# Threats From Local Dealership



## taves (Feb 11, 2008)

I visited a local dealership today to get an idea on what they would do for pricing on a new 28KRS. Eventually, the salesman came around to the topic of out of town (or in our case, out of COUNTRY) purchases. He stated clearly that their dealership would put such an RV at the very bottom of the service list.









Furthermore, he stated that warranty work would have to be paid up front, and that the owner would have to go back to Keystone or to the selling dealer for payment.

Is this true?









IslandKLR


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## jedmunson (Apr 14, 2006)

Our local dealer threatened the same thing - I called Keystone. First, I told Keystone what the dealer told me and then Keystone gave me names of several other authorized repair shops in my area. They were Keystone dealers that DID NOT sell Outbacks, but were authorized to work on ALL Keystone RV's.

Call Keystone and see if there are one or 2 near you. Also, remember that this is only an issue for the 1 year warranty. After that, its your dime and you can take it anywhere else you want.

As for us, we have never had her in for anything







We are about to have our 3rd anniversary with her and she is still VERY much just like she was delivered!

Happy Camping - Hope this helps!

Jennifer


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## Gary (Dec 9, 2007)

Make sure you go over eveything with a fine tooth comb on the PDI.
On this site is a PDI check list.
Try and find it its real complete.
Gary


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## Y-Guy (Jan 30, 2004)

Yes, a dealer can do that. Thought I don't like it at all, do see why some pull this stunt. Personally I'd avoid that dealership all together, name their name here so others know, and be sure to spread the word. If a dealer is close in price I would encourage you to keep business local, but some of them seem like they are just trying to hose the consumer. A great source of competitive prices is from Lakeshore RV - many Outbackers have bought from them with great experiences. In my case I took the online price to my dealership and did the renegotiating from there. They still tease me about if I would have gone to MI to pick it up.


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## Gary (Dec 9, 2007)

Y-Guy said:


> Yes, a dealer can do that. Thought I don't like it at all, do see why some pull this stunt. Personally I'd avoid that dealership all together, name their name here so others know, and be sure to spread the word. If a dealer is close in price I would encourage you to keep business local, but some of them seem like they are just trying to hose the consumer. A great source of competitive prices is from Lakeshore RV - many Outbackers have bought from them with great experiences. In my case I took the online price to my dealership and did the renegotiating from there. They still tease me about if I would have gone to MI to pick it up.


When I told my local dealer that I could buy two of the in MI for the price he was asking. He more or less said go ahead and hung up the phone on me.
They didn't want to deal with someone who did a little checking around.
Maybe they sell only to people that drive in on a sunny day and buy the first one they see.
you don't need to sell many to make big bucks.
Gary


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## ColoradoChip (Jan 21, 2008)

Gary said:


> Yes, a dealer can do that. Thought I don't like it at all, do see why some pull this stunt. Personally I'd avoid that dealership all together, name their name here so others know, and be sure to spread the word. If a dealer is close in price I would encourage you to keep business local, but some of them seem like they are just trying to hose the consumer. A great source of competitive prices is from Lakeshore RV - many Outbackers have bought from them with great experiences. In my case I took the online price to my dealership and did the renegotiating from there. They still tease me about if I would have gone to MI to pick it up.


When I told my local dealer that I could buy two of the in MI for the price he was asking. He more or less said go ahead and hung up the phone on me.
They didn't want to deal with someone who did a little checking around.
Maybe they sell only to people that drive in on a sunny day and buy the first one they see.
you don't need to sell many to make big bucks.
Gary
[/quote]

I recently had the same experiance her in Colorado. The local dealership, Steve Caseys told me upfront before I even started negotiating with them that they would only service their own customers from May through September. I got a price from them, and then got a price from Lakeshore. I got the dealership here to come within about $1000 of the lakeshore price, but I got a new 2007 instead of a 2008. I also got the tires replaced, and got them to throw in a second battery, a primus brake controller, and an equalizer hitch. On a side note, I wish that I would have specified that I wanted two Trojan 105s. I haven't used the tt yet, but I've already ordered two trojan 105s.

I called Keystone, and they said that the local dealership service policy was very common, and that they supported their dealerships in that regard. I ended up paying a bit more for the 2007, but it was still a good deal, and I got the warm fuzzies of a walkthrough. Since it's winter in Colorado, I haven't been able to de-winterize, and that was a concern for me. If I need something fixed in a few months on my new tt, I want it done locally in a timely manner. If I had the time to go to Michigan or Ohio and camp out, I would have done that. Being my first non-pop up, I just felt more comfortable dealing locally. That said, Marci at Lakeshore was absolutely amazing. She sent me the tire recall info and rebate info, and was extremely helpful. If you are comfortable enough with RVs to knwo what you are getting yourself into, call her and buy your tt from her. Good luck!


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## Txcamper (Apr 3, 2006)

That seems like the norm, they all say that.


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## bradnbecca (Feb 12, 2007)

That seems like the same kind of deal that Holiday World in Houston gives customers that *DO* buy from them, lol.

