Tiffin Motorhomes Joins the THOR Industries Family

[Bob Denman]

They did a mass-mailing to all of us, and have stated the same thing.
Let's hope hope that they're still running the ship: now that it's been swallowed...

[Chance]

Originally Posted by powerboatr

.....cut....

surprised they have not embraced inverter technology in a/c & heat pumps .
think of mini splits , but a mini split could be drawn down to fit in the normal foot print of a roof top unit very easily

There is nothing to embrace in RV A/C as far as I know (not yet anyway), and Thor doesn’t actually create anything new themselves. They buy everything and essentially fabricate or assemble an RV. I may be wrong, but don’t know of any appliances or major components built by Thor.

Just recently additional A/C manufacturers have added inverter technology to their window air conditioners, which are closer to an RV A/C in design. No doubt it can be done easily but it adds cost and apparently there is not enough to gain to justify the added cost.

If there is one thing Thor does is keep cost as low as possible for as long as they can. They don’t seem to invest much in innovation, but rather buy successful companies that already took risks.

[powerboatr]

Originally Posted by Chance

There is nothing to embrace in RV A/C as far as I know (not yet anyway), and Thor doesn’t actually create anything new themselves. They buy everything and essentially fabricate or assemble an RV. I may be wrong, but don’t know of any appliances or major components built by Thor.

Just recently additional A/C manufacturers have added inverter technology to their window air conditioners, which are closer to an RV A/C in design. No doubt it can be done easily but it adds cost and apparently there is not enough to gain to justify the added cost.

If there is one thing Thor does is keep cost as low as possible for as long as they can. They don’t seem to invest much in innovation, but rather buy successful companies that already took risks.

agreed, maybe embrace was taken out of context. they should be prompting suppliers to innovate to bring better products to market. thor already got behind the giant battery bank to replace the 8k genny in the tuscany. they ran that ball out first as it were.


with FR and thor being as big as they are, they surely have bean counters looking at every dime to maximize returns.


back in the early 2000s many vehicle assemblers opted to remove glove box light..saved 10-15 dollars on each unit. spread that over 100k units and it adds up. price of vehicles went up to compensate the loss the glove box lights

[dkoldman]

Does this means he is no longer a SOB?

[Bob Denman]

Oh I still am.
But the meaning has taken a darker direction...

[Laco]

I can't help but be a bit surprised. I met Bob Tiffin some years ago, when we had the Bus, he was always the most amicable guy you could possibly imagine. He and I sat out over a campfire one evening, he talked about many of his adventures building and growing the business and some of the mistakes he had made. He talked about his son's taking over the business, when he was ready to retire. I know he bowed out of the business some years ago, and about a year and a half later jumped back in again. Do not know any details. Having owned both a Tiffin and a Thor, I have some real doubts that Tiffin's QA will be maintained, long term, and Tiffin always stood behind their products, IMO, better and more actively than most, if not all other manufactures. If you as a Tiffin consumer had a warrantee issue, you could get through to, and talk directly to Bob Tiffin, and he would make the final call, which in my experience was predominantly in the customers favor. Parts, too were available to consumers, directly from Tiffin, they did not require that only a dealer could order parts. Its going to be interesting to see what happens over the next couple of years.

[Chance]

Originally Posted by dkoldman

Does this means he is no longer a SOB?

No, just went from Some Other Brand to Same Ole Brand.


Or in Bob's case use your imagination.

[atreis]

Originally Posted by DavidEM

...

Thor has done similar with other brands they have purchased. Anyone have the inside story to tell on Jayco, or how Airstream mostly remained intact?

David

Jayco wasn't a high end brand and not that different in quality in the first place, so it's not likely that people would notice much change.

Airstream has largely been left alone to run like they always have. No doubt there were some cost-savings measures such as combining back-office services (HR, payroll, insurance, purchasing, accounting, stuff like that). But unlike your example, they're still made at the factory in Jackson Center Ohio.

Hopefully they'll follow the same model with Tiffin.

[Bob Denman]

Originally Posted by Laco

I can't help but be a bit surprised. I met Bob Tiffin some years ago, when we had the Bus, he was always the most amicable guy you could possibly imagine. He and I sat out over a campfire one evening, he talked about many of his adventures building and growing the business and some of the mistakes he had made. He talked about his son's taking over the business, when he was ready to retire. I know he bowed out of the business some years ago, and about a year and a half later jumped back in again. Do not know any details. Having owned both a Tiffin and a Thor, I have some real doubts that Tiffin's QA will be maintained, long term, and Tiffin always stood behind their products, IMO, better and more actively than most, if not all other manufactures. If you as a Tiffin consumer had a warrantee issue, you could get through to, and talk directly to Bob Tiffin, and he would make the final call, which in my experience was predominantly in the customers favor. Parts, too were available to consumers, directly from Tiffin, they did not require that only a dealer could order parts. Its going to be interesting to see what happens over the next couple of years.

