Stuck between the brand I want and the trailer I want...

[cpap]

Shopping for a new TT...currently own Jayco 264BH Swift. It has come down to a Jayco Whitehawk 27 rear living or rear bath. Or, a Heartland Wilderness 2775RB. My dilemma is I like the Wilderness' floorplan but have more faith in the Jayco brand because I have one and have had not problems worth mentioning and like the 2 year warranty...what to do?

Heartland owners...input? What has been your experience with their products?

Anyone else faced this problem? What did you do?

[DarbyWalters]

My new 29REKS has the rear living/entertainment/fireplace with two windows on the back wall...the floorplan was the major reason I purchased this Jayco Model. If you don't want or need Bunk House...it makes the rear living room a must IMO

[cpap]

Doug33 wrote:

myredracer wrote:

You might also want to check the "quality" of the dealer. Some are absolutely terrible and inept and slow(BTDT) while others are outstanding. A bad dealer can turn your nice TT into a nightmare. Some manufacturers/plants have superior support compared to others. Jayco appears to have excellent support from what I've read but don't know about Heartland.

This especially can be concern for those that travel a long distance to purchase an RV, and then plan to get it serviced locally.

I found a 2014 rear bath Jayco 140 miles from home, that I can save $2500 over a new 2015 that I would have to order. Getting it serviced locally is my concern...will I get sub-standard service becasue I didn't buy it there?...who knows? They have been good to me with my current camper that I purchased from them.

$2500 is a lot of money. Going to talk to my local dealer before I commit to a purchase that far from home to see if they can help me out on the price at all.

[Doug33]

myredracer wrote:

You might also want to check the "quality" of the dealer. Some are absolutely terrible and inept and slow(BTDT) while others are outstanding. A bad dealer can turn your nice TT into a nightmare. Some manufacturers/plants have superior support compared to others. Jayco appears to have excellent support from what I've read but don't know about Heartland.

This especially can be concern for those that travel a long distance to purchase an RV, and then plan to get it serviced locally.

[myredracer]

I'm pretty sure that the Whitehawk has a BAL Ultraframe as opposed to the usual Lippert frame. From what I have learned about frames now, the Jayco with a non-Lippert frame would be my choice plus Jayco seems to have a pretty good reputation otherwise.

The 2 year warranty is DEFINITELY a plus, and we have one on our KZ. And if you buy one this time of the year and don't use it much, if at all, until spring, you've only got around 6 months of the regular camping season to find issues and get them fixed under the 1 year warranty. Plus, you sure don't want your new TT sitting at the dealer at the height of the camping season for weeks getting fixed. Some problems, like frame and suspension issues can take longer than a year to discover. Interesting comment on the fine print and I will have to check ours.

You might also want to check the "quality" of the dealer. Some are absolutely terrible and inept and slow(BTDT) while others are outstanding. A bad dealer can turn your nice TT into a nightmare. Some manufacturers/plants have superior support compared to others. Jayco appears to have excellent support from what I've read but don't know about Heartland.

[Doug33]

cpap wrote:

Doug33 wrote:
Just curious why you have narrowed it down to only 2 particular units?

This is the final out of about 12 (or more) different units we considered. We started looking at a bunkhouse to accomodate grandchildren etc...but we decided agains the bunkhouse so here we are.

Got it - makes sense - good luck with your choice!

[Bumpyroad]

cpap wrote:

Bumpyroad wrote:
which one has a rubber roof? get the other one.
bumpy

What types of roofs are there? Thought they were all rubber?

this is exactly why I raise this question all the time. everybody "assumes" something incorrectly.
bumpy

[Bumpyroad]

WyoTraveler wrote:
I had a 5ver with a huge rear window. (2001 Alpenlite Augusta 32RL) The rear window was #1 on the list of things I hated. We FTd and it was cold back there by that rear window. It was AZ weather never got much below 15 degrees at night. In the summer it was hot hot hot sitting back there. We kept the curtain closed most of the time to keep out cold and heat. An electric heater behind the recliners helped some in the winter but not in the summer with the heat. Every window was a thermal window except that window.

