Wholesalers and Warranty Work

mickmey

Member
Hello! New here. My family is looking to purchase a Cyclone 3800. We've been less than impressed with our local dealers (more than just price). They've used some crappy tactics (telling us it was still available...we drive 1 1/2 hours and find out it's sold and will have to wait 8 weeks for a new one).

My mom (this will be a 3-generational-use TH between my folks, my husband and I and our 2-month old) spoke with Holman RV in Ohio. We are happy with their price and everything so far...except the answer on warranty work.

We're looking at having it shipped, and we've been told if there are deficiencies, they will have to be fixed under warranty (unless it's road damage). So, I called around to several Heartland dealers in our area. We've gotten the "We don't service units from wholesalers" response.

This has me super nervous. Especially since we're military. Even if we do buy "local" it won't be local for long!

So, has anyone bought from Holman RV and later had trouble getting warranty work done? Also, has anyone had trouble getting warranty work done when away from their home dealer?

Thank you!
 

tweber

Founding Wisconsin Chapter Leader-Retired
Welcome to the Heartland family. Please consider joining the Heartland Owners Club. Click on the Owners Club tab and you will have all the info about the club. I was in Branson, Mo and needed warranty work to repair a closet door. Heartland allowed a mobile tech to come to the camp ground to do the repair. I had to pay and send the receipt to Heartland, but I had my check within a month. Heartland will also help you locate a dealer that will work on your unit. You just need to call Heartland service and explain you are military and on the move. Thank you for serving our country. Good luck, and stay safe.
 

SJH

Past Washington Chapter Leaders
Hello!

I sent you a PM with our experience with a long distance purchase!
 

codycarver

Founding Wyoming Chapter Leader-retired
We bought our Big Horn from Holman. They had exactly what we wanted in stock. We visited with our local Heartland dealer who carries the Big Country (Really nice but not our taste) and he had no problem doing our warranty work if needed. Good news is to date we haven't had to have any done. I picked ours up and during the PDI I noticed some minor things that needed attention. They were taken care of while I looked on so if you can swing it I think it's worth the trip. As time goes by and our coach needs professional care I'll be visiting our local Heartland dealer again.
 

mickmey

Member
Thank you so much! I really appreciate all the input. I will definitely join the Heartland Owners Club when we purchase. I've already looked at the schedule for Rallys in TX! I would love to go pick it up in Holman, but my husband doesn't have the time off right now. My parents are retired, but somewhat mobility-limited. I'm a stay-at-home mom with our newborn who does Army Reserve duty on the weekends, but my husband is the active duty one. So, my folks and I could go...but Tom couldn't (and he's the detail-guy anyway!). So, we're looking at delivery.

We're super excited to get it, though! We've been looking for a long time for a 5er that suits ALL our needs. My dad can walk, but has a hard time moving quickly. He also only sleeps comfortably in a adjustable bed or recliner. So, we needed a 5er that would have a 1/2 bath and place to put a recliner. Then, we wanted a bunk area or loft for our daughter, future kids and all her friends (I was an only child, but my parents never went camping with less than 3 kiddos). We never considered a TH until we saw them at an RV show in Houston a couple weeks ago. Couldn't believe we found one that met every need and want!

Unfortunately, we had to buy a new truck! Our 1999 F350 DRW was only rated to 12,9K. That didn't come close. Of course, my hubby is real broken up over the brand new truck he's picking up on Friday!

Thank you all for your help. I really feel much better about this whole thing.
 

SouthernNights

Past South Carolina Chapter Leader
Hi mickmey,

We bought our BC from an internet 'wholesale" dealer however it was not Holman. I did email Holman but never recieved a response from them.
We ended up buying from a dealer in MI and we are in SC. When I gave the local dealer a chance to quote on what we were looking at he was not interested.
We ended up saving big$$$ dollars by going out of state.

The sales transaction went smooth. These big dealerships are definatley set up for these type of transactions. We did have a problem after we got the trailer and an option that the trailer had been listed as having was not there. It took HL to step in and make it right even though it was not a HL problem.

Can't help you with the warranty work. I never intended on bring it to a dealer for any reason. As you pointed out though, you move alot and the local dealer will no longer be local so buy on price.

If you guys do need warranty work and have a problem with the local dealer not wanting to work on it, give HL a call. They might be able to recommend someone in your area or even authorize a private repair service center to do the work as long as they know up front. But don't take my word for it. It might be worth a phone call to HL before you purchase and let them know of your situation and see what they say.
 

wyleyrabbit

Well-known member
This whole thing seems bizarre to me. If I have a problem with my GM truck, I can take it to any GM authorized dealer and get the warranty work done. Same for my wife's VW car.

I've read way too many posts on this, and quite frankly, this makes me afraid to take my Bighorn (which was meant for travelling) too far away from home for fear that if we do have a problem, nobody will fix it.

