Why did you choose a Hybrid?

[giddyup]

Originally Posted by Dagwood

DW and I love camping. As time goes by we found camping on the ground was getting harder each season. Once we had kids, we continued ground camping but found our Full Size Mini-Van was packed to the rafters. I would spend hours setting up and tearing down only to move sites every 2 - 3 days as we traveled around the country for our summer vacations. Then, the VAN died so we traded in for a Kia Rondo thinking we could manage. LOL...this pic speaks for itself but we made do. There was four of us in addition to all our gear. The Site is at the Ovens Natural Park in Nova Scotia. We were looking out over the Atlantic.

Our histories are very similar, except that we didn't give up on tent camping until the GRANDchildren arrived. On our annual trips to Yosemite, I felt like I was building an entire village in order to camp.

Got the hybrid and LOVE the fact that we can still get some of that feeling of being outdoors. And the kids absolutely love it.

The best part may be that we are no longer bothered by squirrels and other critters.

Enjoy!

[calwb]

We bought a new traillite in 99 and loved it but due to health problems we sold it after three years and quit camping for awhile. We went back to camping after a few years and bypass surgery and a pacemaker.We like the hybrid for the light weight and the fact that I can camp alone and not have set anything up when hunting .We also like the open air feeling in the warmer months with the ends open.

[boubay88]

We bought our hybrid for pretty much the same reasons everyone else has posted. I wanted the safety and stability of a hard sided camper, and my wife wanted the feeling of "sleeping outside in a tent". My son, he just wanted a bathroom for the middle of the night!
Now everyone is happy.

[MrKong]

Like many others I bought mine because of the wide open space you have in them. My dad had everything from tents to popups, to hard side TT and motor homes. The last camper he owned before mom passed was a 19H. I borrowed that a few times and fell in love with it. My sleep apnea is too bad now for tent camping without patching up holes in the tent. I wanted a popup, but I really did not want to mess with taking the door up and down all the time. So I fell back to getting a new 19H and could not be happier. Mine is a lot nicer than the model my father had, with the flat screen and the chocolate interior.

We looked at larger TT and 5'er models. I just don't care for them as much as I like the hybrid. If I wanted anything more, I would just rent a cabin or something.

[BonnieL]

We bought our 16XRB to replace our 1992 Jayco Thrush. I was DONE with pulling out the heavy slideout beds, bracing them with my back to put in support poles, etc. I wanted a BATHROOM, I wanted to pull into a camping space and not spend so much time "setting up." In addition, it is only 7 foot wide, and it was the ONLY hybrid that would fit down our ridiculously narrow driveway between our house and the neighbor's huge stockade fence. Although we have not gone out in it yet (just bought it a week ago!), I am so looking forward to the ease of our new hybrid!

[j_shoe99]

Originally Posted by BonnieL

I wanted to pull into a camping space and not spend so much time "setting up."

Reminds me of a recent story....

I pulled up last October to a campsite, and my two buddies, both with pop-ups where sitting in there trucks, not set up. It was POURING rain outside. I backed the HTT in my site, and then everyone piled in there to hide from the rain, while 'turtled'. HTT to the rescue! An added bonus was the 'adult beverages' were already pre-cooled in the fridge!

After an hour or two the rain finally stopped, and they head back out to setup their pop-ups.

[Mat]

We got the 16XRB and love it, got all the amenities we were looking for under 3000lbs and for us that was a big deal since we had a smaller TV (Ford Edge) back then. Camping in a Hybrid is really more freedom IMO, yes maybe it is smaller than most outfits out there but I taught camping was supposed to be closer to nature and that's why Hybrids for us was the best option

[bucko]

^^ Good points

I've camped in tents (albeit I was much, much younger). I've camped in a VW "westy" (loved that camper), and now the wife and I have the 16XRB as well. This is a perfect size for the two of us; I see a small family utilizing an ultra lite easily. Like anything else, it can be a 'starter' TT, or a permanent one.

Now if money were no object, I'd own a full blown motorhome, with the electric golf cart, and pull behind car, traveling the U.S.A.

However, I'm at work as I type this, so that dream is on hold.

[Frank Rader]

2008 Jayco 17c ex-port, 3,500 gross.
It was the smallest camper we found with a 3 am bathroom. As campers get larger there is more to wash/wax and more tires.

We like the foldout staterooms fore/aft and our 15 year old daughter likes having her separate stateroom from Mom/Dad. Our model has ducted heat into rear and front and into bathroom, a big plus. Size and single axle get us into camp sites unavailable to others. It has great sleeping capacity for small size.

We do not live in the camper. We cook outside, eat outside, play outside. We use utilities inside. Bedtime is a treat, as mentioned because we are in a tent. Condensation INSIDE tents is enough issue we use "Popup Gizmos" to cut that out.

