Community Forums

bdaball · 04-11-2009, 06:22 PM

Boy, I thought I had it made in the shade! Finally a glimmer of light on the brake issue. I stopped in the local Workhorse RV dealership today which is only five miles from my house to see if he had heard any news about the recall.
"ARE YOU KIDDING ME?. We stopped being a dealership over the winter. Dealership fee alone was $4,500.00 just to hang a sign out front. They are terrible to work with. The amount of parts we had to stock at crazy prices and warranty claim fees were unreasonable".
(glad he was holding back and didn't tell me how he really felt

)

I really think I have a very nice chassis, but I continue to hear these responses about Workhorse. Far from the first time I hear information like this. Will this ever change?

Guess I need to get online and see how far I need to go to find another dealer that is still in business.

gonzo · 04-11-2009, 08:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bdaball

Boy, I thought I had it made in the shade! Finally a glimmer of light on the brake issue. I stopped in the local Workhorse RV dealership today which is only five miles from my house to see if he had heard any news about the recall.
"ARE YOU KIDDING ME?. We stopped being a dealership over the winter. Dealership fee alone was $4,500.00 just to hang a sign out front. They are terrible to work with. The amount of parts we had to stock at crazy prices and warranty claim fees were unreasonable".
(glad he was holding back and didn't tell me how he really felt

)

I really think I have a very nice chassis, but I continue to hear these responses about Workhorse. Far from the first time I hear information like this. Will this ever change?

Guess I need to get online and see how far I need to go to find another dealer that is still in business.

WORKHORSE RV DEALERSHIP? Workhorse only make the chassi's! Are they only selling MH's that are either DP's or build on Ford?

As for finding a dealership, I have seen many GM dealerships that are also Workhorse Service Center.

tech@brazelsrv · 04-11-2009, 08:46 PM

We have been a Workhorse Warranty Dealer for 5 years and have never heard of a "fee" to become one. There are parts and equipment that Workhorse requires its dealers to buy on initial dealership startup. Yes, they can be difficult to deal with if you don't follow the rules. We have always been paid for all warranty work we have performed for them, most of their people we deal with have more often than not gone the extra mile for customer satisfaction. Does that mean they don't make mistakes or make a decision that we don't agree with? Absolutely not, but I can say from experience that Workhorse, by far is the best manufacturer we deal with.

"007" · 04-11-2009, 09:23 PM

I find its the dealers who have given me the hard time, if we had more Brazel Service Centers life would be alot better, waiting for that day.

DriVer · 04-12-2009, 08:08 AM

Steve Brazel said it best. Not every business is cut out to be a Workhorse Authorized Service Center.

golden · 04-12-2009, 08:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by "007"

I find its the dealers who have given me the hard time, if we had more Brazel Service Centers life would be alot better, waiting for that day.

I'd sure love to see them open a branch here in central Texas. We could use someone who can be trusted. I'm constantly amazed with the communication I see on this forum between them and RVers. They set the bar VERY high for other such service centers.

George Z · 04-12-2009, 09:15 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bdaball

"ARE YOU KIDDING ME?. We stopped being a dealership over the winter. Dealership fee alone was $4,500.00 just to hang a sign out front. They are terrible to work with. The amount of parts we had to stock at crazy prices and warranty claim fees were unreasonable".

Not disputing what you were told, but there always seems to be another side of the story. But when someone is talking about their own experience or business it never seems to be any of their own fault. Of course I could only speculate as to any other reason, and I won't. My WH service center is looking for more chassis work in these lean times.

George

-Gramps- · 04-12-2009, 10:09 AM

We no longer have a service center in our area. Considering how they used to treat their customers before Workhorse terminated them, I am better off driving two hours away to get service.

DriVer · 04-12-2009, 10:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by George Z

My WH service center is looking for more chassis work in these lean times.

George, A lot of RV dealerships owe their continued survival to the service work which they can bring into the business. It's a proven success formula and without that option being available dealerships would be closing at a more severe rate than what may be happening out there in this economy.

Workhorse has always wanted coach dealerships to become WASC. This they felt would give their customer a one-stop-shopping benefit in that coach and chassis repairs could be accomplished at the same facility.

Ford on the other hand has never entertained that model. Most RV dealers won't even change a radiator cap on a Ford.

Wanting it to happen or designing a specific service model just doesn't make it happen unless the dealership makes it work.

Stand alone service facilities like Brazels and Redlands and others that work on our chassis are the exception. A lot of these facilities are very distinguished in the work they perform and are recognized as premier service facilities. These guys go the extra mile. It's a combination of excellent mechanical performance, superior customer relations and value that wins these guys recognition by both Workhorse and their many repeat customers.

There are many other service facilities that don't sell RV products that work on our chassis including Cummins/Onan and Ford dealerships that also do very good work.

Going forward it is expected that International Truck and Engine dealerships will be coming on board at a more rapid rate. There are a few out there that work on Workhorse and their numbers are increasing quarterly.

