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Purchasing from Couch's RV

Printed From: r-pod Nation
Category: Forest River r-pod
Forum Name: r-pod Owners Registry
Forum Description: Register your r-pod here. Post some photos of the family with the r-pod, where you like to camp, what model you bought and why!
URL: http://www.rpodNation.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=1791
Printed Date: 28 Mar 2024 at 1:52pm
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Topic: Purchasing from Couch's RV
Posted By: mustangcamper
Subject: Purchasing from Couch's RV
Date Posted: 22 Jul 2010 at 5:53pm
Hi,
I am still looking around at the rpod 175. I see that some of you have purchased your rpod from Couch's Rv. Can you share about your buying experience? Would you recommend buying from Couch's? I am about 500 miles away from them but they do have the best prices. Thanks.

Sharon



Replies:
Posted By: PodPatrol
Date Posted: 22 Jul 2010 at 5:59pm
Nothing but good reviews .... we purchased ours there and was very happy with all levels of purchase.


Posted By: Ratdog
Date Posted: 22 Jul 2010 at 6:40pm
Very happy with Couch's, too. We drove about 800 miles to get our pod from them. They set us up with a weight distributing hitch and sway control, too. Saved $3,000 from our local dealer's best price. You might want to get a price from Couch's and show it to your local dealer to see if they will match it, though. Be sure to factor in the money you'll save by not having to make the trip to Couch's.
 
-- Steve


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Steve, Anne, and Paige the Rat Terrier
2013 Lexus RX 450h Hybrid AWD
2011 RP-177 (aka: The Circus Wagon)


Posted By: Outbound
Date Posted: 22 Jul 2010 at 7:54pm
As a reminder, this forum is affiliated with Jeff Couch's RV Nation.

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Craig :: 2008 Mazda Tribute :: 2009 r-pod 171, The Johnnie Ray


Posted By: kotasnana
Date Posted: 23 Jul 2010 at 5:44pm
I bought my 175 from Couch's also and they were really good to deal with but I can see the value of buying closer to home also.

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Chrysler town and country
Eastern roundup site 10
R-pod 175


Posted By: pepperpod
Date Posted: 23 Jul 2010 at 6:08pm
Originally posted by kotasnana kotasnana wrote:

I bought my 175 from Couch's also and they were really good to deal with but I can see the value of buying closer to home also.
Did you get your air conditioner fixed?  I hope so. Hug

-------------
Pepper,Coach,and Henry (a very brave little Maltese)
R Pod 172

The rewards of the journey far outweigh the risk of leaving the harbor...unknown


Posted By: rfun
Date Posted: 29 Jul 2010 at 11:37pm
We bought ours via the phone and had it shipped to Northern California two years ago.  No issues here with them.

-------------
Happy r trails to you.... until we meet AGAIN!!!

2005 BMW X3
2009 R-pod 171
Prodigy RF


Posted By: rons-pod
Date Posted: 30 Jul 2010 at 12:03am
I just received my new 2011 RP-171 from Couch's. Had it delivered to Phoenix AZ. Over all a very good experience. Brannon is a pleasure to do business with. Only two minor things with the whole process. 

First having delivered means you do not get the walk through of where everything is and how to work things. For me this is not a big deal as I am very technically inclined and am the type that likes to read the manuals and figure out how things work. 

Second was the payment for the delivery. Couch's said I would need to pay the driver via certified check but, the delivery driver wanted cash. Said he got burned before by his bank and holding times on check deposits. Again not a real big deal but was fun coming up the $2k in cash on a Sunday when he arrived.

For the huge savings overall I would definitely do it again. 

-Ron-


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Follow the Quest - - MyWisdomQuest.com
2011 RP-171, 2001 Dodge Ram 1500 Quad Cab TV


Posted By: George
Date Posted: 30 Jul 2010 at 8:37am
We bought ours from Couch's also because of the 2,000 dollars savings compared to an RV dealer 3 miles down the road that was unwilling to lower their price.  So far, I cannot complain about the service we've gotten from Couch's.Thumbs Up  I cannot say the same thing about FR though.Unhappy  

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I can't stop dreaming about June 15, 2013 when we get to permanently escape in our "Escape Pod" which is a 176T towed by a Chevy van with a 5.7L engine.


