“Pathetic quality”: RV dealers are fed up with what manufacturers are producing

[RangerTX]

We just sold ours. Like you, we tent camped all our life and as we got older wanted a bed and a/c.

Some things I learned.

If you take your trailer on an 8 hour drive. Its the same thing as your house going through a 8 hour long mag 5 earthquake. Meaning... things break all the time. Its part of the RV life. Accept it. If you buy used, look it over with a fine tooth comb... cause I guarantee something is broken. That will give you leverage to lower price.

99.9% of RV manufacturers use very cheap Chinese tires. In the industry, they are called "China Bombs".. there is a reason they are called that... think about it.... Use them for a year at the most then replace them with quality tires! ALWAYS check tire pressure before hitting the road. Underinflated tires get overly hot... then burst easier.

In 2020 lots were empty and prices soared because everyone was buying. Now, buying has fallen off a cliff and lots are filled to gills. So, shop around. Get a good price.

RV'n is a blast when you have tent camped your whole life. You will love it.

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[AzScorpion]

Coming home from Wyoming, the camper dealers had thousands and thousands of the mass produced campers sitting on the lots. I think the COVID bubble has burst. I also read where the RV makers are running up against a lack of places for buyers to take their rigs - which is causing a downturn in purchases.

John, I just came across this article where Keystone just closed 2 plants and let go over 300 workers. I think that bubble has burst and it's only going to get worse now.

https://news.yahoo.com/keystone-rv-close-two-goshen-090404211.html?fr=sycsrp_catchall

Besides record high fuels prices that make travel more expensive, higher interest rates might be affecting sales and overall inflation is taking a bite out of the pocket of every consumer in the country, according to observers.
At the retail level, there’s more evidence of a slowdown — at least compared to the blistering pace that was set in the immediate aftermath of the beginning of the pandemic when consumers sought out RVs, boats and other types of outdoor recreational that were deemed safer than other activities.

Even though RV shipments have remained relatively strong through the first half, retail registrations of RVs already have begun to slide, dropping 23.5% through May compared to the first five months of 2021 in the United States and Canada, according to Grand Rapids-based Statistical Surveys Inc.

 

[9zero1790]

i think id be happy with a cargo trailer camper. i want something that can handle some mild off road beatings. most mass produced campers will not like off roading much at all. I want something sturdy and very simple. a 3 s model = sleep, shower, yall know the the other S.
ac, heat and off the ground and no setting up a flippin tent

 

[dtech]

We just sold ours. Like you, we tent camped all our life and as we got older wanted a bed and a/c.

Some things I learned.

If you take your trailer on an 8 hour drive. Its the same thing as your house going through a 8 hour long mag 5 earthquake. Meaning... things break all the time. Its part of the RV life. Accept it. If you buy used, look it over with a fine tooth comb... cause I guarantee something is broken. That will give you leverage to lower price.

99.9% of RV manufacturers use very cheap Chinese tires. In the industry, they are called "China Bombs".. there is a reason they are called that... think about it.... Use them for a year at the most then replace them with quality tires! ALWAYS check tire pressure before hitting the road. Underinflated tires get overly hot... then burst easier.

In 2020 lots were empty and prices soared because everyone was buying. Now, buying has fallen off a cliff and lots are filled to gills. So, shop around. Get a good price.

RV'n is a blast when you have tent camped your whole life. You will love it.

Fun Valley CO - always always packed in summer/fall, 460 sites, predominantly with RVs from the Lone Star State, I could rent one and stay there but I don't think that would endear me to RV ownership. Taint cheap to stay there , link to the rate sheet:

https://funvalley.us/rates/

 

[Big Blue]

Lots of great suggestions all over the map. It all comes down to how you want to use it. Do you want to overland and go off grid, do you want to travel camp and see the sites, do you want to weekend camp, or some combination. Lots of variety out there and probably some good used deals going to be out there coming up. You do need to look them over closely. As was said towing them down the road even not going off pavement beats them up pretty good. I agree the quality did take a dump during COVID.

Glad I bought our R pod in early 2019 before it hit. We realy like are R pod. It's a great couples camper for the way we use it. Which is the occasional weekday/weekend out locally and the annual longer trip to visit friends and relatives and see the country. At the time we bought it was the only floorplan we found with twin beds. Really nice not to have to crawl over your partner in the middle of the night. Works great for those overnight stops at a Flying J or Loves on the road. Even handy for those times a wayside isn't close when you need one.

Take your time and really think how you want to use it and what features you want. Stick to your plans and don't let the dealer up sell you something you don’t need. Don’t over buy on what your future needs might be you can always upgrade later as your plans change. And you most definitely need to be DIY handy as there will always something to fix or tweak.

 

[brroberts]

I would love love to have an Oliver. I grew up in the town they are manufactured in. Over $50,000 for a 18 foot camper though will just probably never happen.

