Is this normal? If so... Wow!

[Converse48]

Keep in mind that this, my fourteenth boat, is my first Sea Ray...

I have to say that I am blown away by the service that I am getting from the dealer on this boat... they come when they say they're coming, they do what needs to be done (including catching and fixing things that I hadn't even noticed) and the tech calls me personally to go over everything he did as soon as he's done. And then when I get to the boat, I can't tell they were there other than the fixed stuff.

There has been nothing major (other than a toilet and vacuum pump that needed reconstruction... they were damaged during a party where we had 50+ landlubbers flushing the toilet [see post on banning menstruating women]), but they have been great.

This is very smart on their part because I'm sure they know that anyone dumb enough to buy fourteen boats is probably stupid enough to eventually buy a fifteenth!

 

[Dave S]

I have a dealer that has always treated me in a similar fashion. I don't know if you would call that "normal" but it does indeed speak well of your own personal dealership. :thumbsup:

 

[rondds]

as has been discussed on other threads about "customer abuse," this has become sadly and strangely abnormal now-a-days, in ANY service business. but i'm glad they are taking care of you! :thumbsup:

 

[comsnark]

I agree. This is ABNORMAL.

My dealer (granted. . .I bought used) was very questionable.

 

[fwebster]

Prodigalson's experience is completely normal........for a boat bought from a Master Dealer 2-3 months ago. Notice please that he has a 2007 boat and is enjoying his "hour in the spotlight" or honeymoon period. After the customer satisfaction surveys are registered, he will, for the most part, be treated like all other dealership customers. Which ain't bad at all compared to other brands who may not even have a dealer network choosing to sell thru brokers and to hire local technicians for warranty repairs.

That is the way the Master Dealer program works for Sea Ray dealers. A dealer's continued status as a master dealer is almost fully dependent on the initial customer satisfaction surveys received from buyers of new boat.

I tend to believe that the Master Dealer program needs to factor in some method for considering how the dealers treat all the customers....not only new owners, but last year's new owners, and the year before. What about the guys who paid good money for used boats from the dealer? Why is their satisfaction not important in judging a dealer's performance? Guess who is the prime trade up candidate? Well it danged sure ain't the guy who just wrote a big 6 figure check for a new boat. Its folks like the rest of us who are working to gain experience so we can decide how best to scratch the boating itch as families mature and we age.

I should add that the difference at most Sea Ray dealers between the "guy on the bubble" with the new boat and the rest of us really isn't much and is hardly measurable. For example, I've owned my current boat for 10 years and I get the same level of service as ever other customer and I have no complaints at all with my dealer's service....but I know how the system works and I do my part.

Once you are beyond the initial period, the level of service owners get depends upon a lot of things, but your relationship with the dealer and his personnel are pretty important. They love customers who try to learn and do a good job of maintaining their boats, and it doesn't matter if you do it or hire them to. An owner who is active in managing his boat and sees to preventative maintenance always gets better service, more explanations, and more maintenance and cost saving tips than those who treat the dealer's personnel like servants and complain about every little thing they don't like.

I witnessed our dealer's service manager getting a royal butt chewing for replacing a broken door catch without prior approval(the service manager noticed it, ordered the replacement and changed it himself and billed no labor, but did bill $8 for the part). This was on a $350,000 boat undergoing about $15,000 in repairs and deferred (polite-speak for neglected)maintenance. Care to guess how fast the dealer was to accommodate this owner on his next work order?

I'm glad Prodigalson is having a good experience and maybe the above will explain some of the why others experiences may be different. Hopefully Sea Ray will eventually see the flaws in the Master Dealer Program that makes all but the new boat buyer inconsequential seconds class citizens.

 

[Turtlesboat]

Amen Frank :thumbsup:

I decided not to buy from a dealer because the moment "USED" came out of my mouth, the whole experienced went down hill. today i actually went to a monteray dealer to fix my IAC valve instead of the sea ray dealer because he treated me like a valued customer. I wish I had the patience to build a relationship with the local dealer but I can't stomach that much ass kissing on my part. It's a shame really, cause I really do love my USED boat and i'm a prime candidate for an upgrade.

 

[fwebster]

Well, sometimes a little patience is needed to develop a good relationship with a dealer, or anyone else for that matter. Think crock pot; not pressure cooker..........

And just so we are clear on this point, I don't kiss anyone's ass for anything, yet I've been able to get the respect of the dealer and their personnel as well as other skilled tradesmen for non-dealer things like canvas, electronics, detailing, etc. Its all a matter of how you go about it and the idea that you are in it to win the war, not just take the hill in front of you.

 

[Turtlesboat]

I didn't mean to insinuate that everyone has to ass kiss, Just me with MY local dealer. I don't really have issue with the other Sea Ray dealers in the ny area, they just aren't local to me. It would be nice to be able to go to the one next to me. I have great relationships with other dealers in my area and I don't even own their boats. but Maybe they are just courting me. I know i'm not the only one in the area with problems. You mention their name and you get a reaction if you know what I mean. Maybe I need to move to Florida :lol:

didn't mean to hijack the thread. continue.

