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Old 08-29-2013, 07:35 AM   #1
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Negotiation & Purchase Process

Anticipating an early spring 2014 purchase of a new Winnebago Tour QD from Lictshinn Motors in Iowa. We currently live in CA so almost all of the negotiations and purchase will happen long distance. What I don't understand is how this all takes place. I have scoured other threads and have picked up bits and peaces but the step by step process alludes me. For example is a long distance purchase not a good idea? I understand that anything from 25 to 32% off MSRP is a fair purchase price? Is Lictshinn Motors a reputable and honest place to do business? Is a downpayment sent to the dealer before I arrive for the PDI or is the exchange of monies all done after we get there? What documents are involved in this process? What should I beware of? etc., etc.
I just don't want to get to Forest City and be overwhelmed and unprepared for the event. It occures to me that each of the above questions could be its own thread so any insight will be appreciated and helpful.
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Old 08-29-2013, 08:17 AM   #2
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I too thought they were the way to go. But after meeting with them in July 12 at the GNR, Winnebago rally, I decided to hold off on trading. Glad I did! Camping world was significantly less 6 months later...and my trade was 6 months older and higher milage! You will love your tour!
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Old 08-29-2013, 08:38 AM   #3
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They are highly reputable dealer but personally even thought I am only 140 miles away I preferred to buy locally
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Old 08-29-2013, 03:36 PM   #4
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We talked to them over the internet and phone. They had the best cash price. They were not interested in our Class C trade so I would have to sell that locally.
I found a local dealer that would take our trade and overall was only $1500 more than Lichtenstein. With the trade in and ~ 1 week vacation for PDI and drive from Iowa back to Washington, plane ticket cost etc. we went local. However your situation may be different and I don't know how competitive a special order from a Ca dealer would be.
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Old 08-29-2013, 03:52 PM   #5
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This would apply to any dealer you work with: Do the negotiations via fax. I did this when buying a car. Worked good. Guess via email would work too. There is a written record of what went on.

I have heard that buying from a distant dealer can be a problem when trying to get service/repairs from a dealer near your casa......that you did not buy from. Long delays as they service their customers....and put you in second place.
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Old 08-29-2013, 03:54 PM   #6
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Make sure you shop around. I have yet to see a post where Lictshinn's price was reasonable when compared to other dealers... including my own shopping experience. It's almost like their being only one mile from Winnebago, and the fact that you would be the one breaking in your brand new coach gives them the reason to charge thousands more. No thanks, I'll continue to use dealers with good a reputation and a good price.
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Old 08-29-2013, 04:03 PM   #7
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I have heard that buying from a distant dealer can be a problem when trying to get service/repairs from a dealer near your casa......that you did not buy from. Long delays as they service their customers....and put you in second place.
This is mentioned a lot... by salesmen. However, I have yet to see members post that they have any trouble getting local service after purchasing their rigs elsewhere.

When purchasing my new 40DP in 2007, I searched the internet for the make and model I wanted and then sent out about 20 emails to dealers that had them advertised. I told them I was going to buy and was looking for the best price.

Many replied with a "call me" message... which I ignored. But, about 6 did reply with quotes on what they would sell for. I presented my local dealer with these quotes when negotiating. He didn't match the lowest, but did come down to be in the running enough to persuade me to buy locally.

Good luck.

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Old 08-29-2013, 08:22 PM   #8
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Make sure you shop around. I have yet to see a post where Lictshinn's price was reasonable when compared to other dealers... including my own shopping experience. It's almost like their being only one mile from Winnebago, and the fact that you would be the one breaking in your brand new coach gives them the reason to charge thousands more. No thanks, I'll continue to use dealers with good a reputation and a good price.
+ 1 Had the same experience with them. Sales is just a bunch of young kids that know nothing about MH's.
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Old 08-29-2013, 10:17 PM   #9
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Personally, I would do, and have done, just as RickO did. Why go to the trouble of dealing with a dealer 1500 miles away? There are plenty of dealers out West. Look at what it will cost you in diesel alone to return home. There is one advantage when buying "locally". While you can go to any dealer for warranty work and service, the service manager where you buy will usually give you some preference in scheduling.
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Old 08-30-2013, 06:03 AM   #10
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I have owned several Winnebago coaches. Most I purchased from dealers outside of my home territory. I found out quick the second question they ask me at local dealer service bay was did I buy the coach from them. It was down hill the rest of the way. Maybe I can understand this, but it should not be. A Winnebago is a Winnebago and my money was green. Winnebago when contacted, claimed it doesn't happen, when pigs fly.
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Old 08-30-2013, 07:49 AM   #11
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Lots of good advice here. I will add that wherever you decide to buy, be sure you have made a firm decision about whether or not you will purchase an extended warranty BEFORE you start the process. Our dealer put a real hard-sell on it the day we purchased, and even though we were comfortable with the price we paid for the coach, we were not prepared for the "you must decide right now" regarding the warranty. The warranties are complicated, and getting educated prior to the purchase will make you confidant about saying yes or no, and sticking to it.

Good luck, looks like you're getting a fantastic coach!
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Old 08-30-2013, 08:20 AM   #12
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I have purchased two coaches "remotely" from Motor Home Specialist in Texas. The first was purely on price, the second was because of the great experience we had first time. Their prices were low enough that no negotiation was required. The procedure was that I gave them a $2,000 deposit on a credit card to hold the coach and have them start prepping it while we traveled to their location. We did know exactly which coach we wanted, in fact we had walked through a used one at a local Camping World. As it happened, CW's price for a used model was $15,000 more than the price for a new one from MHSRV.
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Old 08-31-2013, 06:50 AM   #13
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When it comes to Ext warranties after being stung big time on the first one many years ago. I now put $5000.00 into a CD to be used for after factory warranty. So far I still have my $5000.00 and the interest it paid over the years. Happy Camper.
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Old 08-31-2013, 07:09 AM   #14
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Quote:
Originally Posted by RickO View Post
This is mentioned a lot... by salesmen. However, I have yet to see members post that they have any trouble getting local service after purchasing their rigs elsewhere.

