It may be interesting to compare this factory forum to another "cult" type camping trailer, the Oliver.
The Oliver brand/factory as best I know is still individually/family owned like the original LL under Tuttle. There are some quality complaints on the Oliver forum but these seem to be much less confrontational as is this site. There is a common spirit to fix them and improve the product.
The Dan equivalent does not normally post on the site, but he is well known to all and apparently responds to all emails by the end of the day. The original problem identifier/poster typically works out the solution with "Dan" and then shares it all with the forum. It works well that way.
So, Oliver seems to have a better communications system and a more loyal customer base than LL. It helps that they cost almost double what a LL costs. I suppose that when you come to grips with spending that kind of money you are a loyal supporter from that point onwards. I suppose Airstream owners are similar.
Thor pursues an entirely different business model: keep the cost down while maintaining some semblance of an all aluminum/Azdel camper. The changes that they have made over the last few years are to help hold the price down and make the product more appealing from an aesthetic sense- wood faced cabinets for example.
So would I buy a new Oliver, well no. Would I buy a new LL, well maybe. Would I buy a new LL made like Tuttle used to make them for $5,000 more than a current LL, well yes. But I suspect that the market for the latter is rather small. You need to have owned one of the originals to appreciate it and be willing to pay (even) more.
David
