Newbie from the Dallas area..

dws1308

New Member
RV LIFE Pro
Joined
Aug 1, 2024
Messages
9
Location
Texas
Just joined the site to learn more about the GD Solitude line up.
My wife and I are looking to purchase a 5th wheel trailer (but with a Gen Y gooseneck). I've been doing a lot of research on those that are considered 'rated for full time/four season' between 35' to 39' in length.
In no order; Alliance Paradigm, Brinkley Z, KZ Durango Gold, and Grand Design Solitude.
We have been staying away from the Grand Design just because of the recent revelations regarding the frame issues and our focus has been pointing us to the Alliance 310RL & 340FB. Like anything you buy, they all have their pros and cons.
I went to a local RV dealer here locally yesterday to look at a used KZ Durango Gold as I had never heard of them before and the floor plan was intriguing. While there, this is a Grand Design dealer, I began to ask them directly about the frame issues that GD was having. They told me that those issues were mainly found on the bigger toy haulers and that GD has been doing there best to correct the problems and to work with the customers. With that in mind, and since I was already there, I took a look at the 310GK and for the heck of it, I stepped into a 370DV. Now, the 370DV was a bit bigger than than 35 footers we've been looking at but I really was impressed with the layout, especially the bathroom and kitchen island.
As this model was new in 2024, I haven't been able to find many videos online from people with first hand knowledge of the 370DV, other than those YouTubers that just happen to see one somewhere and shoot a quick 5 minute video for their subscribers.
I'd like to hear from owners of both the 310GK and the 370DV. Real life experiences, both good and bad. Also, any thoughts and comments for someone that is looking to buy a 5th wheel from Grand Design that has heard all of the negativity regarding the frame issues, or any issues in general that people have encountered, to include the response from GD when the problems were reported.

My tow vehicle is a 2022 GMC 3500HD Denali, single rear axle, Duramax 4x4 in stock configuration. I recently bought it used from a dealer with 32,000 miles. The day I took possession of the truck I went and had it weighed. With a full tank of fuel and DEF, nothing else inside of it, GVW 8560 lbs.

Our intentions are to travel the USA, not full time but being away from home for a couple of weeks at a time. We prefer to travel in the cooler months, hence the four season aspect of the RV's build. We do not plan on spending any extended time in severe winter conditions, so nights from 20 degrees on up are what we'd consider our cold weather camping. North Dakota in January is not an option. As far as summer conditions, being in Texas, in my opinion, 3 A/C's are a must have on the RV. While we prefer state parks, as this has been our only experience with our last bumper pull RV, in the future we plan to utilize other options such as KOA and private RV resorts.

Any guidance and advice would be appreciated.
 
I can't speak to the 310 or 370 specifically as we have a Solitude S-Class 3350, along the same floor plan as the 310. We fulltime and love our rig and have had minimal issues with it but then again it is a 2019. We have stayed up in snow country until Nov and have stayed in Dec. Our rig does pretty well staying warm in the 20* and up weather. But I wish we had double pane windows for the heat and cold weather! That's the only thing we would change.

The frame flex / breakage issues are not just with Grand Design although it has been the most visible across youTube and the like, but Jayco, Montana and some other models have had the same problems. Basically Lippert built frames. I suspect you would get a mixed reaction to how well manufacturers are working with the owners. Some good, some terrible.
As far as RV issues overall, owners of Alliance and Brinkley are having their share of issues as well, and we have good friends that have a New Horizons or DVRs, higher end RVs than our Solitude and they are having issues with their RVs as well. Separated hydraulic hoses and leaking windows.

As far as Texas summer heat, we have two AC units, 15K and 13.5K, they are just fine for the Texas heat. We have been in LaGrange southeast of Austin since May in the Texas summer heat, we see no need for three AC units.

Our rig is 37 foot and we found some state and COE parks were hard to get our rig into. Livingston State Park comes to mind. Low hanging trees, very narrow and single lane roads, very narrow camp site entrances. 35 foot or below would be easier to maneuver in those kind of parks or travel trailers. 5th wheels at @ 13.6 in height, a problem in some state, local and COE parks. But yes, those kind of parks are a lot cheaper than private parks.

You seem informed and asking questions about specific things, I think you will do well at selecting your rig.

Happy travels.
 
