OffroadHamster
Well-known member
COLORADO CAMPER VAN REVIEW
This is going to be a little long winded, I think. I will try to be concise and not ramble.
I want to start by stating unequivocally that I spent a lot of time considering whether or not I was going to post anything about my experience with Colorado Camper Van. My top was installed in June 2017 and I am just posting this now. While I believe that social media can be a powerful tool for leveraging people and companies, I don't think the frequency that people use it for such is acceptable. At this point, I have given up on the idea that I will ever receive any type of restitution from Colorado Campervan (CCV) for the problems and issues I have had. I have also given up on any notion that CCV has any desire to make things right, support their product once it leaves their facility, or honor any kind of warranty. As such I am not writing this to try to compel CCV to do anything, but simply to inform prospective customers what they are getting into by commissioning any work from CCV.
I also want to lead with this: Had I known the issues I would encounter going in, would I still have given CCV my business. The answer is probably yes, but I will explain in detail as I go through this.
I also want to let everyone reading know that I am not alone in my experience. I have talked to other CCV top owners and the experience I will document here seems to be universal. My problems, issues and concerns are the rule as far as I can tell and not the exception. I know there are a couple of other members on this forum with the same experience as me and they may or may not chime in here at their discretion. Others are still seeking restitution from CCV and may not want to publicize the details of their issues before they are through with such efforts.
I spent right in the neighborhood of $12,000 with CCV. Its not a small amount of money. I am not rich, and it was not a small decision for me and my wife. For the money I spent I had expectations about quality, longevity, customer service and execution. None of these expectations were met.
I drove my van 1100 miles to Loveland CO and dropped it off before flying home. I was told it would take them 2 weeks to complete the work I was having commissioned. I asked multiple times if two weeks was enough time, telling them that I was flying back to Colorado, that I would be leaving from CCV on a vacation with the newly completed van, and that if the van was not finished when I arrived I would be stuck there with no vehicle and no accommodations. I was assured that the van would be done and I provided CCV with my return flight itinerary. The work I was having done was
1: CCV top with paint patch and arctic canvass
2: Maxxair Fan
3: Carefree of Colorado Awning with porch light
When I arrived at 11am (as they were fully aware I would) my van was nowhere near completion. The top was on its hardware and that was about it. My van still had an intact roof and headliner, the awning was not installed, the fan was not mounted to the top, and the canvas was not installed to the top/van.
As they rushed to get my van finished I looked on as they quickly and carelessly tried to complete my van. The owner of CCV, Derek dropped my awning while trying to mount it to the van. I would later discover that the reason he was having trouble mounting it and subsequently dropped it was because he was too hasty in drilling the holes to mount the brackets, that the front bracket was crooked and that my awning would be (and still is) installed so poorly that it would never close completely or correctly. They broke countless trim clips, scratched innumerable pieces of trim, and utterly destroyed the mounting tabs on my factory headliner such that it would never properly fit again.
I would later find:
1: that the canvas was installed too tight in two corners that would cause subsequent puncturing of the canvass when the top was up.
2: that they didnt clean up their metal shavings which subsequently rusted and permanently stained the paint in the gutters of my van
3: that they got black mastic all over the outside of the canvass and the paint of my van
4: that they did such a poor job sealing the holes from my original factory roof rails that it would subsequently leak water into my van and stain my headliner
5: that they did such a poor job of sealing the top to the van that voids were present almost the entire way around
5: that there was a hole where the canvass was not properly installed to the fiberglass top that I could see daylight though
6: that they did not relocate and reinstall my factory dome lights so I have no functional lights when I open the doors
6.1: That they did not even return the original lights so that I could resolve this issue for myself
7: that they left greasy fingerprints on my headliner which were nearly impossible to clean off
8: that they attempted to install one of the two latches that keeps the top closed 3 times and that the final install location of the latch was so bad that the latch does not properly close.
9: that they left a huge amount of mastic/sealant around the brackets for the awning
10: that besides installing the awning brackets at the wrong angle, they subsequently bent them trying to tighten them down against the curve of the van because they didnt fit right as they were mounted in the wrong place.
11: That the opening to the top was trimmed very poorly.
12: that the remote control for the top died after 2 weeks of use
I finally got out of CCV about 7pm, 8 hours after they had committed to being done with my van. Not a terrible length of time, but considering I had a 15 hour drive ahead of me, and that my wife was waiting for me with our 2 month old, 2 year old and my dog in my pickup truck at a campground in California, it was unacceptable. I was in such a rush to get on my way that I ignored the things about the top that I could see were a problem, thinking to myself that it would not be that big of a deal and I would be able to get Derek to take care of them at a later date.
Unfortunately I was wrong. I have called and emailed CCV dozens of times and have received but a single voicemail from Derek saying to call him back (which I have done many times now).
With the exception of the awning, most of the problems are within my personal ability to fix. I can purchase or make a new headliner, I have sealed up the leaks and the hole in the canvass, the remaining holes in the canvass can be patched when the time comes, I have cleaned most of he mastic up, replaced trim clips, I can buy and install new dome lights, etc etc.
