Pricing negotiations on 2955RL - help

[Rustymax]

I need some discrete advice from other Montana 2955RL owners. We just got home from a large RV show were we met the Keystone regional manager and had a lengthy discussion concerning the particulate 5er of this subject. These units are no longer offered as production floor plans, they were manufactured this past October, are classified as being 2011 models and only 2 remain in his inventory. Here is my problem, the manager will be at our local dealer in two weeks and he said he would “personally” cut me a sweet deal (one that I couldn’t beat) to remove one of these two units from his inventory. I was very impressed with the technical knowledge of this manager based on having spent my mechanical engineering career specifying and purchasing very technical equipment. I have done my homework so to speak. He easily surpassed all of the “salesmen” knowledge from this brand those of his competitors that we have witnessed to date and feel as though he might truly be offering good opportunity. (no salesman in this deal) I need to know “order of magnitude” pricing for what the MSLP is for this particular model and what we should consider a fair price. I was told this was particular model was sold for a number of years prior so there must be some of you out there that can give me some pricing hindsight or point me direction as to where I an get better pricing information. As a basis for pricing so far I requested a quote from RV Direct on a comparable 5er (size and options) to see what percent of discount they could offer. In fact I loaded my trial balloon 5er with many extra options above and beyond what is being offered with the Montana, such as a $7K paint scheme. The RV Direct pricing discount was substantial. I am using their percent discount as a guideline for any negotiations. My intent was to hold off purchasing our RV until this Fall-Winter, a truck remains to be purchased.

Any help / advice here would be appreciated. PM if advice is sensitive and not for general posting

Mr & Mrs Rustymax

[Rustymax]

We have found all the pricing support that we were seeking via the internet. (Lots and lots of internet time) The information we compiled should allow for some interesting negations. Maybe in a few weeks I can report that I’m no longer just an interested shopper but rather a satisfied Montana owner. The unit that we are negotiating does not have the desk and fireplace, somewhat important to DW, but if the final price is right, we’ll just have to live without these features.

Mr & Mrs

[andyrad]

I have one more RV check available to me that gives me dealer cost and a reasonable retail price. I'll run it through the system and let you know within 24 hours.

[Rustymax]

Thanks for the offer, I'll be looking for your information.

[jje1960]

Originally Posted by Rustymax

I need some discrete advice from other Montana 2955RL owners. We just got home from a large RV show were we met the Keystone regional manager and had a lengthy discussion concerning the particulate 5er of this subject. These units are no longer offered as production floor plans, they were manufactured this past October, are classified as being 2011 models and only 2 remain in his inventory. Here is my problem, the manager will be at our local dealer in two weeks and he said he would “personally” cut me a sweet deal (one that I couldn’t beat) to remove one of these two units from his inventory. I was very impressed with the technical knowledge of this manager based on having spent my mechanical engineering career specifying and purchasing very technical equipment. I have done my homework so to speak. He easily surpassed all of the “salesmen” knowledge from this brand those of his competitors that we have witnessed to date and feel as though he might truly be offering good opportunity. (no salesman in this deal) I need to know “order of magnitude” pricing for what the MSLP is for this particular model and what we should consider a fair price. I was told this was particular model was sold for a number of years prior so there must be some of you out there that can give me some pricing hindsight or point me direction as to where I an get better pricing information. As a basis for pricing so far I requested a quote from RV Direct on a comparable 5er (size and options) to see what percent of discount they could offer. In fact I loaded my trial balloon 5er with many extra options above and beyond what is being offered with the Montana, such as a $7K paint scheme. The RV Direct pricing discount was substantial. I am using their percent discount as a guideline for any negotiations. My intent was to hold off purchasing our RV until this Fall-Winter, a truck remains to be purchased.

Any help / advice here would be appreciated. PM if advice is sensitive and not for general posting

Mr & Mrs Rustymax

Everyone has their experience and "method" when purchasing. We have found that once the item is identified, use the internet for the low and high and work from there. We found that the cheapest price in the U.S. for our SRX was the whole-sale guys in Michigan. Now there is no way that a Dealer in most parts of the country are going to be able to match those prices, however, this depends on how bad they want the unit off the lot. They are ALL salesman, don't matter if it's the guy standing outside the local dealer or the factory rep at the show.... As an example, we found the unit we wanted, did the research, then asked the simple question of why we should pay $11,000.00 more than the other dealer we found within 200mi. Which was actually $13,000.00 more than the whole sale in Michigan. Less than 30min later they matched the cheaper ($11k) price. Some will not budge, depends on how many units they push and how long it takes them to move them. Good luck and hope you get your purchase and are happy and comfortable, that's what matters.

[andyrad]

Correct, the most important thing is that you're happy with the deal you made. We discovered that we probably could have ground the dealer another 5-6K but in the end they made good money and I saved 10K off the full retail. This way the dealer is always happy to see us and we are still comfortable with the price we paid. Even better knowing that the dealer will welcome us into their shop with open arms anytime.

[Rustymax]

Thank you all so much for the replies. We went back to the local dealer yesterday and did another walk thru of the 2955RL. It did not have all the features that we desire and the price offered was not sufficient to close a deal. We have decided to buy a 3150 RL at the years end with all the options we desire. More RV shows, more investigation lies ahead. We heard there is a whole sale Montana dealership in Mich, we will have to check them out. We will continue membership to the forum, gleaming all the shared advice and wisdom from the many fine people out there. We’ll let you all know when we purchase our 5er.
Thank you once again for unselfishly sharing.

Mr & Mrs Rustymax

[travelinman]

Rustymax,

The wife and I just bought a 3150 and are very pleased with it. We too started out looking at the 2955 and moved up to the 3150. What we found while looking was that each floor plan had its distinct advantages as well as disadvantages. Our decision was finalized by deciding which disadvantages we were most easily able to live with. Good luck...

[mhs4771]

You might want to sign-up on the Montana Owners Club Forum. We own a 2010 2955 and the floor plan fit our needs exactly, yea a desk would have been nice, but we wanted a floor plan that was completely usable with the slides in. We have looked at units where you can't get to the fridge, some you can't reach the bedroom without the slide out, you get the picture. What works for you is the best deal. Just for numbers, our 2955 list for 68.5, dealer had it listed for 42, we got slide toppers, Reese 20K hitch and installation included in the deal. Best wishes

[JRTJH]

Rustymax,

We just bought a Springdale (entry level Keystone 5'er) in October. List price was 28,950 posted on the unit. We told the dealer that Camping World in Akron, OH had a 2010 model of the same trailer for 17,500. He immediately said he couldn't match that price, but would come down to 18,000 on the 2011 model on his lot. When we considered the cost to drive to Akron, tow the trailer back to Michigan and then not have dealer support locally, it made the two much closer in price and it suggested to me that buying locally was a "no brainer", so after some more negotiations concerning tax, dealer prep and documentation fees <YECHT>, we met at a price we could both live with and bought the trailer.

Looking at the MSRP which includes so many "no option options" such as TV's, Aluminum wheels, etc that are mandatory options above the MSRP, it's tough to know what a trailer's real MSRP is, but according to NADA, our MSRP is listed at 24,090. thats about 32% markup from what we actually paid, more like 36% when you include taxes in the deal. I'd suppose theres a bigger markup in higher priced units, so the margins may even be greater.

Good luck on your negotiations and keep us posted on your decisions.