A 40-foot motor home with a six-figure sticker and a 100-gallon fuel tank should be the last thing on Americans minds, as they're crunched by an economic downturn that includes high gas prices and tight credit.Don't tell that to Vacaville, Calif. resident Sally Kemp. In Davis, Calif., last week, she was hitting RV lots looking for a bargain. She considers an RV purchase "an investment in the future."Kemp has had a lot of company recently. Offering steep discounts, RV dealers have reported a spike in consumer interest.The tough times have hit the RV industry hard. Three California dealers recently announced they're closing up shop. Last year, shipments of RVs to U.S. dealers dropped nearly 10 percent, according to the Reston, Va.-based Recreation Vehicle Industry Association. Halfway into 2008, shipments were down another 14 percent.The reasons are all too familiar: Look to low consumer confidence, flat household incomes, high gas prices and tight credit for the decline.Yet the RV industry seems to be proving that you can sell anything if you discount it enough."RVs aren't daily transportation like big SUVs," said Sacramento resident Dave Logan, perusing RVs for prices 30 percent to 40 percent below previously listed values. "RVs are just that -- recreational. People will always want to camp and travel."Industry officials concede that RV dealers nationwide are under pressure to move inventory, but they said that is nothing new."The RV industry is cyclical, and Wall Street analysts have cited it as a bellwether industry," said Kevin Broom, a spokesman for the RV association. "RVs are a discretionary purchase, and when the economy declines, one of the first things that happens is people cut back on discretionary purchases. They're also the first thing that starts picking up when the economy improves."The largest of the motor homes can stretch to 42 feet in length, are 12 feet high and priced anywhere from $100,000 to $325,000. Wheelbases of nearly 270 inches are common, about 6.5 feet longer than a 2009 Toyota Camry.Mileage? Well, that can vary. Most large motor homes listed for sale by manufacturers tend to average in the 10-miles-per-gallon range. Some get 12.Still, there's a lavish lifestyle to be lived once you step inside. Wood-paneled interiors, nearly full-size kitchen appliances, plush carpeting and flat-screen TVs with a satellite dish on the roof are readily available, for a price.Out on the lots of area dealers, signs tout major savings. RVs with suggested retail prices in the $70,000-to-$80,000 range are now going for $40,000 to $50,000.The discounts appear to be working.Dan Gamel said he has moved $40 million in vehicles since March. Things have been going so well that he said he's not sure when he might shut down his California stores.Bill Lawrence, owner of RV Travel World of Sacramento and a 30-year RV industry veteran, said the industry is going through one of its periodic adjustments. It will ultimately recover to be as strong as ever, he said.From 1978 to 1981, on the heels of an oil embargo and a nationwide gas-supply crunch, the bottom fell out of the RV industry. During that time, annual shipments of RVs to dealers plummeted from 390,000 to 133,600. But by 1984, shipments ballooned back up to about 215,000.After the 9/11 terrorist attacks, some experts predicted doom for the RV. Instead, shipments soared 21 percent to 311,000 in 2002, a development analysts attributed to American consumers opting to enjoy life and their families more in the aftermath of the attacks.By 2006, shipments to RV dealers had hit 390,500. Then they started to fall.Graves believes it's only a matter of time before the numbers head the other way. He cited consumers' seemingly relentless desire to travel and be outdoors, plus a massive group of baby boomers planning to enjoy retirement."It sounds old, but it's true: We don't sell RVs. We sell lifestyles," he said.(E-mail Mark Glover at mglover(at)sacbee.com)(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, www.scrippsnews.com.)
Post new comment