Buying a new Class A diesel pusher

In the process of researching a purchase.  What information can you all give on the real skinny of offering a purchase price?  I've got the new car purchase down pat.  Research dealer invoice on specific model and options (it's out there), and then offer $200 over invoice.  It's worked perfectly for the last 3 car purchases.  Is there such information available on motor homes?  I would tend to doubt it since there's so many manufacturers out there.  Am I going into the sales office unarmed and merely having to stab at a price hoping that I got the best deal I could?  Interested in your experiences and insights.

Thanks,
Kirk

If this is your first motorhome then buying new is not a good idea. It will be a multi thousand dollar mistake. Virtually no one gets it right the first time. You really won't know what you want in an RV until you have owned one and used one a while. You can pick up a killer class A for under $20k. Then after using it for a year or so you will have a much better idea of what you want in an RV and you can then trade on a new one and get the RV of your dreams. Without experience you won't know what you want. Here is an idea of what you can get for $20k:

http://www.pplmotorhomes.com/classa/2000-Damon-Intruder-24469.htm

As for the price negotiations on a new coach, the dealer mark-up is much higher than on cars, but so is the profit margin necessary to stay in business. RV dealers don't sell coaches every day, plus they are expected to provide a fair amount of delivery prep as part of sale (though some try to charge extra for that).

A typical deal would be 14-15% discount from MSRP and a really excellent deal is 25-30% discount. High volume dealers will sometimes discount that much, but smaller ones seldom get much beyond 15%. Of course, you might always strike a dealer who badly needs to get some cash coming in and willing to deal.

Buying an RV is more akin to buying a house than buying a car. It is not primarily a vehicle, so consider floor plan, long term quality of furnishings, amenities, etc. as much as price.

Thanks Gary.

Are you planning to go new or used?

A lot of people (including us) have gotten killer deals buying used from a private party.

If you want to go through a dealer because you think you have someone to go to if there's a problem after you've taken delivery of the rig, it doesn't seem like that's the case with many people buying through a dealer.

-Roni

Lots of good advise. You didn't indicate what new diesel pushers you are looking at so I think you need to shop the used market and get a better understanding of what is out there for the price. You take a more than the price of a new car price hit when you by new. Go look at the floor plans as you will be parked more than on the road. Once you have figured out what really works for you you can look at new.
Bill

MH lose $5K in value each year from the time they are driven off the lot. If you have the money to purchase a new one, great! But understand that even though its new and has a warranty, you'll find yourself laying down cash for repairs and the like. So the better deal you can get on the front end, the better off you'll be on the back end if you get a coach that has little if any issues while you own it.

Remember that a dealer typically floor plans his units due to their cost. So the longer a unit sits on the lot the more anxious they will be to negotiate a deal. But remember too that the longer it sits, the more interest they have been paying on that unit and their margins grow smaller and smaller...hence you need to know what the magic tipping point is as to when they are willing to discount deeply so they can avoid paying interest and still turn a nice profit on the unit. Sometimes its 30, 45, 60, 90 days depending on their floor plan contract. (This also applies to cars, trucks, motorcycles and ATVs)

If you can afford NEW, then look at those which someone has purchased and traded back in to get either something bigger or smaller yet to better meet their needs of desires. You'll save a great deal and still have a new coach. A friend of mine just bought one, a 38' MH saved thousands and it was only owned for 30 days with less that 200 miles on the odometer. It was used once, for a weekend test run. The owner decided it didn't meet his needs and traded it back in to purchase a 42'r.