Long Distance Purchase

thommfl250 · Sep 3, 2014

On a Elkridge 29RSKA. This is my first RV purchase. I'm concerned about warranty work. From what I was told. The work is done by a mobile RV service. Delivery is about 1800 dollars. The walk through is done when it arrives at your location though. Any advice or recommendations is appreciated.

I wanted to buy closer to home but there are none available.

Thank you

branson4020 · Sep 3, 2014

Re: Long Distance Puchase

My delivery guy didn't want to spend 10 minutes doing a walk-through and new NOTHING about my model trailer. YMMV. Also, you'll be able to get warranty work done wherever you want (well, wherever you can.) Heartland won't mandate a particular repair facility.

westxsrt10 · Sep 3, 2014

Re: Long Distance Puchase

Please post more information on your purchase so we can help......$1800 delivery is ok if your 1500miles away.

danemayer · Sep 3, 2014

Re: Long Distance Puchase

You might do better to drive to the dealer and tow it home yourself. You'll get a much, much better walkthrough. And if you find things in the PDI or in the next few days while staying at or near the dealer, you'll be able to get those things taken care of right away (assuming you work that out in advance with both sales and service).

Once home you'll need to locate a Heartland dealer willing to provide warranty service for a non-customer living in their area. Or you can get prior approval from Heartland to use a non-Heartland dealer or independent servicer. If you use mobile service, you'll end up paying the travel charges because they're not covered by warranty.

Jim.Allison · Sep 3, 2014

Re: Long Distance Puchase

I live in San Antonio Texas, I drove to Ohio to pick up my rig. but the delivery fee in my pocket and got a good price from a volume dealer. When the local dealer told me that I would have to rent hotels and buy food, I asked him if he forgot what it was I was buying? We went to Ohio and enjoyed the trip, we camped all the way back. It was great.

And they did a great walkthrough with us. It is my experience now that the walk through is driven by the customer. Its easy to tell the tech that you understand something when you really don't. But what you should do it play dumb on everything and make them show you and your wife how something works and what should you do to maintain it. I did not listen during the walkthrough, that made my DW the boss for several weeks until I cought on. I'm now the expert, but I had to catch up. Drive the walkthrough, get what you want from it.

As far a warranty is concerned, I guarantee that the service manager would shoot the sales manager for telling someone that they would not perform warranty service on a rig bought elsewhere. Heartland would have something to say about it too. But think of it this way, how likely do you think it is that you will see anyone from teh sales department when you take your rig in to get it serviced.

You must also put into perspective what is the better customer? One that is getting warranty service or one that needs $5k worth of work but can only afford $900. I would choose the warranty work, its a bird nest on the ground, requires on quoting and the buyer of the service can afford it.

The upshot is that it is Bee eeS that your dealer would decline warranty work. There is some chance that they might push your rig back in favor of one of their own customers, but not a likely chance. If you are ever asked where you bought the rig, you should just say that you bought it where you bought it, claim that you have a home there too. lol, you can play the game too, can't you?

Find a good internet deal, and go get that rig, it will be fun and if you have warranty work, I promise it will work out for you.

Good luck.

danemayer · Sep 3, 2014

Re: Long Distance Puchase

Jim.Allison said:
I live in San Antonio Texas, I drove to Ohio to pick up my rig. but the delivery fee in my pocket and got a good price from a volume dealer. When the local dealer told me that I would have to rent hotels and buy food, I asked him if he forgot what it was I was buying? We went to Ohio and enjoyed the trip, we camped all the way back. It was great.

And they did a great walkthrough with us. It is my experience now that the walk through is driven by the customer. Its easy to tell the tech that you understand something when you really don't. But what you should do it play dumb on everything and make them show you and your wife how something works and what should you do to maintain it. I did not listen during the walkthrough, that made my DW the boss for several weeks until I cought on. I'm now the expert, but I had to catch up. Drive the walkthrough, get what you want from it.

As far a warranty is concerned, I guarantee that the service manager would shoot the sales manager for telling someone that they would not perform warranty service on a rig bought elsewhere. Heartland would have something to say about it too. But think of it this way, how likely do you think it is that you will see anyone from teh sales department when you take your rig in to get it serviced.

You must also put into perspective what is the better customer? One that is getting warranty service or one that needs $5k worth of work but can only afford $900. I would choose the warranty work, its a bird nest on the ground, requires on quoting and the buyer of the service can afford it.

The upshot is that it is Bee eeS that your dealer would decline warranty work. There is some chance that they might push your rig back in favor of one of their own customers, but not a likely chance. If you are ever asked where you bought the rig, you should just say that you bought it where you bought it, claim that you have a home there too. lol, you can play the game too, can't you?

Find a good internet deal, and go get that rig, it will be fun and if you have warranty work, I promise it will work out for you.

Good luck.

Jim, you need to research this more.

