RRinNFla wrote: I can tell I am going to enjoy this forum.
Wayne makes a good point, we don't have any 10,000 foot campgrounds in the east. But, of course, I am looking for trailer with wheels in case I want to go west. And what oldguy suggest would contradict that.
downtheroad makes some sense, too. Some models are only available to dealers in one part of the country. That is consistent with my research. For example, I liked some of the floor plans from Komfort, but I didn't see any dealers listed on the east coast. But if that is true, I still don't understand the benefit to the manufacturer of having different model names for east and west. It would seem to call for twice as much marketing literature and dilute the road presence of the brand.
And if it is a matter of insulation, why not market that as a feature?
Would you really like to hear your TT has less insulation? If no one knows then they can charge the same price for less insulation. I mean if the make hot dogs taste different depending on demogrphics, why not make RVs diferent also.
Some manufacturers have more than one plant. They will make different models, maybe different brands or model lines within brands, at different plants. Manufacturers who do this, often ship only regionally. So what is available, depends on where your dealer is.
Some part of this is historical. As RV conglomerates have bought up the former multitude of independent, regional, manufacturers, they have kept regionally popular brand names alive in their traditional market areas.
It is not just "East Coast" vs "West Coast" as at least one manufacture also has a breakdown that includes "MidWest" and "South Central" regions.
Manufacturers who build from one location, usually ship the same thing everywhere, but might still build special models and options packages for different regions. Auto manufacturers do the same thing for particular markets: pickups come out as "Oklahoma Special" and "Texas Special" and the two are different.
If you want a model sold only on the west coast, you will probably have to buy it from a dealer on the west coast.
Do you only need insulation for the cold? I have always been under the impression that insulation is for both extremes, not just the cold. That said, I would think the amount of insulation make no difference. I think it's just a difference of the desired floor plans/options but I could be wrong.
As noted, there seems to be two areas of the country that the RV mnanufacturers have plants. California and Oregon is one and Indiana is another. Transportation costs can be considerable, so very often, different models are available in the West than are available in the East. Sure, you can purchase any of them, anywhere in the country, but at $1.00 per mile, (or more) for delivery, you do the math..
That is one reason you don't see Komfort's much on the East coast or Sunline's on the west coast. (yes, I know they have closed up shop, but they have many similarities in construction and company size)
PopBeavers wrote: How often do you tow or camp above 10,000 feet in the east coast?
Do you really think the manufacturer will make changes in all the trailers they build because 1 out of every 847 times one is used it is above 10,000 ft.?
PopBeavers wrote: How often do you tow or camp above 10,000 feet in the east coast?
Do you really think the manufacturer will make changes in all the trailers they build because 1 out of every 847 times one is used it is above 10,000 ft.?
Let me rephrase that.
I rarely camp below 5,000 feet. I'm pretty sure that weekend campers in FL don't even get close to that altitude.
In CO, if you live in Denver, then you camp uphill from that.
I was only suggesting that perhaps there is a tendency for people on the east coast to camp at beaches and in the hills while out west there is more camping going on in the mountains. The difference between hills and mountains is not well defined. Where I live, the foothills of the mountains go up to a few thousand feet (Highway 49). Above that is the mountains.
Also there is not much humidity out west, at least not in CA. It rarely rains from May through October. The humidity is rarely above 30 percent. I only run my a/c once every other year. At 5,000+ feet the evening temps are cool and the humidity is low.
Wayne in San Jose
TV1:2002 Chevy 1500HD 4wd Crew Cab,Valley Odyssey brake ctlr,McKesh mirrors
TV2:2008 GMC 2500HD long bed 4wd Crew Cab,GMC brake ctlr,GMC mirrors
TT:Trailmanor 2720
Honda 2000
Yamaha WR250R,Polaris Sportsman 700 X2,Polaris Scrambler 500
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