What is included in the price of a TT

[travelingjw]

I am trying to purchase a travel trailer. I keep getting different stories. On one quote they want to charge over $900 for the detail, filling up the LP tanks, installing the battery and battery box, the installation of the brake controller and hitch. I understand the charge for the BC and Hitch, but am curious about the others. Thanks (almost a Jayco Owner).

[John K.]

Sounds to me like the ADP designation on stickers that used to be on new automobiles. It stands for ADDITIONAL DEALER PROFIT. Tell the RV dealer you'll buy the trailer for the agreed upon price (I assume you've negotiated a price) and that installing all the extras but waiving the $900 cost will be your incentive for signing the papers. The $900 is just a scam to get as much money out of you as possible. Or, if you've agreed on a price, tell the dealer you don't want the extras so they shouldn't charge you for them.

[RyRoRyan]

This is called PDI. Many dealers charge for it, others (the smart ones) include in the price of the RV. Some dealers charge more for the unit itself to in a way, hide that into the price. My local dealer lost my sale because of this. In my case, a dealer a state away did not charge PDI and gave me some more for my trade. The rigs were offered for the exact same price so the PDI was an extra 1250 in my pocket. That by itself paid for the gas to get out there and back.

[Doug]

You should be able to negotiate 30-35% off MSRP.
This includes PDI. Pre delivery inspection and walk through should not be a charge.
JMHO.

I just signed a contract. MSRP $25,970, Purchase $17,355

Get an internet quote from RVDirect and that will give you an idea of cost.

Depending on distance from Indiana, you will have a delivery charge.

Doug

[Sundancer330]

I think you need to do some homework before talking to a dealer. Go to the Jayco website and build the trailer you are interested in with the options you want. Now you will have a starting point with the MSRP for that trailer. I did this then emailed a few of the larger online dealers and got quotes, they came back 25-30% off MSRP. Now when you talk to your local dealers you have a baseline to work with.Then you have to add delivery to the dealer from the factory, which will vary by dealer but you will get a better idea of the actual cost once you can compare a few local dealers. The dealers will try to add all kinds of additional items and fees to the bottom line, you may or may not need a new WDH or brake controller. Just don't be in a hurry and ask questions, when you feel you have a good deal go for it.

[Dropnaduece]

MSRP on my rig with it fully loaded minus the 15k AC was at $35,765 and I bought mine out the door with an extra battery, welded 2" receiver hitch on back of the TT (for bike rack), WDH installed, slide topper, & PDI for $29,900 out the door. The extra battery was $195 installed, slide topper $595, hitch welded to the frame $580, and the WDH $450 which equals $1820 with add-ons. The advertised price was $28,900. So do the math I got $820 off the asking price after all the add-ons.

I negotiate the price down while asking for stuff during the negotiations twisting all the numbers around till I get what I want or I walk plain and simple. Don't fall in love with any purchase until you feel you have the deal you can go home and sleep with is my motto. I got lucky and I didn't have to order a trailer because someone else did and added all the bells and whistles plus I got the 2016.5 25BHS which included side windows in the slide out, better sink covers, pull out kitchen faucet, 5-way remote, and upgraded stereo DVD system. Plus the guy ordered the extra fridge so I have 3 of them, 30 gallon propane tanks and all options you can have except the dang 15k AC which I would loved to have

Anyhow I feel I got a good deal and that is all that counts. Whatever anyone thinks or what others have got is there deal not mine otherwise you will chase a deal and never get it...just like the house always wins so it is the dealer always wins there in it for a profit and why wouldn't they be, right? My only dealer complaint is service sucks and all they do is lie about a product they know nothing about. Get experienced and tell them what you want or walk it's that simple. Eduction is key to a sound decision when buying anything and between forums, google, and YouTube you have all the information you will ever need to make a sound decision.

Good luck and may you one day join the Jayco family

[travelingjw]

Thanks, I have been doing homework for 6 months but no where did I see whether or not they included the battery. It just seems that it should be the same way, buy a car, can't run without a batttery.

[Gman1372]

I posted this in a different thread ........
Mine was a separate line item listed before negotiations. They called it dealer prep for $775. For that I got two guys working on my TV welding and wiring, one guy at the desk finalizing paperwork and one guy doing our PDI and road test. This whole process took 3 1/2 hours.
I didn't mention it also included washing the outside, cleaning the inside supplying battery and filling two 30 gallon propane tanks, new Reese hitch and installation of brake controls

[Dropnaduece]

Originally Posted by travelingjw

Thanks, I have been doing homework for 6 months but no where did I see whether or not they included the battery. It just seems that it should be the same way, buy a car, can't run without a batttery.

The trailer I bought came with one battery and 2 full propane tanks. I had buy the extra battery the first one is a part of the trailer. That's how they do it here in WA. I think your dealer wants to make some serious profit off you.

[TWP723]

All these charges are negotiable. Dealers tend to add in their own little charges when buying an RV. They tried it with me too. Short story, I didn't pay for them. And no, they weren't added in on the contract either. We scrutinized the deal before signing. I refuse to buy a $30K TT and pay additional dealer fees. There are some fees you obviously can't escape, like tags, title, etc. But these dealer fees are negotiable.

