Purchasing Issues

[jpaul1218]

We are considering ordering a North Country 32BHDS, BUT, over the past weekend, a dealer in NJ told us that he would only service the trailers that he sell's, and that the other dealers that are going to sell North Country will also be servicing the units that they sell. This is really causing me some heartburn. Also, this dealer advised me that ordering a North Country from a wholesale dealer out of Michigan will cause me major problems regarding not getting safety glass, and several other options being left off of the trailer. Has any one purchased one of these units from a dealer that is not located near them?

One more, how flexible is Heartland building these trailers regarding optional installation of dinettes, furniture or other interior accessories?

I appreciate any insight.

Thanks.

 

[fljlcw]

we live in new mexico and ordered ours in elkhart in. and only had one warrenty issue just call heartland service and they will gladly set you up with nearest dealer hope to see you join the family of heartland soon fred

 

[bigredtruck]

we live in new mexico and ordered ours in elkhart in. and only had one warrenty issue just call heartland service and they will gladly set you up with nearest dealer hope to see you join the family of heartland soon fred

Ditto. we had a very good experience with Lakeshore RV (2300 miles away). We have heard about issues with getting warranty work done locally, but decided that the savings would pay for a lot of warranty work.
We have recently had an issue come up with one of the slide seals. I called Heartland and they (I forget the fellow's name) admitted that they are working on better service from dealers, but it the meantime, there was an independant shop nearby who would accept the job.
The work isn't complete yet (they are ordering the part) but they didn't try to get out of it at all. we will take the trailer back when they get the part. Luckily, is it not something that will keep us from travelling.
Hope that helps.

 

[charlie51]

I bought from RV Outlet USA in VA and saved several thousand dollars. Mine has the safety glass and other features that non-wholesale dealers advertise. A lot of the stuff like that probably comes installed from the factory anway. As far as warranty issues, most of the stuff on the trailer is from other companies and not Heartland, i.e., fridge, a/c, etc.., and doesn't have to be repaired by a Heartland dealer. I had an issue with my fridge, called up dometic, and they gave me the name of a service shop about 10 miles from my house (non-Heartland). Had it back the next day with no expense on my part. For my 2 cents if a dealer has an agreement to be a Heartland dealership they should be required to service Heartland products that are under warranty. It's not our fault they didn't want to earn our business on the initial sale.

 

[geeksrus]

For my 2 cents if a dealer has an agreement to be a Heartland dealership they should be required to service Heartland products that are under warranty. It's not our fault they didn't want to earn our business on the initial sale.

I agree 100%... most other industries, including the auto industry, service their products through ANY of their dealers & don't allow "you didn't buy it here so we won't service it". Heartland has to smarten up!

Eh!

 

[geeman]

We purchased our 3950 from Lakeshore RV and we saved thousands too. So far no issues that require repairs. But you never know. I am confident Heartland will stand by thrift product, I have read too many good things about the company from several blogs.

 

[Bluestatueman]

We drove from Mi to Ohio to get ours. We too saved quite a bit. Get the invoice from each dealer you are considering the compare the models line by line. If the wont fax you the invoice or a factory options sheet, move on to another dealer. FYI if you are considering Lakeshore RV they will sent you an invoice.

 

[davidalison]

We had the exact same problem with our local dealer in VT. We drove to the outskirts of Chicago to purchase our new rig. A memorable 4 day road trip to save thousands of dollars. We suggest you google the floorplan you are interested in, then find a dealer with one in stock and the best price. RV Wholesalers is always a good place to start.

 

[Chris562]

I bought mine out of state to save a few thousand dollars. The big box dealer I bought mine from didn't do any prep work on the camper at all. I brought it home and parked it through the winter. Got it out to use first of April and had a leak in the cargo hold door. Took it to a local dealer for a long list of warranty work. It took them over two months to get the parts in and get the work done. The local dealer told me he would not work on the camper again until he had all the ones he sold finished first. Really wished I had bought local, the few thousand I saved wasn't worth it.

 

[NorthCountryFan99]

Hello,
We live in Atlantic Canada and are seriously considering purchasing a 2011 NorthCountry 29RLS from a "large volume" dealer in Michigan. Our preference would be to purchase locally, but the bottom line price from the dealer here is more than DOUBLE the purchase price from the Michigan dealer. Too much money to leave on the table. We are have never owned a trailer, and our nervous about the purchase. However, a recent good experience of a friend of ours has convinced us to go this route. My biggest concern is whether our 2009 Suburban 1500 4X4 c/w tow package is enough truck to safely haul the 29RLS. My brain is scrambled with all of the GWVR, GCVR numbers. Any experiences with a "non-local" purchase/tow vehicle input would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

 

[TGLBWH]

I purchased an Elk Ridge From Terrytown RV in Grand Rapids Mi which is 3 hrs from home. I had some warranty issues which they were more than happy to deal with, but I didn't want to travel that far for service. I contacted Heartland and General RV in Brownstown which is 3 miles from home and sells Heartland products although not the Elk Ridge. They not only serviced my unit without any problem, I also received a call from Heartland (can't remember name) while there asking if I was being taken care of to my satisfaction. The repairs were done in a timely fashion (8 days in the spring). On top of that, Terrytown contacted me to be sure all was taken care of. Even though repairs are always aggravating, this ended up being a very good service experience. I sure hope for the same in the future.