Northstar customer service

[knobbytracks]

I just wanted to give a positive shout out to the folks at Northstar Campers. I thought this was pretty cool and says A LOT about customer service in general and Northstar's customer service specifically. I emailed the company to see if they could tell me or send some specifics on the location of any solid wood on the back of my camper. I am thinking of mounting a couple of bike racks on the back and want to know where the most solid place would be to perform the mounting. Rory, one of the owner's, went out of his way to shoot some video of one of their camper's in the build stage. He then sent me the video in an email. Now I know exactly where to mount the racks.

On a side note, I pulled off a bonehead manuever last year by driving approximateley 180 miles with the top popped up on my 2008 Northstar TC800XB. No, I didn't do this on purpose, just forgot! Those of you that have driven through Wyoming can attest to the winds we have here. I just thought the lack of power my pickup had was due to the winds. Once I got home, I realized my idiocy and promptly emailed Northstar to ask what I should look for in terms of damage. To my relief, the camper sustained absolutely no damage and the lifting/lowering system still operates flawlessly. To me, this proves the quality of the Northstar campers. Yeah, I'm a fan!

 

[kerry]

X2. I was installing a larger entrance handle last month and was trying to figure out how far solid wood extended from the door frame. A call to Northstar gave me an answer in less than 3 minutes.

That's an incredible story of driving with the top up.

 

[zidaro]

congrats and great news on the survival of top up travels, hope i dont pull that one

Nice to hear customer service is high. My TC650 needs some mods and i'll be utilizing their knowledge soon.

 

[knobbytracks]

Yeah, driving with the top up for that distance has to be in the top 5 for "Bonehead of the Year!"

I don't recall whom I spoke with at Northstar (I think it was Rex), but he said it's a crapshoot when someone does that; "The top either stays on or it's laying along the fenceline." I guess I'm not the only one. :Wow1:

 

[Regcabguy]

Man that's a great story! It reminds me of how quiet the canvas sides are on these in high winds. We were camping in Joshua Tree in the spring and approaching Twenty Nine Palms we encountered extremely high gusts. Dust was everywhere and a quiet night's sleep seemed out of the question. Well,the truck rocked some but no flap factor. I don't think they approached 65 mph though. What a story! Northstar has a prompt parts service. It's a bit pricey,but accurate. Keep a piece of cardboard and duct tape in the camper. High winds may blow out the flame on the fridge. I place a precut piece of cardboard with duct tape balls on the corners over the fridge vent cover. This enables the fridge to safely vent,but cuts the turbulence down just right.

 

[kerry]

Keep a piece of cardboard and duct tape in the camper. High winds may blow out the flame on the fridge. I place a precut piece of cardboard with duct tape balls on the corners over the fridge vent cover. This enables the fridge to safely vent,but cuts the turbulence down just right.

Over the lower vent panel? I have this same problem. I've tried piling a bunch of scrunched up tin foil behind the lower vent to hinder the flow of air into burner area.
Apparently, the 12 volt portion of my frig was never hooked up. The gas always blows out as I drive down the road. I haven't had such a consistent problem with keeping the gas flame lit in other motorhomes I have owned.

 

[18seeds]

Northstar Rocks. Once i get rid of my Tacoma and get a bigger truck i'll get a Northstar again.

My friend (who has a northstar) drove from Steamboat to Denver with his popped up. His is an 04 and no damage

 

[Regcabguy]

Over the lower vent panel? I have this same problem. I've tried piling a bunch of scrunched up tin foil behind the lower vent to hinder the flow of air into burner area.
Apparently, the 12 volt portion of my frig was never hooked up. The gas always blows out as I drive down the road. I haven't had such a consistent problem with keeping the gas flame lit in other motorhomes I have owned.

I run mine on 12v while driving. I have the old manual control. Inadvertently,I've forgotten to shut off the gas and go to 12v and the flame has always gone out. It's an extreme fire hazard I believe to drive with the LP on. The cardboard trick works well when you are stationary and the wind's howling. We're going up to King's Canyon,Sequoia and Yosemite Sept 10th. I think some of the summer mob will be gone by then.

 

[knobbytracks]

Regcabguy,

Thanks for the cardboard tip. I haven't had any problems with mine and I drive with it running on propane all the time:yikes:

"Inadvertently,I've forgotten to shut off the gas and go to 12v and the flame has always gone out. " Maybe this is an auto safety shut off???

 

[Regcabguy]

Yeah,it could be. I know that filling stations always ask that you extinquish all lp appliances. In 1981 my friend and I drove a pos Ford F-250 w/giant cabover into a very remote Baja surfing spot from San Diego. When we arrived,bottles of broken beer fell out of the fridge,but the the survivors were ice cold! LP made it the whole way!:sombrero:

 

[dyuhas]

The days of calling Northstar and talking to one of the owners are over. The only way to communicate with Rex is to leave an email.

 

[bobmono]

The days of calling Northstar and talking to one of the owners are over. The only way to communicate with Rex is to leave an email.

seems fair for a growing company

 

[txtiger]

Customer service still great

When I purchased my 2013 TC800 a couple of months ago, I emailed Northstar, told them I was looking at a used camper, mentioned the dealership, and asked if they could give me any information about it.

Late that afternoon, I got a call from Billy, over sales in N America for Northstar, who had the camper info pulled up on his computer and spent 30 minutes going over the camper and the options. He also gave me some helpful mounting suggestions. I wasn't sure what to expect when I emailed Northstar, but they went way out of their way to spend a lot of time with me to explain the camper.

The customer service there is outstanding.