New Purchase Delivery Tip

[FarFetched]

Let me start by saying that I'm very pleased with the professionalism of everyone at the dealership where I purchased my new 2018 28' Serenity and I wouldn't hesitate to go back to them in the future.

However, I'm super persnickety and somewhat pessimistic so I always try to take all the precautions I can think of.

When I placed my order I asked the dealer to notify me when the unit arrived, before they did anything to it. My thinking was that I wanted to see anything that might have happened to it on its way here BEFORE it was fixed, so that I'd know if there was an area to pay particular attention to. They did call me to tell me the day it was enroute, with an estimated arrival time. That extra step paid off.

We got there shortly after it arrived, and took lots of pictures. We found and noted a few things we wanted them to address (like deburring the sharp corners of the cabinet trim, modifying the bedroom TV mount so the USB port could be accessed, etc.), but it didn't count as our full pre-delivery inspection.

When we did come back for the "real" delivery, there was a dent on the upper front curved panel that did not appear in our photos from its arrival, so there's no question that it happened after its arrival from the factory. We held off on completing the paperwork and writing the check. The dealership was very apologetic and extremely professional about it, and said they'd replace the panel, and also agreed to comp us the installation of our MicroStarts and our ProPride, two fairly time-consuming add-ons. We also spent about two more hours going over the unit and marking adhesive that needed to be cleaned off, a scratched solar guard, etc.

While I am absolutely certain they would have replaced the panel with no hesitation, I'm not sure I'd have gotten quite as much of a concession if it wasn't obvious that the dent had occurred on their watch.

So, my advice is to get there when your unit arrives and photo document everything! And, don't write the check until you are completely satisfied. You are the one with the money - you are the one with the power.