FCCC Launches Success Center for Dealerships

Freightliner Custom Chassis Corporation (FCCC) launched a new initiative to further support the RV dealer network with timely company and product information, according to a press release.

The Success Center, an online Learning Management System (LMS) unveiled at this week’s 49th Annual National RV Trade Show in Louisville, Ky., allows registered users to access FCCC sales and service training, expert advice and virtual learning opportunities from any computer.

The Success Center provides members with a tailored educational experience based on their profile information and areas of experience. Members will have access to RV product information, sales and service training, industry news, promotions, events and service center locations. And an “Ask the Expert” section will allow dealers and service technicians to directly seek answers from qualified FCCC personnel to questions about the RV chassis.

FCCC said that depending on the member’s profile, the Success Center might point to sales tips, promote a virtual interactive tour of an FCCC chassis or recommend specific courses from its catalog.

“The FCCC Success Center LMS will offer invaluable information and training possibilities to the RV dealer and service network,” said Jonathan Randall, FCCC director of sales and marketing. “The Success Center provides another resource for them to better meet customer needs, while also keeping them up to date with the most current information about our products, services and the industry in general.”

Professional development through the Success Center also meshes with FCCC’s Driving Success rewards program. Driving Success allows enrolled salespeople who sell motorhomes on FCCC chassis to earn points which can be cashed in for awards such as merchandise, travel and event tickets. Users earn points for taking courses through the Success Center that can then be redeemed through Driving Success.

 

FCCC, Enova Promote EV for Commercial Fleets

Freightliner Custom Chassis Corp. (FCCC) and Enova Systems Inc., a leading developer of proprietary hybrid-electric and all-electric drive systems and drive system components for the emerging green commercial vehicle market, today (Nov. 16) launched a program to make electric vehicles more accessible to commercial fleets.

The Green for Free program allows fleet executives to purchase all-electric vehicles for the cost of a diesel-powered commercial vehicle. The savings fleets incur from the reduced maintenance and fuel savings of the electric vehicles (EVs) is then used over a period of time to cover the incremental expense for the technology.

The “Green for Free” program will utilize the FCCC All-Electric Walk-in Van (WIV) chassis powered by the Enova drive system. Fleets with set routes in pickup and delivery applications are ideal for the Green for Free program because they have predictable drive routes and return each night to the company depot. FCCC is already well-established in the market and can provide immediate volume, which is required to reduce high-cost components, such as batteries. Additionally, the project looks to focus on disciplined duty cycles, utilizing 80% of the battery daily, versus design for extended range.

“FCCC and Enova recognize that the ‘Green For Free’ program is necessary in order to make all-electric vehicles more affordable, and therefore more accessible, to fleets,” said Bob Harbin, FCCC president. “We want to help those fleets interested in reducing their energy consumption and environmental impact by enabling them to purchase more alternative-fuel vehicles at one time because of the reduced upfront costs.”

Enova and FCCC developed an integration method for both new and retrofit applications. FCCC’s all-electric chassis is built upon the FCCC MT-45 chassis — known for its durability and GVWR of 14,000 to 19,500 lbs. — which is capable of handling heavy payloads. FCCC maintains a dominant market share in the WIV chassis market, which it expects to continue to expand.

FCCC and Enova plan to deploy a total of 3,000 alternative-fuel vehicles within a two-year time frame beginning no later than the third quarter 2012 as a result of the ‘Green for Free’ program.

 

Freightliner to Show New Platform in Louisville

Freightliner Custom Chassis Corp., Gaffney, S.C., will be introducing a new RV chassis and powertrain during the Nov. 29-Dec.2 National RV Trade Show in Louisville, Ky.

According to a press release, the exclusive chassis will “broaden FCCC’s industry-leading RV product lineup, ensuring that FCCC chassis can meet the needs of every customer.”

The company will hold and unveiling for media on Tuesday in the FCCC booth No. 2024 at 9:30 a.m. Bob Harbin, FCCC president and CEO, Tony Sippel, FCCC RV product manager and a guest speaker will speak during the event.

