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Old 09-11-2020, 12:14 PM   #1
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Purchasing Below Invoice

Before I bought my Jeep Wrangler, I scoured the forums gathering information for a long time. One of the most helpful bits I came across was the fact that there are some well-known dealerships across the country that will sell you a special order Jeep at 8% below invoice and all you have to do is ask. No haggling, just send them an email and ask for it. Super easy. Are there any such well-known and reliable deals in the RV world? I don't even see a forum on this site dedicated to the purchasing process so I'm not too hopeful.
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Old 09-11-2020, 01:22 PM   #2
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If a dealer, either car or RV, told me that they were selling their units at 8% under invoice and all I had to do was ask for it I would be very suspicious. I don't see any reason any dealer would be willing to lose money when selling a vehicle unless they could not unload it any other way, or if it was last year's model and they wanted to move it. I have heard of dealers keeping 2 invoices, one real and one for buyers to see, and perhaps that is what is going on here.

In the current RV market I would be astonished to find any dealer even selling at invoice. Most of the prices I have seen are 5-8% above what they were 6-8 months ago, and they were above invoice then. I can't even get RV sales people to return messages since I tell them I am not interested in buying right now but am thinking about a couple of months in the future. When I called one salesman told me he was too busy to take the time.
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Old 09-11-2020, 02:06 PM   #3
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The invoice from the dealer maybe legit, however that invoice doesn't include the givebacks the manufacturer gives to the dealer for the vehicle sold.

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If a dealer, either car or RV, told me that they were selling their units at 8% under invoice and all I had to do was ask for it I would be very suspicious. I don't see any reason any dealer would be willing to lose money when selling a vehicle unless they could not unload it any other way, or if it was last year's model and they wanted to move it. I have heard of dealers keeping 2 invoices, one real and one for buyers to see, and perhaps that is what is going on here.

In the current RV market I would be astonished to find any dealer even selling at invoice. Most of the prices I have seen are 5-8% above what they were 6-8 months ago, and they were above invoice then. I can't even get RV sales people to return messages since I tell them I am not interested in buying right now but am thinking about a couple of months in the future. When I called one salesman told me he was too busy to take the time.
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Old 09-11-2020, 02:15 PM   #4
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It also depends on what brand you want to buy. Tiffin has 3 dealers who will sell a new RV ordered thru them at 25% to 30% below MSRP. Newmar also has several dealers who will do the same. You just have to shop around.
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Old 09-11-2020, 05:33 PM   #5
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Tiffin and Newmar dealers with discounts

Will you share the names of these dealers. We are evaluating both these brands and are trying to determine between models what the prices actually are. Thanks
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Old 09-11-2020, 05:36 PM   #6
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We also bought cars below invoice and got 30% off the Newmar.
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Old 09-11-2020, 05:36 PM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Denalidan View Post
Before I bought my Jeep Wrangler, I scoured the forums gathering information for a long time. One of the most helpful bits I came across was the fact that there are some well-known dealerships across the country that will sell you a special order Jeep at 8% below invoice and all you have to do is ask. No haggling, just send them an email and ask for it. Super easy. Are there any such well-known and reliable deals in the RV world? I don't even see a forum on this site dedicated to the purchasing process so I'm not too hopeful.

Dealers display an MSRP then a discounted price. Both numbers are just numbers and if you look at any of the big RV selling sites like RVTrader.com or RVT.com, etc, you will notice a HUGE variation in price for the same units. Right now the RV market is pretty hot so I doubt this is a great time for that deal of a lifetime.
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Old 09-11-2020, 07:39 PM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Alysonstl View Post
Will you share the names of these dealers. We are evaluating both these brands and are trying to determine between models what the prices actually are. Thanks
Here's the list for Tiffin.

