Erwin Hymer Group NA Dismissed by Daimler Vans from MasterUpfitter Program

[GeorgeRa]

New Adria Twin B-class on the Fiat chassis with Sky Lounge option, wow.
https://www.adria.co.uk/motorhomes-v...-sky-lounge-2/
https://www.adria.co.uk/vans/

[Davydd]

Originally Posted by GeorgeRa

New Adria Twin B-class on the Fiat chassis with Sky Lounge option, wow.
https://www.adria.co.uk/motorhomes-v...-sky-lounge-2/
https://www.adria.co.uk/vans/

I'm not sure why you posted this here. It is not Erwin Hymer Group or MB Sprinter related to BEG guidelines.

[GeorgeRa]

Originally Posted by Davydd

I'm not sure why you posted this here. It is not Erwin Hymer Group or MB Sprinter related to BEG guidelines.

Went on tangent, I apologize.

[warpig]

Originally Posted by GeorgeRa

Went on tangent, I apologize.

No reason to apologize. I never saw the sky roof before. That's pretty cool. I check-out the European RVs all the time and wish some of those models would make it across the pond. I'm a big fan of the Carado V540. Short chassis with bench seats, side bath, flip-up bed with small garage area. Wish Carado introduced that model here than the Axion.

[Boxster1971]

Originally Posted by GeorgeRa

New Adria Twin B-class on the Fiat chassis with Sky Lounge option, wow.
https://www.adria.co.uk/motorhomes-v...-sky-lounge-2/
https://www.adria.co.uk/vans/

I wonder how big Adria is compared to Hymer? Then one wonders who sells to most on the global market. Hymer made theri move into North America will Adria do the same? Maybe partner with or buy another US/CAN company?

[GeorgeRa]

Originally Posted by Boxster1971

I wonder how big Adria is compared to Hymer? Then one wonders who sells to most on the global market. Hymer made theri move into North America will Adria do the same? Maybe partner with or buy another US/CAN company?

I don’t have actual numbers but wouldn’t be surprised that both companies are about the same size. Perhaps Hymer is counting on their 2500 lbs. Eriba trailer sales to penetrate NA market, as far I can tell there are no changes to the NA model from the EU one.

I would love to see Adria in NA but my wishes are just wishes, time will tell, but wouldn’t be shocked if results would likely be similar to Volkswagen T return to NA - soooon.

[mumkin]

Originally Posted by warpig

I'm a big fan of the Carado V540. Short chassis with bench seats, side bath, flip-up bed with small garage area. Wish Carado introduced that model here than the Axion.

First off there is absolutely no relationship between Carado in the US and Carado in Europe... other than the name. Hymer long ago purchased the Carado company in Europe. Thus they now own the name and chose to give it to their entry level US RVs which have few similarities to the European Carado rigs... unfortunately.


It appears to me that the V540 is just the Activ...

[warpig]

Originally Posted by mumkin

First off there is absolutely no relationship between Carado in the US and Carado in Europe... other than the name. Hymer long ago purchased the Carado company in Europe. Thus they now own the name and chose to give it to their entry level US RVs which have few similarities to the European Carado rigs... unfortunately.


It appears to me that the V540 is just the Activ...

Well, the fact that Carado is owned by Hymer in Europe and uses the brand name in NA makes for a pretty strong relationship in my book. The fact that the Carado models in NA don't compare to the models in Europe was kind of my point.

No, the V540 is on the short chassis (PM 1500 in US). The Aktiv is on the longer chassis (PM 2500 & 3500 in US). I'd rather have the V540 floor plan than the Axion floor plan, which are both on the short chassis. That is simply my preference. I don't do market research for Hymer, so they clearly have a better idea of what will sell better than me, hence the Axion.

[mumkin]

EHGNA is well known to buy companies and allow them to continue using their own systems and floor plans... and quality. Same as they are doing with Roadtrek. Few discernible changes at RT since Hymer took over. That is why I say that Carado in NA is just the name and has nothing to do with the Carado in Europe. To me, their using the name over here just causes confusion.

As I said, it is just the Activ floor plan... minus a foot or so. Over the years, posters online have all picked and chosen rigs in Europe that they want over here. (and vice versa with a few European posters on American Facebook pages who want ours)

Thus far, they haven't much cared about any of our opinions.

[BBQ]

Originally Posted by mumkin

EHGNA is well known to buy companies and allow them to continue using their own systems and floor plans... and quality. Same as they are doing with Roadtrek. Few discernible changes at RT since Hymer took over. That is why I say that Carado in NA is just the name and has nothing to do with the Carado in Europe. To me, their using the name over here just causes confusion.

