Vagabond Outdoors Drifter
- Thread starter Michael Gibbs
- Start date
llamalander
Well-known member
With somewhere around 100 unbuilt campers and a minimum down-payment of $5k, plenty of folks stand to loose a lot of money if Vagabond throws in the towel....
Strange though, with that sort of order book, getting investors to step in and institute actual management seems possible, whereas going 8+ years at the current rate to clear the backlog does not....
Strange though, with that sort of order book, getting investors to step in and institute actual management seems possible, whereas going 8+ years at the current rate to clear the backlog does not....
grain_of_salt
Member
Whelp. Looks like this might be our last vestige of information for the poor souls that have down payments on a Drifter/Nomad, as TacomaWorld booted us out.
I haven't been able to reach Vagabond for the last few months regarding my order, is anyone else having better luck? If so... how?? Trying not to freak out about it.
I haven't been able to reach Vagabond for the last few months regarding my order, is anyone else having better luck? If so... how?? Trying not to freak out about it.
guess we are here now! i’m honestly surprised by TW and how heavy handed they were. ignoring the community side of everything. part of me wonders if vagabond encouraged it? don’t really know the community though so it’s pure speculation.
hoping we can still learn from one another
hoping we can still learn from one another
have you tried scheduling a call??
I scheduled a call last Friday and didn't get one. I'll try again next week. And email again. I got a reply back in April and have sent two emails since with no reply. I've paid in full for my drifter. So I'm trying not to freak out as well. 29 months in.
grain_of_salt
Member
I'm "only" at a cool 21 months (LOL), but was told November for a "build date." Not optimistic about what that means. I've never been able to get Phil on the phone, not even once, since I first ordered. Will try again, I suppose.
In folks' experience, does a "build date" mean actual completion or they are going to start thinking about ordering parts then? Haven't paid a final invoice, nor finalized build components, so not sure how they could possibly build it by then at their current rate.
In folks' experience, does a "build date" mean actual completion or they are going to start thinking about ordering parts then? Haven't paid a final invoice, nor finalized build components, so not sure how they could possibly build it by then at their current rate.
Northern Tundra
Member
I'm at about 22 months currently. At this point I'm hoping for a late spring/early summer 2023 completion. Hopefully some more of the Tacomaworld people find their way over here, the updates there were the only thing that kept some resemblance of sanity for me during this painful process..
maybe link this thread in the google sheet?
llamalander
Well-known member
UPDATE: had a chance to stop by the shop today-
I live not too far away from Benica, and I was getting fairly worried now that TC has washed their hands of Vagabond. I had some time so I showed up un announced to ask after my two hundred teens reservation and the $7k deposit on it I put down on it, because I was starting to think this may be a ponzi scheme.
Vagabond, as far as I can tell, is a real business, in business, working to get us our campers.
Phil was at work along with 3 more full-time folk, apparently another 3 do half time work there too.
Since I visited in 2020, they have moved into the adjoining space and doubled their footprint (at least).
11 drifters here, one more with the (tern?) back door on a dolly and a Nomad with the tern being assembled as well. call it a batch or whatever, they are being put together as the parts come in, in any order that the parts arrive.
Phil asked I not highlight the names, so I didn't--sorry to you folks who need to see that
My impression: this is a real business, a real product, a real pain to wait for, especially with next to zero communication. What is clear to me is these are an excellent product. Seeing these all lined up, identically crafted, but each custom with the doors, roof etc. reenforced my impression that this was really quality craftsmanship. I also build for a living, I could not do this myself and certainly not 13 times like I saw.
During the delays that keep campers going out the door, it looks like other refinements are being put in place. There is a solid stock of hatches and windows, struts and sundry parts. The design is also apparently being refined and streamlined as work goes on, with the aim of surpassing pre-lockdown production rates, which would be a real plus if that could be achieved.
So it will probably make some folks angry, but I did not ask about timelines, batches or deadlines--I'll believe I'm getting my camper when my install is scheduled, but I'm not interested in empty promises. We have already read about the "supply chain" issues, different subcontractors and other delays, and those are likely more true than not & still suck. Worth reiterating is that the build/invoice # is not the number of campers ahead of you, but the number of orders of anything. I am inclined to believe that the spreadsheet probably lists 80%+ of the campers on order, so order #250 is not 70 campers away.
The important fact, or at least the reason why I drove out 2 counties away, is that Vagabond is still in operation, putting out campers. I now regard my substantial downpayment as safe, and it will be a camper before too long, though that may still be some time. I was handed no Koolaid at the door, but meeting with Phil, seeing the shop in order and builds progressing (someone working the phone during my whole visit) gave me the faith that we will see our investments through, and they will be awesome, even if they are not worth the wait.
