mageorge
Senior Member
After dragging our part-time house for 13,000 miles and probably 85-100 campsites in the last two years here is list of what has broken, what we like and would like, and to make sure everyone knows up front, we love our Grand Design Reflection, and will continue to "drag" it around for quite some time. But we just returned from a 2+ month trip and I was trying to capture these thoughts in one place. Hope to see you in Elkhart in August!
2014 303 RLS 5th wheel.
We have unit build #405, we purchased in May 2014
Things we liked initially and still do -
The insulation package
The space utilization
The colors
Things we added before picking it up
Slide Toppers
Fantastic Fans w/remotes in the Bathroom and Kitchen
Things we found during the walk through
Dining Room Slide front window wouldn’t open (ordered a new window)
Things we found after we picked it up (not all at the same time)
The table insert wouldn’t fit (ordered a new top)
The furnace didn’t work (found the tubing was crushed and not connected)
The kitchen grey tank only held 19 gallons (ordered a new tank)
The kitchen island interior stain was not sealed (ordered new doors)
The electric side of the refrigerator went out (rv dealer fixed – part on hand)
The strap that holds the LP line on the kitchen slide broke (has now broken 3 times)
The tires were only “D” rated, not “E” rated as the tag stated (ordered new tires)
We discovered Grease on the wheels, and took it Lippert in Goshen, In. to repack.
So, during the first 6 months of ownership, we used the trailer twice, and had it in the shop for a total of 4 months. Now, since we’ve owned it, it has now been in different shops 8 times.
Fast forward 8,000 miles of travel this year, and it’s now Summer of 2016.
Problems since that first year -
We had one serious breakdown where the bearings that Lippert repacked 2015 seized up and we had to have one axle replaced along with one tire, all of the bearings repacked, and realigned.
The Kank Leak water system developed a leak behind the panel, and it’s now in the shop getting that repaired.
The TV quit working, and Grand Design sent a new one to replace it.
Small changes we’ve made to make our life easier –
Changed out the towel bar for one that’s 4” wider
Added acrylic plastic to the bathroom “open” cabinet to hold stuff in place (actually cut 8x10 picture in half)
Added adjustable shelf brackets to the wardrobe to stack shoes and laundry
Added a shelf in the pantry to hold a collapsible step
Bought a pizza stone so that the oven will cook more evenly
We must have stock in Velcro and Drawer liners – use them everywhere.
Things we’ve discovered we don’t like – in 13,000 miles of RVing with the 303.
Rocking recliners – there’s no room to move in them, they bang the walls in route, there is no place to set your drink.
The couch – it’s very uncomfortable, impossible to sleep on if you needed to.
The bed, we gave it away after the 1st outing. We replaced it with a “bed in a box”
My wife hates the cooktop (too small)
The kitchen faucet – we replaced it with a Moen residential faucet
The bathroom faucet – we are looking for a replacement
Leveling the rig manually, but we won’t spend $$$$ to add auto levelers. (Our dealer says they are a gimmick, the only “real” self -levelers are on the Solitudes). We think we have this figured out, except in extreme sites that we’ve been in.
Things that have changed since our 2014 was built that we would like to have –
Extra chassis lift from the welded square tube where the axles attach (might actually make the trailer ride level while attached to our truck, and allow us to not unhook some nights.
New chairs and couch (maybe they are more comfortable?)
Placement of the electrical plug on the side of the unit instead of the rear
Wired access for a back up camera
New Water panel
Trailer Hitch
Different Refrigerator
New awnings appear to have a better angle on them
Improvements we would like in general
Better brakes
Roto-Flex pin box or equivalent
Dexter Axles as options
16” tires as options
More insulation in the wardrobe slide
Better sun/heat control for rear window
So, there you have it - 2 years of our learning curve.
2014 303 RLS 5th wheel.
We have unit build #405, we purchased in May 2014
Things we liked initially and still do -
The insulation package
The space utilization
The colors
Things we added before picking it up
Slide Toppers
Fantastic Fans w/remotes in the Bathroom and Kitchen
Things we found during the walk through
Dining Room Slide front window wouldn’t open (ordered a new window)
Things we found after we picked it up (not all at the same time)
The table insert wouldn’t fit (ordered a new top)
The furnace didn’t work (found the tubing was crushed and not connected)
The kitchen grey tank only held 19 gallons (ordered a new tank)
The kitchen island interior stain was not sealed (ordered new doors)
The electric side of the refrigerator went out (rv dealer fixed – part on hand)
The strap that holds the LP line on the kitchen slide broke (has now broken 3 times)
The tires were only “D” rated, not “E” rated as the tag stated (ordered new tires)
We discovered Grease on the wheels, and took it Lippert in Goshen, In. to repack.
So, during the first 6 months of ownership, we used the trailer twice, and had it in the shop for a total of 4 months. Now, since we’ve owned it, it has now been in different shops 8 times.
Fast forward 8,000 miles of travel this year, and it’s now Summer of 2016.
Problems since that first year -
We had one serious breakdown where the bearings that Lippert repacked 2015 seized up and we had to have one axle replaced along with one tire, all of the bearings repacked, and realigned.
The Kank Leak water system developed a leak behind the panel, and it’s now in the shop getting that repaired.
The TV quit working, and Grand Design sent a new one to replace it.
Small changes we’ve made to make our life easier –
Changed out the towel bar for one that’s 4” wider
Added acrylic plastic to the bathroom “open” cabinet to hold stuff in place (actually cut 8x10 picture in half)
Added adjustable shelf brackets to the wardrobe to stack shoes and laundry
Added a shelf in the pantry to hold a collapsible step
Bought a pizza stone so that the oven will cook more evenly
We must have stock in Velcro and Drawer liners – use them everywhere.
Things we’ve discovered we don’t like – in 13,000 miles of RVing with the 303.
Rocking recliners – there’s no room to move in them, they bang the walls in route, there is no place to set your drink.
The couch – it’s very uncomfortable, impossible to sleep on if you needed to.
The bed, we gave it away after the 1st outing. We replaced it with a “bed in a box”
My wife hates the cooktop (too small)
The kitchen faucet – we replaced it with a Moen residential faucet
The bathroom faucet – we are looking for a replacement
Leveling the rig manually, but we won’t spend $$$$ to add auto levelers. (Our dealer says they are a gimmick, the only “real” self -levelers are on the Solitudes). We think we have this figured out, except in extreme sites that we’ve been in.
Things that have changed since our 2014 was built that we would like to have –
Extra chassis lift from the welded square tube where the axles attach (might actually make the trailer ride level while attached to our truck, and allow us to not unhook some nights.
New chairs and couch (maybe they are more comfortable?)
Placement of the electrical plug on the side of the unit instead of the rear
Wired access for a back up camera
New Water panel
Trailer Hitch
Different Refrigerator
New awnings appear to have a better angle on them
Improvements we would like in general
Better brakes
Roto-Flex pin box or equivalent
Dexter Axles as options
16” tires as options
More insulation in the wardrobe slide
Better sun/heat control for rear window
So, there you have it - 2 years of our learning curve.