In the release, Freightliner stated: “Through the constant advancement of new chassis technologies, the RV industry presents an ever-developing landscape. And Freightliner, committed to innovation, driver comfort, maneuverability and reliability, has a reputation for continuing to deliver technology that sets the bar in the RV industry.”

 

Freightliner to Debut High-Horsepower Chassis

Freightliner Custom Chassis Corp. (FCCC), Gaffney, S.C., will introduce a high-end tag-axle chassis with an engine new to the RV industry at the 49th Annual National RV Trade Show in Louisville, Ky.

”It’s going to be a high-horsepower chassis,” said Jonathan Randall, FCCC director of sales and marketing. ”It is going to be for high-end Class A coaches with a powertrain (engine) that people will be familiar with in the bus business or shell conversions.”

While declining to go too much into detail, Randall said the diesel-pusher platform will have a 54,000-pound GVWR, matching the highest rating of any of its current chassis, and it will be equipped with a 13-liter engine. A 16-liter version with higher GVWR already is in the planning stages, he said.

Currently, the highest-rated engine offered on a Freightliner tag-axle chassis is a Cummins ISL with 450 hp.

Also at the show, the Daimler Trucks North America LLC subsidiary expects to see more Class A pushers in 34-foot range built on Freightliner XC straight-rail chassis. ”It’s not really new, other than the straight-rail business had been pretty dead,” he said. ”But some manufactures are moving to down-sized pushers.”

 

FCCC Earns Daimler’s Premier Lean Mfg. Honor

Freightliner Custom Chassis Corp. (FCCC) earned top honors from parent company Daimler AG, which recently chose the Gaffney, S.C.-based company as its global leader in the human infrastructure component of its lean manufacturing processes.

FCCC won the award for great strides made during the past two years against key performance indicators (KPIs) in areas such as product quality, labor efficiency, environmental impact and lead time, according to a news release. Each of those accomplishments is central to the Truck Operating System employed by Daimler Trucks within all of its plants.

FCCC achieved that progress despite facing a challenging industry environment shaped by changes in heavy-duty emissions regulations.

FCCC manufactures premium chassis for the motorhome, delivery walk-in van, and school bus and shuttle bus markets.

“The global recognition of FCCC’s lean manufacturing processes and our team’s efforts reflects our commitment to improvement, and our desire to serve our customers more efficiently and effectively,” said Bob Harbin, FCCC president. “And by utilizing what we learned in competing for the award with Daimler plants around the globe, we’re sharpening our lean manufacturing skills even further, ultimately improving the high-quality, durable and reliable products our customers expect.”

With roots in the 1960s, lean manufacturing centers on the notion that customers should only pay for steps toward the making of a product or the delivery of a service, and that the producers should shoulder any other associated costs. To that end, lean manufacturing improvements are categorized into five “pillars” of the effort: human infrastructure, standardization, quality focus & robust processes, just-in-time, and continuous improvement.

Daimler AG awards just one top honor for all of its companies in each of those areas.

The human infrastructure component encompasses all policy deployment processes within a lean manufacturing facility, which FCCC addressed by coupling goal-setting concepts with problem-solving tools.

Some of the notable successes which garnered the Daimler award for FCCC were a:

• 55% improvement on delivery days.
• 11.4% improvement in direct labor efficiency.
• 45%;  improvement on 30-day in-service claims.
• 39.5% improvement in environmental impact.

In fact, the FCCC manufacturing plant’s October 2009 achievement of its Zero Waste to Landfill initiative, which eliminated solid waste throughout the facility, marked a major milestone on several fronts.

FCCC became the first chassis manufacturer and first company within the trucking industry to achieve Zero Waste to Landfill status in the United States, achieving its goal three months ahead of schedule.

FCCC’s Zero Waste to Landfill program and comprehensive recycling efforts resulted in elimination of solid waste disposal throughout its entire facility. Joining an elite group of solid waste-free manufacturing facilities in the United States, FCCC went from disposing 250,000 pounds per month of solid waste in January 2007 to disposing zero pounds by October 2009.