Service seems to be a crapshoot, regardless of who you buy from. We are fortunate to have a stand-alone service facility here that does Keystone warranty work. Since they are totally dependent on service work for their income, and don't sell RV's, they have an incentive to do the work correctly and in a timely manner. I don't know where you are, but you might want to check for someone similar in your area.

If I had it to do all over again, I would have bought our OB from one of the discount dealers.

I went all the way to California to buy our Everest, and have not regretted it once.


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## taves (Feb 11, 2008)

ColoradoChip said:


> Yes, a dealer can do that. Thought I don't like it at all, do see why some pull this stunt. Personally I'd avoid that dealership all together, name their name here so others know, and be sure to spread the word. If a dealer is close in price I would encourage you to keep business local, but some of them seem like they are just trying to hose the consumer. A great source of competitive prices is from Lakeshore RV - many Outbackers have bought from them with great experiences. In my case I took the online price to my dealership and did the renegotiating from there. They still tease me about if I would have gone to MI to pick it up.


When I told my local dealer that I could buy two of the in MI for the price he was asking. He more or less said go ahead and hung up the phone on me.
They didn't want to deal with someone who did a little checking around.
Maybe they sell only to people that drive in on a sunny day and buy the first one they see.
you don't need to sell many to make big bucks.
Gary
[/quote]

I recently had the same experiance her in Colorado. The local dealership, Steve Caseys told me upfront before I even started negotiating with them that they would only service their own customers from May through September. I got a price from them, and then got a price from Lakeshore. I got the dealership here to come within about $1000 of the lakeshore price, but I got a new 2007 instead of a 2008. I also got the tires replaced, and got them to throw in a second battery, a primus brake controller, and an equalizer hitch. On a side note, I wish that I would have specified that I wanted two Trojan 105s. I haven't used the tt yet, but I've already ordered two trojan 105s.

I called Keystone, and they said that the local dealership service policy was very common, and that they supported their dealerships in that regard. I ended up paying a bit more for the 2007, but it was still a good deal, and I got the warm fuzzies of a walkthrough. Since it's winter in Colorado, I haven't been able to de-winterize, and that was a concern for me. If I need something fixed in a few months on my new tt, I want it done locally in a timely manner. If I had the time to go to Michigan or Ohio and camp out, I would have done that. Being my first non-pop up, I just felt more comfortable dealing locally. That said, Marci at Lakeshore was absolutely amazing. She sent me the tire recall info and rebate info, and was extremely helpful. If you are comfortable enough with RVs to knwo what you are getting yourself into, call her and buy your tt from her. Good luck!
[/quote]

All things being almost equal, I would rather support the local dealership. However, I really think the local dealership is overcharging - probably about $8,000 when everything is done. We'll see.... The bigger issue though, is that they may have to give up a sale and lose the quick hit on the initial profit, but then they will create ill will and lose out on years of maintenance and extras. Very short-sighted of them.









I think the PDI will be extra important if we don't buy locally.

Thanks for all the good info!


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## Lady Di (Oct 28, 2005)

Like others have said, if the price dir=fference is significant, you might want to get it at a better price elsewhere, and just find another Keystone Authorizzed dealer to do the warranty work, or any other service.

We got ours used, and found a dealer who sells other Keystone products, but not Outbacks and use them.

For us it would actually be farther to take it to the OB dealer.


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## 'Ohana (May 20, 2007)

Lady Di said:


> Like others have said, if the price dir=fference is significant, you might want to get it at a better price elsewhere, and just find another Keystone Authorizzed dealer to do the warranty work, or any other service.
> 
> We got ours used, and found a dealer who sells other Keystone products, but not Outbacks and use them.
> 
> For us it would actually be farther to take it to the OB dealer.


Just curious,







who might that dealer be









Ed


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## Piecemaker (Nov 15, 2007)

We also was told by several dealers that if did not buy from them they would
put us on the bottom of the list for service.

My question is if any one of us were traveling out of state and had a problem with our tt 
would there still be a sevice issue?









Brian


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## Lady Di (Oct 28, 2005)

Piecemakers said:


> My question is if any one of us were traveling out of state and had a problem with our tt
> would there still be a sevice issue?
> 
> 
> ...


Good question.

Sounds like there are dealerw who just don't play fair.


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## Ghosty (Jan 17, 2005)

I drove 400 miles to pick up my trailer -- saved almost 3000 ...

Then when I bought it back and had numerous warranty issues I called Keystone who provided me a list of all the authorized THOR and KEYSTONE Service locations...

The dealer that I have my trailer fixed initially under warranty is one of the most expensive CLASS A Motor Home dealers in the world... they have Class A coaches that are 750,000$$$ ....

But they ARE a Keystone authorized repair center -- so i called them -- they said bring my trailer down -- I set in there million dollar lounge area drinking cappuccinos while they looked at my trailer -- told me that it would be ready in 4 days .. and i left ..

Did fantastic work --

so no -- buy from the cheapest place you can find ... and then call Keystone and find a local service center that can service the trailer for warranty work ...


