328M vs. Heartland Road Warrior 310

CO

Connor McGillicuddy

Guest
Hello,

Any 328M owners who shopped it SPECIFICALLY against the Road Warrior 310? That's where I am right now. GD stickered $4k higher (both rigs are '15 models), and that has been maintained to the actual deal numbers I have from each dealer.

I'm waiting now to hear from the GD dealer (who is waiting to hear from their factory rep) to know whether the garage pull-down screen can be replaced (with cost credit) with the 3-season door. It had the 3rd A/C in the garage, but a pull-down screen! {shrug}....I don't get it; I guess the person who ordered it didn't have parents who always yelled 'shut the door; the air is on!"

The RW already had the 3-season door; otherwise, these 2 rigs are as close to apples-to-apples as I can get, barring 3" of length, and 1k GVWR, and a different microwave.

I'd be interested in hearing from anyone who actually shopped these 2 rigs against one another.

Thanks!
 
I can't offer you information based on rig-to-rig comparison, but the thing that may come out overall between the two will be customer support. As you read through this forum, you will see how highly regarded GD customer support is. As for the swap, they can swap the screen out for the 3 season, but I can't offer any input on the cost you were discussing.
 
Couple quick things would be less R value in the Road Warrior, and no pantry in the kitchen/LR area.

Little access to bathroom and bedroom while on the road with slides closed.
 
Thanks for your input. Good to know about the door.....although 'can' and 'will' often are dealer-dependent terms.

Customer-support is a non-issue for me. I've been RV-ing since I was a kid; full-timing for 5 yrs now. Follow my dad's practice; i.e., if you can't fix things yourself, probably shouldn't be RV-ing. Sure, I've called a component vendor a few times (which, in my experience, is what customer support will tell you to do), but generally, I figure it out & fix it.

I AM a wee bit concerned about GD's 'factory PDI' that they make a big deal about.....sure seemed to be missing on a couple of Solitudes I looked at while waiting for a sales rep....although I WILL say that the 328M looked good.

Thanks again.
 
huh?.....bath is on non-slide side in both rigs...just in the door & up the BR steps

pantry in GD; loft in in RW. I'm a single guy; 6 of one, half-dozen of the other....storage is storage

Notwithstanding the fact that I'm skeptical of ALL mfgs' stated R-values, in point of fact, RW roof/floor is 50/53, compared to GD 40/45........although Heartland website differs from the RW 2015 brochure (but same for GD website/brochure in a couple places).
 
The Road Warrior has R-50 and 53? Their website says 30/34. Our Cyclone had no insulation at all in the garage floor, don't know if that makes a difference to you or if they have changed that.

In my one experience with a componet vendor, a Dometic AC, Grand Design had me call Dometic first, Dometic wanted to argue that the problem was not theirs and that they had to have proof that the AC was bad, (there was freon everywhere), I emailed GD and they stepped in and I had a new AC shipped out that same day. That's the difference that I see with GD and their componets, they stand on the customers side.

We didn't have a RW, we had a Cyclone, we didn't switch to a Momentum but a Solitude. We do like our Solitude alot. The slide walls on our Solitude are solid, the slide walls on our Cyclone were thin and the outside paneling on them was loose. The all around R-value on our Solitude is much higher than the Cyclone was, maybe they changed recently tho, we had a 2014 with the Arctic package. And yes it was it was in the R-20s or 30s, not sure now.

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The three season door can be added, I checked on that at multiple dealers before buying our 385TH. I was told some buyers don't want the three season door because it takes up around two or three inches of garage space. You should be able to get a good deal on a leftover 2015 model. I got 38% off the real MSRP. Watch out for dealers marking the MSRP up, local Houston dealer does it and it's a decent markup.
 
The Road Warrior has R-50 and 53? Their website says 30/34. Our Cyclone had no insulation at all in the garage floor, don't know if that makes a difference to you or if they have changed that.

In my one experience with a componet vendor, a Dometic AC, Grand Design had me call Dometic first, Dometic wanted to argue that the problem was not theirs and that they had to have proof that the AC was bad, (there was freon everywhere), I emailed GD and they stepped in and I had a new AC shipped out that same day. That's the difference that I see with GD and their componets, they stand on the customers side.

