Airstream leads, others will follow

[Tom 72]

Nest update: I get it. Airstream is not a trail blazer in the fiberglass sector. As most of you know their entry was achieved by buying a Nest prototype others developed. Still, they are enough of an industry leader that I would be surprised if the pack in Elkhart don't follow. You know they are watching. If they don't develop models, I wouldn't be surprised if they acquire or invest in existing producers.
Airstream's entry will lead other makers to follow. It's all good for consumers. It will lead to innovation, and better products.

https://www.airstream.com/blog/nest-...t-sneak-peek/?

[Civilguy]

That's nice to see that they are carrying forward, but I have to say I'm glad I don't work for a large corporation anymore... Somehow they just have a way of sucking all the air out of the room.

"Nest was early in its development when we found it, but we knew the concept would be loved by a much larger audience. With that, the Nest became an official part of the extended Airstream family."

Nice find! Yeah, don't hurt your shoulder patting yourself on the back there. Ooh, look, here it is early in its development!

http://newatlas.com/nest-caravan/37479/

If not for the unmentioned Robert Johans, they would still be off pounding rivets...

Just my unsolicited, ranty, frump and grump opinion, mind you.

[Bobbie Mayer]

It will be nice. I just saw a friend's new 25 foot aluminum Airstream and man, is that a nice trailer. Heavy, of course, but very well thought-out. Tons and tons of storage, gorgeous windows, including skylights, etc.

[Civilguy]

Originally Posted by Tom 72

Airstream's entry will lead other makers to follow. It's all good for consumers. It will lead to innovation, and better products.

And yes, I believe that you have something there Tom. Let's hope for the best here.

Sorry to be so negative when there's always something good to be found...

[Tom 72]

It doesn't sound like anyone has to worry about Airstream cutting prices. That role will be left to those who compete with Airstream.
Airstream? They will enlarge the market for fiberglass and lend credibility. Airstream will followup with larger Nests.

[Donna D.]

Competition is great for consumers! However, each of the all-molded towable manufacturers have different price points. From Scamp to the Oliver. IMHO any of them are better than a staple and frame sticky. But, I'm also not interested in any trailer without a flush toilet... so it will be interesting to see what Airstream changes from Robert's vision.

[Civilguy]

Originally Posted by Tom 72

It doesn't sound like anyone has to worry about Airstream cutting prices. That role will be left to those who compete with Airstream.
Airstream? They will enlarge the market for fiberglass and lend credibility. Airstream will followup with larger Nests.

OK, I won't lose any sleep worrying about Airstream cutting prices.

It is interesting to ponder whether others may follow. Long, long ago after the world war there were some others who "followed" them and competed in the aluminum RV business. Wartime aircraft manufacture had produced what became a surplus of tooling and capable workers who could build these units... Curtis Wright, Boles Aero, Spartan...

Airstream subsequently wandered into ventures which variously included slides, motorhomes, and even (yikes!) fiberglass and steel with the Argosy "Squarestream".

I think this is their first venture in a while from producing anything outside of aluminum towables (without slides), and more recently Class Bs; is that correct?

Meanwhile, an industry of fast-and-cheap grew around them, barely taking any notice of Airstream. The others were primarily focused on fulfilling the more price-conscious end of the market.

And what's that old saying; beware the cost of the lowest price?

Well, I too will persist in being hopeful that the good word of molded fiberglass shall be made known throughout the lands.

[Tom 72]

Glad to hear you aren't up all night worrying about Airstream. Good one. And a good post.
Airstream may be feeling the need to innovate. In the past decade, they have introduced the Sprinter chassis based Interstates. Recently they brought out the Basecamp, which slashed the price of an entry level trailer to around $40,000, or $20,000 per door. Nest is their 3rd new product, fairly recently. There may be others.
PS, Wow, I see that Thor has 17 brands.

[Ed Harris]

Airstream is but a spoke in the wheel of THOR Industries.

https://www.thorindustries.com/get-to-know-us/

I know one of the partners and he was telling me a few weeks ago that they are gearing up for big expectations with the NEST overall.
We talked for a long time about the Fiberglass RV's in general and Airstream in particular and this may be a good thing for the rest of the FGRV makers and it might not be but only time will tell for sure.

