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Buyers can no longer choose where they buy their boat!

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stoked    1,039

This is something I face now with warranty work just like DHensley above. I bought my new boat while living in Oklahoma (which does not have a single Fineline dealer in the state). Closest dealer to me was in Dallas area but they only had 1 Centurion in stock and were not getting anymore in for 4-6 weeks. I was shopping for a boat immediately not a month later. I found a boat I wanted in Arkansas (6 hours form me) and bought that boat; that dealer dropped Centurion line the next year.

 

I am military and have moved to Georgia since buying the boat and when I needed warranty work I contacted my "closest" dealer; the same dealer in Anderson, SC who told me that since I didn't buy the boat from them it would not be a priority and if a customer brought a boat purchased form them in after I dropped mine off the customer boat would go in front of mone for work. Resulting in an estimated 3-4 week turn-around for simple warranty repair on QF gates.

 

So I contacted a dealer in Florida who worked the warranty repair over the phone and expedited the support even allowing me to perform the replacements versus towing the boat to them.

 

If I decide to buy a new boat at some point I plan to go to the FL dealer and in no uncertain terms will I go to my "closest" dealer in SC.

 

My money; I will choose where to spend it period. If Centurion trys to force me then guess what; I will buy a different brand, even if I know I may suffer somewhat in the surf wave department.

Ft Gordon?

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fropappy    9

My dealer no longer has Centurion.

I don't think there's a Centurion dealer anywhere in Arkansas.

If I want one, Closest dealer will be in Texas.

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rawinnin    73

My dealer no longer has Centurion.

I don't think there's a Centurion dealer anywhere in Arkansas.

If I want one, Closest dealer will be in Texas.

Sounds like a Haul seems like it would be Freedom Power Sports in Dallas for you. No worries though bc that's like home base for the southern area fineline rep.

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dejoeco    59

This is certainly a hot topic and rightfully so. First of all, I am so pleased to have a great dealer in Transition Watersports. They are low pressure and customer oriented. I don't want to speak for them, but I am certain they would be happy to service any boat bought anywhere. It is just good business. Servicing someones boat develops a relationship and someday that person is likely to buy another boat and I would bet if a good relationship has been established, that buyer would consider them first.

 

Having territories may be a way of weeding out bad dealerships, but it hurts the good one too.

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Ft Gordon?

 

Yes. I am stationed at Ft Gordon. Not being a signal background I had no idea how nice the area was. Has been a nice duty station so far. Hoping to stay here for a little while if possible.

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stoked    1,039

 

Yes. I am stationed at Ft Gordon. Not being a signal background I had no idea how nice the area was. Has been a nice duty station so far. Hoping to stay here for a little while if possible.

 

Nice! I'm on Fort Meade, I was Air Force and got stationed here and just stayed when I got out.

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Getssum    10

Fineline if you are reading this, shame on you. You have to know that not ALL dealers are good ones and often times there are quite a few more bad ones.

 

When people are buying a LUXURY good they want to choose WHO they spend their money with.

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viking    491

 

Having territories may be a way of weeding out bad dealerships, but it hurts the good one too.

 

I actually think it HELPS the bad dealerships!!

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Stretch    409

^ kind of what I was thinking. I don't see any way it hurts a bad dealer more than they are already hurting. Instead helping them, hurting good ones, and the companies image/customer relationship and possibly sales. It won't make people more likely to buy a centurion, the only possibility seems negative.

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Nice! I'm on Fort Meade, I was Air Force and got stationed here and just stayed when I got out.

 

If the oppurtunity presented itself we would stay here when I retire but not so sure we will get the chance. Just came on on the O-6 list so that means 3 more years to lock in retirement. The good thing is I am already in an O-6 billet so I am trying to get them to leave me here and reset my PCS clock.

 

It sure is nice to have a huge, deep, and realatively uncrowded lake only 20 minutes from my front door. Plus a great but small group of Centurion owners right now to hang and surf with.

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truekaotik    458

I will go to anyone that wants to give me the "bro deal"... Lol

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Lets look at this a different way.

I see it as helping the good dealers.