Why does Heartland allow its dealer network to refuse to do work on under-warranty Heartland units, regardless of where the unit was purchased from? Seems that authorized dealers should be required to do work on any under warranty unit, or risk their dealership's authorization. Comments anyone?
 

danemayer

Well-known member
I agree that dealer contracts should require warranty service and there should be incentives to help ensure dealers provide quality warranty service. This is what auto dealers do to build customer loyalty. But keep in mind that Heartland can choose to authorize warranty service wherever they want - meaning independents who don't sell Heartland products. And keep in mind that the vast majority of stuff requiring service will be industry components and assemblies. So while it's obviously better to have a local Heartland dealer ready to help, all is not lost if you don't.
 

gpshemi

Well-known member
I dealt with Holman RV when we were looking. Dealer was great with us, but ultimately admitted he couldn't hang with LakeShore RV. I don't think they're really a Wholesale dealer though are they? Lakeshore didn't have what I wanted at the time. I ended up getting a great deal from Arbogast. They were really great with the sale. I haven't had trouble getting service in Michigan.
 

hoefler

Well-known member
This could be easily remedied:
Call the prospective dealer, don't tell them you are interested in a purchase, yet.
Tell them you are traveling and have a issue that is warranty work, make something up.
If their response is negative, thank them for their time and hang up. Then select another dealer and start over.
If you receive a positive response, go shopping.

If every one would do this when shopping for a rig, in a matter of time, they would not be selling any rigs or change there ways. When Heartland notices these dealers not selling any more units in these areas, they might just wake up and take notice. They will either eliminate these dealers or force their hand and make them do the warranty work. I don't understand these dealer's attitude, they get paid for the work regardless of who is paying for it.
 

jayc

Texas-South Chapter Leaders
If you have a problem when on the road, call Heartland Customer Service and they will find a dealer near you that will perform the service for you. If there isn't one, they will allow another RV repair shop to do the repairs after notification.
 

Porkchop

Well-known member
Can someone pm me as well? I'm narrowing down my toy hauler list and heartland cyclone and torque are very high on the list. Thanks!
 

71stang99

Well-known member
I too have a few things that need to be addressed once I get the unit out of storage. I never had a chance to address the issues as I had it a short time before having to leave for work and putting it in storage. I dont know if I should call the wholesalers (from the midwest) or just call Heartland and see what they say?
 

danemayer

Well-known member
I dont know if I should call the wholesalers (from the midwest) or just call Heartland and see what they say?
If you're willing to drive back to the midwest, the selling dealer will surely take care of the warranty work for you. But no doubt you'd like to get it serviced locally. Call Heartland to find out which nearby dealers are authorized servicers. When you call to schedule service, don't volunteer unnecessary information, such as having bought out of state.

Regardless of what the sales people say when you're negotiating, the service team actually deals with people who bought locally, people who broke down nearby, people who have moved to the area, and people who bought out of state. The tech isn't sharing in the sales commission, so what does he care about the warning the sales guy gave you? And the sales team probably doesn't waste time watching who comes in the service entrance.

If one dealer is a pain and doesn't want to do the work, move on.

However, recognize that people are getting their rigs out of storage and others are buying. The service people are starting to get busy. If they have work stacked up, you'll probably have to wait your turn.
 

TwoGypsies

Well-known member
We bought from a wholesaler and have been on the road for months. We have contacted our Heartland Service Rep as & when needed. He has lined up a service facility at our location, or has authorized a mobile service company to do the needed work. It has worked very well. Unfortunately, our warranty has now expired. We are going to miss our Service Rep. We now have the various manufacturers to work with, e.g. Dometic & others as some components have extended warranty periods.
Congrats on the 3800 btw. We have a 3812 and are very happy with it. The flexibility of the garage has been awesome. The layout truly meets our needs.
 

jbeletti

Well-known member
...Unfortunately, our warranty has now expired. We are going to miss our Service Rep....

While you are out of warranty, your Heartland service rep will still be there for you to assist you by phone with issues, locate servicers, sell you parts etc.

Jim
 

TwoGypsies

Well-known member
Well that's cool! Dave is a great guy. I like the way the Service Reps are organized by region so we've always talked to one person who knows our rig and history.
Hopefully we'll have some future problems so we can talk to him some more.;)
 

SJH

Past Washington Chapter Leaders
My mom (this will be a 3-generational-use TH between my folks, my husband and I and our 2-month old) spoke with Holman RV in Ohio. We are happy with their price and everything so far...except the answer on warranty work.

We're looking at having it shipped, and we've been told if there are deficiencies, they will have to be fixed under warranty (unless it's road damage). So, I called around to several Heartland dealers in our area. We've gotten the "We don't service units from wholesalers" response.

This has me super nervous. Especially since we're military. Even if we do buy "local" it won't be local for long!

So, has anyone bought from Holman RV and later had trouble getting warranty work done? Also, has anyone had trouble getting warranty work done when away from their home dealer?

Thank you!

Hello!

I sent you a PM
 
Top