Distant Dealer?

Blue Ayes · 10-05-2016, 08:38 AM

We are brand new to the RV world and are seriously considering a purchase of the FR3 30DS with X package. Although we have a dealer about 40 miles away, we have located a dealer with a new 2017 model some 600 miles away who has a much better deal than our local guy ( a good $9,000 less). They will also provide up to $500 for flights to pick it up plus let us hookup overnight to try everything out. We have researched this dealership out the wazoo and he seems to have a great reputation. My concern now is if we go for the distant deal and run into problems later, will the local dealer take care of them? Anyone have an opinion on this?

NO3putt · 10-05-2016, 08:42 AM

The local dealer may or may not take care of any warrenty issues. Heard of many stores where local dealer refused to do work when not purchased thru them.

SeaDog · 10-05-2016, 08:47 AM

Unlike the car industry in the RV industry just because they sell your type of rig does not mean they have to honor your warranty work. The Boise dealer for Flagstaff will tell you straight up he does not want to work on any rig not bought there. He uses that as a scare tactic to get you to buy from him.

polishdon · 10-05-2016, 08:50 AM

I don't have a motor home, but a brand new toy hauler I bought in April, 400 miles from home. The local dealer will not do any warranty work unless I pay for it. It would then be up to me to get reimbursed from Forest River. Local dealer states they've lost too much money in the past doing warranty work and never being paid for it.

clr · 10-05-2016, 08:58 AM

As others have already stated a local dealer may or may not perform warranty work. If it was me I would have a plan on doing the warranty work at a reasonable distance from my home prior to buying the unit from the distant dealer. Forest River or the distant dealer may be able to provide you a list of dealers or repair shops that will perform the warranty work for you. There will be warranty work just count on it.

ronheater70 · 10-05-2016, 09:03 AM

I tend to buy local for this very reason. for my purchases ( Auto/ motorcylce/ Atv)
I tend to research dealers within a 50 mile radius or so.
I know saving money is important, and 9 grand is a lot of money, however maybe play that against the local dealer and see of you can get that difference down some.
There IS peace of mind and having help nearby for warranty work or trouble shooting.

BandJCarm · 10-05-2016, 09:05 AM

Weighing in here.........

I bought 650 miles away, due to extreme cost difference with local dealer.

I am having some pretty serious problems with the trailer right now. On Saturday I took it to my local dealer, after calling Forest River warranty folks and discussing at length with them. They are supposed to pull it into the work bay today or tomorrow, and it will take however long it will take........their guess is less than a week, depending on parts. The service guy's answer was "I don't care WHERE you bought it from. We get paid by you or FR, one or the other, and we don't want these units here any longer than we have to. Why would we want them stacked up here?"

They have a local reputation for being A+++ service, so I'm hopeful they can repair it. They were/are certainly willing to do so. I'm in touch with FR on this also, and they are helping by contacting the dealer on this, directly.

So, not all dealers are buttnuts.

SeaDog · 10-05-2016, 09:20 AM

the sad part is most folks buying a FR or SOB for the first time don't know about forums like these and approach the buying process like you would with a car or truck. Then when they have a problem reality sets in. FR products do have small print on the back of the brochure that says dealers may not work on your rig or words to that affect. How many first time buyers in their excitement and search read the small print.

DaGrinch · 10-05-2016, 09:33 AM

The dealer close to BandJCarm is like my dealer; they will work on anything. Granted, dealers like this may be few and far between, but when you find one, they are worth their weight in gold.
I would get my best price from the long distance dealer and take that to the close-by dealer and see how close they want to come. It may be worth staying close to home, if the price comes down to something reasonable. Then again, the long distance dealer may be able to provide a network dealer within acceptable range.

ronheater70 · 10-05-2016, 09:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SeaDog

the sad part is most folks buying a FR or SOB for the first time don't know about forums like these and approach the buying process like you would with a car or truck. Then when they have a problem reality sets in. FR products do have small print on the back of the brochure that says dealers may not work on your rig or words to that affect. How many first time buyers in their excitement and search read the small print.

+1 I tend to research the heck out of things,(product AND support) before buying anything. My Dealer is about 40 miles away, I could have gone to a huge chain camping store about 1/3 the distance but read reviews and researched better business bureau and decided on a smaller dealer.
Smaller dealer has only two techs, and they don't have fancy matching uniforms or anything, but when scoping the dealer out they provided plenty of evidence they know their stuff. price was fair, i'm happy.

