Jayco quality issues —Thor?

[wabirch]

Yes on the schematics, all walls and electrical.

Zero quality concerns with my Nov 16 build date.

[Woodworker]

Way I see it everything we buy from an ink pens to a home is a 50-50 crap shoot at best.

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[kayakterp]

Originally Posted by Magnolia Tom

I’ve noticed a lot of threads recently about Jaycos lack of quality. As I looked at each posters signature, it seems to me that the common thread is that they’re all rigs made post Thor acquisition. (And the dealers seem to bear a lot of responsibility for poor PDIs). Anyone else notice this?

When I bought my trailer almost 2 years ago, Jayco had a good reputation for quality and the 2 year Warranty was a good selling point. My rig has had some issues, but my dealer and Jayco have made them right. I have been very happy with it. But, I can’t help but wonder if the culture at Jayco has been changed for the worse.

I love my trailer and have no intention of getting something else anytime soon but if I did, I would really have to scrutinize any potential Jayco purchase. Sorry for those owners who are having so many issues. The RV lifestyle is supposed to be fun and a way to make memories with loved ones. Being upset and aggravated because you can’t use and enjoy your rig due to quality problems is not the way to build memories.





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I agree with all of your observations - have just seen too many posts of shoddy work! Would be scared of a newer unit after THOR took over - just my own opinion

[Camper_bob]

It's great to see so many positive anecdotes in this thread. But I have to agree with Tom; it sure seems like there are more QC complaints in the last year or so. Could be just that there are so many more out there. Could be new owners and their expectations. Could be just the loudest voice in the room sometimes. But it could also be a slip in quality. Kind of a "where there's smoke, there's fire" situation? I dunno... I'm just not as sure as I used to be...

I have to admit that when we go to buy our motorhome (perhaps in the Fall of 2018?), buying a Jayco is no longer the certainty it used to be for me. I've had VERY few problems with my 2014 Jay Flight, and my dealer has been great with what problems I have had, but I can tell you I will be looking A LOT closer at my next unit, regardless of manufacturer. I will try really hard to stay with my dealer, but he doesn't sell Jayco motorized units (only towables), so that could be a factor as well...

[kh7ax]

Originally Posted by Camping Couple

Jayco usually will not send you these diagrams while you are in the warranty period.

I was sent a full set when I asked them even before I picked up my new rig.


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[jasum]

I believe all the dealers always have so many RV’s that need something done or repaired and that is why it’s almost impossible to get an appointment for anything. I will NEVER go back to the dealer we purchased our trailer from. It takes about a month to get an appointment and then they want you to leave it. It’s 100 miles each way to this dealer.
All RV’s have some problems, minor or major.
We love our Pinnacle and Jayco has been good to deal with overall.
Only major problem I have had was the residential refrigerator. For a year it would work for 2 to 3 months and need something else.
Finally got it replaced!!
That is NOT Jayco’s fault that I had a bad refrigerator.


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[jaycojay]

Well, i'm gonna stick up for them, maybe because i have no desire to look at any other brand, so i really can't honestly compare. I have seen on here lots of complaints about hot water tanks, awnings, furnaces etc ..... thats not Jayco, thats the other guys who make the stuff for the RV industry. Case n Point, my Norcold fridge ..... "made in America", biggest pain in the ass to switch over and run on propane ..... thats not Jayco, thats Norcold. Now i have owned Jayflights, from the original 2002 up to 2017 ( and a new one on the way), ya, they do have some imperfections , but a good friend of mine purchased a new ( not gonna say, another brand at a much higher price), and when we went thru it, i saw more oops than our Jayflight has. The biggest problem in the RV industry, and Jayco is one ..... they have so many damn models, floor plans, with limited space to build them ..... but is it the manufacturers fault? No, they are just trying to keep up with consumer demand. The days of Jayco Eagles, Qwest, Kiwi and pop-ups in a handful of floorplans is long gone, and i truly believe , that is the one problem. At the end of the day, my Jayflight may not be perfect, but i hitch it up, i head out with my family, and i enjoy a weekend or week of camping, and she does what she is supposed to do ..... and thats why, i believe in what Jayco builds!

