In February 2018 we visited the The Victorian Caravan show in Melbourne. There we came across Jayco's new FD19, a Ducato based campervan built in Melbourne Australia, which has just made its market entry. We ended up buying it and took delivery 26 April. Below is our review written on 10 May 2018 after a short RV-camping trip.
What we liked
At a drive away price under $100k it represents great value for money.
Featuring a transverse rear queen bed, the FD-19 has a combined shower/toilet/vanity behind a full-height mirror door, two swivel seats facing a two-seater dinette that is seat belted and eligible to carry the grand children the van is sure to impress. Added to this is a galley with a three-burner gas cooktop and a Vitrifrigo 85-litre compressor fridge.
A 100AH battery, a single 120W solar panel and 90L of both fresh and grey water capacity does enable us to free-camp by the roadside or in National Parks.
At 4005 kg and with 130kW / 180 horse powers the van weasels through the mountain ranges quite nicely and the engine purrs like a kitten. The van's automatic gear shifter employs a clutch and that keeps the fuel consumption down at around 10 liters. Especially in rush hour traffic it is important to avoid riding the clutch. The vehicle is not a classic automatic like my trusty old Falcon, nevertheless with 6 gears available the first gear can handle quite low vehicle speeds. The vans 2.3 liter engine meets Euro 6 pollution standards and surpasses Australian emission standards. This is an engine that is designed for better fuel standards then what we currently have down under and it does not even require blue motion fluids. Since the vehicle is not a classic automatic like my trusty old Falcon drivers are advised not to ride the clutch.
The Jayco cabin is equipped with the JHub, which features the latest battery management technology by BMPRO (SETEC). You will be able to use the wall mounted tablet for your media needs as well as to check battery, solar charger and power balance measuring currents flowing in/out the battery.
What we didn't like
When it comes to OFF GRID RV-Camping we have some concerns whether the house battery lasts for 24 hours of refrigeration. The VITRIFRIGO fridge is a one way fridge (12V, no gas, no grid). It only draws 4 amps, but at night it can't be switched off conveniently via the vans control centre, called J-Hub. If you flick the main switch you will give up the cabin lights, TV and sound system, but we found a sneaky way around. The fridge has a hidden off switch which can be accessed after pulling out the bottom drawer. Apart from that, the van only comes with one 4kg gas bottle, which means you could run out of gas as well and I presume without warning. I would suggest to legally carry for backup a gas cartridge cooker ! Adria (Apollo) provides 2x 4.5 kg in its shorter 6m vans ! The sliding door does not have a fly screen, hence the heavy door has to be moved excessively often !
Jaycos current cabin wiring system could be improved by running the 12V fridge via the JHub (J35c Battery management). The system has a vacant third load switching channel.
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