RIV Report?

[mneshati2]

--- In WanderlodgeForum@yahoogroups.com, "Ross" wrote:
>
> Hydraulic slide?? Air seals??--Aqua-Hot ??? nice, but-- not in
> 450LXi
>
> Ross
>
>
> > Hi Lloyd,
> >
> > W-------------. My slide is hydraulically powered, dirt simple, and
> built
> > by HWH. I've had nothing but stellar performance from it during
> > my 4 year ownership.------------------------
> >--------------- If that's it, just the slide, then hang out here and
> we'll get it fixed. If
> > it's like my LXi slide, then it's infinitely adjustable on every
> axis.
> > Be glad for the air seal. Many other manufacturers don't use it
> cause
> > its expensive. Don't throw out the baby with the bath water! If the
> > superstructure/chassis/frame is high quality, that's all that
> matters,
> > everything else can be fixed.
> >
> > David Brady
> > '02 LXi, NC
> >
> >-
>I have wrestled with my response for two full days now and I still don't know
where to
start. I will for sure start by thanking several people including Curt Sprenger,
Eric Perplies,
David Brady, and Tom Warner for their support and to answer a simple question
from Jim
Riorden regarding the number of Blue Birds at the 2007 RIV it was 198 not the
400 that it
has grown to by some accounts in the last few days of these posts.

Just as importantly, I want to applogize for my failure to attend this years
rally. It was my
idea to move it, I thought it would be fun and a change of pace, and last year
at the RIV
our informal poll of attendees showed overwhelming support. However as this year
has
unfolded we have been besieged by the worst economic downturn in recent history,
a
credit crisis, a further blow as a result of the axle recall that we could not
have anticipated
the death of our CEO's brother and business partner this past April forcing Dale
to
become active in two additional business units, and capped off with my personal
health
issues. As many of you know I have been battling with Parkinsons for several
years now
and this past 90 days my symptoms finally outran the medications ability to
control them,
forcing me to spend several weeks with my doctors experimenting with new drugs
and
doses and deciding which side effects I could live with for the relative relief
they provided.
Consequently as I was under physicans care at the time I simply could not make
it. Dale
has been consumed in dealing with the loss of his brother, consolidating the
companies
and dealing with issues I would normally be responsible for and therefore was
covering a
pressing business obligation for me.

Not wishing to reveal too much of my or Dale's personal struggles I asked Rick
Clayton to
simply appologize for our absence and hope that people would understand that
there
may be years were circumstances simply won't allow Dale and or I to attend.
However the
very vial and personal nature of the attacks that have ensued over the last few
days have
compelled me to share my situation more openly as the last thing I expected to
do is to
offend any of you by taking our lack of presence as a lack of interest or desire
to be with
you.

I must take very strong and pointed exception to Mr. Chaffin's attacks first and
foremost
on behalf of the company and the hardworking people who have labored against all
odds
to succeed in these adverse times, and secondly on behalf of myself for being
called a
liar, not just once but several times by Mr. Chaffin. In over 30 years as a
business
executive I have never wittnessed this lack of civility. How many of you think
it is
acceptable for someone who has a different perspective on a set of circumstances
than
you do, to go on a public forum and call you a liar? Has the internet, emails,
blogs and
such dehumanized us to the point that we find it OK to publicly slander and
defame
people? Does this forum find this behavior acceptable?

I will not dignify Mr. Chaffin's allegations and claims of warranty on this site
and in this
public arena. I will state emphatically that we have spent millions of dollars
covering
warranty claims on units that we felt were ligitimate and there are hundreds of
you out
there that know this is true as you have been the beneficiaries of our warranty
work. I
have dozens and dozens of emails from customers thanking us for our hard work on
their
behalf and in many cases telling us we fixed the problem when the previous
owners
couldn't.

I do want to address many of the false allegations from several of you that have
appeared
over the last few days: That we built all the M380 and LXI's and profited from
them but
won't spend the warranty money.
FACT
We did not build a single M380, and only one 450 LXI, and the owners of the one
we
built reported to me as recently as a week ago that they love it and have had
great joy
from it. However we have poured millions into warranty coverage on legitimate
warranty

"They knew about the axle problem when they bought the company"
FACT
We did not have any knowledge of the axle problem when we bought the company,
this
particular piece of slander is particularly disturbing on many fronts, but
simply put, we
aren't stupid, we would never have purchased the company knowing this, the
impact on
owner confidence, the costly recall process, not counting the repair cost, and
the delay in
coming to market based on the need to completely redesign and reengineer the
unit
would have been more than enough to stop the deal. And we all know where that
would
have left Wanderlodge and you all. Cerberus had stopped all work on the
Wanderlodges,
and were ready to shut down the business had we not bought it.

Instead, we bought the business, redesigned the product to meet weight
requirements,
and went right down the line to fix the historic weak points, we engineered
fixes for
leaks, slides were a problem, went back to HWH slides, inverters were a problem
went to
two Trace pure sine wave 4000 watt inverters, house wiring a problem, went to
the
industry standard spyder controls, the list goes on and on.