[Woodworker]

Originally Posted by jaycojay

Well, i'm gonna stick up for them, maybe because i have no desire to look at any other brand, so i really can't honestly compare. I have seen on here lots of complaints about hot water tanks, awnings, furnaces etc ..... thats not Jayco, thats the other guys who make the stuff for the RV industry. Case n Point, my Norcold fridge ..... "made in America", biggest pain in the ass to switch over and run on propane ..... thats not Jayco, thats Norcold. Now i have owned Jayflights, from the original 2002 up to 2017 ( and a new one on the way), ya, they do have some imperfections , but a good friend of mine purchased a new ( not gonna say, another brand at a much higher price), and when we went thru it, i saw more oops than our Jayflight has. The biggest problem in the RV industry, and Jayco is one ..... they have so many damn models, floor plans, with limited space to build them ..... but is it the manufacturers fault? No, they are just trying to keep up with consumer demand. The days of Jayco Eagles, Qwest, Kiwi and pop-ups in a handful of floorplans is long gone, and i truly believe , that is the one problem. At the end of the day, my Jayflight may not be perfect, but i hitch it up, i head out with my family, and i enjoy a weekend or week of camping, and she does what she is supposed to do ..... and thats why, i believe in what Jayco builds!

Well said

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[LiftedAWDAstro]

Originally Posted by kayakterp

Would be scared of a newer unit after THOR took over - just my own opinion

I don't know about this. We bought our '17 before Thor took over and the quality of craftsmanship of this unit is less than our 2012 26BH. Of course we bought more camper with the added length, large slideout and a shower unit rather than the tub. So far, any issues have been minor. With maintenance and minor repairs, this camper has been 100% reliable.

If an owner of an RV buys one and expects to never do anything other than maybe winterizing in the fall, then they will be very disappointed in the purchase. It is just like owning a S&B home...maintenance is expected and repairs will happen. Pipes spring leaks, sheetrock cracks, appliances die unexpectantly etc, doesn't matter the price or if new or old either.

[clutch]

Our Jayco Eagle was built way before Thor and it had lots of problems in the first 18 months. Every issue was a Jayco issue but thanks to the two year warranty just about all were taken care of.

[Muddler]

Thanks to everyone. There is hope!

[retiredtech]

Just my opinion... but I suspect 1/2 the quality issues in the RV industry could be solved by taking everyone's staplers away from them. How can anyone expect a trailer that's mostly stapled together to go down rough roads without loosing up, developing bad squeaks and even falling apart.

At the very least everything should be glued before stapling. RV ads may talk about glue, but I've never seen any evidence of wood glue in any of the trailers I've owned.

I realize younger people wouldn't have time for this, but I know plenty of older guys that would love to see a trailer sold as a kit that you put together yourself.

[LAKnox]

Originally Posted by jasum

I believe all the dealers always have so many RV’s that need something done or repaired and that is why it’s almost impossible to get an appointment for anything. I will NEVER go back to the dealer we purchased our trailer from. It takes about a month to get an appointment and then they want you to leave it. It’s 100 miles each way to this dealer.
All RV’s have some problems, minor or major.
We love our Pinnacle and Jayco has been good to deal with overall.
Only major problem I have had was the residential refrigerator. For a year it would work for 2 to 3 months and need something else.
Finally got it replaced!!
That is NOT Jayco’s fault that I had a bad refrigerator.


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So, it's not GM's fault if your Delco alternator goes belly up during warranty? If the auto industry was like the RV industry, you'd then have to find a Delco store to have your alternator fixed? Don't know about you, but I've never seen a Delco store/shop. This is just one of the major problems with the RV industry as a whole. The mfr =should= warrant everything they put in an RV. If they did, they might be forced to start using better components that don't fail.

