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Protagonist · 11-28-2014, 06:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by zigzagguzzi

How does one tell an Interstate from any of the many more numerous sprinter class b mh on the road?

Which is exactly what I meant when I said they're not iconic. But personally, I like the fact that the Airstream logos on an Interstate are discrete. It's a lot better than the ugly swirly graphics on a Winnebago Era!

Lily&Me · 11-28-2014, 06:46 AM

Mine has AIRSTREAM in bold letters across the top front, and I like that.

Sprinter delivery vans tend to not have the rooftop AC, which is the first thing I look for. Other than that, they all look pretty much alike from a distance.

I think some silhouette items would be nice, and would sell well.

Maggie

Protagonist · 11-28-2014, 07:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lily&Me

Sprinter delivery vans tend to not have the rooftop AC, which is the first thing I look for. Other than that, they all look pretty much alike from a distance.

The awning is the visible feature that best says "Sprinter RV" to me. There are some Sprinter passenger vans around New Orleans, that have the rooftop AC and big tinted windows, but they don't have an awning.

LizabethLane · 11-28-2014, 11:15 AM

I looked and looked through the online offerings and settled on collars and leashes for the dogs. We had a bunch of people over for Thanksgiving. Our driveway is not very big and the Interstate was parked right there. Someone reached down to pet the dog saw the collar and said "Oh, do you own an airstream?". This from the person who parked directly in front of it. Oh well.

InterBlog · 11-28-2014, 07:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by X New Yorker

Anyone else feeling like a forgotten stepchild? Being a new Interstate owner (5 days) I'm a tad disappointed. Is this how Airstream feels about "us"? Did I miss something? Thoughts?

Welcome to the world of M.Y.O.M.!! Make Your Own Merchandise!!

I felt a bit like that when I went looking for a holiday ornament that could convincingly be associated with our Interstate. Our tree is not a conventional "Christmas" tree - it's a memory tree. Each year one ornament is added representing some memory from that year (e.g., a dog in a Santa hat the year we brought our dog home from the shelter, indigenous handcrafted ornaments from places we travel to, etc).

2014 was definitely the Year of the Interstate, but what did I find when I went looking?? Fifty thousand Airstream TRAILER ornaments and nothing else!!!

So I made an Interstate ornament of my own. Walgreens, Snapchat, any of those outlets will do it. I photoshopped the hat and date onto the digital image before uploading it to the online order form. Et voila!!! What to get for the Interstate owner who has, well, nothing to choose from!!

InterBlog · 11-28-2014, 07:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lily&Me

Mine has AIRSTREAM in bold letters across the top front, and I like that.

...

Maggie

Maggie, I have a theory that our older vehicles will one day be more valuable for exactly that reason. As others have noted, the Airstream aesthetic has been seriously diluted over the years, to the point where you have to be Sherlock Holmes to deduce at even a moderate distance whether you're looking at a genuine AI or just a cargo Sprinter hauling four hundred toilet seats. One day, people are going to be saying, "They only made a very small number of them that bore the true Airstream logo" and that's going to mean something from a valuation standpoint. This is my prediction. My husband doesn't necessarily agree with me when I tell him that the vehicle is partly for present-day fun but let's keep it in decent shape because it's partly an investment also.

InterBlog · 11-28-2014, 07:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Protagonist

Which is exactly what I meant when I said they're not iconic. But personally, I like the fact that the Airstream logos on an Interstate are discrete. It's a lot better than the ugly swirly graphics on a Winnebago Era!

Yes, but there's a happy medium between a Sprinter derivative that looks like a swirling toilet bowl and a monolith with wheels that looks like... a monolith with wheels.

In protest of the non-iconic status of the Interstate, I invite everyone with a Google account to comment on this home-made video set to Gomez's "Airstream Driver" which is linked below.

