Winnebago acquires Newmar

[willipaul]

Originally Posted by redbaron73

My prediction:

* No more choice in chassis for coach model. A single chassis will be offered for the model

* drastically limited customizations year 1 and ultimately no customizations within 3 years

* 2 year warranty standard, with multiple factory service Centers in the us.

* rebadged class c coaches added with newmar brand

i mostly agree......

i would add that i think there will be changes to the class A gassers lineup, and i think the diesel lineup may very well also be streamlined....i'm not sure there needs to be that many high line coach lines.... but i've often thought that....

[Wild Card]

Originally Posted by tom chelbana

Winnebago used Spartan chassis for many years a decade ago but are purchasing front and rear sections from Fl and then welding their own mid section.

Say what... you think Freightliner is just shipping an engine and steering wheel and WBGO adds the middle? That's some good coffee your drinkin.

[redbaron73]

They do this for tiffin, rev group, and winnebago. Very common.

Look up powerglide chassis for one. And the current Monaco roadmaster chassis, built with freightliner front/end

Originally Posted by Wild Card

Say what... you think Freightliner is just shipping an engine and steering wheel and WBGO adds the middle? That's some good coffee your drinkin.

[We_B_Tripn]

Originally Posted by redbaron73

My prediction:

* No more choice in chassis for coach model. A single chassis will be offered for the model

* drastically limited customizations year 1 and ultimately no customizations within 3 years

* 2 year warranty standard, with multiple factory service Centers in the us.

* rebadged class c coaches added with newmar brand

I think you are probably onto something. The ability to customize was a huge factor for us when researching and we had numerous specials so I hope that is the one you don’t get right!

[millerj]

This further supports my decision to buy a Tiffin after owning two Newmar coaches. In fact I just got back from Red Bay after touring the chassis factory and the Tiffin paint plant in Belmont MS. One thing I heard over and over from Tiffin customers is the excellent customer service they receive from Tiffin. I heard story after story of repairs being performed for no charge even though they were out of warranty. My new coach was just leaving paint and should be delivered to the dealer around the first of October. I hope things go well for all of my Newmar friends.

[Gordon Dewald]

Originally Posted by Wild Card

Say what... you think Freightliner is just shipping an engine and steering wheel and WBGO adds the middle? That's some good coffee your drinkin.

When we took the WGO factory tour the route went by the chassis storage. All had the frame rails. While there a couple OTR trucks came in loaded with chassis. All had frame rails.

[wagonmaster2]

Originally Posted by DC21

Lets face it, Newmar's quality in workmanship has already taken a real hit in the last couple of years. Which would lead one to think there were a lot of unhappy employee's on the production line. The differences in workmanship between my first Newmar and my current Newmar have been dramatic resulting in a lot of down time in the shop in the first 10 months of ownership. Things like stripped or broken screws, misaligned doors, not tighten nuts, slide issues have become common. So maybe things really wont change much as initial quality is already poor currently.

Very well spoken. Only thing is, I feel the quality of workmanship has been headed downhill for a lot longer than a couple of years. When I purchased my 2015 DS new I had started reading about Newmars 3 years prior to that and was still under the impression Newmar quality was tops. Boy was I wrong. We've been back to Nappanee 3 times, to the dealer twice, and 3-4 times to a Freightliner shop having to argue each time what was Newmar responsibility and what was Freightliner. Many times I wished I still had my 2004 Itasca Meridian.

[BillJinOR]

Originally Posted by Gordon Dewald

When we took the WGO factory tour the route went by the chassis storage. All had the frame rails. While there a couple OTR trucks came in loaded with chassis. All had frame rails.

Correct I believe They don’t add the frame rail in house they spec out a frame rail that different dropped and lowered between the front and rear from freightliner to their specs
V Ride Maxum or some such name. It puts the frame rails under the storage bays not above

[Akdare]

Originally Posted by CaptainGizmo

Sorry guys, but in all due respect...
What on EARTH does all this legal/insurance/accounting business have to do with this topic of discussion?

I mean, it’s probably useful in some other forum, but seems to be way out of context here.