Posted By: Scott
Date Posted: 30 Jul 2010 at 10:39am
Hi Sharon,
 
I live in Colorado and made the trip to Couch's last July- 1350 miles one way- well worth the trip for excellent service and price- no one in Colorado could come even close to their prices!
 
Scott


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Scott & Ann
Colorado Springs, CO
RP-172, '98 Ford Explorer


Posted By: mustangcamper
Date Posted: 30 Jul 2010 at 4:05pm
Thanks for all the great input. I have officially ordered my new 175 from Couch's RV. I will pick it up on Aug. 27th. I can't wait. Brannon and Dave have be very helpful. Thanks again and happy podding!!

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Mustangcamper
Sharon & Carrie
rpod 175 Slipper-pod
2009 Jeep Grand Cherokee Laredo V6


Posted By: argh6
Date Posted: 31 Jul 2010 at 12:01am
Congrats!

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Jerry, Julie, Kaiti, & Abbi ~ Phoenix, AZ ~ 2010 172T ~ 2004 Acura MDX


Posted By: ToddsPod
Date Posted: 11 Aug 2010 at 4:23pm
Originally posted by George George wrote:

We bought ours from Couch's also because of the 2,000 dollars savings compared to an RV dealer 3 miles down the road that was unwilling to lower their price.  So far, I cannot complain about the service we've gotten from Couch's.Thumbs Up  I cannot say the same thing about FR though.Unhappy  
 
We had a similar experience with RVMax in Whitesboro, TX (North of Dallas) We drove 400 miles to get it there because it was $1000's less than our local dealer as well as anywhere else we could find on the internet. Taking delivery was a smooth transaction, too. I'd highly recommend them.
 
Big smileRVMAX.comBig smile
 
 


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'10 Forest River R-Pod 172
'06 Dodge Grand Caravan


Posted By: Tamms
Date Posted: 11 Aug 2010 at 7:05pm
We bought from Couch's also (lucky for us they're our local dealer) and it could not have gone better. Jeff himself put on the temp tags and took our pictures (and hubs took his).


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Tammy, Robert, and Linus the morkie (Two & a Half Nerds)
'10 RP-174 (Nerd Pod)
'07 Dodge Ram 1500 quadcab


Posted By: RpodMan
Date Posted: 12 Aug 2010 at 11:29am
George-  Keep in mind that your purchasing dealer (IE local dealer)  should also be primarily resonsible for your required needs from the dealer.  Many customers from Couchs are under the impression tha that the FR factory is responsible for your warranty inquiries.  When you buy a Ford do you take it back to Detroit for repair?  No, you go to your local ford dealer.  Couchs will gladly sell you a trailer but will they be there to service it when you go back to wherever you are from?
Also keep in mind that this is not an unbiased website.  I'm sure negative feedback about Couch's does not get posted like the positive feedback does. 


Posted By: PodPatrol
Date Posted: 12 Aug 2010 at 11:35am
We bought at Couch's and was able to get a few things addressed locally.
The local dealer welcomed the work.
But I'm sure this is not always the case.


Posted By: pepperpod
Date Posted: 12 Aug 2010 at 12:08pm
Originally posted by RpodMan RpodMan wrote:

George-  Keep in mind that your purchasing dealer (IE local dealer)  should also be primarily resonsible for your required needs from the dealer.  Many customers from Couchs are under the impression tha that the FR factory is responsible for your warranty inquiries.  When you buy a Ford do you take it back to Detroit for repair?  No, you go to your local ford dealer.  Couchs will gladly sell you a trailer but will they be there to service it when you go back to wherever you are from?
Also keep in mind that this is not an unbiased website.  I'm sure negative feedback about Couch's does not get posted like the positive feedback does. 
RpodMan
We have not heard from you in a long time, or have we????Stern Smile
 
We did not buy from Couch's because our local dealer matched the Couch's price.  I will say, however, that if there was  a difference of $2000 to $5000 in the purchase price, we would have gone to Couch's.  I am sure there are a lot of "dealers" who are not happy with the internet shopping that a lot of us have done.  It is time for them to "wake up and smell the coffee"!  RV purchasing has changed and the time of buyers walking in and paying the MSRP is over. 