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Thank you, that is all good advice/input and I appreciate it. The length has been a major factor in our floorplan decision. We love our state parks here in Texas but as you know, their sites can be a bit dated and thus more restrictive to a larger trailer.
I'll have to look into the New Horizons as I'm not familiar with that brand.
 
I'll have to look into the New Horizons as I'm not familiar with that brand.

New Horizon RVs are high end and pricey, @ 40 ft, and heavy pin weight. Way more pricey than a Solitude. Our friends that have the NH Majestic love it but are having a few problems with it, needs to go back to Kansas dealer. Also it has a very short pin box so he has to open his tailgate, back some under the pin, close the tailgate, then hookup.

When we are not traveling around the country we hang out in Central and South Texas, Austin, Bastrop, LaGrange, or San Antonio, Houston, winters in Galveston. Some trips to Big Bend, though you wouldn't catch us near Big Bend this time in the summer, only winter/spring.
 
We just relocated from San Antonio. Spent 33 years down there, retired last year, and we relocated back to the Dallas area to be near family. I miss it though, I love south Texas.
I took a look at those pricey RV's, those are crazy expensive and way out of our price range. :cool:

We will keep our focus on 35 - 37 foot floor plans with a GVWR in the 15,000 lb range.

I'd love to get the double pane windows as well. I'm assuming that is an option best purchased if you are ordering a new trailer so it's done before delivery and not done on a used RV?
 
We just relocated from San Antonio. Spent 33 years down there, retired last year, and we relocated back to the Dallas area to be near family. I miss it though, I love south Texas.
I took a look at those pricey RV's, those are crazy expensive and way out of our price range. :cool:

We will keep our focus on 35 - 37 foot floor plans with a GVWR in the 15,000 lb range.

I'd love to get the double pane windows as well. I'm assuming that is an option best purchased if you are ordering a new trailer so it's done before delivery and not done on a used RV?

Before we went fulltime, we lived near Bastrop in our sticks and bricks for 22 years. Texas adopted us yankee's! We understand wanting to be near family but ours live up in Indiana and Ohio. Not the place we want to be.

You have a good plan, but whether you purchase a low end RV or the very high end RV, there will be problems with them.

Back when we were looking for our fulltime RV we had the Reflection 337 or Solitude S-Class 2930 (now Influence 2903) rear living on our radar. Both in the 35 ft area. But the S-Class 3350RL gave us everything we wanted but a little longer at 38ft and a higher cargo capacity at 4400 # (fulltimers need)but also with a higher GVWR of 16.8. It's been great!

Double pane windows are not typically ordered for dealer stock, mostly have to order build with them. You might be lucky and find a gently used RV that someone traded in with them. Double pane windows really help in cold or hot months.
In the winter, we get around not having double pane windows by using 3M or Frost King hair dryer shrink film with double sided tape on our single panes, really cuts down on cold drafts through the windows.

Good luck in your search, you'll get there and find the one that's right for you.
 
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watch your combined GVWR (how much it CAN weigh) of truck & RV. If you total over 26001 lbs GVWR Tx requires you to get a class A or B non-cdl drivers license which is really no big deal.
 
watch your combined GVWR (how much it CAN weigh) of truck & RV. If you total over 26001 lbs GVWR Tx requires you to get a class A or B non-cdl drivers license which is really no big deal.

Yup something for potential buyers to keep in the back of their mind if thinking about a bigger heavier rig. Something a lot of people don't know about for some states, including Texas. Class A non-cdl for trailers, Class B non-cdl for motorhomes.

Us, yup, we are over. Truck 1 ton dually 14,000 GVWR and RV 16,800 GVWR, combined GVWR = 30,800

But if potential buyers keep their search for 5th wheels around 35ft or less, around 12,000 GVWR and a tow vehicle single wheel 1 ton @ 13,000 GVWR or less, they'll come in just under the 26001. Most travel trailers, except for the very longest would bring the total combined GVWR in under 26,001.

Like you said, not a big deal, but just more hoops to jump through for Texas and similar states.
 
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Yup something for potential buyers to keep in the back of their mind if thinking about a bigger heavier rig. Something a lot of people don't know about for some states, including Texas. Class A non-cdl for trailers, Class B non-cdl for motorhomes.

Us, yup, we are over. Truck 1 ton dually 14,000 GVWR and RV 16,800 GVWR, combined GVWR = 30,800

But if potential buyers keep their search for 5th wheels around 35ft or less, around 12,000 GVWR and a tow vehicle single wheel 1 ton @ 13,000 GVWR or less, they'll come in just under the 26001. Most travel trailers, except for the very longest would bring the total combined GVWR in under 26,001.

