Hybrid owners, can I get your opinion?

[Cindy F]

We're looking to buy a hybrid by this time next year. The rules are (unless I win a million bucks ) :

1) No payments, must be able to pay cash
2) No removing money out of savings, it must be money put aside from the "spending/entertainment/miscellaneous" budget, call pay...etc
3) Must be able to purchase by April 1, 2010

So, we're going to be limited to less than $10,000. I know this isn't much BUT, I would rather pay cash and be done with it-I like not owing anything on the vans or pop up.

We absolutely love this one and are hoping to get one like it down the line-I know it will have to be used-that's okay, I'm not picky


The things I'm looking for are:

1) At least 1 queen bunk and 1 full bunk (prefer 2 queens)
2) Ability to sleep 3-4 people turtled
3) Nice sized fridge with separate freezer
4) A/C
5) Stove/oven
6) Bathroom with at least a shower
7) Bunk end fan/lights
8) Under 25 feet
9) Awning
10) Slide out for more room

is there anything else I should look for? Anything you really wish you had got on your hybrid? Anything you insisted on having but after buying it, found that you didn't really use it?

What is this J steel sofa? Not a real sofa bed but one of those jack knife things?

What about the add-a-room thing, worth it?

I really don't know anything about the technical aspects, anything specific I should look for?

I could really use a little guidance here, TIA!

 

[Shan-man]

Wow! That is an awesome trailer! I can't imagine ones that nice come along often, I think I'd have to break out the plastic for that one and covenant with myself to pay off the card by April! Great awning! It looks huge with that slide.

 

[DaveInTN]

Cindy - I believe the J-steel sofa is Jayco's name for their sofa bed. The one's I've seen are pull out beds, but I think they also offer jackknifes so you'd want to confirm that. Jayco builds their own furniture, and from what I've seen they are of a high quality. If you search around on the RV.net forums you'll find that Jayco owners are a very happy and loyal bunch. We were very close to buying a Jayco TT when we decided to go the MH route a couple years ago. I really liked what I saw.

 

[SCCamper]

I've never been one to like the hybrids (just a personal preference) but, I really like that model. I've always heard that Jayco makes a quality product. I'd put down as much of a downpayment as possible and finance the rest. Depending on the loan you get, you can always pay it off early. Good luck.

 

[dngtrumps]

I seriously considered buying a hybrid before purchasing my travel trailer 2 months ago. Check out the hybrid/expandable section on the RVnet.com forums or there's another good forum called hybrid explorer that was a wealth of information. Good luck with your decision.

 

[ftwildernessguy]

I've owned a Jayco Kiwi 21c since 2001 and we really like it. The Kiwi was the Jay Feather prior to the shoe polish people suing the crap out of Jayco. The quality of construction is great. The tend to run a little heavy in GVW compared to comprable models by other companies, so you need to be sure your TV will handle it. I am wondering why this one is going for so little, though. You will want to check it out. The price on this is probably close to what I would ask for mine used, so it is REALLY low. Watch for roof leaks and damage at the corners inside - Jayco had a bit of an issue with this for a while.

 

[DisneyBishops]

We're looking to buy a hybrid by this time next year. The rules are (unless I win a million bucks ) :

1) No payments, must be able to pay cash
2) No removing money out of savings, it must be money put aside from the "spending/entertainment/miscellaneous" budget, call pay...etc
3) Must be able to purchase by April 1, 2010

So, we're going to be limited to less than $10,000. I know this isn't much BUT, I would rather pay cash and be done with it-I like not owing anything on the vans or pop up.

We absolutely love this one and are hoping to get one like it down the line-I know it will have to be used-that's okay, I'm not picky


The things I'm looking for are:

1) At least 1 queen bunk and 1 full bunk (prefer 2 queens)
2) Ability to sleep 3-4 people turtled
3) Nice sized fridge with separate freezer
4) A/C
5) Stove/oven
6) Bathroom with at least a shower
7) Bunk end fan/lights
8) Under 25 feet
9) Awning
10) Slide out for more room

is there anything else I should look for? Anything you really wish you had got on your hybrid? Anything you insisted on having but after buying it, found that you didn't really use it?

What is this J steel sofa? Not a real sofa bed but one of those jack knife things?

What about the add-a-room thing, worth it?

I really don't know anything about the technical aspects, anything specific I should look for?

I could really use a little guidance here, TIA!

If you could get that one for less than 10k, you better do it quickly cause it won't last long at that price. But i see the reserve hasn't been met so i doubt it will sell for 7k. But if you can swing one they are much nicer than a popup.

