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DavidPerth
- 5 reviews
More Retreat caravan failures
Just had another trip in my 4 months old Retreat caravan and after a horrendous start, before I even got it on the road, things again started to fall off. The ensuite door fell off 5 times and the bench release mechanism fell off the bench. It was screwed in with pathetically small screws which were drilled in so close the edge of the bench, they had lifted the laminex edging. The ensuite door was supposed to have been fixed during a recent $500 service but all they obviously did was re hang it in a manner that it would easily come off the ...Read more
rails as soon as it was touched. Any moron can see that the way it is attached and not screwed on tightly is bound to fail. I am going to have to fix it properly myself as obviously this was not fixed properly under warranty. There is obviously no quality control in these vans (personal opinion) and I wished I had never bought it.Similar opinion? Write a review on ieatwords.com.au!
AlcatThe Mallee, VIC
Retreat hamilton lemon
Worst company that anyone could deal with. No assistance, help, compassion, nothing but denial and lies. 0419395788
Don’t buy retreat. Myback wheels fell off. Had to pay rent for 3 weeks and fix van myself. Lots of other problems. New van
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UnHappySussex Inlet
- 8 reviews
We bought a RETREAT MACQUIRE 2016 model
We Had taken this Caravan back to Retreat factory for some Warranty Work 2016 which was done, But when we were at the Factory to complain about condensation at the same time they were dumb founded as to the problem, no solution was offered Now have a problem with Black plate with corrosion problems asked about this and still no response and still no solution to condensation, back plate seems to be a common problem going by other owners see sites complaints. Unhappy
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hillbossSydney Surrounds, NSW
- Verified customer
Retreat Hamilton One L/H rear spring leaf broke, 260ks later R/H spring sheared in half.
We parked in a caravan park and found L/H Rear top spring broken, had this repaired etc (bad luck). But driving about 260Klm the caravan was parked in another caravan park, we were then told we had a sheared R/H spring ??? The van has little use and is in storage for 7 months
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Brilliant Van, great company to deal with
We purchased a 2016 Brampton Caravan, all custom made to our specifications. From day one Retreat Caravans have been great to deal with. We unfortunately had a truck run into the rear of our van, Retreat promptly sent parts to our repairer.
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Professional Company
We believe Retreat Caravans to be a very professional company to deal with. We can recommend them to anyone who wants to purchase a great product from a very good company
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LynNew South Wales
- 2 reviews
Great company
We are on our 3rd Retreat Caravan & are very happy with our latest van as well as our previous 2.
If we had a problem Retreat were easy to deal with & any problem fixed with no questions asked.
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Spinnaker Outbacker
Overall happy with our Retreat Van. We recently done 8500kms in 5 weeks at least 800kms on gravel including part of the Oodnadatta with no problems. Had minor dust ingress but very little considering the conditions
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- Verified customer
Great caravan
This review is for a retreat fraser 219b triple bunk purchased 12/2018 from Luxury RVs Melbourne. Luxury RVs Melbourne were fantastic people to deal with and ensured everything perfect. It's a great caravan fitted with excellent components and everything included without needing to buy extras. The build quality is perfect down to every single screw throughout the caravan. This 22ft caravan also tows extremely well and all works seamlessly. Highly recommend.
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no wayWestern Australia
- 4 reviews
- 5 likes
Dont buy retreat or Galaxy caravan
Our brand new caravan made by retreat has over 45 faults. Some major some minor. Over a year we been fighting to get the van we bought. Retreat complete care have tried to fix some faults after a long wait but every time they fix some things a list of other faults appear. There is a major design faults with placement of the air conditioning and it will not cool the bedroom. Retreat need to come to the decision that our van is a lemon for what ever reason maybe a one off but need to replace or refund so we can live our dream and not this night...Read more
mare. We would have not bought this van if we had known in advance the extent and nature of the defects. We have the right to a refund as stated ACL law. It has let us down so many times. We have lost so much money and so many holiday opportunities. We just want what we paid for and what we have is not fit for purpose. It's been very difficult dealing with retreat always promising to return your calls and e-mails but they don't. We have tried talking to the general manager but he to does nothing to get things happening doesn't want to be bothered. No after sales service, Retreat just don't care, fog you off. The dealer choice caravans in Adelaide is just as bad and totally ignore us and the lemon he has sold. This nightmare has been going on for over a year with no light at the end of the tunnel. except going down the legal road which we were hoping to avoid but that time will come. I don't want anyone else to go through this Retreat nightmare that's why I write this review. Think twice before you buy retreat or galaxy look at the lemon caravans site on facebook buyer beware list. There is a reason that Retreat, Galaxy and Choice caravans are on this list. Stay clear of choice caravans Adelaide. Bad choice they don't care after they have your money.1 comment
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Retreat disappointment.
We bought a Retreat Fraser 2014 and have had ongoing problems infact every time we go away there is something. We have had severe swaying, water leaks, replaced a window, replaced battery charger and both batteries, water tank leaks and I could go on and on. We gave up trying to get any satisfaction with the company. The dealership has changed in Brisbane twice since we bought the van. We don’t bother contacting now just get fixed whatever needs fixing. We have been told by our repairer that retreat used inferior cheap products and materials. One positive is the size of the shower- it’s big but that’s not enough to recommend it to anyone.
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Poor workmanship
We bought a retreat Fraser in 2014 and within 2 hours of picking up had problems and response from them was can I jack up van look what problem is? Then van leaked and paint started falling off walls and again retreat don't want to talk to you there customer service is none existent, there idea of customer service is you find what the fault is then find a repairer and we'll send you a cheque.
Would I purchase another retreat NEVER.
