One of the first questions an aspiring RV’er has to answer is whether to buy their RV used, or new. In this post we discuss why we chose to purchase our RV new, as well as why we chose to purchase from Pete’s RV Center in Schererville, Indiana.
Our search for an RV began with us looking at used units. We were inspired by the many RV renovation videos on YouTube. In particular, we were drawn to the 376FBH by Open Range.
The 376FBH produced prior to 2019 had an astonishing carry capacity of over 4,000 pounds, and has a lot of storage space beneath the rear bedroom. Unfortunately, all of these features make it a really popular model that doesn’t sit on the used market for long.
After looking for a 376FBH to no avail, we switched gears to the Open Range 371MBH. This RV is also offered by Mesa Ridge as the 371MBH.
The 371MBH is a “mid bunk” floorplan. After discussing the floorplan we determined that between the mid-bunk loft and the room beneath it that a mid-bunk floorplan would work for us as well as the 376FBH (front bunk house).
What we learned looking at used RVs is that pictures can be deceiving. We looked at several RVs that, judging from the pictures, were in near new condition. After driving to see the RVs in person, they did not look so good. Too often the pictures in the ad did not include the skylights broken by hail storms, or the water-rotted floors beneath those skylights. After two trips out of town to look at “nice” RVs that weren’t, we started to discuss purchasing new.
As we had already decided that we wanted a mid-bunk fifth wheel, after talking with some people in the business we decided on the Forest River Sabre 36BHQ. We felt that the Sabre had a lot of features (12V refrigerator!) that we wanted, and the price was less than the comparable RVs from Open Range / Mesa Ridge.
Camping World
Our first stop was at the Camping World about an hour away. Camping World did not have a 2022, but we discussed a 2021 year model Sabre 36BHQ that was on the lot.
Mr. “Rooster” Tinsley in sales was very nice and helpful. We had been to this Camping World on a previous occasion, and Rooster remembered us from that earlier visit. We really felt like Mr. Tinsley treated us like people instead of just a dollar sign.
Unfortunately, when it came time to discuss the purchase price, the sales manager – Dewey – were less helpful. When it became clear that we were not going to reach agreement, Dewey became less nice. We were told that the price offered was the best that they could do, and that anything lower than that had probably been through a hail storm or had some kind of major defect.
As we are not the type of people who succumb to high pressure sales tactics, we decided to find a dealership more suited to the informed buyer.
Enter The Internet
In the year 2021, an RV buyer can let their fingers do much of the walking.
We went onto RVTrader.com to look for new Sabre 36BHQ listings nationwide. After finding a few we began to message dealerships looking for the best deal. We had multiple offers better than what we had received at Camping World within two days, and most within hours.
All of the dealerships that we contacted were out of state, or at least far out of town. We accepted that we would probably get a much better deal if we were willing to drive to pick up the RV. Since we were planning to full-time in the RV, this seemed like an easy decision.
Pete’s RV Center, Schererville, Indiana
Pete’s RV Center in Schererville, IN was not initially the best offer we received. There were a couple of single location dealerships who offered a lower price, but we were leaning toward Pete’s RV Center because they are a dealership with locations in multiple states.
After some back-and-forth with Mary Anne we were able to reach an agreement that we were satisfied with. We wired a down payment and began to plan the trip to go pick up the RV.
The Sale
The purchase of the RV could not have been much easier. We arrived on the scheduled day and took a tour of the RV with Robert. While taking the tour we did a light PDI (Pre-Delivery Inspection) looking for anything that might need addressed.
After the walk-through we proceeded back inside to finalize all of the paperwork. A few short minutes later we were the legal owners of our new 2022 Sabre 36BHQ.
Service Department
We spent that night on the lot at Pete’s RV Center. We did this to do a full PDI and to put the systems through their various functions. Anything that wasn’t correct from the factory (except silicone) had already been fixed by the time we got there, and everything appeared to be in working order.
The next day one of the senior technicians from the service department helped us get hooked up correctly and safely. We shared that we had looked at a 45 foot toy hauler pulled by someone who didn’t know the function of the “break-away” cable. Yikes!
But, what about the price!?
At this point you are probably wondering just how good a deal we got on our 2022 Sabre 36BHQ.
We do not believe that it would be prudent for us to share what our final out-the-door price was at Pete’s RV Center. What we can share is that it was many thousands of dollars less than Camping World’s “best” price. We can also share that Pete’s RV Center will be the first place we call when it comes time to replace our RV.
If you are in the market for an RV, give Pete’s RV Center in Schererville Indiana a call. They will work hard to earn your business, and we feel that they deserve it.