Why do people have such large trailers?

[Lance72]

the simple answer is BECAUSE THEY CAN or WANT. I have a small 19' trailer that will sleep 5. You certainly aren't going to dance in there. My house is way more comfortable than my trailer so when i take it out i don't want to sit in the trailer. I see these monsters on the road 35-40' with sometimes with 2 people but never more 5. In fact I spent a week on the rd recently and didn't see more than 4 people per trailer. This post isn't directed at people who live on the road with their trailer.

[qchunter]

Because...... different strokes for different folks.

[Doug33]

I love to observe the different makes and models of RV units when I'm camping. And this past week, the CG had just about everything possible, from tents, to PUs, hybrids, TTs of every size, 5ers and motorhomes.

Across the street from us was a huge 5'er with 4 slideouts, and next to it was a 18' TT with no slides.

When we owned a 24' TT we were generally once of the smaller units at a CG. Now with a 28' (which is actually close to 32' tip to tip) we are at about average length of units.

What's funny is that when our TT is on site, it doesn't look that big, but when you walk beside it when parked next to our house, it looks gigantic. My wife still can't believe that I can tow it and back it into spots like I do. She panics each time I do it, but to me it is old hat.

We managed a week in our TT with four adults (me, my wife, and two adult children), without running into each other too much. But by the end of the week, we were ready to spread back out in our house. Sometimes only having one bathroom causes an issue - you can't be a bathroom hog when camping!. Also, my snoring was duly noted throughout the TT. 😉

[Lance72]

This post is like pulling the pin on a grenade dropping it in the room and running. Thanks for the replies.

[rbpru]

Reenacting one of my many hobbies. One night while sleeping in a lean-to using pre-1830s camp gear at a local campground. A 40 ft motor coach pulls in a short distance away.

My ride arrived early the next morning so I never got to meet the folks. It was quite a juxtaposition.

Too big, too little is certainly relative.

[SprinklerMan]

I am sitting at Ft whaley campground just outside of Ocean City Md right now. Its Me ,My wife and 2 boys ( seven and nine) we are in a 30 ft , bunkhouse with a slide . Next to us is a family 2 adults , and 4 late teenagers in a 18 ft mallard with no slide . Its all in what you want and can afford . Afford being the biggest issue .

[colliehauler]

4X4Dodger wrote:
Quote: "You are talking about specific models where I'm talking about small medium and large RV's. If they only sold one size that's what they would build. For years it has been proven that there is a market for all sizes. Some manufacturers specialize in a particular size such as Scamp or egg campers while others build large units such as Newell. My point is there is a market for all different size's if not that segment would disappear.

If you don't think consumer demand plays a big role in what sells tell that to the inventor of New Coke.

* This post was edited 07/04/15 09:42am by colliehauler * "

I am sorry but you have got it backwards again. The huge RV's were not brought to market out of a loud outcry from consumers for one and a half million dollar Motor Homes or $50 thousand dollar 5th wheels all over 40 feet long.

This phenomenon is relatively recent. And came about as I pointed out.
The fact that they SELL AFTER the fact only validated the risk and intuition of the manufacturer. It does not mean there was a pre-existing demand. It only means that demand exists now.

And you essentially have the New Coke debacle backwards..in fact it proves my point. The New Coke was NOT invented in response to any consumer demand for such a thing. It was an idea and a risk Coke took to increase sales. They brought out a new product....and just like the Edsel it bombed.

To be honest your view is held by many people that dont work in marketing and manufacturing or have owned such a company and that is understandable. But trust me, if companies waited for consumer demand to drive the market a good 1/2 to 2/3rds of the products on our shelves would not exist today.

Nobody knew they wanted an I POD until Steve Jobs showed them one.

You are talking about creating a new product that the consumer did not know they wanted. If there is not a want after a product is created the product goes away. Like I said if small/medium/large RV's did not sell that segment would disappear. In my example of new Coke there was no market for the product and it disappeared. My choice of the words consumer demand was used instead of market. Evidently consumer demand only means creating new products in your view instead of a market for existing products. They build all different sizes because they sell. If they did not sell they would go the way of CRT tubes, typewriters, New Coke.

[4X4Dodger]

Quote: "You are talking about specific models where I'm talking about small medium and large RV's. If they only sold one size that's what they would build. For years it has been proven that there is a market for all sizes. Some manufacturers specialize in a particular size such as Scamp or egg campers while others build large units such as Newell. My point is there is a market for all different size's if not that segment would disappear.

If you don't think consumer demand plays a big role in what sells tell that to the inventor of New Coke.

* This post was edited 07/04/15 09:42am by colliehauler * "

I am sorry but you have got it backwards again. The huge RV's were not brought to market out of a loud outcry from consumers for one and a half million dollar Motor Homes or $50 thousand dollar 5th wheels all over 40 feet long.

This phenomenon is relatively recent. And came about as I pointed out.
The fact that they SELL AFTER the fact only validated the risk and intuition of the manufacturer. It does not mean there was a pre-existing demand. It only means that demand exists now.

