Some years better than others?

Birdie66b · 03-21-2015, 05:22 PM

Shopping for a Journey/Meridian 36G. A 2001 Journey I saw yesterday seemed to have much better finish detail in the cabinetry and doors than a 2007 Meridian I saw five minutes later. Thoughts? Thanks

nij_tp · 03-22-2015, 02:51 PM

Hello, can't add anything to the quality but have just bought a 2000 journey and looking forward to enjoying it to the fullest this summer when we do rte66. Know that doesn't help you but we decided on the journey over a couple of other ones mainly based on the layout, we really liked the 36G so that's what we went with

jerichorick · 03-22-2015, 07:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AZaficionado

Shopping for a Journey/Meridian 36G. A 2001 Journey I saw yesterday seemed to have much better finish detail in the cabinetry and doors than a 2007 Meridian I saw five minutes later. Thoughts? Thanks

Winnebago went into survival mode back when the RV recession hit. QC was the sacrifice made to stay in business.

2011 and on, as far as I know, went to the residential refrigerator which is a big plus. This introduced AGM batteries as standard and the 2800W true sine wave inverter with the upgrade option in this 40U. 2008 they went to the basement in the chassis instead of hanging off the slides which causes a lot of trouble closing problems.

The DEF systems allows for the drive train to be better tuned. My engine with DEF is rated at 380HP. Without DEF it is a 360HP. And I get 7.7mpg at this time, average, at 26000+/- miles on the rig.

In short, you won't get the great finish of the earlier models but some of the advanced features are not that bad a tradeoff.

Hope this helps.

Rick Y

Birdie66b · 03-23-2015, 06:43 AM

Much appreciated

Birdie66b · 03-23-2015, 06:46 AM

I really like the 36G floorplan as well. We are still 6 months off, but will perhaps meet down the road. Route 66 is in my backyard and is great fun! Lots of wide open spaces. Enjoy!

jerichorick · 03-24-2015, 08:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AZaficionado

I really like the 36G floorplan as well. We are still 6 months off, but will perhaps meet down the road. Route 66 is in my backyard and is great fun! Lots of wide open spaces. Enjoy!

I hope I have given you some food for thought. I did a search for the 36G, which I think is listed as the 36GD, and it looks like 2003 is the last year for that model number. One problem with getting an older rig is getting an extended warranty to cover the major components.

About Rt66. We had a great trip on it several years ago. And, don't forget Cars! Love those movies.

I do hope you can find what you are looking for. Happy and safe trails.

Rick Y

nij_tp · 03-25-2015, 05:38 PM

36G is the Cummins 36G is the Cat I believe (happy to be corrected) we bought a 2000 36G with 72K. AZ hit me up on pm.

jerichorick · 03-26-2015, 07:20 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nij_tp

36G is the Cummins 36G is the Cat I believe (happy to be corrected) we bought a 2000 36G with 72K. AZ hit me up on pm.

http://winnebagoind.com/resources/br...ourney-bro.pdf

Cummins ISB 275HP.

"pm"?? Preventive maintenance?

When did you get this coach? Please tell us more.

Rick Y

John Hilley · 03-26-2015, 08:17 AM

For quality of build and cabinets especially, I think 2004 was the last good year.

LeeOts · 03-26-2015, 08:54 AM

We just sold our 2006 WGO View 24J and bought a 2010 Vista 30W. The fit & finish in the View was much better than the Vista. The cabinets on the 2006 were either all wood or so well made that I couldn't tell. The cabinets doors in the Vista are wood but everything else is some sort of vinyl covered MDF. The View counters and table were all trimmed with wood while the Vista has vinyl vacuum molded over MDF so the edges can separate. Since it's only the two of us old farts, I'm not too concerned but the Vista probably wouldn't survive a passel of kids.

jerichorick · 03-27-2015, 09:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LeeOts

We just sold our 2006 WGO View 24J and bought a 2010 Vista 30W. The fit & finish in the View was much better than the Vista. The cabinets on the 2006 were either all wood or so well made that I couldn't tell. The cabinets doors in the Vista are wood but everything else is some sort of vinyl covered MDF. The View counters and table were all trimmed with wood while the Vista has vinyl vacuum molded over MDF so the edges can separate. Since it's only the two of us old farts, I'm not too concerned but the Vista probably wouldn't survive a passel of kids.

John and you are both correct. Even the way my cabinets were installed is far below what they used to be. I had the cabinet over my couch start to fall off the ceiling!

Turns out that the factory never put mounting struts in the ceiling frame. The 1/16 inch under skin was supposed to hold the loaded cabinet up. I wonder what kind of roads this coach is designed to ride on? Silk?

I put a aluminum bar on the roof of the slide and ran screws up through it, cut the ends off and sealed things up. It works but why should I have to do such an intrusive repair?

The sad part of this Winnebago austerity program is the suffering of their once solid reputation for quality. I see that they just built a e-coating plant for $7M. Nice idea but I have only read of windshield frame rotting problems. What about putting $$ into a well trained QC staff who can effectively communicate with the engineers.

The truth may be that many innovations and features of the newer coaches are better in Winnebago products for the price range, but other components that once were reliable have been replaced with inferior products such as the slide drives and cabinet materials. Could Winnebago be dumbing down to the standards of the competitors? Is the greater need more profit over customer satisfaction and reputation integrity?

Just food for thought.

Rick Y