The FCCC facility recycles materials such as plastic, paper, aluminum, cardboard, metals, wood and nylon. The company’s commitment to clean air technologies is in line with its parent company, Daimler AG’s global initiative called “Shaping Future Transportation.” Launched by Daimler in November 2007 in Stuttgart, Germany, the initiative is focused on reducing category emissions pollutants, carbon dioxide and fuel consumption.

Despite winning the award from Daimler, FCCC executives are determined to continue to seek quality and process improvements to improve ROI for customers.

“Even though we’ve been recognized by Daimler, we’ll continue to take strides to better understand what our customers value and how we can implement that into our processes to give them the best product at a competitive price,” FCCC Operating Unit Manager Joe Bradshaw said.

Freightliner Grows 24/7 Factory-Direct Service

Already the only chassis manufacturer to offer 24/7 factory-direct support of its motorcoaches, Freightliner  Custom Chassis Corp. (FCCC) is expanding its service with a powerful resource that customers can fit into their pockets.

Launched in early 2011, FCCC’s 24/7 Direct initiative created a constantly available, easily accessible network with the goal of providing customers the best possible assistance and answers to even the most complex chassis issues, according to a news release.

The new 24/7 Direct service cards are being mailed this month to all purchasers of new motorcoaches built on an FCCC chassis dating back to Jan. 1, 2011. They’re printed with key support contact information and the customer Vehicle Identification Number to serve as a valuable quick reference, and an embedded USB flash drive makes the card a virtual library of chassis data.

By simply flipping the drive out from one end of the card and plugging it into a computer, a customer gains access to a wealth of information including warranties, maintenance schedules, EPA 2010 emission technology featuring selective catalytic reduction (SCR), vendor categories, website links and entire user manuals. Plus, with a gigabyte of memory on board, there’s plenty of room for additional downloads and updates, enabling customers to utilize the USB for personal storage.

“FCCC wanted to develop a resource that would enable our customers to easily access all of the essential information they need about their chassis,” said Dave Hoover, senior manager of customer support at FCCC. “The 24/7 Direct card and USB drive is compact, but it contains volumes of information that will be important to our customers.

“This is just another example of FCCC’s commitment to our customers and furthers our ‘Driven By You’ mission. And with our around-the-clock direct access to FCCC chassis experts, the 24/7 Direct program offers an unparalleled support system, no matter where our customers are on North America’s roads.”

FCCC’s customer assistance phone line (1-800-FTL-HELP) is staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week by a team of well-qualified customer service advisors who all have hands-on plant experience and boast an average experience level of 16 years. To complement their expertise, on-the-ground support can be found at more than 400 FCCC service locations in North America. More than 90 of those locations are also part of the Freightliner Oasis Network, a group of dealerships across the country dedicated to serving FCCC RV customers.

The Freightliner Oasis Network is specifically tailored to the RV customer. Each service location has specially trained RV service technicians, separate bays for RV service, secure parking for RV customers and additional amenities specifically for RV owners.

FCCC manufactures premium chassis for the motorhome, delivery walk-in van and school bus and shuttle bus markets. FCCC is a subsidiary of Daimler Trucks North America LLC, a Daimler company.

Visit the FCCC website at www.freightlinerchassis.com for additional FCCC news and product information.

Newmar Management Plans New Road Tour

Newmar Corp. announced today (April 5) that the four members of their management team that toured the country last year are “hitting the road” again in 2011.

Newmar President Matthew Miller, Chairman and CEO Richard Parks, owner Mahlon Miller and Vice President of Sales and Marketing John Sammut (shown from left in photo), accompanied by their spouses, will travel nearly 5,000 miles starting on May 31 through 14 Eastern states, according to a news release.

Along the way, these four members of the company’s management team will visit 12 dealers and one of Newmar’s largest suppliers, Freightliner Custom Chassis Corp. (FCCC) in Gaffney, S.C. The trip will also include the executives spending a week attending Newmar’s Kountry Klub International Rally in Essex Junction, Vt., in their motorhomes, where they will RV alongside several hundred owners of Newmar recreational vehicles.

