About to purchase my ROO

[Tullip2Widget]

Hello All,

I am getting very close to making my first ROO purchase. It will actually be my first camping trailer purchase of any kind. I grew up doing a little camping with my parents, so it is not totally new. My folks started out 20 some years ago with a Class C motorhome. About 7 years ago they got rid of that and purchased a Surveyor 19' trailer. These days my mom doesn't go with my dad so it is almost always just him taking the trailer to shooting matches. So this summer he and I went camping together to the big air show in Oshkosh WI so I could get some experience with general towing and camping setup and breakdown practice with me towing his 19' Surveyor.

I will be purchasing a Rockwood ROO 24 WS. I am sure that it is the best camper for how I will use it. When I take it to Oshkosh for the big air show I will be boondocking in a campground where we are packed in pretty close with no shade and no hookups. We can only run our generators from 7 am thru 10 pm. So the reason I like an expandable is for the cool cross ventilation for sleeping when the generator can't be on (no air at night). This camping event is the last 10 days of July in WI so it is usually VERY hot and humid in the day. Which one reason I am not interested in a pop up.

So my dilemma is that a local dealer has a 24WS in stock now, and the price is agreeable to me. It has the 15,000 BTU AC unit, and a refrigerator that I am fond of (the door mechanism and the interior layout on the fridge is the one that I want). The fabric on the interior is also what I like. The downside is that the flooring and cabinets are not my favorite. Unfortunately, if I were to order one from the factory they have just recently changed the fabric colors and I do not like any of the fabric choices available now. Also they have just slightly changed the color of the "wood" flooring to a color I am not crazy about. Now for the dilemma, a dealer 370 miles away has a 24WS with the cabinets I like, the flooring I like, the refrigerator I like, and the fabric I like. The problem is that it only has the 13,500 BTU AC unit, and the price is currently listed for $1500 more than the local one. So I am leaning towards buying the local one that has the more capable air conditioner and is a better price, and will allow me to have a good relationship with a local dealer/service department.

I will mostly be using it by myself, or maybe one other friend may tag along. So am I getting too hung up on interior decorating choices? I don't hate the furnishings on the local one, it is just that I love the furnishings on the one 370 miles away. But the one 370 miles away may not complete the mission (the smaller AC unit).

I am leaning towards buying local (and at the better price) in order to have the more capable AC unit. Any thoughts on my dilemma? If I go this route I am compromising on flooring and cabinet color. Also as far as modifications, I am considering having a TV in the front bedroom added, also considering solar panels on the roof. I will definitely be adding the backup assist camera setup, and getting PUGS.

Any suggestions are welcome.

Thanks!

[bikendan]

i would send the non-local dealer, the local one's quote and tell them that if they match the price WITH a 15k a/c, you'll buy it.

[itat]

For me, the after sales experience is just as important as the price. Unless you know from friends or family that the local dealer has excellent after sales service, don’t put much stock in buying local. If they don’t have a good reputation you could be treated poorly whether you buy there or not.

If the dealer that is 370 miles away has a good reputation, negotiate with them to get exactly what you want. Or if there is an independent RV service place locally check out their reputation. You may be able to use them if the local dealer refuses to service a unit he didn’t sell.

BTW, our 2010 Roo 23SS only had a 13.5k AC and it worked fine with the PUGS on.

[stugilmour]

Nice unit! Had not seen that model yet.

Pretty much agree with the suggestions above. I was never that pleased with the after sales service where we bought our unit, and have since found a servicing dealer I much prefer. We also found a mobile service technician that is really good. We are pleased that we got all of the colours and features we wanted though.

Agree totally with your choice of a hybrid for the air show. We love our unit for dog shows, which offer a similar dry camping experience. I added four six volt batteries and a couple of solar panels, and we have no power issues over a long weekend (although we sometimes have the tanks drained). We only run the generator periodically to groom the dogs, and that keeps us sufficiently topped up.

Can’t really comment on the A/C as we run ours very infrequently. I believe ours is the smaller capacity unit. Certainly understand your needs may differ in WI summer; although we attend shows there quite frequently it is generally without the trailer. You might find the smaller A/C unit pairs to your generator capacity better? Definitely install the high wind PUGs and Reflectix window screens.

Best of luck with the purchase. We are very happy with our Roo.

Stu

[rockfordroo]

Don't know where you're located, but I assume somewhere close to Oshkosh, WI?

I've bought all 3 of my RV's from Roskopf's RV in Richfield, WI; small family-owned business. I see they have a 24WS on the lot:

https://www.rvt.com/dealerframe/rosk...php?id=7562500

Good luck with your search.

[rsdata]

Do you really think that a 10% performance difference in an AC unit will be felt when it is 90 with high humidity outside? I would doubt it. I find a fan in the interior helps greatly moving the air around in the camper with or without AC on. I use the small ones they give you in the bunk ends all the time when no 120 VAC available. when it gets hot outside I usually sit outside under the awning and take the fan outside and blow it on me rather than sit inside and run the AC.

