Lazy Daze is closed permanently

katleman wrote:


Sad that Ford didn’t prioritize smaller manufacturers and instead short the large manufacturers just a few chassis, to keep a healthy ecosystem of RV manufacturers.

Ford could care less about any healthy ecosystem of RV manufacturers, whatever that is. What they care about is the bottom line on a spreadsheet.

WinMinnie02 wrote:
Not sure why a V8 is a good idea, prefer V10, need enough power when needed.

Because the Ford gas 7.3 V8 puts out much higher HP and Torque numbers than any version of the Ford V10 ever did.

John S. wrote:
Well we lost another quality builder last month. Lazy Daze shut down for good. THe combination of the pandemic and shutdowns with that and the chassis issues and parts issues due to the supply constraints have claimed a great manufacturer. I wonder if they had been in a state that did not shut down if they would have survived

Just bought a used 24’ 2017 Laze Daze in March after being on the wait list for a new one since July 2020. Exceptionally built RV, better than the other class Cs I’ve driven.

In speaking directly with folks at Laze Daze earlier this year, they just could not get E450 chassis to build on from Ford, which is not surprising if you go to buy a new vehicle at any car dealer, there is just no stock available.

It wasn’t California shutdown, the Mothership (factory) wasn’t down much longer than the summer of 2020, they were able finish up what they had to build on later that year, then nothing to build upon.

Sad that Ford didn’t prioritize smaller manufacturers and instead short the large manufacturers just a few chassis, to keep a healthy ecosystem of RV manufacturers.

pnichols wrote:
With the demise of Lazy Daze, it appears that it's going to be very difficult to find new, short length, Class C (with a cab-over bed) motorhomes based on a Ford E450 cutaway chassis with the new V8.

I guess I better keep owning, maintaining, and enjoying our non-slide overkill chassis E450-V10-based Itasca 24V Class C! (I refuse to surrender all the offroad fun to the truck rooftop/SUV rooftop/expedition trailer crowd!)

I agree maintain your existing unit and enjoy. My old Winnebago bought new still treats me well. Perform maintenance yourself if you can, RVing is a fun hobby. Not sure why a V8 is a good idea, prefer V10, need enough power when needed.

With the demise of Lazy Daze, it appears that it's going to be very difficult to find new, short length, Class C (with a cab-over bed) motorhomes based on a Ford E450 cutaway chassis with the new V8.

I guess I better keep owning, maintaining, and enjoying our non-slide overkill chassis E450-V10-based Itasca 24V Class C! (I refuse to surrender all the offroad fun to the truck rooftop/SUV rooftop/expedition trailer crowd!)

I was surprised that Fleetwood stopped making Class C's.

PButler96 wrote:

bgum wrote:

mockturtle wrote:

bgum wrote:
Pandemic hit Everyone and parts issues are universal. The company sold nationwide so shutdown in their state was not the cause.

They did not sell 'nationwide'. They sold and distributed only from their factory in CA.

It is called "factory direct " and they sold to anyone nation wide.

What was their market share? 0.0005%? A company supplying a niche market is tough to keep going no matter how good of a product they pump out. Economics of scale. Even more so with the economic road we are being pushed down at present.

How would they even be able to get chassis's? Anyone think Ford is not selling what if anything that is available to the highest bidder? Thor and FR would win that contest.

It's not always "Highest Bidder" but how a supplier allocates product during times of shortage. Yes, the lowest volume customers are the ones that often get little or nothing from the suppliers during these times and hard to sustain enough cash flow when you can't get basic components.

A lot of companies closed their doors during the pandemic but for many Covid shutdowns and supply issues were just the final straw.

FWIW, a lot of federal assistance money was made available for businesses in order to help weather the storm. Probably wasn't enough to help those that were struggling before Covid.

It's a shame to see them go. But I doubt anything would be different if they were in another state. The same supply and demand issues would be faced. And with a factory direct business, there was no "overstock" to fall back on when the supply started petering out - so they had no inventory to fall back on. That's going to happen regardless of where they were located.

I know businesses that were on their very last legs during the shut downs that stayed in business. I know businesses that were doing well throughout the shutdowns that closed. So to suggest that the shutdowns were the reason for Lazy Daze's closing is simplistic and wrong.

bgum wrote:

mockturtle wrote:

bgum wrote:
Pandemic hit Everyone and parts issues are universal. The company sold nationwide so shutdown in their state was not the cause.

They did not sell 'nationwide'. They sold and distributed only from their factory in CA.

It is called "factory direct " and they sold to anyone nation wide.

What was their market share? 0.0005%? A company supplying a niche market is tough to keep going no matter how good of a product they pump out. Economics of scale. Even more so with the economic road we are being pushed down at present.

How would they even be able to get chassis's? Anyone think Ford is not selling what if anything that is available to the highest bidder? Thor and FR would win that contest.

Aww...I'm also sorry to read this. I've never owned a Lazy Daze but certainly admired them.

Here's a little info I found on the internet:
Lazy Daze closing

And California is not the only State still struggling with supply and labor.