This year’s “Go Newmar” Road Show is being sponsored by FCCC. All four Newmar motorhomes being driven by the traveling team are built exclusively on Freightliner chassis with Comfort Drive Steering. The four Newmar products represented in the fleet are Ventana LE, Ventana, Dutch Star and Mountain Aire brands.

The RV dealers being visited during the tour are:

• Mt. Comfort RV – Greenfield, Ind.
• Buddy Gregg Motor Homes – Knoxville, Tenn.
• Tom Johnson Camping Center – Marion, N.C.
• Adventure RV – Greer, S.C.
• Terry Labonte RV – Greensboro, N.C.
• Dick Gore RV World – Jacksonville, Fla.
• Independence RV – Winter Garden, Fla.
• North Trail RV – Dania Beach, Fla.
• Beckley’s Camping Center – Thurmont, Md.
• Tom Schaeffer RV – Shoemakersville, Pa.
• Dave’s RV – Danbury, Conn.
• Wilkins RV – Bath, N.Y.

More information to follow on the “Go Newmar” Road Show including a travel schedule will be posted at a later date on www.newmarcorp.com and www.facebook.com/gonewmar.

Independence RV Hosts ‘Ask the RV Experts’

Independence RV, a dealership in Winter Garden, Fla., will host a series of information gathering seminars and one-on-one sessions for first-time and full-time RVers Jan. 27-30.

The free, four-day “Ask The RV Experts” event will feature RV manufacturer representatives for approximately 30 RV-related products and accessories, according to a news release. The RV industry information exchange will be held at Independence RV. The setting will be casual and relaxed with plenty of question and answer sessions to expand RV product and accessory knowledge leading to better purchasing decisions and an enhanced RV lifestyle.

Newmar Corp. will have representatives available from its Nappanee, Ind., headquarters to discuss new product line features and amenities in the 2011 model year for Bay Star, Canyon Star, Ventana, Dutch Star and Mountain Aire motorhomes. Representatives from Newmar’s exclusive chassis manufacturer, Freightliner Custom Chassis Corp., will be on-site to answer the important questions related to chassis development and manufacturing. Freightliner will address the latest 2010 emissions standards issues and why “Simple, Clean, Reliable (SCR) technology is the preferred method over Exhaust Gas Recirculation (EGR), and what it means to the RV owner and the vehicle’s horsepower.

The “Ask The RV Experts” seminars are appropriate for the first-time RVer to the full-time RV enthusiast.  ”Seminar topics will include Winegard RV antennas and interfacing with DirecTV, tow bar vs. tow dolly – which is the safer and more cost effective? What’s the latest in tow braking technology? Learn about the newest development in RV power steering as Newmar representatives discuss its exclusive Comfort Drive Steering System. The latest in awning material and design technology will be demonstrated showing the simplicity and ease of extension and retraction of these sun shielding devices. The dirty business of holding tank systems and technology will be cleared up with one simple seminar,” the release stated.

“This is RV show season and most fairgrounds are overrun with RV attendees who may not feel they can have the undivided attention of RV industry experts to ask their important questions,” said Chuck Simpson, general manager of Independence RV. “An event like the ‘Ask The RV Experts’ will provide a relaxed and unhurried environment conducive to learning more about the RV lifestyle.”

Free seminars will be held daily beginning at 11 a.m. and concluding at 4 p.m. Representatives for all manufacturers will be on hand for one-on-one question-and-answer interaction. Freightliner Custom Chassis will provide complimentary hot dogs and soft drinks each day of the event.

Independence RV with over 25 years of serving Central Florida’s RVing needs is located at 12705 W. Colonial Drive in Winter Garden.  All 2011 Newmar motorhomes are in-stock and will be on display from 8:30 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. Monday – Friday, and 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. For more information, call (407) 877-7878.

