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warranty service

Yahoo Message Number: 12315
hello,

my name is todd springs.

i am the parts and service director for buddy gregg motor homes, lewisville, tx.

i am posting today to clerify info posted by Stanley20002152 (message #12311).

as of thursday 10-21-04 i made a decision to perform warranty work on country coaches only purchased @ one of buddy's three dealerships.

the reasoning behind this decision was simple. first and foremost is the responsibility i have to our customers, (folks who bought from buddy), to schedule and make corrective repairs in a timley fashion.

i have been unable to fullfill that obligation due to the number of coaches in for service that were purchased from other dealerships in other parts of the country.

the solution in my eyes is simple, schedule your non-emergnecy warranty repairs with your selling dealer. if you have an emergency, call me. i will always do what i can for any customer in that situation.

sincerely,

todd springs
800-858-7139

Re: warranty service

Reply #2 –
Yahoo Message Number: 12317
Very interesting, Todd. What do you say to a person who purchased their CC in Florida and then moved to Texas or to fulltimers?? These coaches have WHEELS and are designed to travel. Any reasonable dealership knows this up front and should be REQUIRED to handle ANY CC that needs service. What if your customer has trouble in Florida? Do you want them to be treated this way there?
Tom Fisher
Dallas, TX

Re: warranty service

Reply #3 –
Yahoo Message Number: 12320
Quote from: toddsprings
hello,

my name is todd springs.

i am the parts and service director for buddy gregg motor homes, > lewisville, tx.
Todd I appreciate the info however because of this policy I will be purchasing my Allure at another dealership. It came just in time because we will be leaving in 2 weeks to pick up the coach I can understand your point but if every dealer did this we would all be stuck remaining close enough to our dealer to get service. We spend too much time on the road support dealers with that policy. At least I know which way I am heading when we leave the northeast for Az.

Re: warranty service

Reply #4 –
Yahoo Message Number: 12321
I am sure Todd and other managers at Buddy Gregg discussed this. Such policy is the norm from my own experience. Appointments are needed and they can be a month or more in the future. Todd Springs does state that this has to do with warranty work on new coaches and that he will come to the aid of anyone with an emergency. Sounds fair to me and no different from other dealers. BTW, Buddy Gregg gives great service and has a very nice campground. Appointments are needed though and other than warranty work they will do business with anyone. My opinion anyway. 2000 Allure 98 CRV.
On Sat, 23 Oct 2004 12:16:35 EDT JOHNNYDP@... writes:

Re: warranty service

Reply #5 –
Yahoo Message Number: 12322
Gads...Read his post! Todd is not saying that no one except original customers will be served. He is saying that free warranty work will be limited to those who made the purchase at B Gregg. He also states that emergency situations will he handled. I have found this policy to be the norm during my almost 2 years of fulltiming. Actually, I do not even use RV dealers any longer and rely on truck garages to do oil changes and other services. The RV business is booming and appointments often take a month or more to arrange. I have no relation to Todd although I have used the Dallas location once and just feel he is being honest and realistic about matters. Again, if you have trouble, call Todd and I am sure he will give whatever assistance he possibly can. MHO. rv Mike 2000 Allure 98CRV

On Sat, 23 Oct 2004 11:23:44 -0500 "TBooneFisher" tboonefisher@...> writes:

Re: warranty service

Reply #6 –
Yahoo Message Number: 12325
Todd,

I think your short sightedness with regard to this issue will eventually bite you in the butt. I for one won't purchase a coach from a dealer with an attitude like yours. This policy goes totally against the sales and maintenance model of vehicles in general. Aren't you concerned that other dealerships will retaliate against coaches purchased from you and treat your purchasers in the same manner as you outline? Given the high demand/tight supply of Country Coach models, if I were CC, I'd see that those coaches go to dealerships that honor the warranty no matter where the coach was purchased. Just makes good business sense.

Tony Ferrara
04 Inspire

Re: warranty service

Reply #7 –
Yahoo Message Number: 12327

hello,

my name is todd springs.

i am the parts and service director for buddy gregg motor homes, lewisville, tx.

i am posting today to clerify info posted by Stanley20002152 (message #12311).

as of thursday 10-21-04 i made a decision to perform warranty work on country coaches only purchased @ one of buddy's three dealerships.

the reasoning behind this decision was simple. first and foremost is the responsibility i have to our customers, (folks who bought from buddy), to schedule and make corrective repairs in a timley fashion.

i have been unable to fullfill that obligation due to the number of coaches in for service that were purchased from other dealerships in other parts of the country.

the solution in my eyes is simple, schedule your non-emergnecy warranty repairs with your selling dealer. if you have an emergency, call me. i will always do what i can for any customer in that situation.

sincerely,

todd springs
800-858-7139

Re: warranty service

Reply #8 –
Yahoo Message Number: 12328
Gosh, at the rates most RV dealers charge, I'd think you'd increase your ability to do the work. I would be concerned about buying from a dealership that won't do warranty work on units that weren't bought from them as I can see other dealers taking the same position, and then the buyer is stuck when they're on the road.
RB

Re: warranty service

Reply #9 –
Yahoo Message Number: 12329
The, as you say free warranty work, is only no charge to the buyer. The dealerships charge the manufacturer for doing the warranty service. The dealership gets the same rate on all warranty work from the same manufacturer regardless of where the coach was purchased. I don't understand why Gregg doesn't increase their capacity.

