Quote:
Originally Posted by LHaven
Much the same is true of the auto market, but BMW, Audi, Mercedes, and Land Rover don't seem to be going out of business anytime soon. I wish we could reach that sort of a balance in the RV marketplace as well.
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There is an "RV equivalent" to the BMW, Audi, Mercedes and Land Rover. It's the Landmark, DV Suites, Airstream, New Horizons (Summit or Majestic) that are the "BMW's of the RV industry".. Pricing is significantly higher with the cheapest models ranging well over $100,000. So, they simply are not in the same "class" as the Hideout, Passport, Cougar or even the Montana. You wouldn't expect a Hundai or a Kia or Yugo to have the same quality as a BMW, just as you "shouldn't" expect a Hideout or Springdale to have the same quality as an Airstream. If you want "higher quality" you're not going to look at the "cheap end of the selection" in cars, and it's the same with RV's. Keystone, Jayco, Forest River, for the most part, have classes of RV's ranging from "cheap junk for the masses" to "high quality with a high price for the discerning buyer"... You've got to "move up in RV class" to get to the BMW kind of quality. You simply won't find it in a $13,000 Summerland.
Having owned an Airstream in the past, I can say with certainty, the Airstream dealerships ALL have a service department (just like Keystone dealerships) for a reason. Expensive RV's have problems just like cheap, thrown together RV's.
By the way, BMW, Audi, Mercedes and Land Rover all have service departments as well. Nothing mechanical is ever going to be "problem free across the entire inventory".