Finalizing the new trailer options

March, 2018

The day of big decisions.

March 12, 2018, was the day that a friend of mine and I drove north to Chilliwack, British Columbia, Canada, so I could finalize ALL of the options for my new trailer and sign off on the final purchase price and sign off on the final “build sheet” that specified my choices for all of the options with Escape Trailer Industries.

Chilliwack is an interesting and pleasant town, with all manner of very good restaurants and friendly people, and with stunning and majestic mountains surrounding the town and the valley.

On the outskirts of Chilliwack, on our way to explore a campground and a nearby lake.

We stayed overnight at the Hampton Inn, which I highly recommend if you ever go to Chilliwack.

The sunrise the next morning was gorgeous.  The photo below was taken from inside our hotel room.

By the time we got checked out of the hotel, got our stuff packed in the truck, and then got on the road towards Escape Trailer, those sunrise colors had faded.  I was hoping for a photo of the mountains with the sunrise, but it was not to be, at least not on this trip.

My appointment at Escape Trailer (ETI) was at 8a.m.  The Hampton Inn is about two minutes away from ETI, so no problem getting there with a few minutes to spare.

The ETI folks and I took all three of my allotted three hours for the discussion and finalization process.  There weren’t any problems.  It’s just that one of us would think of something we hadn’t discussed so a description and sometimes show-and-tell ensued so I could make a decision.  And, because of my Paralegal background, I did read every word of the final agreement before signing it, and sign it I did, readily and happily!  I was gladly committed.

I was a little bit nervous, but only because I didn’t want to forget to include any of the options that I wanted.  But believe me, I had checklists aplenty!

ETI builds ample lead-time into the process.  The advantage of having a few months lead time is it gives the buyer lots of time to research all of the options and make decisions prior to making the final commitment.  But have no fear, during that lead-time, your name is on the list and your new trailer is on the “build” schedule, so the time is not wasted and does not postpone the completion date of your new trailer.

During the few months leading up to this March appointment, I pored over the online Escape Owners’ Forum and talked with people who lived near me who already were owners of Escape trailers.  ETI employees were extremely helpful as well, giving me information, specifications, other ideas, names of vendors, etc.  So I was fairly confident that I had all of my ducks in a row.  Nevertheless, this was a chunk of money that I would be spending so I wanted to be careful.

For you readers who haven’t read my earlier post about the decision to order a brand new trailer, you can read about it here, The BIG Decision.

Unlike most other RV manufacturers, Escape Trailer offers LOTS of options and LOTS of time for the buyer to make those decisions.  There were a few things they don’t offer an option for that I wish they had, but all-in-all, Escape trailers are the best deal for the best price with the most options.  The trailers are exceptionally well built and the people who work at ETI are simply the best.

Some of the options that I chose are:
a.  Permanently mounted 160W solar panel on the roof with controller near the batteries.
b.  Two-way hot water tank (120V and propane … standard is propane only).
c.  Dual 6V batteries, 225 amps (standard is a single 110 amp 12V battery).
d.  Roof mounted air conditioner (11,000 BTU).
e.  Wireless backup camera on the back of the trailer, with monitor that plugs into 12v receptacle in the truck.
f.  Thermal windows and extra insulation in the walls (for heat/cold and for noise reduction).
g.  Aluminum wheels (less rust and more bling).
h.  Locking storage box on the front tongue of the trailer and locking access doors from the outside of the trailer to the spaces under the dinette seats.
i.  Several more 120V outlets, and 12V receptacles, and USB outlets inside the trailer.
j.  An exterior LED light on each of the four sides of the trailer, with a dedicated switch inside the trailer for each exterior light.
k.  A 12V LED reading light (photo right) in each of the four corners above the dinette.
l.  A larger kitchen sink and a different kitchen faucet than they offer as standard.
m.  Custom flooring (I purchased and supplied).
n.  Custom formica (I chose and they supplied).
o.  Custom cushion and valance fabric (I purchased and supplied).
p.  An “E2” solid bar (no chain) anti-sway and weight distribution hitch (ETI will install it on my truck and adjust the height when I’m there to pick up the trailer).
q.  A high-lift kit on each axle that increases the ground clearance under the trailer from about 13″ to about 16″.
r.  Lots of other good stuff.

I sure hope I didn’t forget anything!  I can always add/change stuff later if desired.  On the other hand, with the exchange rate, it’s less expensive to have ETI do all the work than to have work done down here in the USA … and ETI knows their trailers better than anyone else does.  And it’s easier on me to have the work already done when I pick up my trailer.  Just put the beer in the fridge and some clean socks in a drawer and go camping!  🙂

And then there’s the border crossing …..

Which actually was no big deal on any of our trips north or south across this border.

The photo above is the southbound border crossing at Sumas, Washington, when heading back into the USA from Canada.

So far I have always used the Sumas border crossing (both northbound and southbound) because it’s small and because it’s close to Chilliwack in Canada.  Both directions have separate lanes for big commercial trucks.  When entering the USA, motorhomes are directed to use the lane with the big yellow goal-post-thing screening device in the photo above.  On this particular day, it was the only lane that was open and traffic was allowed through quickly.

With this March trip behind us, my friend and I had now traveled to Chilliwack and back home again three times and had not experienced more than a few minutes wait in line at either the Canadian or the USA checkpoint.  The one exception took hardly more time than usual.  During the crossing southbound into the USA in February this year, USA officers had all vehicles pull over (only about a dozen cars and pickup trucks were there) and had a dog sniff all around every vehicle for drugs.  That took less than 15 minutes.

Each time we crossed the border at Sumas, in either direction, when the border officials asked where we were going or where we had been, and I answered “Escape Trailer in Chilliwack”, they all seemed to be familiar with that answer.  I bet the USA border crossing sees LOTS of brand new Escape trailers come south through there!  And I bet the Canadian folks like to see us come up and support their economy.

Someday, I’ll be towing my trailer back northbound into Canada to go RV-ing there.

But for now, I am eagerly awaiting the completion of my new 21-foot Escape trailer.  I’ll be going up to Chilliwack in mid-June for the orientation that will happen in my brand new trailer (not in one of the demo trailers), and then I’ll bring her home.  You can bet you’ll see photos here!

NOTE:  If you didn’t see the comments in the last post from several readers identifying those vintage trailers AND identifying that great old car in the last blog post, and if you are interested in what the answers were, you can read all about it at the bottom of that post (a new photo has been added) and read new comments below that post.  The link to that post, “Dreams from the past”, is HERE.  Thanks to everyone who posted a comment!