Jayco Journey

Now, are you paying attention?

Jayco's premium caravan is no longer called the Sterling. It's now re-styled, re-equipped and re-named the Silverline.

The Discovery range of pop-tops, which previously sat between the Sterling and Expanda pop-tops, is history.

In place of the Discovery, there's the new 12-model Journey range of 16ft and 17ft pop-tops, 10 with combined shower/toilets and two with full shower-toilet ensuites across their rear.

These latter two, the 17ft 17.55-8 we review here and the 17.55-9, which is identical except for its twin front single beds instead of a single queen bed, are now Jayco's premium pop-tops.

If you want a smaller and/or cheaper pop-top, there are two further Jayco choices: one is the smooth-wall Expanda, available in sizes from 14ft-17ft, where the beds drop down from the ends, or the entry-level Starcraft with its ribbed aluminium walls available in sizes from 13ft-17ft.

Got it?

Jayco's re-naming and re-positioning upwards of both models is bound to cause a little confusion in the used van market, but not if you're shopping for a premium specification new pop-top.

Quite simply at its price (ex-Victoria) of around $45,000, the 17ft Journey Outback 17.55 has little if any real competition.

While the concept is the same as the now-superseded Discovery – an aluminium wall-framed, but smooth fibreglass-clad full pop-top with fixed ends, there's a world of difference in the detail.

For a start, the Journey's exterior styling is much sharper and less rounded than was the Discovery's, from its new nose to its more abrupt Euro-look tail panel, with the actual pop-top roof now extending all the way to the very end of the roofline.

The black-framed, double-glazed windows are also larger and re-shaped, while on Outback-specced Journeys, the lower, stone-prone side panels are protected by black propeller-plate, whereas it was silver on the Discovery OBs.

However it's inside that you'll find the big changes.

In many ways, the interior look and feel of the Journey is similar to that of the previous Sterling. Jayco's stylish, flush-fit and light-toned timber CNC-cut cabinetry with new chrome handles, off-white benchtops and the light mock timber floor, gives the Journey a light, airy ambiance.

Unzipping the fly-mesh protected 'windows' in the pop-top doubles the effective 'window' area and the light just floods in, particularly into the full-width rear ensuite where the pop-top extends to the outer wall. This gives you the delightful feeling of showering outdoors, yet in total privacy.

The layout is pretty standard for a van of this size: front north-south island queen-size lift-up double bed, with good storage beneath, flanked by half-robes, two overheads cupboards and two huge, double-glazed, hopper-style picture windows.

In the centre there's an L-shaped three-seater dinette on the off-side, with a good-sized galley kitchen with reasonable, rather than exceptional, storage room opposite.

The cupboard to the right of the Dometic three gas and single electric burner cooktop and gas grill looks as though it should be a slide out pantry, but only houses shelves. Prep space is limited but adequate.

There's no oven (I personally don't see the need for them in caravans these days when you can bake cakes in a Weber Baby-Q), but there's a Sphere microwave at a sensible height above the Dometic 150 litre three-way fridge/freezer on the opposite wall.

The full-width ensuite is immediately to the right of the rear entry door, but the long curtain that shields the ablution area from the rest of the van is a cheap touch, as it blows out when the pop-top rear window is open. Even a concertina door would be better, but a sliding door would be best.

Otherwise the ensuite is workable, with a large vanity mirror above the half basin and flick mixer tap. There's a Thetford swivel cassette toilet and a good-sized, square ABS shower. 

This is all pretty good for $45,000, but it's underneath where the 17.55 OB makes its best business case.

Jayco's new independent trailing arm tandem JTECH suspension, which it developed in-house with cooperation from Australian spring and shock absorber specialists Pedders, is standard on all Outback-spec Jaycos, from the smallest Swift Camper Trailer; it's also original equipment on all Silverline models.

Jayco's challenge when it first considered moving to independent suspension was how to make it work in a 'Jayco' sort of way across its wide range of caravans and pop-tops. It also had to fit the existing wheel boxes, whether on a single or tandem axle van, as any change here would have the expensive knock-on affect on the CNC-cut furniture, which in turn would impact on layouts, fridge sizes and venting.

