Thread: Camper trailer recommendations

Originally Posted by noodlemac

Hi guys.

We are planning a 2-week road trip from SEQ to Tassie over Xmas and are planning to hire a camper trailer, possibly a Jayco. In the future we intend to purchase our own.
does anyone here own a Jayco camper trailer, specifically one of the Outback models? We would like to take ours off road, and I would prefer a Jayco-style camper over a proper 4WD camper for the features and ease of setting up, unless you guys can convince me otherwise )
We probably wouldn't do anything too hardcore off-road wise as we have kids.

Hmmm, (how to sound nice here because some here have Jayco outbacks)...But after hiring one from Vic to QLD and back I can honestly say I'm REALLY glad I didn't blow my hard earned on one. What a bucket. We were the 2nd people to hire it and it was 14months old. The bed slide runners came out WITH the bed, the cupboard veneer peeled and was very flimsy, the thing leaked dust and moisture, and compared to our REAL camper trailer, was a right pain to set up. The tap (A pump type) broke, the wind down jacks threaded section came adrift and it was without doubt a farce. And all this on bitumen roads!

When we gotr to Atherton, we decided to hire a Cape York Trailer to go across the eastern gulf and down to MtIsa and lawn Hill etc, and this unit impressed me so much I now own one. (See Members rides thread 'JC's Rangie' for pics of the trailer in action...)

Get a real trailer for this country, I have no idea HOW these Jayco units hold their value in the marketplace, good marketing maybe???


JC

Sorry are we talking camper trailer - as in tent on top of a box trailer or a camper van - as in a small pop top type camper with fold out sleeping areas and build in stove/fridge like a caravan?

Gotta get the terminology right so we know what we are talking about

Garry

jayco calls their pop-top caravans "camper trailers", hence the confusion I think...

i spent twenty days on the island last year with a hardfloor camper trailer, as soon as you hit the east or west coast the caravan parks will be booked solid, plenty of people turned away late afternoon

if you know which town you will be in i would be booking now.......xmas holdays is very popular in tassie

oh, if you catch a night ferry.....book a room, beats trying to sleep with 100 or so others sitting upright in a chair and you will be fresh as a daisy for your first day on the island

We bought a Jayco Swan outback two years ago new and have used it to travel to The Gold coast, Sydney, Canberra and for numerous trips around the Gippsland area. Some off road but not to much. We have nothing but praise for the set up. Easy to erect and pack up, good to tow and does'nt take up much space when stored at home. We have experienced 100 ml of rain in two days at port McQuarie and not a leak. This said I would not expect it to handle to many corrugations and dirt roads but that's why we kept the swags and tents. All comes down to what and where you want to use it I recon. From my experience they are a good unit for what you pay for and with the right basic maintenance would last for years.

Hi Noodlemac,
I would strongly reccomend looking at anything else than a Jayco.
Would suggest looking at either Goldstream or even Coromal.
With the descrition i would assume you are talking about the units that the 2 beds slide out each side. "Pop-top campertrailer"

Camper Trailers Victoria Australia - A.J. Thomas Campers

Coromal caravans for sale, camper trailers, camper vans: Cannington RV

My Father in law was a Caravan builder by trade & laughs at the lack of build quality in all the Jayco units.
I have a few friends who went against my judgement & bought a Jayco & now they do understand why people who buy one first never buy one again.

But at the high asking price originally & demand they keep there 2nd hand price high also.

At present i would like a Goldstream, little more expensive but well worth it.
I have sold my Camel Discovery campertrailer (tent on top that folds over) & have loved it. So time to save & hopefully get what i want.

Good luck with your choice, there are many to look at.

Yep, I'm referring to the type that pops up and the beds pop out either side.

Thanks for all your replies. We will definitely do a lot more research before we buy!!!

Noodlemac,

We looked at a Jayco a few years ago when we sold our old Aussie Swag camper trailer as the family got bigger, did a lot of research.
Found that there was a lot of negative feedback about Jayco's but then some people had used them for years without any issues.
Problems seemed to be :-
Shock absorber mounts breaking off.
Poor construction leading to them the falling apart when towed on corrugated roads, leaking and letting in a lot of dust.
The steps on the Outback models falling off (arrive at your next campsite and the're gone!) plus they were vulnerable off-road.

Now all of this was from people we didn't know (off the internet) and people are always willing to complain when things go wrong. Looked at the Jayco's and wasn't impressed with the construction or the interior fitments. Ended up buying a Coromal but also looked at the Goldstream which was good but didn't have the interior layout we needed.

Jayco have since changed their construction method so things may have changed.
The 'offroad' versions of these camper trailers (whichever make) won't go that far offroad. Heavier chassis, a bit more ground clearance and maybe a Treg coupling but the length & weight can be an issue.

Worth heading to the next big camping show near you and checking them all out, each will have advantages over the others. The Coromal for example doesn't fold down as much as the others which leads to heigher bench heights when it's up (SWMBO told me this was very important !).

Best of luck, the only upside is they don't devalue that much for the first 6-10 years so worst case scenario is you can get most of your money back.

Colin