Montana Dealer Responsibility - Montana Owners Club

rames14 · 03-31-2008, 03:50 PM

I am curious if others have had a similar issue. We moved to Wisconsin last year and it's a two hour drive to our dealer in Indiana. We have some work that needs to be done on the Montana and I called the local dealer in Burlington, Wisconsin (will not use dealer's name). I left a message and got a call back an hour later. The scheduler introduced herself then proceeded to tell me she would have to check to see if they would do work on my unit, because I hadn't purchased it there. This dealer has what they call "Priority Care" where they take care of their customers first. But, they didn't just say "we take care of our customers first", they said we'll have to decide if we will service you at all. Are Montana dealers not obliged to work on other Montana's? I could see getting told I might have to wait while they service their "Priority Care" customers first, but being told they'd have to see if they wanted to provide service is another matter.

waldo238 · 03-31-2008, 04:01 PM

I live in Richmond, VA and not purchase a unit from the shyster thats sells in Chester so I went to Hampton Roads and bought it there and got a way better deal. I then found later that the vacuum breaker valve for the no fuss flush leaked and needed replacing. I went to them to see about a replacement under warranty and was told because I did not by from them it would cost me $150.00 out of my pocket and if Keystone covered it I would get that money back. I called Keystone and they said the dealer could pretty much do what they wanted with a rig not bought from them.

stiles watson · 03-31-2008, 04:17 PM

All I can tell you is what I did while I was away from my dealer. My unit was bought in Missouri and taken to Texas. When I was in Houston, I went by to meet the service manager personally and bought him some coffee and had a discussion about how I had moved into his territory and wondered if I could depend on him to provide dealer services to me. I smiled a lot and did the good-ol-boy thing. The bottom line was that he became my "dealer". If I needed anything, I bypassed everyone else and went straight to "my dealer", the service manager. Sometimes selling goes both ways.

Now my home base is in no man's land. Not a Montana dealer in sight. So when I go to Branson, I will swing over to Grain Valley, MO and have my dealer work on my non-emergency list. I already have the appointment made and will email the service manager the list about a week before I come. I will call him a couple of days ahead to confirm everything. He knows I am a full timer and promises to work with me. We will see how it goes.

If you continue to get rejected by this dealership, I would let Keystone know how you have been treated and see if they might intervene on your behalf.

richfaa · 03-31-2008, 04:25 PM

That "issue" is not peculiar to Keystone and makes one wonder about the Keystone/Dealer relationship. It is a far cry from the auto industry.Because of our travels we are for most of the year at a great distance from our purchasing dealer and at the mercy of dealers if we need service.. That is just not right. We have tried two things and they both worked for us. We called Team Montana and said we needed a dealer for repairs, we were "on the road" and needed help.. They found us a dealer that helped... We called our purchasing dealer and asked them for help .. That also worked. The RV manufacturer can make that Dealer policy change..That they do not indicates a total disregard for the folks that purchased their product.Of course we who bounce around the country away from our purchasing dealer are but a small % of buyers and little will be done to address our concerns.

rames14 · 03-31-2008, 04:34 PM

Stiles -
The sad thing is I had gone down to the dealership and met the service manager. They said they would love the opportunity to show me how good they were. Unfortunately, I didn't contact him directly. I will be going to the selling dealer, not just for this service call but my next unit.
Rich -
You're right, they could change it if they wanted. It will take a foreign competitor, I'm afraid, to make them change just like it happened in the auto industry.

nd_hillbilly · 03-31-2008, 04:44 PM

New to MOC, but not warranty issues. I retired out of the Air Force and took a job at the local RV dealer as the "Warranty Advisor/Service Writer." Being new to the RV business, I tried to understand this "Customer Priority" thing. I understand how some at teh dealership could feel this way, ecspecially toward the "Internet Dealers" whom don't worry about "Service After the Sale", but most of my fellow employees, including management know that anyone that walks through our door are potential customers and are treated as such. We had one employee who lived by the "Priority Customer" rule and tried to execute that rule when customers from out of town or that didn't buy form us entered the store seeking assistance. He and i had a chat one day and I asked him how he would feel if he were in another state and had issues with his toy hauler and the service department told him it would be a few weeks before they could get him in because their customers come first. Also when it comes to warranty issues, a service department would be silly to turn the work down because it is money in their pocket. I am now in sales and still feel everyone who walks through our door, no matter where tehy are from, could be and should be treated as loyal customers. I apologize for the long reply, bu this is a subject I feel strongly about. I always tell customers, I am not a career salesman, bu tcareer Air Force, so I may not seem like a typical salesman to you. Bottom line, treat others the same way you'd like to be treated. Take care all...

