Historical Glance: RV Wholesale Shipments

Recreation Vehicles (RVs)

Year

RV Unit
Shipments
(in 000)

% Change
From
Prior Year

RV Retail Value

(in billions)

*

*

*

*

1978

1979

1980

1981

1982

1983

1984

1985

1986

1987

1988

1989

1990

1991

1992

1993

1994

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

     389.9

     199.2

     107.2

     133.6

     140.6

     196.6

     215.7

     186.9

     189.8

     211.7

     215.8

     187.9

     173.1

     163.3

     203.4

     227.8

     259.2

     247.0

     247.5

     254.5

     292.7

     321.2

     300.1

     256.8

     311.0

     320.8

370.1

384.4

390.5

     353.4

     237.0

     165.7

      - 5.8

     - 48.9

     - 46.2

    + 24.6

      + 5.2

    + 39.8

      + 9.7

     - 13.4

      + 1.6

    + 11.5

      + 1.9

     - 12.9

      - 7.9

      - 5.7

    + 24.6

    + 12.0

    + 13.8

      - 4.7

      + 0.2

      + 2.8

     +15.0

       +9.7

      - 6.6

      -14.4

      +21.1

       +3.2

 +15.4

  +3.9

  +1.6

  -9.5

  -32.9

  -30.1

      4.077

      2.123

      1.168

      1.253

      1.879

      3.485

      4.393

      3.936

      4.031

      4.660

      4.955

      4.589

      4.113

      3.614

      4.411

      4.713

      5.691

      5.894

      6.328

      6.904

      8.364

    10.413

      9.529

      8.598

     10.960

     12.058

 14.700

 14.366

 14.732

 14.504

 8.758

 5.152

Shipment Trends:

Shipments of all RVs (motorhomes, travel trailers, sport utility RVs, truck campers and folding camping trailers) totaled 237,000 units in 2008 — a 32.9 percent decrease compared to the previous year.

Popularity:

Today a record 8.2 million RVs are on the roads in the United States.  RVs are owned by nearly 8 million U.S. households—a 15 percent increase during 2001-2005, reveals a 2005 University of Michigan study.  There are as many as 30 million RV enthusiasts, including renters, nationwide, according to RVIA estimates.

Future
Growth:

Long-term signs point to substantial RV market growth because of favorable demographic and ownership trends, according to a 2005 University of Michigan study.  The number of RV-owning households is estimated to rise 8 percent by 2010 to nearly 8.5 million.