Just Curious

How are all of these RV's being delivered to the dealers all over the country?

A large dealership would need many different models to present to the potential customer to show off sizes and floorplans. How does Heartland get one unit or twenty units to these dealers.

As far as shows, like the Tampa Show, I would assume the dealer, such as Lazy Days hire drivers to get the rigs over to the grounds.

Thank you Dick

For regular stock to a dealer's lot they use transport companies like Hoosier Transportation, Quality Drive away and others. These companies employ drivers that are many times retired people that want to travel and make a (very) few bucks. I'm not sure about how trailers get to the big shows, maybe the same companies. The dealer would be on their own to return these units after the show is over.

We met a few drivers this March. They have their own pickup trucks and get reimbursed for "some" expenses, but they get paid once they deliver, so best to get it there quickly. Longer hauls can pay better than short ones. They sleep in their trucks and stop as little as possible. While driving the interstates through Indiana and Illinois, about 8 out of 10 RVs we saw were being transported. And about 1 RV for every 25 vehicles on the road.


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Last October I saw two Heartland 5th wheels being towed west on I-90 by two trucks with the same company name on them.

From what I've found so far, most dealerships hire drivers that either have or had a class A CDL, a lot of experience towing anything and a good truck to tow it with. Most are "retired" so to speak but typically from the big rig industry. Some are smaller companies that will dispatch to anywhere in the states and some are self employed having a registered business license, insurance and a bond with any additional certificates needed.

When transporting to a show from dealership and back they use some of their own staff that move units all day long on the lot and make short deliveries along with local drivers that are licensed, bonded and insured.

One time for the the RV show in Houston they RV dealer 'hired' several RVers to move rvs from the parking lot to the inside the show. Payment was $50 and a free entry ticket to the RV Show. We moved 12 rigs that day for them. The dealer used their own employees to move the RVs from their lot to the show venue parking lot. I think JayC worked for Horizon Transport at one time. Horizon Transport moves a ton of RV from the Elkhart area to dealers across the country. They also transport Motor Homes, travel trailers, fifth wheels, new FedEx and UPS trucks and utility trailers. When visiting Elkhart you see transport companies moving RVs, trailers, trailers full of axles and frames and many other trailers full of RV related parts all over the area. There is also an ambulance manufacturer around the corner from Heartland RV. So if you are looking for a transport job, Elkhart is a good place to start. Also if you need to have your RV moved from point A to point B there are transporters all over the country that will do it. We have even met people who live in their RV and have never towed it but use transport companies to move it.