RV Dealers Are Not Always Bad

[Steph]

I have read a lot of negative comments about RV dealers on the thread. This can be true, and that is sad. For me my experience was great. I bought a 2108DS Minnie FLX. When it came in, I did a walk through and found twodeal breakers.

The Bed!!!!!!!!

The fact they do have any decent fan in the unit. For the price they should put quality fans in.

I told them unless they changed the Mattress and installed a MaxAir fan in the kitchen are the sale was off.

They agreed immediately to replace the mattress. When I picked it today, I was informed that they had a Sealy Cocoon mattress in king size that a customer ordered and then did not want. They have sent this mattress to a company who specializes in custom mattresses to have it cut down to fit. The dimension will be 56 3/4" x 75 1/4". This is a 10" mattress. No Charge to me.

They installed a MaxxFan Deluxe in the kitchen area. They charged me $259 for the fan and install. Great value. Less than I could buy the fan for.

So there are could dealers out there

[wahoonc]

I agree there are some decent dealers out there, but they are the exception and hard to find. I had a great local dealer for years, then they sold out to CW, and down the drain they went. Now I have two and a mobile mechanic that I go back and forth between.

Aaron

[Blue Sky]

Originally Posted by wahoonc

I agree there are some decent dealers out there, but they are the exception and hard to find. I had a great local dealer for years, then they sold out to CW, and down the drain they went. Now I have two and a mobile mechanic that I go back and forth between.

Aaron

That's my story, too. If you still are dealing with a locally owned dealer, enjoy it while it lasts. "They" tell us it's better for us, but we know better.

... glad for you though, Steph.

[Marine359]

Steph,
Thank your lucky stars that your dealer went way beyond the call of duty to make you happy. They had no obligation to upgrade your fan and mattress. Your “deal breakers” are standard Winnebago features. My guess is they had enough margin in the deal that they’d rather spend a few bucks improving your trailer rather than see you walk away. If you’ve spent any time on this forum, you’d know the biggest complaint of 210DS owners is the mattress. Absolutely horrible. I’m also curious because past 2108DS models only had roof vents in the bathroom and over the bed, with a junk fan in the bathroom vent. So did they move one of the vents over the galley? Maybe there’s no vent hood/fan in your galley, which would explain a vent hood being there.

[IdahoHunter]

Originally Posted by Steph

I have read a lot of negative comments about RV dealers on the thread. This can be true, and that is sad. For me my experience was great. I bought a 2108DS Minnie FLX. When it came in, I did a walk through and found twodeal breakers.

The Bed!!!!!!!!

The fact they do have any decent fan in the unit. For the price they should put quality fans in.

I told them unless they changed the Mattress and installed a MaxAir fan in the kitchen are the sale was off.

They agreed immediately to replace the mattress. When I picked it today, I was informed that they had a Sealy Cocoon mattress in king size that a customer ordered and then did not want. They have sent this mattress to a company who specializes in custom mattresses to have it cut down to fit. The dimension will be 56 3/4" x 75 1/4". This is a 10" mattress. No Charge to me.

They installed a MaxxFan Deluxe in the kitchen area. They charged me $259 for the fan and install. Great value. Less than I could buy the fan for.

So there are could dealers out there

With the Murphy bed in the DS, how did you get the Sealy Cocoon mattress to work when stowing the bed? I just bought a 2024 DS so I don't have any sleep time on the mattress yet. I just laid down on it, and it felt ok. I may change my mind after some time on it since I do have various physical ailments as a retired vet.

Originally Posted by Marine359

Steph,
Thank your lucky stars that your dealer went way beyond the call of duty to make you happy. They had no obligation to upgrade your fan and mattress. Your “deal breakers” are standard Winnebago features. My guess is they had enough margin in the deal that they’d rather spend a few bucks improving your trailer rather than see you walk away. If you’ve spent any time on this forum, you’d know the biggest complaint of 210DS owners is the mattress. Absolutely horrible. I’m also curious because past 2108DS models only had roof vents in the bathroom and over the bed, with a junk fan in the bathroom vent. So did they move one of the vents over the galley? Maybe there’s no vent hood/fan in your galley, which would explain a vent hood being there.

In my 2024 DS there is a ceiling vent in the bathroom and another by the galley, and they both have powered fans. No vent hood over the stove if that's what you're asking.

[creativepart]

While I love your optimism, I have my doubts.

Yes, a MaxxFan Deluxe for that price is not bad, but it’s still likely less at wholesale dealer cost. So basically it cost the dealer nothing to sell it to you to make his sale.

