Community Forums

Ebwhite · 10-11-2019, 12:14 AM

Hey guys, first post here...

Just sold our older motorhome and looking forward to our new Diesel pusher....Looking at different models, first set on the Ventana but couldn’t justify the price for how much we will use and didn’t want some of the extras plus not getting colors we want on the 2019s.

Now we are set of ordering a new 2020 Kountry Star.

I’ve been doing plenty of research and have a very specific/basic order. I basically need a dealer who will place order and have us pickup and I’m willing to go anywhere in the US and am paying cash. My #1 concern is price and I’m striving to get 35% off MSRP as the dealer is going to put little into the sale. I’m in sales myself and have RV experience, not interested/ no patience in dealing with salesmen, could careless about any PDI session. All the dealers I’m calling have no internet sales managers, I guess the industry hasn’t moved the way of car dealers have.

I’ll be spending this week calling some of the dealers who I read about on the forums

Now for my questions-

1- Am I way off base expecting 35% off on a basic order? I see 30% is pretty easy to obtain on off the lot sales.

2- Can you order the coach with a different sink base? The 3412 has a terrible top mount bowl and the 3426 is soo much nicer.

Thanks guys!

New2road · 10-11-2019, 02:23 AM

Just like car buying, send build sheet to the high volume guys and get their best prices. those just looking to move inventory will have best prices. You know the issues, they make their money on the financing, insurance, warranty side and you aren't giving them that revenue stream. They had to pre buy factory build slots, if you get them at the right time you might get the price you want.

You can ask Newmar for a special on the sink base, they will price it out if is within their range of flexibility. As long as dimensions are same, then it would just be the upcharge for material and specialization.

Best of luck. Have line of sight on where you will get warranty service with this strategy. Many have issues getting non selling dealers to service their coaches.

Cheers,
j

GaryKD · 10-11-2019, 08:24 AM

Hi Ebwhite,
Cutting to the chase, contact "Diesel" Dan Cutting at North Trail RV. He sells more Newmar coaches than anyone. If the coach is ordered, let him know you will pick it up at the factory. He may have something on the lot the meets your needs. 35% is a stretch for a new model at this time of the year. Good for a model year end discount, maybe not now.

Ebwhite · 10-11-2019, 08:53 AM

Hey, I understand where you are coming from. Where can I find these build sheets for the specialty changes?

Thanks

New2road · 10-11-2019, 09:27 AM

Build sheet will just be factory options you want. You have to get the salesman to request your specials from Newmar to get pricing. Go on Newmar website. Build out coach the way you want it. Print and send copies to the dealers you wish to deal with, or as above that are recommended for low pricing.

Spikester · 10-11-2019, 11:52 AM

Newmar has Factory Reps (work for Newmar not Dealers) strategically placed around the country that dealers work through when it comes to special orders. These reps are the ones that can tell you pretty much what factory will and will not do as far as specials go. So my suggestion is to get one of those factory reps involved preferably, but at a minimum make sure the salesperson has talked to the Factory Rep about any specials orders.

Bad news is 2020 model years are in high demand at present, dealers trying hard to move 2019 model year coaches to make room for 2020 coaches they have on order with the factory. I ordered a 2020 Dutch Star 3736 on 28 Sep, current delivery to dealer is mid Feb. so one has to have some patience when it comes to ordering a 2020 coach. We wanted 4 special orders, my wife wanted drawer and cabinet pulls from another Newmar product installed, wanted mods to 2 cabinet configurations, wanted some HDMI cabling configuration changes, and specific type and size of cable utilized for Solar Prep, all were approved at a reasonable, or no additional cost.

Try Guaranty RV in Junction City Or, they are probably the biggest Newmar seller in the PNW, they have done well by me in my dealings, this is the second Newmar I have bought from them and have been happy with the deals that I have got in both cases. My sales person is Mike Bassett (541-953-8509) (French pronunciation on the last name), no nonsense kind of guy, here's what I want, what I want to pay, I will go fight to get what you want. I also wanted 35% off MSRP, but also had a what I'll take amount, had logically reasoning for my pricing, with the figures to back it up, which I shared with salesperson. Lets say I was extremely happy with deal I got, and the dealership appeared to be happy also, didn't appear that anyone there would be applying for subsistence!

zzotte · 10-11-2019, 01:03 PM

I don’t know about 35% off MSRP and cash means nothing anymore since the dealer makes money when you finance and trade but in any case Midway RV center in Grand Rapids it’s a reputable and down to earth, they are the best

Zzotte

Solo_RV_Guy · 10-11-2019, 01:23 PM

Dealers make money on financing, insurance, everything that isn't part of the coach it self. They LOSE potential profit on all-cash sales.

And a 35% discount? Not gonna happen on a 2020 in 2019, it at all. The only way I see a discount like that is for a unit where the sale fell through and the dealer is stuck with an RV on his lot that has features or a custom color scheme that is seen as "ugly" by other potential buyers.

Airedale · 10-11-2019, 01:30 PM

We were in similar situation, not tied to any specific dealership. Ended up using Chris Prothe, NIRVC Dallas. Highly recommend!

New2road · 10-11-2019, 10:42 PM

FWIW. We used Jake at Albany RV (Jake Kalil <jakek@rvone.com>). Everything done by phone and email. Did CPU at factory. We were happy with price and customer service. Have never been to dealership, nor used them for service although they just opened a center in SC we may check out (we live in VA). I sent him the build sheet. had a price I wanted, he worked to get me as close as possible. Pretty low drama purchase.

j

deanansley · 10-18-2019, 06:31 PM

I would contact Tom Lindstrom RV Moorepark CA. It’s just north of Los Angles. We bought ours from him. He is the owner so no back and forth to sales desk. I’ve had 8 Motorhomes and this was by far the best buying experience I’ve ever had. Straight forward and direct. He is in the top 5 Newmar dealers group.

brucemcdou · 10-19-2019, 07:31 PM

+1 on Tom Lindstrom. We went in person just to test drive (we hadn’t owned a diesel before). Agreed on a price and % off on options and specials quickly, handshake, done. True to his word. And we’ve never been back for service or anything, we’re too far away.

Agree w others that 35% off of a new order is too high. Perhaps for something left over on a dealer lot. But no harm in asking.

sgwyble · 10-20-2019, 04:45 AM

I also worked with Albany RV and Jake. No nonsense type of guy. Also get his boss Mark Strollo involved. He has a sharp pencil. 35% is stretch on newly released model. Also try getting extra off on the trade where they have more flexibility

deaton · 10-20-2019, 07:53 AM

In regard to the OP’s comment on the vessel sink - I recently ordered s 2020 DSDP 4081 through NIRVC Lewisville.

My wife and I are also not fans of the vessel sink in the half bath. So, one of our “special” requests was to have this changed to an undermount.

Although I had seen pictures showing this in other coaches, the special was denied. I asked why and Newmar ecplained that they have redesigned the cabinet in the DS and an undermount sink will not fit in the new design. I’m not sure if this would apply to the Kountry Star or not.

And no, I don’t think 35 off is a realistic target at this point in the model year. Maybe when the 2021’s start shipping next year.

I recently saw a bigger discount than that on a new ‘19 Cornerstone. But the Entegra’s always seem to sell at a larger discount from MSRP than the Newmar’s.