RV Shipments Decline Sharply In March

Above, RVs under transport at the Jamestown Flying J. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

The RV boom that took place during the pandemic is apparently over.

Fewer RVs, motorized and towables, were shipped to dealers in March than in March 2022. At least that's the findings of the RV Industry Association (RVIA) and reported by Chuck Woodbury at RV Travel.

He begins with:

RV manufacturers shipped fewer RVs to dealers in March 2023, dropping by more than 50 percent compared to last March.

Results for the RV Industry Association’s (RVIA) March 2023 survey of manufacturers determined that total RV shipments ended the month with 31,869 units, a decrease of 50.8% from the 64,778 units shipped in March 2022. To date this year, RV shipments are down 54.3% with 78,600 units.

He then breaks down the numbers by class of RVs.

To read more, go here. 

RV Transporters At The Flying J

Above, new trailers under transport from Indiana at the Flying J. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Since last night, the Jamestown, New Mexico area has been enduring high winds. We are under a High Wind Warning until 8:00 tonight.

According to the High Wind Warning (source: The Weather Channel):

...HIGH WIND WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 8 PM MDT THIS EVENING...

WHAT...Southwest to west winds 30 to 40 mph with gusts up to 60 mph expected. Localized higher gusts up to 75 mph will be possible this morning over and just east of the Sangre de Cristo mountains.

Above, new and old RVs parked at the Flying J during the high winds. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

It is no surprise that when I went to the Flying J to check my mailbox, there were a number of RVs in the parking areas, including a group of trailers being transported to Arizona or California. Interstate 40 is a major route for RV transporters from the RV manufacturing Mecca of Elkhart, Indiana. They're easy to spot with their distinctive transporter license plates. With wind gusts up to 75 mph, I wouldn't like driving now either. 

The Flying J is a good place to wait out the winds.

Above, this RV transporter truck had this message to fellow drivers. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

RV Transporters Squeezed By High Fuel Prices

Above, two transported RVs stopped at the Jamestown, New Mexico Flying J. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Seeing RV transporters at the local Jamestown, New Mexico Flying J is pretty much an everyday occurrence. Interstate 40, that it is on, is a major route for RV transporters, mainly from Elkhart, Indiana to Arizona and California.

We may be seeing fewer of them as fuel prices have surged and squeezed them. Some have decided to sit it out until prices come back down.

This is the subject of a RV Travel article.

They begin with:

Record prices at the pump may be putting a new kink at the very end of the RV industry’s supply chain and could prevent RV buyers from getting their new rigs.

RV transporters are an essential yet mostly unheralded segment of the RV manufacturing industry. In most cases, the folks who move new RVs from factories to dealerships are independent contractors working for larger dispatching firms that contract with manufacturers.

Typically, RV transporters sign up with the dispatching firms, agreeing to haul new RVs from Point A to Point B for a set “per mile” fee that usually rolls in the cost of fuel. When fuel prices jump significantly, transporters can sometimes negotiate for extra fuel surcharges. But the surcharges—if there are any—aren’t keeping up.

 To read more, go here.