The Workhorse service network may very well be the largest chassis service resource in the RV Industry already. Those businesses that fall by the wayside for whatever reason have replacements waiting in the wings.

The National Service Director Alan Stegich makes it his business to make sure the service centers are doing a good job. In helping him to achieve that goal, "Rate a Dealer" is available on the workhorse website and these reviews go directly to Alan. That said; If your service center deserves praise please do not omit going to the rating resource and praise your dealer because it directly benefits them.

With the scope of the campaign that is going to be launched here shortly, more than ever "Rate a Dealer" is going to be more important than ever.

Follow up concerns not accomplished like greasy footprints or failing to clean up after the work is accomplished is important toward total customer satisfaction. We owners have to do our part to make sure that we give the company feedback every time we use a WASC because it's the litmus tests that speaks the loudest.

George Z · 04-12-2009, 10:40 AM

Sorry DriVer, I should have said my WH center is a GMC dealership and I am very happy with them.

George

DriVer · 04-12-2009, 05:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by George Z

I should have said my WH center is a GMC dealership and I am very happy with them.

George, The post wasn't directed toward you but in support of what you said in your quote.

I agree, there are many GMC dealers out there that do excellent work. A GMC dealer is also typically a truck service center and they have more hands on with heavier vehicles. I wouldn't hesitate to go to one just to try them out. You apparently have found a good service center.

Don't forget to rate them as well if they're doing a good job for you.

max49 · 04-12-2009, 06:42 PM

It seems like it would be nice to have a Brazels or Redlands around here. At least you get the feeling that you are talking to someone who is at least close to the work instead of just a svc writer in a suit.

One drawback to going to an authorized WH svc cntr (and maybe Brazels can correct me if I'm wrong) is that they want to sell you WCC parts, even if GM or aftermarket are available,and WH parts are higher than than anybody else and have to be ordered most of the time.

Apparently Brazels has learned the hurdles of doing every thing just right in order to get paid by WH but a Chevy dealer here , that is also a WH svc cntr told me that, for them, the employees, WH is much more of a hassle than GM. They also said they really don't have room to store a bunch of MHs while they wait for WH to send them parts.

This same place changed my IP, my fuel pump, fuel rail clip, turned off the check engine light, changed an air bag and worked on my dash AC, all under warranty and never once even tried to charge me for anything.

Every time I took my MH into the "Freedom Wheels" RV center , they always dinged me $50 to $100 for something that they said was'nt covered under warranty. That really p1ssed me off and other than leave the MH and take them to court, I had no choice but pay it. I did learn my lesson and started taking it to the Chevy dealership, even tho they didn't seem to need MH business.

O BTW, the Chevy dealer is 'Burt Chevrolet on Broadway' in Denver and is very good, but they are not even listed as a WH svc cntr, but when you call WH and tell them you want to take it there , they agree to it. Any idea why they are not listed, Driver?

bdaball · 04-13-2009, 05:20 AM

To clarify Workhorse Rv Dealership, they are a multi line MH, trailer & RV dealership which was also a Workhorse Service Center. To date they have done saisfactory work including several brake fluid changes as well as caliper replacements last year. I will continue to go there for service that I can not do myself, state inspections, LP fill up's and the run of the mill parts I need at the last minuete.

DriVer · 04-13-2009, 05:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by max49

O BTW, the Chevy dealer is 'Burt Chevrolet on Broadway' in Denver and is very good, but they are not even listed as a WH svc cntr, but when you call WH and tell them you want to take it there , they agree to it. Any idea why they are not listed, Driver?

Max, When you call the Customer and Roadside Assistance number at 877-946-7731, they are allowed to authorize you to use this facility as an authorized service center alternate. This is what the C&RA will do for all its customers.

If Burt Chevrolet on Broadway is not listed as a WASC then they didn't request to be one.

When you are on the road and in some type of difficulty C&RA will try to get you the the closest WASC facility first and if one is not reasonably available they will find an alternate. I have also been successful in asking the C&RA if I could use a shop that I found in the phone book while I was traveling in South Carolina. They authorized a shop to come out which was located in Walterboro where we were camped at the time and I had a failed solenoid. A few minutes after Tommy's arrived on the scene we were back on the road.

The whole thing in a nutshell is to call Customer and Roadside Assistance, 877-946-7731 first and let them handle your case. That's what they do.

When we go on workhorse.com to find a dealer, I don't believe that none of the alternates are listed. When you factor in all the authorized centers and the alternates Workhorse has a very large service network for your motorhome chassis.

Max, In regard to "Freedom Wheels RV Center", did you rate this dealer? I know for a fact that Alan will look into reports where customers claim to been over charged.

For all W-Series owners affected by the 50901-C campaign (all of you) the Customer and Roadside Assistance hotline are the folks that are going to be your first point of contact after you get your your campaign letter. They will direct you to the closest WASC in order to have your campaign completed. C&RA are in charge of managing and getting you to the proper facility so that you can have any recall completed.