I bet though that most people shopping for a small trailer would not know fiberglass if it bit them in the butt?

Airstream is hoping to change a little of that!

[Cathi]

I knew that Thor owned Airstream but I did not realize that they had owned it for that long. There is filiform corrosion not covered by warranty, I understand, that has been a problem on some of their newer units. Don't know if they ever addressed that.

Donna, I am with you on Nests. No flush toilet, no interest.

[Ken C]

already posted here tom
http://www.fiberglassrv.com/forums/f...oon-80597.html

[Tom 72]

Both the Nest and Basecamp appear to offer flush toilets. For around $40,000, you'd hope so. Sorry, I could not get jpegs to upload. Ken, I certainly didn't intend to step on your post. I tried to find others before I posted.

https://www.airstream.com/travel-tra...amp/floorplan/


https://www.bing.com/images/search?v...x=2&ajaxhist=0

[likeair2me]

When do you think the corporate conglomerate will finally start producing the Thor Hammer? Utilitarian in shape, able to take lots of punishment, the leader in it's class, and too heavy to pick up.

[k corbin]

My son and his wife bought a brand new 30' airstream in 2015. They have have quite a few issues with it including having to spend the better part of the winter without heat. They have an electrical issue that two different airstream service centers have not been able to fix. They ended up taking it all the way from the West Coast to the factory this month to try to get it resolved.

Their door does not fit properly and has to be slammed to get it closed. The seals on the windows stick the windows shut despite putting the silicone on the gasket that the factory recommends. To open a window they have to go outside and carefully pry it open. The crack open mechanisms are undersized.

Their electric jack broke shortly after they purchased it, was replaced and has failed again.

Plus a bunch of other odds and ends of problems such as some seals were installed incorrectly and the interior got invaded by yellow jackets swarming in who were attracted to the propane exhaust.

[Jon in AZ]

Sadly, that tale is all too common with a large number of RV brands at many price points, including some molded fiberglass makes.

Strikes me that it's not unlike automobiles in the days before modern automated production.

[skyking]

Sadly I purchased a brand new TT from a Texas manufacture and it has a whole host of quality issues, poor workmanship and extreme lacking of customer service. Needless to say I will never buy another new RV with all the quality issues at every price point and that includes Airstream and Oliver.

[BatDude]

Originally Posted by Bobbie Mayer

Tons and tons of storage, gorgeous windows, including skylights, etc.

Earlier this year at the Escapees annual education event in Tucson is where I learned too much storage space = dangerously overweight travel trailers and RVs.

So may not be on the plus side for safe and enjoyable RVing.

[Civilguy]

Originally Posted by BatDude

Earlier this year at the Escapees annual education event in Tucson is where I learned too much storage space = dangerously overweight travel trailers and RVs.

Mind you when folks say there are tons of storage, that's just a figure of speech...

I'm not sure that I can agree with the "equal" sign there. One does not necessarily lead to or result in the other. Managing weights and capacities is just another responsibility. As with so many things in life, some folks act responsibly, some less so...

[skyking]

Originally Posted by Tom 72

Both the Nest and Basecamp appear to offer flush toilets. For around $40,000, you'd hope so. Sorry, I could not get jpegs to upload. Ken, I certainly didn't intend to step on your post. I tried to find others before I posted.

https://www.airstream.com/travel-tra...amp/floorplan/


https://www.bing.com/images/search?v...x=2&ajaxhist=0

I didn't see flush toilet on the Nest website, only the Thetford Porta Potti .

[skalywag]

Tom,
As a new owner of a brand new Oliver Legacy Elite (18.5 ft), I can tell you that the quality of our TT is exceptional. Our delivery (6/27) was pretty close to perfect. They seem dedicated to this industry. Also, based on the on board storage available ( not a lot), being over weight will not be an issue. I had concerns about the wiring etc., but after exploring under the covers and testing the electrical systems, all appears to be well done and secure.
We shall see as we use it how well it holds up, but I do like a Fiberglass designed trailer and expect it to be around for a long time.
Cheers,