And the mattress? Likely ordered and paid for by someone else that didn’t get their money back when they “couldn’t use it.” The modification of the mattress must not cost the dealer much or they wouldn’t throw it in.

As I said, I love your optimism but keep your eyes wide open when dealing with an RV dealer. (And don’t let them sell you an Extended Service Contract at closing!!!)

[dkoldman]

I spent 18 months shopping and trying to buy an RV. I was 95% sure I was going to buy a Thor Motor Coach, because I assumed the WBGOs were too expensive, plus the the Thors seemed packed with bells and whistles. When you are a newbie shiny electronics tend to get your attention.

Unfortunately, every TMC we originally pursued to buy had many issues. The Dealers would NOT repair most of the items. We spent a lot of time with Thor before the sale who was nothing short of helpful. But the issues we were seeing on brand new coaches was caused by sitting on Dealer lots, exploded batteries, slides not working, damaged pantry, cabinet doors, cracked decals etc.

Anyway after walking from two PDIs on TMC Windsport and Hurricanes, we gave up. We found a dealer in Florida (1,500 miles away from us) that sold WBGOs and TMC.

We bought brand new Sunstar 4 years ago and we were extremely fortunate to find a WGBO and the Dealer we bought from.

So my point is that the Bad Dealers helped / pushed us to do more work to find a Good Dealer.

One TMC Dealer even told us that they had plenty of Customers and that we needed to either buy it, or leave it as they were busy. We left it.

I will never forget my wife and I driving 5 hours unannounced to a CW to see a coach but when we got there, despite 4 or 5 sales agents sitting idle, they refused to allow us to see the coach unless we surrendered our drivers licenses. We refused and left. Ironically the coach we have now, a Sunstar is same model Vista they had.

One more example of a Bad Dealer which happens to be the same day we decided we would NOT buy a TMC. A Thor Dealer in Houston (4 hrs away) had a Hurricane we had been shopping for at a great price online. We call this Dealer ahead to be sure there would be no issues. We had most communications in emails. I will never forget them taking us to the coach but the color did not seem to be the same as picture online? We go inside and it was absolutely gorgeous and clean, ACs had been running all morning so it was cold too. But it was NOT The coach we had come to see. When asked about the coach we came to see, they kept telling us about the one we were standing in, I had to be rude and say, can you show us the one we came to see. The guy then said this was the one. So I pull out my laptop and showed him the stock # from our emails and the link to the pictures. He then said they must have switched up the keys on him. I started to leave and he says can we wait. He goes inside and my wife and I marvel at how nice the coach was. We even discussed foregoing our colors that we had been shopping 17 months for. Then the Sales guy comes back and says the coach we wanted was in the back waiting to be serviced. I asked why can't we at least see it? crickets.... So we start to leave again and he says wait a minute. This time he was gone for 10 - 15 minutes. He came back with a cart and he took us to the back of the Dealer's lot, this brand new 2019 RV was rusted on most all chrome, 3 of the tires were on dead flats. rear ladder was broken and too wobbly to try to climb, and inside was worse. Of course all the batteries were dead, trim was broken in a number of spots. We left this time.

A month later we bought are Sunstar only after finding the perfect Dealer that when we told our story to. They over committed to ensure it would not happen again and we had countless pictures. We sent them our PDI list and they confirmed ahead of time with pictures of some items. We bought one way tickets to Florida, spent 6 hours doing our own PDI on the WBGO Sunstar and found Zero issues. We bought it. It has been 4 years later, I still talk with my Sales Agent. WBGO Customer Service is incredible. It is amazing the number of things that came with the coach that I didn't know I needed and likewise some things that it didn't come with that I am now glad I don't have.

I read so many horror stories about Dealers and I believe them. Final takeaway is that all Customers should believe them as well. Do your homework and thorough PDIs and do not be afraid to walk.

[wahoonc]

It's not an attempt to bash Thor. However, I would rather sleep under a polytarp than own a Thor product...

I am a research/information-driven person. If it smells, there is a reason. I have probably looked at over 1000 RVs over the past 25+ years, torn down and rebuilt RVs, and built a couple from scratch using plans.

The appliances and components are all from the same source with varying levels of quality. It comes down to how well they are put together and if the factory and the dealer do their job. Before 2020 there were several stand-out manufacturers, but Thor was not one of them. It has gone steadily downhill since then. Even the high-end $1,000,000+ coaches have issues.

All you can do is do your due diligence and either be very handy at fixing small things or have deep pockets to pay someone to do the work. At the current shop rates, you have to be a millionaire to own a $400k RV.

