looking to begin the process of buying an AS.........any thoughts or opinions on dealers throughout So Cal? Good, bad and the ugly...thanks
The closest dealer to you is South West Coaches in Irvine, right off I5 and sand canyon at Travel Land. The service dept there is so so. The next closest is California RV in Fontana, again the service dept is so so. Either dealer is good from a buying standpoint, it will depend on the salesperson to some degree. Don't be affraid to look at all of the dealers within 1000 miles or so, at least for the unit you want and compare pricing. Remember, Airstreams are basically hand built, some better than others, I would not buy site unseen. Both local dealers have plenty of inventory to get your feet wet as far as getting a feel for the models and options.
Number one tip....read the forum, do your research, and take your time, and spend a lot of time looking and sitting in the different models. The forum can also help answer all the questions about other needs such as the proper tow vehicle.
Good luck.
__________________ Travel is in my blood, adventure is my passport, aluminum is my favorite construction medium, and therefore, an Airstream was my destiny.
We found our AS, a 27FBSE at Southwest Coaches in Traveland, located just of the 5 Freeway and Sandcanyon.
They have a pretty good selection to chose from and they will deal a little, the service department is just OK, we did have a few things to fix after our fist trip and they did take care of them.
We love our trailer and the great friends we have made, if you get one come to a CALIFORNIA STREAMERS rally, most of the rallys are with in 2 hours drive, good luck.
Along with those mentioned is also Skyriver RV in paso Robles.
It really does not matter where you buy as all the local Service Depts are so so.
So what to do about service? most folks go to C&G in Bellflower which is an Airstream service center. They don't sell trailers they just fix them under warranty. After warranty you can keep going there or to Inland RV which does not do sales either. Both places know their Airstreams and have qualified techs. It's just which one you prefer.
So buy as low as you can and don't worry about their service Dept.
Let this be your invitation to all Calstreamers events too. No membership, rules or dues. Kids and pets welcome.
We bought our '07 at SouthWest Coaches in Irvine. We followed the advice of many on the forum and shopped the entirety of California as well as some dealers in nearby states. We got the best deal from our local dealer in Irvine. Plus, they had exactly what we wanted in stock. It was soooo nice to just drive ten miles to pick up our new baby! But like others say, shop around for the best deal, and don't be afraid to drive to it if you have to. Look at that as a great reason for your first Airstream vacation!
We have positive things to say about the sales experience we had in Irvine.
We also bought at Southwest Coaches in Irvine. They had the model/style we wanted in stock. We probably didn't negotiate as much as we could/should have - but the overall purchase experience was fine. We have not used them for any servicing. As I recall they suggested taking the trailer to C&G in Bellflower.
Re: Sky River in Paso Robles - we've driven by and stopped in once - since moving up from LA to Santa Barbara. The last time we drove by we did not see any Airstreams on the lot - and their website only has one AS Trailer that I could find (Basecamp) - but a few AS Mohos. I would be interested to hear if anyone knows the scoop on Sky River, are they getting out of the AS Trailer biz?
Now that we are up in Santa Barbara, we are looking for closer sevice centers than Bellflower - maybe Ventura?
I live within 1 mile of Sky River.
Their inventory fluctuates with the season. They allow the A/S inventory to drop to zero or near so toward the end of the year. They currently have a number of them.
They have a pretty good sales staff over-all. You can occasionally talk to the "new guy" who really doesn't know his A/S from SOB. Talk to Mr McDaniels.
I haven't had any service work done and can't really comment on that - other than to say that I've heard that they are OK.
Dave
We purchased our A/S at Southwest Coaches. Decent experience in purchasing. However, their service department, especially the service writer(I forget her name) was horrible. To spend upwards of 50-60k on a trailer and be treated like you really don't matter is unacceptable. Actually, it's unacceptable no matter how much or how little you spend. The service that was supposed to be done was not done when it was supposed to be. This was discovered after driving an hour and a half to pick it up. I remember standing there in the sales office while the service writer actually raised her voice telling us to take our trailer and never bring it back to her service department again. Instead of apologizing for the miscommunication or lack there of. All the while the manager of the establishment stood there listening on, doing nothing. We left with our trailer, completely shocked and beyond mad. I will never recommend them to anyone. We now have our trailer serviced at C & G. They're wonderful to deal with.
We have had service at C & G as well as the Airstream Factory Service Center in Jackson Center, Ohio. Ohio is a bit of a drive, but there is no better service for an Airstream than Jackson Center. I mean no disrespect to Rod at C & G, they do fine work and are great people.
__________________ Travel is in my blood, adventure is my passport, aluminum is my favorite construction medium, and therefore, an Airstream was my destiny.
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