Velocity Not Working on Older Freightliner Chassis

[Kevin Means]

We developed an air leak in our 2011 Winnie Tour's air system the other day (Freightliner chassis) that was bad enough to cause me some concern, so I contacted Velocity Truck Center in Tucson and tried to schedule a service appointment. Velocity centers are independently owned and operated and have serviced Freightliner chassis for years. This time, however, the service rep said they are no longer working on RVs that are more than 10 years old, even if they have a Freightliner chassis, and he said it was because they were having difficulty getting parts for them.

I thought that was a bit odd, and I think it's more likely that they are just swamped with semi truck business, but who knows. I called Freightliner in Gaffney and they confirmed that they are seeing more and more of this throughout the country. He seemed somewhat embarrassed about it and a bit miffed when I told him that it was, supposedly, due to parts unavailability. He didn't believe that either.

Kind of caught me off guard, but it is what it is. I found another facility in Tucson that was happy to have the business, so I'll be taking it there. I just thought others would like to know about this.

Kev

 

[Mark_K5LXP]

Maybe there are some unobtanium parts but it seems surprising that would be stated up front before the work even started. Business must be good if you can turn customers away before they even get there.

I wouldn't be surprised to learn the root cause is staffing. In the supply/demand model though the answer would be to charge more, not send you away so it would be interesting to know just what is driving this shop policy. I know in any service industry I've worked in if it wasn't warranty it was time and materials, and we can do whatever you can afford.

Mark B.
Albuquerque, NM

 

[John From Detroit]

Air leaks in the brake/suspension systems on any vehicle that uses compressed air.. Not a lot of parts change much (Tee compressor, valves and "Servos" (The part that operates the brakes may change. Air bags don't change much. But the leak is likely a tank or a line. (or an O-Ring)

Let us know what the shop finds please.