rames14 · 03-31-2008, 05:04 PM

Dave -
I agree with you. I tried to make that point to the RV dealership owner, but it was lost on him. And, I would have considered purchasing a Big Sky there next year. Not because of our current dealer (he's great and fair), but the distance. All things being equal, I would prefer to buy locally. But, my current dealer does a great job and they will take care of me. I do get the advantage of dropping in to see my Grand Twins while down there.

Emmel · 03-31-2008, 05:09 PM

Good reply there Dave, I like that attitude!
Ron, my selling dealer is only 57 miles away, but I had some warranty work done at the dealership here in Troy where I live. They are not a Montana dealer, but are a Keystone dealer. The work I had done was thru Keystone and I requested to have my home town dealer do the work. Keystone agreed and I was satisfied I didn't have to lug the 5er back and forth the 114 miles.
I guess it all depends on the servicing dealers attitude toward trying to get you as a future customer! You are the one that will be looking at the new Big Sky soon!

Mrs. CountryGuy · 03-31-2008, 05:27 PM

I HATE this about the RV industry, and say so at every opportunity. It just is NOT right that we have units WITH WHEELS, meant to pull down the HARD ROAD, and have to put up with this silliness. I am not gonna stay within 100 miles of my selling dealer forever. I can buy a stick built house and stay put, eh?? GRRRRRRRRRRR

exav8tr · 03-31-2008, 05:43 PM

As a fulltimer, this topic intrigues me. My dealer is in Anchorage, Alaska. So far I have had to use three different dealers for warranty work. All three of these I called ahead and made an appointment with. Two were in Oregon and 1 in Washington. I explained I was a fulltimer and ASKED if they could perform the work for me. So far, I have had good luck doing it this way. I agree that If you contact an authorized Keystone repair center, it should make no difference where you bought your rig. I have also been to three different Chevy dealers for warranty work on my truck, no problem at all. I think some of these dealers are on a "HEAD TRIP" and give a bad name to the rest. I would not hesitate to write Keystone AND Trailer Life AND anyone else that would listen, to let them know what a particular dealer is up to.

Keystone needs to set the standards and require all dealers to honor the warrantees that we have on their units or seriously think about dropping these derelicts and find owners that will provide good service to its customers.

skypilot · 04-01-2008, 04:16 AM

As mentioned above, this issue is not limited to Keystone (Montana)products. My SOB was purchased over 700 miles from where I now live. When I needed initial warranty work, local dealer (if you can call 150 miles away local) did not want to do it however, a polite sitdown visit and getting to know them has eased that transition. I now have a good rapport with the local dealership and they do work on my unit but, as mentioned above, the ice had to be broken first. On every visit to my local Montana dealership I'm amazed by the variety of states shown on the plates of vehicles in for service. From all over the US and Canada.

c214dick · 04-01-2008, 04:54 AM

We purchased our 3400RL from Collier RV in Rockford, Il with the understanding that their dealer in Russell would be able to service our rig. Rockford is 2 hours away and Russell is 15 minutes away. The only condition was if a major repair was required we would take it to Rockford. Ron & Terrie you may want to check with Collier Sky Harbor RV in Russell for service. They are about 20 minutes south of Burlington RV at I94 and the Russell Rd exit.

Keystone stated in the info we received that the selling dealer can prioritize his workload based on whether the customer purchased the unit from them or not. They also state that any Keystone dealer is authorized to do warranty work and if they refuse, to contact Keystone.

When we owned our Cedar Creek we had a number of club members that purchased based on the cheapest price and than expected the closest dealer to service their unit. Sometimes it worked, most times it did not. We would rather pay more for better service than to play the price game. However when traveling, their is no excuse for not getting work done at a non selling dealer.