RB

Re: warranty service

Reply #10 –
Yahoo Message Number: 12330
Quote from: Rollin On"
r />]
Please allow me to defend Buddy Gregg and Todd Spings.
I bought my 04 intrigue from their Dallas (Lewisville) facility in March of this year. We cut a sharp deal (I think) and they have busted their collective butts to take care of me. We have had our difficulties as with any other shop that is dependent upon suppliers and shippers but I have never had a doubt about their intent to go beyond what others might have done. I was in for warranty work this month and found them stacked to the ceiling with coachs needing work.
I took care to schedule well ahead of time and thus felt I had a position over those who just drove in for warranty work. This positon was honored. We left with everything done but not without some difficulties, one of which is where do you find new, experienced techs when you find yourself short handed. I sympathize because I don't want Buddy Gregg hiring just warm bodies. Better to live with staff shortages until you can staff with competent people. Give Todd a chance and I'll bet he will go out of his way to help. But, if you buy from the cheapest guy around and expecially one with limited shop facilities, don't expect dealers like Buddy Gregg to put off their long time customers to help you first.

Lyle Wetherholt
04 Intrigue 11740

Quote
The, as you say free warranty work, is only no charge to the buyer. The > dealerships charge the manufacturer for doing the warranty service. The > dealership gets the same rate on all warranty work from the same > manufacturer regardless of where the coach was purchased. I don't

understand

Quote
why Gregg doesn't increase their capacity.

RB

Re: warranty service

Reply #11 –
Yahoo Message Number: 12332
It's a tuff position to be in. but that's the nature of being in business.

I ran into this same situation last year with another CC dealer and complained to CC. I'm not saying that this had any effect on anything but that dealer no longer sells CC.

I might add that I have been to Buddy Gregg in TX a number of times in the last six years or so. I always made appointments for when they had openings in their schedule and received prompt and, generally, competent service.
I am out of warranty now but will, at some, time will be buying again. Why would I spend money for maintenance and repairs at a dealer that will not do my warranty work?

Dick May

2002 Intrigue, #11438

Re: warranty service

Reply #12 –
Yahoo Message Number: 12334
I read about this same situation on the Winnebago board on IRV2.net. This has to be a lack of capacity problem. Supply, can't meet the demand. There aren't enough service centers to go around (IMO). Heck, at any typical moment, a home base dealer is probably only servicing half his customers, because the other half are on the road. And he is still overwhelmed. I just threw those number out, but the point is, a portion of a home base dealer's customers are not in town to fill up his appointment book, yet they can't keep up. Now why is that? Maybe because there is becoming a shortage have qualified mechanics? Maybe because of poor quality in production? Maybe because of shortsightedness from the manufacturers and dealers? Or a combination of all three plus some others. At any - rate, there is an industry-wide capacity problem with RV service (IMHO). I believe that the dealers should service all coaches nation wide, regardless of whether you bought the coach there or not. And, I think the coach manufacturers should enforce it. Being refused warranty service is unacceptable and should not be tolerated by the manufactures. I know this is not the issue with this particular thread, but I have read about it on other threads elsewhere. So how does a good dealer like B Gregg deal with the lack of capacity? They might be able to fine-tune the scheduling a bit, but they're up against something bigger than they are, at the moment. They can't keep up with demand for whatever reason, so they're prioritizing in favor of their customers. I almost can't blame them for that. There probably doing the best they can under the circumstances. But, if every dealer worked on everybody's coach nationwide, this would spread the wealth and even the playing field a bit, and (IMHO) relieve some of the pressure. This would require the backing of the manufacturers. Just some thoughts.

Larry, Debbie, Tiki and Tomi (Pugs) 2003 Allure, 36"

Quote from: Rollin On
The, as you say free warranty work, is only no charge to the

buyer. The

Quote
dealerships charge the manufacturer for doing the warranty

service. The

Quote
dealership gets the same rate on all warranty work from the same > manufacturer regardless of where the coach was purchased. I don't

understand

Quote
why Gregg doesn't increase their capacity.