that was one question I asked a long time ago and never got feed back. I observed that those who espouse dual pain windows and get a 5er with a huge rear window, if those were DP. I guess not, sort of defeats putting up with them on the other tiny windows if the large one isn't.
bumpy

[Bama_bluejay]

We own a 2012 WhiteHawk 27 DSRL. I think ours was one of the first off the assembly line. Ours had the small 2 3/8 axels. Not sure about the 3/8 but was close. Had problems and Jayco replaced the axels with a 3inch. If I understand it correctly all the new White Hawk are equipped with the 3 inch axels now. After making the deal I told my DH maybe we should have waited for the bugs to be worked out since it was first year of a new model design. This is our third Jayco, have faith in the co. but lost faith in our dealer.

[Mike_Up]

cpap wrote:
Shopping for a new TT...currently own Jayco 264BH Swift. It has come down to a Jayco Whitehawk 27 rear living or rear bath. Or, a Heartland Wilderness 2775RB. My dilemma is I like the Wilderness' floorplan but have more faith in the Jayco brand because I have one and have had not problems worth mentioning and like the 2 year warranty...what to do?

Heartland owners...input? What has been your experience with their products?

Anyone else faced this problem? What did you do?

Hum, I like the White Hawk 27RBOK floorplan a bit better but each is a personal choice.

Myself, I'd stick with Jayco after having such good luck with them. I had a Forest River camper and it was a nightmare and was traded after 1 year.

If I can find a Jayco that I like, I'm sold. I have heard that Heartland Trailers are good also but my own experience is worth more.

Looks like the kids grew up and now you're going to a couples only camper.

Good luck in your decision.

[cpap]

Doug33 wrote:
Just curious why you have narrowed it down to only 2 particular units?

This is the final out of about 12 (or more) different units we considered. We started looking at a bunkhouse to accomodate grandchildren etc...but we decided agains the bunkhouse so here we are.

[Mike_Up]

Bumpyroad wrote:
which one has a rubber roof? get the other one.
bumpy

Jayco now uses a fleeceless TPO DiFlex 2 roof for 2015. Previously used a combination rubber & plastic Alpha-Ply roof, and previous to that a standard Rubber EPDM.

[GaryWT]

We had a North Trail, there were a few issues but the biggest was it was too low, 5 inches off the ground at the closest, bottomed out a lot, only 2 steps not 3. Looking at the trailer you like, we personally do not like front slides. Takes too much room from under the awning. We like to put the picnic table and a couple chais and with the slide, it does not workout for us. I like the rear bath with the outside kitchen though. Never owned a Jayco.

[Doug33]

Just curious why you have narrowed it down to only 2 particular units? When I looked last year for a new TT, I went to the local dealer with about 5 possibilities. The salesman helped me narrow it down to 3 units to choose from. The decision was based on the following factors, in order of importance:

1) floorplan (had several requirements, including sofa, slide, decent size bathroom, double bunks, etc)

2) options (electric water heater, powered awning, etc)

3) general quality assessment of unit (hardware, cabinetry, furniture, options, etc)

4) cost

5) warranty

While cost was certainly important and I needed to stay within a budget, interestingly I ended up selecting the most expensive unit to meet my needs.

Warranty was a very minor consideration for me. My previous TT was an entry level unit that had only a 1-year warranty. Fortunately I never needed to use the warranty. As others have said, I did some minor fixes myself as needed.

So far in the first 15 months of ownership of my current TT, I have had zero quality issues and I am thoroughly enjoying the floorplan and options.

[WyoTraveler]

I had a 5ver with a huge rear window. (2001 Alpenlite Augusta 32RL) The rear window was #1 on the list of things I hated. We FTd and it was cold back there by that rear window. It was AZ weather never got much below 15 degrees at night. In the summer it was hot hot hot sitting back there. We kept the curtain closed most of the time to keep out cold and heat. An electric heater behind the recliners helped some in the winter but not in the summer with the heat. Every window was a thermal window except that window.

[cpap]

johnnyrv wrote:
Stay with Jayco.

Why do you think this?