Hi - The wife and I are looking to upgrade our first RV (a class C - a 1995 Gulfstream Yellowstone). We had purchased it used from a private party approx 18 months ago.
I had seen mention of rvdirect on another thread. My concern with buying from them is that I live in Florida, and the nearest rvdirect location is Albany, NY (some 1200 miles away). Further, I might be interested in a Jayco Greyhawk. The Jayco dealer nearest to my house is approx 100 miles away.
My concern is that in reading threads on this forum it seems all units (regardless of brand) seem to have a significant incidence of "shakedown issues," warranty stuff that needs to be resolved that pops up after a little use or stuff the dealer did not get taken care of before delivery, etc.
For warranty stuff, the Jayco customer service department told me that they would very likely authorize a local non-Jayco RV service location to do my warranty work (so that I would not need to travel the 100 miles). Not sure sure that that would cover everything? For example, if dealer (rvdirect) forgot to take care of something before delivery or if there was something that was their fault, but not covered by warranty?
I have had no dealings with warranty repairs on a MH.
My question is this, is it reasonable to expect that my access to warranty work, etc. will be satisfactory? For example, I own a Tahoe that I purchased in another city, but the local GM dealer has done warranty work seamlessly. Is it safe to assume that the "local" Jayco dealer will do the same? What are thoughts on how responsive (or non-responsive) non-Jayco service location might be?
Note, I have not necessarily decided on a Jayco...really trying to get a handle on buying from rvdirect and what to expect.
I took delivery of my '08 Seneca HD 35GS from RVDIRECT in October of '07. I had a couple of issues which required warranty work. After speaking with the warranty department of RVDIRECT, they gave me the number of Jayco's warranty department. I explained the problem,(I too live in South Florida and my nearest dealer is 100 miles away), Jayco authorized a nearby service provider to perform the repair. At this point, I have nothing but good things to say about my experience with RVDIRECT (AlbanyRV) and Jayco. I might add, if you do purchase from Albany, you will be treated royally. First class hotel accommodation, use of a rental car and a demonstration as intense or cursory as you may wish. Good luck and happy camping.
Not quite the answer to your question,since we don't own a Jayco, but I would probably stay in the Albany area for a few days, to give the RV a shake-down. There are plenty of nice areas near by....Lake George comes to mind. Then, if there are any immediate problems, you can have RVDirect deal with them. As for the Jayco part of your question regarding Florida, sorry, no experience with them.
Just know, there are lots of people who have bought from them....and they live all over the country.
Good Luck,
Bill, Claudia, and the Paps
DH Bill / DW Claudia / DD Jenn / DS Chris The Paps! Sophie, Abby, Brandy, Kahlie and Annie
2000 Winnebago "Minnie" 31C, Ford V-10
Purchased April Fools Day, 2008 The Pets
In the 4 years I've been on this forum, I cannot recall anyone having a problem using them. I elected to use a dealer about 100 miles from me. It was my first RV purchase and I just wasn't comfortable with RVD.
As it turns out, it really didn't matter too much either way. The dif in the purchase price was minor and the warranty claims I had, only required parts. I did the repairs myself.
I never darkened the dealer's doorway again after the sale.(That's a good thing)
I live in the Panhandle of Texas and bought from RVdirect Albany. The savings was fantastic and the service afterwards was good. I own a Winnebago View for business purposes and the local Winnebago dealer doesn't give any prompter service than what Jayco comes up with for my 35 GS... I am approx. 1795 miles away from Albany, NY and wouldn't hesitate to buy from them again if the savings were as great as they were during my last purchase.
Either he forgot to put in the overcab bed with 19" TV, or I did. The list price for that is about $70. I realized later I don't want the electric sofa. Here's the quote I received.
Jayco Seneca HD 36 FS
Customer Value Package (MANDATORY) - $1,560.00
Provincial Glazed Maple Wood Package - $295.00
Convection Microwave - $155.00
Electric Leather Sofa - $195.00
8 cu. ft. Refrigerator with Ice Maker - $245.00
8000 Watt Diesel Generator - $995.00
Thermal Pane Tinted Safety Glass Windows - $895.00
Diamond Shield Paint Protection Film - $350.00
Green Interior Decor - $0.00
Pickup In Albany: $0.00
Documentation Fee: $45.00
Quote Price: $106,530.00
Save even more with our Low Interest Rates & Great Finance Terms.
Take An Additional $500.00 OFF This Price if you finance this purchase with us!"
I would get a quote from them, then ask a local dealer if they could match it. I did that with a new pick up and a new farm tractor and got the same deal locally.
I've instructed a couple nephews on home buying and negotiating the price. I told them the bottom line, It's your money!
Last time we bought a Jayco, we bought from RVD. We picked it up in Indiana (back then you could do that). We scheduled three days right there, camping nearby at night, and going back for more service the next day. We strongly recommend allowing time at the pick-up point for such service.
Then we drove 1100 miles home to Kansas, by which time it was several ways destroyed. The bedroom door, for instance, had fallen out of the ceiling. My ingenious mechanical brother put it back together for us, so we could go on our vacation.
We then made an appointment at a shop in Anchorage Alaska. We drove there, and by the time we got there, we had plenty of problems for them. They were great! Book ahead; you can always cancel.
When we got back to Kansas, we had slide problems, and went to our closest Jayco dealer (2.5 hours away). They were great too. We never got any feeling that we were treated differently because we didn't buy from them.
But this time around, we did buy from them. We did an internet search, getting prices from RVD and other places. We didn't ask the locals to match RVD. We just asked them to split the difference, beating Nebraska by $1000. They were happy to do it. In which case, we were happy to buy local.
We also purchased our Jayco 3100SS Granite Ridge from RV Direct and picked it up in Indiana as well. Charger was the company used to do the inspection and give us the necessary walk through and instructions. We were totally pleased with the service we received there, and we literally stayed on their lot overnight so we could use everything possible, and give them a report of any problems the next day. We saved a ton of money buying through RV Direct, they are polite, efficient and also follow up with you quickly when you need to call them (Eric was our salesman,yay, Eric!). I'd do it again in a heartbeat, and we haven't had any trouble getting service through local dealers. Hope you don't shy away from doing it, they really are a great company! We purchased an '05 and it's going strong!
Betty[purple]:C
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