Purchasing New '06 CCD 28

[smaassoc]

We are about to buy one of these and was wondering id anyone can comment on a few things:
1- is the Audio-Video upgrade decent? I figure I could put better equip in myself but don't know about pre-wiring)
2- Some of the new units show two "600w inverters" as options. What exactly is that?
3- What is a good discount to expect? (we seen 79% of retail at 2 dealers, didn't know if that could be improved on) Any particular dealers best on price?
Any comments are appreciated!

[Silvertwinkie]

I've heard they upgraded to a Sony from the old sharp as part of the AV package. Not sure if the cost justifies it or not, but it is better than it was....

As for inverters, they convert DC to AC so if you're in a place without electricity, you can get some basic AC devices to run off your coach batteries.

79% of retail is darn good. That translates to 21% off list. I've heard normally without a trade, folks can get about 19%. On a blowout sale I have seen them as good as 23% off list.

[flyfisher]

Welcome!

I don't know exactly what is included in the audio/visual upgrade, but if you are ordering this trailer from the factory, you may wish to consider asking the factory to do all the prewiring and prep, then buy your own choice of electronic equipment later.

When we orderered our 2004 model an installed flat screen TV was not offered as an option. When it was later offerered as an option on 2005 models, I think the MSRP was something like $1,500. This past summer I bought the exact TV that Airstream offered, and we had the factory install their wall mounting bracket, and we ended up with the same thing as in the Airstream upgrade package for under $800.

I've heard of discounts greater than 20%, but Airstream dealers have wide ranging reputations for service. Some of them flat outright stink! Others are reportedly very good. Unless you plan on fixing everything in your trailer yourself, I'd suggest picking a dealer based on his service reputation rather than price.

Personally, if I could buy a new Airstream from one of Airstream's best dealers that would easily be worth paying 5-10% more. Of course you might just end up buying from one of Airstream's finest, and at a good discount, but I'm not so sure it often works that way.

I don't think a small 600w inverter is going to let you run much of anything, and for my money I would rather invest in a good generator (or 2 Honda EU200i's run in parallel) and have plenty electric to run whatever I wish.

John