Hi All - we finally bit the bullet! new 17.56-1

[Chocka]

Hi Guys,

Our family just signed up for a 17.56-1 expanda, and yes we are excited! We have two kids a boy 6 and a girl 3. They are sad to say goodbye to our handme down Jayco swan from the late 80's but are keen for the bunk beds!

ETA is mid June so although not the most cozy part of the year it might be a good chance to check it all out on our own.

The options we went with are:
Hot water system
external shower
Solar pack with battery
150L fridge
White privacy screens
gas outlet at rear of van
Extra power point in dinette area
Extra external light above shower area
Alpine annexe with large side window, extra door at back with windows at both ends
Roof mounted aircon (now standard option)

HAVE WE MISSED ANYTHING!???

I have a few questions though....

I want to Keep the ATM to 2100kg (it will be close if not over) as I want to tow with a 2012 VE commodore SV6 stationwagon.

I currently have a 1600kg tow pack on the wagon, but I can upgrade it though holden to become 2100kg.

This is the area where I need a little guidance. (Is it best if I post in the towing section?)

Anyway, I'd like to hear from anyone who has a 17.56 that is being towed by a commodore, and any recommendations for towing hitches/stabilsers/air shockers/tansmision cooling and other stuff I know not much about!!.

Cheers,

Dean, B and family.

 

[Lara]

Hi there Dean, B and family and welcome to the forum,

There will be plenty of guys that'll give you some helpful advice about towing with the commodore! We have the Hayman Reece WDH and wouldn't be without it. If you upgrade to 2100kg towing, I would say don't go over that limit, for safety first but also because if you go over your towing limit you're at risk of voiding insurance.
Careful packing will help. It's a good idea to weigh everything you will be putting in the Expanda and keep a spreadsheet!

White privacy screens, is that a new option Jayco is offering. sounds good! Wondering if they're made of the same mesh as the black ones? Or maybe Jayco are finally going to release something with a tighter mesh for weather protection.

Good luck with it all and keep us all posted!
Lara.

 

[Burnsy]

Welcome guys, sorry cant comment on commodores but you might be stretching it with the 2100kg. Hope all goes well.

cheers.

 

[ROnEM]

Dean & family,

Welcome to the Forum & congrats on the purchase - are you putting any picnic table/s on the side of the van?
Can't comment on the upgrade to the Commodore - I am sure there are others on the forum who can.

Cheers,

Rohan

 

[icetechaus]

Hi Chocka, I'm happily pulling a 16.49-1B wit a ve sv6 sportswagon withou any problems at all, however you have a few extra kilos on me. I have the Hayman Reese WDH and it tows great. If you get the holden tosbar you will have to get their WDH as they have sneakily offset the holes for the tongue securing pin so that you can't fit anything but OEM in there.

 

[gwadir]

Hi Dean,

Welcome to the forum, I'm envious of you, we're still waiting to place our order, but we'll get there

Dave

 

[17triton]

Welcome Chocka .We towed our old 16-49-1 with a vt commodore but it had a tare of about 1250kg to 1550 loaded it towed fine with a hayman reese wdh but with the independant rear suspension we wore out the inside rear tyres badly and had to get a camber kit put in the back wheels which fixed it.2100kg might put a fair bit of strain on the commodore, imo running on maximum tow rating is pushing it to hard.ps we did have an extra trans cooler in ours.

 

[Chocka]

Thanks for the warm welcome guys. I'll ask similar towing questions in the towing area of the forum, but thanks for your advice so far - really helpfull guys.

 

[Chocka]

Hi there Dean, B and family and welcome to the forum,

There will be plenty of guys that'll give you some helpful advice about towing with the commodore! We have the Hayman Reece WDH and wouldn't be without it. If you upgrade to 2100kg towing, I would say don't go over that limit, for safety first but also because if you go over your towing limit you're at risk of voiding insurance.
Careful packing will help. It's a good idea to weigh everything you will be putting in the Expanda and keep a spreadsheet!

White privacy screens, is that a new option Jayco is offering. sounds good! Wondering if they're made of the same mesh as the black ones? Or maybe Jayco are finally going to release something with a tighter mesh for weather protection.

Good luck with it all and keep us all posted!
Lara.

Hi Lara, thank for the tips - Yes we had to pay a little extra for the white screens and I think the sales guy said that jayco do not make them, but another supplier - perhaps alipine? Dean.

 

[Chocka]

Dean & family,

Welcome to the Forum & congrats on the purchase - are you putting any picnic table/s on the side of the van?
Can't comment on the upgrade to the Commodore - I am sure there are others on the forum who can.

Cheers,

Rohan

Hi Rohan, we decided not to go with the table as I kind of like being free to postion a table inside the Annexe. Thanks for the tip though.

 

[gwadir]

Hi Chocka and welcome,

got to agree with what everybody else are saying, it's the little things that will add up but most of your weight will be in a few items, think of the 80 - 20 rule, 80% of your weight will be in 20% of your equipment.

Dave

 

[17triton]

we like the cd player and ext speakers

 

[JaycoAddict]

We just ordered ours as well. I think its a brilliant layout and being our 5th Jayco I think for us this one will be our keeper . Looks like we will get ours a few weeks after you. Exciting stuff !

 

[Pace]

Hi Lara, thank for the tips - Yes we had to pay a little extra for the white screens and I think the sales guy said that jayco do not make them, but another supplier - perhaps alipine? Dean.

Hi there Chocka, I thought the privacy blinds were standard now, re check prior to sign off on contract. Perhaps get the 2nd GPO for both dinettes (we got them, it helps heaps), also was there a 2nd gas bottle?? Seeing as you got the HWS, surprised the salesteam never mention that as requirement plus you got the larger fridge. Which dealer was it??

Hope this helps. Cheers Pace.

 

[chartrock]

We just ordered ours as well. I think its a brilliant layout and being our 5th Jayco I think for us this one will be our keeper . Looks like we will get ours a few weeks after you. Exciting stuff !

Welcome :welcome: to the forum, JaycoAddict. 5 Jaycos, no worries where your name comes from. Can we expect lots of pictures of your travels & experiences?

 

[Chocka]

Hi there Chocka, I thought the privacy blinds were standard now, re check prior to sign off on contract. Perhaps get the 2nd GPO for both dinettes (we got them, it helps heaps), also was there a 2nd gas bottle?? Seeing as you got the HWS, surprised the salesteam never mention that as requirement plus you got the larger fridge. Which dealer was it??

Hope this helps. Cheers Pace.

Hi Pace - we got the extra GPOs ! - great idea - we payed a trival amount extra for the white privacy screens - I think black was standard. It was the Jayco bayswater. The extra gas bottle adds to wieght so we were mindfull of that. Not to say I won't add one in the future. thanks.

 

[Lara]

Might be worth considering getting the 2nd gas bottle fitted now at factory because it will be included in your Tare weight.
If you add one in the future it will come out of you payload.
Just a thought!

 

[Tayla]

"we payed a trival amount extra for the white privacy screens - I think black was standard. It was the Jayco bayswater."

Really?? So we could be getting the privacy screens with our van in June? These weren't even mentioned as an option when we were buying ours (also from Bayswater Jayco)