There are many posts on this forum where owners have been refused warranty service because they bought from a distant dealer to get a better price. Not too long ago the manager of a Houston area dealer explained his rationale for doing so. And as for what Heartland would have to say, I'm sure they would point you to their published brochure and website advice to buy local and explain that they cannot force a dealer to provide warranty service to someone who bought elsewhere.

Wmnmy · Sep 3, 2014

Re: Long Distance Puchase

danemayer said:
Jim, you need to research this more.

There are many posts on this forum where owners have been refused warranty service because they bought from a distant dealer to get a better price. Not too long ago the manager of a Houston area dealer explained his rationale for doing so. And as for what Heartland would have to say, I'm sure they would point you to their published brochure and website advice to buy local and explain that they cannot force a dealer to provide warranty service to someone who bought elsewhere.

Ditto X2......................................well said

jnbhobe · Sep 3, 2014

Re: Long Distance Puchase

Thats more like the way it is done Dan !!

Westwind · Sep 3, 2014

Re: Long Distance Puchase

The problem is I only use the FW that I bought 4 hours away in Florida which is 1400 miles from home and 1600+ miles from my dealer. When my HW heater thermostat gave out I took it to a Camping World, not such a good choice, I ended up working with Heartland on warranty coveage. When the HW heater didn't work a second time because the outside switch failed I got a Mobile Repair service out of warranty. I have a list of things that I repaired, all of them minor. The only major was a hydraulic piston that pushes the slide in and out had a nut that fell off caused it to not operate. Again I fixed that also. Trust me, I'm handy but mechanical stuff is not something I'm good at.
I did have a very honest, professional dealer to work with so check on the rep of the one you are dealing with.

Jim.Allison · Sep 4, 2014

Re: Long Distance Puchase

Direct me to that information please I would like to read it. This would be a case of the tail wagging the dog. Plus can you imagine a business that refuses warranty work? Thats a joke, no business man turns business away. Have you ever heard a businessman leaving money on the table. Im sure its the exception not the rule.

Well it worked for me, my warranty is up anyway and I never had to take mine to a dealer, so if someone wants to be bullied into paying two prices for a rig then its cool with me, but I would like to see that link.

That Houston dealer needs to get with the program, cause the marketplace is changing and the next generation to buy RV's will be buying them off the net, just like I did, And if you don't sell on the net you will be out of business.

It is noteworthy that I do not have a warranty with a dealer, I have a warranty with Heartland, and they can fly someone down here on a private jet to fix it if they want to.

Wmnmy said:
Ditto X2......................................well said

thommfl250 · Sep 4, 2014

Re: Long Distance Puchase

Thank you for the informative replies. The dealer was upfront with me about warranty service. He did stay that local shops. Take care of their buying customers first (understood). I'm just concerned about mobile repair.

Anyway. if I buy from the whole sale dealer. I'll drive there and pick it up. Just need to look into this mobile service. What repairs are they limited too and quality of work.

Dealer is in north central part of the country. I'm in south east Florida. Until I can escape.

danemayer · Sep 4, 2014

Re: Long Distance Puchase

Jim.Allison said:
Direct me to that information please I would like to read it. This would be a case of the tail wagging the dog. Plus can you imagine a business that refuses warranty work? Thats a joke, no business man turns business away. Have you ever heard a businessman leaving money on the table. Im sure its the exception not the rule.

Well it worked for me, my warranty is up anyway and I never had to take mine to a dealer.

Here's the text from the Heartland website, at the bottom of the dealer locator page. Emphasis added.

Where you purchase your recreational vehicle is ultimately your decision but Heartland urges you to consider buying at your local dealer. Dealers are part of your community, providing jobs and contributing to your local economy. These dealers are under obligation to provide warranty service for products they sell, but are not legally required to service products purchased from other dealers. At some point, you may need to return to the dealer you buy from - why not stay close to home? After all, home is where your Heartland is!

Stop by the service shop at any RV dealership and you'll notice that they are pretty busy and might be described as overloaded with work, especially during camping season. When you have your own customers stacked up, anxiously waiting to get their rigs back, working on problems for people who saved money buying elsewhere isn't high on your priority list. Add to that the reimbursement for warranty work, much of which comes from the component manufacturers, is less than what the dealership gets for non-warranty work. If you already have more than enough work, and much of it is at the higher hourly rate, what's the incentive to squeeze in a lower-paying job for someone who didn't want to buy their rig from you?

Most dealers will tell you that they will help non-customers who are on a trip. But it may be a different story for non-customers who live locally but bought far away to get a better price.

We bought from a distant dealer and towed the rig home. All of our warranty service was done by a non-Heartland dealer that was authorized by Heartland by virtue of having long ago sold a few Heartland products. Even though they were busy, they did welcome the additional work. But as many people have found out, not every dealer does.

