Congratulations on your new Safari! You'll have to keep everything pic and span, for all the visitors in very campground wanting to see your new trailer.
We are really looking forward to receiving the AS in early March. We went to an RV show in ABQ this last weekend and toured a few Airstreams. I had never seen the AS trailers with all of their inside lights on, which was necessary at the show because it was held inside of (marginally) heated tents with poor ambient lighting. The lights really make the colors, textures and features stand out.
Congradulations on your new Safari! I remember when we ordered ours. The wait was torture, however, very exciting. We had ours delivered to our house. To see that big silver A/S in our driveway was such a rush. The great thing is that it fits in the driveway in the backyard. So we get to see it everyday! It makes loading up for our monthly trips a breeze. Plus, it's great to just sit in it, staring and admiring how beautiful it is... Have fun!
Back in October of 2003, I too placed an order for my current unit. At that time, only the Classics had the 15k BTU A/C unit as an option, even the 25' Classic. I pressed the factory via the dealer for this to be put on my 25' Safari. No Safaris that I am aware of before my unit had this and I was really questioned by the dealer. I finally told them, that dimensionally, the 25' Classic is no different that the 25' Safari and that the wiring paths and control locations looked similar and that there should be no reason why this would behave differently in a 25' Safari vs a 25' Classic. The dealer (and I think the factory agreed). There were even naysayers here on the forms, saying it would cycle too much, have too much humidity because of the freq cycling, etc. I felt that they were in fact wrong. I took all this into consideration and still went for it. It was something around a $250 upcharge (this was before Airstream added an additional charge for off the menu options to install-- which last I heard was an addtional $500).
Anyway, I love it. It has the Comfort Control System which controls both the furnace and the A/C and the unit has a heat pump for those not so cold night where the A/C unit actually runs a a heater (not a simple heat strip). It can work automatically between heat and cool and the added cooling is excellent. I have been in direct sunlight, well into the 90s outside, and could hang meat in the RV if I wanted to. I could not say that with by 19' Bambi's 11k unit, nor could most folks I spoke with do it with their 13,500BTU units with RVs of similar size and larger. The unit does NOT cycle too much, does NOT have too much humidity and unlike my old 11k unit on my Bambi, it actually turns completely off when the desired temp is reached.
I would IMPLORE anyone that is ordering a unit of 25' or longer (regardless of model--Classic, Safari, SE, CCD, ETC), to consider this upgrade. Not only for the reasons I've already stated, but here is one other good reason.
About a year or so ago, I was looking at the 31' Classic dinette model as a possible upgrade. I found a good price on one on a dealer lot, but it only had the 13,500k BTU A/C unit. So, I emailed the factory about how much it would cost to remove and replace with a 15k unit if I brought it to them. They came back with a price of about $1600 to take out the 13.5k unit and install the 15k unit.
Today, as has been pointed out, many units now come from the factory with the 15k unit, no matter which model based on dealer ordering. The 15k Penguin that I have, and that I think they still use, is a workhorse that has met or in most cases exceeded my expectations. IMHO, the smallest A/C unit should be the 13.5k units and they would be perfect in any unit 23' or smaller.
You have a unique opportunity now, as the plans are on paper still to make this call should you choose to do it now before it's built.
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I had never seen the AS trailers with all of their inside lights on, which was necessary at the show because it was held inside of (marginally) heated tents with poor ambient lighting. The lights really make the colors, textures and features stand out.
I first saw the AS with all the lights on when we went to pick up ours at the dealer. WOW, what a difference the lights made. It felt good that I liked it even more then 6 weeks earlier when we ordered her! Can't wait to see your pictures, March will be here before you know it.
Diane
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I called our dealer and said."This 19 won't do. Do you have a 25 FB LS SE with front and rear Pano's?"
She said "No but we have one enroute. It's already left the factory and should be here in three days."
"Fine, It's sold to me." I said. A week later when we picked it up she had sold my 19 footer for what I paid for it and ticked off everyone at her dealership by selling the 25 FB out from under them. Well, everyone but her boss.
We camped in it that night and were already tucked into bed when I discovered that you could turn off the light with your big toe. From then to now the more we use the trailer the more we love the floorplan and all the other little things we've discovered about it.
By the way the trailer does exceedingly well on desert dirt roads.
We are AS newbies and also got the 25 FB (Int'l) ....and I can tell you that after several outings we have decided that we made the best choice for us. We have 2 kids and the space and layout work really well. We are busy making lots of plans for adventure and sometimes.....when the kids have already gone to bed....we go "camping" right in our driveway! Best to you with your new AS. Have Fun!
Well, we hope to have our trailer in about a month or so. The waiting is a drag, but we're getting through it just fine. I've still got a lot of work to do to the tow vehicle, anyway. So I'm spending my free time tinkering with the engine and transmission, and my wife is looking through various catalogs thinking about what we need to buy to 'outfit' the AS when she's finally here. Even my daughters, who are far too worldly and cynical for their age, have slowly begun to share in the excitement by thinking of names for our trailer. We've decided upon the name "Voyager". I think the name is appropriate (being a Star Trek fan) due to the astronomical price tag, but my family thinks the name is appropriate because it conjures up the promise of far-flung adventures.
Anyway, thanks for all of your thoughts. I'll update again when we know more.
Our 25' FB Safari SE is finally here. It's at the dealer now being prepped, but we take delivery this week.
I've used the search feature to view posts regarding delivery inspection, so I think I have a pretty good idea of what to look for when we pick it up. If anyone has any last minute inspection advice before we sign the papers, I'd appreciate it! We took a look at the trailer and did an informal walkthrough soon after it was delivered to the dealer, and it all looks good. The interior fit and finish, at first glance anyway, looked great.
I snapped a few photos of it sitting at the dealer's prep area, which I've attached, and I'll take a few more later after we bring it home.
A 'heads up' to the folks at the 4CU, as I just put our application form in the mail.
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Best to you with your new AS. Have Fun!
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