FMCA rally and RV show in Madison WI

The friendliest place on the web for anyone with an RV or an interest in RVing!
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.

cadee2c

Well-known member
Joined
Aug 4, 2012
Posts
1,167
Location
Everywhere
I went to the RV show at the FMCA rally today.  We must have looked a lot richer than we are because we were snatched from the tram stop by a lady in a golf cart and buzzed directly over to the high end RVs. We were turned over to a guy who insisted on showing us 45 ft  National Holidays even while telling me they all had split baths and tile floors and me telling him I didn?t want them nor did I want anything over 40 ft. He finally got the point and dumped us on a lady who tried showing us the same ones we?d already seen. We finally got away from her and started walking away.

They must?ve used hand signals or mental telepathy to talk to each other because they somehow relayed ahead to the Forest River/Berkshire folks. A woman there grabbed us and took us into a new 45 ft. Berkshire where she introduced us to Thor? not the cute Marvel Comic Hero, but a salesman  whose name was Thor. I swear.  :eek:

When I explained that we wanted a used RV, among other things, because of the quality control issues in the RV industry as a whole, Thor said in a very haughty tone, that Berkshire Company was owned by Warren Buffett and all Forest Rivers came with a lifetime warranty. He did not appreciate that not only was I unimpressed by that fact, he totally did not find my joke about preferring Jimmy to Warren funny at all, nor did he even smile at my pun about  Warren?s warranty  :p

It went downhill from there when he asked where I had heard about the quality control issues, and I told him I had researched it and learned on the internet in forums and stuff. He became very condescending about what I had heard on the internet. When I said I would be more likely to believe folks who actually buy and live in RVs over those who just sell them, it was over.  I thought he was going to pop a gasket. Luckily my DH got me out of there.  ;D

We then went to the Tiffin area, we had a wonderful conversation with a sales lady who herself was an RVer. I fell in love with the 37PA Allegro RED that I looked through. Now I just gotta get some winning lottery tickets and it will be mine. 

It was a great show, but by the time I found the affordable section, I was too tired to crawl in and out of anymore RVs. Maybe that?s a good thing. I wouldn't have been able to tow my RAV4 home. :p
 
Hi cadee2c,

Thanks for the report! I think you should have told the people at the high end RV's that you weren't looking for entry level RV's and watched their faces. Wondering if the RV's at the second place had a lifetime warrantee or if Warren Buffett had one?  ;D If they don't have a sense of humor their problem.

Glad you were able to find something of interest to you. Perhaps you'll be able to find one of those that have a few years on them. I am in your boat where I prefer to buy used by 3 or 4 years and hopefully all the bugs might be worked out. Gives you time to work out the new bugs that come along then.
 
It was a good show. We found out that some of the seminars, even though they say they are only open to FMCA members, will frequently let you in even if you are not a member.

There is a big RV show here in Minneapolis every February. Hopefully I can make that one. With it being halfway through the summer already, I may end up waiting till next spring to buy an RV. I can't see buying one just to put it in storage for 6 months.
 
There's a big Newmar dealer in Alexandria. Very proud of his stock according to their prices. Drove my old coach up there to see if I could trade it in. He offered me 50% of wholesale for mine, and would not budge on his that was 30% over average retail. Maybe you will have better luck.
 
Ive never actually been to Alexandria, just driven through it on 94, sometimes stopping for gas or a bio break. However, my thought is that Alexandria is a pretty small town for trying to make a living selling higher end RVs. Which is probably why he had such a high mark up.

Im actually looking more at RVs down in Florida. They tend to be lower priced on average than up here. We go to Florida every winter for a week or so in December or January, maybe this year I will drive an RV back... in late March. :D
 
Back
Top Bottom