postnote Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 We are new to motor homing and only recently purchased an Autotrail Cheyenne in Mar. This was after we spent 4 weeks traveling Australia’s West coast in a motorhome. I won’t say which dealer we went to but a family owned one, the sales people were so friendly and accommodating during the purchase phase. However when we had a few problems with it, they didn’t really want to know. I thought there would have been some honesty and integrity after spending a large amount of money cash, how wrong; they are no better than a second hand car sales man and in this case worse. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snitrats Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 Hi, I do agree. I purchased a new swift escape at the 2009 NEC show, arrived in May, paid cash and all happy with the service. However 2 months later the TV booster stoped working, as I use the van when I am working away, I asumed the booster was faulty and purchased a new one locally.Still no good ! I also noticed I had driven the van with the tracking system on, and no calls to me to advise the van had moved. Both these items were fitted by the dealer as part of the promotion. On phoning the dealer I was advised they where very busy after the show and could fit me in 5 weeks time! After a heated argument I paid someone to do the work sorting out the poor wiring they had installed.This really piddled me off ! They just did'nt want to know, they had the money and that was all they were intrested in, not custermer service. I shall be looking at dealers very carefully in the future before handing over any cash :-S Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melvin Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 How right you guys are, I have had similar experience in the past, however, John Cross Motorhomes according to motorhomes I have meet on site are very good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AnnPaul Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 Come on name and shame! Paul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kelly58 Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 We bought our last Autosleeper motorhome from Marquis and the aftersales service we have received both from Marquis and Autosleeper has been excellent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest pelmetman Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 AnnPaul - 2011-05-18 4:59 PM Come on name and shame! Paul Any names ;-) ....................and this thread will disappear so fast you wont be able to say Smart car :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
postnote Posted May 18, 2011 Author Share Posted May 18, 2011 OK, OK, it was Elite Motorhomes in Banbury. We had to wait 4 weeks before they could book us in and when we arrived back there, a 4hour drive this very rude woman, who is a director said to my wife, I don't know if we can see to all the faults we are very busy you know. She had to stay two nights while they recified the problems, we will have to wait and see if they have. On a closing note, we took the Cheyenne back the following day we pick it up. The Sargent control panel wasn't working. Their reply, yes we were having problems with it. Yes they changed it over there and then, but to see a MH with a know fault..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dshague Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 had very good service from lowdams huddersfield over the past two years .not very happy with south yorkshire motorhomes Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Tracker Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 I've had three vans from various Marquis branches over the years and whilst I have never had a serious or hard to resolve issue with any of them, Marquis staff have always been most helpful and courteous. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fred Duck Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 At least the problems above, whilst annoying, weren’t dangerous. In our case, we were sold an unroadworthy van. The Dealer did not want to know and simply referred us to the insurance backed warrantee that came with the van. The Company running this were most unhelpful and tried hard to wriggle out of any involvement. Pressure, threats and persistence solved the problem at no cost to us but someone who didn't know what to do would have ended up paying over £400 to have the problems put right. Who was the Dealer? No point in naming as they continue to be a major advertiser in MMM and the thread will be pulled faster than you can blink as happened last time I tried. FD Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laimeduck Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 "Elite" in Banbury do a 2 -3 page spread most months in MMM so be prepared to disappear! I have had dealings with them and was not impressed by their workmanship nor their indifference. I have resolved not to use dealers if I can help it in the future - but hey what's new! Jeremy the L'aimeDuck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest pelmetman Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 laimeduck - 2011-05-18 6:37 PM "Elite" in Banbury do a 2 -3 page spread most months in MMM so be prepared to disappear! I have had dealings with them and was not impressed by their workmanship nor their indifference. I have resolved not to use dealers if I can help it in the future - but hey what's new! Jeremy the L'aimeDuck We're probably ok at the moment as its going home time (lol) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robertandjean Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 Hi, Know this will not meet with general approval but have always found Brownhills excellent both in terms of sales and after sale, and we have bought a lot of vans from them over the years! Can not say the same for Glossop Caravans; bought one van from them never again. So yes some dealers are no better than second hand car dealers but Brownhills, in our experience, certainly are. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyB Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 SOUTHERN MOTORHOMES IN TAPLOW ARE GREAT (lol) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
