How does Heartland compare with other models...reading lots of bad reviews, but...

[Boisedad]

[FONT=verdana, geneva, lucida, lucida grande, arial, helvetica, sans-serif]About to purchase a Heartland Gateway but thought I would check out reviews on the manufacturer and now I'm worried. Had a hard time finding anything positive anywhere online about Heartland. I realize that for the most part it's those that are upset that are most vocal and that Heartland moves a lot of product so statistically they will have more issues even if they have the same percentage of issues. However, like I said, I really had a hard time finding anyone who had positive things to say about them. So, I thought I'd go to the best source, those who own them. What's the consensus, 1. Run away as fast as you can. 2. No better no worse than any others. 3. Better than average. Or 4. Best choice you could ever make.[/FONT]

[FONT=verdana, geneva, lucida, lucida grande, arial, helvetica, sans-serif]Also, for what it's worth, I am also looking at a Keystone Avalanche. Both very comparable floor plans a prices. [/FONT]

 

[danemayer]

Hi Boisedad,

If you browse the some of the 400,000+ posts on this forum, you'll find there's a huge group of satisfied Heartland Owners participating. We socialize in a very active owners club, share information about problems and fixes, lend each other a hand and if you read on, you'll find out that Heartland does a pretty good job of supporting owners.

If you look under the covers so to speak, you'll find out that similar trailers from different manufacturers may have very similar components. The furnace is probably from Suburban. The water heater is going to be either Atwood or Suburban. The refrigerator is from Dometic or Norcold. The frame is usually from Lippert. Axles are from Lippert or Dexter. There will be some difference in how the trailer is assembled, whether the floor and roof are an integrated multi-layer system, how the sidewalls are built, and of course many other differences that may affect your camping experience, but which will be difficult to see.

The big difference is how the company supports owners. The vast majority of us have found Heartland to go beyond what they have to do. Many of us have been in situations where it would have been difficult to get to a dealer for service and Heartland has shipped us warranty parts for self-install. Our first winter, while skiing in Colorado, we had a problem with the furnace thermostat. Dometic insisted we take the rig to a dealer, which would have meant driving over 100 miles on snow covered mountain roads. Heartland stepped in and got Dometic to ship the thermostat and other parts to ensure we could fix the problem. If there's no Heartland dealer nearby, with advance approval, Heartland will usually allow you to use a non-Heartland shop or independent for service.

We've used our Landmark for nearly 5 years including over 40,000 miles, 5 extended ski trips in the Colorado mountains down to -30 (F) and summers at hot as 108 (F) in Moab, UT. We love it and have been full-time since last June.

I'm sure others will join in with their thoughts.

 

[dbbls59]

I have owned a Heartland for 3 years and 18,000 miles. I believe Heartland is no better or worse than any other manufacture. Most of the parts installed in the trailers are the same as other manufactures use. The only thing Heartland makes is the walls and cabinets. Everything else is purchased from a low bidder, just like all other brands.

 

[sjandbj]

Welcome Boisedad,
I have had my new Big Country for approx 6 months now. I spent hundreds of hours looking on the web for information and could always find the bad but seldom find the good until found this forum. Take some time to look at post others have made hear. You will find both the good and the bad listed by the owners. I have to say for my self the purchase have been worth every penny. I have had some minor problems but they have all been fixed under warranty. I have been pleased with the product. I would have liked a little better QC before it left the factory but I would say in my case Heartland's is better then most but still could be improved. Good luck on your research.

Regards,
Steve

 

[jdfishing]

Heartland is better than most. We are on our second one and would NOT look elsewhere for our third.

 

[SilverRhino]

We love our 2010 Big Country.....That being said, the new Hearland products that I have looked at over the last year were disappointing. Fit and finish on the coaches does not seem to be what it used to be. If we were in the market for another 5th wheel, I would still seriously look at Heartland, but, we would also be looking at other brands.

Just my opinion.

 

[Silverado23]

After looking at many other brands and comparing them to Heartland, We ended up ordering another North Trail. Mainly to add floor space and features that our current North trail does not have. Dual pane windows, 2nd AC, 50 Amp service, bunkhouse slide-out. Yet, still towable without having to upgrade to yet a bigger truck.

Yes, we had problems, mostly with the dealer not ordering parts. I was able to order parts directly and bypass the dealer for service. The dealer has since overhauled the service department and it seems to be a big improvement.

 

[osims]

We have been Heartland owners since 2006, the best way I can answer your question is we are picking up our new Bighorn Thursday.

 

[zombiejeep]

We have owned two Jaycos, one Forrest River, and now this Heartland North Trail. As far as longevity, I can not vouch for the Heartland, as we just got ours this month. We really liked our Jaycos, and the only reason we changed models was our changing family. The Forrest River was an absolute nightmare in quality, service, towing, you name it. Instead of going back to Jayco, we decided to try the North Trail. Like I said, we bought it this month. We just used it the first time this past weekend and are very happy so far. I am sure that could change throughout the season. We found an excellent dealer though, which adds to the experience.

