Pros and Cons of Buying a Montana 200 Miles Away - Montana Owners Club

RKassl · 03-10-2015, 02:15 PM

Has anyone bought their Montana from a distant dealer, to get a better deal as compared to buying local (

WeBeFulltime · 03-10-2015, 02:38 PM

Your warranty work at dealers other than where purchased will be considered low priority. Does not work like car dealers. I took the price from a discount dealer to my local dealer and he came within $400. Bought locally and very happy I did.

Mudchief · 03-10-2015, 02:57 PM

On our second Montana we did the same thing and the local dealer matched the price.

kdeiss · 03-10-2015, 02:58 PM

Most RV manufacturers encourage you buy local.Best for all concerned.

rames14 · 03-10-2015, 03:14 PM

I just ordered a new Montana. The local dealer was $6,000 higher than the dealer I'm buying it from in Iowa. Offered the local dealer the opportunity to match the price. They wouldn't move. I set the value of buying locally at $2000. This dealer is about 500 miles from home. I have always bout locally until now. Best of luck.

snowhawk2 · 03-10-2015, 03:22 PM

We went against the grain on this one. We have owned three Montanas. We bought our last one from camping world in Rochester NY which was 5 hours from our house. They were great to deal with. We had some warranty issues and we just made an appointment and made a camping trip out of it. They let us stay in our camper with full hookups, then spent a day working on our issues. When they were done we hooked up and went to a campground for a few nights. No problems and would do it all again. Our local dealer was arrogant and was $2,500 higher and wouldn't budge. I agree where ever you buy from you will get priority service and our local dealer made it quite clear that if we didn't buy from him we would be at the end of the service list when it was brought in.

bethandkevin · 03-10-2015, 03:23 PM

We bought about 140 miles from home. Kept a list of all warranty issues for the first year and took it in for warranty service at that time. All issues were corrected to our satisfaction. Have not had any further issues to date (knocking wood). We'll have had Hannah three years in April. I absolutely refuse to buy from the closest dealer to me. The poorest service I've ever heard of-even to those that purchase there.

CORattler · 03-10-2015, 03:37 PM

Quote:

quote:Originally posted by rames14

I just ordered a new Montana. The local dealer was $6,000 higher than the dealer I'm buying it from in Iowa. Offered the local dealer the opportunity to match the price. They wouldn't move. I set the value of buying locally at $2000. This dealer is about 500 miles from home. I have always bout locally until now. Best of luck.

Totally agree. The manufacturers warranty is a crapshoot anyway. Keystone is not known for unconditional support during the warranty period. I have seen buyers treated as liabilities after the sale so I personally see little value buying locally. Take the thousands you save by getting the best price and buy a portable service plan from a reputable outfit. After all, what good is buying from a local dealer in say Texas when you RV in Florida? You'll be at the bottom of the Florida dealers "fix it" list anyway.

1retired06 · 03-10-2015, 04:05 PM

We have bought our last two units from a dealership 180 miles away. Worth it for us to have a reliable responsive dealer with reasonable pricing rather than a nearby dealer with a bad reputation.

richfaa · 03-10-2015, 04:11 PM

Depends on your lifestyle.We spend most of our time hundreds of miles away from our selling dealer. If we need a dealer on the road we call the service center and they clear the way for us to go to a dealer .Never had a problem

dieselguy · 03-10-2015, 04:24 PM

I've responded with about the same version of an answer before. I've bought local once and 3 hrs away from local twice. For the thousands and thousands of $$ difference, I figured I could drag it to the selling dealer several times over and still be ahead. I was right specifically on my last Montana. Out of town was @ $9000 plus trade cheaper from buying "local". In five years, I've only made the trip back to the selling dealer once. Like Rich eluded to ... if you're going to be on the road quite a bit, buying local doesn't really matter.

Bama Camper · 03-10-2015, 04:34 PM

Two experiences - Number 1 in 2009: I wanted to order a fifth wheel (not a Montana, but a Keystone), and knew exactly how I wanted it configured. Shopped around and found the best deal two days away, in Elkhart. I would have preferred buying locally, but the dealer just would not get his pencil sharp enough, even considering the shipping. He wanted to sell me what he had on the lot and didn't want to order. So, I bought from 800 miles away and saved $6500. When I picked the unit up, we made a enjoyable trip out of it - stayed in the area a couple days to check things out. Had a couple of minor things corrected at the selling dealer. Only one warranty claim after we got it home several months later. Didn't have any problem with the warranty repair dealer. He understood why I bought out of town. So, while I was not given "priority" over units their parent dealership sold, the repair time was reasonable. However, I think this may change from one repair facility to another. So, in the end, going out of town for the repair was well worth it.