We didn't have a RW, we had a Cyclone, we didn't switch to a Momentum but a Solitude. We do like our Solitude alot. The slide walls on our Solitude are solid, the slide walls on our Cyclone were thin and the outside paneling on them was loose. The all around R-value on our Solitude is much higher than the Cyclone was, maybe they changed recently tho, we had a 2014 with the Arctic package. And yes it was it was in the R-20s or 30s, not sure now.

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well, R-38/34, but yeah, that's what the website says.......not that you'd want to at this point, but both the 'brochure' and 'show literature' .pdf downloads are at the bottom of the specifications page; BOTH say R-53/50.

I haven't looked at Cyclones, but this RW & M-class seem to be of equivalent build quality, given that we're not talking about New Horizons or Space Craft as the benchmark.
 
The three season door can be added, I checked on that at multiple dealers before buying our 385TH. I was told some buyers don't want the three season door because it takes up around two or three inches of garage space. You should be able to get a good deal on a leftover 2015 model. I got 38% off the real MSRP. Watch out for dealers marking the MSRP up, local Houston dealer does it and it's a decent markup.

Thanks; good to know about the door. I can understand that some might prefer a screen door, I just thought it was a lack of common sense to option in the 3rd garage A/C without also adding the 3-season door.

MSRPs are a joke. I like the ones (if shopping by email) that have clearly been cobbled together from different build sheets, or worse, are filled in by hand. The RV industry has it good, not being subject to the same regulation as the auto industry, relative to window stickers. Now that Jayco has absorbed Open Range, and Keystone has swallowed up Dutchmen & K-Z, the choices for most of us are even more limited. I had hopes that GD might be brave enough to be the first to use window stickers.....alas; it's sorta' like tow ratings on trucks....none of the Big 3 wanted to be the first to use SAE standards for tow ratings.
 
It’s been painfully unfortunate that the re sell of new RV’s had degraded to its current state. It took me almost 2 years to get to the point that I felt confident that I was informed enough to make an intelligent decision on my next RV purchase, ( unfortunately not a GD, but only because they do not offer a full time, upper end, fifth wheel).

Salespeople and dealers seem to be the choke point. I have not come across any who are dedicated to the product or are trained to understand the features or benefits of the product they sell. The overall mentality of “if they are walking on the lot - sell what you got” needs to come to an end.

As far as pricing - the RVIA, (an RV industry group that supports the manufactures), has done a good job of stopping legislation that would support consumer decisions during the sales process. In addition the consumer is paying for it! Every RV has an RVIA seal near the door. You paid between $50 - $200 for that seal!

MSRP’s continue to be a hot issue for the past several years. Currently no laws exist for transparency similar to the auto industry. Dealer routinely make up their own “window stickers” . On more than one occasion I have seen dealer “window stickers” made up by the dealer with higher sell price that the manufactures MSRP. On several occasions they do not even list the MSRP on the installed options. When they find out that you know what the MSRP should be - they backtrack and say thing like -“well -we will look into that” and you find yourself on a dealer lot in a cold RV with no sales rep in sight.
 
It’s been painfully unfortunate that the re sell of new RV’s had degraded to its current state. It took me almost 2 years to get to the point that I felt confident that I was informed enough to make an intelligent decision on my next RV purchase, ( unfortunately not a GD, but only because they do not offer a full time, upper end, fifth wheel).

Salespeople and dealers seem to be the choke point. I have not come across any who are dedicated to the product or are trained to understand the features or benefits of the product they sell. The overall mentality of “if they are walking on the lot - sell what you got” needs to come to an end.

As far as pricing - the RVIA, (an RV industry group that supports the manufactures), has done a good job of stopping legislation that would support consumer decisions during the sales process. In addition the consumer is paying for it! Every RV has an RVIA seal near the door. You paid between $50 - $200 for that seal!