 

Lets say you go to Hillside and you see a boat you really like. And you know that he has a great dealership and does great customer service, but as we all know that is a cost of operating a dealership, and it has to be recovered somewhere in the transaction. So you go to the internet and you find a poor dealer some 300 miles away but you can save money on the boat because not only are you buying from a guy with a lot less overhead, but he also knows that he will more than likely never see you again. So he dumps a boat to you. Now you have a engine problem or something was missing on the boat when you got it. That guy 300 miles away is going to say "Well you took it as it was, not my problem". Where as the good dealer would have taken care of you from the start.

 

So if Fineline is trying to control this kind of stuff I say go for it, let them stop those types of dealers and they will figure out who they are and will replace them with a better dealer.

 

From what I understand almost every boat company has dealer sales territories that they try to enforce some do it better than others I am sure, but I have heard of penalties being applied to dealers, and also dealers cancelled over selling out of territory.

 

Just one other way of looking at this, and I really would rather it be this way than open season on selling.

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souperfly    41

Lets look at this a different way.

I see it as helping the good dealers.

 

 

The problem is that many of us live in a really crappy territory! I have a Centurion dealer about 20 miles one way from my house and a Correct Craft dealer about 20 miles the other way. There is no way in hell that I would even think about pulling my Enzo into that gravel parking lot hell hole of a dealership!

Story time:

Early Summer (still winter for the northern folk) I was in the market for a new Centurion. Wakeboard wake be damned, I wanted the perfect surf wake. I searched all through Texas ads, and finally thought I'd take a look at the new ones, and my local Centurion Dealership.

 

They had 4 boats on their lot, FS44, SV33, Elite V and a Avalanche. I parked my truck, on their gravel parking lot, where those 4 boats sat next to a slew of Ranger bass boats, a few pontoons and some flat bottom boats. I walked inside to see their show room had nothing but cheaper, aluminum fishing boats. I finally found a salesman, who appeared to be around 145 years old, and asked him if we could go look at the Centurions. He said, and I quote, "The what?" I say, the wakeboard boats out by the road. So we make our way over, and I ask the simple questions, such as "do they have Perfect Pass?" To his reply "Do they come with what?" A few more questions are asked while he points to the brochure STAPLED to the cover! He then says he knows nothing about these boats, and to read the brochure, that was stapled to the cover! My final question was how long had it been since that dealership had sold a Centurion. "Oh, I dunno, over a year and a half ago, before I worked here..."

 

So, I drive by that dealership on my way to work and it took them a few weeks before the covers made it back on the two boats I looked at. These boats sit out in the sun, all day, on a gravel parking lot with covers blown half off... They never mounted the tower speakers nor wakeboard racks, I know because I saw them in the ski locker. They, nor any of their partner dealerships will ever get my business, regions be damned!

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jmcclain01    1

I can almost guarantee you this is a Correct Craft mandate as they have had territory restrictions for as long as I can remember. Not so sure Fineline has a say in this.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

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We are wanting to trade up this year. But our dealership has now dropped centurion. How can a company survive if they can't get someone interested in selling their boats. Called centurion dealer in Lenoir City TN about trading up. They won't take a trade in this time of year. Do they think everyone is a first time buyer or has the time to sell a boat?

Most first time buyers don't buy a hundred thousand dollar boat.

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tprice    118

Lets look at this a different way.

I see it as helping the good dealers.

 

Lets say you go to Hillside and you see a boat you really like. And you know that he has a great dealership and does great customer service, but as we all know that is a cost of operating a dealership, and it has to be recovered somewhere in the transaction. So you go to the internet and you find a poor dealer some 300 miles away but you can save money on the boat because not only are you buying from a guy with a lot less overhead, but he also knows that he will more than likely never see you again. So he dumps a boat to you. Now you have a engine problem or something was missing on the boat when you got it. That guy 300 miles away is going to say "Well you took it as it was, not my problem". Where as the good dealer would have taken care of you from the start.

 

So if Fineline is trying to control this kind of stuff I say go for it, let them stop those types of dealers and they will figure out who they are and will replace them with a better dealer.

 

From what I understand almost every boat company has dealer sales territories that they try to enforce some do it better than others I am sure, but I have heard of penalties being applied to dealers, and also dealers cancelled over selling out of territory.

