RE: Service Departments and Dealerships

[Joe Buskirk]

 
I took my Jayco Qwest 12A to the dealer this morning due to the roof not going down uniformly.  I called the Service dept. on Saturday to ask what needed to be done and he indicated that the PU needed to be looked at.  He indicated that this week was terribly busy for them, I informed him that I was going camping on Friday June 13.  At this time he told me to bring it in first thing on Monday and they would take a look at it. I arrived a little before 9:00am(their opening time) and told him that I was there to have someone look at the PU.  You would have thought I ask him for $10,000, he indicated that they were extremely busy on Mondays and " it ain t going to happen"  on Monday.  He told me to leave it, which I did but immediately used my cell to call the owner to express my dissapointment in the service person s attitude.  Of course the owner was not there and my salesperson answered the phone and said that he would relay my concern.  I am inclined to call Jayco to complain as well.  I am not too happy with the owner since he promised me before the Jayco arrived that he would get information on a bike rack and again after the sale, to this point in time, I still have not bike rack information.
 This dealership, Slicer s in Delaware, seemed to have a good reputation, they have been in business for many years, but this being my first experience with a new PU, I am not so sure I would ever buy another thing from them.
 
 Have only hade the PU for 2 weeks.
 
 What is it with Dealerships?

[tlhdoc]

 Joe Buskirk
It sounds like it doesn t have a good service dept.  You were told to bring it in and then they said they couldn t look at it.  I would have be in the sales dept. making sure anyone looking at RVs could hear me complaining very loudly.

[jstaddwtr]

 Joe Buskirk
DH relies on that tactic and has gotten very good results.  We once purchased a new pick-up and when we picked it up there was a dent on the side.  Not only were we not told of it but when we brought it to the saleperson s attention he said, " what dent."   My father in-law and my Dad were both body and fender guys so my DH went ballistic.  He went immediately to the sales floor and started saying very loudly to anyone that would hear about the dent that did not exist.  He looked at every person purchasing or looking and went through the whole story again, and again, and again!    
 
 The managers told him to step outside and when he refused they threatened to have him removed.  Wrong move!!![] That just gave DH more to talk about.  He told them to go for it and went on about how they treated cash paying customers.  He has quite alot of country preacher in him, (quire articulate and passionate, he almost had people saying AMEN...)[][] so this was quite a brouhaha.  The owner wanted to know what the commotion was and it turns out the truck was dented in the car wash.  None of this had to happen!
 
 I worry a about him when he goes into this mode but it got us great results.......  
 
 

[Gone-Camping]

 Joe Buskirk
That might work some of the time. It wouldn t work in the used car dealership I work for, they would just have you removed. Personally I don t think they care what the customer thinks, it s all about the money!!!
 
 One of our local RV dealers (I won t mention them by name) has a great sales dept, but their service dept is absolutely horrible, and it doesn t matter if you re in a PU or a big dollar MH, they are always too busy for the customer. Again, it s all about the money...

[C. Hains]

 Joe Buskirk
I m wondering if there isn t that much competition in camper sales and they think they can get away with poor service.  The difference in the way the customer is treated at the Coleman dealership here and at an independent dealer 15 miles or so in the other direction is amazing.  The folks at the independent dealership seem to understand the business they are in - SERVICE.

[maromeo]

 Joe Buskirk
I am sorry for the bad experiences you all have encountered. Our dealer is one of the smaller ones and his service department is great. We can call up and ask questions and we get our answers then or later that same day sometimes from the owner. That is one reason we purchased from him. Granted our turn around times are probably a little longer but we just allot for that. We had to miss out camping over Labor Day weekend because our unit was not done yet.
 
 Is there another dealer that is not far from your home you could deal with. It appears customer service is getting harder to come by these days.
 Mary

[kathybrj]

 Joe Buskirk
We have a hot and cold service department at our dealer.
 
 When the ABS panels cracked, I called about it in February and then again in April to set up the " inspection"  appointment. When we brought it in for the inspection, the guy that was supposed to look at it had the day off. So the warranty manager came out, looked at it and ok d the work. What we didn t know was that the service guy had already ordered the panels BEFORE anyone ever looked at it- hence our problem with having the wrong panel replaced up front and the camper getting hit in the lot while waiting for the correct panel.
 
 BUT, our service department guy did own up to the hit on the aluminum panel and had already ordered a new one before he even called me. When it came in, they called and told us that, although they were scheduling appointments out for 2-3 weeks, they would do the repair over night because of their negligence.
 
 Although infuriating when the lines get crossed, they did do everything they could to keep us happy. So our dealer and sevice department are ok as far as our dealings with them thus far.
 

[LKaskel]

 Joe Buskirk
Unfortunantly most....not all...but most dealerships and manufactures are all about the money!  Once the purchase is made and they get their cash you are not as big of a priority.  Look at the well documented Coleman/Fleetwood roof sag issue.  You would think a dealer or Coleman/Fleetwood would want to help the owners with this issue.  Afterall they (Coleman/Fleetwood) caused it not the owners.  Instead they allow themselves to get slammed for ignoring their own customers.  How many people will buy from them again?  Seems the bigger a manufacture or dealer gets the worse they get after the sale.

[whitestar505]

 Joe Buskirk
Joe,
 
  Sorry to hear about the problem.. It sounds like a dealership.
 
  This is why I did not buy at Chesaco here in Maryland. With my last popup second hand I would bring it in for service and wait forever. So I wanted to buy a new one they were drooling at the bit for my sale. So I priced around, went to Charlie s they gave me a great deal. Said to Chesaco s why can t you come close to their price. The answer was it could be overhead, the new trailer they are selling you is defective, and on and on. Told me that if I bought somewhere other than there they would not service it. This is when I called fleetwood and Coleman and told them what was going on. I told them I would buy at Charlie s thank you very much. Coleman then contacted me and told me that Chesaco" s had to due warranty work on the trailer if I brought it in to them. So I did bring it in and it was done. Had to wait forever. Now when I go in there, and I hear something about buying it somewhere other than there, I said to them, remember that in a few years I may be looking again for another.
 
  I can go on about these dealerships if you know what I mean. Sorry, I did not mean to steal you thread.
 
 Is your camp date still on for this weekend? Happing Camping.

[LKaskel]

 Joe Buskirk
Whitestar505,
 I had to laugh at that!  Two years ago Chesaco RV was for sale and I was looking into it.  I had some venture capital people ready and things looked good.  When we met the brothers that owned it they were real big on their service and " family atmosphere"  that their dealership had over other dealers.  Problem was I had purchased a Coleman PU with some major issues and the Fleetwood stock dropped about 50% at the same time.  Truth is.../the stock is still low and Coleman never was willing to work with me on my PU.  I lost interest and venture capital backed off so nothing came of it.  It s hard to beleive that they would let you drive 50-60 miles to buy at a different dealership but their loss.  Charlies seems ok but their service can have a personality of it s own too!  Good luck!