This is a continuation of a thread started under the trailer has rotten ramp.  My Kiefer trailer and apparently alot of other Kiefer aluminum trailers are developing serious floor problems which Kiefer is unwilling to stand behind to either repair, replace or give possible solutions for repair.  I am wondering if anyone out there has any suggestions on the best way to fix the aluminum floor deterioration. I have been told I can replace the floor (my cost) with new aluminum.  One engineer friend has stated he thinks to bolt the old aluminum floor back to the frame, rhino coat and then install a wolmanized wood floor over the rhino coated old floor.  (my trailer is plenty tall enough to accomodate this with no problem)  Will the aluminum floor deteriorating affect the aluminum frame?    I must do something in order to insure the safety of this trailer.  It was not an inexpensive trailer and is only 5-1/2 years old, always kept under cover and cleaned.  Any suggestions appreciated.                        

What is your warranty?  I'm no expert on Kiefer Built trailers. Nor have I ever looked at their product. So I have no first hand knowledge of their product. but I did pull up their website and looked at their warranty.

It looks like Kiefer offers a 3 year structural warranty and 1 year componet warranty. The trailer frame, cross members etc fall under the structural warranty, the flooring I assume falls under the component warranty.

It appears you are past the warranty period. No manufacture can warranty a product for ever. We all expect our trailers last longer the warranty period. But we assume that during the warranty period the manufacture will take care of all cost of repairs and we assume that we will pay the cost of repairs after the warranty period.

Warranties are calculated into the cost of a product. For example when I build a home I sit and talk with the prospective buyers. If they express a desire that they will never have crack in their cement work, and I know that there are two fact about cement. (1. it gets hard after it's poured and 2. It will eventually crack) I will budget extra money to remove and replace concrete as it cracks.  This of course drives up the price of the home. The buyer has the choice, Pay the extra cost or live with what the industry considers an acceptable standard for cracks. Neither choice says I built an inferior product. But just what the customer was willing to pay for.

Since I assume you researched the trailer prior to buying it. I suspect you looked at the warranty before buying the trailer. My trailer has a 20 year warranty on the flooring. So I expect my floor to last twenty years, Not thirty. Your trailer has 1 year warranty on componets, so 5 1/2 years exceeds that.  I don't think it's fair to purchase a lesser expensive trailer and then compare warranty & quality with more expensive products. Every manufacture has to make trade offs in cost vs performance of products.

Now if the trailer has design flaws that prevents it from preforming to advertised performance levels. Then yes you need to bring it to the manufactures attention. If the manufacture, in this case Kiefer Built represented that the floors should last 10 years.   Then the flooring should last that long and they should replace it. If they did not represent that, then do your maintainence and replace the floor as part of your maintainence program and don't try to change the warranty after the fact.

Okay here is my suggestion for you to fix your floor. Have the Floor acid washed and cleaned really good. If you have any holes in the floor have them patched. If it is just pitted you won't need to do any patching. Then take the trailer to a Arma-Coating, Linix or Rhino Coating Place and have the Entire Floored Sprayed. This should stop the problem. We have done this same process in Older Alum Trailers we have traded for in the past and they are all performing fine today as I know of.

Having said the above. Let me also say that Alum is not the saving Grace. It does not Rust but it will oxidize which is just like rust to steel. It is just that Alum does not oxidize as fast as Steel Rust. That is just what we have noticed in all of the years we have been in the trailer bussiness.

If you need any help or have any questions on the fix please feel free to give us a call

