Journey 34B Question

[Adam Hunter]

Good Morning,


We previously had a 42 tag axle coach and would like to see if any of the members with a shorter (34') Journey or Meridian have made the transition from a larger tag to the shorter wheelbase Maxum chassis units.

I completely get the dynamics of a tag axle and their benefits - my question would be, how does the 34' handle in heavy crosswinds, or when being passed by heavier trucks? Any hobble horsing or porpoising that can come along with short units?

I am looking at a 2013 Journey with 1400 miles on it - Obviously its in excellent condition with that mileage....., would anyone care to comment about the slide system holding up on the roadside Full Wall Slide?


Thanks for you input.



Adam

[zman-az]

We went from a gasser to the 34b so obviously the ride was better for us. I will only share my complaints. The hallway to the bedroom is tight. The bathroom door, fridge and the hallway access to the bedroom creates a bottleneck that my wife and I have come to deal with. Also the couch plain ole sucks. Other than that we love the short wheelbase and found that you can feel some truck wind as you go by them but nothing like we delt with when in the gasser.

[Adam Hunter]

Originally Posted by zman-az

We went from a gasser to the 34b so obviously the ride was better for us. I will only share my complaints. The hallway to the bedroom is tight. The bathroom door, fridge and the hallway access to the bedroom creates a bottleneck that my wife and I have come to deal with. Also the couch plain ole sucks. Other than that we love the short wheelbase and found that you can feel some truck wind as you go by them but nothing like we delt with when in the gasser.

Thanks,

What your biggest complaint about the couch? And are you saying you have had no slide problems with your 34B?


Thanks
Adam.

[mgtr]

Yes, we went from a 42 foot, four slide, tag axle Dynasty fully loaded to the 34 foot Meridian (= Journey). There are two differences that I notice: The Meridian is more stable driving down the road, but slightly more affected by big rigs passing in the next lane (but not too bad). While we miss some features of the Dynasty (Aquahot, dishwasher, household washer and dryer (not made in Italy!), air leveling, remote bay door locking), on the whole we are very satisfied, and have no plans to change coaches. Of course, we have said that before, too.
We had the mechanism for the full wall slide redone about 18 months after purchase. Winnebago covered the whole deal, seems to move in and out more slowly now.

[Adam Hunter]

We were in a 42" Scepter Tag and switched to the 41' 5ver. We are not happy and have come across this very clean 34B. The Scepter tag was like driving on rails - rock solid! So we are a little cautious of the short wheelbase.

Thanks for the information Duncan about your 34B.




Adam.

[JohnCamelot]

Oops, just posted almost the same question, same boat. So I'll watch here real close as well as the time to make a downsizing decision approaches.

== John

[zman-az]

Originally Posted by Adam Hunter

Thanks,
What your biggest complaint about the couch? And are you saying you have had no slide problems with your 34B?
Thanks
Adam.

Zero problems with the slide so far. Maybe had it in and out about 50 times.

As for the couch, we just feel like we are ready to slide off of it. We use the chairs for a foot rest vs the ottomans which helps the sliding affect. The back cushions foam hold a lot of air and when you back into them the deflate, then when you get up the reinflate. The corner portion is also a joke. Its like those corner booths at restaurant's, who wants to be bumping knees. We will end up replacing it in the near future.

[ChasA]

who wants to be bumping knees.

Depends on whose knees.

[FixerCQI]

We have been looking at motor homes in general and would like to stay as short as possible for all the usual reasons but every time we look at a 34-36 foot when we enter it we just can't seem to escape the feeling that it is cramped. Most of the time there would be just 2 of us, only occasionally we would be 4-5, but 38 seems our minimum. Sorry for jumping in here as I have not experienced the large tags but just wonder if anyone else got over that initial reaction to size.

[toothdk]

We have a Itasca Meridian 34B and overall love it. But, hate the couch! As others have said, you feel like you are constantly sliding out of the seat. The ottomans need an anti-slide rug under them to brace against the slide effect. The inflatable bed under is a pain to use. The pull out end doesn't leave much room across from the sink area. We will be looking to replace it in the near future. We really like the TV across the aisle and need a comfortable recliner in the sofa's place.
We love the size. While it doesn't handle like a tag axle, it preforms very well for its size. We tow a 5K lb. Jeep Grand Cherokee without any problems, hardly know its back there. Easy to set up and maintain. We bought new and had a lot of warranty issues. After 1 1/2 years and 15K miles, everything is finally working as it should. A little more quality control at the factory level would have saved a lot of frustration. Winne depends too much on dealer corrections, in MHO.

[Adam Hunter]

Thanks for the input, we haven't purchased the 34B yet as we are still working out a number for our trade.

As I previously mentioned our last motorhome was a 42' HR "PDQ" floorplan, while the salon was spacious there were still areas in the unit that seemed to choke off the flow of foot traffic;
like the doors to the split bathroom from the bedroom or the livingroom - obviously the rear bedroom was completely inaccessible if someone was showering.
Plus I am not a big fan of rear doghouses and our Scepter had the typical big step back over the engine by the closet and bed that was a real pain - and we are only in our 40's, but none the less it always seemed like you were climbing up or down off of it.