 

[kakampers]

If you research this forum well, you will discover that there are many, many multiple Heartland owners...that should tell you something!! BTW Bill and Ornell...welcome to the multiple owner's club...

 

[Bohemian]

The only way to judge any RV company is in the quality of the materials they choose and the quality of construction. Sadly, there are no know affordable RV companies that have high quality construction. None can afford the material, planning, and operations if a car or truck company. They all use the same components, frames, suspensions, wheels, tires, appliances, etc. Of those companies pout there, Heartland uses the best of affordable design and materials available and like most are rushed in construction.

You might do better with a $300,000.00 trailer or a $3,0000,000.00 motorhome.

 

[Bob&Patty]

Had our Horn for 7 years now. Problems ...yes. HL support..the best. I don't care what you buy. If it has tires..your going to have problems. These things are rolling earthquakes. A S/B house has problems and need repairs. As to people complaining.....there are people that you can never please no matter what you do. Some are just just very unhappy people with life itself. They thrive on cheese and whine. JMHO

 

[JohnD]

...there are people that you can never please no matter what you do. Some are just just very unhappy people with life itself. They thrive on cheese and whine. JMHO

I hope you are not saying that just because someone has a serious issue that they must be the kind of people you describe here.

 

[jassson007]

We have been Heartland owners since 2006, the best way I can answer your question is we are picking up our new Bighorn Thursday.

So yall decided to get the new one? Congrats.

To the OP we have followed heartland since 2006 and was finally in a position to purchase our BC in 2013 and have loved it.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[ketah777]

We have a Gateway 3650bh and love it! We are full timing in it with kids and travel about every week. We've only had it for a little over 2 months now but so far so good. After delivery we had some minor issues that the dealer took care of. Now we have a couple more minor issues but aren't quite sure yet how to get that taken care of now that we're traveling and not near our dealer. I have read a lot of bad press and complaints, but I assume that is true with every company. There will always be unhappy people, and there will even be units with real issues because no company is perfect. But we are very happy with our Gateway. If you are staying local then I would make sure you have a good dealer that will take care of you after the sale. We did, but I have heard it's not so easy to get things fixed when you're on the road and can't get back to your dealer.

 

[danemayer]

Now we have a couple more minor issues but aren't quite sure yet how to get that taken care of now that we're traveling and not near our dealer.

Hi ketah777,

You might want to check into mobile service people. RV resorts often have the names of people who come into the park to do service. If you call Heartland for advance authorization, they're pretty good about authorizing warranty work by mobile people or independent, or non-Heartland dealerships. With mobile service, there's usually a travel time charge that won't be covered by warranty, but often it's offset by not spending time and money towing.

 

[jmgratz]

If you research this forum well, you will discover that there are many, many multiple Heartland owners...that should tell you something!! BTW Bill and Ornell...welcome to the multiple owner's club...

I think this will make Bill and Ornell third Heartland product. We are on our 2nd (third if you count our daughters)

 

[Bob&Patty]

JohnD, it was a blanket statement about how certain people deal with lifes issues big or small. I can't believe that you have not found this out about people being a salesman. In our country NOW..."it's never your fault". I dealt with problems for over 40 years in the automobile business big and small. A burned out light bulb was a disaster boardering on the world coming to an end. Most people take the issues with a grain of salt....some just go ballistic. I understand that somethings are BAD problems...but to rant and rave about it over and over and over will get you nothing but ulcers and the issue won't get resolved any faster. Have I ever gone balistic in my younger years over something...yes...did it make it better...no...just bad heartburn. I have learned to put my big boy pants on and deal with it. Life ain't always fair when dealing with stuff made by humans.

 

[Bohemian]

I have been reading for a like this for years. They all seem to be about the same. Many good reports and a great many people looking for problem solutions and a few making complaints trite to serious. I would guess that if you did a quantitative analysis you could get some information on relative quality of manufactures and models as well as some relative idea of quality of customer support.

I have also noted that the greatest quantity of complaints, support requests and problems seems to come in the spring as people start to get their RVs ready for travel. So, if you looked only during this period you could easily get a distorted view.

One also needs to consider that the worst players in the industry will not give support for a site like this, nor are their owners be as likely to participate. Frustration can make people very active and vocal up to the point when they give up and go on with life.

I personally think you hear the most complaints if a free healthy successful society.

 

[shovelguy]

We purchased our 2008 Big Horn 3055 in late 2007. We have fulltimed in it since July 2011. We love her and have traveled to 36 different state so far, over 50,000 mile. A while back we thought about replacing her but after looking at all the cookie cutter floor plans for fifth wheels out there we decided to stick by the old girl. We would be loathe to get anything other than a Heartland product because we love the community. We have not seen such a company supported community anywhere else. That counts for a lot in our book.