With all due respect, when has any long thread not drifted off topic...

Some posts were presenting misinformation as fact. I made a post to correct the misinformation. Obviously, others were interested, as they quoted my post.

No need to be scolding any of us.

[Wild Card]

Originally Posted by BillJinOR

Correct I believe They don’t add the frame rail in house they spec out a frame rail that different dropped and lowered between the front and rear from freightliner to their specs
V Ride Maxum or some such name. It puts the frame rails under the storage bays not above

You are correct. Freight Shaker sends WBGO a complete drivable chassis. Maxum or XCS to WBGO specs. As the Liberty chassis is to American coach or FW and a the Spartan chassis is to any mfg as well.

There is no chassis mfg that just sends pieces out to a motorhome builder.

[ptw]

Originally Posted by Wild Card

You are correct. Freight Shaker sends WBGO a complete drivable chassis. Maxum or XCS to WBGO specs. As the Liberty chassis is to American coach or FW and a the Spartan chassis is to any mfg as well.

There is no chassis mfg that just sends pieces out to a motorhome builder.

This is from the Camp Freightliner manual showing the XCM (Modular) chassis that allows the RV manufacturer to add the center section.

[FLJOE]

Originally Posted by USMCRET

Not kidding.

https://www.globenewswire.com/news-r...er-Newmar.html

It’s going to take a while to digest this.

Wow, 375 comments and counting, almost all of them negative.

Maybe it won't change anything. Maybe the benefit packages for Newmar employees will improve, like top-of-line medical benefits or something.

As long as they don't start painting "Big Winnie" across the back of new Dutch Stars it ain't no big deal my nervous friends.

[Charlievette]

Originally Posted by Victory Blue

There was a lot of doom and gloom 2+ years ago when Thor Industries (not Thor Motor Coach) bought Jayco (Entegra's parent company). Many predicted the quality would take a nosedive and, as for the 2 year warranty, well Thor would never allow that to stand. None of that has happened.

Some less than knowledgeable people still like to take potshots at Entegra for being owned by Thor, but I suspect they're pretty much clueless about most things. So, ignore most of what will be said by outsiders and owners of SOB, especially if you find it on the forums.

I expect the powers that be at Winnebago are astute enough to recognize what a gem they have in the Newmar brand and will leave it alone so it can continue to thrive.

Agreed
Bentley is owned by Volkswagen...I don’t think you would mistake a Bentley for a bug. Rolls is owned by BMW and has only gotten better engineering and reliability. It is doubtful Winnebago would degrade the Newmar coach.
Why buy a Newmar instead of a Tiffin, Winnebago, Thor or any other class A under 700k?
Build quality from frame to finish.

[Dan McMartin]

Newmar will be owned by Winnie. So is Grand Design.

Fiat owns Chrysler and Jeep. Jeeps fly off dealer lots and the brand is still loved by many. One might say that Jeep and Dodge pickups are keeping Fiat out of bankruptcy proceedings.

Mercedes owned Chrysler before that.

Someone mentioned Prevost is owned by Volvo which is owned by a Chinese company.

So on, so forth...

This is reality in 2019. Small companies have a tough time competing globally. Newmar buys stuff from all over to install in their coaches. It costs them more than say...Winnebago. The economy is slowing, we're in a trade war with China. How long can Newmar compete?

No one knows what's going to happen, despite all the wild predictions. But chances are, it won't be all good or all bad and it probably won't be nearly as bad as predicted by some. And as I've said before, nothing changed. The future was unpredictable prior to the sale. Newmar might have gone under in five years due to the economy. They might have sold out of desperation to REV. Who knows?

This isn't new uncertainty, it's different uncertainty. But Winnie isn't going bankrupt tomorrow and Grand Design didn't go to the dogs and might be a better, bigger and stronger company because they sold to Winnie.

If Newmar changes for the worse, I can't stop it so I'm choosing not to worry about it. Buying a Tiffin simply because Newmar might go down hill someday is a bit short sighted. For all you know, Tiffin is in talks with Warren Buffet right now.