art338 Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 If you ever decide on a Rapido then go to their works at Wokingham they are one of the best dealers around. There should be a list of the good and not so good dealers, it may cause some to sharpen up their act. art Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blizzard Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 Having heard all the horror stories, we still bought ours from Brownhills NE and can only compliment their sales team, especially young Nick, who was friendly and professional, with an excellent knowledge of the van. We bumped in to Nick at the NEC last year and knowing we probably wouldn't be changing the van at that time, he treat us to lunch anyway. A small gesture which left us feeling valued. A few minor snagging problems were quickly and professionally sorted for us and the service manager Alan left us feeling as if nothing was too much bother. Praise where its due and I wouldn't hesitate to buy from them again..... :-D I can't say that about many of the car salesmen I've bought from in the past. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest pelmetman Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 Which makes the point where Warners should have a warts an all section where customers can post their gripes and the business's involved can post their replies :-D ...................Dam site cheaper than employing lawyers (lol) ................and we the customer can sort the wheat from the chaff without the spin ;-) Save us all a bleedin fortune *-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest JudgeMental Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 art338 - 2011-05-18 8:15 PM If you ever decide on a Rapido then go to their works at Wokingham they are one of the best dealers around. There should be a list of the good and not so good dealers, it may cause some to sharpen up their act. art Just talking to them on the phone and they seem very decent people....compared to some of the shysters around I am also impressed with John Cross who fitted my bike rack last week... I have a reputation for not liking UK dealers (totally based on experience) last Belgian dealer was excellent and latest German one brilliant..I askes him for a mosquito net door for the Adria (Reimo 135 euro) forgot about it, and it just came to day free of charge..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Momma Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 I bought my new Motorhome from Chelstons near Wellington in Somerset last year. Freindly service but quite a few issues when we took delivery of the van, all resolved but not all by Chelstons. Took it back there last month for first service and habitation check and asked them to look again at a kitchen cupboard that had never fitted correctly. On previous occasions they tried to adjust and told me it was due to the shape of the door (semi-circular under sink cupboard door), this time they told me the door was warped and I would need a new one (At least it would be done under warranty). Told me they would order the part and contact me when it came in. Today, I phoned them (nearly six weeks after said service) only to discover that they hadn't even ordered the part !! They have now put in another claim on the warranty and ordered the part and told me that they would contact me when it comes in................... *-) I had heard so many good reports about this dealership, unfortunately, they are not living up to them and next year I may well be looking at finding another dealer closer to home. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
terry1956 Posted May 19, 2011 Share Posted May 19, 2011 Hi, people are always nice when they are taking your money. the test of any good dealership is when you are taking theirs. so stop being fooled by big smiles and yes he/she are nice. always look at the item you are buying, and the workshops. michael Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
terryW Posted May 19, 2011 Share Posted May 19, 2011 Tracker - 2011-05-18 6:03 PMI've had three vans from various Marquis branches over the years and whilst I have never had a serious or hard to resolve issue with any of them, Marquis staff have always been most helpful and courteous. Can't have been the one at lower Upham we bought a van from them, less than one year old, we took it back with a major leak. The last thing we heard from them was the mechanic saying it may need to go back to the factory. If fact it did for complete new roof and side but the mechanic was the last person from Marquise that spoke to us. The van was away for 6 months at the factory we had to get it there and to this day Marquise have not even phoned to see if we got the van back! The only good news was that it was not a Swift liability and Marquise had to pay. Lol But lets not tar then all with the same brush our local dealer that helped us ship the van back to Swift and has helped us out several times since has been completely the opposite. Without hesitation I can recommend Moran Motororhomes at Ludlow. Allway ready to help and on two occasions I was not charged for small jobs done on the spot. So lets name the best as well as the worst. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
postnote Posted May 19, 2011 Author Share Posted May 19, 2011 A very interesting comment. On the one hand I can see they want to keep their advertisers happy, but if we don't buy their magazine then they wouldn't have advertisers. It is only because of the readers they advertise, they don't give a monkey, sorry monkies about articals etc they want our money. If by naming and shaming the dealers and the quality service improves is that not a benifit for all the trade. Maybe MMM should start a poll where each month people can name and shame unlike most polls the worse would be at the top. I'm sure then the dealers would have second thoughts at the way they treat the customer, yes the customer that keeps them in buisness. I would like to hear the thoughts of Warner Group as to which side of the fecne they sit?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AliB Posted May 19, 2011 Share Posted May 19, 2011 dshague - 2011-05-18 5:53 PM had very good service from lowdams huddersfield over the past two years .not very happy with south yorkshire motorhomes Lowdhams sales staff were excellent but oh dear how poorly their service department performed. They always wanted the vehicle for a week yet it still had uncompleted jobs when I was told it was ready for collection. They did not want to know about warranty claims trying to convince me that a habitation door that leaked in pouring rain was normal and I was expecting too much. Their solution to interefence on the audio feed from the reversing camera was to disconnect the audio saying it was unnecessary. But it was a feature of the new vehicle. I wont bore you with all the other faults they could not fix. Writing to their MD was a waste of time. Thankfully Swift and Richard Baldwins sorted everything out at no cost to me. Guess who now gets the annual service work. Brownhills took 3 weeks to respond to my pre sales questions by which time I had done the deal with Lowdhams. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
