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Old 04-29-2016, 10:19 AM   #1
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Dealers?? Where did they go?

I don't know where this belongs, so please move if necessary.

I was googling around last night and went to the web site of the dealer where we bought our AS (Stoughton, MA), only to discover that they have turned into an RV service only place. So then I went to the other local place, which is in NH. They have only 1 new AS (a 16') and two older used ones.

So is this a matter of the time of year, or are the dealerships disappearing? Maybe the dealer arrangements have changed and these places have decided not to carry AS any more?? We have precious few places in the NE in the first place. . . .
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Old 04-29-2016, 10:32 AM   #2
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Maybe Colonial Airstream is sucking all the business away.

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Old 04-29-2016, 10:59 AM   #3
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11 years ago, we bought our Bambi from Oasis in Tucson. Same thing happened to them, and I'm not even sure they are still in business.

LazyDays took over Beaudry's RV several years ago after they went under, and LazyDays is now the new Airstream dealer.

During recent roadtrips, there were sure a lot of closed auto dealerships, especially in small towns. I think a lot of them went under when money got tight in 2008.

Over time, I guess everything changes...
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Old 04-29-2016, 11:34 AM   #4
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We bought ours at Stoughton as well. Purchased new in 2012 (picked up in April 2013). When we went to their lot in 2012, they must have had over 30 trailers. When we brought it back at the end of the 2013 camping season for warranty work, there may have been 3 on the lot. They didn't seem committed. Had some significant service issues with them on the hitch installation.

Last year, went to Colonial to have the hitch adjusted and to increase the bars to the 1400# ones Sean recommended in the first place. Colonial is a first rate dealer and service center. Treated us exceptionally well and the guy looked at the hitch and basically took it off and reinstalled it correctly.

Had I know in 2012 that it would have been just as easy to travel there, I would have bought at Colonial.
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Old 04-29-2016, 12:03 PM   #5
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OP, if anything there are opening more dealerships. Inferior ones come and go, quality operations do not. Check the Airstream web site for a dealership near you.
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Old 04-30-2016, 11:11 AM   #6
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Thumbs up Dealers? Where did they go?



Hello Sallye,

Yes, Stoughton closed shop on selling, but Nashua, NH's Airstream dealer is going strong. Go see Jerry and he'll be happy to show you an Airstream or provide help with questions. They also have a good service department.

My husband and I were just there this week with our 27' International (in for routine servicing) and there was a good supply of Airstreams. It may be that they need to update their website. Apparently, business is booming there.

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Old 04-30-2016, 06:15 PM   #7
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Soughton wouldn't return my phone call for service or buying a new trailer. Went to Colonial, worth the drive.
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Old 04-30-2016, 07:34 PM   #8
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There is newish dealer just North of Albany.
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Old 05-01-2016, 10:19 AM   #9
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Never verified as fact, but a smaller dealership in the Houston area told me that Airstream upped the requirements for how much inventory each authorized dealer had to have on hand. The dealership said that it became too impractical because of their low sales.
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Old 05-03-2016, 07:43 AM   #10
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Flooring requirements pushed a lot of dealers out during the recession. In as much as AS is a high end product like BMW, Porsche or Audi, I have to wonder why Thor doesn't set up a similar program for independent factory trained techs to service Airstreams. A number of independent RV service centers will not do even the simple tasks on an AS.
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Old 05-03-2016, 08:17 AM   #11
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Servicing

The dealership still does servicing and they seem to do almost anything you want including frame-off total rebuilds. We seem to have been lucky in that we have had only a few minor things wrong with our unit, and those have all been easy for us to fix ourselves. So baring an accident or the need for something big, we usually try to do it ourselves. These forums have taught us a LOT! So thank you everyone!

But factory certified training would be a great thing! I'm surprised they don't have that already.

Places like Colonial are so big that they probably end up being as good as the factory. Unfortunately, they are about 300+ miles away for us, and involve driving on some pretty busy roads to get to.
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Old 05-07-2016, 04:10 PM   #12
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Sorry Sallye, but it's a combination of "that time of year" and available units available available from Airstream. This has been a stellar year for is here in Nashua and our inventory is low because everything in stock has already sold and those that are on order are selling before they arrive. The rest have been special ordered by their anxioisly awaiting owners.

-Scott
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Old 05-07-2016, 04:23 PM   #13
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Nashua AS vs. Stoughton

When we bought from the dealer in Stoughton, we also looked at the same model in Nashua, and it actually was the unit I preferred because it had a microwave instead of a gas oven.

I even sent Nashua an email with an offer. No one ever got back to me, so we went to Stoughton and bought our unit there. I guess they didn't want our business. . . . .
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Old 05-07-2016, 05:09 PM   #14
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I've been RVing for many years, many RVs (6) & always shop for the price. For the last three I used the Internet & worry about service as the situation arises.
You have dozens of AS dealers at you fingertips within 500 miles. Colonial is within reach, check them out via emai dialog keep it impersonal & work the deal.
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Old 05-07-2016, 05:59 PM   #15
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Not looking. . .

Well, we aren't looking for an AS anymore. And we'd be unlikely to drive 500 miles if we were! At this point I'm just concerned about being able to get service close by. Depending on what's wrong, you can't always get 500 miles, and that's certainly too far to have it hauled on a flatbed if that is necessary.

But there are truck repair places around here also, and they might be OK if you do your homework first, and probably depending on what's wrong. We've been doing most of our own small repairs, which is the most convenient.
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Old 05-07-2016, 06:11 PM   #16
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We tried the dealers here in Tampa, but their selection was very small. They didn't have anything that remotely resembled what we wanted.

We found one we liked at Colonial. 1000 miles away. Made them an email offer, and I'll be there week after next to pick it up.

I would have rather purchased it locally. But if they didn't have it they didn't have it. It's not rocket science. The internet opens up the nation to find your Airstream.
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Old 05-08-2016, 01:03 PM   #17
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Just curious, did you try JD sanders or Foley?
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Old 05-08-2016, 01:40 PM   #18
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I saw their websites. They didn't have anything that interested us in their online inventories.
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Old 05-08-2016, 02:26 PM   #19
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The problem. . .

The problem with far away dealers is that it's not really practical to buy from them unless you have already done some visits and know what you want. As a first time buyers, we would have never traveled that far away just to "shop". Also, buying in-state means that we could take advantage of our states lemon laws if all else fails. I can't imagine how difficult that would be to do from a 1000 or so miles away.

So, we really needed to be able to see some units within a reasonable distance to be able to make a decision.

Now maybe if we were buying our second unit, etc., we would be able to do this, but as first time RVers, and first time buyers, and with no experience with towing, etc., the options had to be local. I guess other people are braver than we are, but for us bravery requires experience, and we had none.
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Old 05-08-2016, 02:42 PM   #20
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Well, we did spend 18 months looking at RVs and motor homes before pulling this trigger.

We went to two RV shows, and we had two local dealers with some stock. It took us 1 year to wrap our heads around the Airtream concept, and we did see a 30' recliner model at one of the shows.

Had we not done that, we also would not have bought something 1000 miles away.

And yes, it could turn out to be a lemon. But I like my chances that it won't.
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