Dealer and rv reviews

[jasin1]

well my head has been spinning from reading different reviews of various fifth wheel dealers and brand reviews….don’t know if it’s better to just blindly go in and purchase and hope you end up hitting the “ no warranty issues” lottery.

it really is a shame that dealers and brands do not seem to give a flying f#&@ about how they are perceived online…i can see maybe 20 years ago and earlier when it was just word of mouth but now the whole world can see the bad reviews….and yet there is no shortage of buyers…

almost every dealer i’ve looked up recently says “ the sales portion was great!”….after the sale …. “ no one will answer the phone at the service dept” …and “my rv sat in the shop more then i used it this year”…

really makes me hesitant to buy a new one as mine has been mostly problem free so far

if anyone has had a good experience with dependable dealers in the delmarva area please let me know

[sourdough]

I don't have any experience with dealers in that area but I can just offer this; KNOW the dealer - visit there, talk to the management team..multiple times preferably. Never stop with a salesperson as they won't be doing a thing for you after you sign papers. Find folks that you like and seem to have their act together, some talk, some can act and some can do both. Hopefully you will able to discern those qualities.

RVs? They're all a crap shoot. Moreso nowadays I think but I think the quality of the product the customer receives when he drives off is totally dependent on the quality of the dealer. Let them know you know what you want and know your stuff. If you don't they will take you on a merry go round ride as if you were a newbie telling you anything and everything. I've done that for grins at places I never intended to buy anything and some of the things you will be told are unbelievable.

I guess bottom line is if you NEED a new trailer that's one thing. If you just WANT a new trailer that's another. Wanting gives you the time to be picky, look as much as you want and parse every detail with a dealer. I've never "worked a deal" with a salesman. I've always worked the numbers with a sales manager and/or the GM/owner. This last trailer the GM worked the entire deal and the salesman sent me pics and got info for me. Quality is probably down a bit but I don't think it's something that should prevent you from getting a new trailer if you wanted one. Look at the electronics; some brands are better than others and if it has Furrion it will all need to be replaced IMO.

Didn't help you a bit but just some things to think about. If you buy new with full body paint you will be spending a chunk of change so I would insist the top folks work with you and get promises in writing, or write things up like you want send an email and get an affirmative answer back or print it and have them sign it. Anything and everything to give you leverage for after the sale if something were to go south.

[jasin1]

Originally Posted by sourdough

I don't have any experience with dealers in that area but I can just offer this; KNOW the dealer - visit there, talk to the management team..multiple times preferably. Never stop with a salesperson as they won't be doing a thing for you after you sign papers. Find folks that you like and seem to have their act together, some talk, some can act and some can do both. Hopefully you will able to discern those qualities.

RVs? They're all a crap shoot. Moreso nowadays I think but I think the quality of the product the customer receives when he drives off is totally dependent on the quality of the dealer. Let them know you know what you want and know your stuff. If you don't they will take you on a merry go round ride as if you were a newbie telling you anything and everything. I've done that for grins at places I never intended to buy anything and some of the things you will be told are unbelievable.


I guess bottom line is if you NEED a new trailer that's one thing. If you just WANT a new trailer that's another. Wanting gives you the time to be picky, look as much as you want and parse every detail with a dealer. I've never "worked a deal" with a salesman. I've always worked the numbers with a sales manager and/or the GM/owner. This last trailer the GM worked the entire deal and the salesman sent me pics and got info for me. Quality is probably down a bit but I don't think it's something that should prevent you from getting a new trailer if you wanted one. Look at the electronics; some brands are better than others and if it has Furrion it will all need to be replaced IMO.