The schedule of “Ask The RV Experts” informational seminars follows:

Thursday, Jan. 27

• Dave Garl,  9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Newmar Product Line Q&A.
• Jeremy Buckmeier,  9 a.m. to 5 p.m.,  Freightliner Chassis Q & A.
• Chris Crawford,  11 a.m., Winegard Antenna and RV Satellite TV.
• Chris Crawford,  3 p.m., Sani-Con Holding Tank Systems.

Friday, Jan. 28

• Dave Garl,  9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Newmar Product Line Q & A.
• Jeremy Buckmeier,  9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Freightliner Chassis Q & A.
• David Jones,  11 a.m., Tow Bars vs. Tow Dolly.
• Chris Crawford, 1 p.m., Winegard Antenna and RV Satellite TV.
• Doug Ralston,  3 p.m., Tow Bars/Tow Braking/Tire Minders.

Saturday, Jan. 29

• Dave Garl,  9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Newmar Product Line Q & A.
• Jeremy Buckmeier,  9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Freightliner Chassis Q & A.
• David Jones,  11 a.m., Carefree Pioneer Awning.
• Chris Crawford,  1 p.m., Sani-Con Holding Tank Systems.
• Doug Ralston,  3 p.m., Tow Bars/Tow Braking/Tire Minders.

Sunday, Jan. 30

• Chris Crawford, 11 a.m., Winegard Antenna and RV Satellite TV.
• Chris Crawford,  3 p.m., Sani-Con Holding Tank Systems.

FMCA Convention Drew 2,000-Plus Coaches

“We’re here for several reasons,” Alex noted after exiting the Tiffin Motor Homes manufacturer’s display. “We wanted to see what’s going on in the industry — but, most importantly from an educational standpoint, to visit the displays and see the latest in engines and electronics … it (Redmond) has a little bit of everything.” And, while the first-time visitors to the convention hadn’t considered upgrading their luxury coach prior to the event, Alex did note that “we may change our minds. Right now, we’re looking at an Allegro bus.”

According to Jerry Yeatts, FMCA event director, the Alexanders’ upbeat attitude personified the 84th convention, which also was highlighted by the public debut of the new Vesta motorhome from Monaco RV LLC and the West Coast introduction of the Insignia from Jayco’s Entegra Coach division.

“We had a little over 2,000 families there, and about 200 coaches on display,” he said. “Compared to the last time we were here, it was probably comparable, numbers-wise — but as far as attitude and enthusiasm, it was amazing. The members were probably in their best mood we’ve seen in quite a while. Seems like sales were up, spirits were up, and overall it was a great convention.”

It also apparently was quite successful for a number of exhibitors. “One OEM said that the higher-end coaches they brought were sold,” Yeatts said. “Another dealer who brought in 11 coaches sold six.”

Shannon Nill, general manager of Guaranty RV, Junction City, Ore., echoed Yeatts’ assessment on the overall atmosphere of the program. “We sold 18 RVs at the Redmond rally, about evenly distributed between new and used,” Nill noted, out of about 75 units the dealership supplied to several displays including Monaco, Newmar Corp. and Roadtrek Motorhomes Inc. “Beyond the sales, however, one huge point was that the mood of the customer was really strong compared to last year’s rally. People were eager to RV. The gatherings of this kind after a slowdown are even more important than normal.”

This year marked the fourth time FMCA has held a convention at the Redmond fairgrounds, but was the first time the association kicked off the event with a Wednesday “preview” day. Gates opened at 5 p.m. on “hump day” for touring outdoor manufacturer displays, followed by access only to indoor exhibits Thursday morning. All displays became accessible at noon and thereafter.

“We really didn’t receive any comments concerning shifting the pattern,” Yeatts said. “The gate on Wednesday was greater than normal, but we don’t know if that’s attributable to starting later in the week, or later in the day.”

The Vesta, introduced to dealers two weeks prior to the Redmond convention, immediately attracted quite a bit of attention from rally attendees due to its unique aerodynamic styling.

“We’ve had a lot of customers come up to us that hadn’t really considered a Class A before just because of the size,” said Ryan Lee, marketing director for the Coburg, Ore., manufacturer. “They take a look at this, with the sleek design, and see that it’s really easy from an ergonomic standpoint to sit up there in the driver’s seat and drive that coach.”

