13 August
2018
We have
wanted to tour the Tiffin Motorhome factory for awhile and now we were passing
close to Red Bay, AL, where they are located.
We saw that they give a guided tour in the mornings, but we were not
going to get there until mid to late afternoon and were unsure if we would be
able to see the plant. As we drove into
town, we knew we were in the right place as there were mini RV parking lots
everywhere in town with lots of Tiffin motorhomes waiting their turn for
service.
I have read
on blogs about the change in service policy at Tiffin. Apparently, a few years
ago, they changed their policy to allow only coaches within the one-year
warranty period to make a service appointment.
The rest have to arrive and take a number and wait until they are
called. It was amazing and a bit disconcerting
to see so many coaches waiting for service.
After
floundering around for a bit, we found the entrance to the plant after 2pm. We told the guard we would like to have
tour. He showed us where to park and
directed us to a small reception office.
We asked about a tour and the gentleman said no problem. To our surprise, we were free to tour all of
the plant on our own and take pictures.
He pointed out a few buildings we were not allowed in due to safety issues
like the welding shop. He gave us some badges, safety glasses and a map and out
the door we went. We had a time limit
due to the late hour we arrived but had enough time see most everything. The very high temperature was the real
limiting factor for deciding when we were done.
Having done several
other motorhome factory tours, I would say this one had the same level of
organized chaos to the observer. We
watched the process from assembling the frames to the inspection section and
water testing of the coaches. They also had an area of just completed and
checked coaches that we could walk thru.
We did a few, but the heat finally drove us back to the office to return
our badges and head out. When it is time
for our next coach we will certainly include Tiffin in the process.
9 comments:
Our dream for our next one would be a used Entegra when they were still under Jayco not Thor.
We were there in April/early May watching our new gas motorhome being built. The Tiffin paint factory in nearby Belmont MS is very interesting, too. As of December 1, 2018, customers will not be allowed to watch their builds. The daily Monday through Friday tours at 9:30am will still be held.
My gosh. You were in our neck of the woods. Cullman is about 80 miles from Red Bay. If you are in the area again, remember we have two RV sites on our property. One FHU, one 50 amp and water. We love company.
Don't think I'd like driving all the way to Red Bay and having to just sit around and wait. I like Winnebago's appointments even if you have to make them way in advance, at least you know you have one and when it is. Not sure Tiffin makes anything like the View/Navion. But they do have a good reputation as a company probably the best along with Winnebago. I'd love to talk to you about it since I'm thinking we are going to have to downsize and am wondering about it as a full time rig. Would you recommend a 2012 view?
Interesting. We hope to pop in there next April or May.
Love doing factory tours for these amazing rv's nice that yo could get one done.
Amazing that Tiffin is so open on factory tours, unlike other companies that are pretty tight about where you can go and what you can see. :cO
The Tiffin class C is called a Wayfarer. Glad you were able to get that tour in!! Our Oliver factory is in Hohenwald Tennessee which is close to the Tiffin plant. Both are family owned and operated through family. I will say Oliver and Tiffin are very similar in their service concepts....it’s what made us decide!!
They make a pretty-lookin' rig!
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