SHOULD I BUY A JAYCO HERITAGE WITH ENSUITE

BAILEY · Member

SHOULD I BUY A JAYCO HERITAGE WITH ENSUITE

_wombat_ · Master (of Mischief)

RE: JAYCO HERITAGE ENSUITE

BAILEY · Member

THANKS FOR REPLYING BUT DO OU HAVE ANYTHING SPECIFIC

Cruising Granny · Guru

Hi there and welcome fellow South Aussie. I hope you enjoy your stay on the Nomads.
Jayco crank out a heap of caravans, and because they are affordable they are popular. Therefore the volume of complaints and problems probably equates to the volume of vans and motorhomes out there.
I met a couple in Cairns who were trying to get a refund but Jayco wasn't playing that game. So they did repair all the faults, and I saw many of them. It almost put the couple off travelling all together and that would have been a sad outcome.
Unfortunately vans aren't taken on a trial run in the rain, so many of the problems only manifest themselves after a couple of hundred or thousand kms in the rain or dus. Water marks are the best indication of leaks.
It's one reason I wouldn't buy a new van. However, if you're really keen you have to take the chance and hope you don't have problems.
There is no real way of testing a brand new van until you tow it out of the yard. Some are even stored undercover so the rain doesn't hit them until you buy the van.
There is a warranty period, and consumer laws apply as far as warranty goes.
At the end of the day it's between you and the dealer. Keep asking questions, give the van a good going-over, and then go home, think about it, go back again a week or so later and go over it again, and if you feel confident, it's yours. Don't rush the decision. Good luck.
Safe and happpy travels.

villatranquilla · Guru

SHOULD I BUY A JAYCO HERITAGE WITH ENSUITE

pricey43 · Guru

We wouldn't go near a Jayco. But if you like what you see and it is in your price range. Go for it!!!! As long as you are out there experiencing this wonderful land and have the comfort level you can afford. If we all had the same vans, life would be very boring!!!!!

milo · Guru

we have a jayco conquest motor home, no problems so far, other than some small teathing problems..
but do your home work and pester the yards men till they bleed lol!!! it s your money and you want to do it right the first time

good luck

_wombat_ · Master (of Mischief)

Hi Bailey, not sure if you are aware but using capitals is considered to be shouting in most forums, not having a go at you just pointing it out in case you do not know, hope you find the right van to suit you, and enjoy your travelling.

Cupie · Guru

Got to disagree with the negative posts.

Jayco currently command around 50% of a very competitive market.

When I got my Jayco 13 years ago they had around 30% of the market.

It seems to me that if they had a shonky product then the story would have been the opposite. ie loss of market share not the increase of market share, despite any marketing ploys.

I am 100% sartisfied with my 21'6" Westport after >180,000 caravannimg KMs with very few problems.

I purchased it for good value for money & resale value .. what has turned out to be a correct decision.

Sure there are 'better ' vans out there but they come with a price. The 'best van' is a very subjective thing.

(I deleted a paragraph here that discussed vans with good familiar names & new manufacturers .. G)

If you are buying second hand then there are lots of things that you need to consider. If you wany my view of what to look out for then PM me & I will help.

Don't be put off by those the nay sayers unless you look closely at their personal experiences.

-- Edited by Cupie on Saturday 25th of June 2011 08:09:25 PM

KayJay · Veteran Member

Hi Bailey,
You'll hear a lot of conflicting opinions here, but we can only speak as we find. We have owned 5 Jayco vans and, although we have no intention of upgrading at this stage, we would have no hesitation in purchasing another Jayco. We have always found our Jayco dealer to be most helpful and any issues that have arisen both during and after the warranty period, have been attended to promptly. There are a lot of Jaycos out there, so they have to have something going for them.
By the way, our favourite Jayco was a Heritage, a beautiful van, couldn't fault it. Jan & Kevin

jimricho · Guru

I haven't owned a Jayco so I can't comment from first hand experience but I have friends that I regularly travel with who purchased a new Jayco Sterling a year ago. They had a couple of minor issues but these were promptly dealt with under warranty. The dealer who attended to the warranty was not the dealer they purchased from but that was not a problem. (Due to geographical reasons)

Their rationale for the Jayco was that dollar for dollar nothing else came near the Jayco for features. As pointed out above you're buying a "Hyundi" not a "Mercedes"

tezza · Senior Member

I think the old rule " you only get what you pay for" applies

NeilandRaine · Guru

Some people say they would never own a Ford, others say they would never own a Holden because they may of had a bad one or knew someone who did.
If you make more than others you will hear more reports of unsatisfied owners. On percentage Jayco probably have no more problems than anyone else.
Also I have heard people say Jayco have more recalls than anyone else. Maybe this is because Jayco do actually care about after sale service more than others.