Built on a proprietary 26,000-pound GVWR Monaco Roadmaster chassis and designed in conjunction with wind-tunnel testing, the single-slide 32-foot Vesta (a 35-foot floorplan also is planned) features a sloping front fascia, low center of gravity and tapered rear section. MSRP for the 32-foot coach is $195,000-$200,000.

“It’s pretty striking,” Lee said of the styling. “One of the things that we’re trying to do at Monaco is that, when a coach rolls down the road we want people to know it’s a Monaco; we want people to know it’s a Holiday Rambler (Monaco’s sister division). And this type of styling is going to get us there.”

Along with the Vesta, Monaco also brought several models with fresh 2011 floorplans to Redmond. “We’re showing our first 2011 Dynasty and Camalot here at the show,” noted Mike Snell, senior vice president of sales and product development for Monaco. “The Dynasty has a 500hp engine, and we’ve changed the paint scheme and have really upgraded the interiors. On the Camelot, we did the same: changed the front facia, the backsplash, put in a ceiling insert in the living room — we really dressed up the inside. We also have our slide-in-a-slide Diplomat here. We had the slide-in-a-slide in the Dynasty, and we added it to the Diplomat, which is a 43-footer.”

The Entegra Insignia, which debuted almost simultaneously at Affinity Group’s The Rally, July 22-25, at Louisville’s Kentucky Exposition Center and Redmond, is the Jayco division’s “entry-level” coach for the high-end Entegra line. Built on a 32,400-pound GVWR Freightliner XCR chassis powered by a 360-hp Cummins ISB diesel engine, the $265,000 MSRP Insignia features heated-and-enclosed holding tanks, frameless flush-mounted slideout rooms, gel goat fiberglass sidewalls and a steel-reinforced front cap and windshield frame plus interiors sporting glazed maple hardwood cabinets and leather hide-a-bed sofas.

Yet another new unit drawing a crowd was the 2011 model from Newell Coach Corp. Upgrades to the 2011 welded-steel-and-aluminum Newell motorcoaches — the first since the 2006 model year — include upgraded front caps with bright-white “string-of-pearl” LED running lights that outline the outer edges of the headlights, plus rear-body trim and redesigned side moldings. Interiors feature wood windowsill trim bordered with seamed leather, carbon-fiber instrument panels and automated air conditioning and heating.

The upbeat atmosphere at Redmond was, in the view of many dealers staffing the manufacturer exhibits, a reflection of a more optimistic viewpoint already noted at their respective dealerships.

Brian Kehoe, a sales consultant for Sandy, Ore.-based Johnson RV Sales who was manning the Entegra display, noted that the dealership “has experienced four months consecutive of record sales for the company. It’s been fantastic. All the way through, from the B class, C class, Class A gas and diesel units.” The dealership, site of the former Fred’s RV, opened under the Johnson RV Sales umbrella last year and features 12 service bays and three buildings — including an indoor showroom — on seven acres.

At the Tiffin exhibit, Rick Neat, a salesman from RV Corral, Eugene, Ore., one of three dealerships providing coaches for the display, called August “the best month in two years.

“There’s more business out there,” following the shuttering of dealers and OEMs alike during the recession, he said, adding that consumer credit is likewise on an uptick. “On the big money, it’s starting to ease up a bit. A lot of people are going to credit unions now, which are getting a lot more flexible than they were in the past.”

Mike Alverez, with All Seasons RV, Bend, Ore., concurred. “Our banks have loosened up,” he said at the Winnebago Industries Inc. exhibit. “They’ve changed on how they are financing. They are looking at people in a better light, where before it was tough to get financing accomplished. The other thing, too, is that GE, our flooring company, has backed off; they are letting us get product in here, and we’re making the turns we need to make to keep it going.”

