Dealerships. WTF?

[veedubtek]

Ok. This isn't a rant I should have. I've never been to a boat dealership. Never had service there. No reason to complain.

But. With all due respect to my little Seadoo, I do plan on upgrading. My current plans are to be looking at a new AR210 at the end of next season, so I have the dealership experience to look forward to.

With that said...I read nothing but horror stories. Now, I'm no stranger to that. I worked at automotive dealerships for 15 years, and to this day I work in a specialty independent repair shop. So, I'm obviously used to reading bad stories about dealers. But nothing compared to this. Scheduling weeks out for basic service. General repairs taking a month. Emergency repairs? Forget about it.

Obviously, this stems from reports I've read on here and other forums, and most recently - from dieselcamel's recent misfortune. I just don't get it. No matter where I've worked - if someone is traveling through, or in a bad situation, or whatever, we ALWAYS find a way to get it done. At least peek at it the same day and get some parts ordered. It isn't rocket science. I just don't understand, no matter how busy a place might be, why the job can't be done in no more than a couple days.

Are all boat dealers this bad? Or is this just a case of noone talking about it when it's good? If that's what I have to look forward to, I think I'll just skip the new boat and pick up a nice used one and continue figuring things out for myself.

 

[spaz1868]

I had just about the same experience with dealerships. There is only one dealer in my area that carries new Yamaha's and we knew we wanted one. Every time we saw a Yamaha on the lake, we always liked it's styling and the safety factor for the kids. I have scoped the Yamaha's at the local boat show for a couple of years and they were always real nice there. They even invited me to come to their dealer on the water to test drive one. The problem came when I went to the dealer. They were always too busy to be bothered by my questions and inquiries and would not let me drive one. I explained that I just wanted to feel the difference between a jetboat and an I/O but they were not very accommodating. They had an arrogant attitude because they knew they were the only game in town. They did not want to give me the time of day so I searched for a used boat online and bought it. Maybe this is what happens when there is no competition in the market. And there is little to no chance of me visiting them for service. I will either do it myself or find another marine mechanic.

 

[tdonoughue]

Walt,

I think in large part people don't rant when they get good service. I bought at Texas Marine in Conroe, TX and had a good experience. Service was expensive, but timely and done right the first time. A friend bought there too and had what I would call fair service. A lot depends on the staff with whom you deal, I think. And especially with sales staff there is a fair amount of turnover so consistency can be rare.

If you post with whom you are going to deal, someone may have some specific input for you.

 

[veedubtek]

Funny, I almost forgot. I did have one dealer experience already.

~2 weeks before I bought my Seadoo, I filled out the "have a dealer contact me" form on yammy's website. Chatlee Sporting Goods in Sanford, NC emailed me about 3-4 days later. Told him I was interested in an AR190. I liked everything I heard on the phone, so I gave him my info and permission to run a credit app and see if I could get the special financing they were offering at the time. He told me he'd call back within 10 minutes. Never heard back, and just assumed I didn't get it.

2 weeks after I bought my Seadoo, I got an approval letter in the mail. Now, I still feel I made the right choice, and do believe everything happens for a reason, but I can guarantee I won't be going back to them if I do decide on a new yammy next year.

 

[lashburn1]

"Boat dealerships"are typically mom-and-pop operations unlike large car dealerships in any town.

There are never many knowledgeable salesman, or mechanics in anyone of them.

Therefore is completely hit or miss on the service sales side.

I dropped my Mastercraft off for an oil change and basic Surf upgrade five weeks ago. I had an appointment for the day I dropped it off that I made two months prior.
They still have not even looked at it.
They are backlogged with work four months.