And you essentially have the New Coke debacle backwards..in fact it proves my point. The New Coke was NOT invented in response to any consumer demand for such a thing. It was an idea and a risk Coke took to increase sales. They brought out a new product....and just like the Edsel it bombed.

To be honest your view is held by many people that dont work in marketing and manufacturing or have owned such a company and that is understandable. But trust me, if companies waited for consumer demand to drive the market a good 1/2 to 2/3rds of the products on our shelves would not exist today.

Nobody knew they wanted an I POD until Steve Jobs showed them one.

[toedtoes]

Colliehauler - I agree with that, but I would also add that the market may not have maintained those differences if advertising hadn't been so effective.

A co-worker has been thinking about getting a van conversion for camping (currently is a tent camper) for several years. She has been very specific in her wants and needs for a "bed off the ground, and a place to store food and supplies". When she looked at my clipper, it reinforced her want for a simple conversion van. Over a weekend, she went to look at class Bs at some local dealerships. The following Monday, she came in to work and said she really needs a 30ft Class A for her and her husband - anything smaller is too small. After talking to her about it for a while, I pointed out that the class A wouldn't fit in her favorite campgrounds, that she couldn't use it as a second vehicle let alone a primary vehicle, and that she didn't want a bathroom or kitchen, etc. At that point, she realized she had completely fallen for the sales person's rhetoric. Good thing she wasn't in a position to buy that weekend - she would have had a very large paperweight in her driveway (oh wait, it wouldn't have fit in her driveway, so she'd have to pay to store it).

The point of the above story is that a lot of people end up going bigger simply because they are told "you won't be happy in anything smaller" not because they really want or need that bigger size. And the more big rigs that are out there on the road, the more people believe that argument - "well, look at all the 40ft DPs on the road, that space must be important". They believe the advertising and fall for the "gimmick". That advertising has more to do with the success of the large RVs than actual consumer drive.

Very little has to do with actual need nowadays - success is about creating a false sense of need that justifies the want. No one NEEDS an iphone - but advertising has done a great job on convincing people that they do need it.

[colliehauler]

4X4Dodger wrote:

colliehauler wrote:

4X4Dodger wrote:
There has been a trend in American Design and Manufacturing for about 15 years or more now to go to bigger and bigger everything.

Furniture, houses, refrigerators, TV's, Stoves even BBQ's have all taken huge leaps in size compared to the 1980's and previously.

So it's natural that this trend has hit the RV world and boy has it.

40+ foot Motor Homes and fifth wheels, huge slide-outs.

Sometimes I watch that big long infomercial called Extreme Motorhomes and just sit slack-jawed as one 40 or 45 foot monstrosity after another that is decorated like a cheap Casino in Laughlin is paraded on the TV.

Want Horsepower? OH get the 500HP Cat!

Everything has gone "Extreme" This is a big part of the answer. And no it wasn't necessarily in response to customer demand. It was one MFG trying to outdo the others to offer something new and different. I think that market was created by the Mfg's.

Yes it is in response to customer demand. They do not build something that does not sell.

As I get older I want things smaller and more easy to manage and maintain.

Like I said earlier they make small campers up to large coaches to fit the needs of the people who buy them. If it didn't sell they wouldn't build it.

Your point is a common one and it is easy to believe this is what is happening. But in reality it's not consumer demand that drives this.

Secondly manufacturers build many many things that just dont sell. All the time. The Edsel, The Pacer are just two big examples.

There was no consumer DEMAND for Henry Fords first Car until he built it...creating demand.

There was NO consumer demand for personal computers until Apple brought out the McIntosh...and still it took years for it to truly catch on and for millions to realize that they "needed" one.

When you are a manufacturer of something as complicated as a Motorhome or a Travel Travel you must start the design process AT LEAST two years before taking it to the first RV Show. There is no way that you can understand what consumers really want two years in advance.

Manufacturers take a chance. They look at the competition and use a lot of intelligence gathered and have to find a way to set themselves apart from their competition. When all the floor plans are so similar and all the designs are so similar the one thing left is BIGGER. And that is how we got here. Once people saw them and walked through them they said...OH! this is great so much bigger and roomier... ie created demand.

Very rarely in business does a new product come to market with already existing demand pushing the process.

You are talking about specific models where I'm talking about small medium and large RV's. If they only sold one size that's what they would build. For years it has been proven that there is a market for all sizes. Some manufacturers specialize in a particular size such as Scamp or egg campers while others build large units such as Newell. My point is there is a market for all different size's if not that segment would disappear.

If you don't think consumer demand plays a big role in what sells tell that to the inventor of New Coke.