I know this is no great consolation to folks who are not nearby, who cannot drive over, and have waited years now. The lack of communication it torture, and we deserve to have some reliable updates about the timeline. We discussed some of the different means of doing so, but I'll wait 'till I see them happen. I think some sort of dashboard of progress or confirmation besides a tardy social media post would do us all well. The amount of patience and cash and expectations invested deserve honest updates and communication, but the Vagabond team has dedicated their efforts to the product and not the process.
I didn't ask about how best to communicate, how to decide if you wanted to opt-out of options that could substantially increase the wait time, or other useful tips--sorry. What I did see was camper #1, the one that was rolled, and it's back and running on a new (old) Toyota.
Just behind the red latch, you might notice the crease where the camper propped up the truck that rolled. Everything still functions even if the truck underneath was scrapped. So yes, this camper could last longer than the truck you are driving, probably the truck you ordered it for. I think we all should get the red sticker and a case of beer at delivery, but i'm not holding my breath. That aside, it was really exciting to see these coming together. I've seen GFC's, visited AT Overland and climbed inside the Summit, and I still think this is the topper I want to have. Hope this helps everyone who's waiting--Vagabond is still making campers, and someday it will make yours and mine... I just couldn't tell you when.
I live not too far away from Benica, and I was getting fairly worried now that TC has washed their hands of Vagabond. I had some time so I showed up un announced to ask after my two hundred teens reservation and the $7k deposit on it I put down on it, because I was starting to think this may be a ponzi scheme.
Vagabond, as far as I can tell, is a real business, in business, working to get us our campers.
Phil was at work along with 3 more full-time folk, apparently another 3 do half time work there too.
Since I visited in 2020, they have moved into the adjoining space and doubled their footprint (at least).
11 drifters here, one more with the (tern?) back door on a dolly and a Nomad with the tern being assembled as well. call it a batch or whatever, they are being put together as the parts come in, in any order that the parts arrive.
Phil asked I not highlight the names, so I didn't--sorry to you folks who need to see that
My impression: this is a real business, a real product, a real pain to wait for, especially with next to zero communication. What is clear to me is these are an excellent product. Seeing these all lined up, identically crafted, but each custom with the doors, roof etc. reenforced my impression that this was really quality craftsmanship. I also build for a living, I could not do this myself and certainly not 13 times like I saw.
During the delays that keep campers going out the door, it looks like other refinements are being put in place. There is a solid stock of hatches and windows, struts and sundry parts. The design is also apparently being refined and streamlined as work goes on, with the aim of surpassing pre-lockdown production rates, which would be a real plus if that could be achieved.
So it will probably make some folks angry, but I did not ask about timelines, batches or deadlines--I'll believe I'm getting my camper when my install is scheduled, but I'm not interested in empty promises. We have already read about the "supply chain" issues, different subcontractors and other delays, and those are likely more true than not & still suck. Worth reiterating is that the build/invoice # is not the number of campers ahead of you, but the number of orders of anything. I am inclined to believe that the spreadsheet probably lists 80%+ of the campers on order, so order #250 is not 70 campers away.
The important fact, or at least the reason why I drove out 2 counties away, is that Vagabond is still in operation, putting out campers. I now regard my substantial downpayment as safe, and it will be a camper before too long, though that may still be some time. I was handed no Koolaid at the door, but meeting with Phil, seeing the shop in order and builds progressing (someone working the phone during my whole visit) gave me the faith that we will see our investments through, and they will be awesome, even if they are not worth the wait.
I know this is no great consolation to folks who are not nearby, who cannot drive over, and have waited years now. The lack of communication it torture, and we deserve to have some reliable updates about the timeline. We discussed some of the different means of doing so, but I'll wait 'till I see them happen. I think some sort of dashboard of progress or confirmation besides a tardy social media post would do us all well. The amount of patience and cash and expectations invested deserve honest updates and communication, but the Vagabond team has dedicated their efforts to the product and not the process.
I didn't ask about how best to communicate, how to decide if you wanted to opt-out of options that could substantially increase the wait time, or other useful tips--sorry. What I did see was camper #1, the one that was rolled, and it's back and running on a new (old) Toyota.
Just behind the red latch, you might notice the crease where the camper propped up the truck that rolled. Everything still functions even if the truck underneath was scrapped. So yes, this camper could last longer than the truck you are driving, probably the truck you ordered it for. I think we all should get the red sticker and a case of beer at delivery, but i'm not holding my breath. That aside, it was really exciting to see these coming together. I've seen GFC's, visited AT Overland and climbed inside the Summit, and I still think this is the topper I want to have. Hope this helps everyone who's waiting--Vagabond is still making campers, and someday it will make yours and mine... I just couldn't tell you when.
SoCalTacoTruck
Member
Thanks for the update! Suhweet!