MSRP’s continue to be a hot issue for the past several years. Currently no laws exist for transparency similar to the auto industry. Dealer routinely make up their own “window stickers” . On more than one occasion I have seen dealer “window stickers” made up by the dealer with higher sell price that the manufactures MSRP. On several occasions they do not even list the MSRP on the installed options. When they find out that you know what the MSRP should be - they backtrack and say thing like -“well -we will look into that” and you find yourself on a dealer lot in a cold RV with no sales rep in sight.

Sounds as if you ventured into the thin air of at least DRV or Excel or Lifestyle territory, if not New Horizons or Space Craft....need a manservant, or valet?
 
Something about this makes me think....paid Heartland advertisement. ....

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Nope - just an active consumer. I have been a member of this board for over a year, (you can review my past post). I belong to 3 other manufacture boards, (so far). I did spent a lot of time researching before buying. GD was my "go to" for about 2 years. My RV needs changed and a "camping" type RV became a "long term living" type RV.
 
Something about this makes me think....paid Heartland advertisement. ....

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I'll let Burt speak for himself, but I'm here in good faith. I have no particular love for Heartland; they were supposed to be the 2nd coming of Jesus Martinez when they started, but they went back to the Thor teat within 10 yrs.....as GD will no doubt do (or Berkshire-Hathaway), sooner, or later. It's part of the business plan for these 'new companies'. Prime Time is another example......and I would've included a Spartan 1032 in my shopping list, if there was one to be found anywhere but the Prime Time website. I suppose I could've settled for a Keystone Fuzion 325, but that catfish-looking mouth on the front cap gives me the heebie-jeebies.
 
I'll let Burt speak for himself, but I'm here in good faith. I have no particular love for Heartland; they were supposed to be the 2nd coming of Jesus Martinez when they started, but they went back to the Thor teat within 10 yrs.....as GD will no doubt do (or Berkshire-Hathaway), sooner, or later. It's part of the business plan for these 'new companies'. Prime Time is another example......and I would've included a Spartan 1032 in my shopping list, if there was one to be found anywhere but the Prime Time website. I suppose I could've settled for a Keystone Fuzion 325, but that catfish-looking mouth on the front cap gives me the heebie-jeebies.

For a long time I was an advocate for a Solitude “Platinum” Edition. No such luck. My GD would have:

Residential Refrigerator
MCD Blinds
Any thing but Furrion A/V equipment, (Anything!)
Full Body Paint, (option)
3 A/C’s with a heat pump option
Disk Brakes w/#8000 axles.
Better surface material.


…and all of the GD quality built in. I do hand it to GD - they have been able to avoid the growing pains of a new company. Thats what happens when you are started by industry veterans.
 
For a long time I was an advocate for a Solitude “Platinum” Edition. No such luck. My GD would have:

Residential Refrigerator
MCD Blinds
Any thing but Furrion A/V equipment, (Anything!)
Full Body Paint, (option)
3 A/C’s with a heat pump option
Disk Brakes w/#8000 axles.
Better surface material.


…and all of the GD quality built in. I do hand it to GD - they have been able to avoid the growing pains of a new company. Thats what happens when you are started by industry veterans.

At the risk of raising further ADIRKS suspicions, I will say that the Road Warrior stuck w/ Jensen (which is mediocre enough). I was disappointed to see Furrion in the GD.

On the other hand, tip of the hat to GD for keeping a (mostly) white paint scheme on the M-class. The Road Warrior(RT) would be invisible on the highway on a gray, rainy day. Colors are generally a 2-to-3-yr fad, but jaysus, maria, & giuseppe!!!....what's the skewed thinking on the black slideout walls & A/C shrouds that are so common these days? Do they think that Arizona stopped allowing RV-ing the state?

First 3 things to do on any new RV: 1) Pitch the mattress 2) pitch the A-V electronics 3) pitch the China-bomb tires.......one of the advantages of ordering....(some) mfgs. will let you delete (certain) std. equip. for a credit.

Do they put Goodyear Gs on that Landmark as std. equip., Burt?
 
At the risk of raising further ADIRKS suspicions, I will say that the Road Warrior stuck w/ Jensen (which is mediocre enough). I was disappointed to see Furrion in the GD.

