Wildcat by Forest River: Thumbs up or Down?

[airmoore]

I am looking at purchasing a fifth wheel, and need something with bunks and a slide for the space. The Wildcat by Forest River appears to be a pretty nice 5er (am looking at the 28Bh model), if any of you have any experience with Wildcat trailers I would appreciate any comments you might have. Also, if anyone has another manufactor that they prefer with a bunkhouse 5er such as this one, any comments would be very helpful and appreciated. Thanks for the help and have a great day...

Clint

 

[MABurns]

I do not much to add about the Forest River other than the Cedar Creek is well built.



I have a Jayco with 3 bunks in back. You can check them out at www.jayco.com



Mine is the 325 BHS:

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It is around 10,500 pounds loaded going down the road.



They make a shorter one too, it is the 285BHS:

http://www.jayco.com/g/showroom/eagle_fw/floorplans/285bhs.gif

 

[Briar Hopper]

I have a Salem LTD 30' built by Forest River. Everything built by Forest River is usually a good deal for the level of quality you get. However, in my region, I'm seeing that Sunnybrook has the best quality and value for the price, and is sometimes even cheaper than competing brands. The fit & finish, and features offered in the Sunnybrooks I saw at an RV show just blew me away. VERY impressive, when you compare them to other brands side-by-side.

If you're looking for one to KEEP, I'd look at a Sunnybrook.

The Jayco's are great, the ones up to '99-2000 are built well, but the new ones I saw at the RV show in Louisville 2 weeks ago were marginal in quality. They were not the "Eagle" model however, that one is top of the line.

This is just my experienced opinion, take it for what you will.

 

[TBarrett]

about ours

We have a sandpiper by Forest river. Took us 6 months to find one with a lay out and cabinets/ storage. All we saw were just enough for a over nighter. My wife does kitchen cabinet desigh and sees all that, which I found was very important.

 

[johnrv4]

I just went to two different RV shows in the last couple of weeks. The Cedar Creek looks like a nice unit, but I have to agree with Briar. The Sunnybrook looked like a better unit all around, especially the units with the gel coated fiberglass sides. I may be upgrading mine, and I am seriously considering a Sunnybrook. They seemed to give the best bang for the buck. Another observation I made at the rv show was pertaining to the trailer heights. I can't understand why some manufacturers raise the ride height on their leaf spring equipped trailers by adding LONG spring mounts off the frame instead of putting the axles underneath the springs. I saw quite a few models that had the spring eyes a good 6" plus below the main frame. It looked to me like this would put a bigger side load on the mounts (especially when turning sharp). Other manufacturers had the axles under the springs and the spring eyes nice and close to the main frame rails. Anyone know why they would mount them differently?

 

[DRR-24V]

Forest River Warrantee

I had the SandPiper and now have a WildWood. A friend has the CedarCreek. They are ok but the Forest River Warrantee is a joke. The only way you could get their attention is to burn the place down.

 

[The Sequel]

I've got a Layton by Skyline (also sell under Nomad and Aljo) and they make a few bunkhouse models. They are an entry level trailer but for the money, seem well made. If I were in the market now, I'd seriously consider an Arctic Fox by Nash. They make a single slide fiver with 2 bunks in the bath. Seems to be a very nice trailer and they are fully insulated. The Arctic Fox is definitely at least a grade above my unit.

 

[BigMike]

I was about convinced that the Cedar Creek was the choice for me. Then I went to the RV show in Seattle and ended up buying a Cardinal by Forest River. Getting the 33TS. Best floor plan I've seen plus I like the fact the sides are vacume bonded in the Cardinal vs. hung and laminated on the Cedar Creek. Seems like everyone likes the Forest River products. Just a matter of picking the one that suits you. After two months of looking and analyzing, I'm glad I finally made a decision. Right or Wrong!!! Oo. Oo.

 

[jthorpe]

Re: Forest River Warrantee

Originally posted by DRR-24V

I had the SandPiper and now have a WildWood. A friend has the CedarCreek. They are ok but the Forest River Warrantee is a joke. The only way you could get their attention is to burn the place down.

My experience with them has been quite the opposite. I've only had one problem, but it was taken care of quickly. I have had my Wildcat for about a year now, but this last Summer we were on our way to Wilmington when I hit a bump. It knocked the sewer pipe off because of the weak brackets holding it in place. I replaced them with hurricane straps and haven't had a single other problem with the trailer. This is my fourth 5ver, and definately the best one that I have owned. After spending 10 bucks for hurricane straps, and not requiring any other work, I was reimbursed by Forest River for 80 bucks anyway, no questions asked. I found that quite remarkable to be honest. They were very professional, and my check arrived quickly. I don't know if they've fixed that problem, but they were extremely helpful to me



Jack

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[airmoore]

I appreciate all of the comments that have been made about the bunkhouse trailers. Who makes the Sunnybrook line, I am going to look into those and the Artic Fox by Nash. One thing we like about the Wildcat floor plan is that the room where the bunks are has its own door, not one of these curtains that my boys will probably tear up. DRR-24V, did you have a personal experience with warranty work on a Forest River product? Obviously, how a company stands behind the warranty is very important...

