Campers Inn RV of Tucker — Attraction in Tucker

I had heard and read many good things about Peco Campers. We were shopping around for a new Micro Lite and they had one with the decor we wanted.

We first found the TT in the inventory listing on their website and I called. The sales person (Evan) quoted us a price based upon a list of features we wanted, a list I emailed to him. He assured me that the camper he had in stock had all the features we wanted. We arrived later to find that the TT, in fact, did not have all the features. When I pointed this out and asked about having them add the missing features (e.g. wood paneled refrigerator cover), he said that they could add them but we would have to pay for them. This, after he had already quoted me a price based upon the list I gave him.

NOTE: the sales person (Evan) was not knowledegable about the product at all. He obviously didn't know what he was talking about and clearly just made up stuff assuming we didn't know any better. We spoke up a few times to correct him but finally gave up and just smiled when he fed us another line.

We bought the trailer anyway because it had the decor we wanted and the decor changed with the next production cycle. After the tech hooked up the trailer to our truck, I asked him if he put grease on the ball and he said, "No. We should. It is a good idea to do that but we never do." (Really? Did he just say that?)

During the walk-thru, we noticed that the trim of one of the exterior storage compartments was bent. We pointed it out to the tech doing the walk-thru. He made a note and took some photos with his phone and said he would report it to the warranty department and they would order a replacement and call me when it came in. I also mentioned it to the salesman and he assured me that they would get the information to the right person to get it corrected. After a couple of weeks, I never heard from anyone so I called and spoke with the person in the warranty area (Jamie). Surprise!! She had no record of it. She took the information over the phone and asked me to send some photos. A couple of weeks later, I sent an email to check the status and received an auto-response that she was no longer there. I started over with someone else who supposedly took her place (Cat). No one ever responded to me despite multiple emails to her and Adam, the service advisor, asking for an update.

Our first trip, we went dry camping and found that the battery they installed had a dead cell and would not hold a charge. First of all, the battery they installed was a standard "cranking" battery, not a deep cycle battery. I was told at Interstate Battery that this is not even the right kind of battery for a travel trailer. I took it back and asked about the deep cycle battery. The service manager (Kevin) told me that the "cranking" battery was fine, they put them in all their TT's. He then proceeded to tell me that I would not need the battery anyway. He said I should never rely upon the battery for power but should just always connect to power with "the power cord thing". (This was the service manager?) . I asked about occassions when I am dry camping and there is no power source. He said all campgrounds now have power poles at the sites. I told him that was absolutely not true; many campgrounds do not. He said he had never heard that. Clearly, he is not a camper. In fact, I got the impression through this process that no one I dealt with at Peco aka Campers Inn has had any experience camping.

I purchased my camper in July 2016. Today it is September 14. I am still trying to get the warranty issue resolved. I spoke with the service manager (Kevin) last week and he assured me he would get right on it and call me back before the end of the day. I had to call Kevin again today because he never called me back. He didn't even remember our conversation and had no notes from our last call. It is clear that there is a management problem at this dealership that can be seen all the way from the top down to the front lines.

I recommend looking elsewhere for...

