Forest River Interview
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Topic: Forest River Interview
Posted By: TerryM
Subject: Forest River Interview
Date Posted: 04 Jan 2010 at 12:50pm
I was going to do a phone interview with Mr. Mike Dolowy of Forest River concerning the R-Pod. It became apparent that he is a busy man. Better him than me! I sent him a list of 9 questions. Below is listed the questions and answers: Q: How did the name of R-Pod come about & by whom? A: the name R-pod was created by our G. M. Kevin McArt... the name has a lot to do with the shape and design of the trailer.. shaped like a pod. Q: Have the sales been up to expectations? Any surprises as far as sales goes? A: sales have been better than expected... there is quite a following and the forums have really helped.. thru the month of October, R-pod reached # 31 in retail sales by brand name nationally!!! Q: What is the most popular model? A: our most popular model would be a toss up between the 171, 172, and 175... that will probably change because of the new models that were introduced. Q: Any idea as to how many units have been sold or manufactured? A: nationally, retail registrations are at 771 thru October... and I'm guessing there were a couple hundred more sold in Canada.. hard to say, no way to track registrations in Canada. Q: How are the Hybrids doing? A: too early to tell... we sold a bunch of them, so the dealers have them in stock... but, tents usually don't sell until the spring. Q: Any hints on options that may be coming out soon? A: as of today, we don't have any plans to add any more options. Q: Does anyone from Forest River keep an eye on what modifications the owners are doing to their R-Pods? A: actually, we do... we are probably on r-pod nation 2-3 times a week. Q: . Is there any chance that Forest River can offer any assistance or presence at the East Coast Rally in June? A: is that the rally in Kentucky?? we were planning on attending that rally. Q: Have you seen the new copy cat MPG? Any thoughts on that? A: unfortunately, I did see the mpg. what can you say?? heartland is notorious for copying other manufacturers products. i did review their brochure and noticed they have no clue!!! they say that they laminate their roof. impossible... they say they have a dome awning option.. but don't have the rail for it.. their refer is only .3 cubic foot bigger... the brochure says in one spot that they use an 11,000 BTU a/c and then in another column they use a 13,500 BTU a/c.. which is it?? ------------- RP-175 W/Lift Kit 2011 Ford F-150 4X4 Saint Augustine, FL: The first permanent European settlement in the USA: 1565 |
Replies:
Posted By: David and Danette
Date Posted: 04 Jan 2010 at 6:59pm
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Terry, Great job ! You asked some great questions and Mr. Mike Dolowy of Forest River gave great answers. Doesn"t look that good for Heartland at least with Forest Rivers opinion. Good to know they are in touch with the owners posts. I thought RPod would be higher in national sales by brand. Happy Camping David and Danette ------------- 2018 Vista Cruiser 19BFD (2018- 2012 Vibe 6503 (2014-2019) 2009 r-pod 171 (2009-2014) Middle Tn 2014 Ram 1500 Quad cab |
Posted By: Butterfly_Lee
Date Posted: 04 Jan 2010 at 7:38pm
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Interesting so Forest River is coming to the Round UP and they do read the forum. Would really like them to have a tech member to answer some of our questions, for you tech guys, then of course will benefit me when the techs post their mod. Since they read this hopefully they will. 771 R-POD (US) out there, not counting CA's. WOW we should be running into each other. Good interview Lee  |
Posted By: techntrek
Date Posted: 04 Jan 2010 at 8:21pm
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Glad to see he came through with the interview. Thanks Terry for persevering!
------------- Doug ~ '10 171 (2009-2015) ~ 2008 Salem ~ http://www.rpod-owners.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=1723 - Pod instruction manual 
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Posted By: Pie_Pod
Date Posted: 04 Jan 2010 at 9:05pm
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Great interview, Terry. I am excited that FR will be in Kentucky!
