22FEB2011
Well, I figured since I have seen some recent activity on this page, an update was in order. I have now owned my Tough Terrain for a couple of years now. And while it was painful to say the least to get delivered, it has so far served very well in many off-road trips. It has been to the top of 14,000 ft peaks in Colorado, through the desert in New Mexico, through Wyoming and South Dakota and generally all around and off road in most of these places. Its been towed behind a 2009 FJ Cruiser, a 2002 Jeep Wranger and a 1978 Full Size Ford Bronco. The one feature I didn’t get which I would if I could is a hitch on the rear of the trailer. This would make taking bikes much less of a chore.
The other item I added was to drill holes in the bottom for drain plugs. The seal on the top side doors is not 100%, so leaking can occur, not to mention accidental draining of coolers or water tanks inside the trailer. Another feature I will likely add in the future is a stainless tank for water storage built into the trailer. This will conserve space and increase the H2O storage capacity.
All in all, I am happy with the trailer, it functions as I expect and I have not had any additional bad experiences.
14JAN2009
Racefab Inc a.k.a. “Off-Road International” — Well, it seems like I am not the only one who have found the customer service SEVERLY lacking from this vendor. Now, so far, my trailer hasn’t fallen apart, but of course I haven’t taken it off-road yet either. But I think its fair to keep folks warned to expect horrible customer service if you decide to deal with Racefab Inc out of Rusk TX (owned by the Jackson’s).
Marty Jackson is the head of Marketing, and she must have skipped the lesson about customers needing something as simple as providing customers an expected date for delivery of the product they have already paid for…
See pictures of the Jackson family HERE.
See more pictures of my trailer and its damage HERE.
Mike [EKIM] requested I post this warning about his experience as one of the other customers of Racefab and a reader of my blog:
Buyer Beware…. this note is for all persons thinking about purchasing an off-road trailer from Marty Anderson [Jackson - my edit] at Off-Road International.
My business experience with the Off-Road International company was less than optimal. I did receive a written quote stating the dollar amount required to start the process. Foolish me, I sent the entire amount because I had this great feeling that in 6 to 8 weeks an off-road trailer would arrive in Ohio, The starting date was May 30, 2007. After several telephone calls and many months later… NOTHING! Then in December, 2007, Marty called and said the is was soon to be shipped and that I should re-send the check because the first one was to expire soon and everything was a go. How excited I must have been, because I sent it as requested. She even asked for it to be made out to a third party. I did that also. (I have since looked in the mirror and I do not have STUPID written on my forehead, only foolish).
In the early spring, 2008 I asked a friend living in Tyler, Texas to do a drive by… Pastor Dave drove to Rusk and sure enough he was told by Marty that he could have a new trailer in 6 to 8 weeks. Now mind you, Marty has since cashed my check in December of 07. I filed a compliant with the BBB [Better Business Bureau - my edit] of East Texas and with the AG of the great State of Texas. The BBB stated they contacted Marty but to no avail… Now steps in an attorney from Tyler Texas and a letter (dated 7-9-08) is written to Off-Road International giving them 90 days. No verbal response, no written response until late July 2008 stating that she would contact me and let me know a shipping date. Nothing…!
Then I get a phone call my wife at her work stating that my coffin as arrived and the guys are putting the axle and wheels on… that was August 8, 2008.
The attached list is of items that were not correct, not finished, not shipped and or just done in a hap-hazard manner.
1) Paint color not as requested
2) Safety chains not sent
3) Trailer was not packaged & shipped in proper purchased crate [there is an extra charge for crating and shipping - my edit]
4) No safety latch for gas can and propane tank
5) Gas can lid was broken and does not close rendering it trash and an expensive flower pot
6) Trailer began to rust inside and out due to poor painting and improper shipping
6) I request a 5 prong electrical receptor, that was complete, I purchased 3 different male 5-prong adaptors and none fit so I had to re-wire the entire vehicle to trailer light connection
Buyer Beware… the above six (6) items total approximately 450.00 + dollars difference, a year and 3 months wait, attorney fees, and phone bills..
Think about… would you want to do business with this person.
Ekim
I don’t have Mike’s QC statement (if he even got one – see mine below) from the manufacturer, but when selecting the paint scheme, you have the option (for a much higher cost) to have them match the paint code with your vehicle which they did a very BAD job of in Mike’s case as you can see from the below pics. Obviously the QC statements are a JOKE, since they don’t really match up to reality of what’s delivered — likely someone is just checking all the boxes without actually checking the trailers. Shoddy manufacturing practices in my mind indeed. God protect the folks who actually rely on Racefab to create their race cars, or even worse, something an astronaut might rely on (Marty likes to spin the NASA land rover building story).
Pic1 – Look for the color differences btwn trailer and Jeep Pic2 – Following Hurricane Ike, color difference noticeable
Pic3 – Notice the missing Gerry can lock-down and brace (one of the many missing pieces not sent with the trailer)
Pic4 – Close-up of Pic1 showing the missing brace and the color difference between trailer and Jeep
Contrast that with my trailer which DOES have the brace and lock-down
And, here is my invoice — I HIGHLY recommend you skip the coating in the least case (assuming your are willing to wait for a year for the trailer). I also advise you put down 1/4 or less if at all possible so that you have negotiating power with Marty. And as you can clearly see from the invoice, Marty was very aware that I was PAIND on 8/5/08 to be dealing with them.
The QC checks specifically the coating checks:
The section of the manual where it indicates my color is Industrial White:
Ultimately it took intervention by a Lawyer to get Marty to deliver Mike’s trailer (a course I often considered – especially when my wife was convinced the manufacturer was a FRAUD):
(pics are scanned in two parts since the documents are legal sized)
Use your own judgement, the trailers seem so far to be well built, but the real question you have to ask yourself is are you willing to deal with Marty without getting the 50% a****le discount? I sure wouldn’t again, and neither would Mike I venture to guess.