Number 2 in 2015: Determined the unit I wanted, shopped and found the best deal 5 hours South of my home base. I returned to them for warranty service initially (one trip), but have elected to return to them for two others because of that dealer's service department. They do a pretty good job, and seem to have a good relationship with Keystone. Also, the "local" dealer's repair facility does not have a very good reputation. Each time we have gone down to the original dealer, we called ahead and they reserved a spot in their overnight lot with hookups. We have made a "trip" out of it an have included shopping in the area, sightseeing, and eating at special places. Since we are coming from out of town, the dealer tends to give us priority as much as possible.

So, both my experiences have been good. I wouldn't hesitate to purchase from an out of town dealer, especially if he has a good service department and is only a day's drive away. If it's further than that, consider whether your local service facility is good.

The other thing to consider is - these things have wheels on them and you may not be near home anyway when you need warranty service.

boat391 · 03-10-2015, 06:54 PM

We bought ours from Camping World Las Vegas 600 miles from us kept a list of things needed and made a appointment when I knew we would be in town they had our coach 2 days fixed everything and gave us a ride to the strip to a great hotel. On two occasions I needed things done before we could get to them they sent me the parts ( a level up pad that fell off and the other a mor Ryde center rubber spring that failed with out any hassle ) I did the repairs my self. I couldn't be more happy with my experience. Wouldnt give a thought to going back to them if we ever get that new Monty feeling again. Oh yes we bought our first Monty local and would never go back to that store again for many different reasons service being the biggest.

Artemus Gordon · 03-10-2015, 07:45 PM

Bought mine in Nagodoches Tx. Yes, about 2060 miles one way. Saved a significant amount of money. The dealer RV Station handled the Ca sales tax and registration! Service has never been an issue. I went to Keystone Dealer in Redding before I purchased. They treat me very well and it may be because they just like me. In fact service Nationwide has been excellent, never once felt we were second class because we did not buy at a store providing service. Twice Keystone made appointments for me for warranty work. Since GoodSams is our extended coverage we get treated great at every GS service contractor! Box of donuts when you deliver your RV for service goes a long way, trust me!

JandC · 03-10-2015, 08:12 PM

Went with a dealer that was about 130 miles away from our winter home base, and 1200 miles away from our summer home base. I worried the whole time about getting my warranty work done. As it turned out I didn't need to worry because most of the warranty work I needed done either Keystone refused the dealer's request or had parts on back order for 10 months.

If it was me I would buy where I could save the most money.

Tom S. · 03-11-2015, 01:23 AM

Our first Montana was purchased at a dealer 90 miles away and the second at a dealer 200 miles away. Yes, warranty work, especially if you have a 'troubled' unit can be a problem, but in our case, the deal we got and my ability to fix the little stuff, and the fact we had nothing major go wrong, made both purchases worth it. In the case of the 200 mile distant dealer, it was Tiara RV near the fall rally, so we just collected a list of items and took it back there before the next fall rally, so an extra trip wasn't needed. Granted, a major issue could have been a problem.

RKassl · 03-11-2015, 02:44 AM

Well again the forum comes through with great information. If you folks can do it so can we!

Happy Camping 62 degrees in NW Wisconsin yesterday, amazing compared to last year! Everyday is a gift.

Captain Joe · 03-11-2015, 03:03 AM

I have bought two long distance fivers and I always give my local dealers the first shot. When they either cannot compete or have the model in stock, I go elsewhere but I make sure that I make it perfectly clear to the local dealers that I will continue to give them service. They have always understood and treat me like one of their own. Plus, purchasing a satellite dish, washer and dryer, and other goodies keeps them happy. No problems here.

psomers · 03-11-2015, 07:48 AM

Quote:

quote:Originally posted by Captain Joe

I have bought two long distance fivers and I always give my local dealers the first shot. When they either cannot compete or have the model in stock, I go elsewhere but I make sure that I make it perfectly clear to the local dealers that I will continue to give them service. They have always understood and treat me like one of their own. Plus, purchasing a satellite dish, washer and dryer, and other goodies keeps them happy. No problems here.

If I am remembering correctly your last unit came from Dandy RV in Anniston,AL. Sad to say but Dandy just sold out to Camping World. Jim Cooley the owner of Dandy is a first class guy. I got what I thought was great service from them.

**DQDick** · 03-11-2015, 01:46 PM

Bought ours from a dealer over 200 miles away because the only other dealer didn't carry what we wanted. Since we full time we were never near our dealer when we had an issue and Keystone and the local dealers came thru for us. Keystone even authorized a mobile repair guy when we were in Deming, NM and no Keystone dealer was anywhere near.

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