RV industry death spiral...

[laknox]

I'm greatly looking forward to this series of articles over the next couple of weeks:

http://rvdailyreport.com/opinion/opinion-the-rv-industry-death-spiral-part-1/comment-page-1/#comment...

Lyle

[2gypsies1]

Txsurfer wrote:
I wonder what the magic number is that the avg manufacturer uses for designed life expectancy of a TT - 10 yrs maybe? I know one thing if you look a used ones - it only take a year or two in the elements to show signs of aging.

It all depends on how people take care of it. Some never wash or wax it. The roofs on some are black. Insides can look like a hunting trailer. If you take pride in your RV then it can definitely last and look good after 10 years.

[Txsurfer]

I wonder what the magic number is that the avg manufacturer uses for designed life expectancy of a TT - 10 yrs maybe? I know one thing if you look a used ones - it only take a year or two in the elements to show signs of aging.

[Us_out_West]

colliehauler wrote:
I have wondered myself why they have not moved RV mfg to Mexico. Rv's are labor intensive. The only thing I could think of is large part's suppliers are close,to factory. Most everything else comes from China such as electronics.

Maybe about keeping jobs in the USA?

[Community Alumni]

I think Fleetwood trailers had a factory in Mexico at one time.

[colliehauler]

I have wondered myself why they have not moved RV mfg to Mexico. Rv's are labor intensive. The only thing I could think of is large part's suppliers are close,to factory. Most everything else comes from China such as electronics.

[TxGearhead]

Maybe some lawyer will buy an RV some day, get seriously scr*wed and start a class action against an RV manufacturer and wake the industry up.
^^^This and when politicians start buying RV's and dealing with the problems that we do.

The big game changer could be a manufacturer moving to Mexico. Super cheap labor that could enable, COULD I say, better inspection and QC and still meet current price points. I've seen the inside of a Keystone factory. Nothing there except a big building.

[2gypsies1]

I read that so many RVers want a brand new RV with a ton of glitz. They think they need two bathrooms, four slides and a laundry. Then they go into debt paying the loan.

If you would just look for a very high quality manufacturer in a used unit you wouldn't have to complain about the quality of the cheaper ones with glitz.

[Cloud_Dancer]

How in the heck can "....we as a whole stop buying...." happen? IMO it's NOT a viable solution to the problem because it's not going to happen. We are all individuals, with the right to do whatever we want (with our money).
Yeah, I too did not get my money's worth. But, I'm solving MY problem myself.
Yeah, I was angry. But, I made my motorhome usable, and going to enjoy it some more.

[timjet]

phenrichs wrote:

gemsworld wrote:
And no business will survive producing junk that it begins falling apart at the end of assembly line.

We will never see quality go up in the RV industry until we start holding the industry accountable and stop making excuses for their inferior products.

Most of us know this. Until we as a whole stop buying the junk rigs they won't stop making them.

That's the problem, we won't stop buying them. For most people an RV is used for entertainment, not used like a car that most people need to be reliable.

You/I won't be able to afford an RV as reliable as car, so it won't be made.

The middle class retired baby boomer (me) is probably where the manufactures are pricing their products. Can such a person afford a new quality 40' DP, probably not.

[1968mooney]

Txsurfer wrote:
why did some of the posts disappear?

:B

[Txsurfer]

why did some of the posts disappear?

[phenrichs]

gemsworld wrote:
And no business will survive producing junk that it begins falling apart at the end of assembly line.

We will never see quality go up in the RV industry until we start holding the industry accountable and stop making excuses for their inferior products.

There is a flip side to this coin as well. Until 'we' as consumers stop buying into the trendy **** nothing will change. Everyone wants ClassA top of the line in a family 5er that you can tow with Chevy s10 pickup. I am not exagerating either. You guys have seen it. The lightweight 5ers, the 1/2 ton towable toyhaulers, all of them 'look' very nice. But peel that wallpaper and covering off and what do you have. Quality and durability severely sacrificed to make a light weight product.
Then again with the 'affordable' part. People want the fancy options in their rig but they want it to be cheap in price. That means something behind the scenes has to be cut to keep cost down. RV are toys. They are a luxury no matter what size or "level" you get. Most of us know this. Until we as a whole stop buying the junk rigs they won't stop making them.

[bpounds]

I wish RV quality was better. I also wish they would simply improve engineering for manufacturing, so that all copies of a given model were the same. Like a car, where every fastener is located identically, every weld is the same, and all harnesses are identical on every unit. There would be less reliance on the skill of so-called craftsmen. I see no evidence that anything like that is going to happen. Ever wonder why you can't get accurate drawings or schematics of a unit? It's because they don't create them. Stupid way to manufacture anything.

Still, the notion that the industry is dying is nonsense. The notion that the manufacturers don't understand their target buyer, is nonsense. We're buying them as fast as they can build them, and I see no sign of anything changing. What would kill the industry is economic collapse. That could happen if we continue current policies.

[Cloud_Dancer]

laknox wrote:

Txsurfer wrote:
After dealing with boats for a long time I know that unless you are DIY type person you are going to be very frustrated having to take it in for every little thing. I think RVs are even worse and if you aren't DIY inclined then I can see where the rants come from. Personally I'd rather fix something myself ( $100 or less )then take it in for warranty work. 1. because its a hassle 2. because I'm going to treat my rig better than the avg tech.

Then there should be =no= warranty on the RV and the price should reflect this.

Lyle

Sometimes we make light of this problem because we know it's a complicated problem to solve. In fact, some of us believe there is NO solution.
The owners and managers of RV factories operate their business THEIR way. We can't change that. Where do you find workers who are willing to work the way WE want them to work,....for the salaries that are being offered? If we IMPORT workers who are willing to work at this job, pretty soon they want a better job,....and they want THEIR kids to have better jobs. IMO this cycle has been going on "forever".

[laknox]

Txsurfer wrote:
After dealing with boats for a long time I know that unless you are DIY type person you are going to be very frustrated having to take it in for every little thing. I think RVs are even worse and if you aren't DIY inclined then I can see where the rants come from. Personally I'd rather fix something myself ( $100 or less )then take it in for warranty work. 1. because its a hassle 2. because I'm going to treat my rig better than the avg tech.

Then there should be =no= warranty on the RV and the price should reflect this.

Lyle