User Tag List

Page 1 of 6 123 ... LastLast
Results 1 to 10 of 53
  1. #1
    Left The Driveway
    Join Date
    Oct 2019
    Location
    Phoenix, AZ
    Posts
    6
    Mentioned
    3 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)

    Advise and recommendations

    Getting serious about a 2020 Grand Design Solitude 310GK and wondering if anyone owns one that would like to comment about their likes, dislikes, cons, pros and anything else about them. How is the company to work with regarding repairs or concerns? This will be our forever last see the USA unit and have compared to Heartland, Keystone, Forest River and Jayco and feel like Grand Design's floor plan, construction, weight and durability is what we are looking for. Pro's and con's about towing, insulation, construction and durability welcome!

    I'm also purchasing a new (to us) 2019 Dodge Ram Laramie 2500 6.7 diesel 4x4 short bed, I'm pretty sure it will pull the 310GK just fine! Then off to see what there is to see in the USA, if they let us travel?
    Thanks in advance for any suggestions, comments, suggestions or what Evers!!

  2. #2
    Big Traveler Txfivver's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2018
    Location
    San Antonio Tx
    Posts
    1,648
    Mentioned
    19 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    You will love the 310, it's a very popular model on here. Your Ram 2500 will definitely "pull" the 310 but will it carry it? What I mean is most 3/4 ton diesels have a payload in the 2100-2400 pound range. You may find yourself over that number by a good bit when you load up the trailer with gear and add in your hitch, toolbox, firewood, and passengers in the truck. Do your research before buying the truck so you won't have to go bigger later. Several of us on here have done that. Good luck and welcome!
    2019 Solitude 375RES Onan 5500 Splendide W/D Samsung res. fridge
    2020 Ford F450 Platinum dually 6.7L 4:30 gears
    B&W Companion for Ford puck system 20K lbs
    Jeff

  3. #3
    Long Hauler bertschb's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2015
    Location
    Bend, OR and Palm Springs, CA
    Posts
    3,043
    Mentioned
    27 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    We just got our 3rd Grand Design RV. We are very happy with their customer service. When we ordered our most recent model (a Solitude 310GK-R), we contacted Grand Design on the advice of another forum member about having them transport the 5th wheel to MORryde to have their IS and disc brakes installed prior to paint and shipping. Grand Design was SUPER helpful and accommodating. I got calls from the VP of service operations and the Solitude product manager with updates. They didn't charge anything for this service and it adds another level of complexity to their process. We have a great dealer who does a fantastic job with their PDI's so all three of ours have been very clean and ready to go when we picked them up.

    The Grand Design brand is very similar to other manufactures as far as build quality. All manufacturers use many of the same parts and materials. But, we feel Grand Design has more thoughtful and interesting floor plans (totally subjective) and they absolutely have excellent service before and after the sale. In that regard we feel they are among the very best of the manufacturers.

    You have to spend a LOT more money to get better quality. Like double or triple. My advice is to just pick the floor plan that works for you and go from there. We loved our Solitude 373FB-R and so far we really like our Solitude 310GK-R. There are several other models that would work for us as well. We have stayed with Grand Design because we're familiar with them and because of their outstanding customer support.

    BTW, I'm not sure if you care, but at 15,000lbs GVWR, the 310GK will exceed the payload rating of your 3/4 ton truck. If that matters to you, get a 1 ton. An SRW 1 ton is actually marginal for a 15,000lb RV.
    Last edited by bertschb; 04-04-2020 at 07:27 PM.
    Brian & Kellie
    2020 Solitude 310GK-R, FBP, 1,460w solar, 540ah BBGC3, MORryde IS w/disc brakes
    2020 F-350 Platinum SRW Powerstroke Tremor, 60g TF fuel tank, Hensley BD3-F air bag hitch

    Previous setups:
    2019 Solitude 373FB-R, 2019 F-350 Platinum DRW Powerstroke, Hensley BD5 air bag hitch
    2016 Reflection 318RST, 2016 GMC 3500 Denali SRW Duramax, Hensley BD3 air bag hitch

  4. #4
    Site Team traveldawg's Avatar
    Join Date
    Aug 2017
    Location
    Florida Space Coast
    Posts
    3,853
    Blog Entries
    1
    Mentioned
    94 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    We like our 310GK-R. While I wished it had a come with a few things other manufactures had with similar floor plans (fully ducted AC, electric cord reel, day/night shades) we thought it was well built and had a nice interior. We had a few minor issues I took care of myself and nothing major needing a dealers or GD's attention except for the replacement of one leveling jack.