They are nice, but we didn’t like the layouts, small fudges, narrow beds, small table etc. I’ve never seen any of the 6’8” wide trailers that work for me. The 7-7 1/2’ wide ones do work for me. You wouldn’t think 4” would be a big deal, but it does a lot for livability.

 

[brroberts]

Only like two actual manufacturers for roughly 18,760 different brands..

Yep. Thor and Forest River have almost all of the market. I personally wouldn’t buy one their products.

 

[Warlockez]

I am making my own camper out of a cargo trailer. Ours is a major work in progress, we got it last year after we lost our hunting land and needing some shelter for when we moved on to public land. I have a 6x12 cargo trailer and we can currently sleep 3 comfortably 4 (if 2 folks got a bit cozy lol) but that is also gonna change. We threw a basic build together and after a year of usage are now modifying to our needs and desires. Only thing is we dont plan on water or sewer as the areas we go currently either have public toilets/showers or atleast an outhouse. If we go to the campground that has an outhouse we bring extra water but our campground we use for hunting has water on site so we dont need to carry as much. Not a bad idea to look into and theres a LOT of builds on youtube for many ideas of what you want to do. Some folks have converted old horse trailers into VERY nice campers as well for less than what youd pay for an RV or pull behind

 

[WOADKIL]

I have not seen anyone mentioned LANCE!

light weight, great quality, A bit pricey but not like Airstream. Very insulated for 4 seasons.

Lance Trailers

 

[WOADKIL]

Depending on how small you want to go I'd check out the R-Pods. I saw a lot of them while traveling in June and also talked with an older (70's) couple who have one. They recently downsized to this from a larger travel trailer and love it as it super easy to tow and maneuver in tight campsites.

https://forestriverinc.com/rvs/travel-trailers/r-pod

2017 Rpod 179 17'

Had ours 5 years and many trips. Quality not the best but cheaper than many teardrops. Been very happy with it, keeps wife comfy!

 

[AzScorpion]

2017 Rpod 179 17'

Had ours 5 years and many trips. Quality not the best but cheaper than many teardrops. Been very happy with it, keeps wife comfy!

I think these are a great alternative to tent camping. It gets you off the ground and you have some conveniences of home still without paying a lot of money for one.

Plus it really depends how you're going to be using it. If you're planning long trips like for weeks (or months) at a time they might be a little small. You have to consider getting stuck in bad weather (rain) and being stuck inside for days. But for those who are going out for the weekend or even a few week or two week trips per year I think it'll be perfect.

 

[Tracy Bowman]

I'm poor so instead of purpose built RV's, I was researching cargo trailer conversations. A 5x8-5x10 cargo trailer with a V-nose has plenty of space for living quarters, a dinette, and I've even seen bathroom/shower combos built into the V-nose. One of these with a single axle, some custom suspension work, and some blood sweat and tears would be right up my alley if I can ever find the space to store it.

I have a friend who did this. She and her husband can make a dollar stretch farther than anyone I know (besides my husband ). They did all the work themselves and their family of 5 travelled everywhere in that thing. They loved it and it sure did look cool! Unfortunately, I don’t have a picture & they no longer have it.

 

[Stic-o]

This is why I bought a used 2018. Newest you can get before the Pandemic made garbage.

 

[brroberts]

For small, light, non molded fiberglas - conventional styled trailers - Lance and Winnebago are very similar in construction, but The Winnie Micro Minnie series is cheaper and has fewer reported problems.

ORV / Arctic Fox are the best built conventional RV trailers, but are mostly too heavy for a Ranger.

For light, with fewer problems molded fiberglass is certainly much better than conventional builders. In the fiberglass world of current smallish trailers, it goes least to best from:
Scamp, Casita, Escape, Bigfoot, Oliver.

There are a few more fiberglass trailer builders, but they either tend to come and go, or are niche builders.

Having recently searched for a year, and then waited 9 months for my ordered trailer, and having visited several factories, and spent time on many forums, plus 50+ years experience, I still see Escape as the quality to dollar leader.

 

[WV_Ranger]

I go back and forth on the camper idea. It would be very comfortable clean and spacious. On the flip side towing anything is work, you can't just relax and gawk at scenery while you drive. Plus I never stay in one place more than a day and I like the ability to go down any road I choose. Some Scenic drives I've been on couldn't fit a camper. Plus storage is always an issue. I really don't want to build another garage. Lol

I wanted to upgrade my old dry rotted leaking tent after my dakota vacation. I wanted the ability to sleep off the ground. I looked at a lot of small travel trailers, thought about building my own, but ended up with a 10x10 Pavillion tent. I can stand up in it, use our cots, if it's raining set up our chairs and even cook inside. Only thing I don't have is heat and ac, but fans and my buddy heater will make it tolerable.It was the best compromise for me.

Sorry for my ramble. I just enjoy talking to like minded people with common interest on here. Anyway here was my second place option some of you may like. It converts a topper to a pop up

https://www.campersandgear.com/topperezlift-truck-camper/

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