-------------
Pepper,Coach,and Henry (a very brave little Maltese)
R Pod 172

The rewards of the journey far outweigh the risk of leaving the harbor...unknown


Posted By: Ratdog
Date Posted: 12 Aug 2010 at 12:38pm
Originally posted by RpodMan RpodMan wrote:

George-  Keep in mind that your purchasing dealer (IE local dealer)  should also be primarily resonsible for your required needs from the dealer.  Many customers from Couchs are under the impression tha that the FR factory is responsible for your warranty inquiries.  When you buy a Ford do you take it back to Detroit for repair?  No, you go to your local ford dealer.  Couchs will gladly sell you a trailer but will they be there to service it when you go back to wherever you are from?
Also keep in mind that this is not an unbiased website.  I'm sure negative feedback about Couch's does not get posted like the positive feedback does. 
 
Do you believe there is some censorship or filtering of postings going on here to make Couch's always look good? I haven't seen any evidence of that myself.
 
Actually, your message wasn't particularly positive towards Couch's and yet it made it on the board Wink.
 
Take care,
-- Steve


-------------

Steve, Anne, and Paige the Rat Terrier
2013 Lexus RX 450h Hybrid AWD
2011 RP-177 (aka: The Circus Wagon)


Posted By: Tamms
Date Posted: 12 Aug 2010 at 12:54pm
Originally posted by RpodMan RpodMan wrote:

George-  Keep in mind that your purchasing dealer (IE local dealer)  should also be primarily resonsible for your required needs from the dealer.  Many customers from Couchs are under the impression tha that the FR factory is responsible for your warranty inquiries.  When you buy a Ford do you take it back to Detroit for repair?  No, you go to your local ford dealer.  Couchs will gladly sell you a trailer but will they be there to service it when you go back to wherever you are from?
Also keep in mind that this is not an unbiased website.  I'm sure negative feedback about Couch's does not get posted like the positive feedback does. 
What would happen if a person moves to another area? Would the new local dealer refuse to service the RV because it was not purchased from them? I have moved locations and had to take my car that I puchased elsewhere to the local dealer here....no probs. People move a lot more today than they used to and in this economy I do not think any dealer would be wise to refuse work on a recreational vehicle. Just my opinion though.

-------------
Tammy, Robert, and Linus the morkie (Two & a Half Nerds)
'10 RP-174 (Nerd Pod)
'07 Dodge Ram 1500 quadcab


Posted By: George
Date Posted: 15 Aug 2010 at 4:57am
Originally posted by RpodMan RpodMan wrote:

George-  Keep in mind that your purchasing dealer (IE local dealer)  should also be primarily resonsible for your required needs from the dealer.  Many customers from Couchs are under the impression tha that the FR factory is responsible for your warranty inquiries.  When you buy a Ford do you take it back to Detroit for repair?  No, you go to your local ford dealer.  Couchs will gladly sell you a trailer but will they be there to service it when you go back to wherever you are from?
Also keep in mind that this is not an unbiased website.  I'm sure negative feedback about Couch's does not get posted like the positive feedback does. 


Sorry for not getting back sooner — we've been out camping in our Escape Pod. 

I am not exactly sure what I am suppose to keep in mind, however I do know that everything associated with our r-pod has worked out to our satisfaction.  We have had 2 separate issues with our r-pod the first was the bike rack adapter broke while we were carrying bikes and the second issue was the air conditioner leaked condensation inside the r-pod. 

With the bike rack adapter breaking I feel like we were given the run around a little bit by Forest River because they said that they were not responsible for the damage because we were not using "their" bike rack when the adapter welding broke.  In the end they put us in contact with their supplier for the bike rack adapter who did honor the warranty and who did pay us to have it fixed locally.  Additionally, their supplier paid for all the damage done to the bikes. 

