Grand Design reviews

The floorplan is the best possible floorplan for the the way we travel. The desk space and the island kitchen have become essentials for us. If you want these amenities in a travel trailer, this is your unit. But it does have down sides. Foremost is the anemic cargo carrying capacity. Forget the factory weights, it will be heavier even dry. you are looking at a 1000# plus tongue weight. And once you add the basics like cables and hoses and a weekend's worth of clothing and food you will be at the weight limit. Distributing that weight is also a challenge as the unit is back end heavy. You will likely need to tow with the tongue slightly down to balance the load, which will increase the tongue weight even more. It is a drop frame to increase storage volume, so depending on your hitch you will be getting close to the ground. We use a P3 and get 4-5 inches of ground clearance. So with the gross weight, tongue weight, rear weight, and then add sail area, plan on a 3/4 ton TV. The math from GD might make you think 1/2 ton, and the fan boys will all say "Like it isn't even there" or "No problems". But you need a 3/4 ton for this trailer. The usual quality issues abound. Gaps in sealant, trim falling off, bubbles in the roof membrane, incorrect PEX fittings, sawdust everywhere. We have needed three repairs and I did all of them myself. The process of returning to the dealer 2 hours away, dropping off for warrantee claim, picking it up again, returning when the parts are in, and final pickup means 8 hours on the road for every issue. Give me a Mobile Tech or ship me the part! But in the end, worth it for the floorplan! Show less

We've had the RV for just over 4 years. Bought new. We do not travel with the unit. It is on a seasonal site. However I did move it 60 miles from the original seasonal location to another and it towed very well. The only real issue we've ever had was the Norcold 1210 model refrigerator. The original one was DOA upon us taking delivery. It was replaced quickly and that unit lasted about 2 years. GD was helpful in coordinating a replacement unit along with our dealer. That one failed as well. I replaced it with a residential refrigerator. I replaced the bathroom faucet as well. The original was simply too low to the sink bowl. A simple and easy process. Otherwise the floor plan, storage and overall functionality has been awesome for us. Show less

I used to own a trailer dealership and I have hauled every size trailer. This trailer hauls and travels great. It has been a great trailer. I had a bad fridge but it was replaced. The only disappointment is the rust on the powder coated Lippert frame. Show less

Rv was assembled in a hurry. Very poor and sloppy workmanship. End result is missing parts, things falling apart. Excess frame flex/failure. Wrong bolts, missing bolts, bad welds, suspension failure, bad frame design, things falling apart. Serious safety issues. To many corners were cut to make a profit and sacrifices safety. Show less

Floor plan is great for two. Murphy bed allows for comfortable sleeping with lots of space during the day. Full kitchen and bathroom make trailer feel like it’s much larger than it is. Full bathroom provides plenty of room. Tanks are good sized for smaller trailer. Show less

We purchased the GD in 2022 for long term travel. We have stayed in the 5th wheel for 4 months at a time and love the floor plan. It is perfect for a couple during extended camping. Grand Design was highly sought after before 2020 and was highly rated. During our first year of ownership we found trim falling off, entry door not lining up, water leakage around lights on ceiling and a piece of plastic lodged into the rear ac. Things you would not have found during a 6 hour walk through. Warranty has been less than stellar and support has been minimal from GD. We cringe every time we hear of recalls and are hoping we are not the 1% ending up with frame damage and being denied. At this point we love our fifth wheel but have no confidence in the GD models. Our previous RV was a Keystone Toy Hauler 2012 and was built much better than the GD. I will not own another GD model. Show less

The floor plan is similar to other rigs with the opposing slides. This maximizes the living area and kitchen. Design wise the kitchen slide is large and on a Shwintek system. We have had this replaced under warranty. Would like to have lights over the island, for some reason this unit does not have them. The rig tows very well, and storage is good. Show less

We like that there is a large bathroom with plenty of cabinets. Love the wet bar area for more storage but we rarely use the sink. The layout was well executed. The under storage is more than plenty. Should have been made with higher weighted axel better yet should have added an axel due to long back overhang that will drag on any uneven surfaces. Has been a big issue. The company can’t give their wiring semantics bc they don’t follow any set policy. Warranty was an absolute joke. Things (stove, water heater, trim drawers) started breaking 1 week after the warranty ended. The extended warranty was not able to be utilized either. Fine print! The cost has been marked up high and the quality degraded on these 5th wheel. This is really a 60,000. at most 5th wheel. If you pay 100,000. You should get good quality. The company that makes these things seriously lacks integrity. Would we buy same brand? Probably not. There is too much of a monopoly in the RV industry. People are being taken advantage of. Show less

This RV checks almost all the boxes if you need a toy hauler but still camp in conventional campgrounds as it’s still under 40’. This is the trailer for you. Good kitchen storage , kitchen is cramped with more than 2 people in it at once. Limited space for eating but good couch layout for watching TV. Big master bedroom and good size shower and great half bath in the garage for the kids. Small outside storage gotta get creative but still works. This trailer has had the least amount of problems out of my previous Dutchman and Forest River trailers. Would purchase again. Show less

This rig is poorly constructed. We’ve owned it two years and put about 10,000 miles on it. Here are the more significant problem areas: 1) Plumbing. Installers used PEX clamps on vinyl tubing. So far, we’ve had six separate leaks and it’s getting worse. Some are in the underbelly. We’ll be forced to complete a major tear down just to get to the leaks. We will then have to replace ALL clamps on the vinyl tubes. 2) Schwintek slide was improperly installed from the factory. Dealer can’t seem to make it right. Still throws error codes. Multi-thousand dollar repair required one year into ownership. 3) Roof membrane is starting to bubble. 4) Kitchen countertop is delaminating.around the sink. 5) Sliding barn door always fell off during transit until I “McGyvered” it for a permanent fix. We hope to sell (dump) it once we fix the plumbing. Grand Design isn’t worth the premium price. Show less