Plant Tour

campswithcritters · Post by **campswithcritters** » Sun Jul 16, 2006 12:01 pm

Charles, I came close to touring it. If you request info on Americana 5th wheels they will send you a DVD of "their construction process", I went to the Americana facility in Elkhart Indiana which is where I discovered that they were just modifying Cardinals with a few extras and renaming them. The DVD takes you through most of the construction process.

Larry · Post by **Larry** » Wed Jul 19, 2006 2:49 pm

Yes, we took the tour last week on the second day that we owned our bird. We left the dealer's lot in Appleton, WI with her on Tuesday the 11th and drove to South Bend, IN to visit friends there. Since Forest River in Elkhart is only 12 miles from their house, I called them and found that they gave tours on Mon, Wed & Fri at 1:00pm. So Wed. afternoon we drove over with the Cardinal in tow and took the tour. There was just us and one other couple so there was an opportunity to get a very personal tour. It lasted almost two hours and was very through. We were very impressed with the construction techniques and went away very pleased with ourselves for selecting the Cardinal as our next trailer.

TwoPiggs · Post by **TwoPiggs** » Thu Jul 20, 2006 10:41 am

Thanks Larry - great report. I'd like to visit the FR factory in the future.

Double D's · Post by **Double D's** » Fri Jul 21, 2006 6:51 am

New poster here! We picked up our new Cardinal 29RKLE on June 7!! We had gone on the tour in Elkhart in March and were very impressed with the speed and workmanship of the whole operation - there was one other couple in our tour. The only problem we saw with the whole operation was actually in the yard where the rigs exited from the building - there were literally HUNDREDS of screws laying in the gravel yard! Our rig DID have a screw in one of the tires when we picked it up! Dealer missed it at detailing, and we found we had a flat the day after delivery. Tour is very interesting, and if you are near enough to go, I would say "Do it!"

Donna and Dennis
Cardinal 29RKLE, 2007
Ford F250 Diesel, Trail Air
Illinois

Luizianna · Post by **Luizianna** » Sun Jul 30, 2006 8:03 am

Donna/Dennis, don't know how I missed your first post...Lord knows I'm in this forum a LOT!!

Welcome to the forum. We do hope to make a factory tour one of these days. DH will be retiring soon then our adventures can begin!! Good Luck and Happy Camping to ya!!

Double D's · Post by **Double D's** » Sun Jul 30, 2006 9:19 am

My hubby retired in March, and but is one of those silly guys that keeps on workin! We just got back from a 3 week trip to Northern Wisconsin, and certainly hope to get out to the western states soon.
I think we are one of the lucky ones, as our shakedown trip was WONDERFUL and without problems. Still can't get our Concertone to play sound for DVDs, but that is minor compared to the probs several have had, with leaks, etc.
If you get up north here for a tour, give us a shout and swing a bit west to visit US, here southwest of Chicago!
Tour is very interesting, ENJOY! D

campswithcritters · Post by **campswithcritters** » Sun Jul 30, 2006 11:01 pm

Donna/Dennis Balfanz wrote:My hubby retired in March, and but is one of those silly guys that keeps on workin! We just got back from a 3 week trip to Northern Wisconsin, and certainly hope to get out to the western states soon.
I think we are one of the lucky ones, as our shakedown trip was WONDERFUL and without problems. Still can't get our Concertone to play sound for DVDs, but that is minor compared to the probs several have had, with leaks, etc.
If you get up north here for a tour, give us a shout and swing a bit west to visit US, here southwest of Chicago!
Tour is very interesting, ENJOY! D

I might give you a shout towards the end of August to see if you might want to go out on a short trip, wife and I will be stopping for a short visit with my parents in Champaign Urbana.

Double D's · Post by **Double D's** » Mon Jul 31, 2006 11:57 am

Not sure if I posted my reply correctly, so will try again!
Would love to meet up with you both, but might be going to a reunion in Pa. at that time frame. Give us a holler as time gets closer, and let us know exact time. Would love to meet more fellow Cardinal owners! Dennis and Donna

Diesel Dave 04 · Post by **Diesel Dave 04** » Mon Oct 16, 2006 8:14 am

Larry wrote:Yes, we took the tour last week on the second day that we owned our bird. We left the dealer's lot in Appleton, WI with her on Tuesday the 11th and drove to South Bend, IN to visit friends there. Since Forest River in Elkhart is only 12 miles from their house, I called them and found that they gave tours on Mon, Wed & Fri at 1:00pm. So Wed. afternoon we drove over with the Cardinal in tow and took the tour. There was just us and one other couple so there was an opportunity to get a very personal tour. It lasted almost two hours and was very through. We were very impressed with the construction techniques and went away very pleased with ourselves for selecting the Cardinal as our next trailer.

How long does it take from start to finnish?
week 2 weeks a few days??

Cardinal RV Club

Plant Tour

Plant tour

Factory tour

Re: Plant tour