2013 Zinger ZT33BH First Impressions
Well, this weekend was the maiden voyage of our new TT, a 2013 Zinger ZT33BH.
Overall I am happy with the purchase, but we have one outstanding issue that needs to be solved, one issue I'm confused about, and one issue we dealt with in place.
The issue we dealt with was the pex fitting that was screwed on the the kitchen sink hot water tap was cross-threaded and leaked. It began leaking a couple hours after turning the water pump on. I'm a bit upset with Crossroads (the manufacturer) as that's a rookie mistake to make plus it should have been caught in a factory pressure test.
The issue I'm confused about is there were hundreds of little metal filings all over the floor. The unit was "thoughtfully detailed" by the dealership prior to us taking it, and they weren't there when we did our pre-delivery inspection and orientation, so I'm really not sure what they are or where they came from. They look like filings that occur from drilling through aluminum.
The last issue is the large slide in the main living area does not slide by motor power. It moves freely with manual override. I haven't investigated to see if it's a switch, poor ground, other wiring, or bad motor. It worked in my driveway at home to load the trailer and close it up for the trip, but did not work once we arrived at the CG. I have the dealer involved, as this will be a warranty issue regardless, so I'm not too concerned at the moment.
Besides those issues, the trailer worked fantastically for our family of five (Kids are 7, 4, and 5-months) and the kids all bunked together without issue. We were very concerned that the baby would keep the older two awake, or vice versa, but it worked out very well. The kid's sleep schedules are such that the older two are in bed a couple hours before the baby, so they're both sleeping by his bedtime, and he wakes up to eat before the girls get up for the day so he bunks with us from then on. Worked out nicely.
It also towed very well behind my 1986 Chevy 3/4 ton van. I was surprised by the towing performance of the old beast. Once up to speed on the highway I could barely feel the trailer in tow. I did notice it during starting and stopping, but it hauled very smooth and handled the road quite well. In fact, I had set four glasses in the outside kitchen and they didn't move an inch in transit (roughly 45km overall to the destination) which was very surprising.
Overall I'd rate the exterior quality as excellent, and the interior build quality as fair. They didn't use top of the line materials and construction for the cabinets and walls inside, but it is a lot of trailer for the price. It is a definite upgrade over my 1996 Mallard 31T, and I am overall happy about the purchase. I've suffered from buyer's remorse on some things in the past, but that is not the case for this TT.
Highlights:
Very large capacity tanks means more time between "dump runs"
Huge pantry with loads of storage
More counter space than we're used to in a TT
Lots of play space for the kids on not-so-nice days
For almost 10,000lbs it tows extremely easily
Lowlights:
Aforementioned issues
The shower isn't quite big enough for me, but is useable in a pinch
The water pressure isn't as high as I would like (anyone recommend a fix?)
The bathroom doorknob will hit a small child seated on the toilet if you're not careful
Overall I am happy with the purchase, but we have one outstanding issue that needs to be solved, one issue I'm confused about, and one issue we dealt with in place.
The issue we dealt with was the pex fitting that was screwed on the the kitchen sink hot water tap was cross-threaded and leaked. It began leaking a couple hours after turning the water pump on. I'm a bit upset with Crossroads (the manufacturer) as that's a rookie mistake to make plus it should have been caught in a factory pressure test.
The issue I'm confused about is there were hundreds of little metal filings all over the floor. The unit was "thoughtfully detailed" by the dealership prior to us taking it, and they weren't there when we did our pre-delivery inspection and orientation, so I'm really not sure what they are or where they came from. They look like filings that occur from drilling through aluminum.
The last issue is the large slide in the main living area does not slide by motor power. It moves freely with manual override. I haven't investigated to see if it's a switch, poor ground, other wiring, or bad motor. It worked in my driveway at home to load the trailer and close it up for the trip, but did not work once we arrived at the CG. I have the dealer involved, as this will be a warranty issue regardless, so I'm not too concerned at the moment.
Besides those issues, the trailer worked fantastically for our family of five (Kids are 7, 4, and 5-months) and the kids all bunked together without issue. We were very concerned that the baby would keep the older two awake, or vice versa, but it worked out very well. The kid's sleep schedules are such that the older two are in bed a couple hours before the baby, so they're both sleeping by his bedtime, and he wakes up to eat before the girls get up for the day so he bunks with us from then on. Worked out nicely.
It also towed very well behind my 1986 Chevy 3/4 ton van. I was surprised by the towing performance of the old beast. Once up to speed on the highway I could barely feel the trailer in tow. I did notice it during starting and stopping, but it hauled very smooth and handled the road quite well. In fact, I had set four glasses in the outside kitchen and they didn't move an inch in transit (roughly 45km overall to the destination) which was very surprising.
Overall I'd rate the exterior quality as excellent, and the interior build quality as fair. They didn't use top of the line materials and construction for the cabinets and walls inside, but it is a lot of trailer for the price. It is a definite upgrade over my 1996 Mallard 31T, and I am overall happy about the purchase. I've suffered from buyer's remorse on some things in the past, but that is not the case for this TT.
Highlights:
Very large capacity tanks means more time between "dump runs"
Huge pantry with loads of storage
More counter space than we're used to in a TT
Lots of play space for the kids on not-so-nice days
For almost 10,000lbs it tows extremely easily
Lowlights:
Aforementioned issues
The shower isn't quite big enough for me, but is useable in a pinch
The water pressure isn't as high as I would like (anyone recommend a fix?)
The bathroom doorknob will hit a small child seated on the toilet if you're not careful
