2017 Jay Sport 12UD Mods

[ThatGTI]

Here is my 2017 Jayco Jay Sport 12UD pop-up, with my GTI towing it. I've done a lot of mods to my car, and I also think there are some things to improve on with this pop-up.

The first thing I did was to secure the battery box to the frame. From the factory it was just held on with the on battery box strap. Even with as tight as I could get I felt like it still wasn't very secure. The frame already had holes drilled into the battery box/propane tank rail. So I drilled holes into the battery box to line up with those, and then used bolts and nuts to directly tighten it to the frame. It's whole lot more secure now, and doesn't make me nervous about it falling off anymore. Haha.

A few days ago I changed the bulbs in the tail lights to LED. All the lights (except the xenons) on my car are LED, and I wanted to change some of the pop-up lights to LEDs. The brake lights/turn signals were first on the list. LEDs turn on and off immediatley and don't have the "fade" of halogen bulbs. So when I had the halogen bulbs in and had the turn signal on, there was almost a delay from the turn signal on my car and the trailer. It just looked kinda odd. So I bought some LED bulbs to replace the stock CEC3157 bulbs with. The LEDs are brighter than the factory halogen bulbs, but the only downside is that the difference in brightness between light on and brakes on isn't as much as the halogen bulb. The LEDs are brighter with the lights on and brighter with the brakes on, but the difference in brightness between them isn't as much as the halogen bulbs. So when looking at it the brake lights are a bit more noticeable on the halogen bulbs if you have the lights on.

Factory Halogen

LED

 

[repacs0103]

Nice setup. I was a VW fanatic for years, owned 9 (1 mkI, 1 mkII, 4 mkIII, 2 mkIV, 1 Passat) before I swung to Volvos.

I can’t believe no ones told you that you need a 1/2 ton to pull that yet! I’m sure it pulls great, and it looks awesome doing it.



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[ThatGTI]

Nice setup. I was a VW fanatic for years, owned 9 (1 mkI, 1 mkII, 4 mkIII, 2 mkIV, 1 Passat) before I swung to Volvos.

I can’t believe no ones told you that you need a 1/2 ton to pull that yet! I’m sure it pulls great, and it looks awesome doing it.



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Oh, nice!

Yeah, I'm waiting for that. Haha. The car tows it without any issues. I've got the OEM hitch setup they put on them in Europe. When a trailer is connected the traction control enables a trailer stability assist program to help in a swaying situation, and I've got bulb monitoring for the trailer lights from inside the car. So towing is certainly something the car is capable of and built to do, unlike what a lot of people might think.

 

[ThatGTI]

I realized the photos in the first post aren't view able, so here they are.

 

[ThatGTI]

Yesterday I went through and did some modifications to the pop-up. I removed a lot of the warning labels that I didn't see necessary, I got some stick on foam adhesive pads and placed them in various places inside the camper where two hard surfaces meet (bottom of the fold down sink where it hits the counter top, back rest board for dinette, etc.), then I also ordered a roll of Reflectix and cut it to size for the bed end windows. I've heard a few people doing this and being really impressed with the insulation it gives inside the trailer. I'll have to see how well they do.

Here it is without the Reflectix installed.

Here it is with the Reflectix installed.

 

[Tiguan Tow r]

Congrats on your set-up. We reluctantly changed out our 2011 GTI to a 2013 Tiguan and tow a 145 RB. Both vehicles have the same 2L Turbo engine - plenty of power. We also have the factory trailer set-up and love our Prodigy RF brake controller. It's nice to see another VW enthusiast towing!

 

[ThatGTI]

Congrats on your set-up. We reluctantly changed out our 2011 GTI to a 2013 Tiguan and tow a 145 RB. Both vehicles have the same 2L Turbo engine - plenty of power. We also have the factory trailer set-up and love our Prodigy RF brake controller. It's nice to see another VW enthusiast towing!

Thanks! I'm sure the Tiguan handles the trailer really well. Mine GTI has some modifications done to it. I had it dyno'd and it made 250WHP and 265WTQ. These engines are really responsive towards mods. It made towing a breeze although I don't know if I really used much of that added power. Stock it's plenty adequate. I've got the Prodigy RF brake controller too. How do you like yours? Likewise. There aren't many that do. Haha.

I just got back from a trip to Myrtle Beach, SC last week. The car towed it very well. I was really impressed with it. I was able to keep up with traffic on the steep inclines, and on the steep declines I barely had to touch the brakes. During part of the trip down I hand calculated the MPG and found I had averaged 24MPG for that section. I was pretty impressed. I didn't run into any issues with the car. I think I need to adjust the brake controller some more though. I'm not sure what was going on with it on the way back. It was extremely touchy even after changing the boost levels. Then it would also lock up the trailer wheels coming to a stop. It was raining some. I don't know if that was affecting it or what, but I need to look into it before my next trip.

 

[ThatGTI]

As mentioned above, I went and stayed a few nights at Ocean Lakes Campground in Myrtle Beach, SC last week. Here a few pictures from that.

 

[Tiguan Tow r]

FYI, for some reason the pics don't show up on your posts.

 

[Tiguan Tow r]

I bet your GTI goes like stink with the mods! I thought about chipping our Tiguan but it's still under warranty.

Good luck adjusting the Controller. A deserted gravel road and some Controller adjustments and all will be well.

 

[ThatGTI]

FYI, for some reason the pics don't show up on your posts.

My bad. Thank you. Google Photos makes it a bit confusing sometimes. Haha. These should work.

 

[ThatGTI]

I bet your GTI goes like stink with the mods! I thought about chipping our Tiguan but it's still under warranty.

Good luck adjusting the Controller. A deserted gravel road and some Controller adjustments and all will be well.

It does yeah! Haha. I would look into it when you're out of warranty. Definitley worth the money.

 

[ThatGTI]

I found these really nice plastic bins at IKEA and bought some to use for organizing in my pop-up. They fit perfectly in my main cabinet next to the furnace. They come in a few different sizes, so I got some to put in other places too. I also bought a simplehuman trash can and put it on the door of that cabinet. It's really nice and fits into that cabinet, so it's not out and on the floor.

Also I found a nice US map sticker set on Amazon, and installed it on the removable panels on the screen door. I figured this way I could see it, but it wasn't on the exterior of the trailer where the sun and elements would cause it to fade and peel.