The mechanic basically told me there is nothing he could do,

 

[Evildwarf]

I had just about the same experience with dealerships. There is only one dealer in my area that carries new Yamaha's and we knew we wanted one. Every time we saw a Yamaha on the lake, we always liked it's styling and the safety factor for the kids. I have scoped the Yamaha's at the local boat show for a couple of years and they were always real nice there. They even invited me to come to their dealer on the water to test drive one. The problem came when I went to the dealer. They were always too busy to be bothered by my questions and inquiries and would not let me drive one. I explained that I just wanted to feel the difference between a jetboat and an I/O but they were not very accommodating. They had an arrogant attitude because they knew they were the only game in town. They did not want to give me the time of day so I searched for a used boat online and bought it. Maybe this is what happens when there is no competition in the market. And there is little to no chance of me visiting them for service. I will either do it myself or find another marine mechanic.

This attitude problem with sales staff at this dealer is why I drove two hours to Weedowie Marine to spend my money. The staff at Weedowie was friendly and went out of their way to make sure I was happy with the purchase. I haven't had any service done at Weedowie so I can't speak about their service department but if the customer service ethic is the same then no worries

 

[Julian]

Getting service at a dealer can be a challenge. Typically people wait or don't get a boat serviced, then go out and find a problem. Then they go to the dealer at the same time everyone else is going (beginning of the season) and demand simply outstripes supply.

Chatlee couldn't help me within the 2 week window I needed their assistance, but they were VERY helpful in discussing what might be wrong and how I could pull her apart myself. @veedubtek there is NO EXCUSE for not calling you! But that could just be one crappy sales person.

Bottom line is that many things with these boats are simple enough that we can handle it ourselves!

 

[jetboater4life]

I bought my boat used from a dealer in San Angelo TX and had a great experience.

 

[Gym]

Cost, long waits and crappy service is what brings some people to forums like this. There is never a wait here. just tell us your problem and we'll tell ya how to fix it, where to get the parts at a fair price and how many beers it should take to complete the job.

 

[octavio3311]

I guess it really depends on the dealer.
Many if us Ct guys have bought our boats and had them serviced at G&R Marine in South Windsor, Ct. They happen to be the only Yamaha dealer around. Bryan (owner) and Andy (tech guru) are good guys. Simply put - they're good people that take care of their customers. Over the years getting to know these guys - I can talk to these guys and bullshit with them and goof around with them like they're 1 one of the guys - cause they are.

I'm sure if @TechRider and @Evil Sports comes on here, they'll 2nd my statement.

The staff and crew make the dealerships. The MasterCraft dealer up the road from me is a top notch place as well. I've seen them go completely out of the way for their customers. As is the Nautique/ Malibu dealer next door to them. But I guess when they're selling $100k boats - they better kiss your ass a little.

 

[WickedPorter]

I had a good experience with River Valley Power & Sport up in Minnesota. It's about a 4 hour drive from where I'm at, but is the closest reputable Yamaha dealership. I have no experience with their service department, but their prep-work was top notch. I've had one warranty claim on the ladder strap, they promptly sent me a new one free of charge, which was reassuring. I'm sure it's easy to forget about your out-of-state customers, they haven't.

 

[SCSTWG]

"Boat dealerships"are typically mom-and-pop operations unlike large car dealerships in any town.

There are never many knowledgeable salesman, or mechanics in anyone of them.

Therefore is completely hit or miss on the service sales side.

I dropped my Mastercraft off for an oil change and basic Surf upgrade five weeks ago. I had an appointment for the day I dropped it off that I made two months prior.
They still have not even looked at it.
They are backlogged with work four months.

The mechanic basically told me there is nothing he could do,

Mastercraft is a high-end product and there is no way this should happen when selling and servicing premium products with 6-figure price tags. Unacceptable.

 

[Glassman]

.... I think I'll just skip the new boat and pick up a nice used one and continue figuring things out for myself.

New or used, the choice is obviously yours, but bear in mind that for every horror story there may be a hundred like mine...

I did my fair share of shopping around on the internet and over the phone before driving to the closest dealer. Unimpressed, I went back to the internet and expanded my search area.

