Grand Design or Jayco?

[LB32]

This is kind of a long story for what may seem like a simple question. I was set very set on Jayco up until my wife and I attempted to purchase one. Now I'm getting cold feet and am looking for input from seasoned owners who may be able to lend some insight. We've rented trailers in the past but this will be our first purchase, so I just want to make sure I make the most educated decision possible.

My wife and I made plans back in mid October, to purchase a 2017 Seismic Wave 310w. At the time, I was firmly set on Jayco. We made the initial purchase agreement at the RV show in Pomona. The salesman was very professional and gave us a very fair price on his initial offer. My wife and I were very pleased when we left and looked forward to picking up our new trailer. It was hands down the best purchase experience I've ever had. Two weeks later, we showed up at the dealership for the PDI and to finalize the purchase paperwork. The dealership was not prepared for us because whoever scheduled our appointment dropped the ball. My wife had taken the day off work, and we had just sat on the freeway for two hours with our two year old (we live in SoCal; your sympathy is appreciated), so needless to say, I was a little peeved. But to their credit, the dealership scrambled the trailer together as best they could and managed to at least give us a half @ssed walk through. It was then they realized there was a recall on the battery disconnect switch, and told us they would have the trailer ready for pick up in two or three days. By the end of the walkthrough, the salesman and manager I would be back in a week to pick it up.

Thankfully, I learned my lesson the first time. Before making the two hour trip again, I called a couple days before just to confirm the appointment. I spoke to the same sales manager who helped me the first time. This time, he told me that the repairs would be at least another week because he was waiting on the parts from Jayco. By the end of the following week, I called back for an update but was sent to the manager's voicemail. The next day, I received a call from a different manager whom I had to bring up to speed on the situation. He said he would ask around and even call Jayco himself, and that he would call me back with an answer in a day or two. A week and a half later, I called back and spoke to a third manager, and again had to explain everything to him. Same story. He would look into it and call me back. That was almost two weeks ago. This past Friday, I received multiple phone calls and a text message from the finance agent, saying the part was in and the rig was ready for pick up. I replied to the text and very politely but sternly explained my frustrations with the lack of communication. I also informed her that I was losing interest in doing business with her dealership, and that I would be contacting another dealership much closer to me to inquire on a Grand Design Momentum. Her response, "Ok."

So, with all that said, I am so completely torn down the middle. My concern with the current dealership is that if I'm having this much trouble getting answers from anyone right now when I still have even purchased the thing, what will it be like when I actually need warranty repair work. Unfortunately, this is the closest Jayco dealership to me by a considerable distance.

I went to the local dealership today and looked at the Grand Design Momentum 328M. The major difference is about 12k more on the Grand Design, and this GD dealership is 15 minutes away from me. But, this dealership has a very bad reputation for poor customer service, and the salesman today was shady as all hell and pretty pushy.

I did find an RV mechanic about 20 mins from me. He's not an authorized service center but said one possibility is, if..... WHEN warranty repair work is needed, is for me to call and get authorization from Jayco for him to do the work, I pay him, and then Jayco reimburses me. But that just sounds like a major pain. Has any had any experience with this?

If there is anyone who has first hand experience with both companies, I would greatly appreciate your input. But anyone who has any advice that might be useful and help make this decision a little easier for me, I would very much appreciate hearing what you have to say as well. Like, all of this is normal, or, stop being such a cry baby and have another beer, or, keep crying but have another beer while you're at it.

Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving weekend.

Brian

[Sundancer330]

If it was me I would never step foot back in that dealer. If this is how they treat you now and they have not closed the deal imagine what it will be like later. If it took this long just to get a disconnect switch it sounds like the dealer dropped the ball and never ordered it from Jayco, a smart dealer would have pulled that part off the shelf and replaced it and closed the deal without delay. This is a typical problem across all brands not just a Jayco thing. I would suggest you go to a chat forum for Grand Design and you will see similar complaints for shoddy work and slow warranty work.

[Rice1951]

I purchased my MH back in January from a Jayco dealer over 300 miles from my home. Unfortunately I have had some warranty issues (headlight alignment, hydraulic leveling jack leaking, TV replacement, etc) and each time I have contacted Jayco CS and they have authorized repairs at a local shop and then reimbursed me. They have never quibbled over any bills I have submitted and I am pleased as punch with Jayco CS. My dealer was OK throughout the purchasing experience but I never had to deal with them since. Others on this forum will tell you how good some dealers are and how bad some others are. You really have to do your homework there but it probably isn't any different for dealers of other brands. All I can tell you is that I have dealt with Jayco CS directly and they have bent over backwards to help me out. Good luck with your decision.