Like you said, not a big deal, but just more hoops to jump through for Texas and similar states.
Just in case some people aren't aware, the need for a Class A or the like, is based on total GVWR, not what you actually weigh. If you weigh 24,000 lbs., but your combined potential GVWR is over 26,001 then you're a candidate for the different license.
 
We really like our 2021/22 310GKR Solitude with residential refer, duel pane windows, factory solar. I added 400ah of lithium batteries and a 200watt portable solar panel. I would get all of the optional packages you can. The auto level is great. Hydraulic slides and levelers not Schwinck except for bedroom. Had it for 3 years and no big problems, just a few piddley ones that I could fix myself. So Im definitely happy with my purchase!
 
We have a Solitude S class 3740, 40’ bunkhouse, special ordered Nov 2020 and received in March 2021. We have been thrilled with it and have had no major issues. When we ordered our unit in November 2020, air conditioners were in short supply and our dealer assured us we didn’t “need” 3 a/c units, even though specs had 3 before the pandemic. We stuck to our guns and got three and are SO happy we did. No matter what they say, if you are planning to spend any time in Texas in the summer, you will be happy to have the 3 units, if nothing else to cool down the rig in a decent amount of time. Good luck with your search, it’s hard!
 
Welcome from another new member that is just a bit SE of you. We just bought a new fifth wheel but went the opposite direction. We downsized from 34 to 27 length. We was glad to have 2 a/c, 3 would have been nice at times. We are blessed with several COE parks in our area and have found them to be some of the facilities. Depending on your age you can buy a lifetime pass that gives you half price camping. Many great National Parks out west. Terrific to tour but rarely great camping. Free admission with that lifetime pass too.
 
I can't speak to the 310 or 370 specifically as we have a Solitude S-Class 3350, along the same floor plan as the 310. We fulltime and love our rig and have had minimal issues with it but then again it is a 2019. We have stayed up in snow country until Nov and have stayed in Dec. Our rig does pretty well staying warm in the 20* and up weather. But I wish we had double pane windows for the heat and cold weather! That's the only thing we would change.

The frame flex / breakage issues are not just with Grand Design although it has been the most visible across youTube and the like, but Jayco, Montana and some other models have had the same problems. Basically Lippert built frames. I suspect you would get a mixed reaction to how well manufacturers are working with the owners. Some good, some terrible.
As far as RV issues overall, owners of Alliance and Brinkley are having their share of issues as well, and we have good friends that have a New Horizons or DVRs, higher end RVs than our Solitude and they are having issues with their RVs as well. Separated hydraulic hoses and leaking windows.

As far as Texas summer heat, we have two AC units, 15K and 13.5K, they are just fine for the Texas heat. We have been in LaGrange southeast of Austin since May in the Texas summer heat, we see no need for three AC units.

Our rig is 37 foot and we found some state and COE parks were hard to get our rig into. Livingston State Park comes to mind. Low hanging trees, very narrow and single lane roads, very narrow camp site entrances. 35 foot or below would be easier to maneuver in those kind of parks or travel trailers. 5th wheels at @ 13.6 in height, a problem in some state, local and COE parks. But yes, those kind of parks are a lot cheaper than private parks.

You seem informed and asking questions about specific things, I think you will do well at selecting your rig.

Happy travels.
Just joined the site to learn more about the GD Solitude line up.
My wife and I are looking to purchase a 5th wheel trailer (but with a Gen Y gooseneck). I've been doing a lot of research on those that are considered 'rated for full time/four season' between 35' to 39' in length.
In no order; Alliance Paradigm, Brinkley Z, KZ Durango Gold, and Grand Design Solitude.
We have been staying away from the Grand Design just because of the recent revelations regarding the frame issues and our focus has been pointing us to the Alliance 310RL & 340FB. Like anything you buy, they all have their pros and cons.
I went to a local RV dealer here locally yesterday to look at a used KZ Durango Gold as I had never heard of them before and the floor plan was intriguing. While there, this is a Grand Design dealer, I began to ask them directly about the frame issues that GD was having. They told me that those issues were mainly found on the bigger toy haulers and that GD has been doing there best to correct the problems and to work with the customers. With that in mind, and since I was already there, I took a look at the 310GK and for the heck of it, I stepped into a 370DV. Now, the 370DV was a bit bigger than than 35 footers we've been looking at but I really was impressed with the layout, especially the bathroom and kitchen island.
As this model was new in 2024, I haven't been able to find many videos online from people with first hand knowledge of the 370DV, other than those YouTubers that just happen to see one somewhere and shoot a quick 5 minute video for their subscribers.
I'd like to hear from owners of both the 310GK and the 370DV. Real life experiences, both good and bad. Also, any thoughts and comments for someone that is looking to buy a 5th wheel from Grand Design that has heard all of the negativity regarding the frame issues, or any issues in general that people have encountered, to include the response from GD when the problems were reported.

