Although Hunter went bankrupt, the new owner having bought Hunter thru banruptcy court does not buy any past liability. Thus in a sense warranty is gone but generally Hunter has worked with people long after the warranty ran out. I know there is more to this story than what all of us know. Why did this thread not start with all the information as it would sound like an issue with the engine manufacturer. Again not all is being told.
When you look at the commissioning and freight, what most folks do not know freight is costly. I know in the past when a dealer, I paid around $2,500 to get a 33 up to North Carolina and if going to New York, it is alot more not to mention the outrageous tolls the truckers have to pay once leaving Maryland on I-95. Then you have all the expenses of employees, off loading, painting as some include it, going thru the boat ensuring all is working, add ons and the freebies thrown in and finally someone's cost to put the boat in. By the time and freight and commissioning costs are calculated, they equal to or can be greater than the price charged.
In additon, do not forget about all the overhead to include rent/note if purchasing, insurance, workman's comp, employement commission fees, taxes, power and water, maintenance fees, payroll (employers also pay into ssi for the employees) and so forth. When you look at the overall profit margin from the dealer perspective, it is not that much and most dealers work hard. What about the maintenance on the boats following the delivery. Does the dealer get fully paid back and the answer is a resounding no. I could keep on but many tend to forget about the reality of a dealership what they have to go thru.
In the past when a customer had an issue was honest particualy out of warranty on a new boat or in my case, I took care of that customer. I went over brokerage repariing items on the brokered boats even though most of the time I did not recoup those costs, basically, I took care of my customers and it is called good will. That too cost me money but it was worth it. In a few cases when the customer was not nice or not talking the truth, well I acted accordingly for example when the warranty was up, no more free service. I recall once being told never runniing aground but damages were questionable. Prior to the warranty period ending, I saw on one boat where the keel seperated, coral embedded and sever damage to the rudder and I looked at the customer and said, never ran aground with a question mark.
I have had many come back to purchase and two who became good friends arre Jim Seamans and Rick Burch. The hardest when negoitiating price in my tenure of selling boats was with Rick and I would come home and tell my wife but above in the end, Rick is a dear friend. As for Jim Seamans, well that is another story while he is in the Bahamas sailing which I am jealous and he needs to walk the plank. Ha! Jim and Joan are good friends of mine as well.
Like I said, there is more than I know but frankly I will stay out of it but you should know from a former dealer what we go thru as well.
crazy dave condon