[JeepCB]

Well, we upgraded from a '98 26ft 5er to a what the dealer and the paperwork said was a 30ft 5er. Turns out it was 33' long, and yes it is huge compared to fitting into campgrounds. Although when we took my brother in laws family with us to Disneyland it slept all eight. Other wise yes when it rains it is really nice inside! Life is full of little trade-offs.
Billy

[GaryWT]

Was thinking about this some more as the pages get added. When a couple pulls in with a large trailer, who is to say the family just did not join them for this one trip. Our son is not always with us and when it rains and our other son is in a tent, we are happy to be able to have him and his wife in the trailer when their tent is under water. Lots of reasons for sure. For me, might not have said it earlier but, outdoor kitchens are not available in short trailers.

[Crabbypatty]

We started in my Dads 32' Winnebago that did not have bunks or a slide. He wanted us to buy it but we bought a 27' Wilderness that had 4 bunks but no slide. It was a little tight on rainy days with two kids and two adults. So we sold it and traded up to a 30' Sunnybrook with 4 bunks and a slide. Now we have the room we need and so does our daughter in the back. She can close off her room for privacy, so can we and we bother have the living area in between. On a recent trip with rain we had plenty of room for games and movie watching and even when cooking. However this is my limit on a TT. It is big in the mirrors and will not fit in every site. Eventually we are going for a fiver. That will give us the larger bedroom living area, and even though our daughter is effectively out of the house, we will still get a rear bedroom area. Some of them have a rear den that converts to a bed. That might be it. The size will be dictated by the floor plan, especially as we spend more time in it, its like a second home, not just a weekend fling.

[4X4Dodger]

colliehauler wrote:

4X4Dodger wrote:
There has been a trend in American Design and Manufacturing for about 15 years or more now to go to bigger and bigger everything.

Furniture, houses, refrigerators, TV's, Stoves even BBQ's have all taken huge leaps in size compared to the 1980's and previously.

So it's natural that this trend has hit the RV world and boy has it.

40+ foot Motor Homes and fifth wheels, huge slide-outs.

Sometimes I watch that big long infomercial called Extreme Motorhomes and just sit slack-jawed as one 40 or 45 foot monstrosity after another that is decorated like a cheap Casino in Laughlin is paraded on the TV.

Want Horsepower? OH get the 500HP Cat!

Everything has gone "Extreme" This is a big part of the answer. And no it wasn't necessarily in response to customer demand. It was one MFG trying to outdo the others to offer something new and different. I think that market was created by the Mfg's.

Yes it is in response to customer demand. They do not build something that does not sell.

As I get older I want things smaller and more easy to manage and maintain.

Like I said earlier they make small campers up to large coaches to fit the needs of the people who buy them. If it didn't sell they wouldn't build it.

Your point is a common one and it is easy to believe this is what is happening. But in reality it's not consumer demand that drives this.

Secondly manufacturers build many many things that just dont sell. All the time. The Edsel, The Pacer are just two big examples.

There was no consumer DEMAND for Henry Fords first Car until he built it...creating demand.

There was NO consumer demand for personal computers until Apple brought out the McIntosh...and still it took years for it to truly catch on and for millions to realize that they "needed" one.

When you are a manufacturer of something as complicated as a Motorhome or a Travel Travel you must start the design process AT LEAST two years before taking it to the first RV Show. There is no way that you can understand what consumers really want two years in advance.

Manufacturers take a chance. They look at the competition and use a lot of intelligence gathered and have to find a way to set themselves apart from their competition. When all the floor plans are so similar and all the designs are so similar the one thing left is BIGGER. And that is how we got here. Once people saw them and walked through them they said...OH! this is great so much bigger and roomier... ie created demand.

Very rarely in business does a new product come to market with already existing demand pushing the process.

[oakbowery]

VT Skier wrote:

oakbowery wrote:
I have a 37' TT. We have two kids and a third on the way. For us, we have family and friends that often come stay so we need to be able to sleep a lot of people comfortably. My parents have a 23' and after having mine, theirs seems tiny. It suits them just fine (just the two of them). For us, the 37' camper is awesome. Every family has different needs, hence the reason for various sizes.

Wife and I have a 25ft suits our needs just fine, initially she wanted a much bigger unit and I had to keep reminding her we camp in State Parks and COE's any bigger and we won't fit.

I'm sure it may be an issue eventually, but we have camped in many state owned and private camp grounds and have yet to run into an issue with the length of our trailer. May be just being in the southern US and campgrounds don't have any issues making sites long enough (as opposed to the mountainous areas). Almost every site we camp I can leave the truck parked in front of the camper and not be in the road.

[VT_Skier]

oakbowery wrote:
I have a 37' TT. We have two kids and a third on the way. For us, we have family and friends that often come stay so we need to be able to sleep a lot of people comfortably. My parents have a 23' and after having mine, theirs seems tiny. It suits them just fine (just the two of them). For us, the 37' camper is awesome. Every family has different needs, hence the reason for various sizes.

Wife and I have a 25ft suits our needs just fine, initially she wanted a much bigger unit and I had to keep reminding her we camp in State Parks and COE's any bigger and we won't fit.