Rpod floorplan plagiarism??

http://rv.campingworld.com/starcraft-satellite-showroom?utm_campaign=ASH23997&utm_source=email&utm_medium=email&scpc=ASH23997

We looked at some of the copycats, the Hummingbird was very nice and included a few things our 179 did not but at a much steeper price. What really stood out about the pod was the weight, and tongue weight, the copy cats were all heavier dry, and on the tongue. Not sure why that is but it was important to us because we have to tow with a smaller SUV. We're convinced we made the right decision, we're new to this but love the 179.

We camp with friends who have a Pod copy that was made by a company that was sued and no longer makes them.  They have a slide that contains the kitchen.  they have had a LOT of trouble with various systems and components over the 5 years we have traveled together. .  There were leaks in the kitchen drains, toilet supply leaks, slides mis-alignment, electrical problems, battery issues  and many others.  currently it is in the repair shop for a "soft floor" which apparently is due to a long term toilet leak in the middle of the trailer and a roof leak at the end.

these people are not causing these problems.  They take care of the trailer, store it properly and maintain it with a local dealer. They are not particularly handy or do it your selfers to a large degree.  They have paid to make a LOT of repairs. Frankly, if I was in their shoes , I would have sold this lemon years ago!

The quality that I have seen in their unit is much lower than what we have.  The components look good and seem to be quality materials on par with our Pod.  Some of their issues have been installation errors and manufacturer problems. Other issues have been "breakdown"  or component failures.

Overall, I can say that our 2009 173 is a much better built trailer with better overall quality than their non-pod copy.  I 'm not sure if  this comparison can be universally applied to all of the pod copiers, but neither of the 2 units that I have personally seen are as good as the R Pod.


Safe travels
Vann

Well, it looks like the lawsuit against Winnebago (unlike the one against Heartland) was thrown out by the judge and subsequently dropped by Forest River.

I guess sales were not being hurt from the clones. Especially since they were more expensive and did not appear to be better.  From the article it looks like FR did not meet the standards for an infringement lawsuit and felt is was not worth the expense to do more legal homework so they agreed with the judge to drop the suit.  It does not mean they had no case or would have lost.  I am glad FR is not rolling in money from ripping us off so that they can hire a bunch of high priced lawyers to sue whoever copies them. They are making a quality product (yes I have read about all the issues but they are not design issues but rather the result of trying to push too many out the door to reduce costs) and sell them at a more than reasonable price.  Thus they can beat the competition on the street and do not need a courtroom.