Looking for fist van advice.

Dazza53 · Member

Looking for fist van advice.

TheHeaths · Guru

Dazza,

welcome and I will be the first to put my foot in it.

We have a 21ft Jayco StarCraft Outback (2012 21.65-3 layout) with the layout you may be looking for, ie Club lounge across the front. This is a picture.

Jayco have a reputation for using their customers as their quality control. This is our 3rd Jayco. We have taken this one down the Birdsville Track, across the dirt from Normanton to Burketown, along the dirt from Richmond to Winton and also along the Rail Access road from Karratha to Tom Price, as well as other assorted dirt roads over the years. Yes we did have some minor damage, but all fixable at various times for a total cost of about $250 over the years.

Other vans have similar issues on similar roads, unless you buy VERY expensive full off road vans (and they too break!)

So, my advice is this. Whatever you buy will be a compromise. Whatever brand you buy can and will have issues. Whatever you buy, not breaking it will depend on YOU driving to the conditions. Would we recommend Jayco? Yes.

Good luck with your search

-- Edited by TheHeaths on Friday 15th of May 2020 12:46:06 PM

Peter_n_Margaret · Guru

Another piece of "vague" advise. biggrin

If you have not had some years of prior experience with RVs, it is almost 100% likely that the first one you purchase will not suit you like you thought it would when you bought it.

We bought a caravan about 40 years ago. We hated towing that thing and would never buy another. We would prefer a tent. But we are now "dyed in the wool" 4WD motorhomers.

What suits us won't suit you, but you don't know what suits you yet either.

It is almost certain that a couple of years after buying your first (whatever it is) you will want to change it for something different.

So, expect that.

Maybe hire a couple of things for a week or two so see what you like and what you don't like. That will be cheaper than buying and selling a couple of times. There is no desperate rush and some caution will give you the opportunity to save some dollars and get a better result for YOU.

Cheers,

Peter

Possum3 · Guru

Peter is right, you will always realise that there is a more likeable set-up to the first one that steals your heart. To start off do your homework thoroughly check out all the options through the web without committing to any - look at RV's at Caravan shows:- but absolutely do not buy at show. Check out all the technical information you need to know (for free) at Caravan Council of Australia www.caravancouncil.com.au/ Download all the appropriate checklists for free.

2trout · Senior Member

Jayco sells something like 50% of the vans in Australia. I guess therefore that they get 50% of the complaints. We have owned 2 Jayco's; a Stirling and a Silverline. We have found both vans excellent and the local dealer very obliging to deal with. Also, they have a dealer network Australia wide, which most other manufacturers don't. Anyhow, good luck with your hunt.

Yoohoo · Member

Hi Dazza,

It is exciting but daunting at the same time isn't it.

We recently bought our first A'Van being a Cruiseliner Adventure Plus to give us access to the outback and yet having the comfort of hard walls as opposed to canvas. The reason for this was ease of set up and for the air con to be more effective than with canvas.

I DO NOT recommend what we bought as the A/C only cools the van by 1 to 2 degrees and neither Krtazman who sold it to us nor A'van have remedied the situation.

The best advice I can give is do not rush into it no matter how good the deal; check lemon caravans on facebook as the industry has a bad reputation and this will help minimise pitfalls; definitely check 'Product Review' or any other online reviews carefully before buying.

Be aware that when a purchaser is bought off with a meagre sum, they are more than likely subject to a Confidentiality Clause. If the purchaser accepts this, it is a relatively inexpensive way for the retailer and manufacturer to get out of the situation.

After all that - enjoy your new travelling life!