Tiffin Motorhomes Tours

Main Assembly Plant Tour

The plant tour at Tiffin Motorhomes is a popular trip. The tour takes you through the plant where Tiffin motorhomes are being built and assembled. This is not your usual plant tour. Visitors are not confined to catwalks or spectator-only areas. the tour takes you right in among the workers assembling the RVs and you will be free to ask them any questions you might have. In fact, once the tour is over you can continue to visit the factory, which is very popular with many customers who want to see their "baby" being birthed. You may enter coaches that are being constructed at will. It's only asked that common sense and courtesy be used.

The photo above is the original offices of the Allegro Club. It is located just outside the plant gate and this is where the tour starts. Just show up prior to the start time and sign in. You'll be shown a brief video presentation about Tiffin Motorhomes prior to the tour. Brochures and price lists are available for you to take home as well as a small souvenir.

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Red Davis - Tour Guide

The official plant tour is held twice a day - one at 10 AM the morning and one again in the afternoon. The tour is led by Red Davis, an 84 year old veteran of Tiffin Motorhomes and the perfect tour guide. Red will take you through the plant, explaining everything as he goes and adding his humorous personal anecdotes along the way. If he can't answer your questions or find what you are looking for he'll find someone who can.

Front and Rear Caps

The tour begins near the weld shop. A number of front and rear caps are located in a storage area outside the building. Tiffin manufactures their own fiberglass components, including these caps.

Bare Chassis

The chassis spends day or two in the weld shop, where all of the tubular steel structure required to support the motorhome's floor and basement storage compartments is welded to the frame. After this the chassis goes to have a protective coating sprayed on, then returns to the weld shop where the wiring harness and various plumbing lines are installed into the chassis. After it's finished in the weld shop the chassis moves to the main assembly building where the coach is built. After four days in assembly it is sent to the Belmont paint plant for paint, then returned to the main assembly building for final fit and finish and inspection. In the above photo a Spartan tag axle chassis is beginning it's trip through the assembly plant on the way to becoming a 43' Allegro Bus.

Front of Chassis

The Onan generator is mounted to the front of the chassis. This particular chassis is a Powerglide chassis for an Allegro Bus. The maze of wiring bundles and hoses as it arrives from the weld shop can easily be seen in this photo.

Electrical Compartment

The front most roadside basement compartment is where most diesel pushers house the various electrical system components. This Powerglide chassis clearly shows the Vansco multiplexed wiring system used on the Powerglide as well as the windshield washer reservoir and other components.

Flooring Installation

The floor is built as an assembly at the Belmont plant. All of the holes are cut out by a computerized process to allow passage of wiring, heat ducts, etc. Ceramic tile is laid onto the floor and the entire unit is transported on a trailer to the Red Bay assembly plant. This photo shows the arrival of a floor on a trailer which will be carried to a chassis via an overhead crane with a specialized lifting jig.

Interior Walls

After the floor is fastened to the chassis it's time to add the bulky stuff before the sidewalls get in place. Any interior walls, refrigerators, cabinets, and shower stalls are installed at this time.

Washer-Drier

This coach is getting a stackable washer and drier. The units are installed into the interior cabinet prior to hanging the sidewalls.

Rear Bath

This Allegro Bus is getting a rear bath. The fiberglass shower stall, vanity cabinets, and macerator style toilet are installed on the rear deck. Plumbing and wiring is passed through to the basement.

Mid TV and Guest Bath

This rear bath coach also has a guest bath located mid-coach. A large LCD television will be placed into the hutch.

Water Service Bay

The water service bay is connected to the plumbing system on this Allegro Bus. Once the plumbing is finished it will be tested at 120 PSI for a given time to ensure there are no leaks.

Water Tanks

Directly opposite the water service bay are the fresh water and holding tanks and sensor arrangement for the tank level monitoring panel.

Tile Shower

This hand laid ceramic tile shower stall is destined for a Zephyr. The Zephyr is Tiffin's top of the line model and features many features and amenities not available in other models.

Preparing the Sidewall

Sidewalls are formed by laminating the fiberglass and luan sidewall material to a high density foam core. A CNC controlled router then cuts precise slots for structural member, windows, and any other wall penetrations.

Install the Sidewall Framing

Once the foam has been cut, aluminum structural tubing is laid in to the sidewall foam to serve as the coach's skeleton. Once laid and tapped into place the wall moves to the next station where the aluminum tubing is welded together to create a solid frame work. Next, the inner layer of luan is applied via glue and the unit is held in a large press while curing.

Roof Construction

The roof structure is formed in similar manner to the sidewalls. The preformed one piece fiberglass roof shell is laminated to the foam core and structure and the finished ceiling panel is also attached. An overhead lifting crane lifts it and moves it to the assembly area.

Lowering the Roof Structure

An overhead crane moves the completed roof structure over to it's designated coach. The entire assembly will be lowered onto the coach and securely fastened.

Once the basic assembly has been completed, the generator will be tested for proper operation. Then the front and rear caps will be installed, sealed, and trimmed out. Once the windows are installed the coach can head to the Belmont plant for paint. After painting has been completed final assembly of the mirrors and awnings will be done at Belmont before returning to Red Bay for final fit and finish and inspection.

Mark Quasius - "Cruzer"

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