Will RV industry start building a better product?

[tuckerdog1]

Saw this today. Might open a huge can-o-worms.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iub0v_wjGlg

[SeaDog]

Thanks I found this enlightening and interesting

[benchdog]

Thanks, glad to see accountability.

[Feel Swift]

Here's another link https://www.rvtravel.com/illinois-le...-game-changer/


And another https://law.justia.com/cases/illinoi...19/124285.html



This has to have some folks thinking real hard.



You can bet your tutu the RVIA and RVDA are circling the wagons with their lobbyists and such.


Not surprising at all, but I could find no mention of it over at RVBusiness Nor is there any mention at the RV Dealers Association website.
They do however offer up the below;


RVDA Advocacy Communications Program

Goal: RVDA's advocacy communications program supports the association's vision of positively influencing the business environment affecting its members by demonstration RV Dealers' economic impact on the U.S. economy to policymakers and industry stakeholders.

Why do dealers need this campaign now? Special interests continue to threaten the core business processes of RV dealers through legislation and additional regulation.





Now what is funny about the above in my eyes, is the "Special Interests" mentioned is apparently the consumer.


Too bad Greg Gerber is not still around with RVDaily Report, he would be having a field day with this one.

[upflying]

Along with a Lemon Law, I'd like to see RV's have a Monroney Sticker, invoices and warranty support like the automotive industry.
RV's are similar to selling cars in the 1950's.

[doc73]

Originally Posted by upflying

Along with a Lemon Law, I'd like to see RV's have a Monroney Sticker, invoices and warranty support like the automotive industry.
RV's are similar to selling cars in the 1950's.

That would be great but it would need some sort of Crisis to change the culture of the RV industry. But they're selling like hotcakes and all the manufacturers in this instance are smart to just keep it the way it is and not start any new trends. Maybe if another country would import their trailers like the car industry had happened to them that might change but that will never happen price point is just too low for the average trailer.

[pgandw]

As Doc73 said, nothing is going to change without a real force behind the change. Lawyering up and passing laws does very little to change the culture - many RV dealers would prefer to go out of business rather than change their ways. The same is true for current production lines - labor is generally happy with the current arrangement.

I'm sure there are a few higher-ups that would like to convert to the automotive quality model - but the numbers don't support such an approach.

Currently, the RV industry has pretty much gotten as much quality as they can out of the current system. The next step is going to take a culture change throughout - from the supply chain to consumers buying RVs.

To consistently build "good" RVs means quality principles across the board - 1) quality (consistency) is everybody's responsibility; 2) problems are fixed as far upstream as possible; 3) deviation from the standard is minimized through engineering, supply chain, production, and sales; 4) prices rise significantly during the transition to the quality model due to inefficiency inherent in cultural transition; 5) prices rarely fall after the transition is complete and efficiency regained; 6) higher prices for RVs will reduce the number of new RV buyers, especially at the lower end.

It should be noted as prices have risen, expectations for RVs and included amenities have risen even faster. You can't sell a stripped down pop-up with a cooler for a fridge and no water system anymore - not even at a $5K price point. The same is true in the automotive industry - a $12K car with manual windows, manual transmission, cloth upholstery, and just a basic stereo for electronics won't sell anymore.

just my thoughts and experiences
Fred W

[benchdog]

Not sure most people in the community want the RV industry to change, but as long as people understand their options when things go wrong, that's what is important, education. People new to the community think it's like buying a car.


What I found hard is it is nearly impossible to find quality, consistency information to make an informed decision. So I focused on a couple of major points. My budget, my wife being in love with it, understanding the different construction methods, the number of axles, the frame. the size, and the floor plan. I can take care of the rest.

[Mizterusa]

I gotta say im not very impressed with my 2019 wildwood!!! 1 trip with it and the 12V fridge is being replaced along with door lock along with a few other items. My previous trailer a Jayco we had for almost 10 years and never once needed repair!!! 2nd day I had this new one i went thru it with a fine tooth comb.... Lots of shabby work, cheap materials and just crappy quality. I opened a panel next to the furnace and found wood chips all around the unit. Not happy with FR right now and all this Furrion crap is all garbage!!!

