Oliver Service

[rich.dev]

39 minutes ago, Wandering Sagebrush said:

Other than “convenience”,  why would anyone trade anything in?

Not sure it’s the same in all states and provinces, but in Ontario if you do a trade in, you don’t pay tax on the trade in amount. When we sold our SOB to buy a used airstream from a dealership, we sold the SOB privately, but did the deal through the airstream dealership, so it was considered a trade in, and we did not pay tax on the sold/trade in value of the SOB.😁

[ScubaRx]

1 hour ago, rich.dev said:

Not sure it’s the same in all states and provinces, but in Ontario if you do a trade in, you don’t pay tax on the trade in amount. When we sold our SOB to buy a used airstream from a dealership, we sold the SOB privately, but did the deal through the airstream dealership, so it was considered a trade in, and we did not pay tax on the sold/trade in value of the SOB.😁

It’s that way in Mississippi. I alway trade in a used vehicle when buying a new one. The you only pay sales tax on the difference in price. 

[HDRider]

6 hours ago, Wandering Sagebrush said:

Other than “convenience”,  why would anyone trade anything in?  

I never trade anything in.  I always sell outright

[SeaDawg]

5 hours ago, HDRider said:

I never trade anything in.  I always sell outright

We've done both. With high florida sales tax, on desirable /high trade vehicles, trading can sometimes make sense. (We also avoided sales tax in this state, in trade-in portion.)

I've done better sometimes selling our well- maintained,  well-documented vehicles private sale. A couple of "driven to the dirt" dead vehicles went to charity,,for parts. 

Lately,,with the dearth of quality used vehicles, we're getting really good offers from dealers to trade in our vehicles,  even though we haven't asked. Not ready to give them up.

Research, evaluate,,analyze.

As you will.

[jdmmtx]

It will be very interesting to see how this plays out. I hope it ends up benefitting both Oliver and us as owners with expanded service locations. It could be a challenge for the network to gain the trust of those who are used to dealing with the experts in Hohenwald (it's REALLY nice to be able to get solid information when there is a question or issue) so top-notch, maintained training at these facilities will be so important. And having the service department remain at the mothership would still afford us options as well as an opportunity to visit Tennessee, which we have come to love since our purchase and trips there.

[HDRider]

11 hours ago, SeaDawg said:

We've done both. With high florida sales tax, on desirable /high trade vehicles, trading can sometimes make sense. (We also avoided sales tax in this state, in trade-in portion.)

I've done better sometimes selling our well- maintained,  well-documented vehicles private sale. A couple of "driven to the dirt" dead vehicles went to charity,,for parts. 

Lately,,with the dearth of quality used vehicles, we're getting really good offers from dealers to trade in our vehicles,  even though we haven't asked. Not ready to give them up.

Research, evaluate,,analyze.

As you will.

I keep stuff for a long time.

[mossemi]

40 minutes ago, HDRider said:

I keep stuff for a long time.

Cool!  My FLTRSEI is now 23 years old.

Mossey

[HDRider]

33 minutes ago, mossemi said:

Cool!  My FLTRSEI is now 23 years old.

Mossey

So is my FLSTC

[Dennis and Melissa]

I am just a newbie.  We are planning deliver of our Ollie in Mar 24 (followed by nearly simultaneous retirement).

When evaluating RV options, Airstream almost won.  Mostly because I live 15 miles from a full service AS dealership.

I'm not a moron, but I'm also not an automotive engineer.  The promise of having competent technicians 20 minutes from home was a big plus for the aluminum guys.

In the end we committed to travelling from FL to TN yearly for expert evaluation/maintenance/advice.....
If this lessens that commute, I vote Yeah.

Everything I've written should be colored by the knowledge that I have no clue whether such actions will eviscerate the soul of the company.  I pray not.

[ScubaRx]

41 minutes ago, Dennis and Melissa said:

I am just a newbie.  We are planning deliver of our Ollie in Mar 24 (followed by nearly simultaneous retirement)...