    We chose a 1 ton truck for the payload ability. Actually, the dealer I got it from had me sign some papers saying I had a 1 ton to carry the rig. I had a 1 ton for my last 5th wheel too which was a bit lighter.
    Larry KE4DMG
    2022 F-350 KRU SRW LB - Airlift 5000+, ForScan, 37 RDS Aux Tank,
    2019 310GK-R - Sailuns; MorRyde IS; Disc Brakes; 20K Reese Goosebox
    Search kalakamods for my mods


  5. #5
    Fireside Member Markb777's Avatar
    Join Date
    Aug 2017
    Location
    Las Vegas
    Posts
    95
    Mentioned
    1 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    Congrats! You will love the 310GK but no way I'd tow it with a ¾ ton. Better go with a minimum 1 ton or you will almost certainly be over parameters and then not want to sell the ¾ and buy the 1 ton. Just go big early and you won't be disappointed. For my needs the 310GK was the perfect trailer so I bought it, THEN bought a truck that I could comfortably, "legally" and most importantly safely tow it with.

    Please put as much research your tow vehicle as you obviously did with your new trailer.

    Mark
    2018 Solitude 310GK-R
    Titan Disk Brakes, MorRyde SRE 4000 with X Factor Crossmember
    2022 GMC 3500HD Duramax Crew Cab, 4x4, SRW 6’ box
    Factory 5th/Gooseneck Prep with 20K Reese Goosebox

  6. #6
    Long Hauler bertschb's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2015
    Location
    Bend, OR and Palm Springs, CA
    Posts
    3,043
    Mentioned
    27 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    Quote Originally Posted by traveldawg View Post
    While I wished it had a come with a few things other manufactures had with similar floor plans (fully ducted AC, electric cord reel...
    FYI- The 2020 models come with an electric cord reel.
    Brian & Kellie
    2020 Solitude 310GK-R, FBP, 1,460w solar, 540ah BBGC3, MORryde IS w/disc brakes
    2020 F-350 Platinum SRW Powerstroke Tremor, 60g TF fuel tank, Hensley BD3-F air bag hitch

    Previous setups:
    2019 Solitude 373FB-R, 2019 F-350 Platinum DRW Powerstroke, Hensley BD5 air bag hitch
    2016 Reflection 318RST, 2016 GMC 3500 Denali SRW Duramax, Hensley BD3 air bag hitch

  7. #7
    Big Traveler boyscout's Avatar
    Join Date
    Nov 2017
    Location
    Toronto, Canada
    Posts
    1,974
    Mentioned
    54 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    Quote Originally Posted by GreyGhost View Post
    Getting serious about a 2020 Grand Design Solitude 310GK and wondering if anyone owns one that would like to comment about their likes, dislikes, cons, pros and anything else about them. How is the company to work with regarding repairs or concerns? This will be our forever last see the USA unit and have compared to Heartland, Keystone, Forest River and Jayco and feel like Grand Design's floor plan, construction, weight and durability is what we are looking for. Pro's and con's about towing, insulation, construction and durability welcome!

    I'm also purchasing a new (to us) 2019 Dodge Ram Laramie 2500 6.7 diesel 4x4 short bed, I'm pretty sure it will pull the 310GK just fine! Then off to see what there is to see in the USA, if they let us travel?
    Thanks in advance for any suggestions, comments, suggestions or what Evers!!
    1) I'll strongly echo advice you've already got about getting more truck. We have an F350 single rear wheel truck with a 310GK that we do NOT load close to its limits. It is just enough truck, not only by how it feels when driving but by the numbers. Others have weighed this combination and found themselves very close to the legal limits - a 2500 is definitely not enough truck. I wish fervently that I'd bought at least a double-rear-wheel 350, but I actually wish most for an F450.