Good Luck.

DnDatGrdJct · 04-01-2008, 05:24 AM

We purchased our 3075RL in Minnesota and asked the dealer about service in other areas since we travel a lot. They stated they would work with any unit regardless if they sold it or not but could not speak for others. When we got to Grand Junction, CO, last fall we had a few issues. Talked to a Keystone dealer (but not Montana) and they were very willing to provide service both warranty and any other. A few days later we found there was a local Montana dealer and went to see them. They also were more than willing to help us in any way. Had to wait a couple of days for the Montana dealer to have an opening but found the service great. Hope others make out as well as we have.

rames14 · 04-01-2008, 02:55 PM

Dick -
I agree about buying for price and then expecting service elsewhere. However, I purchased my rig 18 miles from home. I had to relocate due to business conditions and am now up in Mukwonago, Wisconsin. As I told the owner of the RV place, some of his customers will relocate also and I hope they receive better treatment. I used to camp at Pearl Lake down by Collier RV in Rockford. I thought they were pretty good until I had scheduled this repair to be done there. I took the unit in on a Saturday and waited two hours before anyone would even talk to me. Before I brought it down, I told them I was leaving on a trip in a week. They said no problem. When I called later in the week, they hadn't even ordered the plastic yet. I went down to pick it up and had to wait again. Are they related to the Collier RV at Russell? I already have it schedule to go into Rollin ON RV where I purchased and I know they will do a good job. I just hated driving an extra hour and a half. I should really be upset at Keystone. This is the third time I've had it in to do this repair. The first time to Collier's, the second time to Rollin On (after four weeks in the shop Keystone still hadn't shipped the part) and now I have the part in hand and I will finally get it fixed.

c214dick · 04-01-2008, 04:47 PM

I'm sorry to hear about your problems with Collier. Yes they own Collier's Sky Harbor RV on Russell Rd. You should e-mail Ed Collier, the owner at ecollier@collierrv.com. I'm sure he will do what ever is necesary ro make it right. Let him know everything and I would be interested in hearing what happens.

rames14 · 04-01-2008, 05:10 PM

Dick -
I may write him down the road, but right now I'm just looking at getting the slide bottom fixed. I lost four weeks of camping last year, discussed is with the Montana folks at the rally, thought we had help from Montana to the Burlington store and here I sit almost a year later with the problem still not fixed. I've put on over 400 miles trying to get it fixed. So, I head down to Indiana on Saturday. The bright spot is we'll get to see our Grand Twins.

FLSTS03 · 04-01-2008, 05:36 PM

Nancy and I must be far down a dealers list since we bought from a indivdual. I would just about bet you that the the guys and gals who own the (800 lb gorillia) $250k Class A's go to the head of the class anyway. Steve

c214dick · 04-01-2008, 06:31 PM

Ron, I understand your frustrations and fortunately you have found a fix for your problem, not to mention the opportunity to see your grandchildren, but......... please let Ed know about your problem as he seems to be a straight shooter and genuinely cares about his customers.

ols1932 · 04-02-2008, 07:32 AM

For what it's worth, a lot of what you get from dealers where you didn't buy your rig depends on how you approach them. I've observed in my over 30 years of purchasing RVs that there are a lot of owners who drive up to a dealer and go in with a chip on their shoulder. My dealer will cause that chip to fall off by the way they put you at ease and attempt to help you with your problem. Never, have I observed anyone being turned away from my dealer even though you may have purchased the rig 50 miles down the road. They will always try to work you in, especially if you're traveling.

Orv

rames14 · 04-02-2008, 01:40 PM

Dick -

I will drop an email to Ed. He can't fix it if he doesn't know about it.

Orv -
I agree with you. My selling dealer said anyone that comes to them is a future customer. They couldn't believe that anyone is turning away business. In the case of the Wisconsin dealer, they simply say they are too busy to handle anyone but their existing customers.

My guess is that with fuel prices rising, they may be singing a different tune by next year. It seems to me that the RV industry is already in a slowdown and by next year, I expect it to be worse. Time will tell.

You may also like: