Buying GreyHawk 31FS Regrets

Steveii · 04-27-2018, 01:51 PM

Where to begin. You would think for a $90K RV the quality of the build would be better. But looking around I don't think you would get quality for a $300K rig either (other than the chassis and motor). The first issue we had with this model was the drive shaft. Ford changed there transmission from 2015 to 2016 from a 5 speed to a 6 speed. That changed the geometry on how the driveshaft lined up with the tranny. That was missed by Jayco and they installed the drive shafts based on the 2015 transmission and not the updated 2016. Consequently when you got up to speeds of around 60-65 it sounded like someone had a grinder under the belly of the coach trying to cut the drive shaft loose. This should not have happened. Ford and Jayco should be communicating these changes so they can make adjustments. Anyway, instead of recalling the units they had on the lots to get them fixed they just went ahead and sold them and let the customers deal with. Unbelievable. Totally unacceptable in my opinion. Its all about the dollars with these guys.

On top of that there have been about 20 warranty issues that i've dealt with it on two separate visits to a local dealer. Now I have a third list of issues and they want me to drive it back to Indiana to have it fixed. !!!!!! I told them i'm not driving 1000 miles to get this fixed and it wasn't an option. They agreed and they are at least working with me to get it fixed. Here is the list off the top of my head i've had to deal with: driveshaft issue, roof leaking, walls leaking, windows leaking, water heater doesn't work, outdoor shower has not pressure, furnace doesn't work below freezing (get an all weather model if you want to camp in the winter), back wall in the unit actually froze not kidding frost was on the inside of the wall not to mention all of the nick knack stuff.

It's just one thing after another with this thing and its getting very frustrating. Paying $480 a month for something that seems like its on it's last leg and can't even use it is more than frustrating. Its crazy!! Dont buy a RV unless you have time to spend hauling it around and getting it fixed. Or you know how to work on them and dont mind spending thousands of dollars doing it. Not to mention the depreciation of these things.

Sorry to be a grump and negative but this has been my experience with Jayco RV's and doesn't seem any different with any of the other manufacturers. Looks like Thor has bought them all out so I don't see it getting any better. By Thor basically making a monopoly on the RV business they can pretty much do whatever they want. They are all about building them as cheap as possible and moving them as fast as they can. $$$$$$$ Then let the customer deal with any issues.

Now that that's off my chest I do love RV'ing and it's great for the family to get outdoors and camp. I love the road trips and being able to be drive like your in a house. I grew up doing this and its some of my most memorable times as a kid. Just do your homework and make sure you know what your in for. Its not all roses and takes a lot of time and work to keep these things running right.

Grumpy · 04-27-2018, 02:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Steveii

Where to begin. You would think for a $90K RV the quality of the build would be better. But looking around I don't think you would get quality for a $300K rig either (other than the chassis and motor). The first issue we had with this model was the drive shaft. Ford changed there transmission from 2015 to 2016 from a 5 speed to a 6 speed. That changed the geometry on how the driveshaft lined up with the tranny. That was missed by Jayco and they installed the drive shafts based on the 2015 transmission and not the updated 2016. Consequently when you got up to speeds of around 60-65 it sounded like someone had a grinder under the belly of the coach trying to cut the drive shaft loose. This should not have happened. Ford and Jayco should be communicating these changes so they can make adjustments. Anyway, instead of recalling the units they had on the lots to get them fixed they just went ahead and sold them and let the customers deal with. Unbelievable. Totally unacceptable in my opinion. Its all about the dollars with these guys.

If you research the issue, JAYCO didn't miss it FORD didn't change their "up build spec" or notify Mor Ryde who does the chassis stretches. JAYCO doesn't do that in house. Everything that is done to the chassis follows FORD'S directives.

che57vy · 04-27-2018, 02:32 PM

I guess I have been lucky I have a 2009 Greyhawk 31 SS its approaching 31k I bought it used I am third owner two previous owners just drove and changed oil. I have had little problems so far usual stuff for house going down road with 65 mph winds. Yes I have made a bunch of improvements and upgrades glad I have the rubber roof easily replace if I have too. I learned early if you have a big wallet yes you can have it fixed but I do my own repairs. I am amazed when they say Amish craftsmanship I guess they are blind in one eye with the out of plumb and crooked doors. Yes when you drop a chunk of change it burns you on the quality that is why I did not buy new. My freind has a older coach made by Forest River its falling apart compared to some Jaycos at same age and now Thor has taken over look out.

Steveii · 04-27-2018, 02:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Grumpy

If you research the issue, JAYCO didn't miss it FORD didn't change their "up build spec" or notify Mor Ryde who does the chassis stretches. JAYCO doesn't do that in house. Everything that is done to the chassis follows FORD'S directives.

I did research it and Jayco knew it was a problem and still sold the RV. Either way someone screwed up and the customer is paying for it. Thats the problem. Ford, GM or whoever they all do this same thing as well. Get off of production line into the customers hands and let them deal with it.

Grumpy · 04-27-2018, 02:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Steveii

I did research it and Jayco knew it was a problem and still sold the RV.

It didn't happen with every unit.....

Steveii · 04-27-2018, 02:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by che57vy

I guess I have been lucky I have a 2009 Greyhawk 31 SS its approaching 31k I bought it used I am third owner two previous owners just drove and changed oil. I have had little problems so far usual stuff for house going down road with 65 mph winds. Yes I have made a bunch of improvements and upgrades glad I have the rubber roof easily replace if I have too. I learned early if you have a big wallet yes you can have it fixed but I do my own repairs. I am amazed when they say Amish craftsmanship I guess they are blind in one eye with the out of plumb and crooked doors. Yes when you drop a chunk of change it burns you on the quality that is why I did not buy new. My freind has a older coach made by Forest River its falling apart compared to some Jaycos at same age and now Thor has taken over look out.

Glad yours is working out. I wanted to buy used but my wife couldn't deal with having a used one that someone has slept in. Told her you sleep in hotels don't you? Didn't work obviously. I agree that buying used is the way to go. Let someone else take the depreciation hit and deal with the warranty headaches. Anyway just hope the industry changes for the better so more people can enjoy them instead of regretting it like me.

Steveii · 04-27-2018, 02:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Grumpy

It didn't happen with every unit.....

I know. The later models had the drive shaft fixed. I believe it was Oct or Nov of 15 when they figured it out and started making the change. But still Jayco should be ashamed for letting these things set on there dealers lot and still be sold. I bought mine in April-16. So they had known about it for 6 months when I bought mine. Unacceptable.

cabinetmaker · 04-27-2018, 03:03 PM

Those of us who have been RV'ers for a number of years understand your frustrations..we have all been there a time or two.

Every brand name has had certain year models or certain plan models that were better than others...but on the flip side there have been worse models or years also. Jayco is no exception.

You hope they learn from past mistakes and improve or fix known problems in new year models or floor plans. Sometimes it takes several years as the clock of doing things better moves slow especially when people keep buying them with known issues because the dealers sell them fast as they arrive.

The driveshaft problem has been fixed in later models...mine is smooth and quiet. The heater not keeping you warm as toast when temps drop below freezing that isn't Jayco but I put that one on you. The Greyhawks are not sold as 4 season or such RV's. You should have done more research.

Sounds like a little buyers remorse when you started to mention payments and cost and such...that seems to happen to many when the new wears off. You paid $90K you said and I know that's a lot of money but in line with that how much does a new truck cost? A big enough truck to pull a trailer with the same amenities as your Greyhawk would be at least half that if not more.

Steveii · 04-27-2018, 04:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cabinetmaker

Those of us who have been RV'ers for a number of years understand your frustrations..we have all been there a time or two.

Every brand name has had certain year models or certain plan models that were better than others...but on the flip side there have been worse models or years also. Jayco is no exception.

You hope they learn from past mistakes and improve or fix known problems in new year models or floor plans. Sometimes it takes several years as the clock of doing things better moves slow especially when people keep buying them with known issues because the dealers sell them fast as they arrive.

The driveshaft problem has been fixed in later models...mine is smooth and quiet. The heater not keeping you warm as toast when temps drop below freezing that isn't Jayco but I put that one on you. The Greyhawks are not sold as 4 season or such RV's. You should have done more research.

Sounds like a little buyers remorse when you started to mention payments and cost and such...that seems to happen to many when the new wears off. You paid $90K you said and I know that's a lot of money but in line with that how much does a new truck cost? A big enough truck to pull a trailer with the same amenities as your Greyhawk would be at least half that if not more.

The heater is my problem. I got what I paid for with that. But why would jayco sell it with tank heaters if they didn't design the heater to work below freezing temps? Seems like the would design the heater to follow suit or not put the heaters on the holding tanks at all if you couldn't use it below freezing temps. Doesn't make sense.

I'd be happy with the RV if it didn't have so many problems. I don't even have 4k miles on it yet so I would say the new is still on it. I could understand a broken shade or something like that but my issues have gone far above that. I just can't justify spending that much money on something that's junk. If Jayco wants to make there RVs affordable don't do it by selling junk and making your customer suffer the consequences. I know quality labor is hard to come by but this big of a company should have better QC checks in place so they don't have do many issues.

I'm sure they make some good ones and maybe I just got a lemon. But doing some research most people have issues with any RV and seems to be the norm with the major manufactures. Unless the consumer stops buying there junk or they have some serious problems they won't change.

cheska · 04-28-2018, 11:44 AM

Sorry for your problems. I have owned 8 different units in 10 years. From 5th wheels,
truck camper, travel trailers, one B class and 2 C class. They were new and used models.
My experience says a good slightly used mosel is the way to go. With that said yesterday
I picked up a 2008 Melborne Greyhawk. The reason I went that route is the quality in the older unit verses the new units. I also feel I can put a fair amount of money into the unit
if I have to and still have a higher quality unit cheaper than a new one. Time will tell but
as you can see I still haven't found the perfrct unit for me. Also note I still own a 2012
Sunseeker 20.5 that is going to Alaska this summer, bought used and has been perfect
with no problems. Wife wanted more room for snow birding. Best of luck. Bob

Steveii · 04-28-2018, 12:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cheska

Sorry for your problems. I have owned 8 different units in 10 years. From 5th wheels,
truck camper, travel trailers, one B class and 2 C class. They were new and used models.
My experience says a good slightly used mosel is the way to go. With that said yesterday
I picked up a 2008 Melborne Greyhawk. The reason I went that route is the quality in the older unit verses the new units. I also feel I can put a fair amount of money into the unit
if I have to and still have a higher quality unit cheaper than a new one. Time will tell but
as you can see I still haven't found the perfrct unit for me. Also note I still own a 2012
Sunseeker 20.5 that is going to Alaska this summer, bought used and has been perfect
with no problems. Wife wanted more room for snow birding. Best of luck. Bob

Thanks for your comments. I hope the new Jayco works out for you.

LI-Camper · 04-28-2018, 04:21 PM

I bought a new 2016 Greyhawk 29MV in July of 2015. It was one of the first Greyhawks with the new 2016 Ford six speed transmission. It had the 60 mph vibration. I had it fixed once Ford and all of the Class C manufacturers as well as others who use the E450 chassis decided how to repair the vibration. It has worked flawlessly since the repair. I had a few issues also, but nothing like the OP describes. Jayco customer service sent me a next generation tankless water heater which I had installed by a local contractor. It has the digital temperature thermostat to set the hot water temperature. It works fine now. The J-Ride handles well and we are pleased with our motorhome. I have a friend with a newer Thor Class C which IMHO has a poorly designed floor plan and is cheaply put together compared to my Greyhawk. The appliances are similar but the other interior parts look cheap. To some extent you get what you pay for. That being said, the quality control of RV’s in general should be much better.

foglght · 05-01-2018, 07:10 AM

The idea that every RV seems to have a laundry list for the first year and requires multiple dealer trips is ridiculous.

BUT, you are buying a mostly hand built vehicle........built with wood, and.......glue. There are some technologies in there, but spray foam and plywood glued walls aren't really new. These things don't appear to be tested at all as a finished product.

The manufacturers are going to keep making them this way until people stop buying them. At least Jayco has a 2 year warranty. This has saved my arse multiple times.

I stop by the Forest River dealer because it is in my town. I look at the new Sunseekers and notice all sorts of things wrong with them sitting new on the lot. The dealer never notices until I point it out. I've been back to the same dealer with a different sales guy just to check to see if it got fixed. Nope.

Want it done right? Do it yourself. Can't built an RV? Well, enjoy it or sell it.

Jopopsy · 05-01-2018, 07:21 AM

It is not uncommon to see new rigs on the lot that need TLC no matter what make. My Jayco dealer (whom I am quite fond of) had 2 Precepts on his lot last year that required a lot. Trim falling off the slide outs, headboard of the bed falling off the wall (brad nailed I assume), etc. I asked him how he can expect to sell a product stickered north of 140k w/ it looking like that. He told me they'll fix it at PDI and it'll sell.

And it did !

My current rig had one of its vertiical slide out seals dangling to the ground when I walked up to it.

The dealer is your last line of defense w/ these things. Get a good one, cross your fingers, and hopefully enjoy the ride.

cabinetmaker · 05-01-2018, 09:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jopopsy

It is not uncommon to see new rigs on the lot that need TLC no matter what make. My Jayco dealer (whom I am quite fond of) had 2 Precepts on his lot last year that required a lot. Trim falling off the slide outs, headboard of the bed falling off the wall (brad nailed I assume), etc. I asked him how he can expect to sell a product stickered north of 140k w/ it looking like that. He told me they'll fix it at PDI and it'll sell.

And it did !

My current rig had one of its vertiical slide out seals dangling to the ground when I walked up to it.

The dealer is your last line of defense w/ these things. Get a good one, cross your fingers, and hopefully enjoy the ride.

Dealers have always been stuck doing QC for any brand sold. Like you said they are the line of defense and expected to make things right...that's why a sharp eye at delivery is so important. Most things can be adjusted and fixed during delivery. Seems after that your own your own or put on a waiting list.

I think some of the problems are caused by delivery drivers not caring to take it easy but just wanting to get it to the dealer. This may actually play in favor of buyers because it for sure puts the rig through a test run and shakes out problems that might not have been known or shown for some time.

We have owned several brands of different types of RV's over the years and I can tell you from experience none are perfect. We have owned expensive brands and money didn't really seem to help.

We are happy to be back to the Jayco family and this time plan to stay. We had owned a couple of Jayco's in the past and after all our other brands came to realize that our Jayco's weren't all that bad. Not perfect mind you but much better than most we tried.

Over my many years of RV'ing I have learned something. If you like to tinker and fix things you will be ok owning a RV...If you expect every trip to be perfect and never have any issues plus have to rely on others to fix things for you then your probably not going to be a happy camper!

Steveii · 05-15-2018, 01:48 PM

Just wanted to let everyone know that Jayco and Campingworld agreed to fix all of the issues I've been having and don't have to take it back to Jayco.

I'm not to encouraged that Campingworld is going to address everything but they agreed to look at everything and fix the RV to "like factory new" condition. We'll see how it turns out.

Hopefully after the 3rd round of warranty items I wont regret buying this big baby.

Hivoltage98 · 05-15-2018, 04:28 PM

I don't think anyone who has an rv isn't handy. thus all the fixes we make as we rattle these things down the road.

CarlB · 05-22-2018, 06:14 PM

I just rolled over 40,000miles in my 2015 31fs. I have had issues with a couple subsystems over the years, but only a few issues would I tie back to Jayco proper. The cabinetry having some sort of Amish pedigree is truly laughable given the pocket screws, lightweight MDF, wood grain contact paper, and prolific use of staples. Maybe Amish folks were on the crew building it, but they weren't given any input on durable designs.

I guess 2015 was a decent year, because a friend bought a 2016 based off of my reviews of my Greyhawk, and he has had all kinds of issues.

Shakedown St. · 05-22-2018, 09:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CarlB

I just rolled over 40,000miles in my 2015 31fs. I have had issues with a couple subsystems over the years, but only a few issues would I tie back to Jayco proper. The cabinetry having some sort of Amish pedigree is truly laughable given the pocket screws, lightweight MDF, wood grain contact paper, and prolific use of staples. Maybe Amish folks were on the crew building it, but they weren't given any input on durable designs.

I guess 2015 was a decent year, because a friend bought a 2016 based off of my reviews of my Greyhawk, and he has had all kinds of issues.

15 FS here too. My rig has been great too, except some minor things that I have fixed periodically. Now however, it’s at the dealer with a bedroom slide problem. Appears a shear pin broke and they are removing the whole slide for repair. Hope to get it back soon....

NC Roamer · 05-25-2018, 08:16 AM

We also had our share of issues with our 2014 Greyhawk. Thank goodness for the two year warranty. I think the likelihood of being happy in the long run is having a competent and responsive dealer. We were most fortunate there. Heck, I even have the personal cell number of their shop manager.

We love ours and are very pleased with it. But we did have some frustrating times until all the issues were resolved. I am typing this sitting in ours at White Lake in southeastern NC.

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