Six or seven months ago were were shopping for a Travel Trailer to replace our Motor Home (more room in the TT). We took an afternoon and went to Campers Inn Atlanta. Friends of ours had bought there and gave a bad report, but franchise rules meant that only Campers Inn carried the range we were looking for. So we had no plans to buy, only to look. We found a unit we liked, but were not in a position to buy at that time. Our opinion after that visit was neutral. In early December we sold our Motor Home, and began in earnest looking for the unit we wanted. We saw that Campers Inn had it, but based on their posted price and our previous experience, decided to look elsewhere. We began negotiations with dealers in Indianapolis and Kentucky, but decided that we would at least go look at the unit at Campers Inn to remind ourselves of exactly what we wanted. Well, we found what we wanted, and now the dilemma. Did we want to deal with Campers Inn, or should we go with the dealer in Indianapolis? And here is where the good stuff starts. We told Campers Inn the price of the unit in Indy, and we compared features and benefits between the units. Campers Inn had the better unit (more features for the money). But we had this real issue with the Campers Inn online reviews, and what our friends had said. We shared our concerns with the salesman. So the new general manager came and sat down and talked with us. Bad history? Yes. Bad reviews? Yes. Bad word-of-mouth? Yes. But he came "on board" in July, and has begun systematically addressing the problems the dealership has faced.He noted that reviews had gone from one and two stars in late 2015/early 2016 to 31/2 stars. He was passionate, sincere, transparent, and clearly dedicated to turning around public opinion of Campers Inn Atlanta. So, we bought the unit. I have given five stars for my review, because I truly believe this dealership is working hard to become all that it can be. Call it an "A" for effort. But it's not perfect. At delivery, we pointed out a water leak under the kitchen faucet that we noticed during the purchase process, and were told that the PDI didn't find it. Well we did, first and second night out. Not a catastrophe, but annoying. We were told that the unit would be thoroughly cleaned prior to delivery, but someone missed cleaning all the windows. The F&I guy tried to sell us an extended warranty, but never told us that for a modest amount ($150 in our case) Forest River will extend their one year warranty for a second year. Also, the tires come with a 2-year roadside assistance warranty - but no mention of that from the dealer, despite conversations about concerns with "China bombs"). With regard to warranties, a quick note. I know dealerships make money from extended warranties, and I'm OK with that. Extended warranties can be good, and offer long-term peace-of-mind. But as a former professional sales trainer, I will advise that you never conceal or ignore the warranties that come with, or are available for, the unit from the manufacturer. All that that does is degrade the opinion of the buyer when they find out - and they will find out - what the manufacturer offers. The true sales skill is the ability to present those manufacturer warranties, show their limitations, and then explain how an extended warranty may be a better deal in the long run. We have limited experience with the Campers Inn service department, but our PDI walk-through by a service tech was competent, informative, and thorough. All-in-all, we are very happy with our unit, and based on our experience to date we would definitely buy again from Campers Inn, subject to the present progress...

---PLEASE READ BEFORE PURCHASING OR USING THIS DEALER!!!--- In April 2018, I borrowed a travel trailer from a friend to see if my family would enjoy making camping a regular rhythm in our lives. On my way to our destination, we blew a tire which came through the floor, busted up some cabinetry, and ripped out some wires. I didn't want my friend's insurance to go up, so I decided to pay for the repairs out of pocket. I have heard horror stories about getting poor service from dealerships, especially if your camper was not purchased directly from them, so we decided to take it to Campers Inn because my friend bought it there. HUGE MISTAKE!!!!!!

Our initial contact was pleasant and hopeful. We were quoted a repair time of 4 to 6 weeks for a total cost of $2100. After 6 weeks, we called to see if the trailer was ready for pick up. I had to leave 3 messages and make 5 calls before someone would communicate with me. When I was finally able to talk with someone, I found out that Campers Inn had not even started on the repairs. I am a business owner and am fully aware that mistakes happen. They explained that they had experienced some recent employee turn over, and they would get it fixed. Since I could relate to employee turnovers, I was very understanding about the situation.

After 4 weeks, I tried to get an update on the repair. Once again, it took many attempts and many messages before someone would return or even answer my call. I had to request speaking to a manager and be willing to wait on hold to make that happen. Once the manager got on the phone, I explained my situation to him. To my shock, he proceeded to tell me again that NOTHING had been done nor had ANY of the parts been ordered. Keep in mind that this is after 7 weeks of holding the damaged trailer. He also told me that "I was not a priority because the trailer was not purchased from them", that "Campers Inn was too busy", and that "they have considered not servicing trailers bought from other companies." I can absolutely appreciate the fact that they want to give the best service to people who bought from them, but this should have been told to me up front. Besides that, the trailer WAS bought from them, and this was the THIRD time I had shared this fact with the staff at Campers Inn. Again, no apology and only excuses were given. At this point , I asked to be included on all communication regarding the repair process. I wanted to know when the parts were ordered, what time they arrived, and when they were going start working on it. I was copied on one email asking the parts lady to order the parts and to keep me in the loop. This was the only time that Campers Inn made any effort to communicate with me until it was time to get paid. I continued to reach out to them on a regular basis and finally got the parts ordered 3 weeks after the email was sent. When we finally picked it up, we were shocked to find out that the $2100 quote had become an actual $3100 and the finished work was not done well nor completed.

Save yourself the headache and purchase your camper from a small business! We decided to purchase a Class A from a private seller and have truly enjoyed it. Keep this in mind when you are looking for a place to purchase: things will always break and it will need to be serviced. Make sure you choose a seller that will support their customers. It is now November 2018. My friend who allowed us to borrow his camper had to cancel three trips and still has a camper that is not fully fixed...