Now that's a lot more than I want to spend on a TT BUT what I need to know is why are they so expensive - is it the SNOB Appeal---or are they really that much better????
I guess I'll be the guy to throw some water on this thread. We have a 1997 Airstream Limited, 34' front kitchen. It was sold new in 1998. We got it for $25,000 (which we considered a great deal) from the second owner in Florida. We had looked at a couple of other 34-foot Airstreams and both were priced over $34,000. One was a Limited in like-new condition. The owner was asking about $45,000 or so. I told him that I had come to see it, expecting to offer much less than that price but his trailer was in such good shape that it justified his asking price. I couldn't bring myself to offer the $30,000 or so that we were willing to spend. (Aside: He called us several weeks after we bought the one we now own and offered it to us for about $35,000. ) The justification for paying $25,000 was the fact that this trailer sold new for about $70,000-75,000.
Within weeks of bringing our trailer home it developed a fresh water plumbing leak. We are about three hours from the Airstream factory and their service center, so I took the trailer there for repair. At the service center they discovered that three of the front aluminum body panels were torn where they attach to the floor. (I had noticed that when I inspected the trailer, but the significance didn't sink in at the time. ) This damage required replacing all three of the body panels. Charge about $3500.
A couple of years later, while having the air conditioner replaced, a dealer noticed another split in the skin, this time above the door. When I called the service center for an appointment I told the manager that the trailer had another tear. He said, "Above the door?" I asked if he saw a lot of these. He said he did.
In the few years of our ownership, the trailer has had three or so plumbing leaks in addition to the body issues mentioned above.
Out of necessity I have become more familiar with the way this trailer is built. I see that it isn't that different from other high-end trailers, and certainly doesn't justify the prices Airstream demands. Some details are top-notch, but others aren't. For example, our trailer has plastic ball valves for shut-offs in the plumbing system. These valves have some type of o-ring or seal in them that moves out of its proper location and then the valve won't work properly. I have already had several of them changed to metal valves with improved seats. Changing these valves requires cutting them out of the pipe, since no provision was made for their replacement when the plumbing was installed. Cheap, plastic valves are not what you would expect in a $75,000 trailer.
Our previous trailer was a Holiday Rambler. It had a gas/electric water heater. If you were at a campground, you could plug in and use electricity to heat water, thus preserving your LP gas. The more expensive Airstream's water heater runs on gas only -- no electric option. Why?
The Holiday Rambler had a gas oven in the range. The Airstream has only a three-burner cooktop. The oven is a microwave/convection oven combo unit, which admittedly cooks well, but which requires 110 volt AC electricity.
I don't know about the latest models, but even the 1997 Limited has no provision for a generator. If you want to have AC power on the road or in a remote campsite, you'll have to carry the generator in your truck. Have you seen the prices of these trailers that do not offer even that basic feature?
Ours tows well, but it has taken me three different hitches before I found the one that works well with this trailer (an Equal-i-zer, by the way). It swayed slightly behind our Reese hitch and slightly worse with the Pulliam Pull-Rite (expensive) hitch.
To answer your question: Yes, they are a high-quality trailer, but much of the price is snob appeal.
I would buy another one (not a new one) but not without a very thorough examination. I know a lot more now about what I should look for. It was an expensive lesson.
A good general rule about RV's (probably boats too) is: Unless you cannot find what you want used, never buy a new RV.
Loren
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