It happened on the way to vacation – the generator stopped working. We’d been planning our 21 day vacation to Yellowstone National Park. Now on the road, our 14 year old Microlite Onan generator had given up the ghost. We stopped by a repair service about 30 miles from home and the news didn’t get any better – “I don’t have time to look at the generator,” was the reply we received. “But don’t let it spoil the trip – make the most of it!” I’m thinking – “what great customer service!” (note the slight voice of sarcasm).
So we proceeded down the road on our way to our most favorite part of the country, the land where smoke fills the sky, bubbling mud pots, buffalo in herds, bald eagles nesting, elk, moose, bears, and of course a variety of trout waiting to jump on our fly rods.
Arriving at our destination we managed fairly well without the generator. Keep in mind, though, we were camping at the Madison campground. This wonderful rustic campground doesn’t have electricity or running water at the campsites. There are three dump stations and water station for the campground. Quiet time was posted for 8:00pm until 8:00 am. With careful planning, we used our propane stove top to cook and boil water for coffee, and prepare hot cereals in the am. Without the generator, the microwave wouldn’t work and since there weren’t any electrical sites, we had to become creative regarding our after dark activities such as reading, playing cards, or watching the movies we had packed.
And to top it all off, we’d been having battery problems. Fortunately we had purchased a “jump start” system prior to leaving out. Wouldn’t you know it – I couldn’t find where I had packed the battery charger for the jump starter. So, we purchased a second one! Having both those jump starters proved to be our salvation during the entire trip!
Here we were in the middle of the Madison campground in Yellowstone National Park, and we had to become creative in a hurry! Our motto is “we can do and undo!” With good natured humor we set about to enjoy vacation “Pipkin” style. I cooked a large breakfast each morning, boiled water for coffee, and thereafter for the majority of the other meals we usually ate something cold or went into West Yellowstone and ate out. At night we used one of the jump starters to run our DVD player and were entertained with some old movies. Since my husband turns into a pumpkin by 9:00 pm, I read by flashlight or played solitaire on my cell phone. So you get the picture – it wasn’t ideal but hey, we were on vacation and by golly – we were determined to enjoy it!
After three days of “roughing it,” I was able to reach the Onan generator repair center which happened to be in Billings, Montana. This four hour drive from the Madison campground seemed worth the effort to see if our 14 year old Microlite Onan generator could be repaired. Upon calling the Cummins Rocky Mountain repair center, I talked with “Joe and Dave.” These guys had great phone etiquette and set us up with an appointment “as soon as we could get there.”
While waiting in line to be served, I overheard a gentleman  discussing a generator problem with another customer. His words were encouraging, “sir, since you’ve had problems with getting towing here - we are going to void our towing charge – that should help ease the cost of this problem.” Help? – I later heard that the towing fee would have been over $2000! I just knew we had come to the right place! By the way, that gentleman was Joe Loughery, an administrator with the company who deals with customer service. 
Cummins Rocky Mountain is the exclusive distributor of Cummins and Onan products for the Rocky Mountain area. Headquartered in Denver, Colorado with over 14 locations throughout Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, Idaho, Utah, Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico and El Paso, Texas; their goal is to serve the customer with the finest products in the industry.
As Cummins Engine Company's exclusive distributor, they sell  and service the entire line of Cummins products. These products include engines, replacement parts, software and other related products for trucking, power generators, RV, industrial, marine and government markets. Cummins engines range in output from 64 to 6000 horsepower.
Cummins Rocky Mountain center is located at:
5151 Midland Rd
Billings, MT , 59101-6340
Phone: 406-245-4194
FAX: 406-245-7923
Toll Free Phone: 800-332-7788
Website: www.cummins.com
“Cummins Onan generators and engines are supported by the largest and best-trained worldwide certified distributor/dealer network in the industry. That means that when you need help, a Cummins Onan distributor/dealer is nearby. This extensive network makes it easier to get genuine Cummins Onan parts, quality service, and expert installation assistance when and where you need them. Cummins Onan's extensive training and certification process demonstrates our strong commitment to exceptional product service and support. Many distributors/dealers also support Cummins engines and products.”
While interviewing Joe, he told me about the longevity of the employees at Cummins Rocky Mountain. “I have a total of 120 years experience between three of my employees. No one can replace that kind of training and knowledge by those just getting out of vocational/technical school.” He said. Encountering the staff at this repair center was a great experience. I met Dave who is the “open and close” man. He is in the office with Joe and his job is to open each repair ticket, discuss options, and at the end of the service, go over the ticket and take the payment. Having this double check system allows for industry thoroughness which ensures quality service.
For years the Cummins diesel engines have proven efficient and road worthy workhorses for those who make their living by driving. What better marriage than to merge those long life Onan generators with Cummins, hence the new logo and name “Cummins Onan.”
I probably wouldn’t have met these two great guys and visited their repair center if our generator had been working. Although, we were unable to repair our generator on this trip, our friends whose new Vista class C also had a generator problem, were able to set up a return appointment on their trip back through Billings, Montana, and again experience outstanding
service from this company.
Besides learning more about a great company which places customer satisfaction high on the performance scale, we learned that you can meet some fantistic individuals along the journey – whether your generator works or not! Happy Traveling!
(Cummins Onan logo from website, all others photos by Rhonda Pipkin)
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