Value if dealer warranty?

[Kelan]

Trying to decide between two dealerships for a new 2018 travel trailer. No slides.

One dealerships price is about $1,000 more, but includes a lifetime warranty on water heater, pumps, etc ...as long as I get an inspection every year, at their dealership or any dealership I choose. He said the inspection at his dealership is about $170 each time.

Is it worth the extra $1,000 price tag, and paying for an inspection each year?

This will be my first TT purchase.

[66joej]

I guess it depends on how mechanically inclined one is. Personally I would opt out of the extra thou. You have a 1 year warranty with the new unit. USUALLY if something goes wrong it is in the first few months of usage. JMHO YMMV

[JRTJH]

The "lifetime warranty" is a marketing tool and is typically free with the trailer purchase. The "dealer benefit" is that all maintenance, winterization, inspections and repair work" must be done at the dealership. So, they make many times the cost of an occasional breakdown or repair....

Nothing is "free" in any business, so take the offering with a cautious eye and read all the small print before you sign anything.

If you do a forum search for "lifetime warranty" you'll find several threads about this program. There are a few people who say it's a great idea but the vast majority are not as impressed with the program.

[chuckster57]

Lifetime warranty dealer inspection is about 3-4 hours @ going labor rate. Our current rate is $175.00/hr.

That’s a lot of money every year to get stuff “covered”. I wouldn’t do it.

[travelin texans]

Another thing to consider, chuckster says 3 to 4 hour inspection, but how many weeks will it sit on their lot before they can get to that inspection?
My opinion is NO!

[fourfourto]

I have the free lifetime warranty,$150.00 every year.
bought the 2017 in may 2016 this is second year and they said your wheel bearings should be hand packed
for $150 more $$$ I said I thought you did that every year they said we just put in a few zerks with the service,i said when I did it yearly on old camper I jacked it up zerked wiped rotated wheel several times zerking as I go and wiping up old grease till new grease came out they said they don't and didn't do that ?
I don't know why because im assuming they pop the wheel off to check the brakes ?
Anyway not bringing it in next year ill repack myself
also I thought roof was covered ?
they check roof seal as needed ? and if it needs to be resealed theres a cost ?.
so the only thing that's really covered are appliances.
also seems every time I pick it up the anode is leaking and I got to re teflon tape and or tighten it up ?

Im loosing faith in the dealer as I brang it in before keystone warranty was up in 2017 for my awning not retracting properly they reset the spring and it worked for a while but they bent the arms doing the job and they replaced the complete arm assy.( several weeks later)
I brang it back to have the retracting assy replaced in may (as the awning would work at all)when parts came in they found after putting it in it was bent / damaged so few more weeks to get another one.
They called yesterday saying it was done but a latter fell on camper and they will have to order siding(4 to 6 weeks) .
getting frustrated dealers 100 miles away
Im concerned about the awning arms being removed again that the screws going into wood might strip out .also door frame window ect have to be removed ?
I foresee trouble
seems when I do stuff myself I have no trouble and i hate having anyone work on my stuff,including cars/truck/house as they never do a good job
and I don't understand how I know more then the professional I hire ?:facepalm:

[Bisjoe]

My dealer only charges $99 for the inspection, and the price for our trailer was still less than at the competitors. The inspection is just that, they don't do any actual work such as packing wheel bearings. Only covered components are repaired at the inspection, any regular maintenance is at additional cost. We are well aware of that and for $99 it's worth the trouble. If there is something they recommend but not covered at inspection time I can choose to have them, do it, do it myself, or take it elsewhere. In your case, with $1,000 more on the price and that much for the inspection I would probably pass.

[Kelan]

Thanks everyone! I really appreciate the feedback.
I'll do a search for old posts as well (sorry, I should have done that before posting this one), but at this point it's looking pretty obvious I should save the upfront dollars and purchase from the less expensive dealer. This was the way I was leaning, but you all helped reassure me. Thanks!

[Ken / Claudia]

I think that if your unwilling or unable to do what the dealer is going to do, pay for and use the extra warranty. So far I can do all that and save the money to buy the broken parts or fix what needs fixed. I take my time and do it over several days, maybe 4 to 8 hours total. This year, I did not have time to check, repack bearings and rotate tires. My local shop charged me 225, all bearings were fine, I paid for seals and grease, that would have cost me maybe 30 bucks. The rest was 2 hours of work. I may have taken more time and saved 150 to 170 dollars, Oh well, It got done before the 1,000 mile trip.

[Huntme]

I agree,the warantee is not worth it,you will not be able to get your money's worth,especially from a Dealer.