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barmcd · 01-24-2019, 01:52 PM

I've never traded in a vehicle with a problem, we usually fix them as they pop up.

Unicorn Driver · 01-24-2019, 02:53 PM

I told them about the issues, I don't think they listened though.

jacwjames · 01-24-2019, 03:21 PM

The times that I've sold RV or vehicle they were to private individuals. I told them everything I knew, good and bad. I also provide them with all the maintenance records. When I sold my 19987 Class C it was to my mechanics father. My mechanic knew I took good care of the coach, did all the required maintenance, and he had done the items I couldn't tackle. They still have the coach, that was 9 years ago.

If I were to sell or trade to a dealer I probably would not tell them anything unless they ask. My wife had bought a new Chrysler Town and Country van from a local dealer, top of the line. She had them do all the maintenance. When she took it in the right after the warranty was up they came back with a list of items totaling almost $3K, she called me in a panic. I had her bring the list home. I then went and talked to the manager and asked why none of these items were addressed under warranty. He said it was like going to the doctor's office, if you don't ask about something they usually won't say anything either. So with that I do not have any sympathy for the dealers.

FYI, I took the van to the mechanic I use and he said NONE of the items on the list were valid.

**NLOVNIT** · 01-24-2019, 03:37 PM

I disclose. That way my conscience is clear. When we traded in our 5-r + truck to the dealer we bought our Bounder from, I pointed out the shower leak. I also pointed out the upgrades we did to both the 5-r & truck. Whether they told those things to the next owner, I don't know. All I know is that our 5-r was sold within a week.

I'll do the same when it comes time to trade in our Bounder. They'll know about the crease in the rear bay door from kissing a Rubbermaid mailbox on a narrow county road, the stress crack in the fiberglass from the screw near the water heater door & all the upgrades we've done. What they do with that info is up to them.

Lori-

CoachDitka · 01-24-2019, 03:44 PM

No need to disclose to a dealer. They are holding themselves out as a dealer which puts them in a superior position than you to evaluate anything on the rig. Your opinion of what might be wrong with it doesn't matter compared to theirs in that situation. If there's something particularly desirable about your vehicle that you don't know about, you can be sure the dealer isn't going to say anything to you. You definitely should not hide any problems, because that could be fraud, but you're under no duty to volunteer that information. If they ask you questions though, tell the truth.

With a private buyer, you probably do want to disclose. You are in the superior position to know the condition, and they are relying on you to a certain extent. You still don't have a legal obligation to point out any faults, but if I'm the potential buyer and you tell me 8 minor things that are problems that I wouldn't have otherwise noticed, I'll be a lot more trusting of you. If someone instead tells me its in good shape and I start noticing little things, well I'll probably turn and run. So while you're not obligated to disclose anything, being honest and upfront will definitely help you close the deal in addition to being the right thing to do.

aknavy · 01-24-2019, 03:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CoachDitka

No need to disclose to a dealer. They are holding themselves out as a dealer which puts them in a superior position than you to evaluate anything on the rig. Your opinion of what might be wrong with it doesn't matter compared to theirs in that situation. If there's something particularly desirable about your vehicle that you don't know about, you can be sure the dealer isn't going to say anything to you. You definitely should not hide any problems, because that could be fraud, but you're under no duty to volunteer that information. If they ask you questions though, tell the truth.

With a private buyer, you probably do want to disclose. You are in the superior position to know the condition, and they are relying on you to a certain extent. You still don't have a legal obligation to point out any faults, but if I'm the potential buyer and you tell me 8 minor things that are problems that I wouldn't have otherwise noticed, I'll be a lot more trusting of you. If someone instead tells me its in good shape and I start noticing little things, well I'll probably turn and run. So while you're not obligated to disclose anything, being honest and upfront will definitely help you close the deal in addition to being the right thing to do.

This is pretty much how my viewpoint has been, up to this point. The thing that made me question it was a decent (not great) trade offer based on a couple looking for what I'm trading in.

How true is that? I have no idea. But - the offer was reasonable for a dealer, not the 15k every other dealer was offering, so I questioned giving them a trailer with a known issue.

And, just so everyone knows, now that it's been bandied about all day - the issue is a broken weld under the upper deck, causing some flex on the driver side.

The same problem I had fixed last summer, but after looking closely at the welds that I can see, I'm not impressed with the quality, and suspect one or more broke. Only thing that keeps me from being upset is that Cedar Creek paid for that repair, not me.