My tow vehicle is a 2022 GMC 3500HD Denali, single rear axle, Duramax 4x4 in stock configuration. I recently bought it used from a dealer with 32,000 miles. The day I took possession of the truck I went and had it weighed. With a full tank of fuel and DEF, nothing else inside of it, GVW 8560 lbs.

Our intentions are to travel the USA, not full time but being away from home for a couple of weeks at a time. We prefer to travel in the cooler months, hence the four season aspect of the RV's build. We do not plan on spending any extended time in severe winter conditions, so nights from 20 degrees on up are what we'd consider our cold weather camping. North Dakota in January is not an option. As far as summer conditions, being in Texas, in my opinion, 3 A/C's are a must have on the RV. While we prefer state parks, as this has been our only experience with our last bumper pull RV, in the future we plan to utilize other options such as KOA and private RV resorts.

Any guidance and advice would be appreciated.
We have a 2021 Solitude 310GD-R and have love it however, we are currently selling it to get the Solitude 370DV. They are basically the same floor plan, but with 3 extra feet. We used to be concerned about exceeding 35'. We have traveled all over the country and usually with friends with 38' and 42' motorhomes and we have never had a problem finding sites for all three rigs. It may require a little more advance planning because some older campgrounds may have a limited number of longer sites. We usually have more problems with the width and you will have that with any of the newer models.

Our truck is a 2017 3500 Chevrolet Duramax set up for towing and single axel. It is nothing short of a beast towing up or down the steepest grades. We were concerned about the extra weight of the 370DV and did extensive investigation with mechanics in our area. Including our Chevrolet dealers truck department service manager who said "unofficially" we should be okay with the extra weight, but as with any tow vehicle keep an eye on the real axel seals. We also recommend disc brakes on the RV.

A side note our 310 has 3 ac's and one is a heat pump which is really a nice addition.
 
Another DFW Texan here. We just got our Solitude in February. Went with the 310GK for length. Had a 37’ FW prior to this. Being primarily a state park user, I can’t tell much difference between the two as far as maneuvering. The 35’ 310 wins out slightly, but now I’ve got a long bed, so really about the same in my case. As mentioned above, height is the biggest problem. Example is Dino Valley. I can go in there with a 35’ max length, but the overhanging trees are the issue so I don’t go.

The trailer has been great overall. It’s had some new trailer issues in the 8000 miles and many nights it’s been used. I’ve still got two more warranty issues to solve. None of the issues have kept us from camping. I found out about the frame stuff after I’d picked the trailer. I’m hoping it’s mostly a thing with the large trailers, but time will tell. If there’s an issue, I’m confident GD will fix it.

As for the 2 or three AC’s…. 3 is fantastic to cool it off quickly. Once cooled, we typically run on 1 or maybe 2. Never need all three once cooled. The furnace I’m a little less impressed with. Same with the fireplace. Neither put out the heat of my past trailer. But it all works. We’ve camped as low as 17 degrees up to 105 and been comfortable.
 
We have had our 2021 310GK for four seasons now and have had only minor issues that I was able to resolve on my own. We love the layout and works well for us and our 3 pups. If I had one complaint it would be the lack of storage in the bathroom. After looking at the layout of the 370, had it been available when we bought, I would have gone with that over the 310. There is plenty of room everywhere else.

I've been following all of the talk about the frame problems quite closely and monitor ours for any signs. So far so good. We just returned from a 4000 mile trip to Tennessee and had Morryde put IS and disc brakes on during our first stop. We should have had that done the first year. Not only is the braking WAY better, there is evidence of a lot less rattling of stuff in the coach. If you can budget for that as a factory option, do it.

It has been a great coach for us.
 

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