Our unit required several upgrades over the years.
>Right away I'd go to 14" wheels if you do not have them. You probably have ST205R14 tires. Mine came smaller and had to be replaced.
>Ours came with a single 30# propane tank. Yours probably has 20#. If not swap for a 20# and carry another 20# in the truck bed. If no truck modify the camper to carry 2 x 20# tanks. We've made this modification.
>If you have the spare tire option suspended under the front frame, take it off because it will drag and catch on uneven ground. We removed the bracket in Utah (we are from NC) and carried the spare the rest of the way in the truck bed.
>If the camper uses "sandwich" floor construction soft spots might develop in the floor especially just inside the door and in front of the sink. On ours we are installing a floor on top of the floor to bridge over the soft spots.
>If yours requires roof sunscreen (treatment) stay up with that. Just before your warranty runs out ask your dealer to change the seal between the roof AC and camper to extend the time before you have to pay to have it done.

[tcanthonyii]

Not a hybrid owner yet but I want to be. As a kid my grandparents had hard sides and motorhomes and we camped with them quite a bit. In scouts and up until a couple years ago I was tent camping. I was looking for a pickup camper so I could still take my mc with me but then I found a gal with 2 kids. The summer before we got married a friends mother in law was seller her jayco 12udk popup. Price was right at 1500. I fixed everything for literately pennies (fuse in converter, bent lift rail hammered out). Now after 3 years of doing this I hate the up down up down of the top. Need in it, pop it up, take it down. I'm tall and big so getting in the cabinets suck also. I LOVE the canvas though. I feel like I'm in a tent, which is what I want (I still tent camp some too). A hybrid is perfect. First I'll be getting a 23' at some point. I loose no space to beds with a 23. I can unzip the canvas on a cool night and sleep like a baby. When I go hunting I can leave the bunks up and sleep on the couch (will be looking for one with a u shaped dinette). I picked up a couple parts yesterday and was checking out a couple of the new ones. There was one I really liked but the TV was in a weird spot where you couldn't watch it well. While I"m usually a no tech guy camping there are times a movie on an over night stay is nice. The wife REALLY wants a bathroom. For now we use a bucket and kitty litter. And just having a slide out so there is just a tad more space will be REALLY nice. Unfortunately I'm a few years away from upgrading, unless something else falls into my lap like my 1500 popup/

[Frank Rader]

The real, "3 am" bathroom was key for us. I'd not buy the one I own now, knowing then what i know now, because of floor construction. If I'm able to overcome my soft floor the way I'm attempting, covered in another thread, that opinion may change. I have no interest in a slide because we stay so little inside our camper.

[fmichaels]

We have moved from tent to pop-up to hybrid over many years and I believe we just like the idea of the tent. Most of our camping is done in the summer and we don't necessarily like the hard-side TT concept. There are definitely some disadvantages to the tent ends like when it rains, but for the most part, we just like the more open concept of hybrid. I don't know that it's anything more for us.

[TeachJP]

We have limited space in our driveway and don't want to tow a big trailer. We just bought a X17A because we loved the floor plan, didn't like the X17Z as much. But that is just a matter of taste and sleeping needs. We have camped in Europe and New Zealand and the units are smaller, and we prefer having the smaller unit, but because it is expandable we have the option of taking grandchildren with us!

[jerdog]

Didn't really choose a hybrid. Just found one that had been sitting in storage for years and needed a little TLC. A 2001 Kiwi 17a. Got it for a great price just a little under a year ago and discovered this message board soon after and now we're starting to get some experience in the RV world.

[glsimms]

Originally Posted by TeachJP

We have limited space in our driveway and don't want to tow a big trailer. We just bought a X17A because we loved the floor plan, didn't like the X17Z as much. But that is just a matter of taste and sleeping needs. We have camped in Europe and New Zealand and the units are smaller, and we prefer having the smaller unit, but because it is expandable we have the option of taking grandchildren with us!

WELCOME to the Jayco Owners Forum!!!

[KOZKO]

Low Weight
Economical

[coondog]

Overall size for towing
More floor space with drop out beds
Convenience (owned tent trailer before)

[KOZKO]

Originally Posted by KOZKO

Low Weight
Economical

Forgot to say it's a Jayco and I trust their products!

[Tigger1]

We pop-up camped for many years but got tired of walking to the bathhouse in the middle of the night. A friend bought a hybrid and we liked the idea of tent ends just like the pop-up and with the benefit of a bathroom! We weren't planning on upgrading but wondered into a local Jayco dealer. As soon as the DW stepped in and sat on the sofa I knew we were buying it. We are proud owners of a 2014 x17z bought new last June. Have been out several times and really like it.