 

[DisneyBishops]

I've owned a Jayco Kiwi 21c since 2001 and we really like it. The Kiwi was the Jay Feather prior to the shoe polish people suing the crap out of Jayco. The quality of construction is great. The tend to run a little heavy in GVW compared to comprable models by other companies, so you need to be sure your TV will handle it. I am wondering why this one is going for so little, though. You will want to check it out. The price on this is probably close to what I would ask for mine used, so it is REALLY low. Watch for roof leaks and damage at the corners inside - Jayco had a bit of an issue with this for a while.

Jim it won't go for 7k, the reserve hasn't been met. It is an 09, if they could sell them for 7k they would sell so fast they couldn't make enough. Now that would be good for the economy but not so good for Jayco. If they were that cheap i would get rid of my old mh and buy one of those.

 

[ftwildernessguy]

Jim it won't go for 7k, the reserve hasn't been met. It is an 09, if they could sell them for 7k they would sell so fast they couldn't make enough. Now that would be good for the economy but not so good for Jayco. If they were that cheap i would get rid of my old mh and buy one of those.

You can tell I'm not that familiar with ebay and how it works. I usually only go on it if someone wants me to look at something.

 

[byejou]

We just bought a 2005 Palomino Hybrid with one queen pop-out and triple bunks in rear, Also has a slide out living area with sleeper sofa, dining area that also sleeps 2-3, full kitchen, bath with tub, centrally vented heating system, AC, and built in stereo system. It was used of course in perfect condition....all for $7000.

Now is the time, or at least this time of year. We shopped around a bit and heard from dealers Jayco's frame is not really strong, so we strayed away from them. This is our first hybrid upgrade from pop-up.

We use it the first time in April....can't wait!!

Good luck and read reviews on different makers

 

[3gr8kids]

We bought a '08 TravelStar 21SB hybrid last spring and absolutely LOVE it.

 

[ftwildernessguy]

We just bought a 2005 Palomino Hybrid with one queen pop-out and triple bunks in rear, Also has a slide out living area with sleeper sofa, dining area that also sleeps 2-3, full kitchen, bath with tub, centrally vented heating system, AC, and built in stereo system. It was used of course in perfect condition....all for $7000.

Now is the time, or at least this time of year. We shopped around a bit and heard from dealers Jayco's frame is not really strong, so we strayed away from them. This is our first hybrid upgrade from pop-up.

We use it the first time in April....can't wait!!

Good luck and read reviews on different makers

Let me guess - that was the dealer who sold you the Palomino, right? Actually, the info is the opposite. Jayco has one of the strongest frames in the market. But you don't have to believe me - just take a look underneath sometime. That is part of the reason the Jaycos are so heavy.

 

[Kagoguen]

I have a 2007 Jayco Feather Light, model 232, all folded up is about 23ft, opened is almost 30ft, was $22,000, but the RV place was having a spring special and ended up financing $19,000, when you walk in, right in front of you is the refrigerator, pantry and then the closet, turn to the right you see a J couch which opens up into a bed, and across from that is the dinette, then the queen bed pop out, from the doorway left, is the sink, a little cupboard and the stove w/oven, then the bath w/ sink toilet and corner shower, across from bath is a double bed pop out, then at the back of the camper is another double bed pop out. WE LOVE OUR HYBRID, and even though some people on this board don't think we should we haul it with our 2002 Ford Explorer, which is rated to haul our camper empty plus another 1800 lbs.

 

[byejou]

Let me guess - that was the dealer who sold you the Palomino, right? Actually, the info is the opposite. Jayco has one of the strongest frames in the market. But you don't have to believe me - just take a look underneath sometime. That is part of the reason the Jaycos are so heavy.

Actually the dealer we bought the Palamino from is not the one who told us about Jaycos, it was a dealer that sold primarily Jayco RVs and has had many problem with them, then again if I recall it may have been a discussion in regards to pop-ups. Still scared us away.

My dealer has hundreds of Jaycos available for sale. The one we bought was a used item just traded the day prior. We seen it sitting on the lot waiting to be clean and looked at it. SOLD. Could not beat that price.

 

[ftwildernessguy]

Actually the dealer we bought the Palamino from is not the one who told us about Jaycos, it was a dealer that sold primarily Jayco RVs and has had many problem with them, then again if I recall it may have been a discussion in regards to pop-ups. Still scared us away.

My dealer has hundreds of Jaycos available for sale. The one we bought was a used item just traded the day prior. We seen it sitting on the lot waiting to be clean and looked at it. SOLD. Could not beat that price.

Sometime if we're at the fort together, stop by. We can share a Kungaloosh and I'll let you crawl around under my trailer, then you can draw your own conclusion. Heck, if I have enough Kungaloosh, I'll crawl under there, too. Nothing like an RV tour from the bottom up.

 

[BradyBz12]

We absolutely love this one

Ooh - snazzy!! Love the big honkin' slideout. We have a Kodiak

This will be our 3rd summer with it. Ours has 2 queen bunks, separate fridge/freezer (quite roomy), 3 burner stove/oven, microwave, a sit down tub/shower and a good bit of storage. We also have a jackknife sofa that makes a 3rd bed (and of course the dinette makes a 4th).