 

Just one other way of looking at this, and I really would rather it be this way than open season on selling.

 

Problem with this point of view is it should be all about the customer, not the dealer.

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DarksideR    1,679

Problem with this point of view is it should be all about the customer, not the dealer.

You know that's BS... it's never "all" about the customer. The customer isn't ALWAYS right. It should benefit both parties. The dealership should make some money, and the buyer should get a quality product. If the product has a failure, it should be fixed quickly, without question. Now, it's always been up to the dealer if they want to do warrany work on boats not purchased from them. And they haven't been allowed to advertise new boats outside their territories. But not allowing a customer to choose where they buy from is ludacris!

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RhuntIII    555

Lets look at this a different way.

I see it as helping the good dealers.

 

Lets say you go to Hillside and you see a boat you really like. And you know that he has a great dealership and does great customer service, but as we all know that is a cost of operating a dealership, and it has to be recovered somewhere in the transaction. So you go to the internet and you find a poor dealer some 300 miles away but you can save money on the boat because not only are you buying from a guy with a lot less overhead, but he also knows that he will more than likely never see you again. So he dumps a boat to you. Now you have a engine problem or something was missing on the boat when you got it. That guy 300 miles away is going to say "Well you took it as it was, not my problem". Where as the good dealer would have taken care of you from the start.

 

So if Fineline is trying to control this kind of stuff I say go for it, let them stop those types of dealers and they will figure out who they are and will replace them with a better dealer.

 

From what I understand almost every boat company has dealer sales territories that they try to enforce some do it better than others I am sure, but I have heard of penalties being applied to dealers, and also dealers cancelled over selling out of territory.

 

Just one other way of looking at this, and I really would rather it be this way than open season on selling.

That's ridiculous! What is mandatory now is that I can not buy a new boat anywhere but the crappy dealership that souperfly mentions. So my only option on a new boat is a dealership that doesn't take care of their inventory and who could care less on selling a Centurion.

 

 

The problem is that many of us live in a really crappy territory! I have a Centurion dealer about 20 miles one way from my house and a Correct Craft dealer about 20 miles the other way. There is no way in hell that I would even think about pulling my Enzo into that gravel parking lot hell hole of a dealership!

Story time:

Early Summer (still winter for the northern folk) I was in the market for a new Centurion. Wakeboard wake be damned, I wanted the perfect surf wake. I searched all through Texas ads, and finally thought I'd take a look at the new ones, and my local Centurion Dealership.

 

They had 4 boats on their lot, FS44, SV33, Elite V and a Avalanche. I parked my truck, on their gravel parking lot, where those 4 boats sat next to a slew of Ranger bass boats, a few pontoons and some flat bottom boats. I walked inside to see their show room had nothing but cheaper, aluminum fishing boats. I finally found a salesman, who appeared to be around 145 years old, and asked him if we could go look at the Centurions. He said, and I quote, "The what?" I say, the wakeboard boats out by the road. So we make our way over, and I ask the simple questions, such as "do they have Perfect Pass?" To his reply "Do they come with what?" A few more questions are asked while he points to the brochure STAPLED to the cover! He then says he knows nothing about these boats, and to read the brochure, that was stapled to the cover! My final question was how long had it been since that dealership had sold a Centurion. "Oh, I dunno, over a year and a half ago, before I worked here..."

 

So, I drive by that dealership on my way to work and it took them a few weeks before the covers made it back on the two boats I looked at. These boats sit out in the sun, all day, on a gravel parking lot with covers blown half off... They never mounted the tower speakers nor wakeboard racks, I know because I saw them in the ski locker. They, nor any of their partner dealerships will ever get my business, regions be damned!

This dealer has no idea on what they have or want to do the research on the product that the are selling. They have no certified/trained mechanics for these inboard wake machines. I know for a fact they would rather sell the pontoon's, bass boats and the small aluminum boats because they are a more affordable and need less servicing and don't come back for warranty work. They also just fly off the shelf, no salesman needed.

 

This is the dealer I am now forced to buy from.

 

Hey can you give me a hand getting off this soap box, I don't want to fall. LOL.

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