    2) We like our 310GK but we've had a WHOLE lot of trouble with it. The issues would have been dealt with more easily and quickly if we had done a very thorough pre-delivery inspection ourselves. We barely did one at all, trusting the dealer's worksheet claiming that they had done the inspection they are required by Grand Design to do. It was almost immediately obvious that they did virtually no inspection at all. We had a long list of troubles within weeks of taking delivery and the dealer took FIVE MONTHS to repair them. Take someone knowledgeable and experienced with you if you're not experienced and knowledgeable, and find and push the problems back onto the dealer BEFORE you pay for the trailer. You'll likely find the dealer to be much more interested in quick and thorough service if you do that.

    Welcome, and congratulations.
    Mark - 2018 Solitude 310GK - 2017 F-350 diesel SRW short box - Pullrite Superglide hitch

  8. #8
    Site Sponsor SolarPoweredRV's Avatar
    Join Date
    Mar 2019
    Location
    Tampa Florida
    Posts
    2,044
    Mentioned
    103 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    Quote Originally Posted by GreyGhost View Post
    Getting serious about a 2020 Grand Design Solitude 310GK and wondering if anyone owns one that would like to comment about their likes, dislikes, cons, pros and anything else about them. How is the company to work with regarding repairs or concerns? This will be our forever last see the USA unit and have compared to Heartland, Keystone, Forest River and Jayco and feel like Grand Design's floor plan, construction, weight and durability is what we are looking for. Pro's and con's about towing, insulation, construction and durability welcome!

    I'm also purchasing a new (to us) 2019 Dodge Ram Laramie 2500 6.7 diesel 4x4 short bed, I'm pretty sure it will pull the 310GK just fine! Then off to see what there is to see in the USA, if they let us travel?
    Thanks in advance for any suggestions, comments, suggestions or what Evers!!
    We bought our 310 GK before we had a truck that could pull it (we owned a van). We had the dealer deliver it to our storage facility and then went shopping for our truck.

    We seriously shopped for the truck, we looked at Ram and Ford, we quickly settled on the 3500/350 trucks, we never looked at the 2500/250 models. Additionally, I had decided early on that I wanted to go with a Diesel Engine because I had experienced pulling with Gas and felt Diesel would have more power and performance.

    Basically, I rounded up the weight of the 310 GK to 20,000 lbs and made my truck decision based on that weight. We test drove both the Ram 3500 and the F350, the Ford simply out performed the Ram in the test drive with acceleration and ride comfort and, I really did not like the Ram towing Mirrors (absolutely LOVE the Ford Mirrors).

    There were a couple of reasons we chose the Dually over the SRW, one was capacity of the truck and the other were tires, specifically tire size. the Dually has smaller tires and as a consequence the truck sits much lower to the ground, this makes it much easier to get in and out of (something you start to consider when you reach a certain age). We also liked the fact that the truck rides on Michelin Radial tires which really smooths out the ride.

    We chose the Long Bed and would not recommend the short bed due to the extra six inch width of the 310 GK (101 inches wide). Additionally, we had the Towing Prep package installed which gave us the "Puck" system in the bed for mounting the hitch and I am really glad we did, because, it gave me the opportunity to easily choose the Reese GooseBox instead of a traditional 5th wheel hitch system. We absolutely LOVE the Reese GooseBox !!!!

    We just returned from a 5,700 mile round trip from Florida to Phoenix Arizona and I will tell you I would not have wanted any less truck pulling the 310 GK cross country. Having the Dually really made the camper stable even in high winds. When people say "You don't even feel the camper" I can say from experience that this is a true statement when pulling with a Diesel Dually.

    As far as the 310 GK goes, I would recommend upgrading to Disc Brakes, we did and had an opportunity to really appreciate that decision soon afterwards during an Emergency Stop from 70 mph.

    If you are purchasing the 310 GK-R version, I would also recommend an upgrade to at least a pair of Lithium Batteries to run your Fridge.