We've done 3 FW trips in it for 2 weeks, 2 weeks and 3 weeks this past Dec. I wondered if it would be too cramped for us and the 2 pups (40-ish lb border collies) for that long, but we spent so much time hanging out outside, that we really didn't mind at all.

We love it!! Unfortunately Kodiak added slideouts to their line the year after we bought ours, and last year they went to the super snazzy "easy up" tent ends. photo here

While the slideout would be nice, our layout is pretty efficient and we don't really miss it much. If I could change anything it would be getting the newer tents, but the ones we have (similar to Jayco) aren't really that big a deal to setup once you've done it a few times - probably even less if you're used to a popup.

Fan/lights for the ends are really quite useful - make sure they throw those in!

It's just me, DH and the 2 dogs in our camper (no kids) so what we end up doing is doubling up the mattresses on our end and setting up the dogs' crates on the other end (also gives us a little extra storage room there)

We've used the dinette/sofa to sleep on before (usually for quick stops en route) and frankly they're quite small and not very comfortable. Actually the sofa itself is really not even that comfortable to sit on - so I'll add to my "wish list" a more comfortable couch.

If someone is going to need to sleep on either of these, definitely test them out ahead of time. Especially if they're tall.

We've camped in warm and really cold weather (like frost conditions) and found it quite comfortable. We have the heated mattresses in ours and they work great when it's chilly.

We've debated an add-a-room. I really wanted one in the beginning, but then we realized that most places we camp we'd hardly use it. But that depends on the individual. We're not usually places where it's particularly buggy, and we go to FW in Nov/Dec when it's quite nice to just sit out in the open.

Good luck - I think you're going to love it!!

 

[Shan-man]

The sofa must be a fold-flat sofa, not a jackknife, since the back has an arch to it. If it were a jackknife the arch top would end up in the middle of the bed (against the front edge of the seat cushion)... no good. I assume the seat slides into the room and the back folds down flat (arch to the outer wall).

BTW -- a good tip for figuring out what the market will bear is to search completed auctions on eBay (an option in the left column) and look for items that sold to get an idea what kinda deal you might be able to get. For instance, I found this nice lil 2004 Hybrid with slide that sold for $7,200. Most items in eBay motors don't sell initally so look for green prices, those are the items that sold (the red didn't).

 

[Cindy F]

WOW! Thank you all so much for the responses!

Wow! That is an awesome trailer! I can't imagine ones that nice come along often, I think I'd have to break out the plastic for that one and covenant with myself to pay off the card by April! Great awning! It looks huge with that slide.

I know....it's killing to wait! I hate delayed gratification ~grin~

Cindy - ......Jayco owners are a very happy and loyal bunch.....

I've always heard that Jayco makes a quality product.

I guess I'm part of that group because I love our Jayco camper van and wouldn't take anything for it!

I seriously considered buying a hybrid before purchasing my travel trailer 2 months ago. Check out the hybrid/expandable section on the RVnet.com forums or there's another good forum called hybrid explorer that was a wealth of information. Good luck with your decision.

Thanks for the link, I will be checking it out first thing tomorrow!

I've owned a Jayco Kiwi 21c since 2001 and we really like it. The Kiwi was the Jay Feather prior to the shoe polish people suing the crap out of Jayco. The quality of construction is great. The tend to run a little heavy in GVW compared to comprable models by other companies, so you need to be sure your TV will handle it....

We'll be towing with the Jayco camper van, it's on a Ford Econoline chassis and is rated for 8,000 Lbs I believe but I'll double check to make sure. I saw a used Kiwi that I really liked too, I'm hoping I can get a good deal on a used one when the time comes! I would like to stay with a Jayco since we are so happy with the camper van.

Kagoguen and BradyBz12 thank you so much for the reviews on your hybrids it helps to hear about others' experiences!

Shan, thanks for the info on the completed auctions, I didn't know I could do that......now I have something else I can obsess over!

I hate that I have been gone all day and couldn't get back until now...I was hoping to have a good "conversation" back and forth but you know......when your child gets pulled over for speeding, driving without a license, running a stop sign, and driving without proof of insurance........well.......your afternoon is busy with other conversations

Thanks again ya'll and I'm sure I'll have more questions

 

[JCJRSmith]

Prior to getting our motorhome, we had a Jayco Kiwi 23B (now the Jay Feather 23B). Great trailer and plenty of room for the four of us. We just happened to get a great deal on our motorhome so we traded up. You can see lots of pics here: http://home.comcast.net/~jcjrsmith2/camper_pix.htm

You will have to click in each box to see the pictures. I haven't updated that site in a long time.

 

[Cindy F]

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