To fix the awning I will have to have the holes in the van welded up and painted by a body shop (the best quote I have gotten for this is $1600). I will then have to have a new bracket fabricated by my machinist ($250) and powder-coated ($75). If I were not an engineer I would also have to have someone model the bracket in the first place (at my consulting rate it would have been $137.50 with a family and friends discount, $250 without) and then I will have to drill new holes, install new inserts and remount the bracket and awning.
Between the awning, canvass, re-sealing, headliner and other issues I will be out about $2500 and 12-15 hours of MY time (which would be another $1500--$1875 at CCV's shop rate) when it is all said and done.
So now you want to know, given all of that why would I have CCV install another top?
The answer is yes, because between the Sportsmobile pop top and the CCV top, the CCV wins for engineering, safety and usability hands down. I am a mechanical engineer and designer and despite SMB's marketing spew about being a Mercedes Benz authorized up-fitter and doing a roof crush test on their top, I personally would rather my children ride in a van with a CCV top from a safety perspective. All of the roof hoop supports are left intact with the CCV (A pillar B pillar etc) whereas SMB removes them. From a usability perspective, I have been in my van with the top up and 40-50mph sustained winds with gusts to 70mph without the slightest concern. I have seen first hand this is not possible with a SMB top. The bed in my top with my aftermarket mattress is a Full size bed (54" x 74") versus 42" x 70" in the SMB. Someone who is 6' or taller can sit up Indian style in the CCV top with 40" of headroom, whereas anyone over about 4'10" cant sit up straight in the SMB. The CCV is available with insulated canvass. Everything from the remote control ceiling lights to the robust linear actuators is more thoroughly sorted on the CCV than the equipment on the SMB in my opinion.
At the end of the day I am pissed about how much money I spend and what I got in return (a headache and problems to go with my very cool CCV top), but I would do it again. However, I would tell CCV that I would be there in 2 weeks and book my return flight for 4 weeks out. I would also book a hotel room for that night and set aside enough time to thoroughly walk through the van, find any and all issues and then leave CCV without my credit card leaving my pocket while they resolved all issues to my satisfaction.
Derek does not know how to run a business IMHO, he doesn't understand customer service, is overbooked and has poor attention to detail in his execution. However, he did design and develop a great product that with a little install care would be top notch. I believe they have the ability to assemble a well executed van, but I think you have to give them the time to do so, and allow that it is much longer than they will allot for.
I will answer any questions that anyone may have as fairly and as honestly as I can.
Happy Pop Top Shopping,
Brian
This is going to be a little long winded, I think. I will try to be concise and not ramble.
I want to start by stating unequivocally that I spent a lot of time considering whether or not I was going to post anything about my experience with Colorado Camper Van. My top was installed in June 2017 and I am just posting this now. While I believe that social media can be a powerful tool for leveraging people and companies, I don't think the frequency that people use it for such is acceptable. At this point, I have given up on the idea that I will ever receive any type of restitution from Colorado Campervan (CCV) for the problems and issues I have had. I have also given up on any notion that CCV has any desire to make things right, support their product once it leaves their facility, or honor any kind of warranty. As such I am not writing this to try to compel CCV to do anything, but simply to inform prospective customers what they are getting into by commissioning any work from CCV.
I also want to lead with this: Had I known the issues I would encounter going in, would I still have given CCV my business. The answer is probably yes, but I will explain in detail as I go through this.
I also want to let everyone reading know that I am not alone in my experience. I have talked to other CCV top owners and the experience I will document here seems to be universal. My problems, issues and concerns are the rule as far as I can tell and not the exception. I know there are a couple of other members on this forum with the same experience as me and they may or may not chime in here at their discretion. Others are still seeking restitution from CCV and may not want to publicize the details of their issues before they are through with such efforts.
I spent right in the neighborhood of $12,000 with CCV. Its not a small amount of money. I am not rich, and it was not a small decision for me and my wife. For the money I spent I had expectations about quality, longevity, customer service and execution. None of these expectations were met.
I drove my van 1100 miles to Loveland CO and dropped it off before flying home. I was told it would take them 2 weeks to complete the work I was having commissioned. I asked multiple times if two weeks was enough time, telling them that I was flying back to Colorado, that I would be leaving from CCV on a vacation with the newly completed van, and that if the van was not finished when I arrived I would be stuck there with no vehicle and no accommodations. I was assured that the van would be done and I provided CCV with my return flight itinerary. The work I was having done was
1: CCV top with paint patch and arctic canvass
2: Maxxair Fan
3: Carefree of Colorado Awning with porch light
When I arrived at 11am (as they were fully aware I would) my van was nowhere near completion. The top was on its hardware and that was about it. My van still had an intact roof and headliner, the awning was not installed, the fan was not mounted to the top, and the canvas was not installed to the top/van.
As they rushed to get my van finished I looked on as they quickly and carelessly tried to complete my van. The owner of CCV, Derek dropped my awning while trying to mount it to the van. I would later discover that the reason he was having trouble mounting it and subsequently dropped it was because he was too hasty in drilling the holes to mount the brackets, that the front bracket was crooked and that my awning would be (and still is) installed so poorly that it would never close completely or correctly. They broke countless trim clips, scratched innumerable pieces of trim, and utterly destroyed the mounting tabs on my factory headliner such that it would never properly fit again.
