Post by rockymountaineer on Nov 30, 2019 17:13:58 GMT
Some days we just gotta love this hobby, where catalogs and brochures picture one thing... but what gets manufactured in China is a completely different item. We think Lionel takes the prize all the time, but MTH seems to have their issues too.
Such is the case with MTH's Premier-line Transitional Sleepers (passenger cars) that the company has been making for years. I don't know how widely this issue has been discussed, but I just ran into it today when something I ordered arrived. And it wasn't at all what I was expecting.
I recently purchased two MTH transitional sleepers -- expecting each car to have one upper level vestibule and one lower level vestibule. That's what's pictured in the catalogs and on MTH's website (see below). Naturally, my plan was to build an Amtrak passenger train with both superliner and regular passenger cars -- especially after seeing this car in the catalog and on various websites (i.e., MTH, eBay, etc...). And THIS "transitional" car would be the critical link to aesthetically blend the high-level and regular cars together. Seemed like a reasonable concept.
Well...... as it turns out, BOTH cars I received (20-68232 and 20-68233) arrived today with ONLY upper-level vestibules at both ends!!!
I called the dealer to express my disappointment, and his initial response was he thought I was aware of this when I ordered them... because that's how MTH makes these cars. In as polite a way as I could muster, I asked him HOW I was supposed to KNOW that when all of MTH's illustrations show the upper-level AND lower-level vestibules??? AND MTH calls these cars TRANSITIONAL sleepers. Duh....
The dealer tells me he'd be stuck with the cars if I returned them. And most fellas who bought them just kept them anyway. My response to him was he should have refused these cars when MTH shipped them... and MTH should be holding this inventory of non-transitional cars that they advertise as transitional. WHAT. IS. WRONG. WITH. PEOPLE. THESE. DAYS? Do they think we are stupid?
In any event, after speaking my mind with a bit more force -- but still remaining polite -- the dealer agreed to accept the return for "store credit". But he also wanted me to complain to MTH as well, to see if MTH would offer any remediation. I'm happy to do that, as I've talked with Mike, Andy and Rich many times at York. But I also told the dealer HE's the one I conducted the transaction with, and HE's the one who needs to make good on THIS PARTICULAR transaction. And MTH should make good on THEIR end of the dealings with their authorized dealer network as it pertains to these cars that aren't manufactured as pictured.
I'll keep you all posted as to how this ultimately gets resolved. But meanwhile, I didn't want anyone else to travel this unnecessarily frustrating path. After all this hobby IS supposed to be fun, right???
P.S. ***UPDATE*** After contacting MTH about this issue, it appears that the production run of "transitional sleepers" made in the 2013/2014 production batch were made incorrectly at the overseas factory. A subsequent production run of these transitional/step-down sleepers catalog'd in 2017V2 and delivered in Spring 2018 were apparently made correctly, but are VERY difficult to obtain. Word on the street is they were part of a short production run. The MTH Product Locator shows zero availability of the 2018 models, but not every MTH dealer uses the Product Locator or keeps their inventory updated. So patience, perseverance and keeping one's dialing fingers well-exercised will come in VERY handy when attempting to locate these cars.
Such is the case with MTH's Premier-line Transitional Sleepers (passenger cars) that the company has been making for years. I don't know how widely this issue has been discussed, but I just ran into it today when something I ordered arrived. And it wasn't at all what I was expecting.
I recently purchased two MTH transitional sleepers -- expecting each car to have one upper level vestibule and one lower level vestibule. That's what's pictured in the catalogs and on MTH's website (see below). Naturally, my plan was to build an Amtrak passenger train with both superliner and regular passenger cars -- especially after seeing this car in the catalog and on various websites (i.e., MTH, eBay, etc...). And THIS "transitional" car would be the critical link to aesthetically blend the high-level and regular cars together. Seemed like a reasonable concept.
Well...... as it turns out, BOTH cars I received (20-68232 and 20-68233) arrived today with ONLY upper-level vestibules at both ends!!!
I called the dealer to express my disappointment, and his initial response was he thought I was aware of this when I ordered them... because that's how MTH makes these cars. In as polite a way as I could muster, I asked him HOW I was supposed to KNOW that when all of MTH's illustrations show the upper-level AND lower-level vestibules??? AND MTH calls these cars TRANSITIONAL sleepers. Duh....The dealer tells me he'd be stuck with the cars if I returned them. And most fellas who bought them just kept them anyway. My response to him was he should have refused these cars when MTH shipped them... and MTH should be holding this inventory of non-transitional cars that they advertise as transitional. WHAT. IS. WRONG. WITH. PEOPLE. THESE. DAYS? Do they think we are stupid?
In any event, after speaking my mind with a bit more force -- but still remaining polite -- the dealer agreed to accept the return for "store credit". But he also wanted me to complain to MTH as well, to see if MTH would offer any remediation. I'm happy to do that, as I've talked with Mike, Andy and Rich many times at York. But I also told the dealer HE's the one I conducted the transaction with, and HE's the one who needs to make good on THIS PARTICULAR transaction. And MTH should make good on THEIR end of the dealings with their authorized dealer network as it pertains to these cars that aren't manufactured as pictured.
I'll keep you all posted as to how this ultimately gets resolved. But meanwhile, I didn't want anyone else to travel this unnecessarily frustrating path. After all this hobby IS supposed to be fun, right???
P.S. ***UPDATE*** After contacting MTH about this issue, it appears that the production run of "transitional sleepers" made in the 2013/2014 production batch were made incorrectly at the overseas factory. A subsequent production run of these transitional/step-down sleepers catalog'd in 2017V2 and delivered in Spring 2018 were apparently made correctly, but are VERY difficult to obtain. Word on the street is they were part of a short production run. The MTH Product Locator shows zero availability of the 2018 models, but not every MTH dealer uses the Product Locator or keeps their inventory updated. So patience, perseverance and keeping one's dialing fingers well-exercised will come in VERY handy when attempting to locate these cars.