When purchasing my new 40DP in 2007, I searched the internet for the make and model I wanted and then sent out about 20 emails to dealers that had them advertised. I told them I was going to buy and was looking for the best price.

Many replied with a "call me" message... which I ignored. But, about 6 did reply with quotes on what they would sell for. I presented my local dealer with these quotes when negotiating. He didn't match the lowest, but did come down to be in the running enough to persuade me to buy locally.

Good luck.

Rick
Let me be the first to verify this does take place. When we bought our 2001 Adventurer we were negotiating with 2 dealers. One was in our home town and the other about 200 miles away. We had a price from the dealer farther away and went back for final negotiations with our local dealer. We were quoted a final price over $5000.00 higher than the other dealer. When I asked why the huge difference I was told "that's the price you pay for local service, and if you don't buy it here don't expect to get it serviced here".

Needless to say we went to the dealer farther away. About a month after the purchase we had a minor problem. I called the local dealer to see if what the salesman said would really happen. The first thing they asked was Where Did You Purchase The Motorhome? The instant they found out it was purchased from another dealer they refused to do any work on it, either warranty or customer pay.
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Old 08-31-2013, 08:09 AM   #15
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Let me be the first to verify this does take place. When we bought our 2001 Adventurer we were negotiating with 2 dealers. One was in our home town and the other about 200 miles away. We had a price from the dealer farther away and went back for final negotiations with our local dealer. We were quoted a final price over $5000.00 higher than the other dealer. When I asked why the huge difference I was told "that's the price you pay for local service, and if you don't buy it here don't expect to get it serviced here".

Needless to say we went to the dealer farther away. About a month after the purchase we had a minor problem. I called the local dealer to see if what the salesman said would really happen. The first thing they asked was Where Did You Purchase The Motorhome? The instant they found out it was purchased from another dealer they refused to do any work on it, either warranty or customer pay.
So if you pay an extra $5000 up front you have paid to get in the door for service?
I'm guessing that driving 200 miles for service vs paying $5000 may be a fair deal.
And "Pay for Play" may be illegal? Maybe next time record that statement from them? Would Winnebago have an opinion on this?
I have not had any service refusals anywhere. Good shops love good cash flow.
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Old 08-31-2013, 04:27 PM   #16
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So if you pay an extra $5000 up front you have paid to get in the door for service?
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I'm guessing that driving 200 miles for service vs paying $5000 may be a fair deal.
And "Pay for Play" may be illegal? Maybe next time record that statement from them? Would Winnebago have an opinion on this?
I have not had any service refusals anywhere. Good shops love good cash flow.


I guess we have totally different opinions as to the way dealers should conduct business. It sounded more like extortion than negotiating to me. There was no counter offer of any kind. The price was the price and if I didn't like it I could move on. Anyone that uses threats and retribution as sales tactics doesn't deserve my business or anyone else’s.

They apparently didn't get the message. It was a huge multibrand dealership. In 2007 (technically before the recession hit) they went bankrupt. The business reorganized and reopened on a smaller scale in 2012. They are no longer a Winnebago dealership.

As far as warranty and service work was concerned I had no intention of using their facility as I told them during the negotiating process. I only tried it the one time to see if they were indeed serious about the no sale no service tactic. We only took it back to the selling dealer once to have a part installed that was ordered as an option they forgot to add to the factory order. Any problem I didn't feel comfortable addressing myself went to the Winnebago factory in Forest City IA. This by the way is 275 miles from where we live.
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Old 08-31-2013, 04:59 PM   #17
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I guess we have totally different opinions as to the way dealers should conduct business. It sounded more like extortion than negotiating to me. There was no counter offer of any kind. The price was the price and if I didn't like it I could move on. Anyone that uses threats and retribution as sales tactics doesn't deserve my business or anyone else’s.
]
I agree with you. It amazes me that they would be so brazen as to bar you from the service department. I'm sure glad I wasn't passing through that town when I had a problem with my coach and needed a shop.

My sales guy was much more subtle. He only "mentioned" during negotiations that their service department gave scheduling preference to those who had purchased from them.

Rick
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Old 09-01-2013, 09:24 AM   #18
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"Would Winnebago have an opinion on this"? Yes they do, their position is it doesn't happen, if it does call us and we will give you the name of a dealer who will give you service. I asked " What happens to the guy on the road who has a problem that needs taken care of"? Call us we will mediate for you. Can you imagine going through this on a trip? It happened to me.
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Old 09-01-2013, 09:32 AM   #19
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"Would Winnebago have an opinion on this"? Yes they do, their position is it doesn't happen, if it does call us and we will give you the name of a dealer who will give you service. I asked " What happens to the guy on the road who has a problem that needs taken care of"? Call us we will mediate for you. Can you imagine going through this on a trip? It happened to me.
I have had Winnebago service about 4 times in the past 4 years at a dealer who I did not purchase the MH from. Each time the service was timely and no hassles.
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Old 09-01-2013, 05:32 PM   #20
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A local dealer asked if I had bought the RV from them and I asked why they wanted to know that - they told be they gave 10% discount on parts and repairs.
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