Negative: RV Wholesalers - Not a very good experience (so far)

[kfree1711]

First, allow me to introduce myself. My name is Kelly and I live in Texas. After months of searching, I made the decision to purchase a ROO 32IKSS from RVW.

A little history -

During my search, I visited many RV dealerships (in person), interviewed their service people, sales manager (as well as sales rep), performed BBB searches on each one. After my research, I asked three dealerships to give me a written quote for the exact trailer that I wanted.

After reading many reviews on RVW, I did the above 'dance' with them as well. I spoke with my sales rep "Cyndi", her manager, 'Kelly', a person in customer service 'Lydia' and a finance person named 'Dallas'. I spoke with each of them about what I was looking for, the exact package I wanted to purchase and what I though was a fair price, for all parties.

After my due diligence, I made the decision to purchase from RVW.

Overall, the buying experience was 'OK' at best. I experienced the typical sales rep pressure from them...'you need to sign the deal today' etc..This does not bother me as I am a VP of Sales for a large software company and understand the game they play.

However, in the RVW agreement, it specifically states that any and all 'verbal agreements or promises' made between the RVW Sales Rep and Customer would not be honored, unless it was in writing and in the contract. Because of this, I forced my sales rep, Cyndi, to document everything. This took as while as the verbiage changed quite often as I her attention to detail was less than adequate. Finally, we were able to get everything worked out and I signed the purchase agreement.

Once signed, I was supposed (according to Cyndi) to receive a call from someone in Delivery to schedule a time and date that my ROO would be delivered. After about 10 days...still no call. I called Cyndi numerous times, asking when this would happen and her response was that she was not sure as my 2015 RV was already at the dealership and ready to go. I explained to Cyndi (again) that I travel for work extensively during the week and that weekends were the only time I could accept delivery. I was not concerned about which weekend it was (as I was not in a big rush to get it).

Last Thursday, I finally received a call. However, it was the driver letting me know he had my RV hooked up, was on his way and it would be delivered Friday morning. I then explained to the driver (John, who is fantastic) that I was in California and that I would not be home until late Friday night and that Saturday am was the best I could do. He understood and we ended the call.

I then called Cyndi who had no clue whatsoever as to what was going on and how this is happening. I then spoke with her manager, Kelly, and explained to him the situation, that I was frustrated with Cyndi's (as well as RVW) inability to convey accurate information. He said he understood and appreciated the call. So..fast forward to Saturday (17th) morning.

The driver arrives and we begin the inspection (before I allow him to unhook the ROO from his truck). Overall, everything looked great. With the expection of 2 items.

1. I purchased (and paid for) an equalizer hitch that was supposed to be installed. The hitch (and all the components) was in a box in the bathroom.
2. The sofa was supposed to be a pull out, inflatable bed. Instead, it was a jackknife sofa.

I called my sales rep, Cyndi, and explained to her the situation and that I was standing in the middle of a parking lot ...with the RV still hooked up to the drivers truck. She replied that she would make some calls and get back with me. 23 mins later, she calls me to say that her manager, Kelly, is on another lot and is on his way back to the office and would be calling shortly. Well, 38 mins later...no call from Kelly. I call Cyndi and she has no idea why Kelly was not calling me. Then..my phone rings and it is Dallas (in finance).

Dallas first tries to tell me that there is no way it was a jackknife sofa as they do a through PDI before anything leaves RVW. After 10 mins of back and forth, he finally realizes I am know the difference and moves on. Now, he tells me that I need to sign all the paperwork, take possession of the ROO and we can work everything out next week. I start to laugh and tell him there was no way I was doing that and I would not sign any paperwork until we have a solution and a plan. I gave him 2 options and they were as follows:

1. Take the RV back to RVW, make the changes necessary so it matches what I purchased and is what is on the invoice. They can then return it to me once completed.

2. Take it to a dealership and they will make the repairs and that RVW would pay the dealership directly.

Dallas then accused me of being 'unreasonable' and that I needed to trust him. I explained to him that the above options were his only choice and that I trusted their PDI / Quality process and look where we were today. In mid sentence, he ended the call and transferred me to customer service. I guess he was tired f having a logical conversation, filled with truth and fact. In fact, all he really cared about was getting the paperwork signed and the RV into my name. IMHO, he is unprofessional and a typical used car salesman / finance guy.