For crying out loud - he wrote a song called "Airstream DRIVER" - he didn't write "Airstream HAULER". And yet almost every image in this video is of something being hauled, not driven. And no images of the Interstate at all. I logged my protest accordingly, just to say I did.

"All the angels on the wire
Getting dizzy from the heights
Go carefully, carefully
Oh, Airstream driver

She shoots but never misses
Stare down passin' traffic
Go carefully, carefully
Oh, Airstream driver"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Y-0jQMVo1w

m.hony · 12-01-2014, 09:23 AM

I hadn't noticed until you mentioned it (maybe because I have a trailer) but there isn't much specifically for Interstate owner's. Would you want a T-shirt or tie or mug or cap with a van on it? Not quite the icon a trailer is. The Interstate exists primarily so Airstream as a company can offer a motor home. I wish they still made the Classic motor home or the rumor of GM re-introducing the PD4104 bus was true. Those are iconic. I have some Harley specific clothing. I used to have more Harley clothing. It is just too overpriced. Shipping from the Airstream store is ridiculous, too.

m.hony · 12-01-2014, 09:25 AM

Maybe I would want a T-shirt with a van on it- a tricked out 70's custom hippie van, or a VW bus, or the Scooby Doo Mystery Machine-

LizabethLane · 12-01-2014, 03:52 PM

My two sons and their friends went to the San Francisco Auto Show this weekend. Dan said that the biggest draw was an Airstream Interstate Grand Tour. It had a huge line of people wanting to get in to see it. Maybe there is hope for us.

InterBlog · 12-02-2014, 05:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by m.hony

... The Interstate exists primarily so Airstream as a company can offer a motor home. I wish they still made the Classic motor home or the rumor of GM re-introducing the PD4104 bus was true. Those are iconic. ...

Those things are HUGE (PD4104). Actually I wish someone would re-introduce the classic GMC motorhome (screengrab attached). Those are iconic (most of them are still on the road 40 years after production) and not only that, they look more like Airstreams than the previous Airstream motorhomes ever did. And they are much smaller - closer to the size of an Interstate. My husband and I considered buying a restoration but the opportunities did not align (they have several downsides... 1970's construction, no safety standards, plus they run on gasoline and not very efficiently).

InterBlog · 12-02-2014, 06:15 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LizabethLane

My two sons and their friends went to the San Francisco Auto Show this weekend. Dan said that the biggest draw was an Airstream Interstate Grand Tour. It had a huge line of people wanting to get in to see it. Maybe there is hope for us.

Find an Airstream dealership homepage that does NOT have an Interstate and a trailer side by side, in equal scale, at this point. Some, like Colonial, feature an Interstate PULLING a trailer. The sales presentations are definitely creating the strongest possible associations, but they've got factors working against them.

Part of this lack of awareness relates to the availability factor. I've tried to find information on how many Interstates have actually been produced, but I don't think that information is made public. The propane regulator recall notices covered 552 vehicles from the 2013 and 2014 model years, but it's not clear if that is all that were produced in that period or just a subset (the legal notices imply that's all of them). Well, 250-ish vehicles per year is not many in a country of 316 million people that includes 8.2 million RV owners. It's not a mystery as to why nobody recognizes Interstates.

PPL Texas doesn't have a single Interstate for sale right now, of the 50 Class B's they have listed.

Additionally, Interstates currently lack that all-important pimp-out factor that has helped tremendously to make the trailers iconic. I don't know of a single Interstate owner who is independently raising the profile of the vehicles (there are a few travel bloggers but they are more self-focused - the fact that they are traveling in Interstates is largely incidental). I am the only vehicle-focused blogger that I know of, and I'm just getting started. And I'm not at the same level of design artistry displayed by many of the popular trailer owners (although I hope to incorporate some of that element over time). Turning one's Airstream into an art piece is really important from a public awareness standpoint - more than anything, people respond strongly to pretty pictures. Check out this trailer example:

Peek Inside Our Airstream » Just 5 More Minutes

Protagonist · 12-02-2014, 06:48 AM

I've been wracking my brain trying to think of a single feature that an Airstream Interstate offers that no other competitor does. I can't think of any. The features may be executed a bit differently from one Sprinter-based Class B to another, but for every single feature you can name on an Interstate, there is at least one other competitor that offers the same feature or one so similar as makes no difference.

