KZ RV High End Escalade Sportster Fifth Wheel Toyhauler

SHIPSHEWANA, Ind. – After a six-month production hiatus on the high-end Escalade Sportster fifth wheel toyhauler, towable manufacturer KZ Recreational Vehicles is responding to consumer demand and reintroducing it.

“A high volume of customer requests for the Sportster drove us to do a full update on that product and get it back to the market,” said Andy Baer, vice president of sales and marketing. “We received a lot of consumer feedback that came directly to us as well as through our dealers, which is somewhat unusual.”

While the toyhauler market declined during the recession, Baer said dealers are seeing an upswing in that segment again, so KZ met with dealers and owners to make some pertinent changes before reintroducing the product.

“The Sportster is an Escalade first and a toyhauler second. It’s a premium fifth wheel that happens to have a garage area,” Baer said. “There was tremendous demand at the Sturgis Rally in August and we had very good sales. It’s also popular with snowbirds who use the garage for golf carts and hobbies, so it appeals to a variety of customers.”

KZ retooled several of its products this year in terms of features, floorplans, weight and pricing in order to stay competitive and encourage rising sales trends. “As a company, we have to be sensitive to what consumers are looking for and want to own,” explained Baer. “It’s naïve to produce something blindly and hope people like it. We listen to our dealers and we listen to our customers. They wanted the Sportster back, so we used their input to make it even better.”

For more information about the Escalade Sportster and KZ’s other RVs, visit www.KZ-RV.com.