Aaron

[dkoldman]

I hope my post wasn't viewed as Thor Motor Coach bashing either. I was purposely and willfully trying to bash some RV Dealers. Some of the Dealers I was bashing sold WBGO and TMC.

I was also trying to make a point of issues that occur on the Dealer lots. I apologize as I may have been a tad long winded but some RV Dealers strike a nerve for me. They can be 10 times worse than a normal Auto Dealership IMO.

With that said, the Thor Motor Coach RVs that failed my PDIs, I bet if I had been there the day they arrived to the lot the experience would not have been so bad. So my point is that while RV DEALERS ARE NOT ALWAYS BAD, I was thankful to have had Bad Dealers to learn that a WBGO that despite the higher cost, is what I should have pursuing all along.

[Marine359]

Reminds me of the time I once sold motorhomes. My Brother-in-Law and Sister wanted to buy a coach, so I told him I would sell him any coach on our lot he wanted at dealer invoice and no commission. When he arrived, I tried to steer him to a 5 year old Monaco Diplomat. So he browses the lot, and settles in on a new Hurricane. He says, for what you’re asking for that used coach, I should be able to buy a brand new one. I pleaded with him not to buy the Hurricane and explained it was basically Thor’s POS motorhome, and that he would be unhappy. He insisted and bought the Cane anyway. Two month later, he calls me reading me the riot act for selling him a schlock motorhome which has been nothing but problems. I told him to take a flying leap, and told him again that the used Diplomat was 10 times the motorhome at a reasonable price. He got so angry that we never spoke again for almost 10 years. Finally he called and asked if I could help him sell his Hurricane, never offering an apology for blaming me for impulse buying against my advice. Favors given to relatives are often problematic.

[Steph]

I know no business does anything unless they make a profit. However, getting the Fan and the new mattress did not cost me anything which what I care about

No special procedures to close the Murphy bed with the Sealy mattress. I met someone this weekend that has a 10" thick mattress in a DS and they say it closes fine.

All the FLX model have two really low-end fans. One in the bath and one in the kitchen area. There is no fane over the bed.

Never in a million years would I but an extended warranty.

[dkoldman]

Originally Posted by Steph

I know no business does anything unless they make a profit. However, getting the Fan and the new mattress did not cost me anything which what I care about

No special procedures to close the Murphy bed with the Sealy mattress. I met someone this weekend that has a 10" thick mattress in a DS and they say it closes fine.

All the FLX model have two really low-end fans. One in the bath and one in the kitchen area. There is no fane over the bed.

Never in a million years would I but an extended warranty.

Sounds like you are a good negotiator. Don't confuse your savvy to necessarily mean a good dealer because you saw more value to squeeze out of your purchase price.

I told the dealer that I bought from, that I would not make the trip if they try to coerce me to buying any of their perks. They had to get a General Manager approval, but when it came time to sign, I didn't have to listen any of that record. I did sign some things saying I denied like the Extended Warranty. They wanted $7,500 for 5 years. With 4 years of ownership data, the only expense that was NOT under Mfg warranty and would have been included with the Extended warranty was issue with the Kwikie Steps. I paid $20 for a Replacement part of Amazon and paid a Mobile Tech $100 who came to my house and put it on. I often wonder what the Extended Warranty Deductible would have been? I may have paid more in the deductible and spent months trying to get it fixed. I have used the $6,000 I have bankrolled to date to buy other stuff needed for the RV. I got one year to go 11/24; before I can say I saved the entire $7,500.

Until the Sales Models change, most Dealers only purpose is to get much out of the customer as possible and once they got the money to do as littlest as possible on effort after the sale. I think Lichtsinn RV is close as possible to Integrity as a model for a dealership. They charge premiums for their services, but they can be counted on. You can buy peace

[IdahoHunter]

Originally Posted by Steph

I know no business does anything unless they make a profit. However, getting the Fan and the new mattress did not cost me anything which what I care about

No special procedures to close the Murphy bed with the Sealy mattress. I met someone this weekend that has a 10" thick mattress in a DS and they say it closes fine.

All the FLX model have two really low-end fans. One in the bath and one in the kitchen area. There is no fane over the bed.

Never in a million years would I but an extended warranty.

Do you have a pre-21' DS that has the Murphy bed that doesn't close to the vertical position? That's the only way I can envision a full size mattress without an folds would work.

[kvmllr]

Thanks for these encouraging words. We've bought our last 3 units from the same dealer who has been great. After a good sales process, their warranty service, extended warranty service, insurance service, self-pay service - they've done the work correctly and as timely as parts availability would allow.

[Ak Mike]

Steph: We had a great dealer experience also, great to hear that you’re satisfied! Mike