The wife and I, future full-timers, have decided on our 5er and tow vehicle.  When buying cars, I know how to get the best price possible and make a salesperson cry.  But, how do we do that with an RV salesperson?  How can I get the "sticker" price or some kind of MSRP so that I can figure out just how low to pitch a purchase?  Note that the wife and I will probably walk into the dealer's office with a pre-approved (loan) check in hand.  I want to make an uninsulting bid and watch the dealer squirm in pain.  Sell the unit and make something or say "no" and make the big ZERO.  I've also noted that very few RV manufacturers actually state prices of their units on the Internet.  Does anyone know what their mark-up is?

Most manufactures depend on dealers to sell. There are so many different manufactures with add ons so it depends on what the buyer wants in an RV. What options you may want and what floor plan. I have no idea what the markup is and maybe someone else here knows. southwestjudy

I will say this, that you cannot compare buying an RV to buying a car. We all need a form of transportation but we all do not need to expend money on an item that is a nice to have item. This is a buyer’s market and will be for at least the next 6 to 9 months. First, I believe manufacturers and dealers are not trying to make a profit right now they are just trying to pay their overhead and survive the downturn in RV sales to have the ability to prosper in the future. Whether or not you are willing to travel anywhere to buy your RV is not important. Find the RV you want and search all over the country and ask them straight up for a cash price. If you have researched enough you should know what the approximate MSRP is. The general rule of thumb is that the dealers cost is somewhere around 60 percent of MSRP they will never sale to you at that price but you should be able to get 30 to 35 percent off of MSRP for a cash price. I have found most cash prices to fall in between 28 and 29 percent if you have time and patience you can get them down more. The current fifth wheel I have now I got for 34 percent off of MSRP. There are exceptions to this that I have found, some manufacturers do not price their MSRP real high so the discount is less. I would never buy any RV that on a cash price is not at least 20 percent below MSRP. Be careful some dealers will inflate MSRP based on options but will keep the base MSRP the same. Once you find the RV you want then use the internet to find all of that specific RV that are on dealer’s lots and call them and discuss with them about a cash price and have them email you the options list. Normally they will have each option priced out along with the base MSRP with a total MSRP. I would create a spread sheet to analyze each dealer’s MSRP and cash price against options. Then you have a choice to either negotiate with a local dealer or travel where ever you feel you can get the best deal. This is just my OPINION and what has worked for me. Sale’s is a knowledge game, the more you know about the product you’re interested in the less money you will pay. There are some good and honest dealers out there but don’t believe for a minute that they want try to get as much money as they can from you, if they didn’t they wouldn’t still be in business. Bottom line is, for a sale to take place the dealer and the buyer reach acceptable terms in that the dealer is making money and the buyer feels he is getting a good deal and everyone is happy. Ultimately it’s up to the buyer in whether they believe there getting the best deal available, if not walk away, you’re in control. The one item I did not discuss is service after the sale since this has even more variables than the price of an RV. Each manufacturer has certain ways to handle warranty claims and the dealer has their way of handling claims. Some manufacturers stand behind their product some don’t, But one thing is for sure there will be issues, they should be minor but they will be there. How you conduct your pre-delivery inspection is directly proportionally to the issues you may have down the road. I hope this helps and wish you the best of Luck with your purchase.

You talk about a cash price as though that is something to your benefit.  A dealer would rather finance the transaction because he will get a cash payment for sending you to the lender.  You can always finance for a month and then payoff the balance.  In fact, if you tell them up front that you are paying cash, then they will know that they cannot count of getting the cash "kick back" from the bank.

The only exception to this is when customers don't have good credit.  Those folks will have a problem getting a loan in this economy.

Buying an RV is nothing like buying a car.  There are several reliable on-line sources where you can find the dealer cost of an automobile.  Not so for an RV.
Also keep in mind that after a certain point in the deal, any additional dollars you manage to wring out of the dealers hands will result in a real hesitancy to perform service to fix minor items. 

Lastly, I would never buy ANY RV only because of price.  It is far better to find what you want and then try to get the best price on that particular model.

Good luck in your search.

The NADA RV Buying Guide will help.  Click on this link: 

http://www.nadaguides.com/SectionHome.aspx?l=1&w=25&p=0&f=5602


Also, some of the more reputable manufacturers post MSRP prices in each model they build.  It will list all the optional equipment and MSRP prices.  Just be careful you don't get a dealer who makes up their own MSRP price sheet! 

Some manufacturers, like NuWa (HitchHiker 5th Wheels), list their MSRP's on their website.  Click here for NuWa's website:  http://www.nuwa.com/

I know that some NuWa dealers will deal on 23% off the MSRP on new models and in today's economy you should be able to do even better.

Good luck!

-- Edited by wmalefyt at 18:25, 2008-10-07

Now we're talking.  Thanks everyone and especially my Sailor friend for the detailed explanation and "Bill and Linda" for the NADA link.  The advice to call all over the country is excellent and I'll be starting that next week.  While I don't want to send the salesperson home hungry, I might as well capitalize on the current economic situation.