Local Camping World OR drive out of state?

[Linznjody]

First of all, hi! My husband and I are looking to purchase our first camper, and we're looking at the 2017 377rlbh. I've been reading and learning so much on here (especially the mods thread), but I have one preliminary question.

We live north of Atlanta and are very close to the Oakwood Camping World as well as Camper City. Camping World is the only Jayco dealer that has the 377 within hours of us. We've tried looking at smaller outfits, but the closest non-Camping World one available is almost 200 miles away. Camper City does have the Montana version, and that is an option. We just prefer the Jayco based on options, storage, and the warranty.

I don't mind traveling for the initial purchase, but I'm more worried about what happens after that. I'd rather have a relationship with the dealer and use the same one for purchase/warranty work, but I'm VERY nervous going with Camping World after seeing all the reviews online about horrible customer service.

Would you:
A - Still buy at Camping World but find another dealer to do service (despite all the reports of those dealers not treating you the same)
B - Buy at Camping World and do service there when I can
C - Buy out of state and avoid Camping World completely
D - something else?

Thanks for any help you can give a newbie - we want this to be a camper we keep until our kids graduate, so we want to get it right.

[hoppers4]

I've read the same negative comments that you have about Camping World so I would be really leery of buying anything from them. I would be even more leery about getting service work done by them. However, that being said, I suspect there is some reputable Camping Worlds out there. The hard part is finding out whether or not your local one does good work. I've been to Camping World several times but only to pick up RV related products.

Hopefully you're fairly handy in your ability to make minor repairs in mods. You're going to run across problems of one type or another. I've run across several warrantable items but so far have preferred to make the repairs myself. It's too much of a bother to take the rig back to the dealer and takes too long to get the rig back. I also know that if I do it, it'll be done the way I want it.

Soooo, good luck in figuring out the right answer.

[Slow and Steady]

We had to make the same decision that you are about to make. Not sure if this will help, but here goes. LOL

When we did our research on Camping World, it scared us to death. Not just the terrible reviews, but talking to people that have bought there.

When we priced a 2017 JayFlight 29RKS, they were over $4000.00 higher than a dealer in Oh. That was too much for us to ignore. And when we talked to other CW customers, they all said the same thing. The service is terrible. So that also made us go out of state.

We also live just north of Atlanta, and we drove 472 miles to Dayton Oh. We saved a ton of money.

I will tell you this, if you choose to go out of town to buy. Make sure you camp for a night or two before leaving for home, just in case you have a problem. Let that dealer handle it.

Hope this may help you.

Tom and Kathy
Blairsville Ga

[GRUU]

C.

[ROC-REQS]

Linznjody,

First, welcome to the forum.
Personally, I would choose the Jayco over the Montana. This is our 1st Jayco and I'm very pleased and impressed with both the Jayco quality and customer service.

For your specific questions:
(1) Have you researched the reviews on your specific Camping World (i.e., Oakwood Camping World)? As hoppers4 indicated, not all Camping Worlds are bad.

(2) Is Camper City a Jayco dealer and, if so, have you considered ordering a 2018 377rlbh.

From what others have said and posted on here, the changes Jayco is making to the 2018s are very good and better components then what's on the 2017.
If you haven't already done so, you may want to check out this thread NorthPoint 2018 Changes

So, my choice would be "D - something else?" - order a 2018.

Also, check out RVOne to get an on-line price. You can used their price as bargaining power.

I also agree with Slow and Steady's statement "if you choose to go out of town to buy. Make sure you camp for a night or two before leaving for home, just in case you have a problem. Let that dealer handle it."

Hope this is of some help.
Good luck.

[Linznjody]

Thank you all for your help! I guess the frustrating part of this is that each dealer only carries certain brands as new units and can't even order them.

I did call Camper City and even several others until I found one about 2 hours away that carries Jayco new. I called, and while they didn't have one, their sister store does. They're bringing it to Georgia and we're looking at it next weekend.

