Meaning of MSRP?

[VanGoGirl]

On a new van conversaion (diesel) I've been quoted a 4 and a half % discount from MSRP, which seems low to me. What would be an average percentage discount from MSRP? I'd expect better than that on a new car. Are van conversions different?

[Davydd]

Class B RV dealers typically offer about 15% off and never less than 10% off MSRP at RV shows. I suspect that is nothing special. I got 23% off on my 2005 Pleasure-way Plateau but that was a special case of a dealer ridding himself of his last B and getting out of the business. I walked on a 2005 Leisure Travel Van at that time after several comebacks down to 15%. I'm not sure exactly what I got off on my 2011 GWV Legend because I traded in the Plateau and we discussed only a bottom line price difference. Not knowing exactly what the dealer put toward the trade in I would still have to guess better than 15%. It's negotiating. Set a price and be prepared to walk. Buying a B is not like buying a car. It's a want, not a need in my mind. That means you should have the advantage.

This question comes up occasionally in discussion forums. From reading others I would guess somewhere from 12-18%. Anything over 18% seems rare for B's. There are always exceptions of course. Other types of RVs seem to get discounted at higher rates. B's are still relatively dear. You never see a sea of them on RV lots like you do trailers and 5th wheelers. So many B's have to be ordered. In buying a car that was always less of an advantage to the buyer than taking one off the lot in my experience.

[VanGoGirl]

Thanks for the response. I did walk away, but I was surprised there was no effort to come down even a tiny bit on price.

I'd be interested if other owners would weigh in on this...is 10% - 15% about what most of you experienced?

[booster]

We bought our Roadtrek 190 as a 2007 model sold in 2008, and got 26% off of MSRP. It was just before a price increase on their new style, which ours is, so it was a very good deal. Like Davydd. ours was at a dealer getting our of the B business.

Before we bought, we were finding that the best we could find on a current model was about 18% off of MSRP, and that was very hard to find. 10% seemed pretty easy. 15% much more common.

[Davydd]

When I bought my 2011 Great West Van Legend I was thinking I was making myself vulnerable because I drove nearly 500 miles to Winnipeg, Manitoba to see it under construction and spent 2 nights in Winnipeg. That cost was nearly $500 that we wrote off as just another vacation seeing Winnipeg for the first time and got in some snowshoeing. It got down to 27F below zero too in February.

I negotiated the deal from the Great West Van factory with two phone calls. That does make it kind of difficult to walk away with our commitment in time and money. Still, I knew I was negotiating with a good dealer with a great reputation. I had a maximum price I could afford and we managed to come together on the deal rather easily. The dealer was just as vulnerable I think. He knew my van for trade in from seeing it in person and also had access to my history and voluminous photos online, but was still willing to negotiate sight unseen at the time.

[Jimmie10speed]

What would be a reasonable percentage off a class b 2021 thank you

[mumkin]

Depends on three things...

Which Class B manufacturer?

Which dealer?

Popularity level of the model you want?

[Jimmie10speed]

Thor sequence 2021 20a. Holiday world in Katy Texas Thank you .Sorry for the lack of data

[Snowy]

The % discount from MSRP seems to be a function of Brand. On the Travato FB page, most reported getting a discount of 30% from MSRP pre-covid, especially those who shop around and then buy from one of the large national dealers. Some report that more recently, under covid scarcity, they could not find a deal below 20% off MSRP, although some seem to still be getting 30% off on Travatos. I tried to buy a Travato from a local dealer a couple of years ago and he wanted something close to MSRP. When i told him that i was getting quotes at 30% off MSRP from the lower 48, he got mad and told me i was lying. When i shared a written quote at just over 30% off with him, he changed his tone and complained that he doesn't know how people offer such low prices and still stay in business (exactly what a salesperson would say when they want to protect their local high pricing).

I recently saw a show price for a Coachman Beyond and it was also 30% off MSRP, even though we are in a time of Covid scarcity for all Bs.

PleasureWays typically do not sell for 30% off, more like 15% off MSRP as Davydd reported. I gleaned this info from the PW FB page.

I am surprised about how, despite how difficult it is to even find a van, people are still reporting that pre-covid pricing remains in place, at least in the few anecdotes i have collected.

