Boy!! That was close.
I really want to vent. Went out to look at used RVs and we went to this one dealer and honest to goodness I felt like we were being played like a fiddle. It was like one minute, I'm asking the price a...
Forum Discussion
rexlion wrote:
At the very first sign of such nasty, strong-arm tactics by a salesman or dealership, get up and walk out. You are not their prisoner, after all. If they try to detain you physically, call the police and press charges for kidnapping; but of course they won't do that. The point is, you are free to go at any time, so never let them escalate their bad behavior against you. If you sit there and take it, you are confusing politeness with spinelessness. (Glad you got up and left, but I would have done it sooner.)
This is the best advice so far. If it doesn't feel right today, the same deal or a better one will be available tomorrow. You have the ultimate control of the deal as you have to sign for them to get your money. There is no good reason not to think over such a large purchase.
It was this approach that took us a year to find the perfect RV for us but we are very happy with what we finally bought. I hit all the larger dealers in the PNW in our search, some were better than others but as soon as they realized that I was going to control the process, not them, the process got easier. This time of year, buyers are getting scarcer and they will acquiesce much easier than a month ago. They loved to give the impression that the used units were flying off their lots but I discovered that they seldom pulled ads for RVS long after they were sold just to get you on their lot. Poulsbo tried to tell me that they sold 2 units in the 30 minutes it took me to drive there on a Wednesday afternoon. The units weren't even still on the lot when I arrived! As long as you are wise to their tricks and understand that you know that you are in control, you can play with any dealer no matter how shady they are. If it doesn't feel right, it isn't.
We finally bought from a private party from Craigslist. We had the chassis and house inspected for a very reasonable $250. That gave us more peace of mind than any $7,000 extended warranty could with all the caveats and exclusions.
Feel free to PM me if you have any questions or concerns about any units or dealers in the greater Puget Sound area. I have no ax to grind and having just gone through the process I have a lot of insights. I'd be happy to help you with no strings attached. I have owned 2 previous RVs both new and this class C is our third but used. You have excellent warning bells, by the way!
