Please explain?

Chet & Marie · 10-19-2019, 09:16 PM

Today we went to Gander Outdoors as they were holding an open house with Camping World travel trailers. They had 75 units there and a large Bevy of salespeople. The sales people had been brought in from other stores and after a short discussion I figured out that they had absolutely no technical knowledge of what they were selling other than the price and what a super deal it was if you bought it today. Also learned that they did not and we're not going to have a service facility there that you would have to take the unit to Madison or Milwaukee to their existing locations which is a 2 and 1/2 hour drive one way to either one. We love our Jayco Jay Feather 23r LSW and have no plans of trading or selling it but it was a nice day and we wanted to go see what they had.

My question is this, why would you save 500 to $1,000 on a unit that you had to drive so far to get any warranty service on or any other service if you wanted it done by the just selling dealer? Now the salesman did assurance that all of these units had been closely inspected by their service departments and that you would not have any reason in the next two to three years to take it back to the shop for warranty or any sort of service work as they really go over the units. I have had several travel trailers and haven't quite found that to be the case. On the way home we stopped at our local Jayco dealer and picked up a couple things and he said that he has had people go the camper world route to save $250 on a new camper. They then bring it to him for warranty work but he explains that his customers come first and if he has time he will squeeze them in. Why do people do this to save a few bucks, is it worth it?

**JFlightRisk** · 10-19-2019, 09:31 PM

My opinion is...no. I dickered with our local dealer (27 miles away) to a price I was happy with, them I beat them up for some freebies, just to sweeten the deal, I wanted to be able to take it where I bought it, if I needed any warranty stuff done. Never did, but we go up there from time to time, and buy a few things from their store, just to let them know we're still around. I'll never know if they would get us in right away for service, but I bet they would. Some folks say they've saved a considerable amount of money by traveling a distance for their campers. It's a personal preference, depending on how much it's worth to travel.

Cannon · 10-19-2019, 09:35 PM

I did not want to buy from CW but when I purchased mine there were on 5-377's in the state of Georgia. They were at 4 different CW locations.

Rustic Eagle · 10-19-2019, 11:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chet & Marie

snip....... the salesman did assurance that all of these units had been closely inspected by their service departments and that you would not have any reason in the next two to three years to take it back to the shop for warranty or any sort of service work as they really go over the units.....snip

**norty1** · 10-20-2019, 05:41 AM

Typical sales baloney! They must inject it in their arms.

BTW, Gander Mountain and Camping World are one and the same.

**Midnightmoon** · 10-20-2019, 06:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chet & Marie

Why do people do this to save a few bucks, is it worth it?

It is simple human condition. Everybody wants to get a great deal or feel like the won in the sales process. It's the same reason why Wal-Mart and the like have all but eliminated local independent grocery or department stores. People will settle for long lines, poor or no service after the sale, and sometimes inferior quality just to save that buck.

DonaandDon · 10-20-2019, 07:50 AM

How much fuel will you spend in taking the unit to the dealer for warranty?

I got a super great deal on the RV, but I too purchased several miles away and have spent way to much on fuel to get he warranty issues completed.

eow · 10-20-2019, 08:44 AM

IMO it all depends on the circumstance as to whether to buy local or not.

Our local (within 3 hours) dealers are rated very poorly when it comes to service. Most likely because of our very short 4 month camping season and the challenge with retaining qualified techs in this situation.

Because of the lack of local availability of the last two models we wanted and then purchased, we travelled 12 plus hours each time to make or purchases. One in Ohio and the second in Alberta.

My thinking is that if I am going to travel AND accept that I will be on my own it a warranty situation arouse, I may as well get the best price. In both cases we were $8,000 plus on each ahead after travel expenses and on our last unit flying three weeks prior to inspect the units we were considering. In both cases we made it into a mini-vacation and had some quality chat time travelling together. The $8,000 saving on each covers a lot of after purchase problem resolution if you are willing and able to do the work yourself.

In the last 6 seasons, I have not made a single warranty claim. I have sought insights from the selling dealer's service departments by phone who were very supportive like when there was a a/c wiring recall and I implemented (and recorded the fix so there was a record of it being dealt with). For the few issues that have arouse, I simply buy what I need from my local dealer who knows I purchased the unit elsewhere but is more than happy to sell me parts at a high mark up and not to have to deal with an anxious or angry customer waiting for warranty work. Especially in light of the low labour rate they receive for warranty work. So it is a win-win for us both.

Knock on wood, so far I am only out a hundred dollars to replace a HW heater control board on our previous trailer and $10 of screws to re-anchor our trim under the cab over section of our FW.

But if you not a DIYer, then put the energy into finding a good dealer. You will need their support, no matter what brand you purchase.