Davis Motorhomes, Memphis, TN
Bankston Motor Homes
Sherman RV, Sherman, MS
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Old 09-11-2020, 08:01 PM   #9
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Buying a motorhome comes with an education.
It’s best to learn first, then buy.
It gets better on your 2nd, 3rd, and 4th purchase.
Invoice means nothing, it’s the dealer costs and what profit he / she will accept with your offer.
I never knew a dealer,s cost but I knew what was fair value for the new MH I purchased.
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Old 09-12-2020, 08:01 AM   #10
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Purchased our rig at Sherman RV at a 29% discount and our JEEP in TX with a 6% discount and ZERO percent financing for 72 months and a 4 month grace period before first payment. We thought a pretty good deal and a "free" loan.
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Old 09-12-2020, 08:10 AM   #11
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MSRP and invoice are not the same thing. Almost everyone sells below MSRP. I think Atlee got it right. Many dealers (the bigger ones) can buy cars cheaper than invoice because of give-backs. I haven't heard of invoice as a bargaining tool with RVs; it is more percentage below MSRP, and of course comparison shopping.
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Old 09-13-2020, 07:08 PM   #12
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True. A worthwhile discount below MSRP or invoice can only be determined if you know what the manufacturers invoice cost is. That was the deal with the Jeep. FCA’s invoice could be calculated using actual price sheets. What the dealer actually pays is not really relevant which is why you have to find the right dealer who has the room to make such a deal. Finding the high-volume dealers that are willing to pass that savings on is the trick. It sounds like RV pricing is not transparent enough to be able to work such a deal.
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Old 09-14-2020, 06:20 AM   #13
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Some nomenclature issues: The window sticker from the factory shows the Base price and the options on that vehicle all listed at Manufacturers Suggested Retail Price (MSRP). this can be compared to other vehicles on the lot and across dealer's lots. The Newmar "30% off" was I am sure discounted below MSRP (not Invoice).

The Invoice price is what the dealer paid for the vehicle. All dealers pay the same. There are no discounts for "high-volume" dealerships. You would have to ask very nicely for a dealer to show you true Invoice on a particular vehicle.

There are then discounts that come and go for both retail (what you see as advertised deals from the manufacturer) and behind the scenes discounts that are provided to the dealership depending on how much inventory nationally / regionally a particular model has overstocked (days supply).

There are discounts if you are an FCA employee for Family vs. Friends. This is a percentage BELOW invoice. The best part of this is you don't need to shop dealer to dealer...the price is always the same for the same equipped vehicle. You then shop based on dealer reputation (service is far more important) and location.

It is unlikely a dealer will sell below invoice. If so, they are loosing money and won't last too long unless the vehicle has been sitting for many months with no consumer interest (a dog). Selling below MSRP? Yes, happens all the time unless it's a Hot vehicle.

It's not easy to calculate an invoice price if you don't have invoice price master sheets. you can certainly guess, but that's just a guess.

The above is based on 30 years with FCA in the field and corporate. Sales / Service and Parts.
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Old 09-14-2020, 07:37 AM   #14
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I have been in the RV community for many years and am often amused by the number of owners who believe that they got such a bargain price, while if you see the actual numbers they were robbed. I was told years ago by a sales manager that the best RV salesperson is the one who can rob his customer and leave the customer boasting about the bargain he got and sending other customers there to be fleeced. The automobile industry is regulated when it comes to things like showing the MSRP and the invoice, but the RV industry has no such rules and the vast majority of RV sales people who show you paperwork have made it up in their own office, which is not illegal. It is also extremely difficult to compare prices between dealers as they almost never have identical units in different dealerships. If you are being told a dealer is giving you 30% or more off of the suggested price, you are almost always being lied to. RIVA, the RV manufacturer's association, goes to great lengths and spends a lot of money to keep regulation out of the RV marketplace and they have been mostly successful.

The only way I know of to really compare prices is to do a special order with some dealer, then take that spec sheet with you, make a copy that doesn't show any prices and take that to other dealers who sell the same RV. When we bought our fulltime RV I did exactly that, getting prices from 9 different dealers in a 3 state area. The lowest price (which I took) was 17% less than the highest, even though the two dealers were claiming to have given me the same discount from MSRP.
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