We were confronted with the front axle problem, forced Blue Bird Body to the
table, got
them to file the NHTSA recall and have worked night and day with owners to get
their
units as functional as possible. You want to scoff and belittle the fix? Don't
scoff at us, we
are doing everything in our power to fix a problem we didn't and would not have
created.

Many owners are thrilled with their reworked units, they have ample cargo
capacity, better
handling due to a lower CG and a quieter less vibrating generator installation.
Are some
unhappy, sure, again, not our fault, not our problem but we have done everything
in our
power to make things as right as we can. I truly and honestly don't understand
how this
issue is turned on us in anger.

Now to our future and the Wanderlodge's survival. Roughly 16 months ago when we
bought the company it was widely believed in the industry that the economy was
stable,
that the RV industry was continuing to grow and would through at least 2009. if
you don't
believe me go look up last years University of Michigan RV industry economic
report,
widely held as the bible for the industry.

Look were we sit today, two out of the three largest lenders to the RV industry,
Wachovia
and GE are out of the business, National RV.... Bankrupt gone, Weekend Warrior,
Bankrupt
gone, several other smaller guys, gone... Fleetwood, stock at .25 cents,
delisted from the
New York stock exchange, nearly gone, Monico, hanging on by a thread, their
dealers
have no more floorplan money to buy anymore units, nothing is selling.

RV sales..down 60% and what is selling is at massive discounts, no one is making
money.
Ten Thousand RV's in San Diego, gone, La Mesa, closing and consolidating stores.

Why don't we have dealers?? The credit crisis has left them with no floor plan
money.
Simply put they can't afford to buy a stock unit.

So here is the greatest contradiction I have heard yet, "We don't want to see
CCW fail"
"But I won't buy a new Blue Bird because what if CCW fails"...... anyone else
see the flaw
here? If we don't sell RV's how do we survive? if you want to see us survive,
you need to
buy Blue Birds... If you don't buy Blue Birds, you not only guarantee our
demise... You are
responsible for it.

Someone else steps in to criticize us for being late with the 2009 RV for the
FMCA, and
for the poor showing our then dealer made of coaches.

The axle issue came up and forced us to redesign the RV to provide a product
with
respectable cargo capacity on a legal front end. Do you know the work that goes
into that
kind of engineering feat? While juggling a recall? What you should be proud of
is that your
brand has new owners that refused to build or ship a product that wasn't
engineered or
built correctly, even if it missed the whole show.

Our company has poured double digit millions into this Brand to keep the doors
open
what has that meant to you? So you could get warranty on product we didn't build
and
wouldn't have built or shipped as designed, to perform recall work for defects
in design
we didn't design on product we didn't build, to redesign and reengineer a Blue
Bird
Product to make you and us proud, we decided to trudge on through the worst
economy
in recent memory and a credit crunch like nothing we have ever seen, and we
built a
beautiful Premier XL. But Mr. Chaffin goes on and on about where to get them
fixed and
blasts us for not having dealers. what if we hadn't bought the company? No
telling how
the recall would have gone, who would have done your warranty. How many of you
have
benefited from us being here to fix your units both in Riverside and Fort
Valley? To buy
parts from us? Have we had turn over? Sure, people will get scared as a company
slows
down and has to right size in this type of economic crisis and some will jump
ship, is that
something to go online and blast us for?

And on a final false assertion by Mr. Chaffin, the 2006 we brought to Branson
has had the
recall done, is fully functional has outstanding front end weight numbers and
wouldn't
have to be parked in anyone's driveway other than to restock for the next
journey.

I have said enough, maybe too much....we have done all we can, we fixed the
design
problems, enhanced the product with top of the line features, provide a better
ride than
any Prevost, build a tougher more rugged chassis than Prevost or Newell,
enhanced our
warranty by going to a 12 year chassis, structure and body warranty and provide
better
craftsmanship and construction than a fiberglass Newell.

The rest is up to you. No company, no matter how well financed, stays in
business if the
product isn't selling, not because they run out of cash, it just isn't good
judgement.

For now, we are tightening our belts and weathering the storm. We have a
beautiful 2009
(RV 02) for sale, Our first 2009, as many saw at Branson is a 1 1/2 bath that
was
purchased by George and Vel Kistler. We are so grateful for their support and
loyalty.

We do understand the importance and the value of a good rally. But given the
unique
nature of the economic crisis we are faced with, the almost daily business
failures, and
the need to find ways to weather this storm we made judgement calls as to where
to place
priorities, we didn't mean to slight anyone, and we will work hard to return
next years
rally to its previous glory. But I stand by our decisions this year and ask you
to consider
walking a mile in the other guys shoe before lashing out. It is seldom simple
and as clear
cut as it seems looking in.
As always, travel safe
Macy