locksmith Posted May 19, 2011 Share Posted May 19, 2011 pelmetman - 2011-05-18 5:13 PM AnnPaul - 2011-05-18 4:59 PM Come on name and shame! Paul Any names ;-) ....................and this thread will disappear so fast you wont be able to say Smart car :D Your right there.!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Kirby Posted May 19, 2011 Share Posted May 19, 2011 But really, why should motorhome dealers be any better than car dealers? Both buy and sell vehicles and make their profit on the difference between the buying and selling prices. If they get that wrong, they make a loss, and if they make too many losses, they go bust. The incentive, from their point of view, is to survive and, if they are good at that part of their job and they trade intelligently, they will have sufficient margin from which to pay for the odd disaster that befalls a customer. If they are honest folk, that is what they will do. These guys are traders, the good, the bad, and the ugly. Like all traders, they live on their wits, and they are more often schooled at the school of hard knocks and the university of life than any elite establishment. Always remember there is no degree in motorhome dealing, and no professional institute of motorhome dealers with a written code of practise. We should value the good, but really should not be too surprised at the others. If they are incompetent at the dealing bit they will have the simple choice of being unhelpful over faults, or going bust. If they are dishonest, but astute, they wont care too much about the customer's problem, and will in all probability remain profitable. Because they are astute in trading, the number of dud vans they sell will be small, and so the number of dissatisfied customers will be small. Their reputation will remain relatively sound, with just a few grumbles here and there, easily excused as totally unreasonable customers who no-one could satisfy. IMO, we - collectively - are our own worst enemies. We want this or that van. We see it in a dealership at a good price. We haggle them down a bit further. Maybe we trade them our present van. We may do so in summer, hoping the high moisture reading we saw in February won't show in June. Then the one we bought turns out to have faults and we then wonder why we are treated with suspicion by the dealer. We, the buying public are, in general, no more honest or dishonest than the dealers, but the dealer's opinion of us, in general, is that we are out to take them for every penny we can. Mostly that is because, somewhere in the past, the dealer has been taken to the cleaners by a totally unscrupulous member of the public. Equally, somewhere, there are members of the public who have been taken to the cleaners by a totally unscrupulous (though in truth, I think more probably, an incompetent and dysfunctional) dealer. So the dealer views the public with suspicion, and the public views the dealer with suspicion. Not a good basis for trade, is it? However, there seems little we can do about it: it just seems to be how things are. All we can do is approach buying with great caution, enquire about particular dealers, if necessary, find out about court judgements against them, try to gain an understanding of their attitudes to customers, try to demonstrate our honesty to them, avoid treating them as professionals who will put our interests above theirs, and try to be fair in our dealings with them. The problem with name and shame campaigns, is that no-one other than the complainant and the accused knows any more then what they are told, and even the complainant and the accused only know their own side of the story, seldom understanding how the other side sees things. This is why there is such a move to mediation and conciliation hearings, in lieu of court hearings, to settle disputes. Naming and shaming can only be fair if both sides are absolutely, scrupulously, honest in what they say. We may be swayed in our dealings with a firm by what someone says about them, only to find out the complainant was dishonest and had themselves caused the problem they claim the accused won't fix. Having been rumbled trying to pull a fast one, they then try going public, to try to extort a settlement they don't merit or deserve. What is the dealer to do then? Is he to reply saying "Oh dear, Mr Bloggs is being economical with the truth. That crack in the washbasin isn't due to a defect, it is because Mr Bloggs dropped his electric razor into the basin, which is what he originally told me, saying a basin so easily damaged is clearly defective and should be replaced under warranty. Mr Bloggs knows the the manufacturer has rejected his claim, saying basins aren't designed to resist dropped razors, and Mr Bloggs should claim from his insurance, or meet the cost of his accidental damage himself." Who then would we believe, Bloggs who claims the whole issue of the dropped razor is a tissue of lies, or the dealer? Would we really be any wiser? IMO, only a magazine proprietor with a hole in his head would allow legally actionable allegations against an alleged, and publicly named, offender to be run by someone hiding behind a fictitious avatar. I also think most people would have more common sense than to put their private business in the public domain, especially if they may eventually have to resort to the courts to try to gain satisfaction. A half decent defence barrister would have a field day with some of the statements made on here if he got his hands on them. Add to that, that the owner of the publication running the name and shame column, or forum, would be jointly actionable with the accuser for anything deemed slanderous, and that truth is no defence against slander, and then ask yourselves why a perfectly good and sound publisher would wish to take such risks. That apart, as a version of justice, the whole concept is about as sound as a wild-west lynch party. "Lets hang him first, then we can have the trial." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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