In the end we committed to traveling from FL to TN yearly for expert evaluation/maintenance/advice.....
If this lessens that commute, I vote Yeah.

Everything I've written should be colored by the knowledge that I have no clue whether such actions will eviscerate the soul of the company.  I pray not.

Congrats on your upcoming retirement. You've made the right choice in an Oliver. We've owned two over the past 16 years starting in 2008. The company is following a business path that will keep them moving forward and customers happy for years to come.

[Mike and Carol]

8 hours ago, Dennis and Melissa said:

In the end we committed to travelling from FL to TN yearly for expert evaluation/maintenance/advice.....
If this lessens that commute, I vote Yeah.

If you can find a competent local repair shop to do maintenance then you shouldn’t need to make an annual trip to Tennessee.  I’ve got a local mom/pop repair shop just 15 minutes away.  He’s been doing my maintenance for the last 7 years and has several other Olivers he services.  In the early years he did some warranty work which was reimbursed by Oliver.  Mike

[ScottyGS]

On 10/28/2023 at 1:14 PM, mossemi said:

I apologize for my shortcomings and I am sorry I forgot about you in Canada!

Mossey

Even us Canadians living in the USA are offended at your oversight.  For penance you must stop at the next Tim Hortons you pass for breakfast.  

[mossemi]

1 hour ago, ScottyGS said:

Even us Canadians living in the USA are offended at your oversight.  For penance you must stop at the next Tim Hortons you pass for breakfast.  

I think the last time we were in a Tim Hortons was around 2000 in Penticton, BC.  We were heading to Jasper on a motorcycle trip.  Does that count as "paying it forward"?😎

Mossey

[SeaDawg]

On 10/31/2023 at 8:33 AM, mossemi said:

Cool!  My FLTRSEI is now 23 years old.

Mossey

Our 58 tr3, Paul's college car, still runs ,and has a prime spot in the garage. 

Do we win ? 🤣🤣🤣

[MAX Burner]

Our BMW R90/6 will turn 40 years old in Jan...

[Steve Morris]

On 11/1/2023 at 10:28 PM, SeaDawg said:

Do we win ?

You tie. But you've had yours longer: 1958 MGA 1500 Roadster

 

If I had a bigger barn, I could have won, though. But my younger brother ended up with my Dad's 1923 Ford Model T, which Dad had since the '50s.

Now, if we go back to "What Was Your First Car?" though, I usually come out ahead in those. But that's a completely different thread than OTT Service. 😉 

[Wandering Sagebrush]

On 10/30/2023 at 6:16 AM, rich.dev said:

Not sure it’s the same in all states and provinces, but in Ontario if you do a trade in, you don’t pay tax on the trade in amount. When we sold our SOB to buy a used airstream from a dealership, we sold the SOB privately, but did the deal through the airstream dealership, so it was considered a trade in, and we did not pay tax on the sold/trade in value of the SOB.😁

Here in Oregon, we don’t have a general sales tax, so there’s no advantage to trade in a vehicle or RV.  While I enjoy not having a sales tax, I often wonder if we are missing out on revenue from tourists.  That’s assuming a sales tax would mean a decrease in state income tax.

[HDRider]

On 10/27/2023 at 10:26 AM, ScubaRx said:

No, everything about sales and service in Hohenwald will remain the same. 

That did not age well.

[rideandfly]

On 10/29/2023 at 8:51 AM, HDRider said:

First, we know Oliver intends to push new trailer sales through a dealer network.  

Now we find out Oliver is now trying to push sales of used trailers off the forum and into their upcoming dealer network.

The logical next step to me is that Oliver would want to also push service to the dealer network.

Good insight.

[topgun2]

54 minutes ago, HDRider said:

On 10/27/2023 at 11:26 AM, ScubaRx said:

No, everything about sales and service in Hohenwald will remain the same. 

That did not age well.

In defense of Steve - 

Note that the moderators are no different than any other member of the Forum. 

