Jayco Starcraft 20Ft Outback

Suspension – I know the Outback was not suppose to be an extreme off road caravan, however, our 2012 model needs a few things mentioned. Microwaves jump out of their openings when on dirt/rough roads. The shear pins on the suspension spring and the axle intersection break/snap/shear with DIRE RESULTS. Our axle moved back 100mm, our caravan was crabbing down… Read more

the road. I replaced all four with HIGH TENSILE shear pins. This should have been the case originally. Never had much satisfaction when dealing with this company.

Perfect – Our Jayco Starcraft keeps blowing the fuse for the hot water when the hot water tap is turned on. Is this an easy fix or does the caravan need to be taken to a dealer. Otherwise the van is superb, comfortable, tows well. Show details

happy camper with starcraft outback – We have now done 7000Km with our jayco, and really love it..had a few small issues that have been fixed no problem. The van tows really well, all equipment works as it should, and is very comfortable to live in..The fit and finish is fine and had no problems with any furniture..I believe the brand is good value for money with good after sales service. We purchased our van in Brisbane.  Show details

Would Not Recommend I bought a Lemon – Bought brand new Nothing but trouble since. The first dirt road there was dust in every possible place you could imagine inside, kitchen cupboards coming away from wall, draws and doors don't shut properly, leaks in windows, leaks through shower light, brakes fixed 5 times, hot water system fixed twice, stove electric element not working now,… Read more

fridge fixed twice, the step has broken come away from the van and I could go on and on because its never ending. Once they have your money they don't seem to want to know you. They are called Junko's bu most caravannas I have met and I agree. Never ever buy one again. NO STARS if i could give a minus I would.

terrible plastic taste in water – apart from anoying things like cheap securing screws and plastic fittings that are useless the water in the van no matter how many times i flush with fresh tank water it still tastes like plastic, if jayco are using inferior water hose they need to stop using it, any suggestions from customers , i rang my seller and he said he has the same problem… Read more

with his van and buys bottled water, really, that did not help I will now try the company head office

Perfect, love it – Ive found the van to be perfect for what we want, its very comfortable, lots of cupboard space, great mattresses, I cant complain, but one or two things, the window blind played up since we bought it, but under warranty was replaced by Jayco, we did not understand how to use water tanks thinking that they empty separately or empty together still… Read more ·  1

we do not know its a bit mysterious. Any answers would be appreciated. Indication showas that one of the tanks is full but we cant use it.. also the grouting around the sink seemed to edge away, we also had that replaced by Jayco under warranty, overall I'm happy just need my questions answered, re water tanks....

Good value but needs refinement – I bought my Jayco StarCraft outback 2016 few weeks back, great van my third Jayco. They represent value for money but some irritating problems doors sticking, poor finishing and alignment of cabinetry but overall good. The mirror fell off day one on the tarmac didn't get chance to hit the dirt. That said Jayco do a good warranty service but my… Read more

suggestion put piano hinges on the cupboards, put a shield around the draw bar tap and seal up the van better for dust. My last Expanda outback we took on the Gibb River Road no problems but they do have some quality problems that need attention. That said I would probably still buy another one

Jayco = Junko – Purchased our Jayco in 2014 and have had nothing but trouble, a whole lot of regret and absolutely appalling customer service. Shower screen cracked very early on and have had leaks throughout the van in various places. Jayco wanted nothing to do with us, would not return phone calls.. eventually came out a few times to take photos but never got… Read more

back to us. We were finally told they weren't going to repair it.. we are so disappointed with this purchase and have been advising everyone to stay away from Jayco... there are so many excellent brands of caravan on the market, wish we had purchased something with a better reputation... you live and learn... and we have certainly learnt our lesson.

Living the dream – After ordering our 20.62-3 Starcraft Outback 5 months ago I started getting worried. I stumbled on the reviews on this page and thought "oh no here we go, $66k worth of problems". I've now come to think that most people don't bother writing reviews unless they have a grievance. I've had mine for nearly 4 weeks and we are heading out on our 4th… Read more

trip with it tomorrow.

