Heartland vs Keystone

[jbbdc]

I would ask this question on rv.net but that place has turned into the worst rv forum for asking comparison questions. Usually turns into brand-bashing with insults thrown at people who don’t cheerlead for a certain brand. In the end, the thread may get locked down and the OP isn’t any better off.

I’ve been reading this Heartland Owners forum and it seems like people here are more mature and helpful. Here goes…

We are shopping for a full time 5th wheel. Big Horn and Landmark are two top contenders but I’m also looking at the Keystone Montana. I’ve read that Montana is the highest-selling 5th wheel right now. I’m not convinced that this means they’re better than Heartland, but it makes me curious as to why.

Are any of you former Montana owners? If so, what made you switch to Heartland? If you went from Heartland to Montana, why?

I have never owned a Heartland or Keystone product so any info is appreciated.

Thanks.

 

[danemayer]

Hi jbbdc,

Welcome to the Heartland Owners Forum. There's lots of useful information here along with a great bunch of friendly and helpful people. The frank but respectful discussion that you've noticed, along with the sense of community, and Heartland's outstanding customer service and support mean more to many of us than the relatively minor differences between trailers.

As I write this, we're about to start the annual North American Rally with about 500 like-minded people. We've had a great week of pre-rally activities with old friends, while making new ones. We start 5 days of the official rally activities tomorrow morning. It's exhilarating.

I'm sure others will chime in, and there are no doubt some former Montana owners who can speak to differences they've experienced and to answer any other questions you might have.

 

[ramdually4100king]

We had a keystone Laredo for two years and had no problems with it at all. We took it coast to coast a couple of times in the winter and summer and it held up well. We sold it due to military commitment. Then we bought sob toy hauler (not keystone or heartland) had it for a year and traded it in for the Cyclone 4100. Now that we are in the Cyclone it has far better construction (the weight shows that) and we will never go back to sob.

 

[jdfishing]

I've heard that Keystone was purchased by Thor, the parent company of Heartland. Can anyone validate this?

 

[Eddhuy]

I've heard that Keystone was purchased by Thor, the parent company of Heartland. Can anyone validate this?

Yes they did: http://www.thorindustries.com/corp/recreational-vehicles

 

[beasleyrl]

Hi jbbdc,

I'll second what Dan has said. While I have not had a Montana, I have previously had 2 other Keystone brand trailers (Cougar 5er and Zeppelin trailer) . Heartland's customer service and support is definitely better than Keystone not to mention the quality of the end product. As you've probably seen on the forum, there isn't a perfect rig and, as some have called these "moving earthquake machines", things break when driving down the road. However, the key is how these problems are handled. We've now had our Cyclone 5 years and had our share of warranty issues and non warranty issues. Heartland and our dealer have not let us down at all.

With regards to the initial build quality, we have seen differences from day one. These include noticeably better construction on the Heartland products. In addition, my son previously had severe allergy reactions in our prior trailers. Since moving to our Cyclone, these problems have gone away except when we go to RV shows and walk through other brands. We have attributed this, based upon our research, to heavy use of formaldehyde based products in cheaper, non-Heartland rigs.

Good luck in your purchase!

 

[GOTTOYS]

A lot of people are like sheep. If you advertise that you have the top selling product they will buy it. They don't look at quality, features, price or service. If "they" bought one, that's what I'm going to buy because it must be okay...That's a lot easier than being an independent thinker and doing some research on their own...I've looked at both Big Horns and Montanas and don't see much difference in the product. I'm sure they are built to compete with each other. With Heartland you get the Heartland Owners Club, this great forum, and terrific Heartland factory customer service. Nobody else can offer that...Don

 

[Mizmary]

I just dealt with customer service today.

I called the number. A human being answered. I explained the problem and she sent me to the right person the first time. He handled the problem and we were done in less than 15 minutes. They were friendly, courteous and gave me options.

Best customer service I've seen in a loooooong time. It's a huge thing to consider when you're spending so much money.

 

[wdk450]

Click on the "Tools" tab at the top of this page, then click on "Manuals". Look at all of the Heartland information there you can easily access from your computer. Does Keystone have anything like this???

 

[kowAlski631]

We looked at trailers - all manufacturers, all layouts - for 2 years before we made the final decision. What made the decision? This forum where questions were thoughtfully responded to & calls to Heartland BEFORE we bought. A tour of the factory where our Bighorn was made was a huge factor also since we were able to ask questions of the persons directly involved in its manufacture.

We are happily full-time now on an extended tour of America. We chose well.

 

[jbbdc]

I appreciate all the replies. They mirror things I've been reading as I continue my research.

 

[Rottiesmom]

We looked into both heartland & Montana's & was in the fence as to what to do but learning about this group and seeing both products together at a show made our decision & three years later & two heartland products under our belt we won't go anywhere else. We had our share of issues but between our dealership & the commitment from heartland customer service they were all resolved to our satisfaction they truly are there to give us a great experience & I can tell you we never had this experience with our SOB. Good luck in your search

 

[ParkIt]

Spent the better part of 3 years of research before deciding on a Heart Land. Looked at everything and anything, what really caught me are the innovations Heart Land started that we all see as a growing industry standard. What sets Heart Land apart is they have had more time with little to big parts of the build than other companies...and also checking this forum as a guest before we bought ours to see what other owners had to say.