I would later find:
1: that the canvas was installed too tight in two corners that would cause subsequent puncturing of the canvass when the top was up.
2: that they didnt clean up their metal shavings which subsequently rusted and permanently stained the paint in the gutters of my van
3: that they got black mastic all over the outside of the canvass and the paint of my van
4: that they did such a poor job sealing the holes from my original factory roof rails that it would subsequently leak water into my van and stain my headliner
5: that they did such a poor job of sealing the top to the van that voids were present almost the entire way around
5: that there was a hole where the canvass was not properly installed to the fiberglass top that I could see daylight though
6: that they did not relocate and reinstall my factory dome lights so I have no functional lights when I open the doors
6.1: That they did not even return the original lights so that I could resolve this issue for myself
7: that they left greasy fingerprints on my headliner which were nearly impossible to clean off
8: that they attempted to install one of the two latches that keeps the top closed 3 times and that the final install location of the latch was so bad that the latch does not properly close.
9: that they left a huge amount of mastic/sealant around the brackets for the awning
10: that besides installing the awning brackets at the wrong angle, they subsequently bent them trying to tighten them down against the curve of the van because they didnt fit right as they were mounted in the wrong place.
11: That the opening to the top was trimmed very poorly.
12: that the remote control for the top died after 2 weeks of use
I finally got out of CCV about 7pm, 8 hours after they had committed to being done with my van. Not a terrible length of time, but considering I had a 15 hour drive ahead of me, and that my wife was waiting for me with our 2 month old, 2 year old and my dog in my pickup truck at a campground in California, it was unacceptable. I was in such a rush to get on my way that I ignored the things about the top that I could see were a problem, thinking to myself that it would not be that big of a deal and I would be able to get Derek to take care of them at a later date.
Unfortunately I was wrong. I have called and emailed CCV dozens of times and have received but a single voicemail from Derek saying to call him back (which I have done many times now).
With the exception of the awning, most of the problems are within my personal ability to fix. I can purchase or make a new headliner, I have sealed up the leaks and the hole in the canvass, the remaining holes in the canvass can be patched when the time comes, I have cleaned most of he mastic up, replaced trim clips, I can buy and install new dome lights, etc etc.
To fix the awning I will have to have the holes in the van welded up and painted by a body shop (the best quote I have gotten for this is $1600). I will then have to have a new bracket fabricated by my machinist ($250) and powder-coated ($75). If I were not an engineer I would also have to have someone model the bracket in the first place (at my consulting rate it would have been $137.50 with a family and friends discount, $250 without) and then I will have to drill new holes, install new inserts and remount the bracket and awning.
Between the awning, canvass, re-sealing, headliner and other issues I will be out about $2500 and 12-15 hours of MY time (which would be another $1500--$1875 at CCV's shop rate) when it is all said and done.
So now you want to know, given all of that why would I have CCV install another top?
The answer is yes, because between the Sportsmobile pop top and the CCV top, the CCV wins for engineering, safety and usability hands down. I am a mechanical engineer and designer and despite SMB's marketing spew about being a Mercedes Benz authorized up-fitter and doing a roof crush test on their top, I personally would rather my children ride in a van with a CCV top from a safety perspective. All of the roof hoop supports are left intact with the CCV (A pillar B pillar etc) whereas SMB removes them. From a usability perspective, I have been in my van with the top up and 40-50mph sustained winds with gusts to 70mph without the slightest concern. I have seen first hand this is not possible with a SMB top. The bed in my top with my aftermarket mattress is a Full size bed (54" x 74") versus 42" x 70" in the SMB. Someone who is 6' or taller can sit up Indian style in the CCV top with 40" of headroom, whereas anyone over about 4'10" cant sit up straight in the SMB. The CCV is available with insulated canvass. Everything from the remote control ceiling lights to the robust linear actuators is more thoroughly sorted on the CCV than the equipment on the SMB in my opinion.
At the end of the day I am pissed about how much money I spend and what I got in return (a headache and problems to go with my very cool CCV top), but I would do it again. However, I would tell CCV that I would be there in 2 weeks and book my return flight for 4 weeks out. I would also book a hotel room for that night and set aside enough time to thoroughly walk through the van, find any and all issues and then leave CCV without my credit card leaving my pocket while they resolved all issues to my satisfaction.
Derek does not know how to run a business IMHO, he doesn't understand customer service, is overbooked and has poor attention to detail in his execution. However, he did design and develop a great product that with a little install care would be top notch. I believe they have the ability to assemble a well executed van, but I think you have to give them the time to do so, and allow that it is much longer than they will allot for.
I will answer any questions that anyone may have as fairly and as honestly as I can.
Happy Pop Top Shopping,
Brian
To balance it out use ALL girls in the next pix. Suggest a good Florida beech at Spring Break for suitable subjects.
You're welcome.
