A Hymer Cynic Rant

[elf.elf.baby]

After seeing two toy CW Sunlights, (and talking to their Roadtrek rep (excuse me, Hymer Rep) who mentioned that that very day the Sonne had been discontinued), a something last year at Hershey, maybe a concept Sonne, and also an Aktiv at Hershey, I have a couple questions.

Does anybody here on this side of the pond know for a fact that huge Hymer makes good dependable well-built well-designed RVs over there? Europeans are so polite, maybe they just don't comment forthrightly about problems, etc. Build quality is the main thing. I am serious about using the word toy for the Sunlight (V1, remember; maybe there's another coming? V4 might be acceptable!); though the original OMG moment concerned the bathroom sink latches in particular, at CW and Hershey. Do they know anything about market research? Like, doing just a tad before they print brochures, bring vehicles to shows, and put vehicles out there in the wild for sale that potential customers cannot believe they're seeing? (Example: originally, no microwave oven here, because apparently no microwave ovens in European models. No checking to see why a 4" ledge on each side of a supposed double bench seat (Aktiv) is a bad idea and makes it useless for 2 adults. Also makes airplane seats look roomy and comfortable. )

Are they a real company? Or are they, as it certainly seems to me, a joke?

Sorry for the rant. Sortof. Would love to know if anyone is as cynical as I am becoming. But no flaming, please.

[Ron J. Moore]

Understandable. Time will bear out how Hymer is accepted.....like a Class B or it goes the road of the Fiat. We hear they are building to a certain level market, but even that market can become disgusted. Ron

[mumkin]

It would be interesting to hear from people who have experience with Hymer in Europe. Of course, it seems that they have all levels of rigs over there since they have apparently purchased lots of small manufacturers.

I think the Sunlight/CW idea was a HUGE mistake which will do nothing but harm their reputation in North America. One wonders whose idea it was? German company or Roadtrek?

BTW... you can still order a Sonne if you don't mind buying something sight unseen.

Also not clear what you mean by the "4" ledge" on the Activ seat?

[avanti]

Originally Posted by elf.elf.baby

Does anybody here on this side of the pond know for a fact that huge Hymer makes good dependable well-built well-designed RVs over there?

Yes. On our recent trip around the Ring Road in Iceland, we rented a Ducato-based Sunlight (a European Hymer brand) class-C rig. It was great. Nothing fancy, but very well thought out and executed. The materials were basic but very solid, rattle-free and robust. Hardware was excellent, as was fit and finish. Everything worked. We had literally no significant complaints. We were very impressed.

I will eventually get around to a detailed report on the rig in this thread:

http://www.classbforum.com/forums/f5...side-6647.html

[wincrasher]

The build quality on Aktiv is quite good. The Roadtrek bits - ecotrek, voltstart, etc., are still problematic.

The crap they built for Camping World is a huge mistake - thinking they'll gain market share and make some quick bucks. Think it's pretty much blown up in their faces. Avoid those models is my advice.

[elf.elf.baby]

Hi, Mumkin, et al,
You asked what I meant by the 4" ledge(s) on the Aktiv bench seat. I'm referring to the 2nd row, so to speak, which joins with the reversed front seat(s) to form a table area. That bench is formed to look like 2 seats, and has 2 headrests. It would probably be wide enough for two adults to sit, except that the outer edges have a Recaro-like (as I recall those seats) raised thing about 4" wide, lessening the space for the actual person's, uh, "seat", and placing part of that and their outer thigh on this raised ledgey part. That happens to be not just tight, but awful to sit on if you have back or sacroiliac issues. There was a picture of that area in a brochure or maybe a review, and an adult was seated in the center. It wasn't a very large adult, and still they had to center her to make her fit. I thought that would be sure to go, in the finished models, but no.
I drove FWD Fiats in the USA in the 70s, and we had 2 FWD Alfas in the early 90s thru early oughts. (Concurrently; they did last if you were lucky enough to have a good shop nearby.) So I definitely know what Ron means about going the way of Fiat. But man, they were fun to drive. And I am glad to hear that Hymer can and does produce good stuff.
Thank you.

[mumkin]

I knew you meant the bench seat, but when you said "ledge" I pictured wood. Now I know what you mean. To be honest, I made the assumption that area was to seat a couple kids... and the grown-ups with the bigger... ahem... backsides... would sit in the driver and passenger seats. I'm on the small side and fit fine in the bench seat, but really wouldn't want to be sharing it.

If you watch the Russo's videos, you note that only one of them at a time sit there and work on the computers and the other sits in the passenger seat.

Avanti... you give me hope that Hymer will get the right people in place to get on track.

[GeorgeRa]

I have seen a few Sunlights in EU and the Sunlight V1 from the Camping World, dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde comes to mind. I believe that the main reason is the upfront investment in the manufacturing by Hymer in EU, see the video on Sunlight EU site - Company | Sunlight. Perhaps the new manufacturing site being currently build for the new camping trailer Hymer / Roadtrek Touring is under Hymer control not under the management group responsible for Sunlight V1 disaster. If Hymer will bring this trailer bypassing Roadtrek management influence there is a hope. https://www.eriba.com/en/models/cara...partments.html

See the following video at 2:05, Herr Jack Hamill saying some truth about Roadtrek comparison to EU manufacturing, and yes, has is using staple gun as comparison. Further down you can see Rodtrek manufacturing and compare to Sunlight EU factory.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UEcsjxUSPjk

Regarding Fiat, nineteen seventies were almost forty years ago, so comparing them to current Fiat would be about the same as comparing Chevy Vega or Ford Pinto to GM or Ford current offerings. I just end the weeklong trip to Rome extensively using taxis, most of them were Fiats, impressive.

[BBQ]

.

RV maker ramps up growth with plant in Cambridge

https://www.therecord.com/news-story...-in-cambridge/

[booster]

Interesting, and it will be even more interesting to see how, and by whom, the new facility is run. It would be good, I think, if the new facility was completely Hymerized along with the product naming, with the Roadtrek policies and procedures eliminated. A fresh look at engineering, production, customer service, sales, etc would be, well, refreshing.