The second issue we had with the air conditioner leaking appears to have been fixed as well.  In this case, we took it to a local r-pod dealer, who was not the one where we bought it from, and they were very gracious in every aspect of fixing the problem to our satisfaction. 

So, in the end we have saved quite a lot of money by buying from Couch's and have been able to have warranty work done locally.  It is almost like have having our cake and being able to eat it at the same time.  It has so far worked out for us.Thumbs Up


-------------
I can't stop dreaming about June 15, 2013 when we get to permanently escape in our "Escape Pod" which is a 176T towed by a Chevy van with a 5.7L engine.


Posted By: PodPatrol
Date Posted: 15 Aug 2010 at 11:28pm
Originally posted by RpodMan RpodMan wrote:

George-  Keep in mind that your purchasing dealer (IE local dealer)  should also be primarily resonsible for your required needs from the dealer.  Many customers from Couchs are under the impression tha that the FR factory is responsible for your warranty inquiries.  When you buy a Ford do you take it back to Detroit for repair?  No, you go to your local ford dealer.  Couchs will gladly sell you a trailer but will they be there to service it when you go back to wherever you are from?
Also keep in mind that this is not an unbiased website.  I'm sure negative feedback about Couch's does not get posted like the positive feedback does. 
 
 
I believe that RpodMan has a right to express himself. He expressed himself without having to call anyone names. This is good !
 
But I must admit that the post doesn't make a lick of sense to me. (but perhaps I'm not the sharpest tool in the shed).
As far as "Ford" dealers go, there isnt a car lot in this town that has only "one" brand of car on it, used or new. There hasn't been an RV dealer that we have visited that isnt peppered with "all-kind" of models and brands of RVs. (types too!) Service work is service work, whether they get paid by the owner or the manufacturer for warrantly work. Business is Business ... but I'm sure some don't need it either.
And as far as negative feed-back about Couch's not being posted, well.... that's just not true.
There are posts here that have had a few issues with Couch's, but I'm sure that most issues, if not all, have been resolved. They specialize in New FR products and pride themselves on dealer satisfaction.
And I believe that to be true !
Actually, this forum is another tool they use to help us, help them, help us.


Posted By: David and Danette
Date Posted: 16 Aug 2010 at 1:19am
    We drove up from south Florida to buy our RPod from Couch"s. My family is originally from Hamilton and that area. We had some problems but all were taken care of. The care and service at Couch"s was good. We had a minor accident with the trailer which they were responsible for, they made the repairs except for one small thing and that they offered to pay for the repair here in Florida. As far as any warranty work Camping World not far from our home will cover all warranty repairs being they are a Forest River dealer. We are thankfull for Couch"s RV efforts in making this forum possible.       David and Danette

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SWFL   171
2010 Jeep Liberty


Posted By: billooote
Date Posted: 20 Aug 2010 at 2:13am
HI,
I am on a very long trip and had a problem with my battery not charging right. Being out in New mexico I call couch's and they put Steve on the phone and found out that my connection under the right side of unit was loose. Save the day for me and i hope that any of you in trouble just make the call. VERY IMPRESSED...................Clap Got another 6000 miles to go and it is nice to know I got Backup


Posted By: Butterfly_Lee
Date Posted: 20 Aug 2010 at 10:11am
Good RV tech's are worth the weight in gold, sould like couch has one.  Happy travels and please post PICTURES.
 
LeeClap


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Still a work in progress, lots of pictures.
http://podterfly.blogspot.com/


Posted By: uphillracer
Date Posted: 05 Oct 2010 at 2:46pm
This was good for me to read.
 We are picking up our 2011 171 at Couch's on Friday and then going back to Mobile. Brannon already identified 3 local FR dealers that can (ostensibly) do any warranty work. I expect some items may need to be done early on so I'll see how they do and how they treat me.
The pricing and on-line/telephone service and communications with Brannon and Jeff has been outstanding. I don't expect unwarranted issues related to the warranty work. I guess an iritated call to FR about a dealer's bad attitude might help correct it if encountered - I just don't expect that, especially in view of the economy and the need for business.


-------------
Uphill, Di, Tracer & Jorja
2011 RPOD 171
2008 LR3



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