As I said, it is just the Activ floor plan... minus a foot or so. Over the years, posters online have all picked and chosen rigs in Europe that they want over here. (and vice versa with a few European posters on American Facebook pages who want ours)

Thus far, they haven't much cared about any of our opinions.

The Europeans want the Grand Canyon, California... etc.,

[Davydd]

It's just a grass is always greener syndrome. If you can't have it, it is better. Krispy Kreme donuts had that cache for years until they went national.

[chryselwood]

Very interesting and for Roadtrek. One comment - no other Canadian Sprinter "B" manufacturers are listed. Perhaps Hymer/RT got dropped because they manufacture in Canada and the upfitter programme is run out of MB-USA?

[Davydd]

Originally Posted by chryselwood

Very interesting and for Roadtrek. One comment - no other Canadian Sprinter "B" manufacturers are listed. Perhaps Hymer/RT got dropped because they manufacture in Canada and the upfitter programme is run out of MB-USA?

The news says dismissed.

"Erwin Hymer Group North America, Inc. was dismissed from the MasterUpfitter Program on 12/11/2017 at 7:36pm"

Which I would assume they were a member. There are three other Canadian companies listed. Pleasure-way lists a Las Vegas, Nevada address for some reason. I would think if they sell in the USA then they would have to adhere to the BEG guidelines and upfitter program for the USA.

What dismissed means is unknown. It could be voluntarily on Hymer's part or other unknown reason. That one sentence is all we know unless Googling can uncover something else.

[<<B-Guy>>]

I did hear not so long ago (albeit from one of RT's competitors!) that MB were not happy with RT's voltstart system / underhood generator,

Possibly it could relate to that if in fact the info is valid.

Brian.

[GeorgeRa]

Each year since retirement we spent a few months in EU. It is quiet frustrating to see product there not available here in US. I tend to buy cars with some utility values and it was very frustrating for a while not being able to get a station wagon, seems as they are coming back either as station just plain wagons like new Volvo or disguised as crossovers, a 21st Century reinvention of a station wagon.

I drool seeing EU made camper vans, high level engineering design, good space utilization, modern style, way less expensive than in NA including MB Sprinter or Viano models. In view of NA being an absolute haven for camping, national and state parks, BLM lands, national forests, good size campsites (except small private campgrounds), good utilities, reasonable costs it is surprising that there are more camper vans options there than here, except they don’t have stealth camper vans.

[Belzar]

Perhaps EHNA is no longer a participant (dismissed) because they are included under their parent company, the much larger Hymer Corp., along with their other subsidiaries.

[GigaGeek]

Yes, I heard the same thing from an informed source. It seems that MB has an issue with Roadtrek's underhood generator/voltstart system, as they don't recommend that the diesel engine idle for long periods of time. Modern diesels have sophisticated emission systems that don't like to be idled for extended periods. As the story goes, RT told MB that they would cover any issues that might arise with the MB engine and emission system due to their underhood generator/voltstart system. Who knows what ever came of that but it seems like a plausible cause for the dismissal.

Originally Posted by Wingeezer

I did hear not so long ago (albeit from one of RT's competitors!) that MB were not happy with RT's voltstart system / underhood generator,

Possibly it could relate to that if in fact the info is valid.

Brian.

[BBQ]

.

"Dismiss" is a strong word. It is a one-sided operation. It does not sound amicable.

[ProseMan]

Originally Posted by GigaGeek

Yes, I heard the same thing from an informed source. It seems that MB has an issue with Roadtrek's underhood generator/voltstart system, as they don't recommend that the diesel engine idle for long periods of time. Modern diesels have sophisticated emission systems that don't like to be idled for extended periods. As the story goes, RT told MB that they would cover any issues that might arise with the MB engine and emission system due to their underhood generator/voltstart system. Who knows what ever came of that but it seems like a plausible cause for the dismissal.

That would make sense, except for one thing: Advanced RV and a few other manufacturers also provide "voltstart-like" solutions, that automatically crank the engine in case of battery depletion. I do know that Advanced RV advertises their system as "fast-idle" plus they have gone to a 48 volt system that charges twice as fast, so maybe it is Hymer's refusal to adopt the latest technology that is the issue. (???)

Davydd, don't you own an Advanced RV? Am I correct in my assessment? I own a Roadtrek CS Adventurous, and it never made sense to me that the Voltstart would run at normal idle for 30 minutes, which is barely enough time to partially charge the batteries. I asked myself: 'why doesn't the voltstart increase the engine rpm for better results?' Later, I had Roadtrek personnel telling me to turn on the dashboard AC, since that would automatically increase RPM's. The whole voltstart system seems kludgey on the Roadtreks.

[avanti]

Originally Posted by BBQ

.

"Dismiss" is a strong word. It is a one-sided operation. It does not sound amicable.

Yes, but much nuance can be lost in the translation.