The only visible symptom that 99 percent of people may see is a 3 inch stress crack under the bedroom slide, which has not grown since the initial crack appeared. I'd venture to guess most people wouldn't notice it at all.

I "assume" a weld is broke, but I have not stripped it down to look, as I'm not anywhere I have a welder that I can trust to fix it, and I'm not taking it apart without fixing it.

I towed the trailer with the original issue over 10k miles, closely monitoring flex/further cracking/etc, and I've towed it about 3k on this current issue, with no further evidence of damage, so I don't see that it's a safety hazard. Were the crack or flex get any worse, I'd stop towing immediately. The only significant trip it'll be taking in the near future is to get repaired.

Anyways, the deal that spurred the question has taken a back seat to a couple privately owned coaches I'm interested in, so I'll probably be getting this sucker fixed in the next couple months.

ThePowells · 01-24-2019, 05:14 PM

This brings up a question I have thought about and think more as we approach trade in time.
Has anyone left a name and phone number somewhere in a coach where the next owner would hopefully find it in order to let them know how great the coach was and let them know what upgrades have been made and be a resource for them to help them get started?

aknavy · 01-24-2019, 05:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ThePowells

This brings up a question I have thought about and think more as we approach trade in time.
Has anyone left a name and phone number somewhere in a coach where the next owner would hopefully find it in order to let them know how great the coach was and let them know what upgrades have been made and be a resource for them to help them get started?

I bought mine privately, so... He answered questions for over a year.

Gary RVRoamer · 01-25-2019, 10:56 AM

I would answer any questions honestly but not volunteer anything. He's buying a used RV, so it's strictly caveat emptor. Besides, he is presumably expert in assessing them.

I've never had a dealer actually look at my trade before quoting a trade value. As long as there is no visible damage, he doesn't much care. He's only paying you wholesale anyway - much or your "trade-in value" is actually just a discount on the MSRP of a new one. Or the inflated asking price if buying a used rig.

Ray,IN · 01-25-2019, 01:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by aknavy

So, when trading in an RV to a dealer, getting a wholesale value for your trailer - do you let them know of any known issues, or is it dealer buyer beware?

Never traded in to a dealer, and have no idea what the process is. Will them do any inspection, other than a cursory walk around?

Selling to a private individual, I prefer to make any issues known, but then I'm also trying to get a retail price. Typically, with a car dealer, I figure it's their job to catch anything. Same for an RV?

IMO the same ethics apply to both parties. If the salesperson fully-discloses everything about what they are selling, you should also disclose everything . The old addage "let the buyer beware" holds true yet today.

chunker · 01-25-2019, 01:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by aknavy

Totally understand, and agree...but we're full time, and the convenience of a trade in is alluring. No worries about if/when it will sell, move right into the new one...but take a beating on the value. Trying to figure out a value proposition that would make me trade vice sell on my own.

Suggestion, how much difference do you think there is between what a dealer will offer and what you could reasonably sell to a private person? Let's say $10K for example. How long could you stay in a VRBO, AirBnB, etc while you got the new one ready if you sold to an individual? Don't forget to figure in the tax difference when trading. That can be a significant $$$ depending on the location of the sale and purchase.

TLGPE · 01-25-2019, 04:52 PM

We just traded with a dealer. I told them everything I could. I even told them of a damaged ladder I hadn't known about until we were taking the coach in to trade. On top of that, I damaged the rear cap in the RV park when were leaving.

I told them about the damage and called our insurance company and told them what I had done. The dealer charged the insurance nearly $5K for the repairs. I'm sure I'll hear about that at renewal time, but I felt that I had to do it.

That's just me, YMMV.

Tom

katielee · 01-25-2019, 05:41 PM

When we traded out TT for a class A, we had been to the dealer so many times they knew us. I had told them what I was trading in and that it was a year old. They never looked at it. Made us an offer which we turned down and they gave us more. When we signed the deal, they still had never seen it. Brought it to them the day we picked up the Class A and they never looked at it.

Sent a friend to the same dealer to trade his Class A for a bigger Class A. Same thing. They gave him his asking price and when they finally came down to the price he wanted to pay for the new DP, he signed the deal and they never looked at his trade.

I think the folks above are right. They pass it along to someone else and really care less.

We did disclose the only issues we knew of and they acted like it was no big deal. My neighbor told them about his 10 year old rig, and again, they never blinked an eye.

I felt better disclosing anyway.