RJJ · 10-05-2016, 09:55 AM

I bought my MH from a local dealer (CW). Took it in for warranty work, they kept it about 5 weeks for a 2-3 day job, the parts were pre ordered, had arrived and I had an appointment. When I got it back, the work was so substandard, I ended up redoing a lot of it myself. Found a local repair shop that doesn't sell RVs they only repair them. Finished my warranty work with them. They don't want to keep it on the lot, they want to fix it and return it to you. FR agreed that the local dealer's (CW) work was substandard and allowed me to go to the repair shop, pay them directly and FR would reimburse me. Worked great for me.

2015 Georgetown 329DS
2014 Chevy Equinox

W5CI · 10-05-2016, 10:14 AM

for $9K I would not hesitate and take my chances. I have a friend who saved $15K by doing just that. I would never by a RV from CW.

RJJ · 10-05-2016, 11:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by W5CI

for $9K I would not hesitate and take my chances. I have a friend who saved $15K by doing just that. I would never by a RV from CW.

X2 on CW, lesson learned.

2015 Georgetown 329DS
2014 Chevy Equinox

Browns-Camden · 10-05-2016, 12:18 PM

I would buy the motorhome from the distant dealer.

We bought out motorhome from a dealer about 150 miles away instead of the dealer who was 10 miles away because of the price and it had the colors and options we wanted. When we had a minor warranty repaid, the local dealer would not service the RV because we were not an "existing customer". At that point, we took the RV to our local Winnebago dealer who had worked on our old Winnebago and they did the work very cheaply. In my mind, even though I had that out of pocket expense I still came out far ahead.

If the dealer is giving you $9,000 savings, my guess is that even if you had a small warranty repair that you had to pay out of pocket, you would still come out far ahead.

Bluepill · 10-05-2016, 12:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Browns-Camden

If the dealer is giving you $9,000 savings, my guess is that even if you had a small warranty repair that you had to pay out of pocket, you would still come out far ahead.

This ^^

Consider your savings as a fund against possible small warranty work. If it's something big, fight with FR or "Vacation" near the selling dealer.

**bikendan** · 10-05-2016, 12:35 PM

We bought our HTT from a Chicago dealer 2000 miles away from us.
FR found us 3 local dealers that would do the warranty work.
We saved thousands of dollars even after trip costs.

Blue Ayes · 10-05-2016, 03:33 PM

Thanks for all of the feedback. So, I called the local dealer with the distant Dealer price, and no deal - they wouldn't budge on their offer, claiming they had freight costs, etc. that they needed to cover. On to Plan B, emailed FR as well as distant Dealer requesting any places close to me that will undertake warranty / repair work. Will still likely purchase from MI Dealer, but would like the comfort of local repair shop if available. Onward and Upward.

drivmsafe · 10-05-2016, 05:58 PM

If you're smart, tell that local dealer to take a hike. Not sure what they're offering but, take the rule of thumb. Take the MSRP and deduct 35%. That's a good starting point. The dealer could sell a MH for 30% under MSRP and still make $$$. It's a buyers market this time of year.

Sent from my iPad using Forest River Forums

Blue Ayes · 10-06-2016, 07:40 PM

Got a really nice response from FR mid-west warranty/repair guy. Made me feel much better about buying from distant dealer. Also, salesman at MI Dealer is preparing a list of local repair shops that will do work as well. So, wish me luck on my new adventure. Thanks again to everyone who gave advice. This an awesome forum and I am certain to be using it much more in the future.

SidecarFlip · 10-06-2016, 07:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by clr

As others have already stated a local dealer may or may not perform warranty work. If it was me I would have a plan on doing the warranty work at a reasonable distance from my home prior to buying the unit from the distant dealer. Forest River or the distant dealer may be able to provide you a list of dealers or repair shops that will perform the warranty work for you. There will be warranty work just count on it.

Interesting comment. I've had 2 RV's now and neither has required ANY warranty work, well, this one does. My Fantastic fan died last trip out.

I e-mailed Atwood in Elkhart and got a response this morning. Called them and they are sending me a replacement motor and blade assembly, no charge The motor died and being the handy person I am, I pulled it out but the motor is sealed so I could not take it apart.

The young lady I talked to on the phone said they had some issues with motors... FYI for everyone.

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