE TO SAFETY CONCERNS.

WATER LEAKING FROM BEHIND SHOWER, WATER DAMAGE AND POSSIBLE BLACK MOLD ISSUE ON REAR WALL OF THE CAMPER FROM UNKOWN SOURCE. WE WERE TOLD THERE WOULD BE A GUARANTEE OF NO LEAKS FOR 50 YEARS! I WENT TO MAKE MY SON'S BED UP FOR THE NIGHT AND FOUND THE WATER DAMAGE AND BLACK MOLD. TRIED USING THE SHOWER FOR THE FIRST TIME AND WATER CAME POURING OUT OF THE CABINET BELOW THE REFRIGERATOR. WE PUT OUR HAND IN THERE AND FELT IT LEAKING FROM THE WALL.

THERE HAVE BEEN SEVERAL RECALLS ON OUR TRAILER ALREADY, AND WE HAVE WORKED WITH A LOCAL DEALER TO GET IT REPAIRED AS NECESSARY. INCLUDED IN THOSE REPAIRS WAS THE FRONT WALL OF OUR TRAILER SEPARATING FROM THE FRAME. I'M SURE YOU'LL AGREE THAT WOULD BE A VERY SERIOUS ISSUE HAD WE NOT CAUGHT IT QUICKLY. WHAT IS MORE CONCERNING TO ME IS THAT THERE IS A CLUB OF SHASTA OWNERS THAT HAS RECEIVED PREFERENTIAL TREATMENT. THROUGH SOCIAL MEDIA IT HAS COME TO MY, AND MANY OTHERS', ATTENTION THAT A SELECT FEW OWNERS ARE RECEIVING MOBILE REPAIR SERVICE. I'VE TRIED REACHING OUT TO SHASTA ON THEIR FACEBOOK PAGE, BUT HAVE RECEIVED NOTHING BACK. IT'S NOT THAT I CAN'T FIND A DEALER TO DO THE WORK, I JUST FIND IT HIGHLY UNETHICAL TO FAVOR SOME OWNERS, FOR NO OTHER REASON THAN THEY ARE PART OF A CLUB. I WILL ATTACH SCREEN SHOTS FOR YOUR REFERENCE. *TR

REAR, EMERGENCY WINDOW FELL OUT. RECALL WAS ISSUED AND CAMPER WAS RETURNED FOR REPAIRS. CAMPING WORLD REPAIRED WINDOW IN ACCORDANCE WITH RECALL. TOOK CAMPER ON A ONE-NIGHT TRIP. STORED CAMPER AND FOUND REAR EMERGENCY WINDOW ON THE GROUND TWO DAYS LATER. CAMPER WAS STATIONARY. THIS IS AN ONGOING SAFETY ISSUE FOR MANY OWNERS AND IS UNACCEPTABLE. RETURNED TO CAMPING WORLD FOR REPAIRS; THEY INFORMED US THEY WOULD NEED TO ORDER PARTS.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2015 SHASTA AIRFLYTE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE AIR CONDITIONER OVERHEATED AND CAUSED THE FAILURE IN THE UNIT. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE CABINET WHERE THE AIR CONDITIONING UNIT WAS LOCATED WAS HOT TO THE TOUCH AFTER THE FAILURE. THE RV WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER WHERE A SAFETY SWITCH WAS ADDED TO THE AIR CONDITIONING UNIT TO PREVENT OVERHEATING. THE CONTACT ALSO STATED THAT THE TRAVEL TRAILER EXPERIENCED FAILURES WITH WATER LEAKS COMING FROM THE SHOWER AND TOILET. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE LEAKS WERE REPAIRED, BUT THE FAILURE RECURRED. THE CONTACT ALSO STATED THAT THE REFRIGERATOR DID NOT COOL PROPERLY. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE ENCLOSURE WAS HOT TO THE TOUCH. THE CONTACT MADE SEVERAL ATTEMPTS TO CONTACT THE MANUFACTURER, BUT THEY REFUSED TO ACCEPT ANY PHONE CALLS. THERE WAS NO FAILURE MILEAGE AVAILABLE.

TRAILER HAS 225-75/15 COKER CLASSIC TIRES WHICH ARE UNDERATED FOR THE 19' MODEL/WT. ALSO, TIRES ARE NOT TRAILER RATED. SEEMS THE SHASTA (FOREST RIVER CO.) USED PASSENGER TIRES THAT ARE OVER WIDTH CAUSING RUBBING ON TIRE SIDE WALLS AGAINST THE WHEEL WELL. STILL CURRENTLY WAITING TO HEAR BACK FROM SHASTA.