Markdowns on new motorhomes from MSRP

I'm still in the exploring stage, and looking at TT's as well as smaller class C motorhomes. I know that the MSRP is partly fictional, but until I am ready to sit down and actually negotiate on a final sales price I have had a hard time getting a feel for what I will likely have to pay. Recently I visited a Winnebago dealer and looked at a class C Winnebago and a similarly set up Itasca, both based on a Mercedes chassis and with the Mercedes turbo diesel. Both seemed like a cross between a Class C and a Class B and had MSRP prices in the $110 to $130K range. But the salesperson immediately offered that the "likely" final cost would be about $80 or $90K, representing about a 30% discount off MSRP. My question is whether this seems like something I should expect at other dealers, or might it be specific to this dealer for these two motorhomes? I might consider a $70K final price for a new motorhome where I would not consider spending $100K. Or maybe I just have to start bargaining on each unit I might be interested in, acting like I was now sure and ready to buy. Any comments from others who have been through this would be really appreciated.

Yes, at http://www.mhsrv.com/ they tell you that they start at 30% off of retail.  When I've looked at new units, that seemed to be a standard discount.

If you get to 30% you've done pretty good. I bought close to the new model year release (2014 Winnebago Aspect 30J) and received approximately 22% reduction in the MSRP. On my first motor home a 2010 Fleetwood Bounder 33U that we bought new in October 2012, which had sat on the dealers lot for 900+ days netted us a 42% discount from the MSRP.

This is every newbie buyers favorite question, but there is no definitive answer. Most dealers are quite willing to sell at 12-15% below MSRP. Perhaps more if they have dealer add-ons such as a "dealer fee", "preparation fee", etc. The MSRP is usually supposed to include dealer prep and a "walk-through" instructional session for the buyer, but it's not carved in stone and some dealers pad the bottom line with extra charges for those. Transportation (delivery) charges, state and local taxes and title fees are all extra, of course.

High volume dealers will often discount deeper and 25-30% is not uncommon for them, but you may have to travel further afield to find one. Depends on your area and your willingness to do so. In general, make an offer that is 30% or more below MSRP and be prepared to consider counter-offers above that. Or not, as you are inclined. If having a dealer close to home is important, you may have to trade price for convenience. Also consider the dealer's rep, service shop quality, and other factors. You can also get a quote from a high volume dealer (many will quote online or via email) and then take that to your local guy and see what he can do. Might match or at least get closer.

Also be careful to determine the actual MSRP and not just the dealer's own "suggested price". Don't let nebulous and expensive add-ons like "paint sealer" or "interior protection" distort the price. If you want them, consider them as extras and bargain separately for them. Might even get them as freebies in the deal. Be advised, though, that they are nearly always vastly over-priced and contain 90% extra profit for the dealer. A coat of synthetic car wax and a can of Scotch-guard will do the same as those $500-$1000 optional protective packages.

We just purchased a 15' Navion J two months ago at a dealer in Forest City, IA. We received about a 23.5% discount. We could have done slightly better if we had gone to Ohio, but we are in Minneapolis and Forest City is only two hours from us. Local dealers quoted us at a 12% discount. I did not even try to bargain with the local dealers. My thought is that they are aware we have the world at out fingertips with the internet, so...give my your best price. I am not going to beg you to sell me an RV. If you give me anything other than your best price, you are playing me as stupid.  I do not want to work with someone who thinks I am stupid. What else are they going to try to pull on me? I can say we had an awesome experience at the dealership in Forest City.

I should add that on the Winnebago/Itasca Sprinter RVs, you probably will not get the discounts that you can on other models/manufacturers. They are in demand and we did about as good as we felt we could. I would be very surprised if you are able to get more than 24-25% off MSRP.

Dustin
MPLS
15NJ

My wife just negotiated a deal for our new trailer. 2014 Coachmen apex 288bhs. MSRP was 34k. Local dealers wanted 27k. She got it for 19700 from a dealer in Indiana. Shipping is about 3k. We live in CA, so it was nice to have a lower purchase price and save some taxes. Our last trailer was msrp of 16k, we got it for 11, 500. Just some perspective.

As Gary said, RV dealers learned from their polyester suit wearing brothers in the car business, how to add on bogus charges and dealer fees, as well as loading up the MSRP with after market crap, like paint sealant, fabric protection, pin stripes, and the like.  Don't fall for these high markup/high profit tactics, and ALWAYS negotiate your best "out the door" price, or move on to the next dealer!

As a car dealer once told me, we're not a non-profit charity, we have to feed out families too....but we don't have to eat filet mignon every night, we can eat hamburger sometimes.

We too have always negotiated the actual price that I paid to less than 20 percent of the MSRP. However, there is another factor, just as when buying an automobile. I suppose this will be determined by in which state you license the RV or vehicle.

Here in Colorado your license tax and fees will always be determined by the MSRP, not by the actual price you paid. there will also be sales taxes, etc. calculated that will be determined by the formula used by which state you are in.