A rant about my local cap dealers...

So I got a new truck recently and it's a different color than my previous truck so that has led me to wonder if I should sell the old shell and buy a new one or have the old one painted and add the windoors and tracks I've been wanting anyway.

I emailed the snugtop dealer I purchased it from (about a year ago) and explained my situation in detail, listed the color and options I wanted and asked for a comparison in prices between a new shell and ordering those parts and modifying the existing one.

The dealer said each windoor would be "about $250" and a new shell would "start at $XXXX plus options"

As annoyed as I was about getting "about" and "plus whatever options" when I had clearly stated I wanted a price for a specific setup, it was clear to me that painting my existing shell was the more cost effective thing to do if I could find a shop to do it at a reasonable price.

So then I set out to find a painter who's price fit. I got multiple estimates and finally found somewhere I felt good about.

Once I found somewhere to get the paint done I emailed the snugtop dealer back and said lets order those windoor and tracks and low and behold they said the price of the windoors was now $396 per window and the tracks weren't available! I replied explaining how frustrating it is that the price was jumping now given that I had already emailed about pricing and used those original figures to calculate the cost I need to get paint down to to make it worth while versus buying new. The dealer basically replied "sorry it's more expensive than I thought" and they still haven't provided a firm number on what I new one would cost.

Because I am so annoyed at this dealer I've tried 2 other cap dealers and they both won't quote prices over the phone or email and wanted me to come down in-person. Given that both are an hour drive from me and stated they don't have it in stock I see no reason to drive to have a face to face conversation for something they'll have to order anyway.

What gives with this industry? Why is pricing on these products so hard to figure out? I get wanting to do business with a handshake and a smile but I don't want to drive all over the place just to talk in person about pricing. Trying to buy a shell requires a trip back to 1995...

 

Sorry for your troubles. This will sum up my thoughts.

Go to your favorite lumber store and get one 2"x4".
This industry may never be the same. It was whacked before, and now you see it forty times worse. This is why I fabricated my own. This world is phucked, and you're part of it, and so am I. We're all screwed. LOL
Zim

 

I went through this buying my canopy and it was a real step back in time having to drive all over town to shop. Somewhere there is a business opportunity for modernizing the canopy market by doing innovative things like posting prices and making internet sales, maybe back that up with solid installers and customer service. I feel like the manufacturers with their licensed dealerships probably use rules about pricing/information/competition to prevent price undercutting.