TravelTiger · Sep 4, 2014

The good news is that Heartland can authorize someone to do warranty work before you have it done. Mobile techs, non-Heartland dealers, etc. So if your local dealer is not able (or states they won't) do the work, there are alternatives.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

dbbls59 · Sep 4, 2014

I once overheard a RV salesman state "If it is not to far go to buy it, it is not to far to go for service". He said this as a Jayco owner who purchased a unit elsewhere was walking out of a Jayco dealership grumbling that service would not work on his unit. The dealerships were about 60 miles apart.

jbeletti · Sep 4, 2014

Have you tried Le Mesa in Port St. Lucie? They may be the closest ElkRidge dealer to you.

guyc66 · Sep 4, 2014

I've owned two fifthwheels in the last 14 years. The first was another brand that we had for nearly eleven years purchased from a dealer about 5 hours drive away who saved us thousands of dollars from the best deal the local dealer would offer. Since the manufacturer warranty was only good for 1 year and we only had a few minor issues over the 11 years of ownership (I fixed them myself) the savings worked out in our favor. When we were ready to upgrade our RV we looked at the local dealers, but they would not even come close to the deals we were offered out of state. Of course they tried to work the "we only provide warranty service to locally purchased RVs" angle with me, but I only considered that a small factor in my decision making process. Ultimately, we purchased our Landmark from a dealer about 420 miles away due to the amazing deal they worked for us (to include our trade). I even paid for them to deliver and tow our trade back to the dealership (I think it cost me about $900) and yes, the PDI went fairly quick but I can figure out about anything on an RV if given enough time so I didn't really press for an extended PDI. Again, the warranty was only for 2 years and never had anything but a few minor issues come up which I easily repaired so once again I think I came out way ahead on the deal. Oh yeah, the two local dealers who tried so hard to work the warranty service work line on me.....both went out of business less than a year after we made the out-of-state purchase from another dealer. I will be the first to admit that having a local dealer available to do warranty work is a wonderful thing (if and when you need it) but you have to decide for yourself how important that is to you and how much extra your willing to pay for that comfort level......for me it was a no brainer - it wasn't worth over $5k more.

thommfl250 · Sep 4, 2014

jbeletti said:
Have you tried Le Mesa in Port St. Lucie? They may be the closest ElkRidge dealer to you.

I did and I liked the place. It's new location and they're still finishing up some work on the buildings. Looks impressive though.

The staff were helpful, patient and knowledgeable. I bombarded them with my E-research questions.

They did not have the 29 RSKA Elkridge and wanted to sell whats on their lot (understandably). I would like to buy from them. They're about 1 1/2 hr from me. They did tell me they'll notify me if one comes in. I hope it's before the Canadian Invasion. No offense meant to Canucks.

danemayer · Sep 4, 2014

thommfl250 said:
I did and I liked the place. It's new location and they're still finishing up some work on the buildings. Looks impressive though.

The staff were helpful, patient and knowledgeable. I bombarded them with my E-research questions.

They did not have the 29 RSKA Elkridge and wanted to sell whats on their lot (understandably). I would like to buy from them. They're about 1 1/2 hr from me. They did tell me they'll notify me if one comes in. I hope it's before the Canadian Invasion. No offense meant to Canucks.

There's no reason the dealer can't order exactly what you want.

Jim.Allison · Sep 4, 2014

Re: Long Distance Puchase

One thing for sure. If a service department ever does declines my business because of where I bought my rig; the sales department can rest assured that I will never cast a shadow in their doorway, ever!

The tail never wags the dog.........

But warranty is not really the issue, Heartland can and does locate people to make warranty repairs. The discounts are sooooooo deep you can just pay to have work done when you need it. If you need it.

JohnD · Sep 4, 2014

Re: Long Distance Puchase . . .

Here is my experience . . .

My dealer was happy to sell me my 2013 Heartland Trail Runner 22RK (RK stands for 'Rear Kitchen') . . .

The one and only good thing about my dealership was that they were about 15 miles from my house.

But when it came to warranty repairs . . . they were less than happy that I called their phone number and tried to schedule a warranty repair!

They wanted nothing . . . absolutely nothing to do with any warranty repairs!

In otherwords . . . once they sold my the trailer, they were hoping that they'd never ever see me ever again!

Now that my warranty is up on my Heartland travel trailer . . . my dealership will NEVER EVER see me EVER again!

And that includes when I might upgrade my RV in a few years . . .

I am going to go to the dealership right next door to them for all of my service issues from this day forward!

The dealership that I bought my trailer from doesn't seem to be interested in my customer loyalship or any return business I might send their way . . .

And I've already sent them another customer who purchased a Heartland North Trail RV . . . ask me and I'll post their name (dealership) here!

Seems that once they sold my me Heartland RV . . . all they were interested in now is selling someone else a new RV, and has absolutely NO INTEREST is the customer service end of the bargain!

It seems that Heartland doesn't care who sells their RV's, either . . . as long as they move them off of their lots!

Sad, indeed . . .

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