Didn't help you a bit but just some things to think about. If you buy new with full body paint you will be spending a chunk of change so I would insist the top folks work with you and get promises in writing, or write things up like you want send an email and get an affirmative answer back or print it and have them sign it. Anything and everything to give you leverage for after the sale if something were to go south.

thanks…yes i have the luxury of waiting for the right one although we seem to be in a buyers market for 2022 units right now…they were making so many that the ones left over are showing pretty decent discounts…i think next year the discounts may not be as generous…although the fuel price situation may make people hesitant to buy

and i do realize that some or even a lot of reviews are customer’s that may be just difficult to deal with

[wiredgeorge]

Originally Posted by jasin1

thanks…yes i have the luxury of waiting for the right one although we seem to be in a buyers market for 2022 units right now…they were making so many that the ones left over are showing pretty decent discounts…i think next year the discounts may not be as generous…although the fuel price situation may make people hesitant to buy

and i do realize that some or even a lot of reviews are customer’s that may be just difficult to deal with

With interest rates rising and campers filling the lot which also means less likely to hit the jackpot when you trade your almost new RV in, suggest a cold shower and wait till the economy stabilizes in a year or two to even contemplate buying a new camper. Hopefully more emphasis on quality will also occur in that time when RV factories are not churning out product at break neck speed to take advantage of a truly strange market.

[jasin1]

Originally Posted by wiredgeorge

With interest rates rising and campers filling the lot which also means less likely to hit the jackpot when you trade your almost new RV in, suggest a cold shower and wait till the economy stabilizes in a year or two to even contemplate buying a new camper. Hopefully more emphasis on quality will also occur in that time when RV factories are not churning out product at break neck speed to take advantage of a truly strange market.

good advice …i made the classic mistake of buying the rv to fit the truck then immediately buying a much more capable truck..would have given me many more choices had i reversed the process

[wiredgeorge]

Originally Posted by jasin1

good advice …i made the classic mistake of buying the rv to fit the truck then immediately buying a much more capable truck..would have given me many more choices had i reversed the process

I personally have never done anything dumb. Just ask my wife. Errr belay the last matey. Ask my friends who know me. Well... hold on that one too.

In all honesty there is a lot of wisdom in hind sight and now you have the big ol' truck and I suspect it won't wear out before prices moderate for both new and trade ins and used. It will take awhile for the crazy economy brought to us by our favorite uncle to return to pre-2020. Next two year and a month will see what direction the economy points.

Can you hold off for about three years? If not and you have the means... well its your bucks. I personally don't like to spend money too much on things that are not needed. My ol' 2002 camper is fitting us like a glove and I don't intend on giving into the urge to get Key TV or In-Command or any of the stuff that seems to be hot topics on this forum. Call me the analog man.

[jasin1]

Originally Posted by wiredgeorge

I personally have never done anything dumb. Just ask my wife. Errr belay the last matey. Ask my friends who know me. Well... hold on that one too.

In all honesty there is a lot of wisdom in hind sight and now you have the big ol' truck and I suspect it won't wear out before prices moderate for both new and trade ins and used. It will take awhile for the crazy economy brought to us by our favorite uncle to return to pre-2020. Next two year and a month will see what direction the economy points.

Can you hold off for about three years? If not and you have the means... well its your bucks. I personally don't like to spend money too much on things that are not needed. My ol' 2002 camper is fitting us like a glove and I don't intend on giving into the urge to get Key TV or In-Command or any of the stuff that seems to be hot topics on this forum. Call me the analog man.

Your wise with your money George…yeah the in·command is nice when it works..kinda wish i had the redundancy of backup switches as well…like the avalanche,alpine and montana has i believe …i even went on ebay to see if i could buy a manual switch panel from a fifth wheel for the future in case i need to bypass it and make it look somewhat factory

yeah i’m still in the research phase for now.

[gearhead]

I think it would be interesting to take notes on different models and what different dealers will sell them for right now. Rising interest rates will disqualify some buyers, lay offs will stop other buyers. We are supposed to have a recession next spring and that will affect buyers. It would be interesting to compare models and prices in a down market as to now.

[bsmith0404]

Some dealers don’t care about their on-line reputation because they haven’t figured out that people are doing research like this. The ones that have figured it out and do care may also game the system. The dealership I worked at was very aware and they pushed salesmen to get reviews from their customers, even put out challengers for the most 5 star reviews. There are several reviews that salesmen had completed by friends or family members that aren’t customers and don’t own RVs. They worked very hard to improve their review rating for each dealership (6 of them) to be 4 star or better. Only problem, they worked very hard to get sales reviews that buried bad service reviews. Once I realized they were using sales to hide service problems and not actually taking any steps to improve service, I stopped asking for reviews.