First we spent 4 nights travelling from Perth to Exmouth free camping.

Then took the kids to a favourite spot on the beach for 3 nights, again free camping all on solar.

Then we took a trip back to Geraldton for 3 nights, this time stayed in a caravan park.

Tomorrow we head back to the beach camp for 4 nights. There has not been a single problem, everything works as it should. The bed is amazingly comfortable, the kids love their big bunks and seem to sleep until 7.

The build quality is good, there were a couple minor things with finishing - 1, one of the wheel arch flares was loose in the bottom corner. - 2, the sikaflex on the roof was a bit agricultural.

It's great to tow on the road, down a corrugated track and along the beach, although I have a V8 diesel Landcruiser to pull it. I wouldn't even try to tow it with my Triton, especially on a hilly drive or along the beach. Anyone who thinks their 2.5 litre 4 cylinder diesel is a good vehicle to pull 2.8t obviously isn't the one getting stuck behind doing 70 at every hill and doesn't tow it through soft sand.

Overall I absolutely love it, the design, layout, features, suspension and best of all value for money.

Build quality- poor – I bought a 20 ft Outback new in 2015. Tows nice and stable, not much roll, good esc, and the layout inside is well done. The third water tank is good for camping but Jayco still has problems with breather blockages. I cut the breather hose off at the top of the tank and put a valve in. Floor down good, strong and functional. But the interior… Read more

fixings are held on by inferior 12 mm screws, will fall to bits on dirt roads. Drawers will fall out and bulkheads will move. Mine did. You end up with a bag of useless 12 mm screws retrieved from cupboard floors. Should mail them back to Jayco with a note saying their product designer is on the wrong career path. Make sure you go right over everything with bigger screws, qtr dowel and glue. My shower door fell off so I found a use from a 12 mm screw - use it to fix the shower door latch cause it fits perfectly. Water sealing is good. Dust not good. You need to crawl around underneath with sealant. Holes and loose grommets everywhere. Major dust leaks around the wheel arches. A good van could be turned into a great van at the factory with very little effort and cost. And by the way, the warranty department is a joke- I had an email fight over a $300 emergency repair bill that went on for 3 months. They paid after I suggested we talk about it at the Consumer Claims Tribunal. Jayco needs to get their act together.

Roll forward now to 2017 and around 30,000 km on. All pretty good with the van, although it seems quite hard on tyres, specially the rear - be lucky to get 45/50,000 km out of them. And that's after rotating them and running 44 psi. Drawer guides all good after putting in screws and locknuts, replaced a few latches that are cheap plastic but still cost $5, side cladding gets a bit wavey in hot weather but straightens out when it's cold, the tanks fill up and overflow when connected to tap water sometimes, so there is probably a back flow valve somewhere but I can't find it, and it's not as well insulated as our previous van. Mains water pressure reduces to a trickle regularly but it's easily fixed by dismantling the pressure reduction valve ( brass tube about 120mm long underneath and near the mains water inlet) and reinstalling it. Half hour job plus cursing time when water goes all over you. Helps if you turn the tap off first....!!!

To sum up, it handles well, is stable towing, has an excellent chassis, well designed suspension, comfy inside, big fridge, no water leaks, and good layout. On the minus side, could top dress the lawn with the dust from inside the van and the interior needs strengthening everywhere there is a silly 12 mm screw trying to hold weight when attached to chipboard.

Travelling further on, it's now 2018. The van has two overhead parcel racks. Both have had the useless 12 mm screws pull out of the wood, and drop down. Easy fix with a 25 mm screw, lock nut and washer. I installed a John guest brand non return valve on the pressure side of the water pump and that has fixed the backflow problem filling up the tanks while hooked up to mains water. Lots of other little fixes, but let's call that ongoing maintainance. Would we buy another Jayco? Probably yes, based on the brand's price advantage. And because my hip pocket nerve is getting more sensitive with age.