 

[Charlie L]

I must say that so far my experience with my dealer has been very good. They are a smaller family owned dealership and I believe that makes a difference as well. I've had my boat for about a year now and always get treated well when I stop in. I'd say that just about everyone there knows me by name (and my kids names for that matter). If I could get this kind of treatment from a auto dealership I'd by every car there for the rest of my life.

I must say that I've also stoped by MMax parts dept once or twice and have been treated very good there also, and they know I didn't buy my boat from them.

I do agree that having a relationship with the dealer makes a huge difference. I think it helps to spend a little money on some of your accessories at the dealership instead of wal-mart. You support them and they will/should take care of you.

 

[Converse48]

Thanks for the education, Frank... being a generally skeptical person myself, I knew there had to be something behind it! That's why I asked... thanks again for sharing your viewpoints!

 

[Dave S]

My experience is very similar to Franks in terms of building a relationship with my dealer. I have been dealing with them for the last six years and pretty much know everyone by name in the service department. Over the years i have been very inquisitive and they have been very helpfull in "educating" me. While I pay them for some maintenance on my boat, I also do a lot of it on my own. In short this is a relationship that is just about ideal for me. If I ever buy another boat in the future, it will take a lot of convincing to get me into anything other than a Sea Ray because of my relationship with my dealer. In the boat business, establishing that relationship benefits both parties and Sea Ray really understands that with the Master Dealer program. Incidentally, my dealer won Sea Ray's Worldwide Best Service award in 2004.............and they only give that to one dealership worldwide each year. :thumbsup:

 

[jrirvine1]

I think Prodigal and I both bought new from the same dealer and my experience with them has been the same. One weekday when arriving at the boat, (yes, I go AWOL from work whenever possible) a service tech was onboard with a full array of tools. This seemed odd as all items that I found needing adjustment or tweaking were previously taken care of. He explained that on his last visit he found several things that needed some work and had time in the schedule to stop by and then proceeded to show me what they were.

This level of service is impressive even though the boat is less than 2 miles from the dealer and the tech lives in the adjacent development, which of course makes this very convenient for them.
Would they have provided the same for their used boat sales? I’m guessing probably not, but they do have an assortment of what they call “Certified Used Boatsâ€, which I assume is their non-brokerage inventory, that they claim do come with much of the same service commitments as their new boats.

It’s nice to know that we do get some extra coddling for a new purchase and just maybe, this takes some of the sting out of the initial hit in the wallet. If it wasn’t for the new purchasers, those that enjoy buying used, including yours truly, wouldn’t have much of a selection.

 

[STIHLBOLTS]

I use the same dealer that Frank is refering to. As a sport boat owner I feel that I have gotten the same fair attention that larger boat owners have gotten from this dealer. They are not perfect, but then who is. We have had a difference or two. But overall the service department has done a good job and I would recommend them to anyone. :thumbsup:

Frank does have a point about the used market survey and maybe some sort of letter writting compaign might be in order to get Sea Ray to start making some changes in that direction. :smt024

 

[goblue]

Comptetative markets and common sense drive the service you receive. We have a number of great service options in West Michigan. My boat is serviced at the dock at my house and the work is well done by people who leave the boat looking like it was before it was serviced. The parts that are replaced are left in a clean box. Paying your bills on time and treating the techs with respect is all that is required to obtain great service. I shudder when I read about people who can not get service because they did not buy their boats from a particular dealer. I would still be flying airplanes today if the boat service was that poor in our market.

 

[KevinReston]

I
Would they have provided the same for their used boat sales? I’m guessing probably not, but they do have an assortment of what they call “Certified Used Boatsâ€, which I assume is their non-brokerage inventory, that they claim do come with much of the same service commitments as their new boats.
.

I bought a "Certified Used Boat" and have been very pleased with the service/ attention (and am dock mates with several "new" owners and see no differences so far). I was also asked/encouraged to fill out a survey.

 

[beerman]

Nobody has enough time to waste to hear anymore opinions about the dealer I bought my boat from. Enough said.

 

[Converse48]

I've thought about this some more...

If the same level of service were given to both used and new boats, then the dealer's margins would be lower, given that they are surely charging Sea Ray back for warranty work. To make up for the lost margin, the dealer would have to: A) charge more for non-warranty work, which would probably price them out of the market; or B) charge more for new boats, which would also likely price them out of the market, or at least reduce the new boat volume which would in turn put more pressure on their margins.

I guess what I'm saying is that for us fools who buy new boats (11 of my boats were quite used by the way), maybe the extra service is a nice way to begin to help us offset (mentally at least) the horrific losses we will see in the first few years of depreciation? Remember that if no one buys a new boat there would not be an ample supply of clean, late-model used boats on the market!

In that light, the "master dealer" thing may not be so bad. That being said, I would agree that surveying ALL the dealers customers would make a lot of sense.