Maybe the Alcoa aluminum wheels, but that's not something I really pay attention to when I see a Sprinter-based class B, so it's entirely possible other brands use them as well and I just never noticed.

The fact that the Airstream Interstate leads the pack in sales despite the price tag indicates that the total package (despite its faults) is well-received, but there is nothing uniquely Airstream about the Interstate.

Boxster1971 · 12-02-2014, 09:18 AM

Protag- you are right about the Interstate not being that unique and other B-van builders do use the Alcoa wheels. The information I've read says Roadtrek is the B-van sales leader. Interstate is leader of the US builders.

73shark · 12-02-2014, 11:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Boxster1971

Protag- you are right about the Interstate not being that unique and other B-van builders do use the Alcoa wheels.

Any that use the same Alcoa wheel as the Interstate?

AirHog · 12-02-2014, 01:20 PM

No one else have the Airstream logo.

Seriously, my wife and I must have looked (in detail) at least 4 other touring MH brand at least 10 different models prior to pilling the trigger on a Interstate. That included Winn, Pleasure Way, Road Treck and forgot the fourth brand name. Came right back to the Interstate- its the overall thing. They all had things you liked and things that fell short. Yes we are biased towards Airstream- having owned a Airstream trailer for 10 years, but none the less Airstream fit and finish and material used fits our taste and was not going to go to another make primarily for the price.

Best,

Titu

73shark · 12-02-2014, 01:21 PM

The Airstream Store responded to my query re: Interstate stuff. Said she has a few Interstate items in the works and hope to get by Christmas.

xrvr · 12-02-2014, 02:10 PM

Not all AS dealers sell Interstates for one reason or another. No Interstates on their websites.

Boxster1971 · 12-02-2014, 05:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AirHog

No one else have the Airstream logo.

Seriously, my wife and I must have looked (in detail) at least 4 other touring MH brand at least 10 different models prior to pilling the trigger on a Interstate. That included Winn, Pleasure Way, Road Treck and forgot the fourth brand name. Came right back to the Interstate- its the overall thing. They all had things you liked and things that fell short. Yes we are biased towards Airstream- having owned a Airstream trailer for 10 years, but none the less Airstream fit and finish and material used fits our taste and was not going to go to another make primarily for the price.

Best,

Titu

I agree - we went through the same process. What I meant earlier, in agreeing with Protag, was that all B-vans have similar systems and layouts. But I too think the Airstream fit and finish is/was better. But like you we did own a vintage Airstream trailer for about five years before we go the Interstate.

Regarding the Alcoa forged aluminum wheels - they are now standard equipment on the Interstate. But they can be had as optional equipment on any Sprinter 3500 based B-van, even if they have to be a dealer installed option. They are the only high strength aluminum wheel available for the Sprinter 3500. Several B-van builders, like Winnebago and Roadtrek have also recently started offering a chromed steel wheel the looks a lot like the Alcoa's from a distance.

- - Mike
2013 Lounge EXT on 2012 Sprinter

bugsbunny · 12-02-2014, 08:51 PM

I have an older model Interstate - an 2007. One of the things that I really like is the Aluminum wrapped interior. It adds much light bounce and makes it seem roomier. I really struggled with selling our 1986 AS Motorhome due to its Aluminum goodness. I like to think of the Interstate as all aluminum on the inside and that it is "Aluminum at heart". The Aluminum interior coupled with the style of the furniture give it a streamlined feel and add to the roominess. I believe that the Aluminum interior is unique to the Airstream.

Kate