There is no doubt the walkway between the sofa and the island in the 34B is narrow but for the most part the full wall side gave a feeling of space. Inside the cabin we felt there was ample storage compared to what we had in our Holiday Rambler that was 6' longer.

Regarding its length - I am going to go out on a limb here and suggest that the XCL chassis helps the 34B with its ride, probably because of its lower center of gravity.
But a short coach that lurches in heavy crosswinds or jumps around in the lane can be really tiring after a long day on the road. Behaviour that you would never have with a tag coach.
Our first motorhome was a short Newmar - 33' DP. It was a really nice unit but you had to drive it "all" the time in a wind or when heavier trucks passed.
I don't seem to get that feedback from the Winnebago owners which is promising.


Adam

[Adam Hunter]

toothdk;

Tell us about your warranty issues that you had to deal with during your first 18 months of ownership if you don't mind?

I would like to get a idea if they were standard RV things or unique to the Journey.


Thanks
Adam

[toothdk]

Kind of a mix of basic installation and poor quality control. All were handled by Winne as warranty issues. Over 60 fixes which took 5 months at the local dealer in Ft Worth. It was Nov. thru March and the Itasca would have been in storage, but it seemed each item had to be repaired before the next one got ordered and fixed.
Winne left a speaker housing in the full side slide out which caused it to go off track about 750 miles from home on our first trip.
The water transfer handle (shore to storage tank) broke off in my hand.
The generator spouted white smoke after running for 30 min. or on any load more than 6 amps. The FW dealer said this was normal and did not repair. It finally erupted in Albuquerque. It took a month for the Freightliner/ Onan factory to honor the warranty and replace the unit in total. The Freightliner tech was invaluable in helping fight that battle.
GFI blew over short that was hard to locate.
No gasket placed in bathroom hot water attachment, small drip kept lower storage compartment moist all the time.
Drain bolt in rear transaxle not ever tightened. Oil leak mis diagnosed for 6 months as a "normal" drip. Repair tech in Ruidoso noticed it. Had the axle gone dry, it would have locked up or worse. Repair was simply tighten the bolt. Freightliner in FW wanted to do a major overhaul to the tranny.
Easily several dozen more very minor corrections done at the dealership over that 5 months.
All that said, I really enjoy our Meridian. For a 34', I feel it is a spacious interior and lots of storage. We can get in most state and federal parks and have interior room for 2 dogs (one large) and a cat. The king bed is tight space around the sides, but worth it. We are not very fond of the Sleep # bed. It is VERY hard to calibrate and not very user friendly. The TV arrangement is excellent as is the floor plan for our needs (Two adults only). The new gennny is a dream to use and handles all our needs. Hope this helps.

[mgtr]

toothdk -- Nice writeup. I feel bad that you had so many problems and so many misdiagnoses. It seems that more and more people will not say "I don't know" when, in fact, they do not know. Also very irritating when, if you have 10 problems, they do seem to do it sequentially. So, if they have to order parts, that is a week's wait per problem.
Reading your story makes our troubles seem like child's play (except for full wall slide replacement, covered by Winnebago).
I guess I would stay away from the FW dealer who said your bum generator was normal!!!

[Adam Hunter]

Thanks for the info;



Adam

[zman-az]

Wow, that's a lot of issues. Ours were pretty minor

Led lights in awning had some bad LEDs
Both led trim lights below headlights had bad LEDs
Rear led tail light had bad LEDs
Dryer cord was shorted out tripping breaker
Both dual pane foldout windows leaked (ones behind TV).
Lower fog light seal was bad and collected water and then failed
AC did not work, fixed at freight liner on one of our trips.
Rear/side camera failed, needed a new control module.

Also, the 34b last model year is 2014 although you might find a 2015 due to some leftover chassis.

[Adam Hunter]

We signed papers today for the 2013 Journey. It has 1400 miles on it - so needless to say its been gently used.

I will post photo's as soon as we take delivery. I look forward to giving everyone our first impressions.


thanks
Adam

[FixerCQI]

Originally Posted by Adam Hunter

We signed papers today for the 2013 Journey. It has 1400 miles on it - so needless to say its been gently used.

I will post photo's as soon as we take delivery. I look forward to giving everyone our first impressions.


thanks
Adam

I'm subscribed, Looking forward to your reports because you seem to have a fair amount of experience RV'ing.

[FixerCQI]

Toothdk; That was most unfortunate to have so many repairs needed but at least it was done on down time mostly. Some of that stuff makes you wonder if people really want to keep their jobs. Or is it just that the workers are not allowed enough time to do the work properly.

[Adam Hunter]

Will do FixerCQI,

I can't say that we have been RVing forever, but about 14 years now. So not really that long compared to others with more time in. We do not full time and usually spend about 70 nights a year in our RV. We have tried a series of fifth wheels from the cheapest to full time quality units and the Winnebago will make our 3rd motorhome. Previously we had a NewMar pusher and the Holiday Rambler.

I trust that our take on the Winnebago pays off. We have a good feeling about it - at least in comparison to the other manufacturers that we have owed from.

Regarding quality, there is all levels in the industry some built good - others like garbage. I strongly believe in having a well stocked tool box (Like the one below) and a lot of patience with these things.

Thanks
Adam