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Well, the Simmons RV Show has concluded. They had a '07 3400RL, a Mountaineer, several Everests, Several Cougars, a couple class C's and one Class A. Charles Wade, from Keystone was there and got a chance to speak with him. A very personable young man that truly has customer service at the top of his list. He confided that two items were a thorn in his side. One was the Apollo ovens. He admits they are not the best in the world, but they are the only 1/2 time micro/convect ovens on the market that fit in that space. He also said that, we, as owners, won't let them get rid of it. Those that have them and work fine would not do without them. With a larger unit you would lose the kitchen window. He said, "Most people would not be happy with that". He says that Montana is a wery small importer, only buying about 8,000 units a year and that the Chinese company is not very responsive to that few of an order. The second headache is the "Flashlight" and its related charger. It was meant as a convenience item, but the quality could be better. He did state they were discontinuing them for future units, not worth the headaches. He says that Keystone is just as interested in quality as we are, but with 50 units being built a day, it is hard to catch everything. He hopes that dealers will continue to be responsive to our needs and concerns.
The axle situation was that everyone else in the market was going to the 7,000 lbers so they would also. They amounted to a very small difference between the 6,000 lber and the 7,000 lbers so they are going with the larger ones.
In discussing differring prices between dealerships, he says that normally the dealers with the smallest number of units stick with the higher prices. The dealerships with large repair facilities tend to get a lot of business from that arena and can afford to sell at a lower price. Those in the sunbelt, that are busy year round, see a lot of income from maintenance and those in northern climes tend to do a little less. This all plays into the prices dealers want to charge.
All in all , it was a very good and enlightening discussion. He is VERY cognizant of our group and, for the most part, is very supportive, but also added that we are just a small segment of Keystone owners and folks should not base EVERYTHING they read on our forum. This was an honest assessment and one I could understand.
Now, if only spring will get here, I could be enjoying my new home.......
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