[Mainframe]

My advice is to get the local rig, it has a lot of your bases covered and I bet once you get it home it will take you 15 minutes to be madly in love with your purchase, it sounds like the lical guy also did a good job with price.

I would also check the link out rockford roo posted, it is a big shortcut get a tip on a good dealer.

Good luck and keep us posted.

[karrun]

Well I doubt you will need the bigger AC for Midwest camping. Get yourself a set of PUGS and you should be fine. But if you do need service, a local dealer is good to have. What dealer are you looking at? Check the reviews forum and see if they are reviewed. There are some great dealers to deal with, and some real lemons.

[joeuncool]

In researching local or out of town dealers before the purchase of our Roo I found one important thing. RV dealers are not like car dealers. They are not attached to the manufacturer. What this means is that they don't have a "mandate" from the manufacturer to to repair all "brand x" RV's in a certain time.

The result is that you will see dealers give their customers (people who bought the RV from them) priority over others. The further result is if they have a large list of their customers needing service the customer that purchased elsewhere will be put on hold. You can see on this site alone many posts of people waiting months for repairs from a dealer where they did not purchase their camper.

I even found on the Forest River website a notice that their dealers are fully independent businesses and they have no control over the service that you may or may not receive.

This put significant weight into me purchasing locally. Actually was most of the reason as I thought about having to take take the trailer 100 miles one way for timely service.

[wota57]

We have a 2013 ROO 233SS. It has the 13,500btu A/C unit and we have never been uncomfortable. We are up in NE Wisconsin and really only camp within 200 miles of our home. We've seen 95+ deg. days and 70-75 deg. nights in high humidity. Our A/C has never let us down. Keeps everyone comfortable even with all 3 beds open & down. I agree with the advice to know and have strong, competent and responsive service partner. The closer the better as you never know how extensive your needs might be.

[njfishing]

Originally Posted by Mainframe

My advice is to get the local rig, it has a lot of your bases covered and I bet once you get it home it will take you 15 minutes to be madly in love with your purchase, it sounds like the lical guy also did a good job with price.

I would also check the link out rockford roo posted, it is a big shortcut get a tip on a good dealer.

Good luck and keep us posted.

Exactly..... If your local dealer has a good reputation for after sale service and the price is close, I'd buy local. This is especially true if this is your first trailer and you're not sure what to look for and what might be askew after you get it home and have more time to inspect it.

If you're an old pro and know the ropes then a different story...

[bikendan]

Originally Posted by joeuncool

In researching local or out of town dealers before the purchase of our Roo I found one important thing. RV dealers are not like car dealers. They are not attached to the manufacturer. What this means is that they don't have a "mandate" from the manufacturer to to repair all "brand x" RV's in a certain time.

The result is that you will see dealers give their customers (people who bought the RV from them) priority over others. The further result is if they have a large list of their customers needing service the customer that purchased elsewhere will be put on hold. You can see on this site alone many posts of people waiting months for repairs from a dealer where they did not purchase their camper.

I even found on the Forest River website a notice that their dealers are fully independent businesses and they have no control over the service that you may or may not receive.

This put significant weight into me purchasing locally. Actually was most of the reason as I thought about having to take take the trailer 100 miles one way for timely service.

We tried buying our Roo from 3 local Roo dealers in NorCal.
None of them were willing to match Midwest prices plus whatever it cost them to ship to California.
So we made a 4000 mile RT, to buy from a Chicago dealer.
FR found us local dealers that would do the warranty work.
One didn't even sell any FR products.

[WFD473]

Originally Posted by bikendan

We tried buying our Roo from 3 local Roo dealers in NorCal.
None of them were willing to match Midwest prices plus whatever it cost them to ship to California.
So we made a 4000 mile RT, to buy from a Chicago dealer.
FR found us local dealers that would do the warranty work.
One didn't even sell any FR products.

If you don't mind me asking, which dealer did you purchase from? I live in the Chicago area.

[rockfordroo]

Originally Posted by WFD473

If you don't mind me asking, which dealer did you purchase from? I live in the Chicago area.

WFD473: I'm not bikendan, but I bought my Roo at Roskopf's in Richfield, WI; it's a little northwest of Milwaukee, about 70 mi (1 hr 15 min) north of you. I've bought all 3 of my campers from them. Small family-owned business. They're about 1h 45 min away for me.

House of Camping in Bridgeview, IL also handles Roo's. They're about the same distance/time south of you; I don't have any experience with them, though.

Good luck.

[bikendan]

House of Camping.
Great family-owned dealer.
Worked with George.

[WFD473]

Awesome. Thanks!! Not quite in the market yet, but may be in the future.