Team Winnebagoland - Oshkosh WI

[WiskyDan]

The name of this Yamaha dealer in Oshkosh WI may be a bit funny but the customer experience is no joke. I had never owned a boat but decided last summer that I wanted to take the plunge. I had rented an older Yamaha jet boat several years ago in San Diego and it was a blast so it was something that I kept in the back of my mind. I decided to look at boats that were a little older that wouldn't effect my finances too much. If I got into it and decided that I wasn't a boater I could just sell it and not take a soaking.

I contacted Troy Keller at TW in August of 2019 about a 2006 SX210 that they had for sale but it sold before I could get there. Troy said he would keep his eyes open for a similar boat if he came across one. In the mean time, I spoke with two large dealers in southeastern Wisconsin about Yamaha's that they had for sale and I was stunned by how poor the customer service was. My initial contact with the sales guy at the dealership in Pewaukee was great but since the boat was at their dealership in northern Illinois I had to work with a different guy. Repeated emails and calls got me nowhere with this new sales guy so I gave up. I then found a 2008 212SS at a dealership in Lauderdale Lakes and put money down over the phone to hold it. I arranged to visit the dealer the next day but when I arrived they told me that they didn't actually have the boat on their premises. They had some trouble with the port side engine and since they are not a Yamaha dealer they sent it to a shop in Northern Illinois. They assured me that the boat would be back soon so we got some of the preliminary paperwork out of the way. Fast forward one month and still no boat - getting info from this second dealership was like pulling teeth. I didn't receive one proactive call or email the entire time - I had to reach out each time for updates.

As I was about to give up on the whole boat buying experience Troy from TW emailed me that they had a 2006 SX230 with 122 hours on it that they had just taken in and would have it ready for sale soon. He said that I would have first dibs on it and I went to see it the following weekend once it was ready. The vibe at TW was completely different than what I experienced at the first two dealerships. Troy and the TW team made me feel comfortable with whole experience - very down to earth guys. Even though the boat was being sold as-is Troy assured me that if something wasn't right once I got it out on the water they would work with me on it. Being a new boater, Troy and Cory provided a wealth of knowledge and never once made me feel like I was keeping them from something more important - even though I'm pretty much sure that I was. Since it was mid-September by then, I did a test drive and completed the paperwork the next day. The boat was then winterized so it could go into storage for the winter and TW trailered it to the storage facility for me (about 20 miles away) at no charge. When I called the dealership in Lauderdale Lakes to tell them that I didn't want the 212SS they seemed a bit miffed.....yeah, OK.

When the SX230 came out of storage in May the TW guys ran it up for me and installed Thrust Vectors. I got it on the water a week later and despite the learning curve of being a new boater it was a blast. I had many questions over the first few weeks which Troy and other TW guys answered without delay each time - either by phone or email. The only real issue that I had with the boat was the fuel gauge not reading correctly - Troy said to bring it in and they would take care of it, no questions asked. I decided to wait a bit on the fuel gauge since I didn't want to pull the boat out of the dry-stack storage facility and lose time on the water. A couple of outings later the fuel gauge started working and the problem did not return. The boat was solid every time out - no mechanical problems whatsoever.

My girlfriend and I, along with friends and family, were having a blast with the boat and at that point I decided that I was now a "boater" and started to think about upgrading to a newer boat. I'm one of those people that gets a different vehicle every couple of years so this mentality affected me with my boat purchase as well. This is not a good trait to have but I'm too old to change so I just go with it. I found a 2017 242 Limited S for sale on this site about a month ago and made contact with the owner to get more info but it got snatched up. A couple of days later Troy from TW called me and said they were getting a nice 2015 242 Limited S in on trade and that he would me give me dibs on it since he knew I was looking. The price was a smidge high but they threw Thrust Vectors in and it came with a custom snap-in cover so after looking at it I decided to buy. The hull graphics were a bit dinged so Troy said they would be replaced and the boat was detailed and waxed. Sold my SX230 a week later and the following weekend picked up the 242 Limited S. The first weekend out was great but I had some issues with the Connext depth gauge not working correctly and the starboard side engine cutting out a bit right after we left the dock a couple times. The service team at TW told me to bring it back and that the issues would be taken care of - no hand wringing or stress involved.