I am now on the phone with Lydia and she apologizes for what happened and she was trying to get caught up as this was dropped in her lap by Dallas. After explaining the situation to her, she finds a dealership (Camping World) who will accept my RV and make the repairs. This is where it gets good...

Lydia then tell my that the problem was with Forrest River and that they screwed up (talk about passing the buck). I calmly asked her if my RV was inspected by RVW prior to delivery. She said it was. In fact, I learned (from another sourced at RVW) that there were 3 inspections on my RV, prior to delivery. They are: Salesperson (Cyndi), Service and final inspection by a person named Cathy. I asked Lydia how it was possible that THREE people missed the sofa and didn't notice that the equalizer hitch (I paid to have installed) was not there. She didn't have an answer for me.

Now, my RV is sitting in the parking lot of Camping World, waiting for a sofa bed with the inflatable mattress, to be delivered so it can be installed. RVW tells me that it could take 3 - 4 weeks for the sofa to be delivered and I am now at the mercy of Camping World as to when they will actually do the work. In essence, the entire month of May is SHOT and I wont be able to enjoy my ROO until June.

Monday morning, I am also calling Forrest River and will be letting them know that RVW is blaming all of this on them. My hope is that they have a sofa that can actually be delivered in a timely manner.

To be frank, RVW seems to be a Goat Rodeo and that they will do anything to get the sale but can't get their act together when things don't go as planned (such as their pre-delivery inspection process).

I will keep this tread alive with updates as they happen. For now, my rating for RVW is 'buyer beware'.... and that I should have paid more $$ to another (local) dealer as I believe I would have had a better experience.

-Kelly

[Dave_Monica]

Sorry to hear of your troubles...RVW should have picked up that the correct sofa bed wasn't there. It's up to them to verify that all optional equipment is present. Is there a possibility that the sofa wasn't on the order list? Again their issue if you signed off on a order list that included the proper sofa.

I'm a little confused when you mention the equal-i-zer hitch. Without your tow vehicle, all that could be installed would be the brackets on the camper's tongue. Was the delivery guy supposed to complete the installation of the hitch on your truck and set it up?

Dave

[Herk7769]

TOTALLY agree with Dave on the hitch!

Other than measuring the distance from the ball socket to the brackets, nothing can be done without your truck.

We have 2 RVW folks here as members. BOTH of whom are VERY engaged and I think you may be hearing from them shortly.

[itat]

Sorry to hear about your disappointing experience. I think one of the owners of RVW comes to this forum once in a while and he might see your post but you could try to go up the ladder if you feel the need to.

My only experience with RVW is getting quotes. I did speak to a Cyndi there this year (not sure if it was the same person). I told her I wanted a quote for a future purchase so I could determine how much I need to save but she never wanted to give me anything in writing by email while Wana RV Center and RV Direct had no problem giving me a detailed price immediately. No pressure at all. Others have had good things to say about RVW so it may just be Cyndi at the heart of this.

IMO, the Equalizer L brackets should have been installed if that's in your agreement but it would still have to be setup for your TV by a local dealer. Make sure CW does that for you. But to be fair to RVW, the sofa style is "subject to change without notice" by Forest River and that may be what RVW is trying to tell you. I don't think the sofa style is an option that FR offers. If you prefer the air bed sofa to the jackknife sofa I hope they will be able to do that for you.

[KDHfan]

To be completely honest, I don't think your situation is all too terrible. I wouldn't want anyone setting up a WDH without my vehicle being present. There's both an angle and height adjustments so not sure if it can even be done (not that I know... But just my opinion). So... You basically got the wrong sofa-bed because they didn't pull it out and check it on the PDI. Something that I think can be easily overlooked (but not excusable).
Ours showed up without the oven. That's an elephant-in-the-room blunder. However, It wasn't in our contract so they could have just said "sorry"... But, even after we signed the contract, our sales guy admitted it was his mistake and gave us cash back.