Lyle

[LAKnox]

Originally Posted by jaycojay

Well, i'm gonna stick up for them, maybe because i have no desire to look at any other brand, so i really can't honestly compare. I have seen on here lots of complaints about hot water tanks, awnings, furnaces etc ..... thats not Jayco, thats the other guys who make the stuff for the RV industry. Case n Point, my Norcold fridge ..... "made in America", biggest pain in the ass to switch over and run on propane ..... thats not Jayco, thats Norcold. Now i have owned Jayflights, from the original 2002 up to 2017 ( and a new one on the way), ya, they do have some imperfections , but a good friend of mine purchased a new ( not gonna say, another brand at a much higher price), and when we went thru it, i saw more oops than our Jayflight has. The biggest problem in the RV industry, and Jayco is one ..... they have so many damn models, floor plans, with limited space to build them ..... but is it the manufacturers fault? No, they are just trying to keep up with consumer demand. The days of Jayco Eagles, Qwest, Kiwi and pop-ups in a handful of floorplans is long gone, and i truly believe , that is the one problem. At the end of the day, my Jayflight may not be perfect, but i hitch it up, i head out with my family, and i enjoy a weekend or week of camping, and she does what she is supposed to do ..... and thats why, i believe in what Jayco builds!

Your fridge problem =is= partly Jayco's "fault" as they chose to use it, instead of a different, possibly more reliable, model. This is, again, another problem in the industry as a whole. They buy junk components, then foist problems off on the buyer to deal with the component mfr in most cases.

Lyle

[LAKnox]

Originally Posted by retiredtech

Just my opinion... but I suspect 1/2 the quality issues in the RV industry could be solved by taking everyone's staplers away from them. How can anyone expect a trailer that's mostly stapled together to go down rough roads without loosing up, developing bad squeaks and even falling apart.

At the very least everything should be glued before stapling. RV ads may talk about glue, but I've never seen any evidence of wood glue in any of the trailers I've owned.

I realize younger people wouldn't have time for this, but I know plenty of older guys that would love to see a trailer sold as a kit that you put together yourself.

Now, =there's= an interesting idea. :-)

Lyle

[blujay40]

Our Eagle TT was built in Mid October 2016. We have had numerous "fit and finish" items on the dealer's "to do" list but nothing major.

A few of the more major issues:

Skirting wasn't aligned properly and couldn't drop the spare with the slideout closed. Slideout window wasn't installed correctly and couldn't open the window all the way. Latch on residential refrigerator was installed incorrectly and allowed the doors to open while towing, denting them both. Propane line was run and stretched quite tightly underneath the sewer plumbing instead of above along the frame.

There were about a dozen lesser type issues as well such as rivets in shower wall not flush, trim loose, etc. but nothing that we couldn't let go until we got the trailer in for service and we have been able to enjoy our unit from day one.

So when I put everything into a proper perspective and not start looking for scapegoats for a possible drop in quality, I tend to believe that the issues we had were due more to Jayco rushing production due to the sheer number of orders they were slammed with (ours took 19 weeks to build) and that our dealer had to rush their PDI due to our leaving for Florida a mere 4 days after taking delivery than anything Thor may have had a direct hand in.

[bassprowannabe]

We love our 2018 Precept 36T. Have had a couple of issue, but nothing that is out of scope for a mass produced RV.

[Vicr]

For those that want high end RV's with top quality components they're out there. Get your checkbook out because they aren't cheap. There is a big price difference between mass produced affordabilty and semi-custom high end with top quality components.

[RVermont]

I apologize if this has been mentioned already.

When I started to buy in feb. Thor was $95 per share. It is now $131. Whatever we think of their quality they are selling lots of product and putting money in their stock holders hands.


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[koko]

We love our Jayco. Its quality is no better or worse than any other recent camper we've owned. One thing that people don't think about is the "lite" word on their trailers. We owned a Shasta in the '80s. It was built like a rock. Don't know what it weighed but guarantee it was way more than 3000 or 4000 pounds. It had heavy paneling, nails were used to construct it, mattresses were not light foam, appliances were heavy Magic Chef, and weight was not even considered much in its construction. It was a few years old when we purchased it, we camped in it for 23 years and then sold it to another family in town. As trailers get lighter, they are much more susceptible to damage bumping down the roads at 65 mph.