Thanks



Clint

 

[airmoore]

jthorpe, that makes me feel better about the warranty. Do you have the bunkhouse model?

 

[Briar Hopper]

A fellow TDR member was kind enough to email me a correction of a statement I made up above. The "Eagle" by Jayco is not their "top of the line", that honor belongs to the Jayco "Designer" series. What I meant was that in the price range I was looking at, I'd have spent a little more and bought an Eagle.

SunnyBrook is made by..... SunnyBrook ! www.sunnybrookrv.com

Forest River warranty issues? My trailer has a roof leak in the front kitchen that I've been unable to locate. Taking it to the dealer next month as soon as time permits. I'm not uptight about it. It'll get fixed, or traded for a SunnyBrook. I WOULD be upset, though, if this trailer was an Airstream, or a Carriage Royals International, and it leaked !

 

[dhammond]

Sunnybrook for me

I have to agree with those who like the Sunnybrook. I've talked to a lot of folks at campgrounds, and spent two full days at camper shows poking around. The Sunnybrook is quality. You can find them at SUNNYBROOKRV. COM.

 

[jthorpe]

Originally posted by airmoore

jthorpe, that makes me feel better about the warranty. Do you have the bunkhouse model?

Yes, I do have the bunkhouse model and have been quite happy with it. The problem I explained above was the only problem I've had with the unit and it was easily fixed. Even if they haven't done anything about the brackets, it's very easy to have your RV dealer do so beforehand. Good luck

 

[C Schomer]

My Forest River Wildwood was a never ending project. Dinette seats and bed caved in - not built sturdy enough underneath. One end of the sofa caved in - they cut away the wood that was meant to support it to make room for the water heater. The floors got real spoungy. The axle seals leaked badly - the spindles were rough cast at the seal area, not machined smooth. When the siding and paneling literally began coming off, I dumped it! DRR 24V, I sure hope your's is better! The only things I've done to my SB are things that I WANT to do for nicities. It's holding up GREAT! Craig

 

[jthorpe]

This is an interesting thread for me. I have been following posts about the Forest River products for quite some time on lots of boards and these are the first negative things I've heard.



C Schomer, I'm curious how your dealer and Forest River handled it. Did they buy it back or did you just sell it off?

 

[Partyat33]

The quality of our Jayco has been really good. We have the Eagle which is the middle of the line.



Many trailers look good from the outside, and even inside, but I felt (feel) the Jayco is made very solidly. Check the frame and other details, those are what make a trailer hold up.



Dennis

 

[MBurtch]

I have had our Wildcat since last June. It is the rear kitchen model. It is supposed to be a 2002 model. The only problem we had was a leak in the TV antenna. Found out during a thunderstorm when I stepped on a wet spot and then looked up. They said it must be a bad o-ring. Took the trailer in and they replaced the antenna with a brand new one. My wife also put several cast iron pots in the drawer under the stove. Hate to say it, but told her it was to much weight. The slides for the drawer where connect to the wall are plastic hinges. Anyway one split and the drawer keeped falling off the slide. I called the factory. Got the complete drawer slide rails, hinges, screws for free in the mail. We still use the drawer, but for lighter stuff. Have pulled the unit to Yellowstone for a week and Hungry Horse recreation area for about a week. Plus about a half a dozen or so weekend trips within a hundred miles of home. Pulls so easy do not even realize it is back there until see it in the rear view mirror. Almost made me jump a few times. Love all the storage both inside and the basement storage. I got every option they offer with it also. Anyway, have not had any other problems with it. So far there is not anything we would change. We have not noticed anything in the rear kitchen bouncing around by the way. No doors opening or anything. I did buy a fantastic fan going to put in the kitchen ceiling this spring.

 

[DRR-24V]

Airmorre

I am glad some folks got results from Forest River. My walls of the slideout developed large, spongy bulges on the inside. I had it a year before they developed. The selling dealer said it was leaking water between the walls and he would fix it as a factory defect. He later said F/R denied it was their fault. I supposedly have a 10 year roof warranty but after numerous Phone calls always refering me to another number, I got the message. Forest River products are ok for the price, but I will never have another. I am stuck with it and it's only 2 years old.

 

[Fireman Dave]

We have a 2000 Wildwood 27BH. We like it a lot. We did have a problem with the aluminum siding. Evidently the staple gun they put the siding on with was turned up too high. In a couple of spots the siding popped off the staples. Saw a puff of air under there while cruising down the highway. Our dealer fixed it (probably better than it was). While a hassle, we didn't let that sour us on the trailer. Our dealer is great - I think that makes all the difference in the world. Oh yeah, one other thing - the fresh tank developed a bulge in it due to lack of support underneath. The dealer installed a hunk of support iron under it which solved the problem. Poor design is all.



Like I said, we like the trailer a lot. We knew it was a lower end model (cost-wise) when we bought it, so our expectations aren't for it to be as good as some - although our problems aren't exusable. I do think it's a good trailer for the buck, though.