Now having said all that we have a 2002 Jayco Heritage and reckon its very good, sometimes we look longingly at other newer vans, usually Jayco, but decide this one
does everything new vans do. I have to say we did get a good one, the previous owner hardly used it and kept it under cover.
If you are looking for any criticism it is the east west bed but that is a preference and use of space thing.
other minor things are; the gas bottles are a bit of a pain being in the boot. If you get one I sugest having a look at the 12 volt wireing on the fridge, the 3 mil wire will
eventually give up.
Anyway I feel qualified to answer and my answer is We have one and are very happy with it. One other thing is considering how many have been sold you dont see many on the market.

ozjohn · Guru

I'm not a Jayco fan either, but they are in my opinion better than some of the other mass produced vans.
Over that last couple of years they have inproved immensely, but still tun out the odd dud as do most manuafturers.
With the older 'Heritage' model the main problem that usually arises is that they have a two piece shower recess that are prone to leak between the shower base and shower walls. If the van has done a few trips (especially on a few dirt roads) and there are no signs of a leak then chances are that all will be well.
Best of luck, Ozjohn.

tiger5 · Senior Member

Hi Bailey,

I have a 2004 21ft Heritage which has been all over the country.As with ALL van there are good & bad the same as with vehicles.I have only had minor things go wrong with mine and they were screws to short in draws,van catching in country servo's & mirror coming off the wall on the way into Lawn Hill again screws.Fixed hight by having the axle underslung & putting in longer screws else where.The only problem i have with the shower is taht it could be a little large for my well built frame.Just remember that Jayco'o are the holden or fords of the caravan world (mass produced)

clazandaza · Senior Member

We have a 2002 Freedom pop top. The only drama so far is the roof has a longitudal seal the full length of the roof in the centre. Seem that this creates a flex point when the vehicle is travelling and eventually opens the seals. We had to get the roof panels replaced on insurance. Dont know if other brands have the same issue.

Gerty Dancer · Guru

We have a Jayco discovery pop-top, which is 10 months old. We've had a few minor issues with drawer-catches which wouldnt stay closed, the sink leaked, and just lately the screws which hold the tap onto the draw-bar snapped off. (Gaffer tape to the rescue temporarily)

All those "little" things have been a bit inconvenient, but theres been absolutely no problems with Jayco's warranty, everything fixed happily. If we needed something fixed where there is no Jayco repair-man, they will allow you to get it done elsewhere, and cover the cost.

It was nearly $20,000 cheaper than another caravan we looked at, so we are happy with it.

Good luck with your decision-making! A lot depends on the actual caravan you are looking at and what you want to do with it.

BAILEY · Member

thanks to all who have replied to my post i guess at the end of the day only a decision will determine the result look forward to the next stage of our adventure

Two Strays · Senior Member

Hello Bailey

We have had two Jaycos 1x13ft poptop Starcraft and a 19ft6in 2003 Heritage. Both were very well looked after second hand vans. The gas stoves had not been turned on and lit. The Heritage was a shower van with a front kitchen. Over all we had litttle trouble with them. The Heritage had a dust problem, mainly coming from the rear of the van from under the rollpan where the water hoses entered. Fixed this with sealant. The other problem was the water entering the shower when you let water out of the kitchen sink. It had a single outlet pipe. I fixed the problem by fitting a non return valve next to the shower outlet.

You will hear positive and negative comments. They are produced to the minimum standard for the price. afterall they (Jayco)want you to keep buying them. A Jayco van is commenced every 12min of a working day. 9000 units produced in 2010.

Your call, best of luck and happy caravanning

-- Edited by Two Strays on Sunday 26th of June 2011 11:00:09 PM

gwb · Senior Member

We are on our second Jayco the first a Heritage and now a Sterling which we hope to upgrade to a 23' Sterling before years end. The quality has been as good as other more expensive vans our friends own, any warranty has been fixed promptly regardless of which state in Australia we have been, they also replaced our awning at one stage even when it wasn't completely their problem, so yes we are happy Jayco owners.

Ma · Guru

Two Strays wrote:
The other problem was the water entering the shower when you let water out of the kitchen sink. It had a single outlet pipe. I fixed the problem by fitting a non return valve next to the shower outlet.

-- Edited by Two Strays on Sunday 26th of June 2011 11:00:09 PM
We fixed the same problem in our Jayco by putting a plug (75cents at Bunnings) into the shower outlet. Worked a treat and also stopped the dust from coming in as well.

aussietraveller · Guru

Hi Bailey we now own our third Jayco this one is a 21' 2005 heritage and to date have not experienced any problems and we have travelled on Dirt roads some a bit corrugated . and no dust in, My cousin had some problems with his Jayco but Jayco still fixed it 18 months after purchase, one of our friends had the ceiling fall in on their Corimal which is supposed to be one of the upper end manufactures but reality is any van manufacturer can turn out a van with problems. bieng a Jayco owner I regularly talk to other Jayco owners and very seldom hear of anything bot minor things that are sorted out when van is still under warranty.

Go ahead and by the Jayco with confidence in the brand if it suits your needs its also worth having an independent person who knows something about caravans check it out and enjoy touring our great country in comfort.

neilnruth · Guru

This thread was started on June 25th 2011. I wonder if BAILEY has changed his caravan.....it's a long time since he asked the question.