Yes, from time to time the moderators will be given information by Oliver that is not necessarily in the public domain.  But, even in the rare situation when this happens the information is generally given in confidence. 

In many cases, any information that the moderators might have has been developed from reliable sources and years of association with Oliver.  And, there are very few of us that have as much history with Oliver as does Steve.  In October, 2023 Steve's comment reflected Oliver's official stance on the subject.

Finally, yes, October was a fairly short time ago.  But, we all know how fast things can change in today's market.

Bill

[johnwen]

On 11/1/2023 at 8:25 AM, Mike and Carol said:

If you can find a competent local repair shop to do maintenance then you shouldn’t need to make an annual trip to Tennessee.  I’ve got a local mom/pop repair shop just 15 minutes away.  He’s been doing my maintenance for the last 7 years and has several other Olivers he services.  In the early years he did some warranty work which was reimbursed by Oliver.  Mike

Hi Mike,

I don't know how I missed your comments here but I'm glad I re read this queue.  How long does your mom and pop repair shop take for the annual inspection?  Do you make an appointment and does that appointment get delayed from time to time?  I'm asking as we full time and it's a bit inconvenient if appointments get shifted around frequently.  We get through Texas every year and it would be quite possible to use your resources.  And after meeting you at the Q I would definitely trust your judgement!

John

[HDRider]

2 hours ago, johnwen said:

How long does your mom and pop repair shop take for the annual inspection? 

I wonder that too.

 

Oliver had me use a third party here to replace an invertor.  It took them two months to do two hours worth of work, and they still did not do it right.  Lucky for me Jason walked me through things to make it right.  They were just down the road.  I can't imagine driving 16 hours, leaving it, and then doing 16 hours again.

 

Hohenwald is 6 hours round trip for me.

 

This whole thing sucks.

[rich.dev]

4 hours ago, topgun2 said:

Finally, yes, October was a fairly short time ago.  But, we all know how fast things can change in today's market.

Yup the way things have changed with Oliver in the last 5-6 months, anything can still happen....and yes nobody really knows except the Oliver owners, like Oliver being sold to one of the large RV companies like Thor, money talks especially in this day and age!

[Mike and Carol]

3 hours ago, johnwen said:

I don't know how I missed your comments here but I'm glad I re read this queue.  How long does your mom and pop repair shop take for the annual inspection?  Do you make an appointment and does that appointment get delayed from time to time?  I'm asking as we full time and it's a bit inconvenient if appointments get shifted around frequently.  We get through Texas every year and it would be quite possible to use your resources.  And after meeting you at the Q I would definitely trust your judgement!

John, our local repair shop is just a guy and his wife and one or two guys he has to help.  Not affiliated with Oliver in any way, but he has spent time on the phone with Jason in the past.  We don’t do an annual inspection.  I have had him fix a warranty plumbing issue, troubleshoot and install a new inverter, some electrical work, a couple of appointments for our recent brake issue (frayed wires in the axle).  Other than that I’ve had them repack bearings, lube the Dexter, and check brakes annually.  It usually takes a few weeks to get an appointment, but he’s been pretty prompt with his work.  I think @Ralph Mawyer and @bugeyedriver use him as well (Boerne RV).  Our closest authorized dealer is up near Austin about 2 hours away (Princess Craft).  We’ve been there several times the past few years to look at what they have and I watch most of their YouTube videos.  They are small and family owned, I would think they will be an excellent dealer and service facility for Oliver.  Mike

[Steph and Dud B]

32 minutes ago, rich.dev said:

like Oliver being sold to one of the large RV companies like Thor

I can't see that. Yes, Thor went after Airstream and Tiffin, but they were much bigger fish with a much bigger following. I'm guessing Oliver is just trying to make a go of it. It seems they invested a lot in the operation during COVID and now the bubble has burst. They could downsize to pre-COVID levels, but I don't know how that would affect them financially. Or, they can try to find a way to keeps sales up and costs down, which is what I think we're seeing here. But they do seem to be moving away from the formula that was successful for them before COVID.