RVDA Honors RV Brands with Quality Circle Awards

RVDA will honor 18 RV brands built by eight manufacturers with its Quality Circle Award just prior to the opening of the National RV Trade Show in Louisville, KY, on November 30. These brands/manufacturers received at least 15 dealer responses and scored 80 percent or above in overall dealer satisfaction in the association’s 16th Annual Dealer Satisfaction Index (DSI) survey.

“Dealers believe the DSI is a tool to help improve communication and the overall relationship with their manufacturers,” said RVDA Chairman of the Board Debbie Brunoforte.  “The survey measures dealer attitudes in key policy, product, and procedure areas that dealers say are the most important elements in their business partnerships with manufacturers.”
 
The towable RV brands/manufacturers receiving awards are (in alphabetical order): Forest River Rockwood/Roo & Rockwood folding camping trailers; Jayco Designer; Jayco Eagle; Jayco Jay Feather; Jayco Jay Flight; Jayco folding camping trailers; Jayco SUTs; Keystone Fuzion/Passport/Springdale; Keystone Montana/Cougar; Keystone Sprinter/Bullet/Outback; KZ Coyote/Spree; KZ Inferno/MXT; KZ Sportsmen; Open Range; and Palomino Travel Trailers & Fifth Wheels.

The three motorized RV brands/manufacturers receiving awards are (in alphabetical order): Jayco; Tiffin; and Winnebago.

Additionally, two manufacturers of two towable brands, and one motorized brand received DSI Honorable Mention awards for receiving scores of 80 percent or above in overall dealer satisfaction from 10 to 14 responding dealers. They are (in alphabetical order): Airstream and EverGreen Recreational Vehicles in the towable category and Itasca in the motorized category.

When rating their brands/manufacturers, RVDA asks dealers to express, confidentially, their level of satisfaction on eight core issues:

• Sales support
• Sales territory
• Vehicle design
• Vehicle reliability/quality
• Competitive price/value
• Parts support
• Dealership warranty support
• Overall dealer communications

The 16th Annual DSI survey was conducted between August and October 2009. Three hundred and twenty-two (322) dealers responded to the DSI this year, and provided 1,644 brand ratings, an average of almost five per dealer.