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## Oregon_Camper (Sep 13, 2004)

Might be able to find a repair company that comes to YOU.

http://www.mobilervrepair.com/

Look in your area...if you have one like the link above, you're set!!


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## taves (Feb 11, 2008)

Piecemakers said:


> We also was told by several dealers that if did not buy from them they would
> put us on the bottom of the list for service.
> 
> My question is if any one of us were traveling out of state and had a problem with our tt
> ...


I was told that if the trailer had an out of province, ok, out of state







license plate, they would take care of a repair right away to get the customer on their way and help them out. If however, it had a local plate and it wasn't bought from them - bottom of the service list. That's just, well, stupid.


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## Moosegut (Sep 24, 2005)

I keep my boat at a storage facility just off of Lake George, NY that also has a full-service shop that does any mechanical work a boat requires. They, OF COURSE, take care of their customers with a bit more . . . shall we say, preference(?) than someone who drives in off the street - and I expect that because I've been PAYING them for years to service my boat.

When they have boats in the shop and I want something done, my boat goes on the list and it gets done in order with the other customers. I have also been there when I pulled my boat from the lake and taken it to them and they dropped everything to fix it - and they would work on it until it was fixed as long as it didn't bump another regular customer's emergency. They know we're only there for vacation so they try to get us up and running. And they really would do the same for anyone who came in with a problem that could be fixed without bumping steady customers out of their vacation time.

I think that is just good business practice - take care of your regular, loyal customers first. These guys don't tell people to take a hike if they aren't regular customers but they also don't bump regular customers for non-customers. And they don't put non-customers at the bottom of the list and let them languish there - they take care of them as they can. They will try to get anyone up and running in an "emergency" but, I gotta tell ya, if my boat is in the shop and I'm waiting for it, and you come in thinking that you should get your boat out ahead of mine - and they do it, I wouldn't be a customer for long. Don't we all expect that when we are regular customers?

I think a lot of the angst over this could be alleviated if the service and sales people were a bit more tactful. I really think they all do the same as the boat place - they take care of their customers AND others, but they could explain the way the priority works a little better.

My 2 cents.


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## j1mfrog (Jun 6, 2004)

It seems to me that if I were a dealer, I would try to earn my customers with good service. Then, next time they've got a case of 1-footitus, I'd be the first dealer they think of.

I guess things don't work that way in the real world.


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## Oregon_Camper (Sep 13, 2004)

IslandKLR said:


> We also was told by several dealers that if did not buy from them they would
> put us on the bottom of the list for service.
> 
> My question is if any one of us were traveling out of state and had a problem with our tt
> ...


I was told that if the trailer had an out of province, ok, out of state







license plate, they would take care of a repair right away to get the customer on their way and help them out. If however, it had a local plate and it wasn't bought from them - bottom of the service list. That's just, well, stupid.

[/quote]

So...their policy is once you've done the legal requirement of getting you TV licened in the state you live it (theirs), they won't help yo you service?

I'd never stop at their location again...


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## taves (Feb 11, 2008)

Oregon_Camper said:


> We also was told by several dealers that if did not buy from them they would
> put us on the bottom of the list for service.
> 
> My question is if any one of us were traveling out of state and had a problem with our tt
> ...


I was told that if the trailer had an out of province, ok, out of state







license plate, they would take care of a repair right away to get the customer on their way and help them out. If however, it had a local plate and it wasn't bought from them - bottom of the service list. That's just, well, stupid.

[/quote]

So...their policy is once you've done the legal requirement of getting you TV licened in the state you live it (theirs), they won't help yo you service?

I'd never stop at their location again...








[/quote]

Well, no they will eventually get around to providing service. Just at the very bottom of the list. They must provide warranty service since Keystone requires all their dealers to honour their warranty. Just that it will be low priority. They said that I would have to pay up front too, and then get reimbursed by Keystone - which would could take a long time.


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## tdvffjohn (Mar 10, 2005)

Thats the part I do not understand. If it is warranty work, they can and will get paid by Keystone. Making you a middleman is just wrong.

The who gets priority is more normal just not tactfully said.

John


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## taves (Feb 11, 2008)

tdvffjohn said:


> Thats the part I do not understand. If it is warranty work, they can and will get paid by Keystone. Making you a middleman is just wrong.
> 
> The who gets priority is more normal just not tactfully said.
> 
> John


What I've sort of picked up in various conversations is that the warranty work is paid by the manufacturer at a possibly lower rate then the shop's going rate and/or, that it takes awhile to get paid. I guess that unless someone who is a dealer or has worked at a dealership posts with some comments we won't know for sure.

Marci? :


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## Y-Guy (Jan 30, 2004)

Bingo. From my understanding all manufacturers do this. To repair item X they ship the part and will pay up to a certain number of hours at their warranty rate - if it takes longer the dealer eats it, thus its part of the margin they made when selling the trailer. I can see a local dealer not wanting to eat it if they didn't make the sale if the manufacturer is a tightwad and not allowing enough time or paying enough of the salary.


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