Ricky Vaughn 

Diamond V Trailer Sales

704-546-5216

Thank you Ricky for a possible solution.  To the post regarding the warranty.  This trailer is the Genesis, top of their trailer line.  It has a 3 year bumper to bumper and an 8 year structural warranty.  They are now saying the floor was not part of the "structure" when this trailer was made in 2002 (it is now under current warranties)  I am not trying to play absolute hardball with them on giving me a new floor.  I have asked them help me with solutions or in a display of some type of goodwill (or hope to maintain a repeat customer's good relationship) to discount a new floor for me to have installed.  I don't think that is unreasonable.  This trailer was maintained meticulously and I have discovered there are many more, newer ones out there with this same problem  (floors deteriorating and welds popping loose from the frame by the tens).  There is a definite problem within the manufacturer, this problem being reported multiple times and the ramp and rear doors they knew to be defective and did not recall.  They know they have a quality control issue but seem unwilling to meet you half way or even one quarter of the way.  If they really persist in this business model the market place will deal with them as a good reputation is a most valuable asset.  I bought this trailer brand as I had a Kiefer I purchased new and had it for 15 years with no problems.  It appears they are having major problems with the aluminum aspect combined with trying to cheapen the trailer for the bottom line.  Their lack of willingness to find a solution to the problem (regardless of who pays) has completely erroded any confidence or customer loyalty I had in this company. 

Just Curious.

What does your dealer have to say about all of this ????

If the aluminum flooring is a problem, why replace it with another aluminum floor. Replace it with another type of flooring. Your friend suggested a Pressure Treated Lumber.  But even Pressure Treated Lumber is still wood and has defects, i.e. knots in the wood.  Another option is the Rumber product. It is available in 2x6 planks.  It carries a 20 year warranty and dosen't require you to add mats to it like you would a wood or aluminum floor.  www.rumber.com

I have recontacted Kiefer today and they are in a different frame of mind, willing to try to help now.  They have contacted the dealer I had the ramp replacement through and I have spoken with them.  There are at least some viable options out there now. I must be fair and report good behavior as well as the bad.  This has taken well over a month of calls on my part. This will be at my expense but I appreciate someone trying to give me options and a solution.  Most of these are coming from the dealer.

Riderguy

Can you tell me more about your Cimarron? I have a 04 Kiefer that I HATE. It has not held up and I am looking at an 07 Cimarron from Leonard trailer sales in OH. I am concerned about the roof being an odd composite material.

What year is your Cimarron?

Hello Windridge

I had the exact same experience with Kiefter, I have welds spliting and cracking all over my trailer. It is an 04 and still under warranty. They have repaired a weld each time that I find a new problem. My issue is, how many welds are bad that I can't see inside the trailer. Is this trailer structuraly sound!!!!! Kiefer and the sales dealership don't care that my horses may be at risk. They won't compromise with me to get me out of this poorly manufactured trailer and into a newer one.

I am very dissappointed in Kiefer and feel cheated.

Do you know of anyone that has persued legal action?

I had a Keifer Steel trailer, a little Golden Hawk 2H BP.  I loved that little trailer, but I moved up to a DR trailer.  I sold it to a friend who likes it as well as I did. 

I always find it difficult when trailers that used to be real super trailers hit a snag in their production that causes problems.

Jbsny

I had a steel 1990 Kiefer trailer that I owned until getting the 2002 Aluminum Kiefer.  I loved the steel bumper pull, never had a moments trouble with it.  I only got the 2002 Kiefer as I now own warmbloods (17.1) and needed the warmblood size trailer.    From the get, go the 2002 was trouble.  The fact that there was no quality control at Kiefer on what was produced for them (outsourced) in the way of the bad ramps and rear bus doors was very disturbing and the fact that they did not recall these bad doors and ramps is even more so.    The Kiefer dealer that had the suggestions for repair to my floor did a 180 and said it would not work and then quoted twice what they initially said to replace the floor.  I have contacted a local trailer dealer, with repair capabilities, that used to sell Kiefer but no longer handles them due to the enormous amount of problems associated with them and they do not want to loose their business as a result of selling them.  They want to see my floor and I hope to be able to make time to get it over next week.   Kiefer is definitely a company that has lost its focus.  Very sad to see what used to be a good product go bad.

Assuming you have been documenting all of these failures...does Maine have a consumer Lemon Law????

I was merely stating my opinion on, that some topics get closed more quickly than others period. I haven't a good or bad opinion of Keifer. This was just a general observation. It's kinda like the old cliche' If you didn't bring enough gum for the whole class don't bring any at all. If you are going to shut down a topic that is getting bad "In some people's opionion" then shut them all down after all this is America land of the free. That being said ,I'm not saying it's alright to bash trailer companies ,just tell the truth about your experience. I'm not going to fight about it because I'm not really mad about it, again just my 2 cents.