Yes... You're now at the mercy of Camping World... Who has no incentive to bust tail to make it right. This time of year, I'm sure they're swamped with taking care of their own customers... Some of whom have much bigger problems than a wrong sofa.

Hope this all works out for you.

[kfree1711]

All,

Yes, I agree about the equalizer hitch install. RVW did ask for the measurement to the middle of my receiver and I gave it to them. In fact, on my invoice and purchase agreement and quote it says purchase and installation of equalizer hitch. So...if I paid for the installation of the hitch and it is listed this way on my invoice, PA and quote, one would assume that someone should install it.

As far as the bed, yes, it does not compare the the blunder of a missing oven. However, when I went through the effort of having RVW list all the features, in writing, and it was supposedly inspected by three (3) people, prior to delivery..just screams lack of QA from a pre-delivery process. My expectations are quite simple...just give me what I paid for..this is all I am asking.

The gentleman who delivered my ROO told me that this happens quite often (lack of detailed PDI) and is happening more and more frequently these days. In fact, he said that there were 2 times recently that he had to drive a trailer back (across country) to RVW because of things such as this.

[Dave_Monica]

Why wouldn't you get the hitch installed/set-up and go camping. No point in having the camper sit at a dealership waiting for the sleeper sofa. Have them call when it arrives and arrange to bring your camper in to swap them out.

Dave

[awellis3]

My experience with RVW has been the opposite but that doesn't help you.
Just out of personal curiosity, why did you spend so much time with Cyndi and Kelly and Lydia and Dallas if you weren't confident they were doing right by you? Why didn't you ask to speak to Mr. Durnan directly? (He's the owner who frequently visits this forum.)

[Gaffer222]

I believe RVW will do everything they can to make this right. You should make an agreement to have CW install the hitch and take delivery of your camper until the couch comes. You can then enjoy the camper and get the couch installed when it comes in. From I have seen on this forum, someone from RVW will respond soon and rectify the issue.

[bodzcampers]

Originally Posted by Gaffer222

I believe RVW will do everything they can to make this right. You should make an agreement to have CW install the hitch and take delivery of your camper until the couch comes. You can then enjoy the camper and get the couch installed when it comes in. From I have seen on this forum, someone from RVW will respond soon and rectify the issue.

This is genious my friend! Why wait around for a sofa? I'm sure the current one will do for sitting in the meantime. Get out with your Roo and enjoy yourself!

[Weezer]

If I understand correctly, the OP is refusing to sign the papers until it's all made right. (shrug) I'd do as others have stated, sign (with an exception written on the contract regarding the sofa) accept delivery and GO CAMPING!

An afterthought; will the current sofa be considered "used" if the OP takes delivery and goes camping?

[kfree1711]

To answer the above questions.

The way Camping World works (in Katy) is that they are not a Rockwood Roo Service Center. If I kept my ROO and then brought it in once the Sofa arrived, I would be placed at the back of the line for repairs. Since I left my Roo with them, as soon as the sofa arrives, it will be done in 24 hours.

I have many camping trips planned in June and need my Roo.

Also, I did ask to speak with the owner. However, both Dallas and Cyndi would not connect me.

The simple fact is that I did not get what I ordered and RVW dropped the ball.
I hope they can make it right and actually deliver on what I purchased.

It is that simple. Maybe it pales in comparison to not having an oven in the RV but it is simple business ethics. Do what you say you are going to do and get it right the first time.

[bodzcampers]

Um, Yah! Have you read the threads? The simple business ethics are never simple. There's always something wrong, it's cat and mouse about where you buy your RV from as to whether or not they will honor warranty and do the work. There's no lemon law, virtually no consumerism. I gave up trying to "figger" it out. It's the RV bus'ness. A whole new animal that defies logic including the vast majority of the workforce is 8th grade prepared. Love it and wouldn't stop doing it.

[kfree1711]

Bodz - :-) agree...

[KMP44]

Originally Posted by itat

But to be fair to RVW, the sofa style is "subject to change without notice" by Forest River and that may be what RVW is trying to tell you. I don't think the sofa style is an option that FR offers. If you prefer the air bed sofa to the jackknife sofa I hope they will be able to do that for you.