[norty1]

There are no standard way of handling this.

Different dealers do it different ways. By and large, they are there to make a profit. Our job is to pay as little as possible.

Where you meet is the sale!!

[suzhou]

We purchased ours recently and I did a fair amount of comparisons, online and visited other dealers within reasonable driving distance. I decided what would be the baseline package to include (2 full propane tanks, electric tongue jack, WD hitch, folding entry handle on each door and all prep) so that we could compare. Never thought about the battery and assumed it was not an option to exclude. I really didn't care what category they put the items into on the invoice, the net price for my baseline package was all I cared about. You can get a good sense of the typical discount for your model by looking at online price quotes from other dealers.

[Rustysocket]

When I negotiate a deal on an RV, Car or any other large item, I only care about one number. That is the out the door final price. I really don't care how they break it down on paper, that's their business and their accounting system, makes no difference to me. Many times it has to do with accounting within their business and how some of their employees get paid their commissions.

Yes, some of the people get commissions and that's not bad. It's just another system of compensation.

When I ask for an out the door price, if it is not what I expected, I make a counter offer. Usually it is something like a document fee I object to. I once purchased a new car and when negotiating the out the door price I noted that the document fee was 600$. Document fees in my state are negotiable (and it states that on the contract and in the fine print on the advertising). I simply stated that there was no way I was paying a 600$ document fee. At the end of the day after some other negotiations the out the door price was reduced by 3500$ but their internal accounting system still kept that 600$ line item number as a document fee. So while in theory I still paid it according to the paperwork, the money negotiated came off a different spot on the contract.

It took me a long time to wrap my head around that concept and I always felt like somehow I got took, but as I grew older and made more of these types of purchases I realized that the only thing that really matters is the out the door price.

So, I guess all I am saying is that negotiate the out the door price and forget about the accounting breakdown. The dealer is going to have a standard way they do things, it's not going to make sense, it's going to be confusing and its an attempt to make profit. But if you focus on what you need, want and expect and your comfortable with the out the door number, the rest of it doesn't really matter.

[Flapper]

X2 on Rustysockets advice! All that matters is having a total, out the door price. Including taxes, fees.

Of course, to get that, you have to have a definitive list of what must be included. PDI, batteries, full propane, de-winterized, batteries in the smoke detector and remotes, sewer hose, water hose, etc., etc. Everything to make it ready to camp as you pull out of the dealer's drive. I would even include the BC and hitch, as it is part of the package you need to go camping.
Sure, you may run into a dealer that can't/won't include something. In which case you compensate by figuring how much it would cost to get it done elsewhere. But it all means at least two trips - one to get and all inclusive quote, perhaps a second to refine what is included in the full quote, and then a third to negotiate the final price.

[Doug]

If you go to Jayco build site or brochure it list everything that is standard and what is included with any package upgrades. Maybe that will help you see an itemized lists of items you can expect in quote.

[Rustysocket]

To further expand on the OP's question.

What I would expect to be included in a TT purchase with little or no negotiation, but just as part of the trailer:

1. A single battery
2. Full Propane tanks on delivery
3. A very basic RV starter kit is fairly standard (This is a token Sewer hose, Water Hose, water regulator, single use Toilet chems and a roll of RV paper.)
4. A complete PDI inspection including a walkthrough of all the systems in the RV and function testing with verification prior to final paperwork.


Things you need but I would not expect to be included in your initial quote but should be negotiated into the final deal:

1. A proper Weight Distributing Hitch for your specific Trailer and Tow Vehicle.
2. A high quality brake controller for your vehicle if it does not have a intergrated unit.
3. Installation of the Brake Controller and a basic initial setup of the Hitch for a new user.
4. Additional battery

Your hitch setup will be close, but not fine tuned. That needs to be done on your own, after loading the rig and a trip to the CAT scales. But generally speaking the dealer can get it bolted on and close enough to get you safely home. Every person is going to have an opinion on this. I prefer to set mine up myself, but that is beyond the scope of this post and VERY subjective based on who you talk to and your particular towing preferences.

I would not try to negotiate too many camping accessories such as chairs, mats, bbq grills as it clouds the deal and those things can generally be picked up on your own later. Nor would I get too worked up about the RV starter kit as it is generally low quality stuff that is just enough to get you through a trip or two before you purchase higher quality, personal preference options on your own.

On top of all that a clear understanding of sales taxes and liscensing fees for your state.

Another thing I like to talk about with my dealer is a prescheduled appointment somewhere in the 60-90 day mark to bring the unit back and take care of the little things that I am unable to fix on my own, as there are always some.

Talk about the warranty, your expectations and how your particular dealer handles service. It's all part of the deal.

Hope that helps

[travelingjw]

Thanks, great input. I needed the education so I could negotiate with some knowledge.

[pconroy]

If someone wanted $900 for a Group 27 Battery and a tank of propane, I'd tell them to 'stuff it...'.

Sounds like Floor Mats and Clear Coat from the Car Dealer.

A great Group 27 Battery will be between $120 and $250.
A tank of propane is, I dunno, $30? $50?