1st Testdrive Exp. (small novel)

[Scorppro]

After 2 months of searching for a Greyhawk 31DS in my surrounding states, I finally got a chance to step inside and get my fill of this MH.

I would like to thank all the employees at Crain RV in Little Rock, AR for a fun and intuitive experience Saturday and Today. My salesman was Scott Kretsch, a very nice and laidback person, that was easy to talk to and did not put any pressure on me to buy.

Having said that... Let the story begin.

I visited very close friends for Easter weekend. They live close to LR and while I was there, I decided to check RV dealers around the area for a 31DS. Crain RV had just taken delivery of one and I loaded up my friends and their kids to take a look at it.

I wanted to see what it would be like with a full cabin and see if there would be plenty of room for all of us since they will be a large part of my travels.

We arrived about 3 hours before the dealer was closing and told them I was only there to browse the unit and come back Monday for a testdrive. I had spoken to Scott before and wanted to stick to one salesman.

Scott was busy at the moment and had another salesman wait on me. I forget his name but, he was very nice and pretty laid back also.

We walked to the unit and went inside. I am VERY impressed with the 31DS. So far all I had seen of this unit are pictures and PDF files. The 31 series has really nice floorplans and I had almost decided on the 31FK. Only problem I have with the FK is the shower being on the passenger side and the toilet & vanity on the driver side. The door closing the hall off is not my cup of tea. I am 6 foot tall and 240 pounds. I had some trouble getting into the shower and hate that it closes off the bedroom when using the shower. The DS with it's corner rounded shower is perfect for my round belly.

I asked the salesman if he could bring the slides in so I could see how much room there would be while in travel mode. He said, "Sure" and pushed the slide "in" button... Nothing happened. He frowned and said he needed to push the battery disconnect. So he did and... Still nothing happened. He scratched his head for a moment and tried it again... Nothing.

Another salesman came out and tried the same routine... Nothing. They tried cranking the MH, running the Gen, unplugging from shore power... Still nothing would work. After an hour of walking around the MH and trying all the simple fixes, we decided that the cabin batteries were drained and they would need to charde them over the next day. So, we loaded up in my KIA and went back home.

Had a great Easter with loved ones and friends.

Today I went alone because everyone had school and work. When I arrived, the DS was still sitting pretty next to the entrance. I found Scott and we went back out to the unit. He flipped the disconnect and "CLICK CLICK"... Nothing again. I was waiting for him to sigh really loud but, he was very professional and just gave a small laugh. He called the head parts manager out to take a look. Very nice guy, the parts manager, and he pushed the disconnect again. By now this switch has been pushed by 4 employees and myself about 75 times. The parts guy finally goes inside and brings back about a foot of 14 gauge wire, crawls under the unit and "hot wires" the disconnect switch. Tada! Slides move in and we can now drive the MH.

Scott and myself do a walkthru and secure doors, slide closed windows and lift the Jacks. As I sit in the drivers seat, he notices the radio/backup camera is not powering up. He calls the parts guy and he tells him that since the disconnect is not working, there will be no radio. Hahaha!

He asks me if I'm ok with driving without seeing the side cameras working and I say YES and... We're off!

I really enjoyed the ride, handling, power and braking of this unit. I'm SOLD.

We get back and I tell him I'm interested but, I'm not ready to buy THIS one. Interior colors are not my style, not really liking the entertainment center taking up the queen bunk, not sure about the tankless water heater, don't need the in-motion sat, and not sure about somethings that I'm going to ask the forum about.

He is understanding and I thank him for the time they put into helping me.

So... forum... if your still reading, here are some questions I would like some feedback on:

1. I plan to dry camp atleast 60% of the time, do I need the standard 6 gal water heater?

2. Do I need the 400 watt inverter?

3. Do I need to pay AR 9% sales tax or order from MS with 7% tax?

4. What is the little latch above the DS outside speaker with the diamond looking cover with THULE written on it?

5. Is there anything else I should ask about?

Thanks for reading. Hopefully my next post will be a Readers Digest version.

Todd

[The Hawk]

If you have the time go Oregon NO SALES TAX!!!!!! We in CA have to wait I think 90 days before bringing it back into the state but it is a hugh savings.
The Hawk

[MichaelD]

I have a 31SS. Very close to the 31DS.

1. We have dry camped some and find the 6 gal water heater sufficient. Have no experience with the tankless water heater. I have discovered that the 39 gal of fresh water doesn't last very long. Also with only 1 12volt house battery we have to use the genset a lot when dry camping.

2. I like the inverter. We use it to power the television while on the road. We also have the in-motion sat system and are very pleased with it.

3. I bought my Greyhawk in MS and had to pay taxes in the home state of AL.

4. Don't have a little latch above the outside speaker so can't help with that.

5. Be sure the in-dash radio is connected up correctly. Had to take mine back to dealer since DVD didn't play on the tv and the tv sound wouldn't go to the house speakers. Dealer fixed in about 2 hours under warranty.

[Scorppro]

After some late night research, the little latch is a "Smart RV" Pod by THULE. It holds their outside waste bin or LCD tv bracket for outside veiwing.

If I buy out of state, I'm thinking I will pay tax twice. Once in the sell state and once in the tag state.

Correct me if I'm wrong.

[clubhouse]

Generally you pay sales tax where you live and register the RV. You won't pay tax twice. As was mentioned earlier, if you go to a state with no sales tax there are games you can play to take advantage of that. With large sailboats and yahts often often vessels purchased in the us are sailed out of the country for 90 days to avoid paying taxes...anchoring them in Mexico is often referred to as "90-day bay"