[LB32]

Originally Posted by Rice1951

I purchased my MH back in January from a Jayco dealer over 300 miles from my home. Unfortunately I have had some warranty issues (headlight alignment, hydraulic leveling jack leaking, TV replacement, etc) and each time I have contacted Jayco CS and they have authorized repairs at a local shop and then reimbursed me. They have never quibbled over any bills I have submitted and I am pleased as punch with Jayco CS. My dealer was OK throughout the purchasing experience but I never had to deal with them since. Others on this forum will tell you how good some dealers are and how bad some others are. You really have to do your homework there but it probably isn't any different for dealers of other brands. All I can tell you is that I have dealt with Jayco CS directly and they have bent over backwards to help me out. Good luck with your decision.

That's a huge help! Thank you. Knowing that will make this decision a whole lot easier. I've gone into this expecting to be cut off by whichever dealership I ultimately buy from. I just didn't think it would happen this soon. Lol

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[LB32]

Originally Posted by Sundancer330

If it was me I would never step foot back in that dealer. If this is how they treat you now and they have not closed the deal imagine what it will be like later. If it took this long just to get a disconnect switch it sounds like the dealer dropped the ball and never ordered it from Jayco, a smart dealer would have pulled that part off the shelf and replaced it and closed the deal without delay. This is a typical problem across all brands not just a Jayco thing. I would suggest you go to a chat forum for Grand Design and you will see similar complaints for shoddy work and slow warranty work.

Any other time I would've walked away after the first day we showed up for nothing. I'm just hanging on because we did get a pretty sweet deal, and the next closest Jayco dealership that has any of the Seismic Waves left is a one day drive away. After that I'm looking out of state. The dealership has a few locations. Our initial sales guy works at a different location than the one I'm currently working with. I plan on giving him one more call to talk this whole thing over with him and his boss. If they can manage to throw in a few more incentives, well hey, money talks. Lol. And if this whole thing falls through then I'll just wait til next year's RV show. I've been looking at these things for over two years now, shuffling through various models and narrowing down my options. Waiting another year is nothing.

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[frog]

I know that if Jayco authorizes a repair from a non-Jayco service center, they are good for reimbursements. I have had two such cases and never heard on this site different. Good Luck!

[jaycojay]

If it's a sweet deal, than buy it ..... seeing the other was 12 grand more. Like others have said, taking it elsewhere for service is not a problem for Jayco .... they know there aren't jayco dealers in every town like there are New car dealers, and from my past experiences, they have been a terrific company to work with .....just too bad some of their dealers don't follow suit!

[Oklahoma Dan]

That sweet deal from the original dealership you made could have been SO SWEET that they want you frustrated so you will cancel the contract and they can sell it to someone else at a better price. Behavior of this dealership just has to be intentional.

[MikeNChelle]

We were ready to trade our Pinnacle in for a Grand Design this Summer until I joined their Facebook page. There are by far more major complaints on there than I am reading here about Jayco. I will however say that there is a guy name Bill Martin that is part of the GD customer service that monitors that site and gives his cell number out to people in need of help and gets people the help they need when they need it. I wish Jayco would doo such a thing. With the axel grease getting on the brakes, cheap China tires still, and poor finish and trim I have been seeing on their site and at the dealership, we decided to hold onto our Pinnacle another year.

[BigT]

Go with your gut.

[MrG]

Originally Posted by LB32

This is kind of a long story for what may seem like a simple question. I was set very set on Jayco up until my wife and I attempted to purchase one. Now I'm getting cold feet and am looking for input from seasoned owners who may be able to lend some insight. We've rented trailers in the past but this will be our first purchase, so I just want to make sure I make the most educated decision possible.

