New to Forum - I bought a Travato!

[perdi]

So...I started looking at Roadtrek zions. I found a dealer in Tucson who said I should do my research, shop around and he would beat any price I found. He said Roadtrek allows them to do that.
So I did. I went to RV trader and found new Road treks from 80-90k without me even asking for a better price. I sent these to the dealer and check out his response:

'Wow those are good deals I dont think I can compete with that I think we are south of 90k if you look all those units are back east we cant compete because we have to pay fright to get here so we would be more I will do my best are you still coming'

Would any one in their right mind go to Tucson after reading that?

[bobojay]

Perdi, Roadtrek can't allow or disallow a dealer to price a unit the way the dealer wants. They can suggest a dealer sell a unit for a certain price. That's the law, at least in most states. Might even be federal.
Don't know about RT, but Winnebago's shipping charges are the same if you buy from the dealer in Forest City, IA. or the dealer in far south Texas. How would a dealer compete otherwise?

[perdi]

This is turning out to be quite a learning experience.
when you say shipping charges. Do you mean the charge that the dealer claims the manufacturer charged them to get the vehicle to their lot or the charge the dealer charges me to get the vehicle to my door. I ask this because both of theses vary, by my research.

[bobojay]

Manufacturer to dealer...

[JKatfish]

For 59g owners, is there enough room in the aisle to fit a cot? This would be for occasional use only. Also, have been searching for a surge protector, but there are so many choices and price ranges, it's hard to decide what I really need without overspending.

[bobojay]

JKatfish, here. SSP-30 30 Amp Portable Surge Protector

Another option albeit more $$$$:EMS-PT30C 30 Amp Portable EMS

Here's the one we have, hardwired, I installed:EMS-HW30C 30 Amp Hardwired EMS with Remote Display

Great place to buy from also. Good tech support...

[avanti]

Originally Posted by JKatfish

Also, have been searching for a surge protector, but there are so many choices and price ranges, it's hard to decide what I really need without overspending.

If all you need is surge-suppression, consider this:

control panel 3.JPG

Leviton 120/240 Volt Residential Whole House Surge Protector-R01-51110-SRG - The Home Depot

Better specs and much cheaper than the RV-specific ones.

If you need power quality monitoring, it is not enough. Note, however, that many modern inverter/chargers do that intrinsically.

[bobojay]

Intrinsically. That's a big word, too big for me!

[booster]

As Avanti says, some inverter/chargers do monitor the power quality, polarity, etc, but many don't also. Any that have a standalone transfer switch, so the switch to shore power isn't monitored by the charger would need the power monitor function. All the fairly recent stuff built with the very popular Tripplite 750RV would be in that category, and there are lots of them out there.

[stanw909]

JKatfish. I don't have a 59g but have seen them in person. If you were thinking of sleeping someone below the fold down bed, they would need to be on the floor with a pad.. Tight for a kid in the 2014 . Better in the 2015/16 because they raised the bed a couple inches. The fitRV version raised super high to stow bikes underneath could hold a cot but that is a custom one off.

[tbirdman]

I bought this surge protector Fairly reasonable. Bought also this charger to replace the Magnetek one stage charger.

[joefish]

Just had my gray water pump that sits under the sink replaced after breaking the plastic pipe connection when trying to loosen the filter clean out assembly. Now the new pump and filter is in but I still can't loosen the clear plastic assembly to clean out the filter.

Obviously I don't want to break it again. Any suggestions aside from going back to the dealer? It's on too tight and the last time my wrench snapped the connection.

[Dahai]

Originally Posted by Scottbaldassari

...My dillema is between waiting and buying a Travato, or buying a Promaster now and doing a self build...

Scottbaldassari,

If you decide to go the self-build route, you might be interested in this guy's website to get some ideas on building it:

Take the long way

He bought a Promaster and had a firm in North Carolina build the living quarters.

Pictures are here:

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?...8704999&type=3

He and a buddy are currently in Alaska on a multi-month trip around the U.S.

[perdi]

so. I think I may have bought a 2016 travata 59k (silver) in Arizona. The dealership insisted I pay texas state tax to them rather than me dealing directly with the state of texas where I live. I'm in the hole for 74K plus 6.25%. They tried to get me to pay 8.6% (AZ state, county and city but I walked away from that.)
I think the price is coming down but I was ready to buy and move on with this phase of my life. Besides I am blowing 120/day on my $%^& hotel while I wait.

[perdi]

And...its got the ladder, bike, kayak racks. I cant wait to rip those off and sell'em on ebay along with the awning and trailer hitch:

[wincrasher]

What, can't wait to have exposed screw holes and skinned up paint on your brand new van?

You're just beginning for trouble if you give them the sales tax money for your state. They can do an out-of-state sale waiver so you can do your own registration and pay tax at home. If you pay them, I'd wager you'll end up paying twice.

[perdi]

The tax laws are a little more complicated than that wincrasher. It is possible to be double taxed if I deal with a sociopathic dmv employee (of which there are plenty) but the two states involved do have a reciprocity agreement.
When I leased vehicles, I would mod them then remove the mod at the end of the lease period and sell the hardware - no sweat no damage. So yes. I plan to turn the extra weight on my spanking new RV into extra cash - no holes or scuffs. Unless these things are welded on...? In that case I'll have to learn to bike and kayak and tow and put the awning up every once in a while. I may keep the ladder either way.

[wincrasher]

I'm very aware of how the tax work as I've probably bought 2 dozen vehicles out of state over the years. All is fine and dandy if the proper paperwork is filed in a timely fashion. If somebody screws up then the fun ensues - been there, done that.

In Indiana, they actually had to drive to the state line to deliver the vehicle to me there, so the out-of-state waiver would be proper and handed me the keys and paperwork.

The rack is held on with clips on studs. When you remove the rack, you'll take off the paint on all those studs. Removing the ladder and the rack will leave screw holes and abraded paint where they were attached. The hitch is bolted in, so I'd put some kind of paint or sealant on those holes, as the galvanizing is probably compromised. The awning is attached to the rack, so that shouldn't be a problem, but you'll have to cut the wires and seal the roof penetration with the proper sealant.

Enjoy!

[perdi]

TMI.
The body shop guy will enjoy. - me Ill be back to pick up the van when the works done.

[bobojay]

We've got friends that live in Texas, have bought 3 RV's out of state, with no issues on the tax front. The 2 dealers he dealt with took care of it all. (Lichtsinn was one of them). No $$$ that was supposed to go to TX, went to the dealers