RB

Re: warranty service

Reply #13 –
Yahoo Message Number: 12336
For a new unit I would shop for price. Buddy Gregg will do the warranty work if you buy from them. BG does good work and most comments on this site have been favorable. Compare that to what I have read about Beaudry in AZ...So where you buy your coach is your decision. If I make the purchase at a certain dealership then I would expect them to help me first. Conversely you cannot expect dealerships to fall over backwards for you especially if you purchased your coach elsewhere. But as I said earlier, and others have chimed in, Todd will help you in emergencies. I have met him once and had some service done at the Lewisville shop last May and was quite impressed. 2000 Allure 98 CRV

On Sat, 23 Oct 2004 18:20:41 -0400 maymr@...> writes:

Re: warranty service

Reply #14 –
Yahoo Message Number: 12338
Tony, this is a no win situation for Todd. If he honors warranty claims on all CC coaches, he'll upset his own customers because of extra-long scheduling times. If he doesn't, he upsets you and some others on this board. I, personally, think it is wise to buy from a dealer near your home base for the very reason that I would expect to get preferential treatment in scheduling service. Todd has never said, to my knowledge, that he flat wouldn't service coaches needing work while away from home. The key word is " need". I respectfully suggest that all routine warranty work should go back to the selling dealer.

Walt Rothermel
03Allure30811

Purchased from Buddy Gregg--Dallas

Re: warranty service

Reply #15 –
Yahoo Message Number: 12339
Walt,

For people who are full timing, that is not always an option. If a dealer is going to sell a particular brand of coach and take money from the manufacturer for warranty work for its customers, then it has an obligation to honor warranty work for all owners of that brand of coach in my opinion. Or...don't sell that brand of coach. Seems like you shouldn't be able to have it both ways. Before we went fulltime, we learned quickly that our dealer was busy and we made appointments ahead of the time we wished to travel. That's only common sense for people wanting non-emergency service from any dealer.

Tony Ferrara
04 Inspire

Re: warranty service

Reply #16 –
Yahoo Message Number: 12340
From: "Rollin On" motorinon@...>

Quote
Gosh, at the rates most RV dealers charge, I'd think you'd increase your > ability to do the work. I would be concerned about buying from a

dealership

Quote
that won't do warranty work on units that weren't bought from them as I

can

Quote
see other dealers taking the same position, and then the buyer is stuck

when

Quote
they're on the road.
And then there's those of us (me!) who bought our coaches used, therefore have no selling dealer. FWIW, I deal with a local truck shop. So far ... so good.

I'm glad I bought "used" ('98).

Dick (& Geri) Campagna
36' Country Coach Intrigue

Re: warranty service

Reply #17 –
Yahoo Message Number: 12341
I think some one ought to contact Matt Howard and Doug Rutherford and let them know what's going on. TWI Intrigue 11731

Re: warranty service

Reply #18 –
Yahoo Message Number: 12343
I have found the reverse to be true. With Chris Snyder from CC at Beaudry, Buddy Greggs service is so, so, in comparison. TWI Intrigue 11731/ Allure 30255.

Re: warranty service

Reply #19 –
Yahoo Message Number: 12344
I hope we all take a very proactive approach to dealers like this and let them understand that their policy is wrong for them and for us as CC customers.
I have forwarded the emails to Doug R. at CC to get his input on this. I will also respond to Jay Howard as soon as I get a little more information.
In the mean time I have informed Buddy Gregg that I will not consider them as a potential source for Country Coach motor homes. I will not buy from a dealer who does not support all CC customers. I encourage as many of us as possible to reply to Buddy Gregg and let them know that we will not purchase product from a dealer with this type of policy. A dealer without customers is likely to become a little more reasonable and flexible.

Regards,

Neil Tucker

2003 Intrigue 11677

Re: warranty service

Reply #21 –
Yahoo Message Number: 12352
Since the service dept is so busy, wouldn't it pay to enlarge it and hire more technicians and mechanics? Just wondering...

Carol

'04 Inspire Genoa 51046

Re: warranty service

Reply #22 –
Yahoo Message Number: 12353
From: "jennylindca" jennylind2000@...>
Quote
Since the service dept is so busy, wouldn't it pay to enlarge it and
hire more technicians and mechanics? Just wondering...
Not always easy to do. When Winnebago's sales went through the roof, they couldn't get enough workers to staff the assembly lines, so they built another plant elsewhere. But I understand that their product quality has suffered 'cause it's taking a long time to bring the new line employees up to speed.

Dick (& Geri) Campagna
'98 36' Intrigue #10571
Mfd: 11/97

Re: warranty service

Reply #23 –
Yahoo Message Number: 12360
I understand they (CC) acquired the new property east of the plant and are getting rezoned to commercial. Then they will build a new building for Allure and Intrigue production. Then the old building will be converted to a new larger service department addition. TWI 11731 2004 Intrigue

Re: warranty service

Reply #24 –
Yahoo Message Number: 12368
Walt,

I agree with you 100%. You buy from the guy that can gives you the service. Buying from a dealer across country to save a few bucks does not make sence to me. We purchased from Lazy Days and get all our warranty work done there and if we have a problem that needs immediate attention they work us in. I don't try to get warranty work done on the road unless it is an emergency. This policy helps the dealers true customers get better service. It's like the car business was 30 years ago. You went back to the dealer who sold you the car. It does however make it bad for the full timers that don't have a home base.

Bill G. 2005 Magna #6425