RVBusiness, September/October 2018

22 inch oven a new stainless steel look on the refrigerator and large stainlesssteel sink with high rise faucet Also new is the entertainment center with backlit Furrion crystal fireplace new soundbar system and large pull out drawers on either side of the dinette bases The F315BHX was the only Wildcat Maxx model that made it to the Open House but is not the only new model for 2019 We have a new bunkhouse travel trailer with a lot of the same features that you see here Roitstein explained Its in our Maxx Lite Series and its built identically to the Maxx 2 inch walls same insulation faucet 22 inch oven even the fireplace and the 8 cubic foot refrigerator is an option We just took out some of the heavy stuff you dont get the solid surface countertops or the four point auto leveling system the extra things you dont necessarily need to go camping The new Wildcat Maxx Lite model will be shown at Elkhart and Roitstein says to expect four to six new floorplans over the next year Toy haulers are perhaps the best example of the West Coast phenomena and California built products like the Sandstorm Shockwave and Stealth were on hand as well boasting features designed to optimize them for the unique way in which they are used In California our version of camping is to find a flat spot in the desert said Ty Miller general manager of Forest Rivers Hemet and Rialto Calif operations You dont have the amenities of sewers and showers and stuff like that where youre going so you take it with you And we dont build toy haulers without solar panels fuel stations or generators Indeed Miller said that Forest River has purchased more than 10000 solar panels in the last few years and maintained that the company is the largest consumer of solar panels in the industry These are 220 watt solar panels and were doing inverters now for TVs because obviously the kids want to watch TV Even though toy haulers are used on both coasts Miller said that even in this market consumer demands are not the same In California one of the things we do is we build open box toy haulers everybody back east builds garage type toy haulers Its a different market With our toy haulers we will load two sideby sides three motorcycles bicycles anything we can fit in that space is going in that space So we run increased chassis sizes increased axle sizes and increased load ratings on our tires In general big and more seemed to be the prevailing themes on West Coast exclusive models like the prototype Sonoma 290RK Edition travel trailer on display a larger version of the existing 280RK Originally the 280 had a 78 inch roof height we went to an 82 inch height explained Eddie Sisler regional sales manager for the Sonoma brand We still have the 8 cubic foot refrigerator standard but now were offering the 107 cubic foot as an option and when you go with that you also get a 220 watt solar panel And while weve always had a 22 inch oven we went to a more residential looking Suburban We also got away from a small microwave We went to the same unit that we have in all of our Southern California built toy haulers I believe its 16 cubic feet We also added a big sink no more 60 40 split so you can put full size pots and pans in there Still other models on display were updates of existing floorplans like the 10th anniversary edition of the wildly popular r Pod travel trailer The 10th anniversary r Pod pays homage to the original model said Code Schade sales manager for r Pod No Boundaries known as NoBo and Surveyor The ring design was on our original r Pod but the Diamond Ice exterior fiberglass is brand new and the Ivory Tri Coat graphics package is something that is going to be standard as well Of course the Hood River Edition built in Oregon has always come with the upgraded off road tires and increased ground clearance which the west coast customers really like Schade also revealed that r Pod production had expanded to capacity at the Dallas facility so the division just completed a move into a new facility in Sheridan Ore where there will be more room to grow Meanwhile the No Boundaries line introduced last September has since grown to three lines the 10 Series the 16 Series and the 19 Series The entire segment is designed to be completely off road capable said Schade with enclosed underbellies on every single model even the smallest which is really rare We also use big tires Whereas we have all terrain tires on the r Pod weve got a bigger more aggressive tire on the NoBo product so the customer can take it Ty Miller general manager of Forest Rivers California division The Wildcat Maxx F315BHX is a new family friendly model with rear bunks large enough for two adults booth dinette with large pull out storage drawers at either end Furrion appliances and a stainless steel look refrigerator 82 RVBusiness S E P T E M B E R O C T O B E R 2 0 1 8