On the other hand, tip of the hat to GD for keeping a (mostly) white paint scheme on the M-class. The Road Warrior(RT) would be invisible on the highway on a gray, rainy day. Colors are generally a 2-to-3-yr fad, but jaysus, maria, & giuseppe!!!....what's the skewed thinking on the black slideout walls & A/C shrouds that are so common these days? Do they think that Arizona stopped allowing RV-ing the state?

First 3 things to do on any new RV: 1) Pitch the mattress 2) pitch the A-V electronics 3) pitch the China-bomb tires.......one of the advantages of ordering....(some) mfgs. will let you delete (certain) std. equip. for a credit.

Do they put Goodyear Gs on that Landmark as std. equip., Burt?

Yep - and a standard #8000 axel. Keep in made - a GD Solitude is not a competitor to a Landmark. Totally different animals. The delta between a 379FL maxed out and a LM is around 30K, (MSRP). Is the old "you get what yo pay for" situation.
 
At the risk of raising further ADIRKS suspicions, I will say that the Road Warrior stuck w/ Jensen (which is mediocre enough). I was disappointed to see Furrion in the GD.

On the other hand, tip of the hat to GD for keeping a (mostly) white paint scheme on the M-class. The Road Warrior(RT) would be invisible on the highway on a gray, rainy day. Colors are generally a 2-to-3-yr fad, but jaysus, maria, & giuseppe!!!....what's the skewed thinking on the black slideout walls & A/C shrouds that are so common these days? Do they think that Arizona stopped allowing RV-ing the state?

First 3 things to do on any new RV: 1) Pitch the mattress 2) pitch the A-V electronics 3) pitch the China-bomb tires.......one of the advantages of ordering....(some) mfgs. will let you delete (certain) std. equip. for a credit.

Do they put Goodyear Gs on that Landmark as std. equip., Burt?
Not raising suspicion with me. Lol.
Just had to wonder, ya know.

I don't use the Furrion equipment so it doesn't bother me really, and they all throw cheap stuff in them so I don't think there is much difference.

The Towmax tires are alot more well known for blowouts more than other tire I know of. Go to the Heartland forum and type in Blowmax, see how many hundreds of results you pull up, I haven't heard of any verified cases of the Westlakes having trouble like the Blowmax have had. Not saying it hasn't happened, maybe someone will chime in here that has had it happen. Our Cyclone had a fairly long list of issues, about 20 water leaks in the first 2 weeks, wiring that shorted out and we luckily found it before it started a fire because there was red hot embers there, Blowmax tire blowout, weather striping all over on the outside that came loose in the first few months, trim that fell off in several places, we never got a ladder to get into the bunk.

Probably the worst issues being the water leaks that flooded our floor several times because the water heater was in the kitchen cabinet and would flood the main living floor when it sprung a leak, all from loose fittings. And the electrical short that had glowing red hot embers was just a little scary, for sure since it was near the toyhauler where are two small boys were sleeping.

Their customer service team essentially told me that there was nothing they could do to help, and I couldn't find a dealer to fix any of it without leaving it in the ship for 5-6 weeks. I would tell them that I couldn't do that, cause we're are full-time, they said they don't warranty for full-time and can actually cancel the warranty if they find out that's what you are using it for. Grand Design knows I am full-time and they have done their best to accommodate us with this. The dealers I have worked with in Missouri and Iowa have been great about getting us immediate service since we are usually just passing thru.

I'll quit now. :) I'll say the experience with GD has far exceeded the experience with Heartland. That's the summary. :)

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Yep - and a standard #8000 axel. Keep in made - a GD Solitude is not a competitor to a Landmark. Totally different animals. The delta between a 379FL maxed out and a LM is around 30K, (MSRP). Is the old "you get what yo pay for" situation.

oh sure; totally different class

Solitude was intended to be a Montana/Alpine, Big Horn/Big Country, Cardinal/Cedar Creek competitor. Aesthetics aside (since well have our preferences), the only places they really missed the boat was with those awkward vessel sinks (they ran their course about 5 yrs. ago), and sub-par A-V electronics, relative to those competitors.
 

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