I also discovered that the transom walk-through cushion and travel cover was missing. I spoke with Troy and he said that he would order them up for me - no problem.

The buying experience has been great at TW but what has set them apart for me is how they approach issues that need to be addressed. Things have always been handled fairly and without a bunch of drama - even though I can get a bit worked up at times.

The guys at TW have a customer for life and if anyone in Wisconsin, or the bordering states, is looking for a great Yamaha dealership these are the guys you want to talk to.

 

[anmut]

I too was impressed with their customer service - we started with them as our dealer. Unfortunately (for them) they stuck on their price and I purchased our new boat at M&J Marine in Wausau. I would give Troy a 5/5 for customer service, but their overall business a 3/5 for willingness to work a deal - maybe it's their clientele in that area that are fine with paying sticker price?

M&J Marine was 5/5 for cutting me the best deal (this was January and pre-covid craziness), but the sales staff get a 3/5 because they knew jack squat about their product and accessories. Most of the questions I asked I already knew the answers to and their answers were either only half right or completely wrong. When I asked them about putting on Cobra fins for me before I took delivery the service department actually looked it up on CJ's website and added 20% mark-up to the price? When I asked why they were so much more expensive than what I could buy right there on my phone the service man knew he was caught and said "well if you order them directly we'll certainly install them for you anyway..."

 

[WiskyDan]

I agree that they are not the least expensive dealer but, in my experience, you get what you pay for. In my opinion, you can't put a price tag on trust and TW has earned mine.

How far are you from Wausau? That would be a bit of a haul for me.

 

[anmut]

Just 30 miles south - that was also a slight deciding factor.

 

[Richard Bares]

Headed to Team Winnebagoland tomorrow to potentially upgrade. We had a great experience two and a half years ago buying our first Yamaha and headed back to talk to Troy again.
Update: Another great experience at Team Winnebagoland. We are upgrading from our 2012 AR190 to a like new 2019 SX210. I can't wait for warmer weather.

 

[cdmusic68]

We’re in Green Bay, and we ordered our AR190 from them. Haven’t taken delivery yet, but they’ve been great so far. I’m hoping they’ll install my cobra jet fins and trailer guards if I bring them down there for them when we do the finishing paperwork. Great experience so far though!

 

[WiskyDan]

Troy is a great guy and Chad in the service department has always done me right - very down to earth guys.

 

[drewkaree]

I have no problem telling anyone here that Skipper Bud's (your Pewaukee dealer) is crap, and calling them out by name.

My salesman was from the Oshkosh location and turned out to know my neighbor, and was a delight to deal with. If it weren't for that salesman and the deal he gave us (and stuff thrown in) we would have bought from Winnebagoland the following summer.

It's funny, another neighbor knows Troy, and we hung out over the summer, and Skipper Bud's apparently did some shady stuff as far as sales territory issues go with our deal. I can't mention enough to avoid the Pewaukee location.

I think TW has the sales territory for the area around Oshkosh, so the deals will be subject to what they are willing to offer, but even though I didn't buy from them, there's still a great vibe I get from them. They "wasted" 2 hours talking with the wife and I about Yamaha's, and ultimately they were the reason we went the jet boat route.

I feel somewhat bad that I didn't give them my initial business, especially after everything I went through with Skipper Bud's, but like @anmut the deal I got elsewhere was too good to pass up, even though the Pewaukee location really didn't have a darn thing to do with it other than being at the boat show in Milwaukee. They must have the sales area around Milwaukee/Pewaukee, and it's a shame, given the shoddy experience I've heard of from multiple people.

I let yamaha know with the multiple surveys they hit me up for, maybe they have changed, but I'll never let them have a chance to show me - Winnebagoland earned any future business of mine without selling me a thing yet.

 

[WiskyDan]

I didn’t mention them by name in the OP but Skipper Buds (Pewaukee) was the first dealership that I visited. The sales guy there (Tim) was great but once I got shuffled off to their dealership in northern Illinois things went south fast.