Jagiven · 10-24-2019, 10:01 PM

Gander Mountain is owned by CW. We have two around here I drive past periodically, both have their front lots full of campers, since they reopened.

EA37TS · 10-25-2019, 05:17 AM

Although there are some seasoned RV'rs that buy from Camping World they tend to target themselves to the first time buyer. Unfortunately they don't realize that after the sale it all over except the crying.

The Thor forum was full of folks that drove hundreds if not a thousand miles to save 500 to 1K on a sale and then complain because they have to wait weeks for service at the local dealer.

With our Accolade we bought local, we talked to Jayco before signing the purchase agreement and I talked to Jayco about me having a lack of trust in the local service center. One shot for the local to get it right and if they don't Jayco will work with me on having an independent shop do the work if I can find one willing to work with Jayco and Jayco's warranty.

This being our third new motor home in 10 years (class c, class A, now super c) we are familiar with all of the RV dealers within 200 miles and know most of the service technicians working at them. I am underwhelmed with most of them to put it kindly. Normally 2 trip service, first for the repair issue and second to fix what they broke fixing the repair issue.

Atlee · 10-25-2019, 06:07 AM

If a person who buys an RV of any kind, is planning to just go camping within about 100-200 miles from home, it might make sense to only buy local.

However, does it make that much sense to only buy local, when buying elsewhere to save a bunch of money, if you are the type that takes long trips across this great country?

It didn't make one bit of difference whether I bought locally in the Richmond, VA area, when I was in Idaho, Wyoming, etc. And in 2014, it didn't matter where I bought my trailer, when I was in California.

DocBrown · 10-25-2019, 06:37 AM

They are sales people. What's the saying? How can you tell when a salesperson is lying? When their mouth moves.

That said, I know nothing about Wagner's Trailer Sales but they are located just north of Sheyboygan and are a Jayco dealer. Their web site says they just changed their name to Kunes Country, which appears to be a group of car dealers. Might be worth checking out anyway.

https://www.wagnerstrailersales.com/

You must live on the far north end of GB if Saukville is 2.5 hours. I used to work just south of there and had to go to Ashwaubenon pretty regularly and that was only 1 1/2 hours.

Vasquez Kid · 10-25-2019, 08:14 AM

When we were shopping for our camper I had several dealers that were within an hour or so and a local mom and pop dealer 20 minutes away. I found the absolute best price that I could find, showed it to the local dealer and the best he could do was $900 above. He told me that if I bought somewhere else that they would do any warranty work but that I wouldn't be a priority over one of their customers.

They didn't have the camper that I wanted in stock but the salesman was willing, on his day off, to drive six hours round trip to get one from another dealer. I took them up on this and I am very glad that I did. With all of the issues that I had under warranty going to one of the further dealers for service would have been a nightmare.

All Valley RV in Acton California and my salesman, RJ, have been great. They went way above and beyond in getting my camper, turning around my unit for the multiple warranty issues, dealing with Jayco on parts and have treated me so well. I couldn't imagine getting this kind of service and attention from a big corporate store!

Hopefully my dealer carries the brand of camper that I'll next consider. It might be a Jayco but I have my doubts.

I'd like to purchase from my local mom and pop the next time, as well as the same salesman, because they performed, cared and have done everything and then some that they said that they would. Pretty rare these days - when the customer can still be the king.

Best $900 I've spent on my RV. Oh and I also gave RJ a generous gift certificate to a nice steak house nearby (also a mom and pop).

kblast523 · 11-06-2019, 02:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cannon

I did not want to buy from CW but when I purchased mine there were on 5-377's in the state of Georgia. They were at 4 different CW locations.

I live in the Texas Panhandle. The 'non CW' dealers in my area didn't have the model I wanted, and only two of them within 200 miles even carry Jayco.
I gritted my teeth, went to CW OKC, found the model I wanted, bantered and bargained with them for three hours...and left. They were lowballing my two year old trade with lots of extras. The next day, CW called and made me a new offer, lowering the price $1,000, raising the trade $3,000 (50%). I told them if they raised trade allowance to $12,000 (100% higher than original offer) and lowered the sale price another $1,000, I'd buy. I was 150 miles away and they wanted to know if I could be in to seal the deal that afternoon...I said I could not but I could make it in two days when I finished my visit were I was. Ok, see you next Monday. Got there and they tried to tell me my TT wasn't worth what I wanted for it and we'd have to renegotiate the deal. I BLURTED OUT LOUDLY that we had come to an agreement two days prior, made a deal on the phone and if they couldn't hold up their end of the deal, I was leaving and not going to discuss it with anyone. Manager came out, said lets start the paperwork, we've got a deal and we'll take care of it.