Along with new coach designs and features, Redmond also was one of the first consumer shows to feature motorhomes fitted with new 2010 EPA emissions-compliant engines, and several exhibitors — including Gaffney, S.C.-based Freightliner Custom Chassis Corp. and Spartan Chassis, Charlotte, Mich. — fielded questions from consumers and dealership personnel somewhat confused about the technical merits of the two competing drive systems developed to meet the EPA criteria. Cummins Inc. utilizes an aftermarket treatment system, while Navistar’s new MaxxForce engines employ Advanced EGR technology.

Oregon’s FMCA Convention Now Underway

The inside of the 2011 Itasca Ellipse motorhome on display this week in Redmond, Ore., looks like a living room.

On one wall, the coach has a sectional sofa and coffee table. A ceramic tile floor with granite inserts extends down the middle, and against the opposite wall sits a fireplace, lounge chair and computer desk.

“Looks like a small condo,” Mark McLaughlin, product trainer for Winnebago Industries Inc., which makes the Itasca line, told The Bulletin, Bend, Ore.

The layout on display at the Deschutes County Fair & Expo Center used the added space provided by the slideouts, the RV sections that pop out when it’s parked. As outfitted, it costs close to $345,000, said McLaughlin.

The 2011 Ellipse, new models from Monaco RV LLC, Entegra Coach and other manufacturers and motorhomes belonging to members of the Family Motor Coach Association (FMCA) were among the expected 2,000 RVs filling the fairgrounds for the association’s annual convention.

It’s the fourth time the convention, which officially began Wednesday (Aug. 11) , has been held at the fairgrounds since 2001, and it’s expected to draw more than 6,000 people.

In the three years between this year’s show and the last convention in Redmond in 2007, the motorhome industry has traveled through tremendous turmoil, along with nearly every other industry.

From 2006 to 2009, shipments of all recreational vehicles fell about 58%, according to figures from the Recreation Vehicle Industry Association (RVIA).

In 2009, four manufacturers — Rexhall Industries Inc., Country Coach LLC, Monaco Coach Corp. and Fleetwood Enterprises Inc. — filed for bankruptcy.

Coburg-based Monaco, which owns the Beaver coach line once made in Bend, was acquired by Navistar International Corp. the same year, and is now Monaco RV LLC.

Through June of this year, however, production has been increasing, according to the RV association, and officials from motorcoach manufacturers and dealers expressed guarded optimism Wednesday at the convention.

New models, accessories and components were scheduled to be in the spotlight Wednesday night and today. FMCA members, however, also have many seminars, sightseeing tours and opportunities for socializing throughout the four-day event.

Some manufacturers featured new slimmed down, higher-mileage models, while others mentioned the certified green factories where their vehicles are made, and nearly all will be touting emissions-reducing technology that will help diesel-powered motor coaches meet new federal emissions regulations.

Monaco has its newest model, the Vesta, on display. Monaco and Navistar jointly developed the vehicle, which they unveiled July 29. The motorcoach is supposed to get 15 to 18 mpg, according to comments company officials made to RVBusiness magazine.

The Vesta, which will be made in 32- and 35-foot models, comes with cherry wood cabinetry, marblelike countertops and other high-end details usually only found in the larger coaches, said Pat Fraser, of Paul Evert’s RV Country, in Fresno, Calif.

“To get this kind of luxury, you usually have to go to a larger vehicle,” Fraser said.

Entegra’s Anthem 42-foot motorcoach has those details and more. It has 1 1/2 bathrooms, a full-size Whirlpool refrigerator, separate, stackable washer and dryer, a cedar-lined closet and four flat-screen televisions, one of which is on the exterior of the RV.

It’s located under a flip-up panel, part of an entertainment center that includes a stereo, speakers and, of course, the remote.

One of the newest features for many of the motorhomes is mostly hidden.

New U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) emissions guidelines call for reduced diesel-engine emissions, and different manufacturers meet them in different ways.

The system Freightliner Custom Chassis Corp. has on display at the fairgrounds uses a catalytic-converter-like system that reduces vehicle emissions to only nitrogen and water, according to the company’s literature.

“It’s actually cleaner going out,” said Ken Nisley, of coach-maker Newmar, referring to the emissions, “than the air going in.”

The rally concludes Saturday.

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