Apart from offering greater ground clearance, thanks to the elimination of the low-slung beam axle between the wheels, JTECH allows Jayco pop-tops like the Journey to go further and travel easier off the beaten track. Thanks to its 40mm diameter foam cell heavy-duty shockers, JTECH also means a softer ride for the caravan and its contents on corrugations.

It all looks beautiful in its red and black livery if you're prepared to crawl underneath – and perhaps for the first time on a Jayco, this is a worthwhile experience! There you'll also find that most wires and pipes are either well protected, or tucked up out of the way of wayward stones, with the exception of some wires we found dangling in the left hand rear.

Outside, there's not much storage space, except inside the generously-sized front boot with its partitioned compartment with the twin gas bottles. It would be good to see some sort of auxiliary storage solution on the otherwise naked (save for a single jerry can holder) A-frame. The Journey OB's ball weight of 154kg unladen would seem to allow some room for this.

My other two gripes are minor, but need attention.

The front left roof-latch for the pop-top cannot be released without either lifting the awning by about 30mm, or else letting it swing out a little. And vice-versa when re-clipping.

What is really annoying about this is I have to do the same thing on my 2008 model Jayco Expanda and I believe people were also doing this with Jayco pop-tops 10 years ago. Moving the awning 20mm to the rear and the front latch 20mm to the left would solve it!

The other one is that the pop-top's wall-mounted awning light is completely obscured when you open the door. And surely you're going to have the door open, even if the flyscreen section is closed, when you're seated outside.

In part compensation, the inside of the Carefree roller awning is fitted with a row of tiny LEDs – looks a bit too much like Christmas lights for my liking! Again, a really simply solution is to just relocate the outside light to the centre of the pop-top body.

But to be fair, these are small grumps for what otherwise is a well-thought out pop-top, made all the better with its new decor, rear full ensuite and above all, its JTECH independent suspension.

VERDICT

The new Jayco Journey 17.55 is a whole lot of pop-top for modest money, with a good, workable layout, a bright, cheery interior and all wanted features in an easy-to-tow, 2.5-tonne package.

Tick the Outback option box and Jayco's new JTECH independent suspension truly makes this a pop-top for all roads and all reasons. It will take many adventurous travelers comfortably well off the bitumen, where it will serve as an excellent base station for even an extended touring holiday.

WE LIKED: 
>> Price and standard equipment
>> Layout including rear ensuite
>> New independent suspension

NOT SO MUCH:
>> A-frame finish poor, with sharp dags of galvanizing
>> Pop-top heavy to raise at front end
>> Location of exterior light and front pop-top latch

JAYCO JOURNEY 17.55 POP-TOP

Travel length: 7.2m
External body length: 5.705m
Internal body length: 5.186m
Interior height: 2.115m
External body width: 2.470m (incl. awning)
Travel height: 2.655m (including air con)
Tare: 1994kg?
ATM: 2432kg
Ball weight: 154kg
Wall structure: Aluminium frame/high-density polystyrene foam insulation/ply inner liner
Chassis: 150mm x 50mm hot-dipped galvanised
Suspension: JTECH tandem independent trailing arm with coil springs and shock absorbers
Brakes: 10in electric?off-road
Stability Control: Optional
Wheels/tyres: 15in alloy wheels/235/75R15 tyres
Fresh water: 1 x 82-litre fresh water
Battery: 100Ah deep cycle
Air-conditioner: roof-mounted, Truma Aventa
Gas: 2 x 9kg in front boot
Cooking: Four-burner Dometic gas cooktop, plus gas grill
Fridge: 150-litre Dometic three-way
Microwave: Sphere
Toilet: Thetford cassette?
Shower: Separate moulded ABS cubicle with additional external shower
Lighting: LED throughout
Price (ex-Melb): $45,212
Options fitted (not included in above price):  A-frame extension (spare wheel fitted within the A-frame to allow for bike rack), Fiamma bike rack to rear, 150w solar upgrade in lieu of 120w, External TV point (outlet), Control Panel, External Shower, Picnic Table
Supplied by: Jayco Australia, Dandenong South, Victoria