I looked at a few lesser known manufacturers to get an idea of cost savings, but it really is a roll of the dice with the dealer/manufacturer support and components they use. Personally, I would still recommend sticking to one of the better known manufacturers like HotSpring (including Limelight, HotSpot), Marquis, Sundance, Caldera, D1, or Jacuzzi. You'll get more consistency in dealer and manufacturer support, if not better reliability overall as well. If you don't want to spend $10K, you can still get a very nice new tub from any of these manufacturers for less money (starting about $6K), depending on size and extras, or there is always the option to go dealer refurbished/used. I plan to have my Grandee for at least 10-15 years, and maybe longer. The fact that my dealer sells as many refurb tubs as he does new tubs speaks volumes toward reliability, and he still has no problem moving refurb HotSprings trade-ins from the 80's! The Sundance dealer didn't have quite as many refurbs, but still estimated that 1/3 to 1/4 of his total sales were refurbs. Both offered good warranties on their refurbs as well.