    We love our 310 GK, we really like the roominess with the slides deployed. It is super comfortable for two people.
    David and Peggy
    2019 Ford F350 Lariat, 6.7L Diesel, Dually, Long Bed
    Running with 20k Reese Goosebox (Love It) and Ford Factory "Puck" system.
    Stopping with 8,000 lb Disc Brakes and Titan Hydraulic over Electric Brakes system.
    Powering all this fun with 1200 Watts of Solar, two Tesla, Model S, battery modules, 24 volt Victron Inverter.
    2018 Solitude 310 GK

  9. #9
    Site Sponsor
    Join Date
    Apr 2017
    Location
    Fort Collins, Colorado
    Posts
    1,303
    Mentioned
    25 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    Quote Originally Posted by GreyGhost View Post
    Getting serious about a 2020 Grand Design Solitude 310GK and wondering if anyone owns one that would like to comment about their likes, dislikes, cons, pros and anything else about them. How is the company to work with regarding repairs or concerns? This will be our forever last see the USA unit and have compared to Heartland, Keystone, Forest River and Jayco and feel like Grand Design's floor plan, construction, weight and durability is what we are looking for. Pro's and con's about towing, insulation, construction and durability welcome!

    I'm also purchasing a new (to us) 2019 Dodge Ram Laramie 2500 6.7 diesel 4x4 short bed, I'm pretty sure it will pull the 310GK just fine! Then off to see what there is to see in the USA, if they let us travel?
    Thanks in advance for any suggestions, comments, suggestions or what Evers!!
    We also have a (2018) 310GK. This is our first trailer and we are very happy with it. I second everything Mark above (post #7 ) says. Do a good, through PDI (we did and found a few problems the dealer tried to "slide by". They fixed immediately when I would not sign). We have only had a few (cosmetic) issues with it and I think Grand Design did a good job of standing behind their product. The dealer, not so much. They had it for 5 months, "fix" only about 1/2 of the items (nothing difficult - but I had to correctly fix most of these after the dealers "fix" failed) and had a lot of "no problem found" (all but one item I found and fixed in one full day of work). A good dealer is worth their weight in gold. Unfortunately, few dealers are good.

    We now have two full years and about 11,000 miles on it and no major issues. We are very happy with it. The stock brakes are marginal at best (they take awhile to bed in and work their best). We have the RV (gas/electric) refrigerator and are very disappointed in its performance. It works OK (not great) up to about mid-70F. Above that is can not keep up. If I were to do it again, I would get the residential refrigerator, but we do not do any boondocking. The "best" choice for you will depend on how you camp.

    I tow with a 2017 F350 (1 ton) SRW. I am comfortable driving and the truck is not overloaded. But, I am right at the limit of the truck. I am fine with any normal driving (and I live and tow in the Rocky Mountains), but I realize I do not have a lot of margin for any emergencies. A dually (DRW) will give you more stability and the added safety of an extra rear tire if you have a blow out. I (ok DW) did not want the extra width of a DRW truck. I personally would not tow a 310GK with a 3/4 ton truck.

    Chris
    Last edited by CoChris; 04-05-2020 at 09:44 AM.
    Chris & Karen
    Fort Collins, CO
    2017 F-350 SRW 6.7 Lariat Value CC LB 4x4
    2018 Solitude 310GK - Sold 7/2023

  10. #10
    Left The Driveway
    Join Date
    Oct 2019
    Location
    Phoenix, AZ
    Posts
    6
    Mentioned
    3 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    Well, looks like I best relook at my choice of tow truck! Wow, I thought the 2500 deisel would be fine, but everyone seems to think I will need a one ton instead. Ok, now back to the drawing board.
    Thanks for all the advise and for sharing your knowledge. I appreciate all the wisdom that was shared and it makes me think about safety and tow abilities and stopping the big rig. Thanks again for everything!!!
    I think we are sold on the 310GK just need to rethink the truck!!!!!

Page 1 of 6 123 ... LastLast

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •  

DISCLAIMER:This website is not affiliated with or endorsed by Grand Design RV, LLC or any of its affiliates. This is an independent site.