What's a good offer?

Shana69 · 08-27-2009, 12:40 PM

We are looking to purchase a new Surveyor SV-294. I've seen them advertised online for around $31,308 to $19,995 plus tax and fees. I want to get the best deal but don't want to insult the dealer. This will be our first TT purchase so we will need everything (the hitch, swaybar, etc). All these extras add up! Any suggestions on getting a good deal on everything? Should we buy everything from the dealer or shop around for the best prices? Thanks for ANY help you can give!

cfsoistman · 08-27-2009, 02:44 PM

We found that when we bought our previous trailer it was more advantagious to deal with the dealer and have them do it all. They gave us a club card that gave us discounts on everything. If there are any RV Shows in your area you may find a "Show Special" and be able to get a quote right there. Their prices are usually good for 30-60 days after the show which would give you time to check on-line for pricing etc.

edman87k5 · 08-27-2009, 10:58 PM

I got a price quote from my dealer and did not buy for almost 3 weeks. I checked a few more places and even with rvdirect and no one could beat the price I was given at the dealer. So, once I made up my mind for certain that is what I wanted, I called to make sure 1 was in stock and schedule a time to pick it up.
I was going to save a little over $100 and buy my hitch setup and do it myself, but figured it was worth the extra $$ to let the dealer install it while I sit in the air and drink their cokes and such, it was. Thaey also hooked up my 12v+ feed to my 7 pin that I did not bother to do.
BTW, I have heard nothing but good about online buying, but they could not beat my local price. I would definately get a online quote first if you are certain of the model you want.

NWJeeper · 08-28-2009, 12:24 AM

On our rig the local dealer which is the only one for 150 miles that sells the Georgetown, would not deal at all. We saved around $17K by buying ours through RVdirect.com

You can go to their site and price out a Forest River product and see if the local dealer is giving you straight numbers or not. Don't worry about "insulting" them, get that idea right out of your head no matter if you are buying a car, truck, snomobile, boat or RV from a dealer, if you don't you aren't negotiating the best deal you can get.

ScottnKimmer · 08-28-2009, 08:11 AM

We looked around and fell in love with a Wildwood 23FLSRV locally but wasn't sure on price since we would be a first time buyer. We looked online and found that the local dealer pricing wasn't even close and we had spent over 2 hours negotiating with them the first day. The online prices were close to 5k less. We waited for the local Tampa RV Show and checked out all the different models to be sure that we still wanted the Wildwood over everything else. What other way can you see them all in one day without spending a ton of money in fuel going from dealer to dealer. After the show we were still convinced on the Wildwood and had even met the factory rep from FR for the Wildwood line of Toy Hauler/Travel Trailer. He was very informative and made us even more pleased with the construction of the unit. So we once again talked to the local dealer about the show specials and they still wouldn't come off their high horse so we purchased in Lavernge TN from RV Service and Sales. Stephanie was fantastic and we saved over $4500.00 even after spending aprx $500.00 in expenses to get the unit. We picked it up at the end of Jan and it gave us the opportunity to stay in it just down the street from te dealer that night. It got down to 21 degrees that night and we got to test the heater (something we wont use often here in FL). All performed perfectly putting it through it's paces and we stopped back at the dealer to show her 1 cosmetic item (a button missing) that she ordered and mailed to us. We are happy with our purchase and would recommend them in a heart beat.

Moral of the story is don't be afraid to get the info and tell them the most you are willing to pay. Remember to factor in expenses if going to pick one up away from your area but always buy local if pricing is inline.

Good Luck

Shana69 · 08-28-2009, 10:10 AM

Thanks for all of the great advice. Will try to remember it all once we go in to make the deal. We are pretty set on the SV 294. The only thing about buying online is not seeing the exact trailer you are purchasing, options and all. And it gets confusing determining which options are standard and which aren't. For example, most I've seen online already have the roof ladder installed but we got a price online from a dealer who said it wasn't standard and would cost extra. I prefer to pick out the one I want already optioned the way I want it and still get the best deal. Is that even possible?!

Anyway, thanks again for all the advice.

NWJeeper · 08-28-2009, 10:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Shana69

Thanks for all of the great advice. Will try to remember it all once we go in to make the deal. We are pretty set on the SV 294. The only thing about buying online is not seeing the exact trailer you are purchasing, options and all. And it gets confusing determining which options are standard and which aren't. For example, most I've seen online already have the roof ladder installed but we got a price online from a dealer who said it wasn't standard and would cost extra. I prefer to pick out the one I want already optioned the way I want it and still get the best deal. Is that even possible?!

Anyway, thanks again for all the advice.

Yeah, watch out for that dealer! Ours told us that the slide awnings were added at the dealer and weren't' standard when in fact they are. He also told us the big box in the side compartment was an inverter that they added, it isn't, it's the hydraulics that operate the slides and levelers. Moral here is the salesman will tell you what ever they can to make you think the trailer cost more than it really does and justify their price. Don't fall for it.

Our salesman at RVdirect was really good at going through the options list item by item and letting me know which things I didn't need to order because they were part of a package or were already included due to some other option we had selected. We picked exactly what we wanted for option, colors, interior, etc. I didn't need to see the exact rig we bought because they all look the same. It was delivered directly from the factory and even including the $3500 we spent to have it driven out to Washington state we still saved 17K!

I would be highly suspicious of this dealer if they are telling you standard items were extra and/or added by them at the dealership.

You may also like: