Friday Day 12

Friday was test day again. It went through the"bubble test" that pressurizes the interior and they use the old soapy water sprayed on the exterior to look for air leaking out. Following that it gets the "rain booth" test. High pressure water is spayed at every angle and under the chassis at 500 gallons per minute to look for leaks into the inside. W were invited inside the motor home for the test so no photos were taken. The only leak turned out to be the seal around the entry door. A new seal will be installed on Monday. It looks like a complete motor home now with all exterior items mounted and painted. It's in the final bay at Belmont MS for some paint touch up and minor work like a defective fog lamp. The paint job on such a large vehicle is about as perfect as it could possibly be. The two coats of "super" clear coat really makes it shine.

Every seam and edge is sealed to prevent water leaks.
Two ladies worked on this, one on each side.

Check out the great shine!

Mary is checking things with the "sealing lady".

This is the "bubble test". A high power fan forces air through a window to pressurize the interior then the soapy water is applied to watch for bubbles. They work very hard to prevent water intrusion. A water leak can quickly damage a motor home.

It really is almost 13 feet high. This is the final bay at Belmont MS where all the paint is applied and the famous Phaeton mudfllap, exterior lights, awning toppers and patio awning are installed.

These are in row #1 of the three rows where they are staged for delivery to the dealers. They output 12 motor homes every day (that number includes all models, gas and diesel). That adds up to about 3000 units per year. My wild guess at the total value of these per year is at least $500 million.

Our unit is the 600th Phaeton so far this model year. The Tiffin models are Allegro Open Road, Allegro RED, Phaeton, Allegro Bus and Zephyr. Each model has several floor plans to choose from. The price goes up as you move up the model line. The Zephyr tops out at about $600,000. The Phaeton has been the most popular motor home in the United States out of all manufacturers of motor homes.

I hope ours is in this lineup by next Wednesday May 11.