Montana has tried to up their game on layout, materials and build but on closer inspection at a recent RV show, I could see where some things just fell short of a Heart Land build. It would be weird to have 1 propane tank on each side of the unit with more lines running all over the place even though they are tucked away...which would make it more difficult to troubleshoot than a Heart Land. The slides are more difficult to align as well, once you have had a Heart Land for awhile its something you can do yourself though with other brands you have no option but to take it to a dealer. The little and big things add up to time spent on maintenance as well as a quick fix you can do if a shop is nowhere close by.

Another benefit is HL listens to their customers and will make changes on a particular model. It kind of cracks me up ours is only 2 years old and the recliners are where the couch was factory because we were posting how we would move those as soon as we got them, now it standard to have an option of leather theater recliners with storage facing the entertainment center as an example.

Just in case "SOB" is "Some Other Brand". Took me awhile to find that on the faq here but its been revamped so we can all find things easily, even the sub forums of each model. Check those out as well, great specific information is posted up.

 

[oldmannj]

I'm a trailer guy, so I don't have any experience with the 5er's. I can state emphatically however, that my Trailrunner, although the low price model for Heartland is built head and shoulders above the build of my SOB. Not having dealt with customer service directly I can only say that I hear it over and over again about how top notch the service is. And then there are the people, the owners here as a whole will bend over backward to help you with a question. NO company delivers the quality and support of service like Heartland. ED. :angel:

 

[BarneyFife]

I agree most here are happy with their Heartland RVs. But I am well known here as a dissenter.

Whenever we sell our Cyclone, no more Heartland products for us ever. Our toy hauler has performed poorly and customer service from Heartland made it even worse.

Not trying to bash at all here. But to be fair, not everyone on a Heartland forum are happy Heartland owners. Best of luck with whatever you purchase.

 

[Mauna]

I have been extremely happy with Heartland's Customer Service during the two times I have called them. They are pleasant on the phone and connected me right to knowledgeable people who truly know their stuff. I was very impressed with their complete knowledge about the unit and their guidance was priceless.

 

[Mrsfish]

My DH and I knew 3 years ago that we wanted a bigger fiver, but didn't want to buy until closer to retirement. So we spent 3 years looking, sitting, talking again,again and again. We really were convinced we were going to buy a Montana. We were simply down to choosing between 2 models when.....we walked into a bighorn. It was night and day. The wow factor, the features and the absolute look and feel of quality changed our minds in 1 afternoon. I'm not bashing montana at all - just really fell in love with the BH. The dealer played a small role in that the local montana dealer was a POS and we really liked the heartland dealer we dealt with, but at the end of the day I could have found another dealer if I really wanted the montana. My suggestion- find the floor plan that you can live with in all situations, that has the feature you want and move on. Those items will make you forget that All rv's, new or used, will come with their own set of problems. If you love the coach it is easier to forgive the problems. IMHO

 

[codycarver]

I would ask this question on rv.net but that place has turned into the worst rv forum for asking comparison questions. Usually turns into brand-bashing with insults thrown at people who don’t cheerlead for a certain brand. In the end, the thread may get locked down and the OP isn’t any better off.

I’ve been reading this Heartland Owners forum and it seems like people here are more mature and helpful. Here goes…

We are shopping for a full time 5th wheel. Big Horn and Landmark are two top contenders but I’m also looking at the Keystone Montana. I’ve read that Montana is the highest-selling 5th wheel right now. I’m not convinced that this means they’re better than Heartland, but it makes me curious as to why.

Are any of you former Montana owners? If so, what made you switch to Heartland? If you went from Heartland to Montana, why?

I have never owned a Heartland or Keystone product so any info is appreciated.

Thanks.

Sorry, Cant help with the Montana Heartland comparison. We have a Bighorn and will have a Heartland as long as we are into RVing.

The reason? I could go into the ease of contacting Heartland customer service and getting great response, the Heartland warrany, the quality of the construction and the Heatland service crews that work overtime at the 2 North Americian Rallies we have attended however, that is not the real reason. The reason is simple - it is the lifelong friends we have made that are every bit as close to us as family.

If you chose a Heartland, do yourself a favor and attend a Rally, any Rally! In fact, even if you haven't purchased a trailer, drop by a Heartland rally in your area and see for yourself how you are welcomed.


Best of luck

 

[back2nature]

I'm with Dave (codycarver), all that he said. If we, at some time, decide get another RV, it will be a Heartland of course. We really like the unit we have, and have made a few mods to fit our lifestyle, but Heartland is constantly changing (and listening to it's owners). So some day we might upgrade to one of the newer plans. There are so many little things that are better. Especially, in storage, like cupboards and the vanity cabinet, that are so much better than others. It's the little things. Take the time to check it all out and see what your own needs are.

 

[For20hunter]

I can't help with the Montana vs. Bighorn or Landmark comparison, but our previous RV was a Keystone Raptor. I don't have a lot of bad things to say about Keystone, but I will say that in my opinion, Heartland not only makes a better product and has FAR SUPERIOR customer service and stands behind their product much better than Keystone. Every RV in the industry has their minor issues, but all in all, Heartland makes a fantastic product. We could not be more happy with our Bighorn. Yes, we have had some minor repairs that we have made and some changes that I did before I had problems (tires and wheels), but all in all, we have had no major issues and in comparison have had far less issues than our previous 2 fifth wheels, both of which we purchased new. I think that one of the reasons Heartland is so great is that they are constantly reviewing the customer feedback, complaints, compliments and suggestions for ways of improving their products. Heck, just look at changes that occur within a single build year on the Bighorns and Landmarks! They are constantly finding better ways of making RV's and being leaders in the industry in creating industry firsts and better amenities! I have owned 4 different brands and doubt we will never change from Heartland.

Rod Ditrich