No - the jacknife sofa is the standard and the air bed sofa is an option. And if you need a third bed, this is a big deal. No ordinary human can sleep on a 58" long bed. One can be unbolted and replaced with the other to fix the error.

But if the unit was supposed to have it, that's how it should have been delivered. If they are blaming FR, I suppose it could have listed the option from the factory, but been built incorrectly with the standard couch. In that case, you wouldn't catch it in a PDI unless you pulled it out and looked. I don't know if verifying every listed option is a part of a dealer inspection or if they just check mechanicals and things like that.

Or the dealer could have just missed it and/or sent them the wrong unit if they had more than one. Either way, hopefully they get fixed quickly so the OP can start enjoying the new camper. We love ours!

[kfree1711]

In the 2014 an 2015 models, there are two (2) ways to really tell what type of sofa it is.

1. Actually opening it to see if in fact it is an airbed sofa
2. There size of the drawer (under the sofa) is different. The Jackknife sofa has a small drawer and the Airbed sofa has a large drawer. This is what RVW and FR told me.

I am somewhat confident that this will all be corrected and I will at some point actually have what I purchased. I am just irritated that the dealer didn't do a thorough walkthrough.

[lbrjet]

If it was specified on the purchase order then it is FR's fault. I wouldn't blame RVW if this is the case. They would have expected (and assumed it was installed) the correct couch as you did. You would still be waiting for a new couch right now whether the trailer is in Ohio or Texas.

[kfree1711]

Agreed to a point. I also do not think it solely a FR issue. A few moments ago, I learned (from a source I will not mention) that RVW had my RV labeled as a 'rush job' and I am not sure why as I told RVW that any if the next 3 weekends were OK with me. I also learned that RVW redid / re-sealed both my bedroom canopies prior to delivery. This makes sense as my back bedroom had silicone all over the outside (looked like sloppy work) and the edges were very tacky (from a touch perspective).

Maybe they were trying to get it delivered and 'sold' before the EOM? Hence the reason for the rush?

So...they had to have done some type of PDI I am assuming? If FR messed up, RVW should have caught it during PDI unless (as someone told me today) they were trying to get it off the lot and sold.
Once delivered and sold, they could deal with the issue after the fact.

Gets more interesting as the day goes on...:-)

[itat]

Originally Posted by KMP44

No - the jacknife sofa is the standard and the air bed sofa is an option. And if you need a third bed, this is a big deal. No ordinary human can sleep on a 58" long bed. One can be unbolted and replaced with the other to fix the error.

But if the unit was supposed to have it, that's how it should have been delivered. If they are blaming FR, I suppose it could have listed the option from the factory, but been built incorrectly with the standard couch. In that case, you wouldn't catch it in a PDI unless you pulled it out and looked. I don't know if verifying every listed option is a part of a dealer inspection or if they just check mechanicals and things like that.

Or the dealer could have just missed it and/or sent them the wrong unit if they had more than one. Either way, hopefully they get fixed quickly so the OP can start enjoying the new camper. We love ours!

I stand corrected. Thanks, KMP44. Just checked FR' Roo website and the hide-a-bed IS an option on the 23IKSS model. It isn't on the trailer I was pricing from RVW. I agree that an adult can't sleep on a jackknife sofa and if that's the OP's requirement, it's critical to being able to enjoy the camper.

I think it's completely reasonable to expect RVW to verify every factory option and every mechanical system before they have it delivered. Obviously they didn't verify the correct sofa was installed in this case. They didn't mess up the build but they did owe it to their customer to verify it before shipping.

I would suggest that the OP work with RVW and not take an adversarial approach. The hitch install is an easy fix and has to be done post-delivery anyway, but getting the correct sofa shipped by FR to CW and getting CW to install it quickly will take some good will.

[OldCoot]

I wouldn't sign anything until the camper is the way you ordered it. In fact, if you have money down on it, I would give them a date at which time you will be contacting a lawyer for a total refund. There is no excuse for the problems. As long as you 'pussyfoot' around with them the longer they will prolong it by blaming so & so, etc.