I was a unicorn in RV sales, I actually OWN and RV. I told all of my customers to call me before service if they had a problem. Even had magnetic business cards made up that I could put on a refrigerator or range hood so they’d have my number handy. I’d rather walk them through some simple repair and keep them camping then have them get frustrated with service. If it was something that had to go into service, I checked in on their repairs for them and made sure repairs were completed. That required A LOT of extra work on my part, especially as my time there got longer and my sales increased. Most, if not all salesmen won’t go through the effort required for that. Wow, got way off on a tangent, sorry for the long response.

[flybouy]

Every vehicle that I ever bought I told the dealership the same thing, " the salesman may sell me the first one but the service dept will sell me any subsequent ones. While bsmith0404 may have been " the world's greatest salesman", what happened to those customers after he left? Compensating for poor business practices only last as long as the person doing the compensating.

Best practices must come from "from the top" and independently owned businesses typically have a vested interest in customer service. Unfortunately, , with. current economies there are fewer independently owned businesses every day.

[Camp CA]

Ditto sourdough..........spot on!!

Don't be afraid to travel to a dealer outside your are if you can find a better dealer. I have had excellent sales/service from 2 different dealers here in California. The dealer I purchased my purchased my last 2 fifth wheel trailers (both Montanas) from is 250 miles from home but in a location we like to camp several times a year.

[bsmith0404]

Originally Posted by flybouy

Every vehicle that I ever bought I told the dealership the same thing, " the salesman may sell me the first one but the service dept will sell me any subsequent ones. While bsmith0404 may have been " the world's greatest salesman", what happened to those customers after he left? Compensating for poor business practices only last as long as the person doing the compensating.

Best practices must come from "from the top" and independently owned businesses typically have a vested interest in customer service. Unfortunately, , with. current economies there are fewer independently owned businesses every day.

Fortunately for them, they still have my number and I still assist them. Unfortunately, I don’t have as much influence on the service department. Most of what I sold is no longer under warranty so I have taken it upon myself to complete many of the repairs myself. That still doesn’t say much for the dealership and info you won’t find on a google review

I know the service department talks a good talk, the managers all talk a good talk. I’m not sure how much a person can figure out from a personal visit or conversation with people who work at the dealership. As I mentioned earlier, there are ways to mask bad reviews with many good reviews, even if they’re fabricated. To be honest, I’m not sure what the best way to find out what their true colors are without experiencing it yourself, but it’s too late at that point.

[sourdough]

Originally Posted by bsmith0404

Fortunately for them, they still have my number and I still assist them. Unfortunately, I don’t have as much influence on the service department. Most of what I sold is no longer under warranty so I have taken it upon myself to complete many of the repairs myself. That still doesn’t say much for the dealership and info you won’t find on a google review

I know the service department talks a good talk, the managers all talk a good talk. I’m not sure how much a person can figure out from a personal visit or conversation with people who work at the dealership. As I mentioned earlier, there are ways to mask bad reviews with many good reviews, even if they’re fabricated. To be honest, I’m not sure what the best way to find out what their true colors are without experiencing it yourself, but it’s too late at that point.

I think you have to get to know them, spend time there and observe them. More importantly I think they need to know ME. All through any buying process of anything costly I will make my expectations known from the gitgo. I will get their confirmation, or not. I've dealt with people, lots of people, all my life in the public arena from all walks of life which helps me read people pretty quickly. I do think however that it is important to know them, as best you can, prior to any commitment.

As far as service managers telling you "anything", yes they can. But, in that conversation you have with them about your service expectations prior to purchasing and they tell you "yes, we'll get you in here in 3 days" etc. etc. Tell them great, we'll notate that in the contract and the dealership can sign off on it....won't happen. A person just has to try to do the best they can to make sure they don't put themselves behind the 8 ball I suppose - there's always the bad apple out there that will try to zing you.