I may even try and negotiate before we go to see how much they're willing to work with us. I do have a printed quote from RV One ready, which is a great tip, so thank you!

In the meantime, I'm looking more into our Camping World. I want to see what both dealerships offer, but I am glad to find one closer at a smaller company.

[jasonmiddlebrooks]

So we bought our 377rlbh at a Camping World in Georgia, but not the one you are looking at... Wrong side of town for us.

Very pleased with the sales rep and that whole process. Was pleased with the price we got and what all we were able to negotiate. Will give them a 8 out of 10 on the sales process.

When we went to pick the unit up and did the PDI not impressed at all. The tech that was showing us everything had never seen that particular unit before. He even told us that, so at least he was honest. As I asked questions he got other techs involved but they still did not seem to knowledgeable. We worked though it all which probably took longer than it should but I knew I would be able to figure out what they could not address. We identified a few items that would need to be fixed and we all agreeded we would take the unit, get aquanted with it (figure stuff out on our own), take it on a trip, and then bring it back with our laundry list. Will give them a 2 out of 10 on the PDI.

Once we came up with our laundry list we took it back. We did not need the unit for a month so I was not in a huge rush to get it back. They did all the work on our list plus they raised the jacks which was not a warranty item and did not charge me a dime. They communicated well during the process. They probably would have been done sooner than a month but they had to wait on a replacement cargo door. It actually worked out to be pretty convenient since we dropped it off for the work on the way back from a trip and pick it up on the way out on another trip. Will give them a 8 out of 10 on this work.

I like the idea of there being so many of them around the country which I hope would help if problems arise while traveling. I have heard good and bad things about them. The bad things are generally from people that don't like to work on their RV/camper themselves. I prefer to fix, repair, and figure out things myself unless it is something major.

I have been pleased dealing with Camping World so far.

I have also contacted Jayco directly about many things and they have always been very helpful and responsive.

Just my 2 cents....

[CTP]

I would choose C as well. I don’t have personal experience with CW but I have heard some horror stories.

RVOne has proven to be a great place to pick up a rv at a great price. We just ordered a 377 from Orlando and they were eager to beat any price I could quote. Iowa would have been an option, they were great to work with, but it’s twice the distance.

I took the advice of many folks here and simply ordered a new one as apposed to a used one local to me. I built it online with the options I wanted ( just a couple ) and started calling and emailing dealers. I talked to all the RVOne dealers. At >33% off msrp for a new ’18 377 we got a great deal. If you would like some details shoot me a pm.

I tried several family owned local rv dealers, but they couldn’t come close to what RVOne could offer.

We’re both about 7 hours from Orlando and Tampa so it’s definitely feasible if you’re up for a great deal and a nice drive.

I plan perform a very thorough PDI and have a couple local options if I need warranty work.
You could reach out to the local Jayco dealers and see what their warranty policies are. I did that with my local dealer and was told “ our customers will take priority, but we’ll be happy to take care of your warranty work”. Sounds good to me.

Best of luck.

[Murff]

Linznjody,

Please see these websites for Oakwood CW reviews:

https://camping-world.pissedconsumer...y/oakwood.html

https://www.yellowpages.com/oakwood-...orld-473720158

I like option C, also!

Murff

[Wire]

We are in the same boat, live just west of Atlanta. After lots of research on where to buy, we settled on Team RV in Albany, which is 3-4 hours away from us. We've also heard great things about Crown RV off I-20, but I've heard they may be going through some ownership changes.

I went to a Camping World nearby just to walk through a floor plan I wanted to see, and it was a really bad experience. Granted, every Camping World may be different, but I knew within five minutes that I would never do business with them. I made it clear that I wasn't ready to buy, I just wanted to peek into one specific model. It took almost half an hour before I could walk out on their lot. I had to meet with three different reps, they filled out paperwork on me and wanted to know how much I was willing to spend, how I would rate my credit score on a 1-10 scale, how soon I'd be willing to give them my money, etc. It felt dirty, and when they would walk away for ten minutes, it seemed deliberate and gave me a creepy feeling that I was under surveillance.