[Daycruiser]

Originally Posted by Mizterusa

I gotta say im not very impressed with my 2019 wildwood!!! 1 trip with it and the 12V fridge is being replaced along with door lock along with a few other items. My previous trailer a Jayco we had for almost 10 years and never once needed repair!!! 2nd day I had this new one i went thru it with a fine tooth comb.... Lots of shabby work, cheap materials and just crappy quality. I opened a panel next to the furnace and found wood chips all around the unit. Not happy with FR right now and all this Furrion crap is all garbage!!!

It's not just FR, they're all like this and in the RV world you do get what you pay for. The lower down the model lines you go the worse the build and materials quality due to the number of units that have to be pushed out the door everyday at the lowest possible cost per unit. Go up line and a lot more money you will notice better build quality and materials (including appliances/systems), that's NOT to say they will be great. 1st trip out with my 110K (msrp) Cedar Creek and 40% my roof peeled off. Bad roof design and garbage material used for the roof fabric (product cost reduction). Factory paid for a complete roof tear off and all new sheeting with high end EPDM fabric but that new RV was out of service for 3 months. A part of my family has been in the RV sales and service business for over 60 years, I've seen near million dollar motor homes with major electrical issues leading to fires. They stopped selling a few years ago a certain high end motor coach line due to all the defects and cost/time to repair, shoddy workmanship and corner cutting in a very expensive RV. Buying one of these things is a roll of the dice, you might get a good one and you might get pure crap. Since the roof incident I've had no further issues, although I've done and had done lots of preventative work at my expense to head off further issues. So it's not just a FR failing it's an RV industry failing. This is my 11th and last RV, I used to air travel for work daily and I loath hotels but like to travel for recreation so an RV was my best option otherwise I wouldn't throw good money after bad on an RV ever again. The RV consumer needs specific law on the books to reasonably protect them from defective RVs but RVIA/RVDA spends tons of money each year to make sure that doesn't happen. Once you get the defects worked out the game then becomes constant and meticulous maintenance of the RV.

[Mizterusa]

We had our previous Jayco for 8 years or so and never had any issues. I know the quality of the higher end models seem alot better but thats not thier bread n butter type customers. The amount of money for the average Joe to spend is probably around $15K and most of them (me) dont have the money to afford a bigger, badder tow vehicle to go along with a higher end, usually higher weighted TT. Everyone tries to get the biggest bang for thier buck and manufacturers are trying thier hardest to keep costs down. An example would be this new "12V" style fridge that they are putting in now saved them a ton of money... No need for roof vent, no need for outside access panel, no need to run a gas line and all for what an unproven, unreliable costly mistake. When I took mine in for the fridge they told me they are having serious issues with these new refrigerators and mine wasnt thier first replacement. Im pretty unhappy about my whole situation cuz the sales rep really sold it hard and he also said all the manufacturers are switching over to that 12V system. Not sure how much truth there is to it but if this new one blows after the 1st trip this year its going to get replaced with a 3 way!!

Originally Posted by Daycruiser

It's not just FR, they're all like this and in the RV world you do get what you pay for. The lower down the model lines you go the worse the build and materials quality due to the number of units that have to be pushed out the door everyday at the lowest possible cost per unit. Go up line and a lot more money you will notice better build quality and materials (including appliances/systems), that's NOT to say they will be great. 1st trip out with my 110K (msrp) Cedar Creek and 40% my roof peeled off. Bad roof design and garbage material used for the roof fabric (product cost reduction). Factory paid for a complete roof tear off and all new sheeting with high end EPDM fabric but that new RV was out of service for 3 months. A part of my family has been in the RV sales and service business for over 60 years, I've seen near million dollar motor homes with major electrical issues leading to fires. They stopped selling a few years ago a certain high end motor coach line due to all the defects and cost/time to repair, shoddy workmanship and corner cutting in a very expensive RV. Buying one of these things is a roll of the dice, you might get a good one and you might get pure crap. Since the roof incident I've had no further issues, although I've done and had done lots of preventative work at my expense to head off further issues. So it's not just a FR failing it's an RV industry failing. This is my 11th and last RV, I used to air travel for work daily and I loath hotels but like to travel for recreation so an RV was my best option otherwise I wouldn't throw good money after bad on an RV ever again. The RV consumer needs specific law on the books to reasonably protect them from defective RVs but RVIA/RVDA spends tons of money each year to make sure that doesn't happen. Once you get the defects worked out the game then becomes constant and meticulous maintenance of the RV.