My wife and I made plans back in mid October, to purchase a 2017 Seismic Wave 310w. At the time, I was firmly set on Jayco. We made the initial purchase agreement at the RV show in Pomona. The salesman was very professional and gave us a very fair price on his initial offer. My wife and I were very pleased when we left and looked forward to picking up our new trailer. It was hands down the best purchase experience I've ever had. Two weeks later, we showed up at the dealership for the PDI and to finalize the purchase paperwork. The dealership was not prepared for us because whoever scheduled our appointment dropped the ball. My wife had taken the day off work, and we had just sat on the freeway for two hours with our two year old (we live in SoCal; your sympathy is appreciated), so needless to say, I was a little peeved. But to their credit, the dealership scrambled the trailer together as best they could and managed to at least give us a half @ssed walk through. It was then they realized there was a recall on the battery disconnect switch, and told us they would have the trailer ready for pick up in two or three days. By the end of the walkthrough, the salesman and manager I would be back in a week to pick it up.

Thankfully, I learned my lesson the first time. Before making the two hour trip again, I called a couple days before just to confirm the appointment. I spoke to the same sales manager who helped me the first time. This time, he told me that the repairs would be at least another week because he was waiting on the parts from Jayco. By the end of the following week, I called back for an update but was sent to the manager's voicemail. The next day, I received a call from a different manager whom I had to bring up to speed on the situation. He said he would ask around and even call Jayco himself, and that he would call me back with an answer in a day or two. A week and a half later, I called back and spoke to a third manager, and again had to explain everything to him. Same story. He would look into it and call me back. That was almost two weeks ago. This past Friday, I received multiple phone calls and a text message from the finance agent, saying the part was in and the rig was ready for pick up. I replied to the text and very politely but sternly explained my frustrations with the lack of communication. I also informed her that I was losing interest in doing business with her dealership, and that I would be contacting another dealership much closer to me to inquire on a Grand Design Momentum. Her response, "Ok."

So, with all that said, I am so completely torn down the middle. My concern with the current dealership is that if I'm having this much trouble getting answers from anyone right now when I still have even purchased the thing, what will it be like when I actually need warranty repair work. Unfortunately, this is the closest Jayco dealership to me by a considerable distance.

I went to the local dealership today and looked at the Grand Design Momentum 328M. The major difference is about 12k more on the Grand Design, and this GD dealership is 15 minutes away from me. But, this dealership has a very bad reputation for poor customer service, and the salesman today was shady as all hell and pretty pushy.

I did find an RV mechanic about 20 mins from me. He's not an authorized service center but said one possibility is, if..... WHEN warranty repair work is needed, is for me to call and get authorization from Jayco for him to do the work, I pay him, and then Jayco reimburses me. But that just sounds like a major pain. Has any had any experience with this?

If there is anyone who has first hand experience with both companies, I would greatly appreciate your input. But anyone who has any advice that might be useful and help make this decision a little easier for me, I would very much appreciate hearing what you have to say as well. Like, all of this is normal, or, stop being such a cry baby and have another beer, or, keep crying but have another beer while you're at it.

Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving weekend.

Brian

i feel your pain, I'm in a sort of similar spot dealer is 97 miles each way they can't even replace the in dash radio been 5 months since reporting and having them check that it doesn't work, what I've learned(in california) since i purchased my MH is buy as close to your home as possible no dealer will do warranty work on your vehicle if you didn't buy it from them, i have a jayco dealer 3mins from my house they don't sell class A MH's and they wouldn't even work on mine if i paid them, very sad industry....good luck...

[GrumpyDad]

It doesn't help, but I have never heard of an RV dealership that had reasonable after-sales support for warranty issues.

The price difference with the Grand Design may be understandable. I've only looked at the smaller trailers but they are really positioned as a true premium company from what I've seen, and usually have more features standard compared to similar floorplans from Jayco. Seems to be the case for the smaller trailers I've looked at anyway.

[LB32]

I appreciate everyone's feedback. It really helped. My wife and I decided to stick with the Jayco. It may sound weird, but all of the fancy features on the GD is actually what really swayed my decision. Just more things that are prone to breaking down. And I really don't like the fact that the entire trailer is controlled by a tablet or smartphone.

We're having the Jayco transferred to the dealership where the salesman who sold it to us works, and we're scheduled to pick it up next week. That office just seems to have better management. Not that I plan on taking it back to them for service now that I know I can take it to a local mechanic. I'd rather have service work done by someone who's business depends on quality work and good customer service.

Merry Christmas and happy holidays to you all!

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[norty1]

Congratulations. Please keep us posted on your experiences with the mobile warranty work. I to like innovation but don't want my trips depending on a tablet. I prefer switches that I can see.

Maybe a new business model for Jayco?