Long story short, I took my trailer home (200 miles) unloaded it and two day later returned to CW OKC (200 more miles). Spent the better part of a day waiting for new tt to be prepped, inspected and such. Left the lot at 500pm not quite sure how badly I had been screwed, but I HAD BEEN SCREWED somewhat. One year and seven months later not feeling AS screwed, finally took a trip where nothing went wrong. Have never been back to CW, and am using Pharr's RV in Lubbock, even though they are 120 miles away, and quite happy with them

MikeNChelle · 11-06-2019, 02:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chet & Marie

Also learned that they did not and we're not going to have a service facility there that you would have to take the unit to Madison or Milwaukee to their existing locations which is a 2 and 1/2 hour drive one way to either one. We love our Jayco Jay Feather 23r LSW and have no plans of trading or selling it but it was a nice day and we wanted to go see what they had.

Is this the new Dealer between Beloit and Janesville on 90?

2edgesword · 11-06-2019, 03:07 PM

Unfortunately in my area there isn't a local dealer with a decent stock of RV's, at least not the type/style my wife and I wanted. Then I got a run around from the local dealer telling me the model I wanted would arrive in April, then it was May, then it was June...maybe. At that point we search and the closest one we found equipped the way we wanted it was 300 miles away. We made the arrangements to buy put a small down payment, drove the 300 miles, did a three hour pre-purchase inspection, camped for 3 days within 20 miles of the dealer and then brought the trailer home. So far after two seasons no issues and it's beyond the warranty period anyway.

Ideally you want to buy from a local dealer and support local business but we've found with RV's that's not always possible.

CAG · 11-06-2019, 03:17 PM

We are on our third trailer and in the market for the fourth. One thing I have learned over the years with sales and trades is that sales people have no clue and will lie to make a sale. If you look at CW's reviews you may see why they don't fare well.

The other thing I learned pretty quickly, and see in many of these posts is a total lack of a PDI by the buyer (Pre Delivery Inspection). There are ready made PDI's on the internet some most home pages for trailers that give a complete list of what and how to inspect a trailer before you sign the dotted line. Some of these lists tell you what to bring to the inspection and to expect an entire day or more doing that inspection. DO NOT DEPEND UPON the dealer. They sell and many times their service department are iffy. AND they really do not want to see you if they did not make the sale. Do a PDI before you buy. If you do not then expect you will be back a dozen or more times for repairs that should have been done before the delivery.

Additionally, call the customer service department of the trailer you are going to buy and ask if you can take it to an RV repair near you for repairs. If they say no, you can expect to have the trailer sit in the dealer's shop for weeks. Also remember that most all shops can do warranty repairs for Dometic, and other brands of hardware in your trailer. The trailer manufacturer does not warranty those items. They are warrantied by the company that built them.

Be prepared and able to do small fixes on your own. If you are not handy, you are in for weeks of waiting for minor repairs.

I don't take a trailer back to the dealer's service department for anything that absolutely does not have to go back to them. There are too many good RV repair services out there to have to deal with dealers.

gypsmjim · 11-06-2019, 03:31 PM

I bought from a local dealer, mostly because I figure I saved several thousand dollars. I also knew that their BBB accreditation had been revoked because of poor service.

Before the sale I located a mobile RV service company that would travel to the site and fix the unit. No need to bring it in.

Six seasons behind us now with not a single problem, but it was my intention right at the beginning to fix myself or pay the guy. A paying customer gets service and warranty work gets done last.

You pay me now or you pay me later.

Haul n it all · 11-06-2019, 04:55 PM

buying local to get local service may not always work .I stopped at camping world of Pittsburgh last week to ask about a service repair and they said they were booked till may 2020 . I did not buy the trailer from them but this just seemed bizarre.
who made an appointment for april . I'm to old to buy green bannanas anymore let alone wait 6 month for a rv repair.

Chet & Marie · 11-06-2019, 04:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DocBrown

They are sales people. What's the saying? How can you tell when a salesperson is lying? When their mouth moves.

That said, I know nothing about Wagner's Trailer Sales but they are located just north of Sheyboygan and are a Jayco dealer. Their web site says they just changed their name to Kunes Country, which appears to be a group of car dealers. Might be worth checking out anyway.

https://www.wagnerstrailersales.com/

You must live on the far north end of GB if Saukville is 2.5 hours. I used to work just south of there and had to go to Ashwaubenon pretty regularly and that was only 1 1/2 hours.

We do. We have purchased 2 units from Wagner's in Cleveland Wi. We found their service good but think Apple Valley in Appleton is better, a closer drive, and a JAYCO only RV dealer which I like. I do not know anything about their new ownership Kune's other than they bought both Wagner dealerships

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