I like that they read the forums. I agree, it would be nice if someone would answer questions occasionally. (please excuse and spelling or punctuation problems...we lost internet at the house so I can only post from my iPhone...hopefully we are back online by tomorrow or Wednesday) ------------- ~Cindy_CP (Pod_Patrol's girl) 177 |
Posted By: rpodcamper.com
Date Posted: 05 Jan 2010 at 11:34pm
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"Have you seen
the new copy cat MPG? Any thoughts on that? A: unfortunately, I did see the mpg. what can you say?? heartland is notorious for copying other manufacturers products. i did review their brochure and noticed they have no clue!!! they say that they laminate their roof. impossible... they say they have a dome awning option.. but don't have the rail for it.. their refer is only .3 cubic foot bigger... the brochure says in one spot that they use an 11,000 BTU a/c and then in another column they use a 13,500 BTU a/c.. which is it??" I read this and kind of chuckle. lets see the rpod brochure where they talk about the Goodyear tires and no longer having them, or the changes made mid year. they are just starting to roll out of the factory this month. Maybe their dome comes with the rail when you get the option or they fasten some other way. The dealers that saw them at the show are very pleased with them as are the reviews out there so far. Yes design intent and actual delivery may be a bit different. |
Posted By: Butterfly_Lee
Date Posted: 12 Jan 2010 at 11:47pm
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Very Interesting FR going to the Kentucky round up and now it's a couple of FR employees are going. Everyone seems so excite?  Are they R-Pod owners or are they FR spy's . Maybe just a little sour grapes  , but other than creating my Podterfly FR have not done anything for me. I have what I would call an early 2010 model r-172 made in June which did not come front stabilizers (which it really needs should be a safety issue), and i use two 3 ton jack stands. Of course this was a big topic in the earlier part of the year, and by fall the new 172 came with front stabilizers. No retro fix or discount on stabilizers from FR.Many people have made great mods, and posted them on the Forum for FR to see and now they are coming to the roundup to see in person not as FR, but as fellow podders? Seems a little fishing to me. Can we sue them, for stealing our ideas, probably more trouble then it's worth. Anyway there a reason I posting this here and not on the other forum. Everyone seems so excite? IMHO why?Lee |
Posted By: TerryM
Date Posted: 13 Jan 2010 at 4:51am
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If they can get some good ideas from the owners that would be great. It would help improve the Pod, and who knows maybe some people will trade in for a new one in a couple of years. I have been to other gatherings where the company (manufacturer) came and did free repairs and brought new units with them for people to see. That would be nice if they did that. Terry ------------- RP-175 W/Lift Kit 2011 Ford F-150 4X4 Saint Augustine, FL: The first permanent European settlement in the USA: 1565 |
Posted By: Podpatrol
Date Posted: 13 Jan 2010 at 1:13pm
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With so many Pods scheduled to be at the ER in June, don't be surprised
if a FR presence is for marketing. Perhaps not. Like I mentioned @ the other forum, why would they be interested in improving the Pod when the owners do that themselves ? Perhaps some "safety" issues may find their way into production, like the LP tank retainer, perhaps a better regulator, but Im just guessing here. I believe that the Lightweight TT market is just now catching steam, and as we all know, no manufacturer can justify giving the customer more than what they need. With the Pod, I was impressed with the holding tanks and the Slide option. Other than it being light and inexpensive, it's not a revolutionary thing, as noted with earlier models of the TearDrop style. The Pod isn't a Full-Time unit. I believe it's intended purpose is more geared toward the Week-End Warrior get-a-ways. For the price it's nice !!! Plus you can tow with smaller vehicles. For Example .... Honda found out that most of the people/families that owned Hondas also owned a truck, large or small. The Pod fills a gap of wanna be RVers, as an entry level TT. Of course this is just my opinion. |
Posted By: yizit
Date Posted: 13 Jan 2010 at 4:38pm
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I don't know if I'm excited if they will be there or not. I'm sure they are watching this site as well as the other one. If they come and bring suggestions and ideas, that would be great, or even the newer models would be nice too. I agree it could be a PR thing for those who may wish to upgrade. Improvements are always a good thing. We have one of the earlier 172's and got a good price. The more popular they become the more in demand they become too, which in most cases raises the price up. That can only be to our benefit for resales.
------------- 
Former owner of 2009 172 Darlene & Jim, Ewok our Lhasa Roada our 2004 Roadtrek C190Popular |
Posted By: sylviablue
Date Posted: 14 Jan 2010 at 11:42am
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Just pass out the freebies FR. I'll be there.
------------- four peas |
Posted By: Podpatrol
Date Posted: 14 Jan 2010 at 2:34pm
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I'm sure their "presence" won't take any of the fun or special-ness away
from the Event. My guess is it may be educational, in one way or another. 
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Posted By: David and Danette
Date Posted: 08 Dec 2010 at 2:44am
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I thought to bring this back up, as it was asked where did the name RPod come from. Forest River interview Jan. 4 2010 by Terry M. How do you bring it to the front? David ------------- 2018 Vista Cruiser 19BFD (2018- 2012 Vibe 6503 (2014-2019) 2009 r-pod 171 (2009-2014) Middle Tn 2014 Ram 1500 Quad cab |
Posted By: TerryM
Date Posted: 08 Dec 2010 at 4:49am
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I'm not sure what you mean. By posting in the thread it comes up when you click on "new posts", if that is what you mean. Terry ------------- RP-175 W/Lift Kit 2011 Ford F-150 4X4 Saint Augustine, FL: The first permanent European settlement in the USA: 1565 |
Posted By: David and Danette
Date Posted: 08 Dec 2010 at 10:07am
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Thanks Terry ! At 3:00 AM I don't think to clearly. ------------- 2018 Vista Cruiser 19BFD (2018- 2012 Vibe 6503 (2014-2019) 2009 r-pod 171 (2009-2014) Middle Tn 2014 Ram 1500 Quad cab |
Posted By: travelite
Date Posted: 27 Sep 2011 at 8:59pm
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one thing about the MPG....I'm getting feed back this is the last year for them....did not last long did it...they have a replacemont going out and it's not small at all.... ------------- You know it time to clean the frigerator...When something close's the door from the inside. |
Posted By: Jholler
Date Posted: 23 Jul 2018 at 11:20am
| Still no answer on the "r" in r-pod. |
Posted By: TheBum
Date Posted: 23 Jul 2018 at 3:31pm
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Wow, you did some serious digging to find this thread. It's almost 7 years old. ------------- Alan 2022 R-Pod 196 "RaptoRPod" 2022 Ram 1500 Lone Star 4x4 Three cats |
Posted By: mcarter
Date Posted: 23 Jul 2018 at 3:47pm
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Saw same post when I googled, doesn't tell you anything except who named it:) ------------- Mike Carter 2015 178 " I had the right to remain silent, I just didn't have the ability." |