What i have learned is that you have to be willing to shop around and travel to get a good deal on a B. This isn't that big a burden - isn't traveling what the whole B experience about? Dealers will all tell you that if you do not buy from them, they will not service you. To me this is not a big threat. Most dealers do not have good reputations for providing good, and especially timely, service. I think the best way to service a rig is with a good independent RV shop.

[Jimmie10speed]

Thank you Snowy that makes go sense to me.

[mumkin]

Some have reported paying nearly MSRP for high demand Pleasureways in the last year.

And yes... many, if not most, dealers will make you wait forever to never to get any warranty service if you didn't buy from them. If you travel to buy, plan on finding a good independent to so any needed work.

[Snowy]

Anecdotally, it seems like many (most?) dealers will make you wait forever to never to get any warranty service even if you do buy from them.

The difference in cost between my local dealer and a lower 48 dealer for the same Travato ordered new was, IIRC, $17k. For that amount of money, I figured i could pay out of pocket for a lot of warranty work if my local dealer refused to service me.

My situation may be extreme because i live in Anchorage, AK, and the next nearest Winnebago dealer is thousands of miles away in the lower 48. Perhaps my local dealer is willing to hold the line on large price differentials because they do not think they have competition.

[Rocinante]

We bought our gently-used Airstream Interstate via a private party, and had zero trouble getting service from an Airstream dealer aside from the typical long wait for an appointment. They didn't ask where we bought it, didn't seem to care in the least. Their service department liked the color of our money just fine, especially since our used vehicle is well outside warranty and we paid all the freight.

[ilmor]

Originally Posted by Jimmie10speed

What would be a reasonable percentage off a class b 2021 thank you

These days? Little to nothing %.

[2019xfit]

without being too snide...MSRP means whatever they want it to

when we bought our van prices varied
dealers with the lowest price tended to have a raft of extra charges added on

the dealer we had used for our last rv purchase handled coachmen but not class b's
one of the managers made a run at coachmen and came back with a MSRP minus 38% and no additional charges and a couple of options we hadn't asked for (they weren't listed on the invoice either)

my last car went in a similar direction...almost 30% off MSRP
however my wife's last purchase was at MSRP

so your final price is what it is...you just have decide if it's worth it to you

[Jimmie10speed]

Thank you, looked at the reviews of Motor Home Specialits on Yelp one star reviews the price on the Thor Tellaro seems to good the issues were quality of the motor home and service.Would like to hear feedback on this dealership.

[Davydd]

MSRP is a game to make the buyer feel good. The S in MSRP is only a "S"uggestion. The buyer gets bragging rights or personal satisfaction in negotiating a great deal or the seller uses it as a tool to make a sale. The seller is not going to lose money unless there is unusual circumstances. Since manufacturers can't keep up with demand in this COVID frenzy all the givens you have heard in the past are probably suspended for a while. After all, this thread was started in 2012. Class Bs are a want, not a need. Buy what you can afford and truly want.

[ilmor]

For years, RV buyers got themselves the magic "20%" off MSRP. RV companies and dealers are not stupid of course (generally). Do you all really believe that the "MSRP" pricing does not already account (and include) at least a 20% higher dollar amount to account for "savings off of MSRP"? Ultimately and, as always, the price of anything is what someone is willing to pay for it.

[GeorgeRa]

Originally Posted by Davydd

MSRP is a game to make the buyer feel good. The S in MSRP is only a "S"uggestion. The buyer gets bragging rights or personal satisfaction in negotiating a great deal or the seller uses it as a tool to make a sale. The seller is not going to lose money unless there is unusual circumstances. Since manufacturers can't keep up with demand in this COVID frenzy all the givens you have heard in the past are probably suspended for a while. After all, this thread was started in 2012. Class Bs are a want, not a need. Buy what you can afford and truly want.

I dislike these negotiation games with passion and walked away from the first rounds many times. So, it doesn’t make me feel good.

[mumkin]

Originally Posted by ilmor

For years, RV buyers got themselves the magic "20%" off MSRP.

For years, the Class B prices were consistently 13-18% off MSRP. Winnebago was the outlier where it was 25-30%.

For now all bets are off...