I called a dealer about 300 miles from me and since the boats were new at the time he wasn't even aware that Yamaha made boats! He said he'd call me back...he did, he quoted a price lower than the others and he was willing to throw in some significant add-ons to close the deal. Then he hopped in his truck and went and picked up a boat in Las Vegas (200 miles roundtrip).

I drove out there the following week, wrote a check and that's the last time the boat has seen the dealer....well, we drove by a few times on the way to Lake Mohave, but that don't count.


So just remember, some of these boats will go 11 years with no problems...well, maybe a loose nut behind the wheel, but other than that...

 

[Gym]

Another thing.....NOBODY handles "on water" emergencies like we do. Find a dealer that does that.

 

[1rjclark]

I think customer service over all is lacking this day and age. You can't even get a damn shoe salesman to help you try on shoes. My customer service at my local dealer was so bad that when I buy my next Yamaha I'll be driving 4 - 5 hours to another dealer. I feel your pain!!!!

 

[Julian]

Wow.... @lashburn1 I would have imagined Mastercraft would have better service than that! Why can't any of these places have a concept of "booking time". If you want work done, put a non-refundable deposit (small) down to hold your spot, and have the dealer tell you with some notice (configurable) when you should bring the boat in....especially for Non-Emergency work!

But then again....why can't contractors working on your house ever do the same? Its a failure to manage and plan....

 

[Noko]

Got my boat from River Valley in MN too. I picked it up at their Rochester store, they have 2-3 stores. Never saw the boat until I picked it up. The sales rep was a good guy and I had a good experience with them. I have not used their service department

 

[DoubleThrust]

Sizzle Marine in Columbus is the only dealer for Yamaha boats around. They are the biggest dumbasses, and assholes, I've ever met in business. I called Yamaha corporate about them to complain after NOT buying a boat from them. I drove a few states away and bought from a dealer where at least the salesman was a great asset - MidStateMotorsports in TN. Now the owner of that place I didn't get such great vibe about, but Burt down there was excellent. I would have bought from Wil at the time, but that's a 1000 mile drive and he didn't have the boat I wanted anyway. This is the reality of the Yamaha boat dealership network, for those people who actually have their heads above water. So many go to a local dealer completely unprepared and just... buy a boat.... getting completely f*cked in the process. So I guess they're to blame too. This is starting to sound like the housing crisis.

Bottom line is that Yamaha has a major role in this - they won't fire bad dealers because there aren't enough around. If there's not competition the only explanation is that Yamaha must not make it appealing enough to be a dealer.

Once I learned years ago about how little manufacturers of boats, motorcycles, whatever pay their dealerships to do warranty work, etc (i.e., way less than the hourly rate you and I pay) the scam started to become clear in my mind.

So blame them both.. if people act like assholes, there's no removing or explaining away the individual responsibility of those actions. But if the manufacturers create scenarios where they are the only type of people in the business, then do something about that too.

I would call Yamaha corporate and tell you what you've been reading about and directly voice your concern. Tell them it angers you and makes you not want to buy a Yamaha, despite that you hear they're great boats. While you're at it, tell them you've heard they reject way too many warranty claims to make you feel comfortable, and that you're telling them these things because they still have a chance to change... while massive competition looms.

Yamaha makes a great boat - but they protect their pockets like mad....

 

[Gym]

I had a conversation, last year, with Jim Davenport of Long Lake Marina in southern Maine. He told me that Yamaha is systematically pulling boat dealerships from motorcycle shops for the very reasons I'm reading here. I think this has some merit but sounds like they should speed up the process.

 

[Noko]

I bought from a dealer that was 240 miles from where I lived. There is a dealer closer. I bought from the farther dealer because they had the boat I wanted and were willing to give me a fair price on it. I bought a 2013 AR240 this May. The dealer I bought from was very interested in my filling out a survey of how the whole process went. My salesman said Yamaha takes it very seriously how a dealer is selling their product.