ETI is not for us

[Chris Sr]

Most comments on here have been either been neutral, agreed things could be better, or offered suggestions for moving forward. However, I found it interesting to read one of the responses, wondering if this person responds the same way every time a difference in option arises.

“Escape Trailer reserves the right …” I’m not arguing that. However, legal and right are not necessarily the same thing. The point was ETI is still advertising a product/option with full knowledge that it is not going to follow through. With only 5 basic product lines (17,19, 21, 23 & 5.0), a simple one page errata sheet outlining planned changes could be sent to a prospective buyer when the buyer submits the initial deposit thereby eliminating confusion caused by ETI’s own web site.

Buying online is the business model of choice for this company. Whether the customer is spending $8, $800 or $80,000 should not matter. The sarcastic “why bother buying - just do all your RVing 100% online” implies I should just accept the same standards you do. As mentioned in my intro to this site, this is not my RV nor do I travel online.

And yes, I have talked to them. As I stated in the original post, I hope ETI is able to resolve the issues as I wish them no ill will.

Y’all have a good day and enjoy your travels.

 

[Centex]

And yes, I have talked to them. As I stated in the original post, I hope ETI is able to resolve the issues as I wish them no ill will.

We are not comfortable risking approximately $80,000 and wishing that what we are lead to believe will actually show up upon delivery.

IMO the unfortunate part of this, for both ETI and you, is that in spite of talks with ETI you are apparently left with a basic credibility / trust (for lack of better words) concern, whether real or perceived.

Given that, I can understand your decision. I think that the amount of $ in-play does have a role in the transaction-risk decision, and for this amount one must have great trust in the party one is dealing with. IMO it's unfortunate for both parties that ETI hasn't been able to earn that trust in your case. I happen to think that both parties 'lost' with that outcome, but so it goes.

Again, I sincerely wish you the best in your continued shopping efforts, I hope you find a company and trailer that meets your expectations.

 

[oldwave]

I’d say call them up get a specials to help with your build then make your decision.

 

[Mike G]

The caveat is trying to say, basically, "stuff happens." Like, if the supply dries up for one cooktop, they might be stuck with substituting a different one because the other simply can't be had within reason. ETI does try to make things right if there was a discrepancy or a flub-up or whatever.

 

[gklott]

Sorry to hear ETI didn’t meet your expectations. Thanks for sharing your experience. Wish you the best on your RV search.

 

[Chris Sr]

As a follow up and closing. Melisa Weinert with ETI did contact me about my concerns and was able to explain what might have happened. She was more then willing to honor what the original build page showed as long as the parts were still available. I believe that to be very fair. In the end, my wife and I felt it best not to move forward and requested a refund of our deposit. Ms Weinert submitted our request to their finance department and we received our refund a couple of days later.
ETI offers a lot of things other RV manufactures do not and I will not hesitate to point people in their direction. Who knows, maybe sometime in the future we will try again. Hope everyone stays safe and enjoy another camping season.

Chris

 

[Centex]

@Chris Sr , thank you for the follow-up.

Hoping the best for y'all, too.

 

[GinoandLinda]

Best of luck to you. Hope you stay on the forum and keep us updated on your quest to find the RV that is right for your needs.

 

[iamunique127]

Follow ups to complaints are always appreciated. Thanks

 

[DT6]

I agree with MarinVan. If you are not too put-off by now, it is worth giving them a call. The new management (they have been there well over a year now, going on two) is very eager to work with their customer base. They do make changes, sometimes a lot of them, based on customer input and also the availability of parts. This ultimately results in a better product, however the downside is as you are experiencing, is the website is not always caught-up.
I do know that the current team will work with you and discrepancies you see on the website can be easily addressed on the phone with ETI and also through the build-sheet process. They won't move ahead on your build until you both agree to the build-sheet, including price.
First and foremost you may wish to assess how comfortable you are in either moving forward with working out the build and build-sheet issues; or if you are more comfortable with going with a more traditional approach from a manufacturer like BigFoot or Airstream, or Grand Design where you might have two or three options to select from, but for the most part you either like what they offer or you don't. A lot of folks don't like having to deal with selecting so many options. As Donna mentioned above, it is stressful and you may want to avoid that.