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KeithWBunbury
- 6 reviews
- 20 likes
Major Faults and Poor Service
We live in WA and purchased this new caravan in SA and has been plagued by major faults from new including sever instability which has required us returning the caravan back to Melbourne on 3 occasions. Travel speed was about 80km/hr. The caravan had no tow ball weight and would just dive from one side of the road to the other. Retreat has so far relocated the water tanks from the center to the front, changed out the tyres, relocated the axles and wheels rearward by about 150mm which involved cutting out the floor, extending the mud guards alte...Read more
ring the chassis and altering the walls. The caravan has had a bent chassis distorted walls, twisted bench, bent floor and required a second shower outlet so that the shower would drain. Customer service and warranty has approached being non existence with repairs taking over 8 months last time. Retreat has missed repair their appointments even though they have had 2 months lead time and we have had to travel over 500km to get the van to their appointed repairer. They just do not care. Our caravan is over weight by 100kg and the recommended tyre pressures are almost exceed the maximum allowable. This is just dangerous. One wall has been stripped to try to repair the warp and it revealed almost no insulation, both 12v and 240v power cables together rather than separated, a wire jammed between the cladding and the frame and exposed 12v wires. None of this complies with the Australian Standards. We have required a full refund as required under the Australian Consumer Guarantee but Retreat have refused our demand. This is a very ordinary business with very poor customer service. Their caravans vary from great to very poor and there are many of them. Do not expect any support if it goes wrong. I'm happy to discuss this review. Keith [email protected]Similar opinion? Write a review on ieatwords.com.au!
HowieHobart
- 3 reviews
- 2 likes
Good quality caravan, shame about the warranty backup!
We have a 2015 Retreat Bribie caravan, purchased in 2016 for $78K. There have been a few issues, as you may expect with new vans, but the main problem has been getting those issues addressed. Retreat didn't advise us before sale that another company - Complete Caravan Care, would be handing any warranty issues. Unfortunately we have had to deal with delays, walls of silence, straight out inefficiency and bloody mindedness when negotiating on some issues by one staff member in particular and refusal to fix a front window protector that blew o...Read more
ff. What they also don't obviously understand is that many people need their van to live in and can't be without it for extended periods without having to pay, so such people can't afford to be stuffed around. Complete Caravan Care needs to seriously pick up their game or Retreat should take over direct responsibility for their warranty issues. Pretty good caravan but very poor warranty backup!Similar opinion? Write a review on ieatwords.com.au!
Poorly assembled and Poor road handling
The Caravan specification for tyre pressure (75psi) makes the Caravan bounce undertow either loaded or unloaded. Externally and Internally the many parts were not assembled correctly, the roof fitment was up and down creating many shallow points where water collected.
In addition there was a lot of weld splatter on the Frame.
Trying to communicate with Senior Management and having Warranty work done is near impossible.
The workers and staff are friendly, however cannot authorise repairs required.
All parts are new, however most seem to be of a cheaper quality.
There seems to be a lack of Quality Control in place to rectify problems before Sales.
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Leaf Springs
Has anyone had problems with broken leaf springs particularly back right hand it's becoming a common denominator please make inquires with Retreat caravans who have confirmed there may have been a faulty badge of springs supplied to G & S Chassis who are the manufacturer of construction of caravans
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John NSWMid North Coast, NSW
- 4 reviews
Not the quality you would expect and terrible after sales service
While the Retreat Vans are advertised as superior quality we were very disappointed with ours. Quality control appears to be minimal with several deficiencies observed upon receipt of our new van. Most of these were addressed quickly by our local Dealer, 7th Street Caravans. The most serious issue however was a continually leaking roof. After the 4th major incident and the 3rd new mattress in less than 12 months we said enough is enough. This is when we found out the true nature of the manufacturer, Retreat Caravans. The level of customer servi...Read more
ce we received from the company was disgraceful. Not only did they refuse to replace our van, they refused to admit that they were even aware of the issues we had experienced. This despite all issues being addressed through their warranty process with the Dealer. The treatment we received from all levels of support within Retreat, including the company directors was deplorable. Suffice it to say I would never deal with the company again and would highly recommend that anyone looking for a new caravan look elsewhere. On a positive note, I can't say enough about the service we received from 7th Street Caravans. They were supportive through the process and engaged on our behalf with the manufacturer. When it became evident that we were not going to receive any satisfaction from Retreat Caravans, 7th Street Caravans stepped up and provided us with a new replacement van from another manufacturer they stock. Well done 7th Street Caravans. They have since terminated their Dealer relationship with Retreat Caravans as well. Apparently, we weren't the only unhappy customer. Interesting how the same negative product/service issue can be handled completely different by two companies. Which one do you think we will be doing future business with and recommending to people we meet?Similar opinion? Write a review on ieatwords.com.au!
Questions & Answers
carmasked
caravan stored for 6 months brought it out again and can not get lights on??????
Anna P.asked
Hi,
We have a Retreat Fraser 219B and can’t figure out how to open the windows! If anyone could help us out, it would be greatly appreciated. We bought the van privately and there is nothing in our documentation to help us out.
Thanks.
1 answer
Should be able to just unlock each lock and push the window out. Sometimes the Windows need quiet a push if the rubber around the window gets a little stuck
Alcatasked
How can I get someone to contact me about getting my new van fixed. Don’t want to know me.
Alan Vallance 0419395788
1 answer
Contact Greg or Tilly at complete caravan care. They aren't good at getting back to you but keep trying they will eventually answer you. Weather they fix the faults is another thing. Good luck
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no way
If any other retreat or galaxy owners are going down the legal path maybe it would be a good idea to team up and fight together for refunds or replacement. Feel free to contact me