I've been dealing with Team RV over the phone, and they have so far been awesome and very interested in helping me and making me feel welcome. It's a long drive, but I just figure it's an investment in my buying and warranty experience.


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[stan lee]

Originally Posted by Linznjody

First of all, hi! My husband and I are looking to purchase our first camper, and we're looking at the 2017 377rlbh. I've been reading and learning so much on here (especially the mods thread), but I have one preliminary question.



We live north of Atlanta and are very close to the Oakwood Camping World as well as Camper City. Camping World is the only Jayco dealer that has the 377 within hours of us. We've tried looking at smaller outfits, but the closest non-Camping World one available is almost 200 miles away. Camper City does have the Montana version, and that is an option. We just prefer the Jayco based on options, storage, and the warranty.



I don't mind traveling for the initial purchase, but I'm more worried about what happens after that. I'd rather have a relationship with the dealer and use the same one for purchase/warranty work, but I'm VERY nervous going with Camping World after seeing all the reviews online about horrible customer service.



Would you:

A - Still buy at Camping World but find another dealer to do service (despite all the reports of those dealers not treating you the same)

B - Buy at Camping World and do service there when I can

C - Buy out of state and avoid Camping World completely

D - something else?



Thanks for any help you can give a newbie - we want this to be a camper we keep until our kids graduate, so we want to get it right.

Personally I wouldn't buy from Camping world nor would I trust their service department with a tricycle


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[chasfenwick]

This thread struck a nerve with me. I bought my Precept from CW for two important reasons: 1) They had exactly what I was looking for, in their inventory, and 2) I saved $10,000 as compared to what exactly the same RV would have cost me from the local dealer, as a special order. That seemed like an awfully big difference. True, I had a one-time round trip of over 2000 miles, but still . . . That is the second RV that I have bought from CW, receiving a good deal in both cases, but I have yet to have ANY service done at any CW! That is a whole different subject in my book.

[vcbice]

We like our CW (El Paso) and had great service at the Albuquerque CW. The Albuquerque group is why we ended up with a Jayco. We told them we were just looking and they let us have the run of the place. Later met with a salesman who just talked to us for 20min. Their knowledge of Jayco and the other brands was night and day compared to other dealers in the area.

[bdreinv]

Originally Posted by Linznjody

First of all, hi! My husband and I are looking to purchase our first camper, and we're looking at the 2017 377rlbh. I've been reading and learning so much on here (especially the mods thread), but I have one preliminary question.

We live north of Atlanta and are very close to the Oakwood Camping World as well as Camper City. Camping World is the only Jayco dealer that has the 377 within hours of us. We've tried looking at smaller outfits, but the closest non-Camping World one available is almost 200 miles away. Camper City does have the Montana version, and that is an option. We just prefer the Jayco based on options, storage, and the warranty.

I don't mind traveling for the initial purchase, but I'm more worried about what happens after that. I'd rather have a relationship with the dealer and use the same one for purchase/warranty work, but I'm VERY nervous going with Camping World after seeing all the reviews online about horrible customer service.

Would you:
A - Still buy at Camping World but find another dealer to do service (despite all the reports of those dealers not treating you the same)
B - Buy at Camping World and do service there when I can
C - Buy out of state and avoid Camping World completely
D - something else?

Thanks for any help you can give a newbie - we want this to be a camper we keep until our kids graduate, so we want to get it right.

For us did not matter who ever gave the 35% off MSRP that's all that mattered to us!And that was Affinity RV Prescott Az. Pretty far from you guys. Happy Trails

[JeremiahM]

I purchased our 339flqs from CW in Oakwood, I purchased knowing they were terrible. They in fact are awful, the sales, the PDI, everything, but I knew going in, I'm pretty good mechanically and plan to deal with Jayco direct if any problems arise, if that is not an option for you to make most repairs, then probably shouldn't buy from them. They had the camper I wanted, and at the price I was going to pay. Camper City on the other hand, are great people, could also be a service option

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