Bob Tiffin is a pure class act.

[EA37TS]

Originally Posted by atreis

Jayco wasn't a high end brand and not that different in quality in the first place, so it's not likely that people would notice much change.

Airstream has largely been left alone to run like they always have. No doubt there were some cost-savings measures such as combining back-office services (HR, payroll, insurance, purchasing, accounting, stuff like that). But unlike your example, they're still made at the factory in Jackson Center Ohio.

Hopefully they'll follow the same model with Tiffin.

For the most part Jayco has been left alone to run as a separate unit to include the Entegra line. One change that was made in recent years is the rebranding of some Jayco motorhomes to the Entegra brand so that Jayco and Entegra are in the market like the Hurricane, Windsport, Axis, Vegas models. Thor did keep the plants in Middlebury running under Jayco management.

Also, as a note, I know a few Tiffin owners that will tell you that over the last six or seven years the Tiffin quality has gone downhill fast and that some have spent more time at factory service than in campgrounds. This includes a Phaeton owner that is trying to unload but doesn't want to lose money this soon.

[Lt Keefer]

The wife and I were going to sell our Hurricane and buy a Tiffen in the spring. Now we wont. I learned my lesson with Thor and Camping World. I will never give either another cent. I guess the Winnebago is back on the menu.

[Bob Denman]

If you were considering a Tiffin: getting one sooner; would probably be a good idea.
And the build quality on mine has proven to be excellent

[Beau388]

I toured Entegra Luxury Coach last year with 12 current Entegra owners. All agreed the quality of the coaches had improved in the past two years. A check of the websites will show most owners of the 2018-2020 Entegras are happy with their coach and the continuing 2 year warranty. The tour guide said Thor Industries had given Entegra 11 million dollars in 2018 to improve the production line which had Jayco had just completed in 2016. Entegra now is able produces 2 coaches per day at and average price of $350,000 each. I saw 33 coaches on the production line all but 4 had tag axles. I suspect Thor Ind. will provide a considerable cash infusion to Tiffin to improve the speed of coach production and quality of their products.

Remember Thor Industries is just a holding company with 19 major divisions, but most people only think of Thor MC as the only division. Even within Thor MC, each of the 7 factories operate independently with their own designers and engineers.

[DavidEM]

Originally Posted by Bob Denman

If you were considering a Tiffin: getting one sooner; would probably be a good idea.
And the build quality on mine has proven to be excellent

I agree. It took about a year after the purchase was announced before Thor started running Livin' Lite into the ground. Buy now before it happens.

The downside is that the resale value will probably take a hit in a few years.

David

[Bob Denman]

A great coach will always command a better price...

[Lt Keefer]

Originally Posted by Bob Denman

If you were considering a Tiffin: getting one sooner; would probably be a good idea.
And the build quality on mine has proven to be excellent

No thanks. I will not touch another Thor Industries product with a 10 foot pole. The corporate culture of Thor is an example of the evils of men. In a couple of years Tiffen will be just another shit branch on the corporate tree.

[Bob Denman]

But how do you really feel?

[Chance]

Employee morale can be adversely affected immediately. Quality of new products could change following announcement; unless employees knew already, in which case build quality could have taken a hit earlier.

[Pete'sMH]

The fact is there’s no telling what will happen or how soon. Just have to wait and see. And, as ever, do your research and inspections before you buy anything. It’s strange times in which we’re living!

[Jimbo56]

My 2 cents worth. A good friend has owned and operated his own RV service business for over 25 years. No sales. Just parts & service. According to him he sees shoddy workmanship in every brand out there. High end, low end. Sure, one may have a Samsung TV, another an Axxera. But as far as the install of windows, doors, ac’s, ladders, caulked seams, leaks, plumbing errors, they all have them. All the people that brag about meeting Bob Tiffin in person while their coach was in Alabama didn’t tell you they were there due to a problem. Any RV product is only as good as the assembly crew that put it together. The turnover is horrendous. The field service guys are at the factories doing the training. Yep, a Newmar may be better insulated than my entry level Thor, but the same size coach, on the same chassis, with the same toilet, holding tanks, generator, etc. costs twice as much. So I still say, find the floor plan that fits what you plan to use it for, and enjoy customizing it along the way. Happy travels, Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year to all.